How to install Kubios HRV on a Mac (without parallels)
I love my Mac but unfortunately one of the apps that I use regularly in my research, Kubios HRV, is only available on Windows and Linux. Windows virtualisation apps such as Parallels are great but I think it’s a bit much to shell out $70 or so (not to mention the cost of the Windows OS) to only use one program.
Enter WinOnX.
This app has been designed to Windows apps on your Mac without the need to buy virtualisation software or a Windows licence. Although many people have reported that some apps don’t work I thought I’d take the $4.99 plunge and try my luck.
After some tweaking I’m happy to say that I got Kubios working, here’s how;
- Install WinOnX (Download from the Mac App Store here).
- Download Kubios and install it in WinOnX.
- Download and install the Microsoft visual C++ 2005 SP1 redistributable package (x86) from here in WinOnX.
After completing these stepsKubios should work. I haven’t had the chance to poke around to make sure everything works but it successfully loads files and analyses data so it looks good so far. The only problem that I’ve found is that it has trouble saving the results as PDF, however saving as text or Matlab file works.
Even if you have virtualisation software I think this would be handy as it’s far quicker to load WinOnX not to mention taking up less CPU and memory resources.
Enjoy!
Mood disorders and heart rate variability: Implications for cardiovascular risk
A new paper that I co-authored has just been published in PLoS.
Crows Nest Rotary Club presentation
I’m putting the finishing touches on a presentation I’m giving today to the Crows Nest Rotary Club who are generously supporting my research. I’ll be giving an overview of what I’ve done so far and the plans for this year’s research.
An app review of “DepressionCheck”… What’s the diagnosis?
Can an iPhone app accurately assess your risk for depression? I just wrote a brief app review for an article on medical iPhone apps. Check it out here.
Good start to the working year
Just got a fairly positive response to an ethics application that I submitted late last year which means I’ll be able to start my new experiment sooner rather than later.
Is peer review a coin toss?
The interest in a journal’s acceptance rate seems to be linked to the attitude that peer review is a coin toss, and hence the overall acceptance rate can predict the fate of each paper.
Where does this attitude come from? Does it have any basis in reality?
Using a bucket of salt water is a lot easier than someone’s head when troubleshooting an EEG cap.
This is your brain on 40,000 ecstasy tablets
Surprisingly, structural MRI revealed no atrophy or lesions. However, this huge lifetime intake did some nasty things to the patients’ memory and concentration.
You Too Can Be a Snake Oil Salesman
Came across this tongue-in-cheek article (via @BoraZ) on how to push dodgy supplements, health products, or new treatments. The best part is on those “Magic Bracelets.”
For “magic bracelet” type products it’s even easier. Your product essentially works by magic, so just throw out a bunch of technobabble that doesn’t mean anything. Keep up with the latest buzzwords for maximal effectiveness, but here are some suggestions: “Balances your energy frequencies,” “Quantum whatever,” “Works on the nano cellular level, “Resonates with your connecticazoit.” Make sure to include at least one reference to “quantum” or “energy” and you’re good.
Brilliant.
The only thing “magic” about these bands is how many that have actually sold.
Personally though, my pet peeve is when they say their supplement/product/treatment has been “Scientifically tested.” So it was only “tested?” Who was tested it? What were the results?
If they don’t even bother to provide peer-reviewed evidence, no matter how much it’s misconstrued, then you should probably steer clear.
This isn’t to say all supplements are bad though.
If you’re fighting a cold take some zinc as it’s one of the few things that actually works to reduce the severity and duration of colds.
The adolescent brain isn’t a defective adult brain, but a finely tuned teen brain.
