Classification of Infant Vocalizations by Untrained Listeners

2019 ◽  
Vol 62 (9) ◽  
pp. 3265-3275
Author(s):  
Heather L. Ramsdell-Hudock ◽  
Anne S. Warlaumont ◽  
Lindsey E. Foss ◽  
Candice Perry

Purpose To better enable communication among researchers, clinicians, and caregivers, we aimed to assess how untrained listeners classify early infant vocalization types in comparison to terms currently used by researchers and clinicians. Method Listeners were caregivers with no prior formal education in speech and language development. A 1st group of listeners reported on clinician/researcher-classified vowel, squeal, growl, raspberry, whisper, laugh, and cry vocalizations obtained from archived video/audio recordings of 10 infants from 4 through 12 months of age. A list of commonly used terms was generated based on listener responses and the standard research terminology. A 2nd group of listeners was presented with the same vocalizations and asked to select terms from the list that they thought best described the sounds. Results Classifications of the vocalizations by listeners largely overlapped with published categorical descriptors and yielded additional insight into alternate terms commonly used. The biggest discrepancies were found for the vowel category. Conclusion Prior research has shown that caregivers are accurate in identifying canonical babbling, a major prelinguistic vocalization milestone occurring at about 6–7 months of age. This indicates that caregivers are also well attuned to even earlier emerging vocalization types. This supports the value of continuing basic and clinical research on the vocal types infants produce in the 1st months of life and on their potential diagnostic utility, and may also help improve communication between speech-language pathologists and families.

2019 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-59
Author(s):  
Olena O. Lavrentieva ◽  
Lina M. Rybalko ◽  
Oleh O. Tsys ◽  
Aleksandr D. Uchitel

In the article the possibilities and classification of ICTs and tools that can be used in organizing students’ independent study activities of higher education institutions has been explored. It is determined the students’ independent study activities is individual, group, collective activity and is implemented within the process of education under the condition of no pedagogy’s direct involvement. It complies with the requirements of the curriculum and syllabus and is aimed at students’ acquisition of some social experiences in line with the learning objectives of vocational training. The analysis of the latest information and technological approaches to the organization of students’ independent study activities made it possible to determine the means of realization of the leading forms of organization for this activity (independent and research work, lectures, consultations and non- formal education), to characterize and classify the ICTs and tools that support presentation of teaching materials, electronic communication, mastering of learning material, monitoring of students’ learning and cognitive activity, such as ones that serve for the sake of development and support of automated training courses, systems of remote virtual education with elements of artificial intelligence, which implement the principle of adaptive management of learning and the organization of students’ independent study activities. The paper provides the insight into the essence of the conducted investigation on the assesses of the effectiveness of ICTs and tools in the process of organizing students’ independent study activities.


2018 ◽  
Vol 61 (6) ◽  
pp. 1369-1380 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda Seidl ◽  
Alejandrina Cristia ◽  
Melanie Soderstrom ◽  
Eon-Suk Ko ◽  
Emily A. Abel ◽  
...  

Purpose One promising early marker for autism and other communicative and language disorders is early infant speech production. Here we used daylong recordings of high- and low-risk infant–mother dyads to examine whether acoustic–prosodic alignment as well as two automated measures of infant vocalization are related to developmental risk status indexed via familial risk and developmental progress at 36 months of age. Method Automated analyses of the acoustics of daylong real-world interactions were used to examine whether pitch characteristics of one vocalization by the mother or the child predicted those of the vocalization response by the other speaker and whether other features of infants' speech in daylong recordings were associated with developmental risk status or outcomes. Results Low-risk and high-risk dyads did not differ in the level of acoustic–prosodic alignment, which was overall not significant. Further analyses revealed that acoustic–prosodic alignment did not predict infants' later developmental progress, which was, however, associated with two automated measures of infant vocalizations (daily vocalizations and conversational turns). Conclusions Although further research is needed, these findings suggest that automated measures of vocalizations drawn from daylong recordings are a possible early identification tool for later developmental progress/concerns. Supplemental Material https://osf.io/cdn3v/


Sensors ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (22) ◽  
pp. 6675
Author(s):  
Szymon Sieciński ◽  
Paweł S. Kostka ◽  
Ewaryst J. Tkacz

Gyrocardiography (GCG) is a non-invasive technique of analyzing cardiac vibrations by a MEMS (microelectromechanical system) gyroscope placed on a chest wall. Although its history is short in comparison with seismocardiography (SCG) and electrocardiography (ECG), GCG becomes a technique which may provide additional insight into the mechanical aspects of the cardiac cycle. In this review, we describe the summary of the history, definition, measurements, waveform description and applications of gyrocardiography. The review was conducted on about 55 works analyzed between November 2016 and September 2020. The aim of this literature review was to summarize the current state of knowledge in gyrocardiography, especially the definition, waveform description, the physiological and physical sources of the signal and its applications. Based on the analyzed works, we present the definition of GCG as a technique for registration and analysis of rotational component of local cardiac vibrations, waveform annotation, several applications of the gyrocardiography, including, heart rate estimation, heart rate variability analysis, hemodynamics analysis, and classification of various cardiac diseases.


Author(s):  
Ryan Muldoon

Existing models of the division of cognitive labor in science assume that scientists have a particular problem they want to solve and can choose between different approaches to solving the problem. In this essay I invert the approach, supposing that scientists have fixed skills and seek problems to solve. This allows for a better explanation of increasing rates of cooperation in science, as well as flows of scientists between fields of inquiry. By increasing the realism of the model, we gain additional insight into the social structure of science and gain the ability to ask new questions about the optimal division of labor.


BMC Medicine ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bimandra A. Djaafara ◽  
Charles Whittaker ◽  
Oliver J. Watson ◽  
Robert Verity ◽  
Nicholas F. Brazeau ◽  
...  

Abstract Background As in many countries, quantifying COVID-19 spread in Indonesia remains challenging due to testing limitations. In Java, non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) were implemented throughout 2020. However, as a vaccination campaign launches, cases and deaths are rising across the island. Methods We used modelling to explore the extent to which data on burials in Jakarta using strict COVID-19 protocols (C19P) provide additional insight into the transmissibility of the disease, epidemic trajectory, and the impact of NPIs. We assess how implementation of NPIs in early 2021 will shape the epidemic during the period of likely vaccine rollout. Results C19P burial data in Jakarta suggest a death toll approximately 3.3 times higher than reported. Transmission estimates using these data suggest earlier, larger, and more sustained impact of NPIs. Measures to reduce sub-national spread, particularly during Ramadan, substantially mitigated spread to more vulnerable rural areas. Given current trajectory, daily cases and deaths are likely to increase in most regions as the vaccine is rolled out. Transmission may peak in early 2021 in Jakarta if current levels of control are maintained. However, relaxation of control measures is likely to lead to a subsequent resurgence in the absence of an effective vaccination campaign. Conclusions Syndromic measures of mortality provide a more complete picture of COVID-19 severity upon which to base decision-making. The high potential impact of the vaccine in Java is attributable to reductions in transmission to date and dependent on these being maintained. Increases in control in the relatively short-term will likely yield large, synergistic increases in vaccine impact.


Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 56
Author(s):  
Martina Miloloža ◽  
Dajana Kučić Grgić ◽  
Tomislav Bolanča ◽  
Šime Ukić ◽  
Matija Cvetnić ◽  
...  

High living standards and a comfortable modern way of life are related to an increased usage of various plastic products, yielding eventually the generation of an increased amount of plastic debris in the environment. A special concern is on microplastics (MPs), recently classified as contaminants of emerging concern (CECs). This review focuses on MPs’ adverse effects on the environment based on their bioactivity. Hence, the main topic covered is MPs’ ecotoxicity on various aquatic (micro)organisms such as bacteria, algae, daphnids, and fish. The cumulative toxic effects caused by MPs and adsorbed organic/inorganic pollutants are presented and critically discussed. Since MPs’ bioactivity, including ecotoxicity, is strongly influenced by their properties (e.g., types, size, shapes), the most common classification of MPs types present in freshwater are provided, along with their main characteristics. The review includes also the sources of MPs discharge in the environment and the currently available characterization methods for monitoring MPs, including identification and quantification, to obtain a broader insight into the complex problem caused by the presence of MPs in the environment.


Cancers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 1909
Author(s):  
Joachim T. Siaw ◽  
Jonatan L. Gabre ◽  
Ezgi Uçkun ◽  
Marc Vigny ◽  
Wancun Zhang ◽  
...  

Aberrant activation of anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) drives neuroblastoma (NB). Previous work identified the RET receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) as a downstream target of ALK activity in NB models. We show here that ALK activation in response to ALKAL2 ligand results in the rapid phosphorylation of RET in NB cells, providing additional insight into the contribution of RET to the ALK-driven gene signature in NB. To further address the role of RET in NB, RET knockout (KO) SK-N-AS cells were generated by CRISPR/Cas9 genome engineering. Gene expression analysis of RET KO NB cells identified a reprogramming of NB cells to a mesenchymal (MES) phenotype that was characterized by increased migration and upregulation of the AXL and MNNG HOS transforming gene (MET) RTKs, as well as integrins and extracellular matrix components. Strikingly, the upregulation of AXL in the absence of RET reflects the development timeline observed in the neural crest as progenitor cells undergo differentiation during embryonic development. Together, these findings suggest that a MES phenotype is promoted in mesenchymal NB cells in the absence of RET, reflective of a less differentiated developmental status.


2005 ◽  
Vol 37 (5) ◽  
pp. 895-907 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ari Goelman

My research explores the question: how can theorists better understand the ways in which planning technologies are used by municipal planners? In the case-study municipality, a recently introduced web-GIS technology had little demonstrable success in attaining two of its stated goals: enabling increased public access to municipal geographic information and encouraging planners to produce their own maps. My research links these outcomes not only to the technologies themselves, but to organizational structure and human agency. Planners and planning theorists can gain additional insight into the impact of planning technologies through closer attention to the process through which planners come to use information technologies and the way this process both alters and is constrained by existing organizational constraints, including previously adopted technologies.


2010 ◽  
Vol 147 (1) ◽  
pp. 161-187 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jérémy Blanc ◽  
Frédéric Mangolte

AbstractIn this article we study the transitivity of the group of automorphisms of real algebraic surfaces. We characterize real algebraic surfaces with very transitive automorphism groups. We give applications to the classification of real algebraic models of compact surfaces: these applications yield new insight into the geometry of the real locus, proving several surprising facts on this geometry. This geometry can be thought of as a half-way point between the biregular and birational geometries.


2015 ◽  
Vol 130 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-31 ◽  
Author(s):  
S Degeest ◽  
P Corthals ◽  
I Dhooge ◽  
H Keppler

AbstractObjective:This study aimed to determine the characteristics of tinnitus and tinnitus-related variables and explore their possible relationship with tinnitus-related handicap.Methods:Eighty-one patients with chronic tinnitus were included. The study protocol measured hearing status, tinnitus pitch, loudness, maskability and loudness discomfort levels. All patients filled in the Tinnitus Sample Case History Questionnaire, the Hyperacusis Questionnaire and the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory. The relationship of each variable with the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory score was evaluated by univariate and multivariate analyses.Results:Five univariables were associated with the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory score: loudness discomfort level, subjective tinnitus loudness, tinnitus awareness, noise intolerance and Hyperacusis Questionnaire score. Multiple regression analysis showed that the Hyperacusis Questionnaire score and tinnitus awareness were independently associated with the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory score.Conclusion:Hyperacusis and tinnitus awareness were independently associated with the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory score. Questionnaires on tinnitus and hyperacusis are especially suited to providing additional insight into tinnitus-related handicap and are therefore useful for evaluating tinnitus patients.


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