Effects of an Artificially Lengthened Vocal Tract on Glottal Closed Quotient in Untrained Male Voices

The use of hard-walled narrow tubes, often called resonance tubes, for the purpose of voice therapy and voice training has a historical precedent and some theoretical support, but the mechanism of any potential benefit from the application of this technique has remained poorly understood. Fifteen vocally untrained male participants produced a series of spoken /Ψ/ vowels at a modal pitch and constant loudness, followed by a minute of repeated phonation into a hard-walled glass tube at the same pitch and loudness targets. The tube parameters and tube phonation task criteria were selected according to theoretical calculations predicting an increase in the acoustic load such that phonation would occur under conditions of near-maximum inertive reactance. Following tube phonation, each participant repeated a similar series of spoken /Ψ/ vowels. Electroglottography (EGG) was used to measure the glottal closed quotient (CQ) during each phase of the experiment. A single-subject, multiple-baseline design with direct replication across subjects was used to identify any changes in CQ across the phases of the experiment. Single-subject analysis using the method of Statistical Process Control (SPC) revealed statistically significant changes in CQ during tube phonation, but with no discernable pattern across the 15 participants. These results indicate that the use of resonance tubes can have a distinct effect on glottal closure, but the mechanism behind this change remains unclear. The implication is that vocal loading techniques such as this need to be studied further with specific attention paid to the underlying mechanism of any measured changes in glottal behavior, and especially to the role of instruction and feedback in the therapeutic and pedagogical application of these techniques

The Direction of Research and Management of Double-crested Cormorants Heading into the 2000s: Symposium Overview and Future Information Needs

An overview is provided of a symposium on the direction of research and management of Doublecrested Cormorants (Phalacrocorax auritus) heading into the 2000s. The current symposium built on previous efforts and described a number of focus areas of informational need, including cormorant impacts on natural resources, demographics of cormorants, assessment of control efforts, assessment of fish consumption and bioenergetics, and cormorant spatial ecology and influences on movements. The cormorant symposium highlighted a shift in research focus relative to earlier symposia, from evaluating potential impacts on commercial and natural resources to evaluating management actions in attaining desired goals. In addition, the symposium addressed the pressing need to obtain baseline information on cormorant population demographics. The shift reflects a response to increasing management efforts and intensity in North America and the need to understand the effects and effectiveness of increased cormorant control at several spatial scales. The symposium furthered communication and the sharing of information on cormorant issues in North America. However, uncertainty regarding impacts to cormorants associated with policy changes and management actions and outcomes presents significant future challenges

Head-Tracking Wireless Streaming Device

In various businesses and services, there is a need for tight integration between visual media, human response to that media, and coordination of that response. For example, emergency responders may need information from a separate perspective using robotically controlled cameras in order to improve coordination efforts. The aim of this project is to design a low cost, high performance video streaming device. The essential feature of our design is to wirelessly send a video stream from a webcam to a micro-display and remotely control the orientation of the webcam using head movements. There are many future applications for this project including target recognition, blind spot detection, robotics, human studies, and security. Future improvements include the utilization of a transparent screen using OLED technology, power aware computing, data overlay onto the image displayed to the user, and a more ergonomic electronic solution.https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/capstone/1042/thumbnail.jp

Setting Farmers Free: Righting the Unintended Anomaly of UCC Section 9-312(2)

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Bureaucracy, Democracy and Westminster: The Quest for Political Control

This thesis argues that a Weberian process of bureaucratisation poses a serious threat in itself to the central values and ideals of liberal democracy. Such a threat arises not only from the bureaucratic pathology of 'goal displacement' of substantive ends by instrumental means, but also, because of this pathology, its tendency to mask and embed ideological challenges to liberal democracy. An effective liberal political constitution is therefore necessary to maintain the democratic control of bureaucracy while exploiting the efficiency benefits of bureaucratic administration. Such a political constitution is in fact contained in the Westminster tradition of liberal constitutionalism, based on the principles of parliamentary sovereignty, ministerial responsibility and political neutrality. Through this theoretical lens, the thesis proceeds to examine the trajectory of public sector reforms against the changing political contexts in New Zealand over the past 20 years and its constitutional implications. The NPM reforms in New Zealand, whether intended or unintended, displaced the political and constitutional safeguards implicit in the traditional model of public service with managerial norms which simultaneously serve to embed the neoliberal ideology. Despite the claim of NPM reformers to control bureaucracy, the paradoxical effects of the reform have been to accelerate the process of bureaucratisation and attenuate democratic control. Recent initiatives aimed to address some apparent weaknesses of NPM, have not changed the fundamentals of the managerial system, and thus fail to reverse this trend of declining democratic control of bureaucratic power. A reassertion of the fundamental norms of the Westminster system is recommended to arrest this decline of liberal democracy

SIMULATION OF ABSORPTION CYCLES FOR INTEGRATION INTO REFINING PROCESSES

The oil and gas industry is an immense energy consumer. Absorption chillers can be used to recover liquid natural gas (LNG) plant waste heat to provide cooling, which is especially valuable in the oil and gas industry and would also improve energy efficiency. This thesis details the modeling procedure for single and double effect water/lithium bromide and single effect ammonia/water chillers. Comparison of these models to published modeling results and experimental data shows acceptable agreement, within 5% for the water/lithium bromide models and within 7% for the ammonia/water model. Additionally, each model was integrated with a gas turbine as a waste heat source and parametric studies were conducted for a range of part load conditions, evaporator temperatures, and ambient conditions. Finally, the best chiller design was selected among the three evaluated here, and an annual performance study was conducted to quantify the expected cooling performance and related energy savings

Text messaging to help women with overweight or obesity lose weight after childbirth:the intervention adaptation and SMS feasibility RCT

Background There is a need to develop weight management interventions that fit seamlessly into the busy lives of women during the postpartum period. Objective The objective was to develop and pilot-test an evidence- and theory-based intervention, delivered by short message service, which supported weight loss and weight loss maintenance in the postpartum period. Design Stage 1 involved the development of a library of short message service messages to support weight loss and weight loss maintenance, with personal and public involvement, focusing on diet and physical activity with embedded behaviour change techniques, and the programming of a short message service platform to allow fully automated intervention delivery. Stage 2 comprised a 12-month, single-centre, two-arm, pilot, randomised controlled trial with an active control. Setting This study was set in Northern Ireland; women were recruited via community-based approaches. Participants A total of 100 women with overweight or obesity who had given birth in the previous 24 months were recruited. Interventions The intervention group received an automated short message service intervention about weight loss and weight loss maintenance for 12 months. The active control group received automated short message service messages about child health and development for 12 months. Main outcome measures The main outcomes measured were the feasibility of recruitment and retention, acceptability of the intervention and trial procedures, and evidence of positive indicative effects on weight. Weight, waist circumference and blood pressure were measured by the researchers; participants completed a questionnaire booklet and wore a sealed pedometer for 7 days at baseline, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months. Outcome assessments were collected during home visits and women received a voucher on completion of each of the assessments. Qualitative interviews were conducted with women at 3 and 12 months, to gather feedback on the intervention and active control and the study procedures. Quantitative and qualitative data were used to inform the process evaluation and to assess fidelity, acceptability, dose, reach, recruitment, retention, contamination and context. Results The recruitment target of 100 participants was achieved (intervention, n = 51; control, n = 49); the mean age was 32.5 years (standard deviation 4.3 years); 28 (28%) participants had a household income o

Detection of European Strain of \u3ci\u3eEchinococcus multilocularis\u3c/i\u3e in North America

To the Editor: In 2009, an alveolar hydatid cyst, the intermediate stage of the cestode Echinococcus multilocularis, was detected in the liver of a dog from Quesnel, British Columbia (BC), Canada, 600 km west of the nearest known record of this parasite in central North America. Alveolar hydatid cysts normally occur in rodent intermediate hosts. However, humans can serve as aberrant intermediate hosts; cysts generally originate in the liver and, in about one third of cases, metastasize throughout the body. Detection of the larval stage of this pathogen in an unusual host in a new geographic region required application of multiple molecular epidemiologic techniques to determine if this was range expansion of a native strain or introduction of a new strain of veterinary and public health concern. The possible establishment of a European strain in North American wildlife, with spillover into domestic dogs, may have implications for public health and require increased vigilance by medical and veterinary personnel in the newly endemic region. Compared with native North American strains, European strains of E. multilocularis appear to have greater potential to cause alveolar hydatid disease (AHD) in humans. These strains are emerging worldwide (increasing in both prevalence and distribution) as a result of changes in landscape, climate, and wildlife–human interfaces. In Europe, human AHD can be fatal (definite or probable cause of death in 23.5% of 119 recent cases) and has low cure rates (5% of 408 recent cases). As of 2000, in Europe and Asia, the estimated cost per case of AHD was US $100,000–$300,000. Therefore, better understanding of the distribution, genetic diversity, and pathogenicity of strains of E. multilocularis is needed to assess risks and mitigate costs for public and veterinary health, as well as to provide evidence for the regulation and screening of imported domestic animals and translocated wildlife

Development and characterization of 16 microsatellite markers for the Louisiana pine snake, Pituophis ruthveni, and two congeners of conservation concern

We isolated and characterized 16 microsatellite loci from the Louisiana pine snake, Pituophis ruthveni. Loci were screened in 24 individuals from locations throughout its distribution in Louisiana and Texas. The number of alleles per locus ranged from 4 to 12, observed heterozygosity ranged from 0.200 to 0.875, and the probability of identity ranged from 0.043 to 0.298. We examined cross-species amplification at these loci in P. catenifer (bullsnakes and gopher snakes) and P. melanoleucus (pine snakes). These new markers provide tools for examining the conservation genetics of this species complex. Louisiana pine snakes face numerous threats: population densities are extremely low and their natural habitat has been severely altered and fragmented. In southern Canada, P. catenifer is at the northern extreme of its range and limited by the availability of suitable over-wintering sites. Hence, for these two species reduction of heterozygosity, potential for inbreeding, and increased effects of genetic drift are all of considerable conservation concern

Metabolic Tumor Profiling with pH, Oxygen, and Glucose Chemosensors on a Quantum Dot Scaffold

Acidity, hypoxia, and glucose levels characterize the tumor microenvironment rendering pH, pO2, and pGlucose, respectively, important indicators of tumor health. To this end, understanding how these parameters change can be a powerful tool for the development of novel and effective therapeutics. We have designed optical chemosensors that feature a quantum dot and an analyte-responsive dye. These noninvasive chemosensors permit pH, oxygen, and glucose to be monitored dynamically within the tumor microenvironment by using multiphoton imaging.National Cancer Institute (U.S.) (Grant R01-CA126642