Toward a typeface for the transcription of facial actions in sign languages

International audienceNon-manual actions, and more specifically facial actions (FA) can be found in all Sign Languages (SL). Those actions involve all the different facial parts and can have various and intricate linguistic relations with manual signs. Unlike in vocal languages, FA in SL provide more meaning than simple expressions of feelings and emotions. Yet non-manual parameters are among the most unknown formal features in SL studies. During the past 30 years, some studies have started questioning the meanings and linguistic values and the relations between manual and non-manual signs (Crashborn et al. 2008; Crashborn & Bank 2014); more recently, SL corpora have been analysed, segmented, and transcribed to help study FA (Vogst-Svenden 2008; Bergman et al. 2008; Sutton-Spence & Day 2008).Moreover, to fill the lack of an annotation system for FA, a few manual annotation systems have integrated facial glyphs, such as HamNoSys (Prillwitz et al. 1989) and SignWriting (Sutton 1995). On one hand, HamNoSys has been developed to describe all existing SLs at a phonetic level; it allows a formal, linear, highly detailed and searchable description of manual parameters. As for non-manual parameters, HamNoSys offers the replacement of hands by another articulators. Non-manual parameters can be written as “eyes” or “mouth” and described by the same symbols developed for hands (Hanke 2004). Unfortunately only a limited number of manual symbols can be translated into FA and the annotation system remains incomplete. On the other hand, SignWriting describes SL with iconic symbols placed in a 2D space representing the signer’s body. Facial expressions are divided into mouth, eyes, nose, eyebrows, etc., and are drawn in a circular “head” much like emoticons. SignWriting offers a detailed description of posture and actions of non-manual parameters, but does not ensure compatibility with the most common annotation software used by SL linguists (e.g., ELAN).Typannot, a interdisciplinary project led by linguists, designers, and developers, which aims to set up a complete transcription system for SL that includes every SL parameter (handshape, localisation, movement, FA), has developed a different methodologie. As mentioned earlier, FA have various linguistic values (mouthings, adverbial mouth gestures, semantically empty, enacting, whole face) and also include prosody and emotional meanings. In this regard, they can be more variable and signer-related than manual parameters. To offer the best annotation tool, Typannot’s approach has been to define facial parameters and all their possible tangible configurations. The goal is to set up the most efficient, simple, yet complete and universal formula to describe all possible FA.This formula is based on a 3 dimensional grid. Indeed all the different configurations of FA can be described by its X, Y, Z axis position. As a result, all FA can be described and encoded using a restricted list of 39 qualifiers. Based on this model and to help reduce the annotation process, a set of generic glyphs has been developed. Each qualifier has its own symbolic “generic” glyph. This methodical decomposition of all facial components enables a precise and accurate transcription of a complex FA using only a few glyphs.This formula and its generic glyphs have gone through a series of tests and revisions. Recently, an 18m20s long FA corpus of two deaf signers has been recorded using two different cameras. The first one, RGB HQ, is used to capture a high quality image and the second, infrared Kinect, is used to captured the depth. The latter was linked with Brekel Proface 2 (Leong et al. 2015), a 3D animation software that enables an automatic recognition of FA. This corpus has been fully annotated using Typannot’s generic glyphs. These annotations have enabled the validation of the general structure of Typannot FAformula and to identify some minor corrections to be made. For instance, it has been shown that the description of the air used to puff out or suck in cheeks is too restrictive and the description of the opening and closure of the eyelids is too unnecessarily precise.When those changes are implemented, our next task will be to develop a morphological glyphic system that will combine the different generic glyphs used for each facial parameter into one unique morphological glyph. This means that for any given FA, all the information contained in Typannot descriptive formula will be contained within one legible glyph. Some early research and work has already begun on this topic, but needs further development before providing a statement on its typographic structure. When this system is completed, it will be released with its own virtual keyboard (Typannot Keyboard, currently in development for handshapes) to help transcription and improve annotation processes.Bibliography :-Chételat-Pelé, E. (2010). Les Gestes Non Manuels en Langue des Signes Française ; Annotation, analyse et formalisation : application aux mouvements des sourcils et aux clignements des yeux. Université de Provence - Aix-Marseille I.-Crasborn, O., Van Der Kooij, E., Waters, D., Woll, B., & Mesch, J. (2008). Frequency distribution and spreading behavior of different types of mouth actions in three sign languages. Sign Language & Linguistics, 11(1), 45–67.-Crasborn, O. A., & Bank, R. (2014). An annotation scheme for the linguistic study of mouth actions in sign languages. http://repository.ubn.ru.nl/handle/2066/132960-Fontana, S. (2008). Mouth actions as gesture in sign language. Gesture, 8(1), 104‑123.-Hanke, T. (2004). HamNoSys—Representing sign language data in language resources and language processing contexts. In Workshop on the Representation and Processing of Sign Languages on the occasion of the Fourth International Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (p. 1‑6).-Leong, C. W., Chen, L., Feng, G., Lee, C. M., & Mulholland, M. (2015). Utilizing depth sensors for analyzing multimodal presentations: Hardware, software and toolkits (p. 547‑556).Presented at Proceedings of the 2015 ACM on International Conference on Multimodal Interaction, ACM.-Prillwitz, S., Leven, R., Zienert, H., Hanke, T., & Henning, J. (1989). Hamburg notation system for sign languages: An introductory guide. Signum Press, Hamburg.-Sandler, W. (2009). Symbiotic symbolization by hand and mouth in sign language. Semiotica, 2009(174), 241‑275. http://doi.org/10.1515/semi.2009.035-Sutton, V. (1995). Lessons in Sign Writing: Textbook. DAC, La Jolla (CA).-Sutton-Spence, R., & Boyes-Braem, P. (2001). The hands are the head of the mouth: The mouth as articulator in sign languages. Signum Press, Hamburg

Vezatin is essential for dendritic spine morphogenesis and functional synaptic maturation.

International audienceVezatin is an integral membrane protein associated with cell-cell adhesion complex and actin cytoskeleton. It is expressed in the developing and mature mammalian brain, but its neuronal function is unknown. Here, we show that Vezatin localizes in spines in mature mouse hippocampal neurons and codistributes with PSD95, a major scaffolding protein of the excitatory postsynaptic density. Forebrain-specific conditional ablation of Vezatin induced anxiety-like behavior and impaired cued fear-conditioning memory response. Vezatin knock-down in cultured hippocampal neurons and Vezatin conditional knock-out in mice led to a significantly increased proportion of stubby spines and a reduced proportion of mature dendritic spines. PSD95 remained tethered to presynaptic terminals in Vezatin-deficient hippocampal neurons, suggesting that the reduced expression of Vezatin does not compromise the maintenance of synaptic connections. Accordingly, neither the amplitude nor the frequency of miniature EPSCs was affected in Vezatin-deficient hippocampal neurons. However, the AMPA/NMDA ratio of evoked EPSCs was reduced, suggesting impaired functional maturation of excitatory synapses. These results suggest a role of Vezatin in dendritic spine morphogenesis and functional synaptic maturation

A História da Alimentação: balizas historiográficas

Os M. pretenderam traçar um quadro da História da Alimentação, não como um novo ramo epistemológico da disciplina, mas como um campo em desenvolvimento de práticas e atividades especializadas, incluindo pesquisa, formação, publicações, associações, encontros acadêmicos, etc. Um breve relato das condições em que tal campo se assentou faz-se preceder de um panorama dos estudos de alimentação e temas correia tos, em geral, segundo cinco abardagens Ia biológica, a econômica, a social, a cultural e a filosófica!, assim como da identificação das contribuições mais relevantes da Antropologia, Arqueologia, Sociologia e Geografia. A fim de comentar a multiforme e volumosa bibliografia histórica, foi ela organizada segundo critérios morfológicos. A seguir, alguns tópicos importantes mereceram tratamento à parte: a fome, o alimento e o domínio religioso, as descobertas européias e a difusão mundial de alimentos, gosto e gastronomia. O artigo se encerra com um rápido balanço crítico da historiografia brasileira sobre o tema

Octave Gréard

Cet intellectuel humaniste aurait pu construire une brillante carrière universitaire soutenue par une large production littéraire. Il change de voie à trente-six ans et amorce alors une rapide ascension professionnelle : inspecteur d'académie (1864), chargé de l'enseignement primaire du département de la Seine (1866), dont il devient directeur (1870), avant d'être nommé inspecteur général (1871), directeur de l'enseignement primaire au ministère (1872), et enfin vice-recteur (1879). Bien introduit auprès des divers ministres qui se succèdent, il s'impose comme une « éminence grise » au service de l'école républicaine populaire. Une idée essentielle d'Octave Gréard est d'avoir érigé Paris et la Seine en laboratoire pédagogique. En 1868, il élabore sa Nouvelle organisation des écoles primaires en trois cycles qui sera étendue à toute la France. Il fixe les programmes d'enseignement, les emplois du temps et les méthodes de travail. Il prévoit un recrutement élargi des futurs maîtres en créant deux écoles normales primaires dans la capitale. L'école pour tous implique de sa part un effort sans précédent de constructions scolaires pour garçons et filles. S'ajoutent à cette préoccupation les salles d'asile, les écoles primaires supérieures, les écoles d'apprentis et les cours d'adultes. Devenu recteur, tous ces chantiers ont des répercussions dans l'ensemble de l'académie de Paris (9 départements). À sa mort en 1904, le journal Le Siècle lui rend hommage : « Il fut mêlé à toute l'œuvre scolaire de la Troisième République et mérita d'être appelé par Jules Ferry le premier instituteur de France.

Acetylcholine Levels and Choline Acetyltransferase Activity in Rat Cerebrovascular Bed after Uni- or Bilateral Sphenopalatine Ganglionectomy

International audienceEndogenous acetylcholine (ACh) levels and choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) activity were measured in several vascular segments (major cerebral arteries, cortical pial vessels, and peripheral arteries) and nervous tissues [including the sphenopalatine ganglion (SPG)] in the rat. The effects of uni- or bilateral surgical ablation of the SPG, a putative origin of the cholinergic cerebrovascular innervation, were investigated on these two specific cholinergic markers at various postoperative times. ChAT activity and ACh levels were enriched in the cerebral as compared to the peripheral arteries. Among the cerebrovascular tissues tested, ACh levels were particularly high in the circle of Willis and the vertebrobasilar segments and, to a lesser extent, in the middle cerebral artery. Lower levels were found in the small pial vessels and choroid plexus. Overall, ChAT activity measured in different arterial beds paralleled the distribution of ACh. Following uni- or bilateral removal of the SPG, slight reductions (18-36%, statistically not significant) were observed in ChAT activity in rostral cerebral arteries and pial vessels overlying the frontal cortex. Similarly, bilateral ganglionectomy resulted in minor decreases (11-22%, not significant) in the cerebrovascular contents of ACh in these same vascular segments. These results clearly show that the SPG does not or only partly contributes to the cholinergic fibers that supply the cerebrovascular bed

Sedimentary System and Petroleum System of Late Ordovician Glacial Valley, Sbâa Basin, Algeria.

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Determination of phospholipids extracted from Tsukamurella paurometabola C-924 after freeze-drying and during the subsequent storage

The total lipids of Tsukamurella paurometabola C-924 were analyzed after freeze-drying. Seven individual lipids classes were identifiednamelyneutrallipids(NLs),fattyacids(FAs),phospholipids(PLs),sterolester(SEs),triglycerides(TGs),diglycerides (DGs) and monoglycerides (MGs). The principal fatty acids identified in most lipid classes were palmitic (C 16:0), palmitoleic (C 16:1), oleic (C 18:1), linoleic (C 18:2), and linolenic (C 18:3). PLs were the major constituents and accounted for 50-60% of the total lipids. PLs were fractionated. PLs of Tsukamurella paurometabola content phosphatidic acid (PA), phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), phosphatidylinositol (PI), phosphatidylcholine (PC), sphingomyelin (SM), lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) and phosphatidylglycerol (PG). It was observed that PG had the highest proportion at most points relative to other PLs and was the predominant component of PLs (30%-56%). Evolution of individual rate was followed during storage at 20°C and 40°C with or without lithothamne400®, respectively

N-Arylsulfonyl-2-vinyltryptamines as new 5-HT6 serotonin receptor Ligands

International audienceSeveral new 2-vinyl-Nb,Nb-dimethyltryptamines were prepared using Fischer indole synthesis followed by simple functional group transformations and evaluated on 5-HT4, 5-HT5, 5-HT6 and 5-HT7 serotonin receptors. It was found that 2-vinyl substitution conferred a potent and selective 5-HT6 binding activity to these molecules which could be enhanced by Na-arylsulfonyl substituents

GestualScript, le dispositif TypannotSign

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