Melomys cervinipes (Rodentia: Muridae)

Melomys cervinipes (Gould, 1852) is a murid rodent commonly called the fawn-footed mosaic-tailed rat. A small, russet brown rodent with light fawn-colored feet, it is 1 of 21 currently recognized species in the genus Melomys. The species is endemic to Australia, occurring in the rainforests and forests along the eastern coast. M. cervinipes is listed as "Least Concern" by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources

Two-Dimensional Physical Modeling of the Human Vocal Tract using Computer-Aided Design

Color poster with text, images, charts, and graphs.Precise shaping of the surfaces of the human vocal tract is necessary for the controlled production of sound in speech. Vibration of the vocal folds produces a harmonic series with a fundamental frequency that depends on the tension of the folds. The upper vocal tract creates a natural resonator whose shape determines which frequencies of the waveform are enhanced. Through the construction of 2-D physical models of the upper vocal tract, we are determining how well we can reproduce the changes in the acoustic spectrum corresponding to two different vowels: “i” and “a”. Formants are frequency peaks with high amounts of energy that correspond to vibrations within the resonating tract. The energy differences between formants determine the timbre, or quality of the sound produced. Formants are the foundation of data analysis for this research. Humans have natural resonators that are crucial to speech production. Beginning at the vocal folds, an oscillating frequency is produced from air pressure that is sent from the lungs through the folds. Muscles surrounding the vocal tract control the size of the resonator. Diameter and length are both variable. The oral cavity is also variable of its size, where our soft palates and tongues have movement abilities. The resonator ends at the opening of the mouth. Using the above information, the main objective for this research aimed to analyze spectra of vowels and their distinct formants. A comparative representation of each vowel and their respective formants can then be produced. It is important to note that vowels can have multiple pronunciations. Once this data was acquired, our next goal was to design two dimensional models of a human vocal tract using CAD modeling software. With these models, similar data can be acquired and compared to the initial data.University of Wisconsin--Eau Claire Office of Research and Sponsored Program

32. COMPARISONS BETWEEN THE OXYGEN ISOTOPIC COMPOSITION OF PORE WATER AND GLOBIGERINOIDES RUBER IN SEDIMENTS FROM HOLE 817C

ABSTRACT The oxygen isotopic composition of pore waters squeezed from sediments in Hole 817C co-varies with the oxygen isotopic composition of Globigerinoides ruber below 8 mbsf. The magnitude of the variation in the pore water δ O is approximately 30% of the variation in the foraminifers. Overall, the δ O of the pore waters increases down the core, a trend that is also present in the Cl" concentrations. The variations in the δ 18 θ of pore waters may be the result of either of two phenomena. First, these may reflect original variations in the waters, the magnitude of which has been subsequently reduced by process of diffusion. Second, these may reflect recrystallization of the precursor sediment and isotopic exchange between the fluids and the recrystallized sediment. At the moment data are not available to ascertain which process is responsible although the correlation between the Cl" and the δ 18 θ data suggests that these values reflect the original composition modified by diffusion

Agricultural Crop Drying and Space Heating Using A Solar Energy Intensifier

A solar energy-intensifier-thermal energy storage system was developed and tested under actual climatic conditions in South Dakota. Performance characteristics of the system are presented for its use in drying shelled corn and for agricultural space heating. Comparisons between solar and conventional drying between solar supplemented and conventional heating are reported

Mindful attention reduces neural and self-reported cue-induced craving in smokers.

An emerging body of research suggests that mindfulness-based interventions may be beneficial for smoking cessation and the treatment of other addictive disorders. One way that mindfulness may facilitate smoking cessation is through the reduction of craving to smoking cues. The present work considers whether mindful attention can reduce self-reported and neural markers of cue-induced craving in treatment seeking smokers. Forty-seven (n = 47) meditation-naïve treatment-seeking smokers (12-h abstinent from smoking) viewed and made ratings of smoking and neutral images while undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Participants were trained and instructed to view these images passively or with mindful attention. Results indicated that mindful attention reduced self-reported craving to smoking images, and reduced neural activity in a craving-related region of subgenual anterior cingulate cortex (sgACC). Moreover, a psychophysiological interaction analysis revealed that mindful attention reduced functional connectivity between sgACC and other craving-related regions compared to passively viewing smoking images, suggesting that mindfulness may decouple craving neurocircuitry when viewing smoking cues. These results provide an initial indication that mindful attention may describe a 'bottom-up' attention to one's present moment experience in ways that can help reduce subjective and neural reactivity to smoking cues in smokers.</p

Common prefrontal regions activate during self-control of craving, emotion, and motor impulses in smokers.

<p>It has been posited that self-regulation of behaviors, emotions, and temptations may all rely on a common resource. Recent reviews suggest this common resource may include the inferior frontal cortex (IFC). However, to our knowledge no single functional neuroimaging study has tested this hypothesis. We obtained fMRI scans as 25 abstinent treatment-seeking cigarette smokers completed motor, affective, and craving self-control tasks before smoking cessation treatment. We identified two regions in left IFC and a region in pre-supplementary motor area (preSMA) that were commonly activated in all three tasks. Further, PPI analyses suggest that IFC may involve dissociable pathways in each self-control domain. Specifically, the IFC showed negative functional connectivity with large portions of the thalamus and precentral gyrus during motor stopping, with the insula and other portions of the thalamus during craving regulation, and potentially with a small limbic region during emotion regulation. We discuss implications for understanding self-control mechanisms.</p

Melomys cervinipes (Rodentia: Muridae)

Melomys cervinipes (Gould, 1852) is a murid rodent commonly called the fawn-footed mosaic-tailed rat. A small, russet brown rodent with light fawn-colored feet, it is 1 of 21 currently recognized species in the genus Melomys. The species is endemic to Australia, occurring in the rainforests and forests along the eastern coast. M. cervinipes is listed as "Least Concern" by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources