Towards an in-vehicle sonically-enhanced gesture control interface: A pilot study

A pilot study was conducted to explore the potential of sonically-enhanced gestures as controls for future in-vehicle information systems (IVIS). Four concept menu systems were developed using a LEAP Motion and Pure Data: (1) 2x2 with auditory feedback, (2) 2x2 without auditory feedback, (3) 4x4 with auditory feedback, and (4) 4x4 without auditory feedback. Seven participants drove in a simulator while completing simple target-acquisition tasks using each of the four prototype systems. Driving performance and eye glance behavior were collected as well as subjective ratings of workload and system preference. Results from driving performance and eye tracking measures strongly indicate that the 2x2 grids yield better driving safety outcomes than 4x4 grids. Subjective ratings show similar patterns for driver workload and preferences. Auditory feedback led to similar improvements in driving performance and eye glance behavior as well as subjective ratings of workload and preference, compared to visual-only

Cultural differences in preference of auditory emoticons: USA and South Korea

For the last two decades, research on auditory displays and sonification has continuously increased. However, most research has focused on cognitive and functional mapping rather than emotional mapping. Moreover, there has not been much research on cultural differences on auditory displays. The present study compared user preference of auditory emoticons in two countries: USA and South Korea. Seventy students evaluated 112 auditory icons and 115 earcons regarding 30 emotional adjectives. Results indicated that they showed similar preference in the same category (auditory icons or earcons), but they showed different patterns when they were asked to select the best sound between the two categorical sounds. Implications for cultural differences in preference and directions for future design and research of auditory emoticons are discussed

How Low Can You Go? Reducing Frequency and Time Resolution in Current CNN Architectures for Music Auto-tagging

Automatic tagging of music is an important research topic in Music Information Retrieval and audio analysis algorithms proposed for this task have achieved improvements with advances in deep learning. In particular, many state-of-the-art systems use Convolutional Neural Networks and operate on mel-spectrogram representations of the audio. In this paper, we compare commonly used mel-spectrogram representations and evaluate model performances that can be achieved by reducing the input size in terms of both lesser amount of frequency bands and larger frame rates. We use the MagnaTagaTune dataset for comprehensive performance comparisons and then compare selected configurations on the larger Million Song Dataset. The results of this study can serve researchers and practitioners in their trade-off decision between accuracy of the models, data storage size and training and inference times.Comment: The 28th European Signal Processing Conference (EUSIPCO

Terahertz Time-Domain Spectroscopy

Terahertz Time-Domain Spectroscopy (THz TDS) has attracted attention from many scientific disciplines as it enables accessing the gap between electronic and optical techniques. One application is to probe spintronic dynamics in sub-picosecond time scale. Here, we discuss the principles and the technical aspects of a typical THz TDS setup. We also show an example of terahertz time-domain data obtained from a Co/Pt thin film, a well-studied spintronic structure that emits strong THz radiation.The Winton Programme for the Physics of Sustainability, Royal Society, ERC Starting Grant (ACrossWire grant number 716471), EPSRC through a Programme Grant (EP/M50807/1), and International Network (EP/P026311/1)

A National Study Exploring the Association Between Fluoride Levels and Dental Fluorosis

Importance: While the effects of fluoride on health have been widely researched, fewer high-quality studies examine the association of fluoride levels in water and dental fluorosis. Objective: To investigate the association between fluoride exposure from drinking water and dental fluorosis. Design, setting, and participants: This cross-sectional study used the 2013-2014 and 2015-2016 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data (January 1, 2013, through December 31, 2016). NHANES uses a complex sampling technique to develop nationally representative sample estimates of the US population that consists of interviews and physical assessments. Children and adolescents aged 6 to 15 years were included because NHANES contains their data for all 3 forms of fluoride measures: plasma fluoride levels, water levels of fluoride, and dietary fluoride supplementation. Data were analyzed from January 1 to April 30, 2023. Exposures: Water and plasma fluoride levels were measured by laboratory personnel. Dietary fluoride supplement data were self-reported. Main outcomes and measures: The Dean's Fluorosis Index was used to evaluate fluorosis status for each tooth. The dental fluorosis severity value was based on the second most affected tooth. Independent variables included plasma and water fluoride concentrations and dietary fluoride supplementation. An independent samples t test was used to compare fluoride exposures between groups, and Pearson correlation assessed the association between plasma and water fluoride levels. To assess whether fluoride exposures were associated with dental fluorosis, logistic regression analyses were conducted. Results: There were 1543 participants in the 2013-2014 NHANES cycle (weighted proportion male, 51.9%; mean [SD] age, 11.0 [2.7] years) and 1452 in the 2015-2016 cycle (weighted proportion male, 52.6%; mean [SD] age, 11.1 [2.8] years). A weighted 87.3% exhibited some degree of fluorosis in the 2013-2014 cycle and 68.2% in the 2015-2016 cycle. Higher fluoride levels in water and plasma were significantly associated with higher odds of dental fluorosis (adjusted odds ratios, 2.378 [95% CI, 2.372-2.383] in the 2013-2014 cycle and 1.568 [95% CI, 1.564-1.571] in the 2015-2016 cycle). Conclusions and relevance: The findings of this cross-sectional study suggest that exposure to higher concentrations of fluoride in water and having higher plasma levels of fluoride were associated with a greater risk of dental fluorosis. Further research can help policy makers develop policies that balance substantial caries prevention with the risk of dental fluorosis.</p

FOXO1 Deletion in Keratinocytes Improves Diabetic Wound Healing through MMP9 Regulation

Keratinocyte migration is a key aspect of re-epithelialization during wound healing. Matric metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9) contributes to this process and deificiencies in the MMP9 lead to impaired healing. Inappropriate expression of MMP9 also contributes to impaired re-epithelialization. Previously we demonstrated that FOXO1 was activated in wound healing but to higher levels in diabetic wounds. To address mechanisms of impaired re-epithelialization we examined MMP0 expression in vivo in full thickness dermal scalp wounds creared in experimental K14.Cre+.Foxo1L/L mice with lineage-specific Cre recombinase deletion of floxed FOXO1 and compared the results to control littermates. MMP9 was induced during wound healing but at a significantly higher level in diabetic compared to normal wounds. FOXO1 deletion substantially blocked this increase. By chromatin immunoprecipitation FOXO1 was shown to bind to the MMP9 promoter, FOXO1 overexpression increased MMP9 transcriptional activity and increased MMP9 expression simulated by high glucose that was blocked by FOXO1 deletion or FOXO1 knockdown. We also show for the first time that high glucose impairs keratinocyte migration by inducing high levels of MMP9 expression in diabetic wound healing, which represents a novel mechanism for impaired re-epithelialization in diabetic wounds

Interplay between Topological States and Rashba States as Manifested on Surface Steps at Room Temperature

The unique spin texture of quantum states in topological materials underpins many proposed spintronic applications. However, realizations of such great potential are stymied by perturbations, such as temperature and local fields imposed by impurities and defects, that can render a promising quantum state uncontrollable. Here, we report room-temperature observation of interaction between Rashba states and topological surface states, which manifests unique spin textures controllable by layer thickness of thin films. Specifically, we combine scanning tunneling microscopy/spectroscopy with the first-principles theoretical calculation to find the robust Rashba states coexisting with topological surface states along the surface steps with characteristic spin textures in momentum space. The Rashba edge states can be switched off by reducing the thickness of a topological insulator Bi2Se3 to bolster their interaction with the hybridized topological surface states. The study unveils a manipulating mechanism of the spin textures at room temperature, reinforcing the necessity of thin film technology in controlling quantum states

Enhanced Raman Scattering from Nanoparticle-Decorated Nanocone Substrates: A Practical Approach to Harness In-Plane Excitation

We investigate surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) from gold-coated silicon-germanium nanocone substrates that are decorated with 30-nm spherical gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). Finite-element simulations suggest that individual nanocones generate stronger electromagnetic enhancement with axial polarization (i.e., polarization parallel to the vertical axis of the nanocones) than with transverse polarization (i.e., polarization in the plane of the nanocone substrate), whereas the excitation in a typical Raman microscope is mainly polarized in the transverse plane. We introduce a practical approach to improve the SERS performance of the substrate by filling the valleys between nanocones with AuNPs. Simulations reveal an enhanced electric field at the nanoscale junctions formed between AuNPs and nanocones, and we explain this lateral coupling with a hybridization model for a particle-film system. We further experimentally verify the added enhancement by measuring SERS from trans-1,2-bi-(4-pyridyl) ethylene molecules absorbed onto the substrates. We report over one order-of-magnitude increase in SERS activities with the AuNP decoration (compared to the nanocone substrate without AuNPs) and achieve a spatially averaged enhancement factor of 1.78 x 10^8 at 785-nm excitation. Understanding and implementing the enhancing mechanism of structured metallic surfaces decorated with plasmonic nanoparticles open possibilities to substantially improve the SERS performance of the existing processengineered substrates