bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Vitamin D Deficiency Is Associated with Increased Osteocalcin Levels in Acute Aortic Dissection: A Pilot Study on Elderly Patients
Authors: Vianello Elena , Dozio Elena , Barassi Alessandra , Tacchini Lorenza , Lamont John , Trimarchi Santi , Marrocco-Trischitta Massimiliano M. , Corsi Romanelli Massimiliano M.
Published: July 2017

An imbalance between degradation and reconstruction of the aortic wall is one of the leading causes of acute aortic dissection (AAD). Vitamin D seems an intriguing molecule to explore in the field of AAD since it improves endothelial function and protects smooth muscle cells from inflammation-induced remodeling, calcification, and loss of function, all events which are strongly related to the aging process. We quantified 25-hydroxy vitamin D, calcium, parathormone, bone alkaline phosphatase, and osteocalcin levels in 24 elderly AAD patients to identify a potential pathological implication of these molecules in AAD. Median 25-hydroxy vitamin D (10.75 ng/mL, 25th–75th percentiles: 6.86–19.23 ng/mL) and calcium levels (8.70 mg/dL, 25th–75th percentiles: 7.30–8.80 mg/dL) suggested hypovitaminosis D and a moderate hypocalcemia. Thirty-eight percent of AAD patients had severe (<10 ng/mL), 38% moderate (10–20 ng/mL), and 24% mild 25-hydroxy vitamin D deficiency (20–30 ng/mL). A significant inverse correlation was observed between 25OHD and osteocalcin levels. All the other molecules were unchanged. A condition of hypovitaminosis D associated to an increase in osteocalcin levels is present in AAD patients. The identification of these molecules as new factors involved in AAD may be helpful to identify individuals at high risk as well to study preventing strategies.
Therapeutic Effects of Methanol Extract from Euphorbia kansui Radix on Imiquimod-Induced Psoriasis
Authors: Kim Soo Jeong , Jang Ye Won , Hyung Kyung Eun , Lee Da Kyoung , Hyun Kee Hyeob , Park So-Young , Park Eon-Sub , Hwang Kwang Woo
Published: July 2017

The roots of Euphorbia kansui, which belong to the family Euphorbiaceae, have been used as a traditional medicine for the treatment of various diseases such as diabetes, ascites, and leukemia. Recently, it was reported that the methylene chloride fraction of E. kansui radix (EKC) regulated the differentiation of Th17 cells and alleviated the symptoms of Th17-related inflammatory bowel disease. Imiquimod (IMQ), a TLR7/8 agonist, has been used to induce psoriasis in a mouse model. In this study, we evaluated the effect of EKC in an IMQ-induced psoriasis model. EKC effectively inhibited the production of interleukin-17A and interferon-γ in vitro. On this basis, EKC was administered to an animal model of psoriasis. Acanthosis and the infiltration of inflammatory cells into the dermis were significantly reduced by EKC. EKC also inhibited the expression of IL-17A, IL-22, IL-23, IL-12, and RAR-related orphan receptor gamma t (RORγt) in the spleen, skin-draining lymph nodes, and the skin. Additionally, EKC inhibited the activity of dendritic cells but not that of keratinocytes. In conclusion, EKC ameliorated the symptoms of psoriasis through inhibition of Th17 differentiation and activation of dendritic cells. These effects are expected to be beneficial in the treatment and prevention of psoriasis.
Efficacy of Platelet-Rich Plasma in Retarding Intervertebral Disc Degeneration: A Meta-Analysis of Animal Studies
Authors: Li Pei , Zhang Ruijie , Zhou Qiang
Published: July 2017

Objectives.Several animal studies have demonstrated the positive effects of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) on disc degeneration retardation. The present meta-analysis was to verify the efficacy of PRP in retarding disc degeneration in animal.Methods.Relevant studies were identified and evaluated according to our inclusion and exclusion criteria. The standardized mean difference (SMD) and related 95% confidence interval (95% CI) were estimated to assess PRP efficiency.Results.In total, eleven studies were included in this meta-analysis. Significant differences were found in the PRP treatment group, which showed increased disc height (SMD = 2.66, 95% CI: 1.86, 3.47,p=0.000), increased MRI T2 signal intensity (SMD = −3.29, 95% CI: −4.44, −2.13,p=0.000), and decreased histological degeneration grade (SMD = −4.28, 95% CI: −5.26, −3.30,p=0.000). However, no significant increase in collagen II expression was found (SMD = 25389.74, 95% CI: −27585.72, 78365.21,p=0.348). Apart from the subgroup analysis of the disc height based on animal species (pig) and disc degeneration model (chymopapain induction), other subgroup analysis based on animal species (rabbit and rat), study design, disc degeneration model, and follow-up period demonstrated that PRP treatment can significantly restore disc height and increase MRI T2 signal intensity.Conclusions.PRP treatment is potentially effective in restoring disc height of rodent rabbit and rat, reducing histological degeneration grade, and increasing MRI T2 image signal. PRP injection may be promising therapy for retarding disc degeneration.
Obstructive and Central Sleep Apnea and the Risk of Incident Atrial Fibrillation in a Community Cohort of Men and Women
Authors: Tung Patricia , Levitzky Yamini S. , Wang Rui , Weng Jia , Quan Stuart F. , Gottlieb Daniel J. , Rueschman Michael , Punjabi Naresh M. , Mehra Reena , Bertisch Suzie , Benjamin Emelia J. , Redline Susan
Published: July 2017

Background

Previous studies have documented a high prevalence of atrial fibrillation (
AF
) in individuals with obstructive sleep apnea (
OSA
). Central sleep apnea (
CSA
) has been associated with
AF
in patients with heart failure. However, data from prospective cohorts are sparse and few studies have distinguished the associations of obstructive sleep apnea from
CSA
with
AF
in population studies.

Methods and Results

We assessed the association of obstructive sleep apnea and
CSA
with incident
AF
among 2912 individuals without a history of
AF
in the SHHS (Sleep Heart Health Study), a prospective, community‐based study of existing (“parent”) cohort studies designed to evaluate the cardiovascular consequences of sleep disordered breathing. Incident
AF
was documented by 12‐lead
ECG
or assessed by the parent cohort. obstructive sleep apnea was defined by the obstructive apnea‐hypopnea index (
OAHI
).
CSA
was defined by a central apnea index ≥5 or the presence of Cheyne Stokes Respiration. Logistic regression was used to assess the association between sleep disordered breathing and incident
AF
. Over a mean of 5.3 years of follow‐up, 338 cases of incident
AF
were observed.
CSA
was a predictor of incident
AF
in all adjusted models and was associated with 2‐ to 3‐fold increased odds of developing
AF
(central apnea index ≥5 odds ratio [
OR],
3.00, 1.40–6.44; Cheyne–Stokes respiration
OR,
1.83, 0.95–3.54;
CSA
or Cheyne–Stokes respiration
OR,
2.00, 1.16–3.44). In contrast,
OAHI
was not associated with incident
AF
(
OAHI
per 5 unit increase
OR,
0.97, 0.91–1.03;
OAHI
5 to <15
OR,
0.84, 0.59–1.17;
OAHI
15 to <30
OR,
0.93, 0.60–1.45;
OAHI
≥30
OR,
0.76, 0.42–1.36).

Conclusions

In a prospective, community‐based cohort,
CSA
was associated with incident
AF
, even after adjustment for cardiovascular risk factors.
Automatic Speech Recognition Procedures
Authors: Peterson Gordon E.
Published: July 2017

This paper is concerned with the transformation of the varying acoustical parameters of speech to a discrete code to form the printed output of an automatic speech recognizer. The development of general automatic speech recognition procedures requires a definition of the linguistic code to be transcribed, and a statement of the dialectal and other conditions under which the recognition is to be achieved.

Essential procedures in automatic speech recognition include: the analysis of the input speech wave into a series of basic acoustical parameters in frequency; the representation of the normalized parameters by a set of phoneme and prosodeme candidates by reference to stored linguistic information; and the print-out into words separated by spaces and grouped by means of a set of punctuation marks. The possibility is considered of employing values of conventional spelling and punctuation in the automatic representation of spoken American English.
Hesitation Phenomena in Children's Speech
Authors: Levin Harry , Silverman Irene
Published: July 2017

Forty-eight children told two stories in each of two situations: to an audience of four adults, or to a microphone while no one was listening. Various fluency and hesitation variables were scored from the tapes. Subjects are consistent in their fluency and hesitations. A factor analysis of the speech measures yielded four factors. Deliberate hesitations are predictable, for boys, from the personality characteristic, exhibitionism. Stressful hesitations are responsive to whether the child was speaking in public or in private.
On the Problem of Describing the Grammar of Natural Languages
Authors: Mason James A. , Peterson Gordon E.
Published: July 2017

Difficulties encountered in an attempt to describe the syntax of English determiner phrases resulted in a reconsideration of the purpose and organizational principles of grammatical descriptions. Some illumination of the nature of grammatical descriptions is obtained by a consideration of systems of chess-notation. Problems of grammatical description discussed with reference to two specific examples of chess-notations include:

(1) The problem of describing the" basic regularities " which determine how the sentences of a language are understood;

(2) The problem of translating between two languages with the same " universe of discourse " but with different ways of referring to it ;

(3) The problem of explaining the intuitive notion of " grammaticality "which native users of a language possess.

The importance, for a useful language description, of describing the" semantic interpretation " process is illustrated and emphasized, and the value of language descriptions in the form of generative grammars is questioned.
Some Experiments with Queer Sentences
Authors: Stolz Walter S.
Published: July 2017

Eight sorts of sentences—true, false, contradictory, analytic, anagram, and three sorts of semi-grammatical sentences were used as experimental materials in three experiments; a rating task, a short-term memory task, and a free-recall task. Predictions of the relative degrees of " cognitive impairment " of the sentence types were derived, chiefly from a generative grammar. In general, the predictions were confirmed, with the results of the three tasks being generally similar. This similarity is interpreted as indicating that the main effect of queer sentences on cognitive processes is at the level of initial comprehension, i.e. on the production of a semantic reading, rather than on various memory processes. In contrast, false sentences were found to be easier than true sentences in the free-recall task but slightly harder than true ones in the short-term memory task.
Pauses, Clauses, Sentences
Authors: Goldman-Eisler Frieda
Published: July 2017

The tool of pause measurement was applied to the question of the psychological reality of syntactic structures in spontaneous speech. The material investigated covered a wide field of speech productions, of different speakers and different speech tasks. Their analysis showed that the hierarchy of syntactic structures is reflected differentially in the pause structure of spontaneous speech. When readings of the spontaneous texts were compared with the original spontaneous speech it emerged that the reading process modifies the pausing for different syntactic structures differently. Sentences as distinct from clauses are marked by their temporal cohesion in spontaneous speech as well as in reading. This fact is discussed with reference to Wundt's analytical theory of sentence-wholes.
A Direct Magnitude Scaling Method to Investigate Categorical Versus Continuous Modes of Speech Perception
Authors: Vinegrad M.D.
Published: July 2017

The perception of synthetic steady-state vowels, synthetic consonant-vowel syllables and pure tones was investigated using a psychophysical scaling procedure involving direct magnitude estimation. In each of the three stimulus classes, there were thirteen members equally spaced along a physical continuum and the investigation was designed to measure the degree to which the stimulus members appeared to be evenly spaced along a corresponding perceptual continuum. The experimental technique required the subject to judge the members of each set of stimuli in terms of their similarity to each other. The results suggested that for stops, the perceptual spacing depended upon phoneme identification; but for vowels, the spacing was relatively independent of phoneme identity. The vowel data in fact, approximated to the tone data (included to provide a non-speech comparison). The results are interpreted in terms of the notion of categorical versus continuous modes of speech perception.
The Structure of the English Lexicon the Simplest Hypothesis
Authors: Macnamara John , Cleirigh Ann O , Kellaghan Thomas
Published: July 2017

The following hypotheses were tested: (1) that the several meanings of a single word are stored and recalled for use in a fixed order; (2) that persons agree in the order; (3) that for each person the order remains constant over time; (4) that the order observed in subjects agrees with that available from semantic frequency counts; (5) that the order in which adults recall meanings is the order in which they learned them. The data support these hypotheses, however, only insofar as they relate to the first meaning recalled. Subjects' performance sharply indicated that in normal discourse context powerfully facilitates recall of meaning. The data throw some light on the acquisition of vocabulary and they indicate that at the age of five, all the essential features of adult lexical structure are already present. The body of information is however much more limited in the child.
Effect of Speech-Sound Cue On Ear Asymmetry in Dichotic Listening
Authors: Hemeyer Thomas F. , Sharf Donald J.
Published: July 2017

Under conditions of dichotic presentation, subjects were asked to identify (1) the vowels /i, e, o/ produced in isolation and in CV syllables, (2) the voiceless stops /p, t, k/ produced in CV syllables and from consonant-noise cues spliced from CV syllables, and (3) the voiced stops /b, d, g/ from consonant-noise cues and initial formant transition cues spliced from CV syllables and from final formant transition cues spliced from VC syllables. The same stimuli were also presented monaurally with continuous contralateral noise and monaurally with pulsed contralateral noise.

Under the dichotic condition, right-ear advantages were found for stops identified from voiced consonant-noise cues (52.2 % v. 46.0%), from voiceless consonant-noise cues (71.2% v. 61.0% and from CV syllables (76.6% ν. 58.7%). The differences between ears were negligible for the vowel and formant transition stimuli. There was evidence of ear dominance under the pulsed contralateral noise condition which was similar to that found for the dichotic condition. Results did not support the encoded hypothesis that right-ear dominance is dependent on formant transition cues but did support the hypothesis that right-ear dominance increases as the similarity of the competing stimuli increases.
The Acquisition of Personal Pronouns and Language 'Simplification'
Authors: Cruttenden Alan
Published: July 2017

On the evidence available general tendencies in the development of personal pronouns are enumerated. Two interconnected sets of tendencies are considered in more detail together with similar tendencies in pidgins and creoles.
Some Factors Affecting the Listener's Perception of Reading Rate in English and French
Authors: Grosjean François H. , Lass Norman J.
Published: July 2017

The method of magnitude estimation was used to scale naturally and mechanically altered rates of two passages in English and French. The scales obtained remained invariant across languages, texts and methods of altering rate. They were not invariant however when Ss estimated naturally and mechanically altered rates one after the other. In this case, Ss changed the weights they attributed to the two component variables of speech rate—namely articulation rate and pause rate—in arriving at a global impression of speech rate. A comparison of the present results with those of prior studies also showed that the scales are not invariant with changes in the range of stimuli presented. An intramodal range effect was confirmed by cross-modality matching in which Ss matched apparent force of handgrip to apparent speech rate.
Sentence Processing in A Second Language: The Timing of Transfer
Authors: Kilborn Kerry
Published: July 2017

Traditional approaches to second language performance have typically focused on form-related aspects of transfer, without addressing the issue of real-time constraints inherent in the comprehension process. The current study uses an on-line sentence comprehension paradigm to investigate how and when three different cues (word order, noun-verb agreement morphology, animacy relations) to thematic role assignment interact during comprehension. Results indicate that monolingual English speakers depend on word order, often making thematic role assignments immediately after the first noun is encountered, and generally do not attend to morphological information. in contrast, native German speakers depend on morphological cues in their native language, delaying responses until all potential cues are in. When the same subjects perform the task in their second language, English, a similar result is observed, indicating that German-based processing strategies are transferred to on-line processing in the second language. The findings are related to a psycholinguistic model of language performance, the Competition Model, proposed by Bates and MacWhinney (1987, in press).
Cues to the Perception of Taiwanese Tones
Authors: Lin Hwei-Bing , Repp Bruno H.
Published: July 2017

A labeling test with synthetic speech stimuli was carried out to determine to what extent the two dimensions of fundamental frequency (F0), height and movement, and syllable duration provide cues to tonal distinctions in Taiwanese. The data show that the high level vs. mid level tones and the high falling vs. mid falling tones can be reliably distinguished by F0 height alone, whereas the distinction between tones with dissimilar contours, such as the high falling and low rising tones, is predominantly cued by F0 movement. However, the other dimension of F0 may collaborate with the dominant one in cueing a tonal contrast, depending on the extent to which the two tones differ along that dimension. Syllable duration has a small additional effect on the perception of the distinction between falling and nonfalling tones. These results are consistent with previous findings in tone languages other than Taiwanese in that they suggest that tones are mainly cued by F0. While the primacy of F0 dimensions as cues to tonal contrasts depends on the contrast to be distinguished, the present findings show that tones which nominally differ only in register (e.g., high falling vs. mid falling) may exhibit perceptually relevant contour differences, and vice versa.
Pragmatics in Aphasia: Crosslinguistic Evidence
Authors: Wulfeck Beverly , Bates Elizabeth , Juarez Larry , Opie Meiti , Friederici Angela , Macwhinney Brian , Zurif Edgar
Published: July 2017

Previous research suggests that English Broca's and Wernicke's aphasics retain sensitivity to pragmatic factors governing forms of reference, in particular the ability to choose lexical expressions that convey givenness and newness of information. The present study investigates the generality of this phenomenon across patients and language types. Normal and aphasic speakers of English, German, and Italian described nine picture triplets in which one element varied while the others remained constant. Dependent variables included lexicalization versus ellipsis, pronominalization, and definite and indefinite article use. For a subset of German and Italian patients, data were compared to performance in a biographical interview. Results indicate that (a) the pragmatics of reference are preserved in both Broca's and Wernicke's aphasics, despite syndrome-specific problems in retrieving content words and/or closed-class grammatical elements, and (b) certain language-specific patterns of reference are also preserved, including crosslinguistic differences in subject omission. Differences between picture description and the biographical interview reinforce this conclusion. Evidence for the preservation of pragmatics in aphasis is not surprising in its own right, but evidence for the sparing of language-specific relations among pragmatic, lexical, and morpho-syntactic patterns can be used to argue against any strong view of grammatical impairment as a disconnection syndrome and/or a loss of grammatical competence. Instead, these data support theories in which grammatical impairment is viewed as a performance deficit.
Prosodic Structure in Language Understanding: Evidence from Tone Sandhi in Mandarin
Authors: Speer Shari R. , Shih Chi-Lin , Slowiaczek Maria L.
Published: July 2017

Two experiments show that prosodic information plays a crucial role in the processing of sentences of Standard Mandarin Chinese, where local lexical ambiguities may occur due to the operation of a tone sandhi rule. in Chinese, each word is associated with a tone; in this paper, the term “Mandarin tone sandhi” refers to a phonological rule that changes the first of two consecutive low tones (Tone 3) to a rising tone (Tone 2). As a result, a two-syllable sequence with a rising tone followed by a low tone is ambiguous. in Experiment 1, listeners identified lexical tones for ambiguous, unambiguous, and nonsense words in phrasal contexts where the tone sandhi rule might have applied. Comparable results in the lexical versus nonsense conditions indicate that judgments did not rely simply on lexically stored tonal information, but also made reference to the tonal context of the phrase. in Experiment 2, subjects chose the most likely written English translation for auditory sentences of Mandarin. Global prosodic information was manipulated to create different levels of “prosodic closeness” between two critical items in a tone sandhi environment, while the syntactic relation between these items was held constant. Results show that listeners relied on the prosodic structure of the phrases to determine whether or not the tone sandhi rule had applied, and consequently to identify individual lexical items. The evidence is taken to support the notion that prosodic structure influences auditory language comprehension processes.
The Perceptual Vowel Spaces of American English and Modern Greek: A Comparison
Authors: Hawks John W. , Fourakis Marios S.
Published: July 2017

Perceptually based vowel spaces are estimated for American English and Modern Greek by means of identifications of synthetic vowel sounds by native speakers of each language. The vowel spaces for American English appear to be organized in a sufficiently contrastive system, while Modern Greek vowels appear to be maximally contrastive. The spaces for the Modern Greek point vowels ([i], [a], [u]) fall within the spaces of their American English counterparts, while the intermediate Modern Greek vowels ([e], [o]) overlap the American English [∊]/[e] and [[UNKNOWN]]/[o] spaces, respectively. These results were relatively unaffected by mapping resolution and level of phonetic training and support the results of similar mappings using production data.
Processing Time, Accent, and Comprehensibility in the Perception of Native and Foreign-Accented Speech
Authors: Munro Murray J. , Derwing Tracey M.
Published: July 2017

In this study, a sentence verification task was used to determine the effect of a foreign accent on sentence processing time. Twenty native English listeners heard a set of English true/false statements uttered by ten native speakers of English and ten native speakers of Mandarin. The listeners assessed the truth value of the statements, and assigned accent and comprehensibility ratings. Response latency data indicated that the Mandarin-accented utterances required more time to evaluate than the utterances of the native English speakers. Furthermore, utterances that were assigned low comprehensibility ratings tended to take longer to process than moderately or highly comprehensible utterances. However, there was no evidence that degree of accent was related to processing time. The results are discussed in terms of the “costs” of speaking with a foreign accent, and the relevance of such factors as accent and comprehensibility to second language teaching.
Patterns of Destination Repeat Business: British Tourists in Mallorca, Spain
Authors: Gyte Douglas M. , Phelps Angela
Published: July 2017

Much research has been conducted on image of destination and destination choice. However, little attention appears to have been paid to the pattern of repeat business at specific destinations. This study investigated the pattern of repeat business of British tourists in Mallorca, Spain. The implications of the findings for the marketing of destinations are considered.
Projecting Visitation to Yellowstone National Park after the Fires of 1988
Authors: Snepenger David J. , Peterson David L. , Bench Jill L.
Published: July 2017

This study examined what impact, if any, the Yellowstone National Park fires of 1988 will have on future visitation to the park. Both on- and off-site surveys suggested that visitation levels to Yellowstone in both near and long term are likely to remain about the same or increase.
Child acquisition of Quechua causatives and change-of-state verbs
Authors: Courtney Ellen H.
Published: July 2017

This paper uses data concerning the acquisition of Quechua causatives to explore the development of morphological features that reflect variation in argument structure: (1) case-marking on the causees of morphological causatives, and (2) transitivity permutations for change-of-state verbs. Quechua speakers assign to the causee varying degrees of volitional control through use of different case inflections. As to Quechua change-of-state verbs, those corresponding to verbs that participate in the causative alternation in other languages, such as English ‘break’ and ‘boil’, pose a particular challenge. According to Levin & Rappaport Hovav (1994, 1995), these verbs tend to be basically transitive across languages, with the intransitive variant formed morphologically, and they express eventualities that are externally caused. In Quechua, many such verbs are basically intransitive, with the transitive variant constructed morphologically. Naturalistic data from five Quechua-speaking children aged 2;4 through 3;5 suggest that the causee is initially expressed as a directly affected object, lacking volitional control. Also, children may first construe all change-of-state verbs as basically transitive, expressing external causation.
Young preschoolers' ability to reference story characters: the contribution of gestures and character speech
Authors: O'Neill Daniela K. , Holmes Amanda C.
Published: July 2017

The ability of 3- and 4-year-olds ( N = 48) ability to (re)introduce main characters when narrating a picture-book was assessed, taking into account not only their use of nominal forms, but also their use of deictic point gestures and character speech. Using these paralinguistic means, 3-year-olds clarified a significantly larger proportion (43%) of their initially unclear (re)introductions than 4-year-olds did (21%), and attained the same final level of clarity. Thus, 3- and 4-year-olds appear similarly sensitive to the need to specify, unambiguously, referents in cases of (re)introduction, differing only in their linguistic ability to do so. These results support the view that gesture and affect form wholly integrated systems with speech, conveying nonredundant information.
Gifted Black Males in an Urban High School: Factors That Influence Achievement and Underachievement
Authors: Hébert Thomas P.
Published: July 2017

Many gifted African American males educated in large, urban high schools do not achieve at a level commensurate with their ability. The case studies reported in this article describe the experiences of two gifted African American males in an urban high school. Through a qualitative approach, the stories of Wallace, an achiever, and John, an under achiever, are told; and the factors that distinguished the school-life experiences of the two gifted Black young men are identified. The implications for fostering academic achievement in urban high schools are discussed, and recommendations are offered for educators and parents to encourage success in the lives of gifted African American young men.
Self-Concept – Performance Congruence: An Exploration of Patterns among High-Achieving Adolescents
Authors: Williams Janice E.
Published: July 2017

Self-concept to performance congruence among academically able adolescents (54 females, 49 males) in both math and English was explored. Although analyses revealed similar congruence patterns for females and males in both subject-matter areas, the overall majority of these able learners fell outside the congruent range. These findings suggest that, regardless of gender or content area, able adolescents may be at risk for unrealistic self-concept perceptions relative to their actual performance.
Struggling with Identity: Working with Seventh- and Eighth-Grade Gifted Girls to Air Issues of Concern
Authors: Frey Cecile P.
Published: July 2017

When adolescent girls are also identified as gifted, the problems of conformity, peer acceptance, and low self-esteem often become exacerbated. Middle school girls seem most vulnerable to two competing demands: popularity versus academic achievement. As a result of parental, staff, and student concerns, I have been conducting a “women's issues” group with 7th- and 8th-grade gifted girls for the last four years. The issues discussed, the materials used, and the outcomes I have seen are the themes of this action research paper.
Methodological Investigation of Vibration Effects on Performance of Three Tasks
Authors: Guignard John C. , Bittner Alvah C. , Carter Robert C.
Published: July 2017

Twenty young Naval enlisted male volunteers were first rehearsed and then tested before, during, and after vertical (z-axis) whole-body vibration. Fourteen were tested only at 8 Hz, and six were tested at 8 Hz/0.21 gz rms, 16 Hz/0.43 gz rms and 32 Hz/0.85 gz rms, using three paper-and-pencil tasks involving visual, motor, and cognitive skills. The tasks were ‘Spoke’, a speed of tapping test; “Aiming”, a test of fine motor coordination; and “Coding”, involving mental computation. Results showed an approximately equal decrement across conditions in the Spoke and Coding (but not Aiming) tests that conforms with the frequency function embodied in the current international standard (ISO 2631–1978) on human exposure to vibration. In addition, it was found that a modicum of vibration experience may be necessary before reliable data are obtained in this kind of testing. Implications for methodology and for the application of the current standard are briefly discussed.
Noise and Vibration Generated by Underground Railways
Authors: Betsui Hitoshi , Suzuki Tornio , Natori Hyoichi , Terabe Motoji
Published: July 2017

Recent expansion of railway networks has led to complaints of noise and vibration. Measurements were made at a number of points along the Musashinonansen Freight Line to determine the vibration from the underground line and the associated noise. It was found that the main source of complaint arises from ground borne vibration leading to secondary radiation of low frequency noise.
Exposure to Infrasound — Perception and Changes in Wakefulness
Authors: Landström Ulf , Lundström Ronnie , Byström Marianne
Published: July 2017

The present paper is a description of some laboratory experiments carried out in order to investigate the perception and changes in wakefulness occurring during exposure to infrasound.

Perception of infrasound is based on hearing and vibrations in different parts of the body. Threshold of audibility was found to be approximately 110 dB(lin) at 4 Hz and 90 dB(lin) at 20 Hz. Sensations through vibrations were found to occur at about 20 dB above the hearing threshold levels. As far as vibrotactile sensation is concerned no difference was found to exist between deaf and hearing subjects. Hearing sensations could not be registered for neurosensory deafness. 10 deaf and 10 hearing subjects were exposed for 20 minutes at 6 Hz, 115 dB(lin). Reduced wakefulness was noticed among the hearing subjects but not among the deaf subjects.

According to these results, changes in wakefulness of infrasound is based on cochlear stimulation. It is suggested that a reduction in wakefulness that is attributable to infrasound occurs at pressure levels close to the auditory threshold.
Physiological and Psychological Effects of Infrasound on Humans
Authors: Møller Henrik
Published: July 2017

Sixteen subjects were exposed for three hours to inaudible infrasound, audible infrasound, traffic noise and a quiet control condition, while they performed various psychological tasks. Some cardiovascular and hearing parameters were recorded and after the experiments the subjects answered a questionnaire concerning their experiences during the noise exposure.

The most conspicuous effect of infrasound was a high rating of annoyance and a feeling of pressure on the ear at less than 20 dB above the threshold of hearing. No influence on the cardiovascular system was seen and the performance only deteriorated in one of nine tasks. Infrasound below the threshold had no effect.

It is concluded that a better knowledge of the hearing at low frequencies is required, the most urgent being an extension downward in frequency of existing curves of equal loudness and equal annoyance.
Sensitivity of Seated Subjects to Low Frequency Random Vibrations in the Vertical Direction. Subjective Approach Using Vibrations Representative of Earthmoving Machines
Authors: Mistrot P. , Roley D.G. , Donati P. , Roure L.
Published: July 2017

A study was conducted to compare various methods for evaluating complex vibrations. The two methods recommended by the Standard ISO 2631 were tested. A subjective equalization technique was used in which 10 seated subjects were asked to adjust the intensity of a test stimulus until they perceived a whole body sensation equivalent to a reference stimulus. The vibration stimuli were low frequency motions along the vertical axis and they were representative of earthmoving machines. They were compared to each other and to sinusoidal and third octave band random vibrations centred at the same frequencies.

The results obtained indicate that the overall frequency weighting methods are the most appropriate for the evaluation of complex vibrations. The vertical weighting curve recommended by the Standard ISO 2631 produces suitable results.
Equal Annoyance Contours for Infrasonic Frequencies
Authors: Andresen Jente , Møller Henrik
Published: July 2017

Eighteen subjects (age range: 18–25) rated the annoyance of 18 sound stimuli on a graphic scale (four infrasonic frequencies at different intensity levels and four levels of 1000 Hz octave-filtered pink noise for reference). The exposure time for each stimulus was 15 minutes. The order of exposures was determined from a latin square and each subject was exposed to only one stimulus per day. Equal annoyance contours were constructed to connect points that produced the same annoyance rating. The equal annoyance curves demonstrate that the lower the frequency the greater must be the sound pressure to cause a given amount of annoyance. Compared with 1000 Hz the curves lie much closer together in the infrasonic range. The closeness of the curves in the infrasonic region implies that small changes in sound pressure may cause relatively large changes in annoyance.

Based on the experimental results a weighting curve with a slope of 12 dB per octave is suggested for the assessment of annoyance and loudness in the infrasonic range. A curve with the same slope and an attenuation of O dB at 10 Hz is at present under consideration in the International Standardization Organization. For environmental purposes a maximum permitted level of 95 dB is proposed for use with this curve.
Active Attenuation of Noise Radiated by Small Duct Outlets
Authors: La Fontaine R.F. , Cabelli A. , Shepherd I.C.
Published: July 2017

In situations involving turbulent, corrosive or high temperature exhaust gas, active control of duct-borne random noise might be more conveniently applied beyond the duct outlet. Near field attenuators are examined to disclose those configurations which radiate least noise to the far field, since it is usually there that the most serious complaints originate. Theoretical investigations of simple dipole, tripole and quadrupole source arrangements reveal that near field systems may prove applicable where the wave number kd (d- outlet diameter), is less than 0.73.
Influence of Whole-Body Vertical Vibration on Vision Performance
Authors: Harazin Barbara , Louda Ladislav , Pawlas Krystyna , Jandak Zdenek
Published: July 2017

A new method of studying effects of whole-body vibration on visual acuity was developed. Nine seated subjects were exposed to vertical (z-axis) sinusoidal vibration with mean amplitude in the range of 0.9 to 11.2 ms−-2 r.m.s. Frequency responses of vibration levels resulting in equal 10% decrease of the visual acuity were determined for each subject over the frequency of 6.3 Hz to 63 Hz. The visual acuity was ascertained by the maximum distance of clear vision of black and white square field contours having a 1 mm side and arranged in a chessboard with total area of 1 cm x 1 cm. In comparison with the vertical weighting curve recommended by the Standard ISO 2631-1985, the slightly different mean contour of whole-body vibration required to produce the same decrement in visual acuity was found to be below 12.5 Hz and above 31.5 Hz.
How Vibration Affects the Human Operator's Motor Characteristics
Authors: Koroleva I.N. , Scvorchevsky A.K.
Published: July 2017

The work is devoted to research and development to investigate the opportunities to increase the efficiency of activity of the human-operator under vibration stress.

Performance tasks were designed in the following main areas:

1. Study of healthy persons muscle efforts by hands and legs under multisign vestibular stimulation of shock and vibration loads and their combination.

2. The analysis of the influence of sitting posture of the person on accuracy of motor reactions under the above effects.

3. Study of vibration stress on the vestibular function of the person.
Remote Bridge Monitoring Systems for Bridge Condition
Authors: Alampalli Sreenivas , Fu Gongkang
Published: July 2017

Long-term continuous monitoring of structures may be helpful in many aspects of structural engineering when parameters of interest may change significantly over time. To test the idea of continuous monitoring for bridges, and to examine sensitivity of vibration properties to structural damage/deterioration, specifications have been developed for remote bridge-monitoring systems. They were implemented on two structures for experimental monitoring of condition. This report describes their capabilities and summarizes experience in their design, installation, and operation.
Local Emitters in the Regime of Maximum Absorption
Authors: Arabadzhi Vladimir V.
Published: July 2017

Local emitters of waves (or local actuators of dimensions much less than the wavelength of the wave to be controlled) present a necessary part of most of active control systems. This paper is devoted to some properties of emitters (local emitters at most) in the regime of maximum (resonance-like) absorption.

Such an emitter has an absorbing cross-section with dimensions about the wavelength of the wave to be absorbed. This property is referred to the waves of different physical nature, emitters of different constructions, different multipolarity, boundary problems of different geometrical dimension (n=2 and n=3).

Especially the local 3-dimensional antennas of simple multipole structure, could ensure the absorbing cross-section unbounded, growing at the increasing of multipolarity order, remaining physically local.

Regime of maximum absorption is formulated both in spectral and temporal representations in terms of so called generalized forces and velocities referred to some oscillatory degrees of freedom of boundary problem considered.

Some aspects of cooperative and individual strategy of absorbing emitters and problems of their stability and causality of control are considered. Examples when emitters could help or oppose each other are shown.
Christian Scholarship in Africa in the Twenty-first Century
Authors: Walls Andrew F.
Published: July 2017

This article is reprinted with permission from the Journal of African Christian Thought vol. 4 no. 2, December 2001 published by the Akrofi-Kristaller Memorial Centre for Mission Research and Applied Theology, PO Box 76 Akropong-Akuapem, Ghana, e-mailakrofi@africaonline.com.gh. We are grateful to the editor Dr Gillian Bediako.
Chapel Reflections on the Washington Conference on Evangelicals and Politics in Africa, Asia and Latin America
Authors: Samuel Vinay
Published: July 2017

Following the Washington Conference held from June 28-30 2002 on The Bible and the Ballot Box, the final conference of the Study Programme of the International Fellowship of Evangelical Mission Theologians (INFEMIT) on Evangelicals and Politics in Africa, Asia and Latin America, supported by the Pew Charitable Trusts, the project director, Canon Dr Vinay Samuel shared these reflections at a chapel service at the Oxford Centre for Mission Studies. See www.evangelicalsandpolitics.org. Summaries of the regional studies follow this reflection.
African Initiated Churches
Authors: Ranger Terence
Published: July 2017

Idioms of African religion have enabled African men and women to respond to Christianity and to place their hopes in it. The idioms and new ideas of missions had a tremendous influence on the prophetic, spiritual African churches, helping to ensure that they would emerge as Christian churches rather than as re-statements of African religion. Some African churches did advocate the performance of ancestral rituals but stressed the need for dignity and sobriety in worship on the one hand and the acknowledgement of the cen-trality of preaching and the Bible on the other hand. Noisy ill-disciplined enthusiasm was strongly disapproved and yet the historic mission churches were not averse to experimenting with new ideas of inculturation.
Faith-Based Social Services
Authors: Wilkinson Michael
Published: July 2017

This paper makes some observations for assessing faith-based social services from a sociological perspective. More specifically, it examines internal factors like the theology of the group and external factors, the political context, for understanding a Pentecostal approach in the USA. Observations are made from the Los Angeles Dream Center, a Pentecostal ministry, which is also a model for other Dream Centers throughout the world. The central argument is twofold: Pentecostals offer a unique holistic approach to mission and second, a sociological approach which takes seriously the theology of a group as well as its social context provides an optic for assessing similarities and differences among faith-based social services.
‘And the Life Everlasting’: A Theological Reflection on Death and Dying
Authors: Ellis Robert A.
Published: July 2017

Belief in some kind of life after death is a widespread feature of human cultures. Attitudes to death and dying in western culture are increasingly varied and variable. Death is often still a taboo subject in conversation. There is some evidence that, despite some decline, belief in some kind of post-mortem existence is resilient. The decline in belief is most notable in terms of ‘hell,’ but belief in life after death is also becoming more diverse. Holland's poem suggests that death might be less of a threat than is sometimes the perception. Death is seen by him, stared out, embraced even, certainly walked steadily toward. What does the believing community actually believe about death and beyond?
Christian Community Computer Centers (C4s): Transforming Communities through Information Sharing and Technology
Authors: Conradie Sas
Published: July 2017

The author has been involved in Christian Community Computer Centers or C4s since 1993 and has been researching the possibility of C4s' growth as part of a strategy in addressing the socio-economic situation in Africa. He asks if C4s, within the Information Communication Technology sector, can facilitate transformation in communities. The main thesis of this paper is that C4s play a significant role in community transformation as they have their greatest impact in poorer communities where more commercially orientated enterprises are reluctant to invest in technological services. The author suggests that the one area that needs further attention concerns the question of making the Centers part of an intentional program of transforming communities especially supported by churches.
Knowing the Mind of Christ: The Failure of the Liberal Protestants in the 19th Century and a New Possibility
Authors: So Damon W.K.
Published: July 2017

The paper examines the emphasis on knowing the inner life of Jesus by a prominent 19th century Liberal Protestant, and Albert Schweitzer's decisive blow to the Life of Jesus movement at the beginning of the 20th century. It gives critiques to both the former and the latter, and identifies the approach of the Liberal Protestants as ‘subjective’ in two senses. While the subjectivity of an interpreter can pose problems in the interpretation of Jesus, it is maintained that the possibility of knowing some aspects of the subjectivity of Jesus cannot be ruled out a priori. A method of correlation is suggested to give a more objective and connected interpretation of Jesus' outer words/actions and his mind.
Testimony on Human Rights
Authors: Schrotenboer Paul G.
Published: July 2017

The Reformed Ecumenical Synod has published a Testimony on Human Rights written by a team of twenty-two Christian scholars from various areas of the world. Paul G. Schrotenboer has produced this pre'cis, selecting key passages from the full 160 page report, which is published by the RES Secretariat, 1677 Gentian Drive S.E., Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA 49508, $8.00 post paid. The numbers in brackets refer to pages in the full report.
World Hunger, First Baptist Church and the Sandinistas
Authors: Neely Alan
Published: July 2017

First in a new series of teaching materials to enable groups to reflect on and discuss issues of Christian Social Ethics in concrete situations. The materials include the fictional sto y, background to the personnel, historical background and issues for discussion.
When You Put Your Body Where Your Mouth is How Falwell Got It Wrong
Authors: Jonsson John N.
Published: July 2017

“The real issue concerns the need for authentic and representative black leadership being included within the highest levels of the legislative decision-making of South Africa. Apart from this, all other overtures for change would be void.”
The Paterson Paradigm: Some Personal Reflections
Authors: Scott Waldron
Published: July 2017

In the fall of 1984 my wife, Georgia, and I, moved to Paterson and founded Holistic Ministries International (HMI). Our purpose was twofold: to develop a set of ministries that would manifest, in word and deed, the good news of the Kingdom of God; and to develop a context in which prospective missionaries, from Paterson and elsewhere, might receive training relevant to 21st century mission. How this has worked out is the subject of this article.