An acoustic analysis of bam and zil singing by female Azerbaijani mugham singers using the Long Term Average Spectrum (LTAS)

Background. Azerbaijani mugham reflects the innermost creative music identity of the Azerbaijani heritage through one of the most complex forms of communication, the voice. Traditional performances of vocal mugham require improvisatory skills, possession of an extraordinary vocal range, and the ability to recite extensive poetry (ghazal), which are set to specific melodic modes.This paper explores the acoustic features of mugham, and is a part of ongoing research that investigates vocal production, performance practice, and the cognitive perception of Azerbaijani vocal mugham. It originated as part of a Master’s thesis, and hypothesizes that the singer’s formant is present in the sound of bam (low register singing) and zil (high register singing) in vocal mugham.    Despite the abundance of scholarly material focusing on mugham, little is known about the acoustic and physiologic properties of Azerbaijani vocal mugham, specifically how bam and zil are produced. This research fills the gap in understanding the vocal production, acoustic and physiologic aspects of this Ancient art form of vocal expression.Methods. It uses the Long Term Average Spectrum (LTAS) to investigate acoustic parameters, looking for common factors in the distribution of energy across frequency spectrums. It analyses the sound produced by five professional female Azerbaijani Mugham singers between the ages of thirty and fifty. Each singer performed the same piece, entitled “Mirza Huseyn Segahi.” Excerpts were spliced. Duration was relatively similar for each singer in bam and zil. Minor differences in duration were the result of different improvisatory elements used by the singers.Instrumentation. The data gathered from each recording were analyzed using the Multi Speech Voice Analysis program (Kay–Pentax, Lincoln Park, NJ), Presser Voice Laboratory in order to investigate the contour of the acoustic spectrum. The analysis was performed on each singer’s bam and zil singing samples, observing changes, or the lack of change, in the LTAS data. The LTAS data showed prominent peaks and valleys in five instances of ban for all five singers. It was possible to identify a singer’s formant for all samples.Results. Although, Azerbaijani vocal mugham singing is different from classical opera, the presence of singer’s formant was also evident in the sound of bam and zil of vocal mugham. Preexisting scientific acoustic analysis has looked for a singer’s formant in various vocal styles, such as folk singing, country singing, and opera singing. Scientists, Johan Sundberg, in his research, “The Source Spectrum in Professional Singing; Articulatory Interpretation of the Singing;” and in “Level and Center Frequency of the Singer’s Formant,” explains that singer’s formant is a particular acoustic phenomenon that appears as a result of the lowering of the larynx that in turn creates the conditions for a clustering of the upper formants. Sundberg writes, that this acoustic phenomenon is a prominent sound energy peak, which occurs as a result of the clustering of the third, fourth, and fifth formants. The strong spectral peaks that are identified as a singer’s formant appear in the upper part of the acoustic spectrum, between 2.5 and 3.3 kHz, depending upon voice classification.Conclusions. Through the LTAS voice analysis, it was evident that Azerbaijani vocal mugham singers singing in bam and zil ranges employ the acoustic phenomenon of the singer’s formant.  The vocal ranges, bam and zil, are not to be equated with a traditional classical understanding of registers. They mainly describe vocal tessitura, referring to the high or low range within the compass of a singer’s voice. However, the fact that the singer’s formant is present in the sound of the singers, singing in the low range of bam and in the high range of zil indicates that the positioning of the larynx is stable and low. This results in the clustering of the third, fourth, and fifth formants, comprising of the singer’s formant.Keywords: Azerbaijani, mugham, singer’s formant, bam, zil, voice science, acoustic parameter

A SUSTAINABLE APPROACH TO THE CONTROL OF PATHOGENS: THE FATE OF STREPTOCOCCI IN EQUINE COMPOST.

Streptococcus equi subspecies equi (S. equi), causes the potentially fatal respiratory disease called “strangles” in horses, while the closely related Streptococcus equi subspecies zooepidemicus (S. zooepidemicus) causes potentially fatal infections in humans. A study was undertaken to determine the survival of these two organisms in equine compost. Compost piles of equine bedding and feed waste were inoculated with 10 x 1010 c.f.u. of S. zooepidemicus and samples taken at 48, 96, 168 and 336 hours relative to samples placed in the pile at 0 hours. No Streptococci were isolated at 48 hours or subsequent time-points. Next, S. equi was similarly inoculated into equine compost, with samples taken at 2, 4, 8, 12, 24, 48, 168 and 336 hours later. No Streptococci were isolated at any time-point. To rule out killing of S. equi by microflora in equine waste, samples of soiled bedding, both autoclaved and un-autoclaved (with water added to match autoclaved moisture) were inoculated with 10 x 1010 c.f.u. of S. zooepidemicus and sampled at 0, 6, 12, 24, 48, 72, 120, 168 and 264 hours. In autoclaved bedding, S. zooepidemicus was isolated from 0 – 120 hours, but replaced by other flora at 264 hours. In un-autoclaved samples, Streptococci were not present after 48 hours. A repeated trial with S. equi yielded similar results. This data suggest that microbial activity of equine waste bedding may eliminate streptococci within 24 - 48 hours, indicating that normal microflora may provide sustainable methods for the control of human and animal pathogens

A SUSTAINABLE APPROACH TO THE CONTROL OF PATHOGENS: THE FATE OF STREPTOCOCCI IN EQUINE COMPOST.

Streptococcus equi subspecies equi (S. equi), causes the potentially fatal respiratory disease called “strangles” in horses, while the closely related Streptococcus equi subspecies zooepidemicus (S. zooepidemicus) causes potentially fatal infections in humans. A study was undertaken to determine the survival of these two organisms in equine compost. Compost piles of equine bedding and feed waste were inoculated with 10 x 1010 c.f.u. of S. zooepidemicus and samples taken at 48, 96, 168 and 336 hours relative to samples placed in the pile at 0 hours. No Streptococci were isolated at 48 hours or subsequent time-points. Next, S. equi was similarly inoculated into equine compost, with samples taken at 2, 4, 8, 12, 24, 48, 168 and 336 hours later. No Streptococci were isolated at any time-point. To rule out killing of S. equi by microflora in equine waste, samples of soiled bedding, both autoclaved and un-autoclaved (with water added to match autoclaved moisture) were inoculated with 10 x 1010 c.f.u. of S. zooepidemicus and sampled at 0, 6, 12, 24, 48, 72, 120, 168 and 264 hours. In autoclaved bedding, S. zooepidemicus was isolated from 0 – 120 hours, but replaced by other flora at 264 hours. In un-autoclaved samples, Streptococci were not present after 48 hours. A repeated trial with S. equi yielded similar results. This data suggest that microbial activity of equine waste bedding may eliminate streptococci within 24 - 48 hours, indicating that normal microflora may provide sustainable methods for the control of human and animal pathogens

BMP signaling modulates hedgehog-induced secondary heart field proliferation

AbstractSonic hedgehog signaling in the secondary heart field has a clear role in cardiac arterial pole development. In the absence of hedgehog signaling, proliferation is reduced in secondary heart field progenitors, and embryos predominantly develop pulmonary atresia. While it is expected that proliferation in the secondary heart field would be increased with elevated hedgehog signaling, this idea has never been tested. We hypothesized that up-regulating hedgehog signaling would increase secondary heart field proliferation, which would lead to arterial pole defects. In culture, secondary heart field explants proliferated up to 6-fold more in response to the hedgehog signaling agonist SAG, while myocardial differentiation and migration were unaffected. Treatment of chick embryos with SAG at HH14, just before the peak in secondary heart field proliferation, resulted unexpectedly in stenosis of both the aortic and pulmonary outlets. We examined proliferation in the secondary heart field and found that SAG-treated embryos exhibited a much milder increase in proliferation than was indicated by the in vitro experiments. To determine the source of other signaling factors that could modulate increased hedgehog signaling, we co-cultured secondary heart field explants with isolated pharyngeal endoderm or outflow tract and found that outflow tract co-cultures prevented SAG-induced proliferation. BMP2 is made and secreted by the outflow tract myocardium. To determine whether BMP signaling could prevent SAG-induced proliferation, we treated explants with SAG and BMP2 and found that BMP2 inhibited SAG-induced proliferation. In vivo, SAG-treated embryos showed up-regulated BMP2 expression and signaling. Together, these results indicate that BMP signaling from the outflow tract modulates hedgehog-induced proliferation in the secondary heart field

Patient‐Specific Analysis of Neural Activation During Spinal Cord Stimulation for Pain

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/156183/2/ner13037_am.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/156183/1/ner13037.pd

Evolution of immune function in response to dietary macronutrients in male and female decorated crickets

Although dietary macronutrients are known to regulate insect immunity, few studies have examined their evolutionary effects. Here, we evaluate this relationship in the cricket Gryllodes sigillatus by maintaining replicate populations on four diets differing in protein (P) to carbohydrate (C) ratio (P- or C-biased) and nutritional content (low- or high-nutrition) for >37 generations. We split each population into two; one maintained on their evolution diet and the other switched to their ancestral diet. We also maintained populations exclusively on the ancestral diet (baseline). After three generations, we measured three immune parameters in males and females from each population. Immunity was higher on P-biased than C-biased diets and on low- versus high-nutrition diets, although the latter was most likely driven by compensatory feeding. These patterns persisted in populations switched to their ancestral diet, indicating genetic divergence. Crickets evolving on C-biased diets had lower immunity than the baseline, whereas their P-biased counterparts had similar or higher immunity than the baseline, indicating that populations evolved with dietary manipulation. Although females exhibited superior immunity for all assays, the sexes showed similar immune changes across diets. Our work highlights the important role that macronutrient intake plays in the evolution of immunity in the sexes

Transcriptomic data of bovine ovarian granulosa cells of control and High A4 cows

Microarray analysis using Affymetrix Bovine GeneChip 1.0 ST Array to determine RNA expression analysis was performed on somatic granulosa cells from two different groups of cows classified based on androstenedione concentration within the follicular fluid (Control vs High A4) of estrogen-active dominant follicles. The normalized linear microarray data was deposited to the NCBI GEO repository (GSE97017 - RNA Expression Data from Bovine Ovarian Granulosa Cells from High or Low Androgen-Content Follicles). Subsequent ANOVA determined genes that were enriched (≥ 1.5 fold more) or decreased (≤ 1.5 fold less) in the High A4 granulosa cells compared to Control granulosa cells and analyzed filtered datasets of these differentially expressed genes are presented as tables. MicroRNAs that are differentially expressed in Control and High A4 granulosa cells are also reported in tables. The standard deviation of the analyzed array data in relation to the log of the expression values are shown as a figure. Ingenuity Pathway Analysis determined upstream regulators of differently expressed genes as presented in a table. These data have been further analyzed and interpreted in the companion article “A High-Androgen Microenvironment Inhibits Granulosa Cell Proliferation and Alters Cell Identity.

Federal Policing Structures - Mexico and Comparisons, ID: DipLab1927216

This report examines Mexico’s drug and police culture while analyzing police cultures in similarly organized countries. Drugs and cartels have a long and violent history within Mexico and the problem is spilling over the border into the United States. With corrupt and insufficiently trained police forces, the ability to effectively fight the drug war is extremely limited. Both the United States and Mexico have worked together to try to combat these connected issues, but more needs to be done. Key recommendations were found by analyzing the bipartite structures in Brazil and South Africa with a focus on Armenia. These recommendations include the following: - Prioritize the interests of the people - Standardized training - Distinguish a disciplinary authority to investigate human rights violations - Practice community-based policing using well-trained officers - Senior National Guard positions not to be reserved for friends of political appointees - Improve communication and information sharing - U.S. Technology and systems recommendations - Appoint a cabinet level Drug Czar * Limitations to this research include the use of only online materials and database articles and journals