Vowel Duration Characteristics of Esophageal Speech

1976 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 678-689 ◽  
Author(s):  
John M. Christensen ◽  
Bernd Weinberg
Keyword(s):  
Vowel Duration ◽  
Esophageal Speech ◽  
Air Supply

The duration of a large number of representative vowels produced by 10 esophageal and nine normal speakers were measured. Overall vowel durations of esophageal speakers were consistently longer than those of normal speakers, indicating that esophageal speakers do not compensate for their striking diminution in air supply for speech by decreasing vowel duration. The differences in the vowel duration characteristics between normal and esophageal speakers were observed to vary systematically as a function of the voicing features of their consonant environments. Specifically, the durations of vowels of esophageal speakers spoken within voiceless consonant environments were consistently longer than those spoken in similar contexts by normal speakers. There were no significant differences between the average durations of vowels spoken by normal and esophageal speakers within voiced consonant environments. The observation that the durations of vowels produced by esophageal speakers differed significantly as a function of the voicing features of their consonant context was interpreted to support the belief that inherent, rule-governed durational features of English are retained following laryngeal amputation.

Speech Production and Oral Motor Skill in an Adult with an Unrepaired Palatal Cleft

1985 ◽  
Vol 50 (3) ◽  
pp. 254-261 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuel G. Fletcher
Keyword(s):  
Speech Production ◽  
Visual Feedback ◽  
Motor Skill ◽  
Sound Production ◽  
Precise Control ◽  
Oral Motor ◽  
Esophageal Speech ◽  
Air Supply

The aim of this study was to identify maneuvers and strategies that enabled an adult speaker to produce "pressure" consonants intelligibly despite an open cleft of the palate. Dynamic palatometry indicated that this was achieved in part by increasing linguapalatal contact in stop sound production and narrowing the linguapalatal groove in sibilant sound production. These adaptations apparently enabled the talker to compensate for reduced air supply in a manner similar to that identified previously in responses of subjects with esophageal speech. Oral motor skill was examined in a nonspeech task that involved tongue tip placement at six points along the palate with and without visual feedback. This revealed precise control of the tongue even in the region of the cleft. Less accurate tongue placement skills were found in the central palatal region despite intactness of the palate. This supports the hypothesis that phonetic inventories of human languages are shaped by oral motor capabilities.

Influence of Postvocalic Consonants on Vowel Duration in Esophageal Speech

1980 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 149-158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jack Gandour ◽  
Bernd Weinberg ◽  
Diane Rutkowski
Keyword(s):  
Vowel Duration ◽  
Esophageal Speech

Airway Resistance during Esophageal Phonation

1982 ◽  
Vol 47 (2) ◽  
pp. 194-199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bernd Weinberg ◽  
Yoshiyuki Horii ◽  
Eric Blom ◽  
Mark Singer
Keyword(s):  
Speech Production ◽  
Airway Resistance ◽  
Voice Restoration ◽  
Esophageal Speech ◽  
Airways Resistance ◽  
Restoration Method

Prosthesis airway resistance calculations were completed for five Blom-Singer prostheses and esophageal source airway resistance estimated were made of five laryngectomized patients using the Singer-Blom voice restoration method. Airway resistance of the Blom-Singer prostheses ranged from 46 to 121 cmH 2 O/LPS, while source airways resistance in these subjects ranged from about 155 to 270 cmH 2 O/LPS. These results revealed that the opposition of the voicing sources used in esophageal speech production to airflow through them is substantial and larger than that established for the normal, laryngeal source. Findings are interpreted to highlight major advantages the Singer-Blom (1980) method of speech/voice restoration has over esophageal speech/voice produced on a conventional basis and to reveal specific reasons for the failure of may laryngectomized patients to develop consistent voice and functionally serviceable speech.

Temporal Characteristics of Speech in Simultaneous Communication

1995 ◽  
Vol 38 (5) ◽  
pp. 1014-1024 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert L. Whitehead ◽  
Nicholas Schiavetti ◽  
Brenda H. Whitehead ◽  
Dale Evan Metz
Keyword(s):  
Pause Duration ◽  
Vowel Duration ◽  
Vowel Perception ◽  
Temporal Characteristics ◽  
Spoken English ◽  
Temporal Features ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Word Duration ◽  
Rate Of Speech ◽  
Speech Condition

The purpose of this investigation was twofold: (a) to determine if there are changes in specific temporal characteristics of speech that occur during simultaneous communication, and (b) to determine if known temporal rules of spoken English are disrupted during simultaneous communication. Ten speakers uttered sentences consisting of a carrier phrase and experimental CVC words under conditions of: (a) speech, (b) speech combined with signed English, and (c) speech combined with signed English for every word except the CVC word that was fingerspelled. The temporal features investigated included: (a) sentence duration, (b) experimental CVC word duration, (c) vowel duration in experimental CVC words, (d) pause duration before and after experimental CVC words, and (e) consonantal effects on vowel duration. Results indicated that for all durational measures, the speech/sign/fingerspelling condition was longest, followed by the speech/sign condition, with the speech condition being shortest. It was also found that for all three speaking conditions, vowels were longer in duration when preceding voiced consonants than vowels preceding their voiceless cognates, and that a low vowel was longer in duration than a high vowel. These findings indicate that speakers consistently reduced their rate of speech when using simultaneous communication, but did not violate these specific temporal rules of English important for consonant and vowel perception.

Skin Cooling on Breath-Hold Duration and Predicted Emergency Air Supply Duration During Immersion

2020 ◽  
Vol 91 (7) ◽  
pp. 578-585
Author(s):  
Victory C. Madu ◽  
Heather Carnahan ◽  
Robert Brown ◽  
Kerri-Ann Ennis ◽  
Kaitlyn S. Tymko ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Minute Ventilation ◽  
Hold Time ◽  
Whole Body ◽  
Breath Hold ◽  
Endurance Time ◽  
Skin Exposure ◽  
Breathing Apparatus ◽  
Air Supply ◽  
Skin Cooling ◽  
Breath Hold Duration

PURPOSE: This study was intended to determine the effect of skin cooling on breath-hold duration and predicted emergency air supply duration during immersion.METHODS: While wearing a helicopter transport suit with a dive mask, 12 subjects (29 ± 10 yr, 78 ± 14 kg, 177 ± 7 cm, 2 women) were studied in 8 and 20°C water. Subjects performed a maximum breath-hold, then breathed for 90 s (through a mouthpiece connected to room air) in five skin-exposure conditions. The first trial was out of water for Control (suit zipped, hood on, mask off). Four submersion conditions included exposure of the: Partial Face (hood and mask on); Face (hood on, mask off); Head (hood and mask off); and Whole Body (suit unzipped, hood and mask off).RESULTS: Decreasing temperature and increasing skin exposure reduced breath-hold time (to as low as 10 ± 4 s), generally increased minute ventilation (up to 40 ± 15 L · min−1), and decreased predicted endurance time (PET) of a 55-L helicopter underwater emergency breathing apparatus. In 8°C water, PET decreased from 2 min 39 s (Partial Face) to 1 min 11 s (Whole Body).CONCLUSION: The most significant factor increasing breath-hold and predicted survival time was zipping up the suit. Face masks and suit hoods increased thermal comfort. Therefore, wearing the suits zipped with hoods on and, if possible, donning the dive mask prior to crashing, may increase survivability. The results have important applications for the education and preparation of helicopter occupants. Thermal protective suits and dive masks should be provided.Madu VC, Carnahan H, Brown R, Ennis K-A, Tymko KS, Hurrie DMG, McDonald GK, Cornish SM, Giesbrecht GG. Skin cooling on breath-hold duration and predicted emergency air supply duration during immersion. Aerosp Med Hum Perform. 2020; 91(7):578–585.

Esophageal Speech

2018 ◽  
Vol 69 (2) ◽  
pp. 95-95
Author(s):  
I. Uemaetomari
Keyword(s):  
Esophageal Speech
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