Discourses aimed at supporting the active aging of older adults, particularly through their participation in recreational, voluntary, or civic activities, occupy a prominent place in the field of gerontological studies. However, at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in Quebec, people aged 70 years and older were asked to suspend all activities outside of their homes. How did older people who were members of an associative or community organization experience the public health measures decreed by the government of Quebec as of March 2020? How did the pandemic impact their life course and daily lives? These are the two questions that this research project aimed to answer by mobilizing life course theory and by using a narrative approach to collect the stories of 52 older adults. The relationship to time and age emerges as a central theme in the qualitative thematic analysis. The results call into question representations emphasizing the vulnerability of older people during the COVID-19 pandemic. They shed light on how older adults create, from their living conditions and subjectivity, spaces of agency and resistance in relation to structural health-related constraints and, more broadly, various social prescriptions related to aging.
Discourses aimed at supporting the active aging of older adults, particularly through their participation in recreational, voluntary, or civic activities, occupy a prominent place in the field of gerontological studies. However, at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in Quebec, people aged 70 years and older were asked to suspend all activities outside of their homes. How did older people who were members of an associative or community organization experience the public health measures decreed by the government of Quebec as of March 2020? How did the pandemic impact their life course and daily lives? These are the two questions that this research project aimed to answer by mobilizing life course theory and by using a narrative approach to collect the stories of 52 older adults. The relationship to time and age emerges as a central theme in the qualitative thematic analysis. The results call into question representations emphasizing the vulnerability of older people during the COVID-19 pandemic. They shed light on how older adults create, from their living conditions and subjectivity, spaces of agency and resistance in relation to structural health-related constraints and, more broadly, various social prescriptions related to aging.
This working paper proposes a three-level emergent architecture of social time, describing the transition from timeless informational potentiality through a subjective dimension to collective temporality. Drawing upon Sorkin's anhomomorphic logic and Q-methodology, we argue that social time arises not through the summation of individual states (the classical model), but through the coherence of contextual subjective collapses (the non-classical model). Each level—Information, Measurement/Subjectivity, and Social Time—represents a distinct ontological and logical regime, where transitions are governed by acts of measurement and collective synchronisation. This framework challenges the additive-commutative assumptions of classical sociology, positing social temporality as an emergent effect of non-local, context-dependent interactions. The paper operationalises key sociological concepts—Bourdieu's habitus, Giddens's structuration, and Emirbayer & Mische's temporal agency—through the three-level architecture, demonstrating that these are different manifestations of a single fundamental process: the decoherence of the social. Empirical analysis of Russian public opinion dynamics during the 2022 invasion of Ukraine reveals systematic anomalies in classical explanations (rally effect, fear of repression, propaganda), which are predicted a priori by the quantum coherence model. The paper proposes specific empirical tests for discriminating between classical and non-classical models, including violations of Bell-CHSH inequalities in social correlations. This work is part of a broader research programme connecting the emergence of time in quantum gravity with the emergence of social time through a common logical foundation.
L’idée que « tout procède » peut se réclamer d’Héraclite, de Bergson et de Whitehead. Un réalisme des processus doit supposer que les processus se connectent entre eux. C’est vrai des interactions physiques comme des interactions sociales. Une autre similarité est qu’en physique quantique les connexions des processus d’observations ne peuvent pas être continues par rapport aux processus observés (saut quantique). Or, dans la majorité des interactions sociales, c’est aussi le cas – en particulier quand dans une conversation on parle d’interactions avec d’autres personnes absentes. La combinaison « connexions-discontinuités » introduit, en physique quantique comme dans les interactions sociales, la contrainte de ne pas pouvoir déterminer univoquement le processus visé entre deux processus d’observation, si bien qu’on doit admettre une pluralité possible dans cet intervalle – définie par des amplitudes de probabilité en physique quantique, et liée à différentes virtualités de poursuite ou d’inflexion des interactions sociales.
Diverse cases regarding the impact, with its related factors, of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health have been reported in previous studies. In this study, multivariable datasets were collected from 751 college students who could be easily affected by pandemics based on the complex relationships between various mental health factors. We utilized quantum annealing (QA)-based feature selection algorithms that were executed by commercial D-Wave quantum computers to determine the changes in the relative importance of the associated factors before and after the pandemic. Multivariable linear regression (MLR) and XGBoost models were also applied to validate the QA-based algorithms. Based on the experimental results, we confirm that QA-based algorithms have comparable capabilities in factor analysis research to the MLR models that have been widely used in previous studies. Furthermore, the performance of the QA-based algorithms was validated through the important factor results from the algorithms. Pandemic-related factors (e.g., confidence in the social system) and psychological factors (e.g. decision-making in uncertain situations) were more important in post-pandemic conditions. Although the results should be validated using other mental health variables or national datasets, this study will serve as a reference for researchers regarding the use of the quantum annealing approach in factor analysis with validation through real-world survey dataset analysis.
The rapid development and integration of wearable technologies or Internet-of-Things (IoT) into healthcare technologies with computational methods holds transformative potential for future healthcare systems, especially for personalized health monitoring and early disease detection. In parallel, recent advancements in quantum computing have o↵ered significant interest in quantum machine learning (QML), an intersection of quantum computing and machine learning, which provides a novel hybrid computational paradigm capable of addressing complex healthcare challenges that remain unsolvable with classical machine learning techniques. This thesis explores the application of quantum-enhanced recurrent neural network architectures, specifically Quantum Long Short-Term Memory (QLSTM) and Quantum-based Gated Recurrent Unit (QGRU), for predictive modeling and activity classification in wearable IoT systems, focusing particularly on their applicability and efficacy to elderly populations. One of the key challenges in modern healthcare intelligence systems is the simple but accurate estimation mechanism of Physical Activity Energy Expenditure (PAEE), which is an essential factor for assessing physical health status, particularly for healthy aging. In order to address this challenge, the first work proposes a model called an enhanced QLSTM with linear layer (eQLSTML) that integrates Variational Quantum Circuits (VQCs) into classical LSTM architectures. This integration notably explores the advantages of quantum computing, including properties such as entanglement and superposition, to enhance the model’s ability to capture complex temporal dependencies and subtle variations in human activity patterns. The modelling experiments were evaluated using the publicly available GOTOV Human Physical Activity dataset, which includes accelerometer data collected from older adults engaged in various daily activities. In addition to modelling architecture analysis, this thesis provides comprehensive analyses concerning the scalability, feasibility, and computational complexity of the proposed quantum-enhanced models compared to the classical backbone. The overall results demonstrate that the proposed quantum-enhanced approach significantly outperforms traditional classical machine learning algorithms, which demonstrates the potential ability for accurate predictions and robustness to noisy data like accelerometer data. In addition, accurate classification of activities of daily living (ADLs) is another critical aspect for early disease detection and e↵ective healthcare intervention. Within the context of this thesis, the second work introduces a novel hybrid model called QGRU-Multiclass Classifier (QGRU-MC). The data preprocessing involves creating a statistical feature extraction and applying oversampling techniques – SMOTE-ENN (Synthetic Minority Oversampling Technique with Edited Nearest Neighbors) for the publicly available dataset called “Dataset for ADL recognition with Wrist-worn Accelerometer”. The preliminary findings suggest that our model has good potential for healthcare applications, particularly in advancing future intelligent systems focused on daily activity monitoring. Specifically, QGRU-MC achieved significant improvements in classification accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity across multiple categories of daily activities, highlighting its potential for practical deployment in intelligent wearable systems aimed at monitoring and supporting healthy aging. Furthermore, this work also discusses the future research directions and practical considerations for transforming from the simulators to modern real quantum computers in the noisy intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ) era for a more comprehensive view on exploiting potential impacts on public health policies and personalized healthcare systems. Overall, simulator-based results indicate promising potential for integrating QML methods into wearable healthcare applications such as predictive analytics, personalized treatments, and health disease intervention to improve healthcare outcomes. Specifically, on PAEE regression, the proposed eQLSTML improved R² by 13.2% and reduced RMSE and MAE by 14.8% and 19.1%, respectively, relative to the classical LSTM; on ADL, QGRU-MC demonstrates good macro-averaged metrics across all eight classes (see Chs. 3–4). This research contributes significantly to the growing body of literature supporting quantum computing technologies in healthcare applications, making QML an incredible tool for addressing complex healthrelated computational challenges in the era of big and complex data in medical fields and smart healthcare technologies, especially in e↵ectively solving data from multiple sources, wearable accelerometry, and multi-class ADL recognition with complicated tasks.
Cet article s'interroge sur la légitimité des liens que certains courants de pensée établissent entre la spiritualité et la physique quantique, liens fondés sur l'idée que l'un et l'autre reposeraient sur des dimensions échappant aux contraintes de l'espace et du temps. Il propose que de tels rapprochements, rejetés pour la plupart par la communauté scientifique, pourraient cependant venir d'une juste intuition : celle d'une dimension fondamentale commune se manifestant selon deux apparences : le spirituel et le matériel. Il se réfère pour l'expliquer à la théorie du Vide vivant, dont la spécificité est de décrire un principe fondateur d'essence physique, à partir duquel une telle dimension a pu advenir. L'article expose comment cette dimension fondamentale éclaire ce qui fonde la réputation d'impénétrabilité de la physique quantique, et la rend accessible aux non-physiciens. Il montre enfin comment cette lecture mène à un paradigme élargi à l'intégralité du réel, avec notamment une compréhension inédite de la nature du temps. Les pouvoirs de la pensée y trouvent leur juste mesure.
What will we be learning?We are entering a fascinating world that, I expect, will amaze you.Enter this course with an open mind, but also question everything you learn!Since 1895 most physics discoveries have been "modern".The Newtonian physics from your previous physics courses is classed as "Classical Physics" but we're going modern into a world where Newtonian physics does not work and we end up with incredible science.We will study the quantization of multiple physical properties and through the understanding of solids.Welcome to awesome world of quantum mechanics!So get ready to delve into Modern Physics!This course series (PHYS330 & PHYS331) fulfills the requirements of a Science Perspective core class and is a required course of the Physics major(s) and counts as an elective for Physics minors.The scientific method has resulted in historically unprecedented changes in our world.In this course you will learn how science proceeds, and practice the scientific method yourself in a weekly laboratory experience.You will learn the qualities of a good hypothesis or model, how to assess its validity, the significance of a scientific theory, and the elusiveness of "proof."On completing the course, you will be better able to understand and evaluate scientific or pseudoscientific claims that have direct impacts on your personal and professional life.This course is part of the Xavier Core Curriculum, which aims to develop people of learning and reflection, integrity and achievement, in solidarity for and with others.It addresses the following core learning objectives at the introductory level:• Students recognize and cogently discuss significant questions in the humanities, arts, and the natural and social sciences.• Students find, evaluate, and logically convey information and ideas in written and oral presentations.• Students evaluate problems using quantitative methods and arguments.Xavier University is committed to the health, safety, and care of all individuals within our community.As part of our Ignatian values and in the spirit of cura personalis, Xavier University wishes to disincentivize class attendance when students may be sick.For the duration of the pandemic, students who are ill will be excused from classes.We recommend the following procedures:• Students must adhere to University health and wellness procedures for self-evaluation, follow-up, and quarantine as necessary.• Students who are in quarantine due to close contact with a person who has tested positive for COVID-19, but who are not themselves symptomatic, are expected to attend class remotely and complete course assignments.• Untruthful student claims about illness may be regarded as a violation of the Student Handbook.• If Dr. Morris, or a family member, gets sick then you will receive a Canvas message or email.