scholarly journals A Study of Zero Anaphora Resolution in Chinese Discourse: From the Perspective of Psycholinguistics

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ning Yang ◽  
Jingyu Zhang ◽  
Lijun Ma ◽  
Zhi Lu
Keyword(s):  
Reaction Time ◽  
Time Course ◽  
Underlying Mechanism ◽  
Anaphora Resolution ◽  
Psychological Mechanisms ◽  
Discourse Coherence ◽  
Searching Strategy ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Zero Anaphora ◽  
Close Relationship

Anaphora is the main linguistic means to establish discourse coherence, and anaphora resolution is the psychological process to maintain this coherence. Chinese discourse is characterized with providing multiplicity of linguistic clues to readers by employing various referential apparatuses such as pronoun anaphora, zero anaphora, and so on. As a way of avoiding repeated reference to an object that is mentioned beforehand, zero anaphora is frequently employed in discourse. The production and resolution of zero anaphora largely concerns some constraints underlying psychological mechanisms. We particularly focus on zero anaphora resolution in the present study to try to discover some specific aspects of the underlying mechanism, hoping to find out some factors unique to the resolution process. We designed the first two experiments to probe into the psychological reality when participants were presented with sentences containing either pronoun anaphora or zero anaphora or both under discourse condition with topic continuity in Experiment 1a and topic discontinuity in Experiment 1b. We did not find any significant difference in the reaction time between zero anaphora resolution and pronoun anaphora resolution, indicating that zero anaphora possibly works within the processing mechanism on which pronoun anaphora resolution depends. However, we found significantly longer time in reading the first sentence in any of the discourse, showing that the first-mention effect exists in anaphora resolution. We further explored the time course of zero anaphora resolution by measuring the reaction time during the period when participants read sentences that varied according to the location where zero anaphora occurred under two conditions: topic continuity (Experiment 2a) vs. topic discontinuity (Experiment 2b). The strategies of searching for the referential information were found divergent: the exhaustive searching strategy was adopted when the topics within a discourse were kept continuous and the heuristic searching strategy was employed when the topics were discontinuous. The design of Experiment 5 took the factor of voice type and situation consistency into consideration, investigating in what way do those factors influence the resolution of zero anaphora. The voice type, according to the results, plays a significant role for its exclusively close relationship with the first-mention effect.

Time Course of Simulator Sickness in Asian Military Pilots

2020 ◽  
Vol 91 (11) ◽  
pp. 892-896
Author(s):  
Janine En Qi Loi ◽  
Magdalene Li Ling Lee ◽  
Benjamin Boon Chuan Tan ◽  
Brian See
Keyword(s):  
Air Force ◽  
Time Course ◽  
Simulator Training ◽  
Simulator Sickness ◽  
Time Points ◽  
True Prevalence ◽  
Subjective Scale ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Simulator Sickness Questionnaire ◽  
Military Pilots

INTRODUCTION: This study sought to determine the incidence, severity, and time-course of simulator sickness (SS) among Asian military pilots following flight simulator training.METHODS: A survey was conducted on Republic of Singapore Air Force pilots undergoing simulator training. Each subject completed a questionnaire immediately after (0H), and at the 3-h (3H) and 6-h (6H) marks. The questionnaire included the simulator sickness questionnaire (SSQ) and a subjective scale to rate their confidence to fly.RESULTS: In this study, 258 pilots with a median age of 31.50 yr (range, 2155 yr) and mean age of 32.61 6.56 yr participated. The prevalence of SS was 48.1% at 0H, 30.8% at 3H, and 16.4% at 6H. Based on a threshold of an SSQ score >10, the prevalence of operationally significant SS was 33.3% at 0H, 13.2% at 3H, and 8.1% at 6H. The most frequent symptoms were fatigue (38.1%), eye strain (29.0%), and fullness of head (19.9%). There was no significant difference in mean scores between rotary and fixed wing pilots. Older, more experienced pilots had greater scores at 0H, but this association did not persist. A correlation was found between SSQ score and self-reported confidence.DISCUSSION: To our knowledge, this study is the first to report the prevalence of operationally significant SS in Asian military pilots over serial time points. Most pilots with SS are able to subjectively judge their fitness to fly. Sensitivity analysis suggests the true prevalence of SS symptoms at 3H and 6H to be closer to 23.8% and 12.0%, respectively.Loi JEQ, Lee MLL, Tan BBC, See B. Time course of simulator sickness in Asian military pilots. Aerosp Med Hum Perform. 2020; 91(11):892896.

P6595The optogenetic defibrillation of ventricular arrhythmia in myocardial infarction rats in vivo

2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (Supplement_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
X I Wang ◽  
Y Cheng ◽  
P Rao ◽  
L Wang
Keyword(s):  
Light Intensity ◽  
Ventricular Arrhythmia ◽  
Sinus Rhythm ◽  
Pulse Duration ◽  
Underlying Mechanism ◽  
Blue Laser ◽  
Continuous Illumination ◽  
Threshold Intensity ◽  
Systemic Delivery ◽  
Significant Difference

Abstract Introduction Optogenetics is a low-invasive, flexible and highly selective intervention that enables electrical excitation with light on myocardium overexpressing light-sensitive proteins. Optical illumination can control the simultaneous exciting of the whole myocardium under the spot, which is more conducive to recovery from electrical disturbance to sinus rhythm. Purpose We explored optogenetic defibrillation for different illumination parameters how to affect defibrillation rates and the possible mechanism of continuous illumination defibrillation. Methods Systemic delivery via right jugular vein injection of (AAV9-CAG-hChR2(H134R)-mCherry) were performed in juvenile SD rats to achieve the light sensitive protein Channelrhodopsin-2 (ChR2) transfer throughout the whole heart. We intubated and ventilated rats, opened chest and recorded the ECG. After ligation of the left anterior descending coronary artery, ventricular arrhythmia was induced by electrical burst stimulation (10v, 50Hz, 2s). Cardiac epicardium illumination with 470nm blue laser was performed to investigate the effects of optogenetic defibrillation and its underlying mechanism. Every heart accepted 30 pulses of 20ms duration on 8Hz to test the light intensity threshold for 1:1 capture. Different illumination modes of multiple light intensity (2,4,8,10,20 times threshold intensity), pulse duration (20, 50, 200, 500 and 1000ms) and illumination position (RV apex, RV, RVOT, septum, LV) were applied in each attempt for 4 repetitions with 1 s interval. Results We demonstrated that ventricular arrhythmias could be terminated by illumination of the right ventricle at 20 times threshold intensity in 1s (figure A) with the successful defibrillation rate of 95±2.673% (mean ±SEM; N=7). Herein, the successful optogenetic defibrillation rate was strongly depending on light intensity (N=5, n=50 episodes, p=0.0118) and duration of illumination (N=5, n=50 episodes, p<0.0001) (figure B.C). Notably when there were higher intensity and longer pulse duration, the higher defibrillation rate appeared. There was no significant difference in the defibrillation rate among different illumination positions (N=5, n=25episodes per position, p=0.1177) (figure D). To explore the underlying mechanism of optogenetic defibrillation, we performed the same illumination mode during sinus rhythm in 2 rats (figure E. F. G). We observed that higher light intensity and longer pulse duration were more conducive to induce an episode of higher frequency focal excitement. Views of optogenetic defibrillation Conclusions We demonstrated that optogenetic defibrillation is a highly effective intervention and the possible mechanism is partly attributed to overdrive suppression. We believe that optogenetic approach is potentially to be translated into more efficient and pain-free clinical termination of ventricular arrhythmia. Acknowledgement/Funding The national natural science foundation of China (81772044)

scholarly journals 4-CPA (4-Chlorophenoxyacetic Acid) Induces the Formation and Development of Defective “Fenghou” (Vitis vinifera × V. labrusca) Grape Seeds

Biomolecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 515
Author(s):  
Zhenhua Liu ◽  
Yan Wang ◽  
Wenjiang Pu ◽  
Haifeng Zhu ◽  
Jinjun Liang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Vitis Vinifera ◽  
Outer Integument ◽  
Underlying Mechanism ◽  
Grape Seeds ◽  
Endosperm Tissue ◽  
Seed Shape ◽  
Seed Formation ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Fruit Setting ◽  
Chlorophenoxyacetic Acid

For some horticultural plants, auxins can not only induce normal fruit setting but also form fake seeds in the induced fruits. This phenomenon is relatively rare, and, so far, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. In this study, “Fenghou” (Vitis vinifera × V. labrusca) grapes were artificially emasculated before flowering and then sprayed with 4-CPA (4-chlorophenoxyacetic acid) to analyze its effect on seed formation. The results show that 4-CPA can induce normal fruit setting in “Fenghou” grapes. Although more seeds were detected in the fruits of the 4-CPA-treated grapevine, most seeds were immature. There was no significant difference in the seed shape; namely, both fruit seeds of the grapevines with and without 4-CPA treatment contained a hard seed coat. However, the immature seeds lacked embryo and endosperm tissue and could not germinate successfully; these were considered defective seeds. Tissue structure observation of defective seeds revealed that a lot of tissue redifferentiation occurred at the top of the ovule, which increased the number of cell layers of the outer integument; some even differentiated into new ovule primordia. The qRT-PCR results demonstrated that 4-CPA application regulated the expression of the genes VvARF2 and VvAP2, which are associated with integument development in “Fenghou” grape ovules. Together, this study evokes the regulatory role of 4-CPA in the division and continuous redifferentiation of integument cells, which eventually develop into defective seeds with thick seed coats in grapes.

scholarly journals Computing infection distributions and longitudinal evolution patterns in lung CT images

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dongdong Gu ◽  
Liyun Chen ◽  
Fei Shan ◽  
Liming Xia ◽  
Jun Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Time Course ◽  
Lower Lobe ◽  
Ground Truth ◽  
Distribution Patterns ◽  
Lung Infection ◽  
Ct Images ◽  
Community Acquired Pneumonia ◽  
Disease Course ◽  
Distribution Maps ◽  
Significant Difference

Abstract Background Spatial and temporal lung infection distributions of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and their changes could reveal important patterns to better understand the disease and its time course. This paper presents a pipeline to analyze statistically these patterns by automatically segmenting the infection regions and registering them onto a common template. Methods A VB-Net is designed to automatically segment infection regions in CT images. After training and validating the model, we segmented all the CT images in the study. The segmentation results are then warped onto a pre-defined template CT image using deformable registration based on lung fields. Then, the spatial distributions of infection regions and those during the course of the disease are calculated at the voxel level. Visualization and quantitative comparison can be performed between different groups. We compared the distribution maps between COVID-19 and community acquired pneumonia (CAP), between severe and critical COVID-19, and across the time course of the disease. Results For the performance of infection segmentation, comparing the segmentation results with manually annotated ground-truth, the average Dice is 91.6% ± 10.0%, which is close to the inter-rater difference between two radiologists (the Dice is 96.1% ± 3.5%). The distribution map of infection regions shows that high probability regions are in the peripheral subpleural (up to 35.1% in probability). COVID-19 GGO lesions are more widely spread than consolidations, and the latter are located more peripherally. Onset images of severe COVID-19 (inpatients) show similar lesion distributions but with smaller areas of significant difference in the right lower lobe compared to critical COVID-19 (intensive care unit patients). About the disease course, critical COVID-19 patients showed four subsequent patterns (progression, absorption, enlargement, and further absorption) in our collected dataset, with remarkable concurrent HU patterns for GGO and consolidations. Conclusions By segmenting the infection regions with a VB-Net and registering all the CT images and the segmentation results onto a template, spatial distribution patterns of infections can be computed automatically. The algorithm provides an effective tool to visualize and quantify the spatial patterns of lung infection diseases and their changes during the disease course. Our results demonstrate different patterns between COVID-19 and CAP, between severe and critical COVID-19, as well as four subsequent disease course patterns of the severe COVID-19 patients studied, with remarkable concurrent HU patterns for GGO and consolidations.

scholarly journals Effect of Resonant Frequency Vibration on Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness and Resulting Stiffness as Measured by Shear-Wave Elastography

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (15) ◽  
pp. 7853
Author(s):  
Garrett C. Jones ◽  
Jonathan D. Blotter ◽  
Cameron D. Smallwood ◽  
Dennis L. Eggett ◽  
Darryl J. Cochrane ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Resonant Frequency ◽  
Shear Wave ◽  
Time Course ◽  
Biceps Brachii ◽  
Shear Wave Elastography ◽  
Upper Body ◽  
Maximum Voluntary Isometric Contraction ◽  
Post Exercise ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Pain Ratings

This study utilized resonant frequency vibration to the upper body to determine changes in pain, stiffness and isometric strength of the biceps brachii after eccentric damage. Thirty-one participants without recent resistance training were randomized into three groups: a Control (C) group and two eccentric exercise groups (No vibration (NV) and Vibration (V)). After muscle damage, participants in the V group received upper body vibration (UBV) therapy for 5 min on days 1–4. All participants completed a visual analog scale (VAS), maximum voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC), and shear wave elastography (SWE) of the bicep at baseline (pre-exercise), 24 h, 48 h, and 1-week post exercise. There was a significant difference between V and NV at 24 h for VAS (p = 0.0051), at 24 h and 1-week for MVIC (p = 0.0017 and p = 0.0016, respectively). There was a significant decrease in SWE for the V group from 24–48 h (p = 0.0003), while there was no significant change in the NV group (p = 0.9341). The use of UBV resonant vibration decreased MVIC decrement and reduced VAS pain ratings at 24 h post eccentric damage. SWE was strongly negatively correlated with MVIC and may function as a predictor of intrinsic muscle state in the time course of recovery of the biceps brachii.

Analysis of Task Difficulty under Varying Conditions of Induced Stress

1970 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 343-348 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jerry W. Thornton ◽  
Paul D. Jacobs
Keyword(s):  
Reaction Time ◽  
Choice Reaction Time ◽  
Reaction Time Task ◽  
Simple Reaction Time Task ◽  
Simple Task ◽  
Practical Applications ◽  
Time Task ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Task Relatedness ◽  
Related Stress

Two tasks (simple and choice reaction time) were examined while varying three types of stressors (shock, threat of shock, and noise) and the stressor task relationship (i.e., task-related stress, task-unrelated stress, and no-stress). Four specific hypotheses were tested and 3 were supported in the simple reaction-time task. There were no significant differences among stressors for either task, although greater differences were reported in the simple than in the choice reaction-time task. A significant difference between the “task-relatedness” of stress levels in the simple task was interpreted as possibly due to a “coping” or “protective adaptive mechanism” in which increases in performance serve to reduce stress. Practical applications were examined.

Infused salbutamol accentuates acid-induced lung injury in the rat

1986 ◽  
Vol 71 (2) ◽  
pp. 205-209 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stanley Braude ◽  
David Royston
Keyword(s):  
Lung Injury ◽  
Intravenous Infusion ◽  
Time Course ◽  
Weight Ratio ◽  
Dry Weight ◽  
Adrenergic Agonist ◽  
Lung Water ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
And Control ◽  
Control Infusion

1. The effect in the rat of salbutamol infusion (1 μg min−1 kg−1) on acid-induced lung injury has been determined. Severity of lung injury was assessed by two techniques: the pulmonary clearance of 99mTc-diethylenetriaminepenta-acetate (99mTc-DTPA) and the lung wet/dry weight ratio, giving indices of alveolar epithelial permeability and transendothelial water filtration respectively. 2. Mean half-time of clearance of 99mTc-DTPA was increased significantly in rats who had intratracheal acid-induced injury and control (saline) intravenous infusion (19.4 ± 2.6 min) compared with non-acid-treated rats (98.1 ± 7.2) (P < 0.0001). However, those animals who had intratracheal acid injury and subsequent salbutamol intravenous infusion had significantly faster clearance (11.5 ± 1.9) than the acid and control infusion group (P < 0.05). 3. Gravimetric lung water in the acid-only rats (expressed as wet/dry weight ratio) was increased significantly (6.4 ± 0.3) compared with the non-acid-treated controls (5.4 ± 0.2) (P < 0.01). Acid-treated rats who had salbutamol infused had dramatically increased lung water (10.0 ± 0.6) (P < 0.001 vs acid and control infusion). 4. Intravenous salbutamol infusion itself produced no significant difference in the results for both techniques, compared with the non-acid-treated time-course controls. 5. Infused salbutamol accentuates acid-induced lung injury in the rat. Possible factors responsible for these findings include β2-adrenergic agonist mediated inhibition of hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction (HPV) and a predominant β1-adrenergic agonist inotropic effect of salbutamol with resultant rise in pulmonary artery pressure.

scholarly journals Effect of Head Impact Exposures on Changes in Cognitive Testing

2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 232596711876103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eleni Diakogeorgiou ◽  
Theresa L. Miyashita
Keyword(s):  
Reaction Time ◽  
National Collegiate Athletic Association ◽  
Assessment Tool ◽  
Vital Signs ◽  
Head Impact ◽  
Cognitive Testing ◽  
Repeated Impact ◽  
Level Of Evidence ◽  
Head Impacts ◽  
Significant Difference

Background: Gaining a better understanding of head impact exposures may lead to better comprehension of the possible effects of repeated impact exposures not associated with clinical concussion. Purpose: To assess the correlation between head impacts and any differences associated with cognitive testing measurements pre- and postseason. Study Design: Case-control study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: A total of 34 National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I men’s lacrosse players wore lacrosse helmets instrumented with an accelerometer during the 2014 competitive season and were tested pre- and postseason with the Sport Concussion Assessment Tool (SCAT 3) and Concussion Vital Signs (CVS) computer-based neurocognitive tests. The number of head impacts >20 g and results from the 2 cognitive tests were analyzed for differences and correlation. Results: There was no significant difference between pre- and postseason SCAT 3 scores, although a significant correlation between pre- and postseason cognitive scores on the SCAT 3 and total number of impacts sustained was noted ( r = –0.362, P = .035). Statistically significant improvements on half of the CVS testing components included visual reaction time ( P = .037, d = 0.37), reaction time ( P = .001, d = 0.65), and simple reaction time ( P = .043, d = 0.37), but no correlation with head impacts was noted. Conclusion: This study did not find declines in SCAT 3 or CVS scores over the course of a season among athletes who sustained multiple head impacts but no clinical concussion. Thus, it could not be determined whether there was no cognitive decline among these athletes or whether there may have been subtle declines that could not be measured by the SCAT 3 or CVS.

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