The impact of music and stretched time on pupillary responses and eye movements in slow-motion film scenes

This study investigated the effects of music and playback speed on arousal and visual perception in slow-motion scenes taken from commercial films. Slow-motion scenes are a ubiquitous film technique and highly popular. Yet the psychological effects of mediated time-stretching compared to real-time motion have not been empirically investigated. We hypothesised that music affects arousal and attentional processes. Furthermore, we assumed that playback speed influences viewers’ visual perception, resulting in a higher number of eye movements and larger gaze dispersion. Thirty-nine participants watched three film excerpts in a repeated-measures design in conditions with or without music and in slow motion vs. adapted real-time motion (both visual-only). Results show that music in slow-motion film scenes leads to higher arousal compared to no music as indicated by larger pupil diameters in the former. There was no systematic effect of music on visual perception in terms of eye movements. Playback speed influenced visual perception in eye movement parameters such that slow motion resulted in more and shorter fixations as well as more saccades compared to adapted real-time motion. Furthermore, in slow motion there was a higher gaze dispersion and a smaller centre bias, indicating that individuals attended to more detail in slow motion scenes

Attentional Flexibility and Memory Capacity in Conductors and Pianists

Individuals with high working memory (WM) capacity also tend to have better selective and divided attention. Although both capacities are essential for skilled performance in many areas, evidence for potential training and expertise effects is scarce. We investigated the attentional flexibility of musical conductors by comparing them to equivalently trained pianists. Conductors must focus their attention both on individual instruments and on larger sections of different instruments. We studied students and professionals in both domains to assess the contributions of age and training to these skills. Participants completed WM span tests for auditory and visual (notated) pitches and timing durations, as well as long-term memory tests. In three dichotic attention tasks, they were asked to detect small pitch and timing deviations from two melodic streams presented in baseline (separate streams), selective-attention (concentrating on only one stream), and divided-attention (concentrating on targets in both streams simultaneously) conditions. Conductors were better than pianists in detecting timing deviations in divided attention, and experts detected more targets than students. We found no group differences for WM capacity or for pitch deviations in the attention tasks, even after controlling for the older age of the experts. Musicians\u27 WM spans across multimodal conditions were positively related to selective and divided attention. High-WM participants also had shorter reaction times in selective attention. Taken together, conductors showed higher attentional flexibility in successfully switching between different foci of attention

Movement Sonification of Musical Gestures: Investigating Perceptual Processes Underlying Musical Performance Movements

(Abstract to follow

Emosjoner og erfaringer: venn eller fiende?

Oppgaven tar for seg problematikken av den emosjonelle verden knyttet til relasjoner og hvordan dette utspiller seg i den praktiske verden til sosialarbeidere. Det ble gjort en litteraturstudie på eksisterende kunnskap rundt problemstillingen for å indentifisere positive og negative aspekter ved emosjoner som en del av praksis. Studien prøver å samle gjeldene kunnskap for å skape en oversikt av problematikken. Studien konkluderes med at det er behov for videre forskning.The study aims to look at the emotional aspect attached to relations in social work and how this plays out in the social workers meeting with clients. This study is a litterature review of existing knowledge on the topic and aims to collect the different studies to look at the positive and negative aspects of emtions in the practical social work. The study concludes with the need for further exploration of the topic

Disposition und Steuerung des Wareneingangs in einem Transportermontagewerk

Die Leistungsfähigkeit produzierender Unternehmen ist maßgeblich von der Steuerung logistischer Prozesse bestimmt. Im Sinne einer Effizienzmaximierung der nachfragebasierten Materialversorgung kommt dem Informationsfluss eine bedeutende Rolle zu. Dabei ist eine einwandfreie Datenerfassung, als Schnittstelle zwischen Informations- und Materialfluss, essentiell. Allerdings kann eine fehlerfreie Erfassung logistikrelevanter Daten entlang der Supply Chain aufgrund manueller Identifizierungsabläufe nicht immer gewährleistet werden. Dies kann die Fähigkeit der effizienten Prozesssteuerung stark einschränken und demzufolge zu empfindlichen Einschnitten bezüglich der Prozessqualität führen. Der Einsatz automatischer Identifizierungssysteme im Unternehmen stellt ein probates Hilfsmittel zur Sicherstellung der logistischen Prozesssicherheit dar. Doch sind bei der Auswahl eines für den jeweiligen Anwendungsfall bestgeeigneten Auto-ID-Systems neben monetären auch qualitative Parameter zu untersuchen. Nur so kann sichergestellt werden, dass aus einer Vielzahl möglicher Technologiealternativen eine Systemvariante ausgewählt wird, die die gegebenen Rahmenbedingungen optimal berücksichtigt. Im Nachfolgenden soll die Auswahl eines Auto-ID-Systems exemplarisch erläutert werden. Dazu wird zunächst eine detaillierte Systemanalyse durchgeführt. Zur Bewertung des qualitativen Nutzens der Implementierung eines Auto-ID-Systems kommt eine Nutzwertanalyse zur Anwendung. Des Weiteren wird eine umfassende Investitionsrechnung durchgeführt, bei der sowohl etwaige Investitions- als auch Betriebskosten einbezogen werden, um ebenso quantitative Aufwandsparameter abschätzen zu können. Die abschließende Systemempfehlung erfolgt mittels einer Nutzwert-Kosten-Analyse, bei der die einzelnen Systemalternativen anhand ihrer qualitativen und quantitativen Eigenschaften gegenübergestellt werden. Vor dem Hintergrund der gegebenen Problemstellung hat sich ein WLAN-gestütztes Auto-ID-System als Vorzugsvariante herausgestellt. Es verfügt unter allen Alternativen über das beste Kosten-Nutzen-Verhältnis und führt zur größtmöglichen Prozessverbesserung.The performance of manufacturers is mainly determined by the control of the logistic processes. To maximize the efficiency of a demand based material fl ow, it is of particular importance to focus on the information fl ow. It is essential to have a perfectly working data recording as interface between the material and information fl ow. However, manual identification procedures in supply chains do not guarantee a faultless recording of relevant data. On the contrary, automatic identification systems are known to ensure logistic process reliability. Against the background of a diversity of available Auto-ID solutions, the choice for an appropriate one needs not only to take into account monetary, but also qualitative parameters. In this way, also on-site conditions are considered. In the following, the selection of an Auto-ID system will be exemplified which is firstly based on a detailed system analysis. Secondly, a value benefit analysis will be conducted that evaluates the qualitative advantages of the implementation of an Auto-ID system. Thirdly, potential expenditures will be estimated by carrying out a comprehensive investment appraisal, focusing both on investment and operating costs. Finally, a system recommendation will be offered as a result from a cost-benefit analysis that compares all system solutions on the basis of their qualitative and quantitative properties. In the given study, a WLAN based Auto-ID system turned out to be the favorable solution. It had the best cost-benefit ratio across all alternatives and led to the largest possible process improvement

Score one for jazz: Working memory in jazz and classical musicians

Jazz musicians rely on different skills than do classical musicians for successful performances. We investigated the working memory span of classical and jazz student musicians on musical and nonmusical working memory tasks. College-aged musicians completed the Bucknell Auditory Imagery Scale, followed by verbal working memory tests and musical working memory tests that included visual and auditory presentation modes and written or played recall. Participants were asked to recall the last word (or pitch) from each task after a distraction task, by writing, speaking, or playing the pitch on the piano. Jazz musicians recalled more pitches that were presented in auditory versions and recalled on the piano compared with classical musicians. Scores were positively correlated to years of jazz-playing experience. We conclude that type of training should be considered in studies of musical expertise, and that tests of musicians’ cognitive skills should include domain-specific components

Immunomodulation for primary prevention of urinary tract infections in patients with spinal cord injury during primary rehabilitation: protocol for a randomized placebo-controlled pilot trial (UROVAXOM-pilot).

BACKGROUND Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are common in individuals with neurogenic lower urinary tract dysfunction (NLUTD) following spinal cord injury (SCI). They are not only a great burden for affected individuals, but also cause considerable health costs. Furthermore, recurrent antibiotic treatments of UTIs contribute to the growing problem of bacterial resistance to antimicrobial compounds. Even though there is a multitude of different measures to prevent UTIs in individuals with NLUTD, no clear evidence exists for any of these. Oral immunomodulation with UTI-relevant Escherichia coli lysate may be a promising preventative measure with a good safety profile in individuals with NLUTD. However, currently available data are sparse. METHODS This is a randomized, quasi-blinded, placebo-controlled, mono-centric pilot trial investigating the feasibility of a main trial regarding the effects of a lyophilized lysate of E. coli strains for oral application (Uro-Vaxom®, OM Pharma SA, Meyrin, Switzerland). There will be two parallel groups of 12 participants each. Individuals with acute SCI (duration SCI ≤ 56 days) from 18 to 70 years of age admitted for primary rehabilitation will be eligible. Blood and urine samples will be taken prior to intervention start, at the end of the intervention, and 3 months after intervention termination. The trial intervention will last 90 days. The participants will not be informed regarding the treatment allocation (quasi-blinded). The nursing staff will prepare the daily dose of the allocated treatment from the original packaging. The trial personnel and the biostatistician will be blinded. Feasibility (e.g., recruitment rate, patient attrition), clinical (e.g., number of symptomatic UTIs), and laboratory parameters (e.g., urinary culture, urinary proteo- and microbiome, blood cell counts) as well as adverse events will be collected. DISCUSSION Effective and efficient measures for the prevention of UTIs in individuals with NLUTD are urgently needed. If the conclusion of this pilot is positive regarding feasibility, the effects of oral immunomodulation with a E. coli lysate will be investigated in a larger, sufficiently powered, multi-center trial. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04049994 . Registered on 8 August 2019

Early Changes in Androgen Levels in Individuals with Spinal Cord Injury: A Longitudinal SwiSCI Study.

We aimed to explore longitudinal changes in androgen levels in individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) within initial inpatient rehabilitation stay and identify clinical/injury characteristics associated with hormone levels. Linear regression analysis was applied to explore the association between personal/injury characteristics and androgen hormones (total testosterone, free testosterone, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S)) at admission to rehabilitation. Longitudinal changes in androgen levels were studied using linear mixed models. Analyses were stratified by sex and by injury type. We included 70 men and 16 women with SCI. We observed a non-linear association between age, time since injury, and androgens at baseline. At admission to initial rehabilitation, mature serum SHBG (full-length, protein form which lacks the N-terminal signaling peptide) was higher, while DHEA and DHEA-S were lower among opioid users vs. non-users. Serum levels of total testosterone and DHEA-S increased over rehabilitation period [β 3.96 (95%CI 1.37, 6.56), p = 0.003] and [β 1.77 (95%CI 0.73, 2.81), p = 0.01], respectively. We observed no significant changes in other androgens. Restricting our analysis to men with traumatic injury did not materially change our findings. During first inpatient rehabilitation over a median follow up of 5.6 months, we observed an increase in total testosterone and DHEA-S in men with SCI. Future studies need to explore whether these hormonal changes influence neurological and functional recovery as well as metabolic parameters during initial rehabilitation stay

Keeping an eye on the violinist: motor experts show superior timing consistency in a visual perception task

Common coding theory states that perception and action may reciprocally induce each other. Consequently, motor expertise should map onto perceptual consistency in specific tasks such as predicting the exact timing of a musical entry. To test this hypothesis, ten string musicians (motor experts), ten non-string musicians (visual experts), and ten non-musicians were asked to watch progressively occluded video recordings of a first violinist indicating entries to fellow members of a string quartet. Participants synchronised with the perceived timing of the musical entries. Results revealed significant effects of motor expertise on perception. Compared to visual experts and non-musicians, string players not only responded more accurately, but also with less timing variability. These findings provide evidence that motor experts’ consistency in movement execution—a key characteristic of expert motor performance—is mirrored in lower variability in perceptual judgements, indicating close links between action competence and perception

External Urethral Sphincter Pressure Measurement: An Accurate Method for the Diagnosis of Detrusor External Sphincter Dyssynergia?

Combined pelvic floor electromyography (EMG) and videocystourethrography (VCUG) during urodynamic investigation are the most acceptable and widely agreed methods for diagnosing detrusor external sphincter dyssynergia (DESD). Theoretically, external urethral sphincter pressure (EUSP) measurement would provide enough information for the diagnosis of DESD and could simplify the urodynamic investigation replacing combined pelvic floor EMG and VCUG. Thus, we evaluated the diagnostic accuracy of EUSP measurement for DESD. PATIENTS #ENTITYSTARTX00026;A consecutive series of 72 patients (36 women, 36 men) with neurogenic lower urinary tract dysfunction able to void spontaneously was prospectively evaluated at a single university spinal cord injury center. Diagnosis of DESD using EUSP measurement (index test) versus combined pelvic floor EMG and VCUG (reference standard) was assessed according to the recommendations of the Standards for Reporting of Diagnostic Accuracy Initiative.Using EUSP measurement (index test) and combined pelvic floor EMG and VCUR (reference standard), DESD was diagnosed in 10 (14%) and in 41 (57%) patients, respectively. More than half of the patients presented discordant diagnosis between the index test and the reference standard. Among 41 patients with DESD diagnosed by combined pelvic floor EMG and VCUR, EUSP measurement identified only 6 patients. EUSP measurement had a sensitivity of 15% (95% CI 5%-25%), specificity of 87% (95% CI 76%-98%), positive predictive value of 60% (95% CI 30%-90%), and negative predictive value of 56% (95% CI 44%-68%) for the diagnosis of DESD.For diagnosis of DESD, EUSP measurement is inaccurate and cannot replace combined pelvic floor EMG and VCUR