18 research outputs found
When music speaks: An aoustic study of the speech surrogacy of the Nigerian DĂčndĂșn Talking Drum
YorĂčbĂĄ dĂčndĂșn drumming is an oral tradition which allows for manipulation of gliding pitch contours in ways that correspond to the differentiation of the YorĂčbĂĄ linguistic tone levels. This feature enables the drum to be employed as both a musical instrument and a speech surrogate. In this study, we examined four modes of the dĂčndĂșn talking drum, compared them to vocal singing and talking in the YorĂčbĂĄ language, and analyzed the extent of microstructural overlap between these categories, making this study one of the first to examine the vocal surrogacy of the drum in song. We compared the fundamental frequency, timing pattern, and intensity contour of syllables from the same sample phrase recorded in the various communicative forms and we correlated each vocalization style with each of the corresponding drumming modes. We analyzed 30 spoken and sung verbal utterances and their corresponding drum and song excerpts collected from three native YorĂčbĂĄ speakers and three professional dĂčndĂșn drummers in Nigeria. The findings confirm that the dĂčndĂșn can very accurately mimic microstructural acoustic temporal, fundamental frequency, and intensity characteristics of YorĂčbĂĄ vocalization when doing so directly, and that this acoustic match systematically decreases for the drumming modes in which more musical context is specified. Our findings acoustically verify the distinction between four drumming mode categories and confirm their acoustical match to corresponding verbal modes. Understanding how musical and speech aspects interconnect in the dĂčndĂșn talking drum clarifies acoustical properties that overlap between vocal utterances (speech and song) and corresponding imitations on the drum and verifies the potential functionality of speech surrogacy communications systems
Perception of Nigerian DĂčndĂșn talking drum performances as speech-like vs. music-like: The role of familiarity and acoustic cues
It seems trivial to identify sound sequences as music or speech, particularly when the sequences come from different sound sources, such as an orchestra and a human voice. Can we also easily distinguish these categories when the sequence comes from the same sound source? On the basis of which acoustic features? We investigated these questions by examining listenersâ classification of sound sequences performed by an instrument intertwining both speech and music: the dĂčndĂșn talking drum. The dĂčndĂșn is commonly used in south-west Nigeria as a musical instrument but is also perfectly fit for linguistic usage in what has been described as speech surrogates in Africa. One hundred seven participants from diverse geographical locations (15 different mother tongues represented) took part in an online experiment. Fifty-one participants reported being familiar with the dĂčndĂșn talking drum, 55% of those being speakers of YorĂčbĂĄ. During the experiment, participants listened to 30 dĂčndĂșn samples of about 7s long, performed either as music or YorĂčbĂĄ speech surrogate (n = 15 each) by a professional musician, and were asked to classify each sample as music or speech-like. The classification task revealed the ability of the listeners to identify the samples as intended by the performer, particularly when they were familiar with the dĂčndĂșn, though even unfamiliar participants performed above chance. A logistic regression predicting participantsâ classification of the samples from several acoustic features confirmed the perceptual relevance of intensity, pitch, timbre, and timing measures and their interaction with listener familiarity. In all, this study provides empirical evidence supporting the discriminating role of acoustic features and the modulatory role of familiarity in teasing apart speech and music
The DĂčndĂșn Drum helps us understand how we process speech and music
Every day, you hear many sounds in your environment, like speech, music, animal calls, or passing cars. How do you tease apart these unique categories of sounds? We aimed to understand more about how people distinguish speech and music by using an instrument that can both âspeakâ and play music: the dĂčndĂșn talking drum. We were interested in whether people could tell if the sound produced by the drum was speech or music. People who were familiar with the dĂčndĂșn were good at the task, but so were those who had never heard the dĂčndĂșn, suggesting that there are general characteristics of sound that define speech and music categories. We observed that music is faster, more regular, and more variable in volume than âspeech.â This research helps us understand the interesting instrument that is dĂčndĂșn and provides insights about how humans distinguish two important types of sound: speech and music
Fatty acids Analyses of n-Hexane Fractions of Ageratum conyzoides Leaf
Lipidomics is an emerging field, where the structures, functions and dynamic changes of lipids in cells, tissues or body fluids are investigated. This study revealed the GCâMS metabolic profiling of the polar and non-polar fractions from n-hexane extracts of Agerantum conyzoides. After extraction, the n-hexane leaf extract has a yield of 1.20% and the GC-MS result reveal that A. conyzoides have w-6: w-3 PUFA ratio of 2.1 and other fatty acids of biochemical relevance. Keywords: Lipidomics; Cardiovascular disease; Agerantum conyzoides leaf; Fatty acids, GC-MS
âEqually unequal or unequally equalâ: Adopting a substantive equality approach to gender discrimination in Nigeria
The purpose of this article is to critically assess the approach of Nigerian courts to interpreting section 42 of the Constitution. This article argues that Nigerian courts are yet to develop a substantive equality approach to interpreting section 42 of the Constitution. Rather, the courts have tended to adopt the formal equality approach to interpreting the section. Analysing some decisions of the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court, the article argues that in order to safeguard womenâs rights and address gender inequality in the country, Nigerian courts should lean towards substantive equality approach to the interpretation of section 42 of the Constitution. This is not only consistent with Nigeriaâs obligations under international law but also crucial to addressing historical imbalances between men and women in the country
Microfinance and loan officers' work experiences: perspectives from Zambia
This article studies the challenges faced by microfinance institutions in Zambia, whose remit it is to provide financial services to the poor. It focuses on loan officers â the agents of delivery on the ground. With reference to loan officersâ experiences and words, the paper examines how gender and education shape and structure their day-to-day encounters. The study finds that different social spaces â âthe officeâ and âthe fieldâ â and wider context explains the gendered, culturally complex and multidimensional nature of developmental work at grassroots level. Social expectations emerge as major pressure points more for female loan officers than their male counterparts, making them less suitable for microfinance work, which has traditionally targeted poor women
Evaluation of 6-Gingerol and its modified analogues as therapeutic candidates against Schistosoma mansoni phosphofructokinase
The African most prevalent tropical disease after malaria is schistosomiasis and this disease in the developing countries is a massive socio-economic and public health burden. The disease also caused over 200,000 deaths. The development and design of new and novel antischistosomal drugs is now very important, as there are no vaccines currently and there is only one drug at the moment for the treatment of schistosomiasis. In this article, 6-gingerol was docked against the Schistosoma mansoni phosphofructokinase and the docking result was compared to those obtained from the docking of its modified analogues against the same enzyme. The chemical structure of 6-gingerol was obtained from the PubChem database while the modified analogues were designed using the ChemAxon software. The molecular docking procedure was carried out with the aid of the AutoDock Vina software while polar interactions which were eventually used in predicting the amino acid residues at the Schistosoma mansoni phosphofructokinase active site were visualized using the Pymol software. The Schistosoma mansoni phosphofructokinase 3D crystallized structure was modeled using the Swiss Model server. The molecular docking result showed that the modifications made on 6-gingerol had a positive effect on the binding energy of the compound to the enzyme active site as an appreciable increase was observed. 6-Gingerol and its modified analogues also violated none of the Lipinskiâs rule with suggests that the experimental compounds are drug-like. The C2H5 analogue of 6 gingerol was selected as the ideal therapeutic agent based on the pharmacokinetics study and the exhibited binding energy
Advancing sexual and reproductive health and rights of adolescents in Africa: The role of the courts
Across the world, adolescents encounter various challenges that may implicate
the enjoyment of their sexual and reproductive health and rights. The situation of
adolescents in Africa is aggravated by high poverty levels and a high disease
burden in the region. Some of the challenges facing adolescents in Africa include
high incidence of child marriage, unwanted pregnancy, unsafe abortion, and
sexually transmitted infections, including HIV and maternal mortality. It is
estimated that 1 in 3 girls is married before attaining 18 (UNFPA, Marrying too
young: end child marriage. UN Population Fund, 2012), while an estimated 16
million adolescent girls aged 15â19 (most of them in poor regions, including
Africa) give birth yearly. Also, about 31% of young women aged 20â24 in least developed
countries gave birth before age 18 between 2000 and 2009 (UNICEF
et al., Violence against Children in Tanzania: Findings from a National Survey
2009. UN Childrenâs Fund, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and
Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, 2011). An in-depth study of
four sub-Saharan African countries found that 60% or more of adolescent men
and women did not know how to prevent pregnancy and one-third or more did not
know of a source for contraceptives (Guttmacher Institute and IPPF, Facts on the
sexual and reproductive health of adolescent women in the developing world.
Allan Guttmacher Institute and International Planned Parenthood Federation,
2010). The majority of about 300,000 women and girls that die annually (800
deaths per day) due to complications arising from childbirth are from Africa
(UNFPA 2011)