The over-estimation of distance for self-voice versus other-voice

Self-related stimuli are important cues for people to recognize themselves in the external world and hold a special status in our perceptual system. Self-voice plays an important role in daily social communication and is also a frequent input for self-identification. Although many studies have been conducted on the acoustic features of self-voice, no research has ever examined the spatial aspect, although the spatial perception of voice is important for humans. This study proposes a novel perspective for studying self-voice. We investigated people’s distance perception of their own voice when the voice was heard from an external position. Participants heard their own voice from one of four speakers located either 90 or 180 cm from their sitting position, either immediately after uttering a short vowel (i.e., active session) or hearing the replay of their own pronunciation (i.e., replay session). They were then asked to indicate which speaker they heard the voice from. Their voices were either pitch-shifted by ± 4 semitones (i.e., other-voice condition) or unaltered (i.e., self-voice condition). The results of spatial judgment showed that self-voice from the closer speakers was misattributed to that from the speakers further away at a significantly higher proportion than other-voice. This phenomenon was also observed when the participants remained silent and heard prerecorded voices. Additional structural equation modeling using participants’ schizotypal scores showed that the effect of self-voice on distance perception was significantly associated with the score of delusional thoughts (Peters Delusion Inventory) and distorted body image (Perceptual Aberration Scale) in the active speaking session but not in the replay session. The findings of this study provide important insights for understanding how people process self-related stimuli when there is a small distortion and how this may be linked to the risk of psychosis.

STEM-EELS Investigation of Planar Defects in Olivine in the Allende Meteorite

The present study focuses on a detailed structural investigation at atomic scale of the planar defects that appear in the olivine grains in the Allende meteorite, and it aims to clarify their nature and the related formation mechanism. The investigation was performed using advanced spectro-microscopy techniques such as atomically resolved high-angle annular dark field (HAADF) images coupled with electron energy loss spectroscopy in the scanning transmission electron microscopy mode (STEM-EELS). Two prominent structural features appear in the investigated olivine grains: (i) Exsolution platelets with a thickness between 2 and 10 nm with the spinel structure and chemical composition expressed as a solid solution between magnetite, chromite, and MgAl2O4. (ii) Thinner planar defects appeared with thickness between 2 to 4 atomic planes, which were rich in Fe and had a strong Fe3+ contribution. The structure of these defects was described by the crystalline lattice of the olivine grains with small distortion of the measured cationic distances, which can be related to Fe3+-Si substitution in the tetrahedral sites. Those metastable defects should have preceded the formation of the thicker spinel exsolutions and could have formed during an oxidizing event in the Allende parent body.

Ultrasonography Findings of Breast Microcalcifications without Accompanying Mass and Evaluation of Ultrasound-Guided Biopsy Results

Objective: Ultrasonography guided core needle biopsy is a real-time, inexpensive method with higher patient comfort. The aim of this study was to evaluate ultrasonography findings of microcalcifications without accompanying mass and also to investigate the accuracy of ultrasonography guided core needle biopsy results. Materials and Methods: The study included a total of 54 patients, with microcalcifications observed on mammography and no accompanying mass, who underwent ultrasonography guided core needle biopsy and surgical excision. Core needle biopsy specimen x-rays were obtained from 23 patients. In 11 patients, the location of microcalcification was confirmed by mammography following the administration of contrast agent under ultrasonography guidance. Ultrasonography findings of microcalcifications were identified. The results of ultrasonography guided core needle biopsy were compared with the excisional pathology results. Results: The microcalcifications without accompanying mass were presented with punctate echogenous foci, hypoechoic area, small distortion, ductal abnormality or fibrocystic changes on ultrasonography. Hypoechoic area and distortion were seen more in malignant lesions, and fibrocystic changes and ductal abnormalities in benign lesions but the difference was not statistically significant. The agreement between ultrasonography guided core needle biopsy and the excisional pathology results was high (Kappa = 0.781). When a specimen x-ray was obtained or core needle biopsy was performed after confirming the location of the microcalcifications with the use of contrast agent, Kappa values were even higher (0.87 and 1, respectively). Conclusions: Microcalcifications can be seen with targeted ultrasonography imaging and ultrasonography guided core needle biopsy has high accuracy. Taking a specimen x-ray, or biopsy performed after identifying of the location of microcalcifications with a trace amount of contrast agent, can increase the accuracy of ultrasonography guided core needle biopsy.

A New Reversible Data Hiding Technique Combined with Interpolation and Pixel Value Differencing Method

Steganography is the popular security method that provides complete security for communicating secret details. Image steganography is a very interesting field because of the imperceptible way of hiding data in images, since small distortion in the images cannot be identified by a human eye. This is the main idea to develop image steganography algorithms to improve visual quality. Pixel Value Differencing is able to provide a high quality stego image in spite of the high capacity of the concealed information. This paper proposes the first the interpolation techniques with the pixel block then applying then the Pixel Value Differencing method. Here in the first phase the original image is portioned into 2X2 block then applying the nearest neighbour interpolation technique after that in the second phase PVD is used to embed the secret data. Then the new pixel value of the neighbouring pixel also calculated. In this paper one variant are proposed by using single range table. We observed that for both the variant PSNR value and the hiding capacity are increased.

The Use of a Microscale Physical Model to Simulate Bankfull Discharge in the Lower Reaches of the Yellow River

Microscale physical models (MSPMs) were once widely used in flood planning in large basins. They fell out of favor but are now being used again. This paper explores the benefits of using such a model for understanding a flood problem on the Lower Yellow River (LYR). We constructed an indoor MSPM of a nearly 800-km reach of the LYR. The model had different scales in the longitudinal, transverse, and vertical directions, and we adjusted the slope of the model. Meanwhile, a real-time water level monitoring system and an automatic flow control system were built on the MSPM to automatically control hydrodynamic testing. Through several discharge experiments, bankfull discharge for multiple MSPM sections was obtained and compared with measured data from the corresponding hydrological section of the prototype during the early flood season of 2016. The comparison demonstrated good linear correlation. The analysis of model similarity showed that although there was some deviation in gravity similarity between the MSPM and the prototype, the model discharge scale derived from resistance similarity adequately described the relationship between the model and the prototype bankfull discharge. Further analysis of the relationship between the model and the prototype bankfull discharge revealed that a split-line line may be better than a single regression line. A MSPM could reproduce the bankfull discharge of the LYR with the nearly 800-km reach in the laboratory which is impossible for a small distortion rate physical model, and obtain a result close to that of the assimilated numerical model.

trans-Bis(2,2′-bipyridine-4,4′-dicarboxylic acid-κ2 N,N′)dichloridoruthenium(III) perchlorate

In the crystal structure of the ruthenium(III) complex, trans-[RuIII(dcbpy)2Cl2]ClO4 (dcbpy = 2,2′-bipyridine-4,4′-dicarboxylic acid, C12H8N2O4), the RuIII atom lies on an inversion centre, showing a small distortion in its octahedral environment. The Ru—Cl bond lengths are shorter than those present in the analogous trans-ruthenium(II) compound containing the bipyridine ligand. The C—O distances in the two symmetry-independent carboxylic acid moieties of the ligand are similar in one group, but different in the other. This is probably due to the different intermolecular interactions they experience with neighbouring cationic complexes. The hydrogen-bonding interactions in which they are involved form a three-dimensional structure, similar to those found in coordination polymers.

Clifford’s attempt to test his gravitation hypothesis

Almost half a century before Einstein expounded his general theory of relativity, the English mathematicianWilliam Kingdon Clifford argued that space might not be Euclidean and proposed that matter is nothing but a small distortion in that spatial curvature. He further proposed that matter in motion is not more than the simple variation in space of this distortion. In this work, we conjecture that Clifford went further than his aforementioned proposals, as he tried to show that matter effectively curves space. For this purpose he made an unsuccessful observation on the change of the plane of polarization of the skylight during the solar eclipse of December 22, 1870 in Sicily.

Dynamic behavior of a nematic liquid crystal mixed with CoFe2O4 ferromagnetic nanoparticles in a magnetic field

The dynamic behavior of a mixture of 4-cyano-4′-pentylbiphenyl (5CB) with 1% CoFe2O4 nanoparticles was analyzed. Experimental data indicate a high stability of the nematic director in the mixture compared to a reference 5CB sample in the magnetic field. The ferrite nanoparticles agglomerate forming long chains as observed in polarized microscopy images. These chains have a very high influence on the magneto-optic effect of the cell. When the magnetic field is applied on the mixture, the chains tend to align with the field direction but, due to their large size, they remain oriented obliquely between the support plates. Thus, the nematic molecules anchored on their surface can not reorient with the field and only a small distortion angle of the liquid crystal molecular director is observed. A comparison with a previously developed theoretical model confirms this small deviation.