Processing of inflected nouns and levels of cognitive sensitivity

In a series of experiments with lexical decision task it was demonstrated that processing of inflected Serbian noun forms is determined by the amount of information (bits) carried by those forms. The amount of information is derived from form's probability and number of syntactic functions/meanings carried by a form. Form's probability, on the other hand, is specified within gender paradigm (e. g. what is the probability of suffix x to be attached to a feminine noun?) by summing up probabilities of cases shared by a given inflected form. Within a paradigm of feminine nouns, however, there are number of subparadigms that differ in case distribution of their inflected forms and, by the same token, in distribution of the amount of information distribution. Previous studies have shown that the amount of information derived from probabilities of inflected forms derived from the dominant paradigm account for almost all processing variability. In this study we investigate whether processing of inflected forms from the non-dominant paradigm is affected by its probability distribution or by probability distribution of the dominant paradigm. The outcome of the experiment indicated that processing latencies to inflected forms are determined by probabilities derived from the dominant subparadigm

SCOPE AND QUALITY OF LEGAL PROTECTION AFFORDED TO COMPUTER PROGRAMS AS OBJECT OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

Computer programs are basic components of the usage of digital technology in all aspects of modern life, so the question arises as to how can current legal rules follow the development of digital technology  i.e. computer programs as well as modalities of its usage. The use of digital technology, especially via creation of computer programs, affects the law, and, consequently, leads to the need for adjusting already established legal mechanisms or for creating new ones for this aspect of legal relations. Since creation and usage of computer programs is basically result of human creative activity (intellectual property), the need arises to position and classify, as well as to define rights, obligations and legal protection of subjects and objects involved in these legal relations. Computer program, in the context of the law of Republic of Serbia, is treated as an object of copyright, while comparative law analyses shows different legal treatments in national laws in the region. Having in mind that computer technology develops far more faster than legal regulation can follow, question arises as to what is current scope and quality of legal protection of computer programs, as object of intellectual property. Defined issues will be analyzed within legal systems of the states in the region – Republic of Serbia, Republic of Croatia, Republic of Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as in the wider context of the law of the European Union and the process of harmonization of national laws with community law

experimental and quantum-chemical investigation.

U okviru disertacije, sintetisane su tri serije arilazo piridonskih boja: 5-(arilazo)- 3-cijano-1-etil-6-hidroksi-4-metil-2-piridoni, 5-(arilazo)-3-cijano-6-hidroksi-4-metil-2- -piridoni i 5-(4-arilazo)-3-cijano-6-hidroksi-1-hidroksietil-4-metil-2-piridoni. Predmet istraživanja je potpuna strukturna i solvatohromna karakterizacija sintetisanih jedinjenja kombinacijom eksperimentalnih tehnika i kvantno-hemijskih proračuna. Eksperimentalne metode podrazumevaju rendgensku strukturnu analizu i FT-IR, NMR i UV-Vis spektoskopiju. Energija, geometrijske strukture i vibracioni talasni brojevi 5-(metoksi supstituisanih fenilazo)-3-cijano-1-etil-6-hidroksi-4-metil-2-piridona dobijeni su kvantno-hemijskim proračunom, korišćenjem B3LYP, M06 i M06-2X modela, a stabilnost ovih molekula, kao posledica hiperkonjugativnih interakcija i delokalizacije naelektrisanja, izučavana je pomoću NBO analize. Optimizovane geometrije 5-(arilazo)- -3-cijano-1-etil-6-hidroksi-4-metil-2-piridona u vakuumu dobijene su pomoću B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) metode. UV-Vis apsorpcione energije za ista jedinjenja dobijene su pomoću vremenski zavisne DFT metode (TD-DFT). Simulacija je izvedena pomoću četiri modela: B3LYP, CAM-B3LYP, M06-2X i PBE0. UV-Vis spektralna svojstva jedinjenja i tautomerija detaljno su ispitani u dva rastvarača i to u etanolu i N,N-dimetilformamidu. Analizirani su UV-Vis apsorpcioni spektri u različitim rastvaračima i ispitivan je njihov uticaj na položaj apsorpcionih maksimuma. Takođe, ispitivan je uticaj prirode i položaja supstituenata u fenilnom jezgru i različitih supstituenata u položaju 1 piridonovog jezgra na apsorpcione spektre. Za kvantitativnu ocenu uticaja rastvarača na apsorpcione maksimume svih jedinjenja, primenjeni su principi LSER analize, i to Kamlet-Taft-ov i Catalán-ov model. Kvantitativna analiza uticaja supstituenata na apsorpcione maksimume 5-(4-arilazo)-3- -cijano-6-hidroksi-1-hidroksietil-4-metil-2-piridona urađena je pomoću LFER modela i to primenom Hammett-ove jednačine. Pored toga, LFER model je primenjen i u ispitivanju uticaja elektronskih efekata supstituenata na 1H and 13C NMR pomeraje,...In this thesis, three series of arylazo pyridone dyes 5-(substituted phenylazo)-3- -cyano-1-ethyl-6-hydroxy-4-methyl-2-pyridones, 5-(substituted phenylazo)-3-cyano-6- hydroxy-4-methyl-2-pyridone and 5-(4-substituted phenylazo)-3-cyano-6-hydroxy-1- -hydroxyethyl-4-methyl-2-pyridone have been synthesized. The purpose of this research is a combined experimental and theoretical characterization of the synthesised dyes. Experimental methods include X-ray single-crystal analysis, as well as FT-IR, NMR and UV-Vis spectroscopy. Quantum chemical calculations of energies, geometrical structure and vibrational wavenumbers of 5-(methoxy substituted phenylazo)-3-cyano-1-ethyl-6- -hydroxy-4-methyl-2-pyridones have been performed using B3LYP, M06 i M06-2X models. Stability of these molecules arising from hyperconjugative interactions and charge delocalization has been analyzed using natural bond orbital analysis. Optimized geometries in vacuum for 5-(substituted phenylazo)-3-cyano-1-ethyl-6-hydroxy-4- -methyl-2-pyridones have been obtained using B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) model. UV-Vis apsorbtion energies have been calculated using TD-DFT using B3LYP, CAM-B3LYP, M06-2X and PBE0 models. UV-Vis spectral properties and tautomerism have been throughly investigated in ethanol and N,N-dimethylformamide. The effects of the nature and the position of the substituents in phenyl ring on UV-Vis spectra in different solvents have been examined, as well as the impact of different substituents in the position 1 of pyridone ring. Furthermore, solvent effects on absorption spectra have been analysed. For quantitative evaluation of the solvent effects on the UV-Vis absorption maxima, the principles of the linear solvation energy relationships are used, i.e. models proposed by Kamlet–Taft and Catalán. Linear free energy relationships are applied to the UV-Vis absorption spectra and correlation of absorption frequencies with Hammett substituent constants are performed. Furthermore, the influence of the electronic nature of the substituents on 1H..

Pregnancy outcome during the bombing of Yugoslavia from Mart 24 to June 9, 1999

Background/Aim. The aim of this study was to evaluate pregnancy outcome during the bombing of Yugoslavia in the period from March 24 to June 9, 1999. Methods. A retrospective study included a total of 81spontaneous abortion following XII gestation week, and 1448 deliveries, hospitalized in the regional hospital. The analyzed were: the incidence of spontaneous abortion, Cesarean section, post-term delivery, vaginal delivery following the previous Cesarean section within the period from March 24 to June 9, 1999, and compared to the same periods in 1998 and 2000 by the use of χ² and Kolgomorov-Smirnov tests. Results. Under the conditions of a three-month stress imposed by the bombing, significantly increased were the incidence of spontaneous abortion and vaginal delivery following the previous Cesarean section, while the incidence of Cesarean section and post-term delivery were decreased, but the incidence of perinatal outcome was paradoxically improved. The analysis of findings on admittance revealed that iterative Cesarean section was performed electively, close to the expected term of delivery, and vaginal delivery following the previous Cesarean section mainly two weeks before that term with the admittance finding confirming a high active stage pregnancy. Conclusions. Within the bombing, statistically significantly was increased the percentage of abortions after XII gestation week, and the biological duration of pregnancy was reduced. The reduced duration of pregnancy complete with the accelerated fetal mutation (also caused by the stress) resulted in better perinatal outcome, and statistically significantly lower percentage of Cesarean section

Similarity-based competition in relative clause production and comprehension

This work investigates the role of semantic similarity in sentence production and comprehension. Previous research suggests that animacy and conceptual similarity of the noun concepts within complex descriptive phrases modulate structural preferences in production, and processing cost in comprehension. For example, animate-head phrases such as the girl that the boy is pulling are rare in production and more difficult to understand in comprehension. In contrast, phrases with passive clauses such as the girl being pulled by the boy are commonly produced and more easily understood, as are inanimate-head structures such as the truck the boy is pulling. In three picture-based studies, we examined the mechanisms underlying semantic similarity effects in producing and comprehending these phrases. Study 1 investigated structural preferences in production, whereas Study 2 investigated processing cost in comprehension. Study 3 used eye-tracking to examine the time-course of production processes. The results showed that semantic similarity elicited competition during phrase planning, influenced the choice of syntactic structure in production, and engendered comprehension difficulty in animate-head active configurations. Structural preferences, fixation probabilities reflecting production planning processes and comprehension cost significantly correlated with measures of conceptual similarity across the three studies. We argue that similarity-based competition modulates sentence production and comprehension processes when verbs are planned or interpreted, i.e., when event-based semantic or syntactic roles are determined. In addition to task-specific processes, we suggest that a similar and shared semantic competition mechanism underlies both production and comprehension, a view consistent with existing evidence for common brain regions recruited in both tasks

Contrast sensitivity in patients with diabetes mellitus

Introduction: Diabetic retinopathy is one of the major complications of diabetes mellitus. It is a progressive disease that includes following stages: no apparent DR, non-proliferative DR and proliferative DR. Contrast sensitivity is defined as the ability to distinguish details at low contrast levels. Numerous studies have shown that in patients with DR, in stages when visual acuity is normal or only mildly reduced, CS function is significantly affected. Aim: The aim of our study was to examine whether CS is reduced in patients with diabetes, and whether is it significantly lower in diabetic patients compared to healthy subjects. Material and methods: 20 patients with diabetes treated at Hospital for Eye Diseases, Clinical Center of Serbia and 20 healthy subjects from general population participated in the study. We have conducted case-control study. We used low-contrast ETDRS chart to measure CS. Results: CS in diabetic patients was compared with CS in healthy subjects. We also examined CS in diabetics with and without retinopathy. A statistically significant difference was ob served between the patients and the control group, both at monocular and binocular vision and the diseased persons had significantly impaired CS function. Regarding the stage of retinopathy, statistical significance existed only in monocular vision, in terms of decreased CS in patients with non-proliferative DR. Our study shows that there was no statistically significant difference in CS in diabetics with hemoglobin A1c lower than 7 and in those with hemoglobin A1c equal or higher than 7. Conclusion: Our research found that CS in diabetic patients can be greatly impaired, even in early stages of disease, while there were still no retinal abnormalities. In view of the fact that in all of our respondents visual acuity was normal, we conclude that measuring CS, could be good indicator of early vision disorders in diabetic patients

Utjecaj parodontološke terapije na C-reaktivni protein i parodontne patogene kod pacijenata s parodontopatijom

Objective: Recent epidemiological studies have shown that individuals with periodontitis have significantly increased risk of developing coronary heart disease. Although the mechanism responsible for the relationship between periodontal disease and cardiovascular events is not fully understood, it is hypothesized that the removal of infection and inflammatory burden of periodontitis by therapy would be accompanied by a decrease in levels of the inflammatory marker C-reactive protein and a decreased risk of coronary heart disease. The aim of the present study was to determine whether the presence of chronic periodontitis and periodontal pathogens and subsequent periodontal treatment could influence the serum levels of C-reactive protein in a Serbian cohort. Material and Methods: Fifty adults with moderate to severe periodontitis who underwent complete mouth disinfection were evaluated to determine if periodontal therapy would result in decreased periodontal infammation and lower serum levels of an inflammatory marker. Subjects underwent measuring of periodontal disease severity and serum C-reactive protein, and periodontal pathogens (Porphyromonas gingivalis and Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans) at the time of the baseline visit and again 6 and 12 months after treatment. Serum levels CRP were also obtained from 25 subjects without periodontitis in a control group. Results: The levels of CRP in the serum seemed not to be lower than those reported in other population in Western European countries. There were significant changes in clinical periodontal values, CRP levels and presence of periodontal pathogens when baseline values were compared to those taken after periodontal treatment completion. Conclusion: The obtained results confirm the hypothesis that periodontal therapy may contribute to elimination of periodontal inflammation and periodontal pathogens, and reduce serum level of CRP. Periodontitis may contribute to the systemic inflammatory burden of affected individuals since it was shown that periodontal therapy may decrease presence of periodontal pathogens and inflammatory markers

The influence of strontium content and sintering temperature on monazite stability

This paper shows a simple way to synthesize a series of Ce1-xSrxPO4 ceramic materials using acetate solutions of Ce and Sr instead of nitrate which were used so far. For synthesis, the preparation method was used by simple mixing of acetate solutions of Ceand Sr(, with NaH2PO4 at room temperature, and the studied compositions were Ce1-xSrxPO4 (where x = 0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5). The disintegration of Sr in monazite structures in different sintering temperature ranges from 600°C to 1000°C was investigated. The X-ray diffraction was used to track the evolution of the phase composition with thermal treatment. The morphology of sintered ceramics was obtained by scanning electron microscopy and vibrational bands of selected spectra were observed using the FT-IR method. Relative geometric density of selected samples was evaluated. The most favorable conditions for obtaining high-temperature Ce, Sr phosphate-based ceramic material are reported.У овом раду је приказан једноставан начин да се синтетише серија Ce1-xSrxPO4 керамичких материјала коришћењем ацетатних раствора Ce и Sr уместо до сада коришћених нитрата. За синтезу је коришћен метод припреме једноставним мешањем раствора Ce(C2H3O2)3·xH2O), Sr(C2H3O2)2, и NaH2PO4 као прекурсора на собној температури, а испитивани састави су Ce1-xSrxPO4 (где је к = 0 , 0,1, 0,2, 0,3, 0,4, 0,5). Испитивана је дезинтеграција Sr у структурама моназита у различитим температурним распонима синтеровања од 600 °C до 1000 °C. Дифракција рендгенских зрака на праху (XRD) је коришћена за праћење еволуције фазног састава синтетисаних и синтерованих узорака. Морфологија синтероване керамике испитивана је скенирајућом електронском микроскопијом (СЕМ), а вибрациое траке одабраних спектра су испитане ФТИР методом. Згушњавање и еволуција микроструктуре су одређене коришћењем релативне геометријске густине одабраних узорака. Приказани су најповољнији услови за добијање високотемпературног керамичког материјала на бази Ce, Sr фосфата

The role of complementary learning systems in learning and consolidation in a quasi-regular domain

We examine the role of off-line memory consolidation processes in the learning and retention of a new quasi-regular linguistic system similar to the English past tense. Quasi-regular systems are characterized by a dominance of systematic, regular forms (e.g., walk-walked, jump-jumped) alongside a smaller number of high frequency irregulars (e.g., sit-sat, go-went), and are found across many cognitive domains, from spelling-sound mappings to inflectional morphology to semantic cognition. Participants were trained on the novel morphological system using an artificial language paradigm, and then tested after different delays. Based on a complementary systems account of memory, we predicted that irregular forms would show stronger off-line changes due to consolidation processes. Across two experiments, participants were tested either immediately after learning, 12 h later with or without sleep, or 24 h later. Testing involved generalization of the morphological patterns to previously unseen words (both experiments) as well as recall of the trained words (Experiment 2). In generalization, participants showed 'default' regularization across a range of novel forms, as well as irregularization for previously unseen items that were similar to unique high-frequency irregular trained forms. Both patterns of performance remained stable across the delays. Generalizations involving competing tendencies to regularize and irregularize were balanced between the two immediately after learning. Crucially, at both 12-h delays the tendency to irregularize in these cases was strengthened, with further strengthening after 24 h. Consolidated knowledge of both regular and irregular trained items contributed significantly to generalization performance, with evidence of strengthening of irregular forms and weakening of regular forms. We interpret these findings in the context of a complementary systems model, and discuss how maintenance, strengthening, and forgetting of the new memories across sleep and wake can play a role in acquiring quasi-regular systems

Quantitative spectroscopy for detection of cervical dysplasia

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology, 2009.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references.The current clinical standard for cervical cancer diagnosis is colposcopy, a procedure that involves visual inspection and biopsy of at-risk tissue, followed by histopathology. The major objective of colposcopy is detection of high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (HSIL), which are precancerous lesions with high risk of progression. Colposcopy, even when conducted by experts, is subject to significant diagnostic variability. The aim of the work presented in this thesis was to develop a non-invasive clinical tool for detection of cervical HSIL and for guiding the biopsy during colposcopy. Previously we have developed a contact-probe portable instrument for tissue reflectance and fluorescence collection, and spectral analysis models to extract and quantify biochemical and structural features of tissue to provide disease state assessment. In this thesis we further refine the instrumentation and spectral analysis models and conduct the clinical in vivo studies. The clinical in-vivo study showed cervical anatomy was a confounder to diagnostic algorithms that treat cervix as spectroscopically uniform. We used complex instrumentation to comprehensively study cervical tissue and found that scattering alone was sufficient to identify HSIL. We developed an accurate algorithm based on tissue scattering for detection of HSIL in the cervical transformation zone, an area where vast majority of cervical lesions arise. We further successfully extended our point-probe technique into the imaging mode, to provide the wide-area surveillance capability.(cont.) The ongoing imaging clinical in-vivo feasibility study demonstrates spectroscopic contrast between cervical HSIL and non-HSIL tissue and is consistent with findings of the contact-probe study. The future steps include diagnostic accuracy assessment of the imaging technique, and if proven successful, a clinical study to evaluate the performance of spectroscopy-guided biopsy.by Jelena Mirković.Ph.D