A biomimetic vocalisation system for MiRo

There is increasing interest in the use of animal-like robots in applications such as companionship and pet therapy. However, in the majority of cases it is only the robot's physical appearance that mimics a given animal. In contrast, MiRo is the first commercial biomimetic robot to be based on a hardware and software architecture that is modelled on the biological brain. This paper describes how MiRo's vocalisation system was designed, not using pre-recorded animal sounds, but based on the implementation of a real-time parametric general-purpose mammalian vocal synthesiser tailored to the specific physical characteristics of the robot. The novel outcome has been the creation of an 'appropriate' voice for MiRo that is perfectly aligned to the physical and behavioural affordances of the robot, thereby avoiding the 'uncanny valley' effect and contributing strongly to the effectiveness of MiRo as an interactive device

Associations between health-related quality of life, physical function and fear of falling in older fallers receiving home care

Falls and injuries in older adults have significant consequences and costs, both personal and to society. Although having a high incidence of falls, high prevalence of fear of falling and a lower quality of life, older adults receiving home care are underrepresented in research on older fallers. The objective of this study is to determine the associations between health-related quality of life (HRQOL), fear of falling and physical function in older fallers receiving home care

Relation between sleep quality and quantity, quality of life, and risk of developing diabetes in healthy workers in Japan: the High-risk and Population Strategy for Occupational Health Promotion (HIPOP-OHP) Study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The effect of sleep on the risk of developing diabetes has not been explored in an Asian population. The objective of this study is to investigate the effect of self-reported sleep duration and sleep quality on the risk of developing diabetes in a prospective cohort in Japan.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Data were analyzed from the cohort of participants in a High-risk and Population Strategy for Occupational Health Promotion Study (HIPOP-OHP), conducted in Japan from the year 1999 until 2004. A Cox proportional hazard model was used to evaluate the association between sleep duration or sleep quality and the risk of diabetes.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Of 6509 participants (26.1% of women, 19–69 years of age), a total of 230 type 2 diabetes cases were reported over a median 4.2 years of follow-up. For participants who often experienced difficulty in initiating sleep, the multivariate-adjusted hazard ratios for diabetes were 1.42 (95%CI, 1.05–1.91) in participants with a medium frequency of difficulty initiating sleep, and 1.61 (95%CI, 1.00–2.58) for those with a high frequency, with a statistically significant linear trend. Significant association was not observed in the association between difficulty of maintaining sleep or duration of sleep, and risk of diabetes.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Medium and high frequencies of difficulty initiating sleep, but not difficulty in maintaining sleep or in sleep duration, are associated with higher risks of diabetes in relatively healthy Asian workers, even after adjusting for a large number of possible further factors.</p

Determining solar effects in Neptune’s atmosphere

Long-duration observations of Neptune’s brightness in two visible wavelengths provide a disk-averaged estimate of its atmospheric aerosol. Brightness variations were previously associated with the 11-year solar cycle, through solar-modulated mechanisms linked with either ultra-violet (UV) or galactic cosmic ray (GCR) effects on atmospheric particles. Here we use a recently extended brightness dataset (1972-2014), with physically realistic modelling to show that rather than alternatives, UV and GCR are likely to be modulating Neptune’s atmosphere in combination. The importance of GCR is further supported by the response of Neptune's atmosphere to an intermittent 1.5 to 1.9 year periodicity, which occurred preferentially in GCR (not UV) during the mid-1980s. This periodicity was detected both at Earth, and in GCR measured by Voyager 2, then near Neptune. A similar coincident variability in Neptune’s brightness suggests nucleation onto GCR ions. Both GCR and UV mechanisms may occur more rapidly than the subsequent atmospheric particle transport

First-Person Perspective Effects on Theory of Mind without Self-Reference

This study examined dissociations between brain networks involved in theory of mind, which is needed for guessing others' mental states, and the self, which might constitute the basis for theory of mind's development. We used event-related fMRI to compare a condition that required participants to guess the mental state of a subject featured in first-person perspective sentences (1stPP condition) with a third-person perspective sentence condition (3rdPP condition). The caudate nucleus was marginally more activated in the 1stPP than in the 3rdPP condition, while the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) was significantly more activated in the 3rdPP condition as compared to the 1stPP condition. Furthermore, we examined the correlation between activation (signal intensity) of the caudate nucleus and left DLPFC with that of the right DLPFC, which is thought to be closely connected with sense of self. We found a significant correlation between caudate nucleus and right DLPFC activation in the 1stPP condition, and between left and right DLPFC activation in the 3rdPP condition. Although theory of mind and the self both appear to recruit the right DLPFC, this region seems to be accessed through the left DLPFC during theory of mind tasks, but through the caudate nucleus when tasks require self reference

Cooperation, Norms, and Revolutions: A Unified Game-Theoretical Approach

Cooperation is of utmost importance to society as a whole, but is often challenged by individual self-interests. While game theory has studied this problem extensively, there is little work on interactions within and across groups with different preferences or beliefs. Yet, people from different social or cultural backgrounds often meet and interact. This can yield conflict, since behavior that is considered cooperative by one population might be perceived as non-cooperative from the viewpoint of another. To understand the dynamics and outcome of the competitive interactions within and between groups, we study game-dynamical replicator equations for multiple populations with incompatible interests and different power (be this due to different population sizes, material resources, social capital, or other factors). These equations allow us to address various important questions: For example, can cooperation in the prisoner's dilemma be promoted, when two interacting groups have different preferences? Under what conditions can costly punishment, or other mechanisms, foster the evolution of norms? When does cooperation fail, leading to antagonistic behavior, conflict, or even revolutions? And what incentives are needed to reach peaceful agreements between groups with conflicting interests? Our detailed quantitative analysis reveals a large variety of interesting results, which are relevant for society, law and economics, and have implications for the evolution of language and culture as well

Dynamic liquefaction of shear zones in intact loess during simulated earthquake loading

The 2010-2011 Canterbury earthquake sequence in New Zealand exposed loess-mantled slopes in the area to very high levels of seismic excitation (locally measured as >2 g). Few loess slopes showed permanent local downslope deformation, and most of these showed only limited accumulated displacement. A series of innovative dynamic back pressured shear-box tests were undertaken on intact and remoulded loess samples collected from one of the recently active slopes replicating field conditions under different simplified horizontal seismic excitations. During each test, the strength reduction and excess pore water pressures generated were measured as the sample failed. Test results suggest that although dynamic liquefaction could have occurred, a key factor was likely to have been that the loess was largely unsaturated at the times of the large earthquake events. The failure of intact loess samples in the tests was complex and variable due to the highly variable geotechnical characteristics of the material. Some loess samples failed rapidly as a result of dynamic liquefaction as seismic excitation generated an increase in pore-water pressure, triggering rapid loss of strength and thus of shear resistance. Following initial failure, pore pressure dissipated with continued seismic excitation and the sample consolidated, resulting in partial shear-strength recovery. Once excess pore-water pressures had dissipated, deformation continued in a critical effective stress state with no further change in volume. Remoulded and weaker samples, however, did not liquefy, and instead immediately reduced in volume with an accompanying slower and more sustained increase in pore pressure as the sample consolidated. Thereafter excess pressures dissipated and deformation continued at a critical state. The complex behaviour explained why, despite exceptionally strong ground shaking, there was only limited displacement and lack of run-out: dynamic liquefaction was unlikely to occur in the freely draining slopes. Dynamic liquefaction however remained a plausible mechanism to explain loess failure in some of the low-angle toe slopes, where a permanent water table was present in the loess