bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Two Approaches to the Facilitation of Grammar in Children With Language Impairment
Authors: Fey Marc E. , Cleave Patricia L. , Long Steven H. , Hughes Diana L.
Published: August 2014

Two approaches to grammar facilitation in preschool-age children with language impairment were evaluated. One approach was administered by a speech-language pathologist and the other was presented by the subjects’ parents, who were trained by the speech-language pathologist. Both treatment packages ran for 4 ½ months and made use of focused stimulation procedures and a cyclical goal-attack strategy. Subjects were 30 children between the ages of 3:8 and 5:10 (years:months) who had marked delays in grammatical development. Children who served in a delayed-treatment control group averaged no gains over their no-treatment period. In contrast, large treatment effects were observed for both treatment groups on three of four measures of grammatical expression. However, closer inspection of the data revealed that the effects for the clinician treatment were more consistent across treatment administrations than were those for the parent treatment. Although the specific contributions of the focused stimulation procedures and the cyclical goal attack strategy were not evaluated, the results support the viability of these components as parts of larger treatment packages. The results also support the participation of parents as primary intervention agents in grammar facilitation programs. When parents take such a large role in the intervention process, however, it is imperative that the children’s progress be monitored carefully and that program adjustments be made whenever gains are smaller than expected.
Speaking Rate and Speech Movement Velocity Profiles
Authors: Adams Scott G. , Weismer Gary , Kent Raymond D.
Published: August 2014

The effects of speaking rate on the velocity profiles of movements of the lower lip and tongue tip during the production of stop consonants were examined using an x-ray microbeam system. Five young adults used a magnitude production task to produce five speaking rates that ranged from very fast to very slow. Results indicated that changes in speaking rate were associated with changes in the topology of the speech movement velocity-time function. Specifically, the velocity profile changed from a symmetrical, single-peaked function at the fast speaking rates to an asymmetrical and multi-peaked function at the slow speaking rates. This variation in velocity profile shape is interpreted as support for the view that alterations in speaking rate are associated with changes in motor control strategies. In particular, the control strategy for speech gestures produced at fast speaking rates appears to involve unitary movements that may be predominately preprogrammed, whereas gestures produced at slow speaking rates consist of multiple submovements that may be influenced by feedback mechanisms.
Importance of Patient and Processor Variables in Determining Outcomes With Cochlear Implants
Authors: Wilson Blake S. , Lawson Dewey T. , Finley Charles C. , Wolford Robert D.
Published: August 2014

Within-subjects comparisons of processing strategies for cochlear implants are reviewed.
Compressed analog
strategies were compared to
interleaved pulses
strategies in tests with one group of 8 subjects, and to
continuous interleaved sampling
strategies in tests with another group of 11 subjects. The tests included open-set recognition of words and sentences. The results show that, while different strategies may produce quite different outcomes across subjects, individual performances with one processing strategy are significantly correlated with those of alternative strategies. These findings emphasize the importance of patient variables in determining outcomes across a variety of prosthesis designs.
Relationship Between Language and Fluency in Children With Developmental Language Disorders
Authors: Hall Nancy E. , Yamashita Toyoko S. , Aram Dorothy M.
Published: August 2014

The present investigation addresses two primary hypotheses: (a) that a subset of children with developmental language disorders exhibits significantly more disfluencies than other children with language disorders and (b) that differences between the disfluent and nondisfluent groups observed in fluency may be related to differences in language deficits. Spontaneous language samples from 60 preschool children with developmental language disorders were analyzed for frequency and type of disfluencies. Comparisons of the frequency of disfluencies across subjects revealed that a subset of 10 subjects exhibited significantly more disfluencies than the other subjects with language disorders. Demographic, intelligence, and language variables were compared across the two groups to determine whether such factors could account for the differences in fluency. The subjects with greater percentages of disfluencies were found to be significantly older and demonstrated significantly higher scores on two standard measures of vocabulary. These findings were interpreted in light of two models of disfluencies: the neuropsycholinguistic (Perkins, Kent, & Curlee, 1991) and Demands and Capacities (Adams, 1990; Starkweather, 1987). This suggests that some children with language disorders are at risk for fluency breakdown because of dysynchronies in the development of lexical and syntactic aspects of language or as a result of mismatches between speaking demands and capacities.
Event-Related Brain Potentials Preceding Speech and Nonspeech Oral Movements of Varying Complexity
Authors: Wohlert Amy B.
Published: August 2014

Cortical preparation for movement is reflected in the readiness potential (RP) waveform preceding voluntary limb movements. In the case of oral movements, the RP may be affected by the complexity or linguistic nature of the tasks. In this experiment, EEG potentials before a nonspeech task (lip pursing), a speech-like task (lip rounding), and single word production were recorded from scalp electrodes placed at the cranial vertex (Cz) and over the left and right motor strips (C3′ and C4′). Seven right-handed female subjects produced at least 70 repetitions of the three tasks, in each of five repeated sessions. EEG records were averaged with respect to EMG onset at the lip.

The word task, as opposed to the other tasks, was associated with greater negative amplitude in the RP waveform at the vertex site. Differences between the waveforms recorded at the rightand left-hemisphere sites were insignificant. Although intersubject variability was high, individuals had relatively stable patterns of response across sessions. Results suggest that the RP recorded at the vertex site is sensitive to changes in task complexity. The RP did not reflect lateralized activity indicative of hemispheric dominance.
Evaluating Differences Between Stuttering and Nonstuttering Speakers
Authors: Young Martin A.
Published: August 2014

This paper focuses on some suggested analytical indices to be used in group difference studies, specifically in research comparing stuttering with nonstuttering speakers. The introductory material places the group difference design in an historical context and shows its relationship to underlying conceptualizations of the nature of stuttering. The major portion of the paper addresses the development, interpretation, and application of these analytical indices. Finally, limitations of the group difference design are described.
Adult-Directed Communications of Youth With Mental Retardation Using the System for Augmenting Language
Authors: Romski Mary Ann , Sevcik Rose A. , Robinson Byron , Bakeman Roger
Published: August 2014

This study characterizes the success and effectiveness of adult-directed communications of youth with mental retardation and little or no functional speech who used the System for Augmenting Language (SAL), in concert with vocalizations and gestures, to communicate over a 2-year period. Subjects were introduced to the SAL, a speech-output communication device used during daily interactions, to encourage attempts at communication either at home or school. All subjects used the SAL at home and at school during the second year. Results indicate that subjects used the SAL with their extant forms of communication, particularly vocalizations. Extant communications were more successful than SAL communications, although the environment influenced the success of all of the youth’s communications. The SAL, however, was more effective than vocalizations or gestures in conveying information and interacting with adults in both environments. Maintenance, generalization, and implications for practice are discussed.
Effects of Phonetic Context on Audio-Visual Intelligibility of French
Authors: Benoît Christian , Mohamadi Tayeb , Kandel Sonia
Published: August 2014

Bimodal perception leads to better speech understanding than auditory perception alone. We evaluated the overall benefit of lip-reading on natural utterances of French produced by a single speaker. Eighteen French subjects with good audition and vision were administered a closed set identification test of VCVCV nonsense words consisting of three vowels [i, a, y] and six consonants [b, v, z, 3,r, l]. Stimuli were presented under both auditory and audio-visual conditions with white noise added at various signal-to-noise ratios. Identification scores were higher in the bimodal condition than in the auditory-alone condition, especially in situations where acoustic information was reduced. The auditory and audio-visual intelligibility of the three vowels [i, a, y] averaged over the six consonantal contexts was evaluated as well. Two different hierarchies of intelligibility were found. Auditorily, [a] was most intelligible, followed by [i] and then by [y]; whereas visually [y] was most intelligible, followed by [a] and [i]. We also quantified the contextual effects of the three vowels on the auditory and audio-visual intelligibility of the consonants. Both the auditory and the audio-visual intelligibility of surrounding consonants was highest in the [a] context, followed by the [i] context and lastly the [y] context.
Stuttering Includes Both Within-Word and Between-Word Disfluencies
Authors: Cordes Anne K. , Ingham Roger J.
Published: August 2014

A growing practice divides stuttered disfluencies from normal disfluencies by defining the former as “within-word” and the latter as “between-word.” After reviewing the available logical and empirical evidence, this note concludes that the unstated implications of a strong form of this definition (that no between-word disfluencies are stuttering and that all within-word disfluencies are stuttering) cannot currently be supported. A weaker form of this definition might prove useful for the definition and measurement of stuttering, but only if such a definition can be both internally consistent and consistent with available clinical and empirical information.
Quantifying the Relation Between Speech Quality and Speech Intelligibility
Authors: Preminger Jill E. , Tasell Dianne J. Van
Published: August 2014

The purpose of the present research was to examine the relation between speech quality and speech intelligibility. Speech quality measurements were made using continuous discourse and a category rating procedure for the following dimensions: intelligibility, pleasantness, loudness, effort, and total impression. Measurements were made using a group of listeners with normal hearing for a set of stimulus conditions in which intelligibility varied, and for a set of stimulus conditions in which intelligibility was held constant near 100%. When ratings were made for a set of stimulus conditions in which intelligibility was allowed to vary (a) intersubject reliability was high (i.e., different listeners interpreted the dimensions in a similar manner); and (b) the speech quality dimensions of intelligibility, effort, and loudness were indistinguishable. When ratings were made for a set of stimulus conditions in which intelligibility was held constant (a) intersubject reliability was reduced, indicating that different listeners interpreted the dimensions in different ways; (b) most listeners rated each dimension differently, indicating that the dimensions were unique; and (c) across listeners, no single dimension was highly correlated with total impression. These results can be used in order to examine the relation between speech quality and speech intelligibility.
Some Spectral Correlates of Pathological Breathy and Rough Voice Quality for Different Types of Vowel Fragments
Authors: Krom Guus de
Published: August 2014

This study deals with the relation between listeners' ratings of pathological breathiness and roughness and certain characteristics of the voice spectrum. Two general research questions were addressed: First, which spectral parameters may serve as useful predictors of breathiness and roughness? Second, does the type of speech fragment used for analysis have an effect on the obtained regression model? Listener ratings of breathiness and roughness were obtained for three types of vowel fragments: a vowel onset segment, a mid-vowel (post-onset) segment, and a vowel segment covering the onset and the acoustically more stable post-onset parts. Results indicated that the harmonics-to-noise ratio was the best single predictor of both rated breathiness and roughness, explaining up to 54% of the true rating variance. By combining different predictors, between 75% and 80% of the breathiness variance could be explained for all three types of fragments. For roughness, a strong effect of fragment type was observed, with most variance explained in vowel onset fragments (71%), and least in post-onset fragments (52%). The effect of fragment type was also observed when regression analyses were performed with six predictors based on a factor analysis of the acoustic data.
Temporal Characteristics of Speech in Simultaneous Communication
Authors: Whitehead Robert L. , Schiavetti Nicholas , Whitehead Brenda H. , Metz Dale Evan
Published: August 2014

The purpose of this investigation was twofold: (a) to determine if there are changes in specific temporal characteristics of speech that occur during simultaneous communication, and (b) to determine if known temporal rules of spoken English are disrupted during simultaneous communication. Ten speakers uttered sentences consisting of a carrier phrase and experimental CVC words under conditions of: (a) speech, (b) speech combined with signed English, and (c) speech combined with signed English for every word except the CVC word that was fingerspelled. The temporal features investigated included: (a) sentence duration, (b) experimental CVC word duration, (c) vowel duration in experimental CVC words, (d) pause duration before and after experimental CVC words, and (e) consonantal effects on vowel duration. Results indicated that for all durational measures, the speech/sign/fingerspelling condition was longest, followed by the speech/sign condition, with the speech condition being shortest. It was also found that for all three speaking conditions, vowels were longer in duration when preceding voiced consonants than vowels preceding their voiceless cognates, and that a low vowel was longer in duration than a high vowel. These findings indicate that speakers consistently reduced their rate of speech when using simultaneous communication, but did not violate these specific temporal rules of English important for consonant and vowel perception.
Behavioral Genetics: Concepts for Research and Practice in Language Development and Disorders
Authors: Gilger Jeffrey W.
Published: August 2014

This paper is an introduction to behavioral genetics for researchers and practioners in language development and disorders. The specific aims are to illustrate some essential concepts and to show how behavioral genetic research can be applied to the language sciences. Past genetic research on language-related traits has tended to focus on simple etiology (i.e., the heritability or familiality of language skills). The current state of the art, however, suggests that great promise lies in addressing more complex questions through behavioral genetic paradigms. In terms of future goals it is suggested that: (a) more behavioral genetic work of all types should be done—including replications and expansions of preliminary studies already in print; (b) work should focus on fine-grained, theory-based phenotypes with research designs that can address complex questions in language development; and (c) work in this area should utilize a variety of samples and methods (e.g., twin and family samples, heritability and segregation analyses, linkage and association tests, etc.).
Comparison of Two Forms of Intensive Speech Treatment for Parkinson Disease
Authors: Ramig Lorraine Olson , Countryman Stefanie , Thompson Laetitia L. , Horii Yoshiyuki
Published: August 2014

This study investigated the effect of two forms of intensive speech treatment, (a) respiration (R) and (b) voice and respiration (Lee Silverman Voice Treatment [LSVT]), on the speech and voice deficits associated with Idiopathic Parkinson disease. Forty-five subjects with Idiopathic Parkinson disease completed extensive pretreatment neurological, otolaryngologicai, neuropsychological, and speech assessments. All subjects completed 16 sessions of intensive speech treatment, 4 times a week for 1 month. Pre- and post-treatment measures included intensity and maximum duration during sustained vowel phonation. Intensity, habitual fundamental frequency, fundamental frequency variability, and utterance and pause duration were measured during reading of the “Rainbow Passage” and conversational monologue as well. Family and subject self-ratings were completed pre- and post-treatment for the perceptual variables loudness, monotonicity, hoarseness, overall intelligibility, and initiation of conversation. Significant pre- to post-treatment improvements were observed for more variables and were of greater magnitude for the subjects who received the voice and respiration treatment (LSVT). Only subjects who received the LSVT rated a significant decrease post-treatment on the impact of Parkinson disease on their communication. Correlations between descriptive prognostic variables (i.e., stage of disease, speech/voice severity rating, depression, and time since diagnosis) and magnitude of treatment-related change indicated these factors did not significantly predict treatment effectiveness. These findings suggest that intensive voice and respiration (LSVT) treatment, focusing on increased vocal fold adduction and respiration, is more effective than respiration (R) treatment alone for improving vocal intensity and decreasing the impact of Parkinson disease on communication.
Estimation of Client-Assessed Hearing Aid Performance Based Upon Unaided Variables
Authors: Crowley Hilary J. , Nabelek Igor V.
Published: August 2014

The purpose of this study was to investigate the possibility of estimating client-assessed hearing aid performance before hearing aids are purchased. Aided performance was represented by the Profile of Hearing Aid Performance (PHAP, Cox & Gilmore, 1990). Multiple regression was applied to 16 unaided predictor variables and to 8 response variables. The response variables were the scores from the seven PHAP subscales plus the overall PHAP score, which were obtained from 46 participants. Audiologic, demographic, and psychological information was included among the 16 predictor variables.

The average widths of 95% prediction intervals showed that, with the exception of the Aversiveness of Sounds and Ease of Communication subscales, PHAP subscale scores were predicted within 15% on average. Eighty percent or more of the individual participants’ PHAP scores were predicted within 15% for all but the Aversiveness of Sounds subscale. The predictor variables appearing in regression equations for the greatest number of PHAP subscales include age, Communication Strategies and Personal Adjustment scores from the Communication Profile for the Hearing Impaired (Demorest & Erdman, 1986), Revised Speech Perception in Noise (Bilger, Neutzel, Rabinowitz, & Rzeczkowski, 1984; Kalikow, Stevens, & Elliott, 1977) test scores, comfortable loudness levels, and the difference between National Acoustic Laboratories’ target gain (Byrne & Dillon, 1986) and actual insertion gain.

Further testing of the models on additional participants would be needed to determine their clinical applicability. In addition to being potentially useful for predicting client-assessed aided performance, the equations obtained in this study identify relationships between the aided and unaided variables that can be applied in the counseling of new hearing aid users.
Differences in Children’s Sound Production When Speaking With a Cochlear Implant Turned On and Turned Off
Authors: Tye-Murray Nancy , Spencer Linda , Bedia Elizabeth Gilbert , Woodworth George
Published: August 2014

Twenty children who have worn a Cochlear Corporation cochlear implant for an average of 33.6 months participated in a device-on/off experiment. They spoke 14 monosyllabic words three times each after having not worn their cochlear implant speech processors for several hours. They then spoke the same speech sample again with their cochlear implants turned on. The utterances were phonetically transcribed by speech-language pathologists. On average, no difference between speaking conditions on indices of vowel height, vowel place, initial consonant place, initial consonant voicing, or final consonant voicing was found. Comparisons based on a narrow transcription of the speech samples revealed no difference between the two speaking conditions. Children who were more intelligible were no more likely to show a degradation in their speech production in the device-off condition than children who were less intelligible. In the device-on condition, children sometimes nasalized their vowels and inappropriately aspirated their consonants. Their tendency to nasalize vowels and aspirate initial consonants might reflect an attempt to increase proprioceptive feedback, which would provide them with a greater awareness of their speaking behavior.
Word Frequency and Age Effects in Normally Developing Children's Phonological Processing
Authors: Troia Gary A. , Roth Froma P. , Yeni-Komshian Grace H.
Published: August 2014

Eleven kindergarten-age students and 11 second-grade students were asked to perform each of four phonological processing tasks: (a) confrontation naming of object drawings, (b) rapid sequential naming of object drawings and letters, (c) segmentation of words into sounds, and (d) blending sounds to produce words. Response accuracy and, for the picture naming tasks, response latency were measured. In addition, single-word reading ability and silent reading comprehension were evaluated. Results indicated that high-frequency stimuli were named faster and, in one task, more accurately than low-frequency stimuli. Blending sounds to produce high-frequency words was less difficult than blending sounds to produce low-frequency words, but word frequency did not affect sound segmentation performance. Children in second grade generally were faster and more accurate than kindergarten children in naming pictures. They also were able to segment more sounds and correctly blend sounds to produce more target words than kindergarten students. Confrontation naming accuracy, rapid object-and letter-naming latency, and sound segmentation and blending accuracy were intercorrelated and were related to word recognition and to reading comprehension. Serial naming speed was highly related to phonological awareness in kindergarten, whereas confrontation naming accuracy was highly related to phonological awareness in second grade. A limited cognitive resources framework was adopted to interpret these findings.
Treatment Efficacy
Authors: Conture Edward G.
Published: August 2014

The purpose of this article is to review the state of the art regarding treatment efficacy for stuttering in children, teenagers, and adults. Available evidence makes it apparent that individuals who stutter benefit from the services of speech-language pathologists, but it is also apparent that determining the outcome of stuttering treatment is neither easy nor simple. Whereas considerable research has documented the positive influence of tratment on stuttering frequency and behavior, far less attention has been paid to the effects of treatment on the daily life activities of people who stutter and their families. Although it seems reasonable to assume that ameliorating the
disability
of stuttering lessens the
handicap
of stuttering, considerably more evidence is needed to confirm this assumption. Despite such concerns, it also seems reasonable to suggest that the outcomes of treatment for many people who stutter are positive and should become increasingly so with advances in applied as well as basic research.
Point-Light Facial Displays Enhance Comprehension of Speech in Noise
Authors: Rosenblum Lawrence D. , Johnson Jennifer A. , Saldaña Helena M.
Published: August 2014

Seeing a talker's face can improve the perception of speech in noise. There is little known about which characteristics of the face are useful for enhancing the degraded signal. In this study, a point-light technique was employed to help isolate the salient kinematic aspects of a visible articulating face. In this technique, fluorescent dots were arranged on the lips, teeth, tongue, cheeks, and jaw of an actor. The actor was videotaped speaking in the dark, so that when shown to observers, only the moving dots were seen. To test whether these reduced images could contribute to the perception of degraded speech, noise-embedded sentences were dubbed with the point-light images at various signal-to-noise ratios. It was found that these images could significantly improve comprehension for adults with normal hearing and that the images became more effective as participants gained experience with the stimuli. These results have implications for uncovering salient visual speech information as well as in the development of telecommunication systems for listeners who are hearing impaired.
Developmental Apraxia of Speech
Authors: Shriberg Lawrence D. , Aram Dorothy M. , Kwiatkowski Joan
Published: August 2014

Two prior studies in this series (Shriberg, Aram, & Kwiatkowski, 1997a, 1997b) address the premise that children with developmental apraxia of speech (DAS) can be differentiated from children with speech delay (SD) on the basis of one or more reliable differences in their speech. The first study compared segmental and prosody-voice profiles of a group of 14 children with suspected DAS to profiles of 73 children with SD. Results suggest that the only linguistic domain that differentiates some children with suspected DAS from those with SD is inappropriate stress. The second study cross-validated these findings, using retrospective data from a sample of 20 children with suspected DAS evaluated in a university phonology clinic over a 10-year period.

The present study is of particular interest because it cross-validates the prior stress findings, using conversational speech samples from 19 children with suspected DAS provided by five DAS researchers at geographically diverse diagnostic facilities in North America. Summed across the three studies, 52% of 48 eligible samples from 53 children with suspected DAS had inappropriate stress, compared to 10% of 71 eligible samples from 73 age-matched children with speech delay of unknown origin.

Discussion first focuses on the implications of stress findings for theories of the origin and nature of DAS. Perspectives in psycholinguistics, neurolinguistics, and developmental biolinguistics lead to five working hypotheses pending validation in ongoing studies: (a) inappropriate stress is a diagnostic marker for at least one subtype of DAS, (b) the psycholinguistic loci of inappropriate stress in this subtype of DAS are in phonological representational processes, (c) the proximal origin of this subtype of DAS is a neurogenically specific deficit, (d) the distal origin of this form of DAS is an inherited genetic polymorphism, and (e) significant differences between acquired apraxia of speech in adults and findings for this subtype of DAS call into question the inference that it is an apractic, motor speech disorder. Concluding discussion considers implications of these findings for research in DAS and for clinical practice.
Effect of Altered Auditory Feedback on People Who Stutter During Scripted Telephone Conversations
Authors: Zimmerman Stephen , Kalinowski Joseph , Stuart Andrew , Rastatter Michael
Published: August 2014

The effect of altered auditory feedback (AAF) conditions on stuttering during scripted telephone conversations was investigated. Nine adult participants made 15 scripted telephone calls to businesses in New York City. Alterations in the participants' auditory feedback signal were generated by a commercially available digital signal processor (Casa Futura Technologies Desktop Fluency System Model BTD-400) that shifted participants' speech one-half octave down in frequency, produced a 50-ms delay, or produced non-altered auditory feedback. The AAF effects produced by the digital signal processor were not perceived by the recipients of the telephone calls. The proportion of stuttering events per scripted telephone conversations were significantly reduced in the AAF conditions relative to the non-altered auditory feedback condition (
p
=.0004). Stuttering frequency was reduced by 55% and 60% for the FAF and DAF, respectively. These findings demonstrate the applicability of this technology to situations of daily living involving telephone use.
Trochaic Template Use in Early Words and Phrases
Authors: McGregor Karla K. , Johnson Amy C.
Published: August 2014

The speech of twenty normally developing children whose linguistic development spanned four MLU stages was recorded. The weak syllable productions in their spontaneous and elicited words and phrases were examined. The children demonstrated more frequent use of weak syllables that occurred in trochaic (strong + weak) than iambic (weak + strong) patterns. The constraint on iambs was not absolute; even children in MLU Stage I produced weak syllables in iambs occasionally. Also, it was not a constraint on lexical representations as the same pattern was evinced for word combinations. Weakly stressed articles were omitted significantly more often from noun phrases that were iambic than from those that were trochaic. These data suggest that a pattern of the form
strong syllable + optional weak syllable [S(W)]
serves as a template for multisyllabic productions, whether mono- or multimorphemic. With increasing MLU, S(W) template use declined and control of timing distinctions between weak and strong syllables became more adult-like. We conclude that the trochee may function as either an optimal representational unit or as an optimal timing unit for early syllable sequences. The trochaic template is invoked when the complexity of an intended utterance exceeds the child’s resources for planning and production.
An Examination of the Degrees of Freedom of Human Jaw Motion in Speech and Mastication
Authors: Ostry David J. , Vatikiotis-Bateson Eric , Gribble Paul L.
Published: August 2014

The kinematics of human jaw movements were assessed in terms of the three orientation angles and three positions that characterize the motion of the jaw as a rigid body. The analysis focused on the identification of the jaw’s independent movement dimensions, and was based on an examination of jaw motion paths that were plotted in various combinations of linear and angular coordinate frames. Overall, both behaviors were characterized by independent motion in four degrees of freedom. In general, when jaw movements were plotted to show orientation in the sagittal plane as a function of horizontal position, relatively straight paths were observed. In speech, the slopes and intercepts of these paths varied depending on the phonetic material. The vertical position of the jaw was observed to shift up or down so as to displace the overall form of the sagittal plane motion path of the jaw. Yaw movements were small but independent of pitch, and vertical and horizontal position. In mastication, the slope and intercept of the relationship between pitch and horizontal position were affected by the type of food and its size. However, the range of variation was less than that observed in speech. When vertical jaw position was plotted as a function of horizontal position, the basic form of the path of the jaw was maintained but could be shifted vertically. In general, larger bolus diameters were associated with lower jaw positions throughout the movement. The timing of pitch and yaw motion differed. The most common pattern involved changes in pitch angle during jaw opening followed by a phase predominated by lateral motion (yaw). Thus, in both behaviors there was evidence of independent motion in pitch, yaw, horizontal position, and vertical position. This is consistent with the idea that motions in these degrees of freedom are independently controlled.
Assessment of Syntax After Adolescent Brain Injury
Authors: Turkstra Lyn S. , Holland Audrey L.
Published: August 2014

In this study, we investigated the influence of working memory load on performance of a task designed to measure receptive syntax ability. Subjects were 6 brain-injured adolescents and 6 hospitalized control subjects matched for age, sex, and general ability. Each subject was administered the Listening/Grammar subtest of the Test of Adolescent Language (TOAL-3) and a modified version of this subtest with identical syntax and fewer response choices (i.e., a reduced working memory processing and storage load). The syntactic structures tested on these tasks also were measured in spontaneous narratives. The brain-injured subjects' performance was significantly worse than that of controls on both versions of the syntax comprehension subtest. There was a significant group-bytask interaction, as brain-injured subjects' performance was significantly worse on the Listening/Grammar subtest than the modified subtest, whereas Control subjects'performance did not differ across the two tasks. In their spontaneous narratives, subjects in both groups produced the syntactic structures tested on the receptive syntax tasks, with no between-groups difference in syntax production. The results are discussed in terms of test validity and the impact of measurement methods on test performance in disordered groups.
Deficits in Finite Verb Morphology
Authors: Miller Carol A. , Leonard Laurence B.
Published: August 2014

The grammatical morphology deficits common in children with specific language impairment (SLI) are characterized in some models as linguistic deficits. Such models must assume some mechanism for correct productions of finite verb forms. Three such assumptions were tested by analyzing speech samples from 18 children with SLI (aged 3 years 6 months to 6 years 9 months). Assumption 1, that nonfinite forms are used consistently until replaced by memorized finite forms, was tested by examining the distribution of verb types in present thirdperson singular and noun types in present third-person singular contractible copula contexts. Significantly more word types than expected were inflected inconsistently. Both Assumption 2, that finite and nonfinite verb forms are memorized but used indiscriminately, and Assumption 3, that affixation rules are applied indiscriminately, predict random use of finite forms. This prediction was not supported.
Analysis of Observational Data in Speech and Language Research Using Generalizability Theory
Authors: Scarsellone Jana M.
Published: August 2014

Most research in speech-language pathology relies on observational data collected by human observers or judges. The reliability and generalizability of such measurements are always important considerations. This article reviews classical methods of estimating reliability and proposes that a more powerful approach capable of estimating the dependability of behavioral measurements is available. This approach, based on generalizability theory, provides a practical framework for estimating multiple sources of measurement error in the collection of observational data. Concepts central to generalizability theory are discussed, and a hypothetical data set illustrates the usefulness of generalizability measurements in speech and language research.
A Speechreading Expert
Authors: Rönnberg Jerker , Andersson Jan , Samuelsson Stefan , Söderfeldt Birgitta , Lyxell Björn , Risberg Jarl
Published: August 2014

The present case study of MM, who acquired both sign language and spoken language in her early preschool years—and then reached the normal milestones of development in each language—revealed that her speechreading expertise is associated with cognitive functions such as high working memory capacity and phonological skills. Her cognitive profile is in accord with previous case studies of extremely good speechreading skill. MM's enhanced right prefrontal/frontal cerebral blood flow activation during speechreading seems to be indicative of efficient visual scanning, but it is also possibly due to her strategy for phonological decoding of visual speech.
Different Origin of Auditory and Phonological Processing Problems in Children With Language Impairment
Authors: Bishop D. V. M. , Bishop Sonia J. , Bright Peter , James Cheryl , Delaney Tom , Tallal Paula
Published: August 2014

This study investigated the heritability of auditory processing impairment, as assessed by Tallal's Auditory Repetition Test (ART). The sample consisted of 37 same-sex twin pairs who had previously been selected because one or both twins met criteria for language impairment (LI) and 104 same-sex twin pairs in the same age range (7 to 13 years) from the general population. These samples yielded 55 children who met criteria for LI, who were compared with 76 children whose language was normal for their age (LN group). We replicated earlier work showing that group LI is impaired relative to group LN on ART. However, there was no evidence of a heritable influence on ART scores: Correlations between twins and their co-twins were reasonably high for both MZ and DZ twins, suggesting that performance is more influenced by shared environment than genetic factors. Analyses of extreme scores gave a similar picture of nonsignificant group heritability. In contrast, a test of phonological short-term memory, the Children's Nonword Repetition Test (CNRep), gave high estimates of group heritability. In general, CNRep was a better predictor of low language test scores than ART, but ART did make a significant independent contribution in accounting for variance in a test of grammatical understanding.
A Positron Emission Tomography Study of Silent and Oral Single Word Reading in Stuttering and Nonstuttering Adults
Authors: Nil Luc F. De , Kroll Robert M. , Kapur Shitij , Houle Sylvain
Published: August 2014

Over the last decade positron emission tomography (PET) has been used extensively for the study of language and other cognitive and sensorimotor processes in healthy and diseased individuals. In the present study, [
15
O]H
2
O PET scanning was used to investigate the lateralization and functional distribution of cortical and subcortical activity involved in single word reading in stuttering and non-stuttering individuals. Ten right-handed male stuttering adults and matched nonstuttering individuals were instructed to read individually presented single words either silently or out loud. Subtraction of functional brain images obtained during each of the two reading tasks, and during a non-linguistic baseline task, was used to calculate within-group and between-group differences in regional cerebral blood flow by means of statistical parametric mapping. Increased activation in the left anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) was observed during silent reading in the stuttering speakers but not in the nonstuttering group. Because of the hypothesized role of the ACC in selective attention and covert articulatory practice, it is suggested that the observed increased ACC activation in the stuttering individuals reflects the presence of cognitive anticipatory reactions related to stuttering. During the oral reading task, within-group comparisons showed bilateral cortical and subcortical activation in both the stuttering and the nonstuttering speakers. Between-group comparisons showed a proportionally greater left hemisphere activation in the nonstuttering speakers, and a proportionally greater right hemisphere activation in the stuttering individuals. The results of the present study provide qualified support for the hypothesis that stuttering adults show atypical lateralization of language processes.
The Influence of Argument-Structure Complexity on the Use of Auxiliary Verbs by Children With SLI
Authors: Grela Bernard G. , Leonard Laurence B.
Published: August 2014

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the influence of argument-structure complexity on the omission of auxiliary
be
verbs in a group of children with specific language impairment (SLI). These children were compared to a group of younger, normally developing children matched for mean length of utterance (MLU) and a group of children matched for chronological age (CA). Using a story-completion task, the children (
N
=30) were required to produce sentences of varying length and argument-structure complexity. The results of the study indicated that the children with SLI omitted more auxiliary forms than either the MLU or CA controls. In addition, both the children with SLI and the MLU controls were more likely to omit the auxiliary forms when attempting sentences with greater argument-structure complexity. These results suggest that argumentstructure complexity may be a contributing factor to children's omissions of grammatical morphemes.
Use of Temporal Envelope Cues by Children With Developmental Dyslexia
Authors: Lorenzi Christian , Dumont Annie , Füllgrabe Christian
Published: August 2014

This study evaluates the ability to process auditory temporal-envelope cues in a group of 6 children with dyslexia (mean age: 10;10 years;months). To address this issue, we measured (a) temporal modulation transfer functions (TMTFs), that is, the detection thresholds of sinusoidal amplitude modulation (SAM) applied to a white noise carrier, as a function of modulation frequency,

f
m

(

f
m

was 4, 16, 64, 256, and 1024 Hz) and (b) identification performance for vowel-consonantvowel (VCV) stimuli over 5 sessions. VCV stimuli were either unprocessed or digitally processed to remove the original spectral information, resulting in a timevarying speech envelope amplitude modulating a noise carrier. The same tests were conducted in 6 normal control children (mean age: 11;6 years;months) and 6 normal control adults (mean age: 24;8 years;months). SAM thresholds were similar in normal children and adults. For both normal groups, TMTFs were low pass in shape and showed low between-listener variability. TMTFs measured in children with dyslexia showed higher between-listener variability: TMTFs were band pass in 2 children, flat in 1 child, and low pass in the 3 others. Overall, SAM thresholds were higher in children with dyslexia than in normal children at

f
m

=4 and 1024 Hz. Unprocessed-speech identification performance was nearly perfect in normal children and adults, and impaired in children with dyslexia. "Speech-envelope noise" identification performance was poorer in normal children and children with dyslexia than in normal adults. Performance improved across sessions in normal children and adults, but remained constant in children with dyslexia. Compared to normal children, children with dyslexia showed poorer reception of voicing, manner, and place of articulation for unprocessed speech and poorer reception of voicing for "speech-envelope noise. " Taken together, these results support the hypothesis that some children with dyslexia may show abnormal auditory temporal-envelope processing. Such a deficit, in turn, may explain the difficulties of children with dyslexia with speech perception.
Compensation of hysteresis in a shape memory alloy wire system using linear parameter‐varying gain scheduling control
Authors: Kilicarslan Atilla , Grigoriadis Karolos , Song Gangbing
Published: August 2014

Robust tracking control of shape memory alloy (SMA) systems is a challenge because of their highly non‐linear response, non‐local memory and lack of differentiability. In this work, a linear parameter‐varying (LPV) control method is proposed to compensate for the hysteretic behaviour of an SMA actuator. To provide information on the scheduling variable, the Preisach model of hysteresis is utilised. Parameter‐dependent controller is updated based on the real‐time computation of the instantaneous scheduling variable from the model. An H∞ controller is also synthesised by representing the hysteresis as a parametric uncertainty. The controllers are implemented on an SMA actuated experimental system. Experimental validation is conducted for various types of reference inputs which can dramatically change the system's response. These reference signals are designed to excite major, minor and frequency dependent hysteresis loops. Trajectory tracking and disturbance rejection results show that the LPV controller has an improved response and the hysteresis is compensated for the full range of the scheduling variable. The tracking performances of both controllers are also compared when the system is under partial and persistent plant disturbances. For these cases, the LPV controller results in a more robust tracking response because of its less conservative structure.
Coefficient ratios‐based robust sliding surface and integral sliding mode control designs with optimal transient responses
Authors: Ablay Günyaz
Published: August 2014

A coefficient ratio‐based sliding surface algorithm and an integral sliding mode control approach are proposed for multivariable dynamical systems. The sliding surface design problem is reduced to the specification of the desired time constant of closed‐loop systems. The proposed scheme is able to accomplish a non‐overshoot transient response and a short settling time for multivariable systems. The resulting sliding surfaces are robust and optimal in the existence of parameter perturbations. An integral sliding mode control approach is also developed for robust tracking by using the coefficient ratio‐based robust sliding surface designs. The developed methods are implemented on a flexible robotic manipulator and a strike aircraft system, and the numerical simulation results are provided in order to show the validity and feasibility of the methods.
Design of a compact dual‐band‐notch ultra‐wideband bandpass filter based on wave cancellation method
Authors: Mohammadi Bahman , Valizade Arash , Nourinia Javad , Rezaei Pejman
Published: August 2014

In this study, a compact ultra‐wideband (UWB) bandpass filter (BPF) with sharp roll‐off, improved out‐of‐band performance and dual‐band‐notch operation is presented and its design procedure is discussed. In the proposed structure, in order to reject the unwanted harmonic pass bands, a pair of modified cross‐shaped coupled lines (CCLs) is implemented along the ports of the filter. Moreover, a pair of half‐circle‐shaped stubs and a stepped‐impedance stub are loaded on the main resonator in order to obtain additional transmission zeros (TZs) which are controllable separately. Implementation of the CCLs and the stub loaded resonator (SLR) reduce the total size of the presented microstrip BPF. Besides, by extending and folding the upper coupled line of each CCLs and also through an open stub which is protruded inside a slot on the main resonator, dual‐band‐notch operation is added to the performance of the presented filter. The fabricated prototype has a small size and is capable to cover frequency band of 2.8–10.69 GHz with two band‐notch functions at 4.9–5.4 and 7.83–8.25 GHz which suppresses the interference between UWB spectrum with wireless local area network (WLAN) and satellite communication frequency bands, respectively. The proposed filter has a compact size while showing good return loss and insertion loss characteristic in the frequency band of interest.