bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Multihop/Direct Forwarding (MDF) for static wireless sensor networks
Authors: Deng Jing
Published: November 2009

The success of Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) depends largely on efficient information delivery from target areas toward data sinks. The problem of data forwarding is complicated by the severe energy constraints of sensors in WSNs. In this work, we propose and analyze a data forwarding scheme, termed Multihop/Direct Forwarding (MDF), for WSNs where sensor nodes forward data traffic toward a common data sink. In the MDF scheme, a node splits outgoing traffic into at most two branches: one is sent to a node that is
h
units away; the other is sent directly to the data sink. The value of
h
is chosen to minimize the overall energy consumption of the network. The direct transmission is employed to balance the energy consumption of nodes at different locations and to avoid the so-called hot spot problem in data forwarding. In order to calculate its traffic splitting ratio, a node only needs to know the distance toward the common data sink and that of the farthest node. Our analytical and simulation results show that the MDF scheme performs close to, in terms of energy efficiency and network lifetime, the optimum data forwarding rules, which are more complex and computation intensive.
ICOs
Authors: Navarre David , Palanque Philippe , Ladry Jean-Francois , Barboni Eric
Published: November 2009

The design of real-life complex systems calls for advanced software engineering models, methods, and tools in order to meet critical requirements such as reliability, dependability, safety, or resilience that will avoid putting the company, the mission, or even human life at stake. When such systems encompass a substantial interactive component, the same level of confidence is required towards the human-computer interface. Conventional empirical or semiformal techniques, although very fruitful, do not provide sufficient insight on the reliability of the human-system cooperation, and offer no easy way to, for example, quantitatively and qualitatively compare two design options with respect to that reliability. The aim of this article is to present a user interface description language (called ICOs) for the engineering and development of usable and reliable user interfaces. The CASE tool supporting the ICOs notation (called Petshop) is a Petri nets-based-tool for the design, specification, prototyping, and validation of interactive software. In that environment models (built with the formal description technique ICOs) of the interactive application can be interactively modified and executed. This is used to support prototyping phases (when the models and the interactive application evolve significantly to meet late user requirements, for instance) as well as the operation phase (after the system is deployed). The use of ICOs and PetShop is presented on several large-scale systems such as a multimodal ground segment application for satellite control, an air traffic control interactive application, and an application for new generation of interactive cockpits in large civil aircraft such as Airbus A380 or Boeing 787. The article emphasizes the demonstration of the expressive power of the notation and how it can support the description of various aspects of user interfaces, namely interaction techniques (both WIMP and post-WIMP), interactive components (such as widgets), and the behavioral part of interactive applications such as the dialog and the functional core. It also demonstrates that PetShop provides dedicated support for prototyping activities of behavioral aspects at the various levels of the architecture of interactive systems. While the focus is on past work done on various large-scale applications, the article also highlights why and how ICOs and Petshop are able to address challenges raised by next-generation user interfaces.
A natural, tiered and executable UIDL for 3D user interfaces based on Concept-Oriented Design
Authors: Wingrave Chadwick A. , Laviola Joseph J. , Bowman Doug A.
Published: November 2009

3D User Interface (3DUI) design and development requires practitioners (designers and developers) to represent their ideas in representations designed for machine execution rather than natural representations, hampering development of effective 3DUIs. As such, Concept-Oriented Design (COD) was created as a theory of software development for both natural and executable design and development. Instantiated in the toolkit Chasm, Chasm is a natural, tiered, executable User Interface Description Language (UIDL) for 3DUIs resulting in improved understandability, as well as reduced complexity and reuse. Chasm's utility is shown through evaluations by domain experts, case studies of long-term use, and an
analysis of spaces
.
Sinfonia
Authors: Aguilera Marcos K. , Merchant Arif , Shah Mehul , Veitch Alistair , Karamanolis Christos
Published: November 2009

We propose a new paradigm for building scalable distributed systems. Our approach does not require dealing with message-passing protocols, a major complication in existing distributed systems. Instead, developers just design and manipulate data structures within our service called Sinfonia. Sinfonia keeps data for applications on a set of memory nodes, each exporting a linear address space. At the core of Sinfonia is a new minitransaction primitive that enables efficient and consistent access to data, while hiding the complexities that arise from concurrency and failures. Using Sinfonia, we implemented two very different and complex applications in a few months: a cluster file system and a group communication service. Our implementations perform well and scale to hundreds of machines.
Open source analytics
Authors: Grossman Robert L.
Published: November 2009

This special issue contains six articles on open source analytics. It includes an article describing the Weka data mining system, two articles on infrastructure to support analytics, an article on the PMML standard for statistical and data mining models, an article on how clouds are being used in analytics, and an article about an open source tool for cleaning data.
The WEKA data mining software
Authors: Hall Mark , Frank Eibe , Holmes Geoffrey , Pfahringer Bernhard , Reutemann Peter , Witten Ian H.
Published: November 2009

More than twelve years have elapsed since the first public release of WEKA. In that time, the software has been rewritten entirely from scratch, evolved substantially and now accompanies a text on data mining [35]. These days, WEKA enjoys widespread acceptance in both academia and business, has an active community, and has been downloaded more than 1.4 million times since being placed on Source-Forge in April 2000. This paper provides an introduction to the WEKA workbench, reviews the history of the project, and, in light of the recent 3.6 stable release, briefly discusses what has been added since the last stable version (Weka 3.4) released in 2003.
Correlation clustering
Authors: Zimek Arthur
Published: November 2009

This is a short summary of the author's thesis on "Correlation Clustering" (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Germany, 2008). The complete thesis is available at http://edoc.ub.uni-muenchen.de/8736/.
Portal glucose infusion-glucose clamp measures hepatic influence on postprandial systemic glucose appearance as well as whole body glucose disposal
Authors: Zheng Dan , Ionut Viorica , Mooradian Vahe , Stefanovski Darko , Bergman Richard N.
Published: November 2009

The full impact of the liver, through both glucose production and uptake, on systemic glucose appearance cannot be readily studied in a classical glucose clamp because hepatic glucose metabolism is regulated not only by portal insulin and glucose levels but also portal glucose delivery (the portal signal). In the present study, we modified the classical glucose clamp by giving exogenous glucose through portal vein, the “portal glucose infusion (PoG)-glucose clamp”, to determine the net hepatic effect on postprandial systemic glucose supply along with the measurement of whole body glucose disposal. By comparing systemic rate of glucose appearance (Ra) with portal glucose infusion rate (PoGinf), we quantified “net hepatic glucose addition (NHGA)” in the place of endogenous glucose production determined in a regular clamp. When PoG-glucose clamps ( n = 6) were performed in dogs at basal insulinemia and hyperglycemia (∼150 mg/dl, portal and systemic), we measured consistently higher Ra than PoGinf (4.2 ± 0.6 vs. 2.9 ± 0.6 mg·kg−1·min−1 at steady state, P < 0.001) and thus positive NHGA at 1.3 ± 0.1 mg·kg−1·min−1, identifying net hepatic addition of glucose to portal exogenous glucose. In contrast, when PoG-glucose clamps ( n = 6) were performed at hyperinsulinemia (∼250 pmol/l) and systemic euglycemia (portal hyperglycemia due to portal glucose infusion), we measured consistently lower Ra than PoGinf (13.1 ± 2.4 vs. 14.3 ± 2.4 mg·kg−1·min−1, P < 0.001), and therefore negative NHGA at −1.1 ± 0.1 mg·kg−1·min−1, identifying a switch of the liver from net production to net uptake of portal exogenous glucose. Steady-state whole body glucose disposal was 4.1 ± 0.5 and 13.0 ± 2.4 mg·kg−1·min−1, respectively, determined as in a classical glucose clamp. We conclude that the PoG-glucose clamp, simulating postprandial glucose entry and metabolism, enables simultaneous assessment of the net hepatic effect on postprandial systemic glucose supply as well as whole body glucose disposal in various animal models (rodents, dogs, and pigs) with established portal vein catheterization.
Tissue-type plasminogen activator deficiency attenuates peritoneal fibrosis in mice
Authors: Kurata Kei , Maruyama Shoichi , Kato Sawako , Sato Waichi , Yamamoto Jun-ichiro , Ozaki Takenori , Nitta Atsumi , Nabeshima Toshitaka , Morita Yoshiki , Mizuno Masashi , Ito Yasuhiko , Yuzawa Yukio , Matsuo Seiichi
Published: November 2009

Peritoneal fibrosis (PF) is an important complication of peritoneal dialysis therapy. The present study was performed to examine the mechanisms of PF in view of the plasminogen activator (PA)/plasmin/matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) cascade. PF was induced in tissue-type PA (tPA) deficient mice and wild-type mice by intraperitoneal injection of chlorhexidine gluconate. Mice were killed on day 21, and tissue samples were taken. Histopathological studies were performed. Plasmin activity, gelatinases activity, and the levels of tPA, transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1), and MMP-2 mRNA were determined. Protein levels of MMP-3, tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases (TIMP)-1, -2, and -3, phospho-Smad3, membrane-type 1 (MT1)-MMP, and MT3-MMP were also studied. On day 21, tPA +/+ mice showed severe PF, whereas tPA −/− mice showed milder change. Submesothelial basement membranes were dissolved in tPA +/+ mice while they were relatively preserved in tPA −/− mice. The levels of macrophage infiltration, staining for α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) and collagen type III, and vascular density were all significantly lower in tPA −/− mice than in tPA +/+ mice. The levels of plasmin activity, pro- and active MMP-2, mRNA expression of tPA and TGF-β1, and phospho-Smad3 protein were also lower in tPA −/− mice. No difference was observed between the two groups concerning the protein levels of MMP-3, TIMP-1, TIMP-2, TIMP-3, MT1-MMP, or MT3-MMP. These results indicate that the presence of tPA enhances inflammation, angiogenesis, and fibrogenesis in the peritoneum of the PF model mice. Activation of the PA/plasmin/MMP cascade may play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of PF.
On the Relation between the AINV and the FAPINV Algorithms
Authors: Khojasteh Salkuyeh Davod , Roohani Hadi
Published: November 2009

The approximate inverse (AINV) and the factored approximate inverse (FAPINV)
are two known algorithms in the field of preconditioning of linear systems of equations. Both of these algorithms compute a sparse approximate inverse of matrix A in the factored form and are based on computing two sets of vectors which are A‐biconjugate. The AINV algorithm computes the inverse factors W and Z of a matrix independently of each other, as opposed to the AINV algorithm, where the computations of the inverse factors are done independently. In this paper, we show that, without any dropping, removing the
dependence of the computations of the inverse factors in the FAPINV algorithm results in the AINV algorithm.
An Evaluation of Potential Occupational Exposure to Asbestiform Amphiboles near a Former Vermiculite Mine
Authors: Hart Julie F. , Spear Terry M. , Ward Tony J. , Baldwin Caitlan E. , Salo Marissa N. , Elashheb Mohamed I.
Published: November 2009

Amphibole asbestos (AA) has been detected on the surface of tree bark in forests neighboring an abandoned vermiculite mine near Libby, Montana. In the present study, simulations were performed to assess potential AA exposure associated with United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service (FS) occupational activities. Bark samples were collected prior, and personal breathing zone (PBZ) and Tyvek clothing wipe samples were collected during and immediately after trials that simulated FS activities. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analyses revealed AA bark concentrations up to 15 million structures per square centimeter(s/cm2). AA was detected in 25% of the PBZ TEM samples. AA was detected on wipe samples collected from all activities evaluated. This research demonstrates the potential for airborne exposure and transport of AA in the Kootenai National Forest. These findings are especially relevant to those that work in the area and to the general public who may conduct recreational activities.
Regulation of Translational Efficiency by Disparate 5′‐UTRs of PPARγ Splice Variants
Authors: McClelland Shawn , Shrivastava Roopali , Medh Jheem D.
Published: November 2009

The PPAR‐γ gene encodes for at least 7 unique transcripts due to alternative splicing of five exons in the 5′‐untranslated region (UTR). The translated region is encoded by exons 1–6, which are identical in all isoforms. This study investigated the role of the 5′‐UTR in regulating the efficiency with which the message is translated to protein. A coupled in vitro transcription‐translation assay demonstrated that PPAR‐γ1, ‐γ2, and ‐γ5 are efficiently translated, whereas PPAR‐γ4 and ‐γ7 are poorly translated. An in vivo reporter gene assay using each 5′‐UTR upstream of the firefly luciferase gene showed that the 5′‐UTRs for PPAR‐γ1, ‐γ2, and ‐γ4 enhanced translation, whereas the 5′‐UTRs for PPAR‐γ5 and ‐γ7 inhibited translation. Models of RNA secondary structure, obtained by the mfold software, were used to explain the mechanism of regulation by each 5′‐UTR. In general, it was found that the translational efficiency was inversely correlated with the stability of the mRNA secondary structure, the presence of base‐pairing in the consensus Kozak sequence, the number of start codons in the 5′‐UTR, and the length of the 5′‐UTR. A better understanding of posttranscriptional regulation of translation will allow modulation of protein levels without altering transcription.
Modified Newtonian Dynamics: A Falsification of Cold Dark Matter
Authors: Sanders R. H.
Published: November 2009

The only viable alternative to dark matter is one in which Newtonian dynamics
or gravity breaks down in the limit of low accelerations, as in modified Newtonian dynamics (MONDs). This hypothesis, suggested by Milgrom, has been successful in explaining systematic properties of spiral and elliptical galaxies and predicting in detail the observed rotation curves of spiral galaxies with only one additional parameter—a critical acceleration which is on the order of the cosmologically interesting value of cHo. MOND may be viewed as an algorithm for calculating the distribution of force in an astronomical object from the observed distribution of baryonic matter. The fact that it works very well on the scale of galaxies is problematic for cold
dark matter (CDM). Here I present evidence in favor of this assertion and claim that this is, in effect, a falsification of CDM on the scale of galaxies.
Mechanical Ventilation and the Kidney
Authors: Koyner Jay L. , Murray Patrick T.
Published: November 2009

Acute lung injury (ALI) and acute kidney injury (AKI) are complications often encountered in the setting of critical illness. Both forms of end-organ injury commonly occur in similar settings of systemic inflammatory response syndrome, shock, and evolving multiple organ dysfunction. Recent elucidation of the pathobiology of critical illness has led to a more basic mechanistic understanding of the complex interplay between injured organs in patients with multiple organ dysfunction syndrome; this has been aptly called ‘the slippery slope of critical illness’ [Kidney Int Suppl 1998;66:S25–S33]. Distant organ effects of apparently isolated injuries to the lungs, gut, and kidneys have all been discovered in recent years. In this article, we will review the harmful bidirectional interaction between ALI and AKI, which appears to be a common clinical syndrome with routine clinical implications. We will review the current understanding of lung-kidney interactions from both perspectives, including the renal effects of ALI and mechanical ventilation, and the pulmonary sequelae of AKI. In this review of the emerging evidence of deleterious bidirectional organ cross talk between lung and kidney, we will focus on the role of ventilator-induced kidney injury in the pathogenesis of AKI in patients with ALI.
Suboxone® (Buprenorphine/Naloxone) as an Agonist Opioid Treatment in Spain: A Budgetary Impact Analysis
Authors: Martínez-Raga José , González Saiz Francisco , Pascual César , Casado Miguel A. , Sabater Torres Francisco J.
Published: November 2009

Objective: To evaluate the economic impact of buprenorphine/naloxone (B/N) as an agonist opioid treatment for opiate dependence. Methods: A budgetary impact analysis model was designed to calculate the annual costs (drugs and associated costs) to the Spanish National Healthcare System of methadone versus B/N. Data for the model were obtained from official databases and expert panel opinion. Results: It was estimated that 86,017 patients would be in an agonist opioid treatment program each of the 3 years of the study. No increase in the number of patients is expected with the introduction of B/N combination. The budgetary impact (drugs and associated costs) for agonist opiate treatment in the first year of the study would be 89.53 million EUR. In the first year of B/N use, the budgetary impact would rise by 4.39 million EUR (4.6% of the total impact), with an incremental cost of 0.79 million EUR (0.9% of the total impact). The budgetary increase would be 0.6% (0.48 million EUR increase) and 0.6% (0.49 million EUR increase) in the second and third years of use, respectively. The mean cost per patient in the first year with and without B/N would be EUR 1,050 and 1,041, respectively. The most influential variables in the sensitivity analysis were logistics and production costs of methadone and the percentage use of B/N. Conclusion: With an additional cost of only EUR 9 per patient, B/N is an efficient addition to the therapeutic arsenal in the drug treatment of opiate dependence, particularly when considering clinical aspects of novel pharmacotherapy.
Interleukin-6 Polymorphisms and Gender: Relationship with the Occurrence of Hepatocellular Carcinoma in Patients with End-Stage Liver Disease
Authors: Falleti Edmondo , Fabris Carlo , Toniutto Pierluigi , Fontanini Elisabetta , Cussigh Annarosa , Bitetto Davide , Fumolo Elisa , Fornasiere Ezio , Bragagnini Walter , Pinato David J. , Minisini Rosalba , Pirisi Mario
Published: November 2009

Objective: To investigate whether interleukin-6 (IL-6) polymorphisms could be associated with the occurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in patients with liver cirrhosis and whether this influence could act synergistically with the gender of the patient. Methods: We studied 219 consecutive patients who underwent liver transplantation for liver cirrhosis. All total hepatectomy specimens were sectioned at intervals of 1 cm in search for suspicious focal hepatic lesions. Genotyping for the IL-6 –1363 G>T, –597 G>A, –572 G>C, –174 G>C and +2954 G>C polymorphisms was performed by restriction fragment length polymorphism. Results: A significant association was found between the presence of the A-C/A-C low producer diplotype (–597 G>A/–174 G>C loci) and absence of HCC (18/153 vs. 1/66, p < 0.02). With respect to the IL-6 A-C/A-C low producer phenotype (n = 19), females (n = 60) and males (n = 140) with the high producer phenotypes had an adjusted odds ratio for the presence of HCC of 3.74 and 14.8, respectively (p < 0.001). Conclusions: Polymorphisms of IL-6, by determining differences in its expression, are associated with HCC occurrence among patients with liver cirrhosis. The protective effect of female gender against the occurrence of HCC occurs mainly among carriers of IL-6 high producer phenotypes.
Construction of Relational Topographies from the Quantitative Measurements of Functional Deep Brain Stimulation Using a ‘Roving Window’ Interpolation Algorithm
Authors: Shenai Mahesh B. , Walker Harrison , Guthrie Stephanie , Watts Ray , Guthrie Barton L.
Published: November 2009

The delivery of stimulus by a deep brain stimulation (DBS) contact electrode at a particular location may lead to a quantifiable physiologic effect, both intraoperatively and postoperatively. Consequently, measured data values can be attributed to discrete scattered points in neuroanatomic space, allowing for interpolative techniques to generate a topographic map of spatial patterns. Ultimately, by relating the topographies of various intraoperative measurements to the postoperative counterparts and neuroanatomic atlases, outcome-guided adjustments to electrode position can be pursued intraoperatively. In this study, 52 Parkinson’s disease patients were tested with a postoperative trial of stimulation and thresholds were recorded for motor adverse effects. A ‘roving window’ interpolation algorithm was adapted to generate a topographic map of voltage threshold along selected axial, coronal and sagittal planes. By developing these relational topographies for a variety of intraoperative and postoperative effects, a multivariable approach towards DBS optimization emerges.
Infant Labial, Apical and Velar Stop Productions: A Voice Onset Time Analysis
Authors: Enstrom Daly H.
Published: November 2009

Initial prevocalic labial, apical and velar stops, as produced by eight 9- to 12-month-old Swiss-German infants, were examined spectrographically for voice onset time (VOT). Results indicate that VOTs for each place of articulation cluster in the 0- to + 30-ms voicing lag range. Comparisons of the present infant data with available results from adult Swiss-German stop productions show the VOT distributions to be very similar. The present infant data for apical stops are also compared with available data from 12-month-old American-English and Lebanese-Arabic infants. Since all three infant populations show similar VOT distributions, one might conclude that the forces of nature rather than nurture determine manner of infant apical stop production.
Interaction between Articulatory Movements and Vocal Pitch Control in Japanese Word Accent
Authors: Sawashima Masayuki , Hirose Hajime , Yoshioka Hirohide , Kiritani Shigeru
Published: November 2009

In order to investigate the interaction between articulatory and vocal pitch controls, EMGs of the cricothyroid (CT) and sternohyoid (SH) muscles were recorded during utterances of two-mora Japanese words with rising and falling accent types in the Tokyo dialects. The test words consisted of combinations of open and closed vowels. It was revealed that the changes in CT activity were consistently observed in correspondence with the F₀ shift according to the accent types, while the SH muscle was observed to be active both for jaw opening and F₀ lowering, with some subject-to-subject difference. It was also observed that the time lag between the decrease in CT activity and the F₀ fall varied with a shift in the relative timing of SH activity in one subject, but not in the other. Articulatory jaw opening with SH activation was considered to positively contribute to F₀ lowering, but the use of this mechanism appeared to be optional at least in the Tokyo accent.
Effects of Utterance Position on English Speech Timing
Authors: Flege J.E. , Brown, Jr. W.S.
Published: November 2009

8 speakers of American English produced utterances consisting of one to five disyllables ([bábÓ] or [pápÓ]). Vowel and stop closure intervals were defined by variations in supraglottal pressure, sensed through a thin tube inserted in the mouth. Closure was always longer for /p/ than /b/ in utterance-medial positions. In utterance-initial position, however, /b/ lengthened more than /p/ so that no duration difference between /p/ and /b/ was observed. Utterance-initial position did not influence vowel duration. In contrast, utterance-final position affected only vowel duration, lengthening both final-syllable unstressed vowels and stressed vowels in penultimate syllables.
Syllable Duration in Stress-, Syllable- and Mora-Timed Languages
Authors: Hoequist, Jr. Charles
Published: November 2009

Building on the results of a previous study, reiterant speech is used to test a number of durational characteristics of a stress-timed language (English), a syllable-timed language (Spanish) and a mora-timed language (Japanese). The results indicate that moras and stress feet do influence syllable duration in their respective languages, Japanese and English. Spanish, however, seems to show no language-specific durational characteristics which could be claimed to be indicative of syllable timing.
Consonant Clusters in Children’s Spontaneous and Imitative Speech
Authors: Bond Z.S. , Korte S.
Published: November 2009

The purpose of this study was to compare the phonological and acoustic-phonetic structure of spontaneous versus imitative speech. 10 children (2:3 to 3:8) were recorded producing words spontaneously and imitatively. Correct productions of consonant clusters and voice onset time were compared for the two speech modes. On these two measures, there were no differences between words produced imitatively and spontaneously.
Vowel Distortion in Traumatic Dysarthria: Lip Rounding versus Tongue Advancement
Authors: Ziegler W. , Cramon D.V.
Published: November 2009

Formant analysis of tense, high, German vowels was performed to the end of obtaining information about the role of insufficient lip rounding in distorted vowel production of 8 traumatic dysarthrics. A comparison was made between two allophones of /y/ in different consonantal contexts. Noticeable undershoot in lip rounding or protrusion proved to occur in a context of conflicting labial gestures. Where the articulatory realization of a CVC sequence required gross tongue movements, a lingual undershoot resulted as the prevailing deficit. No evidence for dyscoordinative defects was obtained from the results.
Variability and Invariance in Danish Stress Group Patterns
Authors: Thorsen Nina
Published: November 2009

Three aspects of the fundamental frequency (F₀) pattern associated with the prosodic stress group in Standard Danish are examined in acoustic analyses of recordings by 4 speakers. (1) Evidence is presented that short stress groups will have F₀ patterns which are truncated rather than compressed editions of those found with longer stress groups. (2) The shape of the F₀ pattern can be considered basically invariant (for a given speaker) and independent of the segmental structure of the stress group, but its surface manifestation is modified by intrinsic F₀ level differences between vowels of different tongue height, and by intonational context. (3) F₀ patterns in extremely long prosodic stress groups are investigated.
Is There a Valid Distinction between Voiceless Lateral Approximants and Fricatives?
Authors: Maddieson Ian , Emmorey Karen
Published: November 2009

It is possible that the distinction between voiceless lateral fricatives and approximants is actually due to different linguists’ terminology and transcription practices rather than to an actual phonetic distinction. This paper establishes that there is in fact a phonetic distinction between these sounds and that the phonetic difference has important phonological consequences. Several speakers of Zulu, Navajo, Taishan, Burmese, and Tibetan were recorded. Measures of duration, amplitude and spectral shape were made on the voiceless laterals. The voiceless lateral fricatives were found to have a significantly later onset of voicing, higher amplitude, and greater energy at higher frequencies than the approximants. A survey of 60 languages with voiceless laterals revealed distinguishing generalizations involving phonotactics, allophonic variation, and co-occurrence with other laterals in the inventory.
Phonetic Factors in Word Order
Authors: Oakeshott-Taylor John
Published: November 2009

Binomial expressions, of the form X
and Y, often prefer one sequence of elements over the other. This investigation examines the hypothesis that such preferences are due, in part at least, to phonetic properties of the conjoined words. Native speakers revealed highly significant preference patterns when asked to judge conjoined CVC syllables, in English, German and Afrikaans – patterns which could be associated with phonetic properties of the vowel segments. The prosodic structure of the binomial expression also appeared to play a role in determining order preferences.
Vocal Fold Adjustments in Aspirated and Unaspirated Stops in Danish
Authors: Hutters Birgit
Published: November 2009

Vocal fold adjustments in Danish aspirated and unaspirated stops were investigated by electromyography, photo-electric glottography, and fiberoptic stills. The results show that these two stop types are produced primarily by different types of glottal gesture, rather than by a different timing of the glottal and supraglottal articulations. Other, more general aspects of glottal behaviour in relation to aspiration and devoicing in stops are also discussed.
Perception of Speech Rate of Dutch and Italian Utterances
Authors: den Os Els
Published: November 2009

The speech signal contains many linguistic and prosodic cues which determine the perception of speech rate. We investigated which cues could optimally explain rate judgements of short Dutch and Italian utterances. For this, the correlation between an objective measure of speech rate (linguistic syllables per second, phonetic syllables per second, or phonetic segments per second) and perceived speech rate has been evaluated for rate judgements of normal, monotone, and unintelligible utterances. The effect of language background on speech rate perception was also studied, by using Dutch and Italian listeners.
Relationship between Semivowels and Vowels: Cross-Linguistic Investigations of Acoustic Difference and Coarticulation
Authors: Maddieson Ian , Emmorey Karen
Published: November 2009

Formant frequencies of the semivowels /j/ and /w/ in Amharic, Yoruba and Zuni were measured in three vowel environments. Cross-language differences were found between what are described as the same semivowels, i. e. different languages have different acoustic targets for /j/ and /w/. These cross-language differences in semivowels correlate with cross-language differences in the respective cognate vowels /i/ and /u/. Nonetheless, the semivowels differ in systematic ways from the vowels in directions that make them more ‘consonantal’. These languages also differ in their patterns of coarticulation between semivowels and adjacent vowels. This shows, inter alia, that palatal segments differ from language to language in their degree of resistance to coarticulation. Because of these language-specific coarticulatory patterns, cross-language differences in acoustic targets can only be established after careful consideration of the effect of context.
Interaction of Vowel F₀ and Prosody
Authors: Steele Shirley A.
Published: November 2009

In the experiment reported here, the intrinsic fundamental frequency (IF₀) difference between high and low vowels was investigated in controlled prosodic contexts. Findings do not support the hypothesis proposed elsewhere that IF₀ differences increase as a function of the speaker’s F₀. An explanation which includes the influence of both vocal fold tension and subglottal pressure accounts for the data better than current theories of IF₀ differences. IF₀ differences may be explained as a phonetic-level result of the implementation of pitch accent and prominence.
Orosensory Similarity of Vowels
Authors: Rietveld A.C.M. , Schils E.D.J.
Published: November 2009

Triadically collected judgments on the orosensory similarity of Dutch vowels were studied in terms of three phonological and phonetic descriptions of the Dutch vowel system, differing mainly in their respective treatments of vowel heights. A feature matrix using four vowel heights rather than three had the greatest resemblance with a three-dimensional representation of the vowels on the basis of orosensory judgments. A hierarchical representation of the data indicates that the feature front/back outweighs the features high/low and long/short as far as their relative impact is concerned. Roundedness appeared to play no dominant role in the judgment process.
Effects of Bite Block Speech on Intrinsic Segment Duration
Authors: Smith Bruce L.
Published: November 2009

The fact that low vowels tend to have longer intrinsic durations than high vowels is sometimes attributed to mechanical characteristics associated with the greater distance the jaw travels in producing low vowels. To investigate this tendency, 6 adult speakers of English each produced 72 [h]-vowel-consonant stimuli containing high and low vowels under ‘normal’ conditions and with their jaw fixed. If duration differences commonly observed between high and low vowels are a result of only mechanical effects of mandibular movement, it was hypothesized that stabilizing the jaw would eliminate these intrinsic vowel duration differences. Based on acoustic measurements that were made, it was found that the fixed-jaw conditions affected the intrinsic durational differences between high and low vowels to some extent, but the contrast was not entirely removed. In addition to the vowel duration changes, a number of systematic effects upon consonant closure duration were also observed as a result of the normal versus fixed-jaw conditions.
Frequency Code: Orofacial Correlates of Fundamental Frequency
Authors: Bauer Harold R.
Published: November 2009

In the human voice, lip retraction as in smiling can be associated with high fundamental (F₀) and formant frequencies. The aim of this study was to investigate under naturalistic conditions the cross-species generality of the frequency code hypothesis and related orofacial correlates in F₀. Digital spectral, spectrographic, and cinegraphic measurements were made of spontaneous chimpanzee vocalizations and orofacial movements produced and recorded in the field. A significant decline in F₀ was found in submissive scream-to-aggressive-waahbark transitions as predicted by the frequency code. Teeth and lip opening distances during sounds were positively correlated with their duration, F₀, frequency rise and tempo. These positive correlates and a trivariate regression between orofacial opening and F₀ give support to the coordination of these appeasing facial and vocal features proposed in the frequency code hypothesis.
Classification of Basic Fundamental Frequency Patterns Using Discriminant Functions
Authors: Demenko Grazyna , Jassem Wiktor , Krzyśko Mirosław
Published: November 2009

An attempt was made to see whether realizations of eight different pitch patterns can be classified automatically by subjecting fundamental frequency curves to statistical treatment using two kinds of discriminant functions. The materials consisted of 150 imitations of each of the eight prototypes (eight intonations of a short Polish phrase). Approximately 80% of the time the statistical procedures assigned the individual tokens to the appropriate classes. Most of the misassignments were due to wrong imitations. The discriminant functions also indicated similarities and dissimilarities among the pitch patterns. It is suggested that perceptually and linguistically, some differences between pitch patterns may not be quite categorical.
Paralinguistic Variation and Invariance in the Characteristic Frequencies of Vowels
Authors: Traunmüller Hartmut
Published: November 2009

It is shown that within-speaker variations in vocal effort and phonation affect fundamental frequency (F₀) and the formant frequencies of vowels in the sense of a linear compression/expansion of the spectral separations between them, given an adequate scaling of pitch. Between-speaker variations in size correspond to a translation of the spectral peaks shaped by F₀ and the formants if pitch is scaled tonotopically (in Bark). On the basis of these observations, invariant cues to vowel quality are suggested. It is further shown that vowels produced by adult women tend to be phonetically more explicit and, hence, more peripheral in ‘vowel space’ than those of men and children. It is also shown that the formant frequencies of vowels subjected to paralinguistic variation are related by power functions of frequency.
Perception of Indonesian Vowels Spoken in Context
Authors: van Zanten Ellen
Published: November 2009

The purpose of the present study is to test the perceptual reality of allophonic variation and harmony in Indonesian. Indonesian listeners with different regional backgrounds were asked to predict word identity (CVCV or CVCVC) based on the presence or absence of vowel allophony and harmony. The data show that listeners were sensitive to the spectrally different allophones, but were not in all cases able to use this information in predicting word identity, probably due to experimental artifact.
Feature Geometry and Dependency: A Review
Authors: McCarthy John J.
Published: November 2009

A fundamental problem in phonological theory is the fact that processes often operate on consistent subsets of the distinctive features within a segment, like the features that characterize place of articulation. Recent research has responded to this problem by proposing a hierarchical organization of the features into functionally related classes, grouped under nodes of a tree structure. This ‘geometry’ resembles earlier theories that accomplish the same thing with multivalued features. This article reviews and expands the evidence for feature geometry. Within the segment, it is argued, the major dichotomy is between a Laryngeal node and a Place node. The manners of articulation – sonority, consonantality, nasality, and continuance – inhere in the segment itself rather than any of its subsidiary parts. Within the Place node, the division is into major articulators, each with its own subordinate features. Evidence is drawn from processes of assimilation and debuccalization and from the assimilatory and dissimilatory effects of the Obligatory Contour Principle.
Tonogenetic Mechanisms in Northern Mon-Khmer
Authors: Svantesson Jan-Olof
Published: November 2009

In this paper, tonogenesis in the four languages Northern Kammu, Blang, Hu and U is analyzed. For comparison, register development in Lamet is treated as well. All these languages belong to the Palaungic and Kammuic branches of the Mon-Khmer division of the Austroasiatic language family and are fairly closely related, but they have developed tone or register systems independently of each other. These developments can be explained by universal microprosodic properties of segments, which are used in different ways by the different languages. Tone (or register) development is connected with merger of voiced and voiceless initial consonants in Kammu, Blang and Lamet, with merger of long and short vowels in Hu, and with merger of long and short vowels combined with both initial and final consonant changes and vowel quality changes in U. Thus, the range of microprosodic properties used for tonogenesis is extremely wide in this language group.
The Effect of Coarticulation on the Role of Transitions in Vowel Perception
Authors: Benguerel André-Pierre , McFadden Teresa Ukrainetz
Published: November 2009

Sequences of the form V1bV2bV1 were recorded by a male speaker. From each sequence, three types of stimuli were edited out: (1) the medial vowel, from after the burst of the preceding stop to the start of the closure of the following stop; (2) the quasi-steady state of the medial vowel, and (3) the transitions alone of the medial vowel (complement to 2). The perception of each type of stimulus was examined in separate tests and the results were compared. For two of the three contexts (V1 = /i/, /u/), scores for stimuli of the third condition (transitions) were as high as for the first (control) condition, supporting the importance of transitions as cues for vowel identity. For the third context (/a/), however, performance was significantly lower, thus suggesting an influence of vowel context on the contribution of transitions to vowel identification.
Perceived Strength and Identity of Foreign Accent in Swedish
Authors: Cunningham-Andersson Una , Engstrand Olle
Published: November 2009

We report three listening experiments focussing on the phonetic correlates of perceived foreignness and perceived strength of foreign accent in Swedish. In the first experiment, it is shown that accentedness can be reliably measured on the basis of a relatively short speech sample and that a statistical count of deviating pronunciations correlates significantly with subjective judgements of accentedness by linguistically naive listeners. The second experiment shows a significant correlation between number of deviant features and perceived accent strength and a significant correlation between judgements of degree of deviation and foreignness. Some features are associated with impressions of stronger accents than others, and some with perception of ‘Finnish’ accent. The third experiment establishes which combinations of deviant phonetic characteristics most strongly tend to give the impression of Finnish accent.
Categories of Tonal Alignment in English
Authors: Pierrehumbert Janet B. , Steele Shirley A.
Published: November 2009

This paper reports the results of an inquiry into the question of category versus continuum in intonation. Variants of the English rise-fall-rise pattern were used to study whether tonal alignment is a categorical or gradient distinction. LPC resynthesis was used to construct a set of stimuli in which the alignment of the F₀ rise-fall varied in small steps. Subjects heard the stimuli in randomized order and imitated what they heard. The position of the F₀ peak relative to the onset of the stressed vowel was measured in each response. Systematic deviations between the peak placement in the stimuli and those in the responses revealed the existence of two categories. We conclude that tonal alignment functions as a binary distinction in English intonation.
Rhythmic Structure in Italian Noun Phrases: A Study on Vowel Durations
Authors: Farnetani Edda , Kori Shiro
Published: November 2009

This study deals with the temporal structure of 4- and 5-syllable noun phrases of one and of two constituents, produced as syntactic objects of Italian VP + NP sentences by 3 subjects. On the basis that vowel durational relations can reflect prominence relations, as previous data on Italian indicate, the study compares the durations of stressed vowels, vowels carrying secondary stress in compound words, and unstressed vowels in order to assess the effects of position within a phrase and to identify the rhythmic principles that regulate prominence relations among both stressed and unstressed vowels. The data indicate that the degree of prominence decreases from stressed vowels in phrase-final words to stressed vowels in non-final words, to rhythmically accented unstressed, to unaccented unstressed vowels. Vowels with secondary stress in compounds do not differ in duration from unstressed vowels. A remarkable finding is the very restricted range of variation of unstressed vowels. The data suggest that, although the rhythmic alternation rule in Italian disfavours adjacency and even proximity of two equally strong syllables, it does not disfavour sequences of two, three, four equally weak syllables. Sequences of unstressed vowels of nearly equal durations are also favoured by the absence of word boundary lengthening observed in the reiterant versions of our corpus. It is argued that the temporal organization of noun phrases that emerged from this investigation contributes to the perception of Italian as a syllable-timed language.
Phonetic Transcription Rules for Text-to-Speech Synthesis of Italian
Authors: Salza Pier Luigi
Published: November 2009

The paper aims at illustrating the phonetic transcription rules implemented in a text-to-speech synthesis system of Italian. The development system employed for rule writing is presented first. The system makes it possible to process linguistic information at various levels, using a conventional context-dependent format. The rule set, made up of graphemic, phonetic and word boundary rules, is then described. Transcription rules furnish a reasonable solution to [s, z], [ts, dz], [‘e, ‘ε], [‘o, ‘o], [i, j, i] and [u, w, i] phone distributions, as used in Northern Italian pronunciation. Statistical evaluation of the transcriber performance was carried out on a significant corpus of words with encouraging results: 93.1 % correct transcriptions.
The Activity of the Cricothyroid Muscle and the Intrinsic Fundamental Frequency in Danish Vowels
Authors: Dyhr Niels
Published: November 2009

The relationship between the electromyographic (EMG) activity from the pars obliqua of the cricothyroid (CT) muscle (recorded with bipolar hooked-wire electrodes) and the intrinsic fundamental frequency (IF₀) in high and low vowels in Danish was investigated. The test material, which consisted of 306 randomized natural words of the type CV(:)l3, imbedded in carrier sentences, was recorded by 4 native speakers of Danish. The following vowel pairs were compared: [‘i-’a, ‘i :-’æ:, ‘u :-’æ:] and [‘i :-’a]. The results, which are based on visual inspection of average EMG and fundamental frequency (F₀) curves, show a positive correlation between the CT activity and IF₀, more specifically that the CT activity rise related to the high vowels starts earlier and in most cases more steeply than the CT activity related to the low vowels. However, a drop in F₀ at the beginning of the low vowels cannot be accounted for by CT activity. This F₀ drop is believed to be the result of either tongue retraction during the articulation or influence from the preceding consonant. The following conclusion is drawn: The CT muscle is a major factor in controlling IF₀ in stressed high and low vowels in Danish.
Prosodic Parameters in a Variety of Regional Danish Standard Languages, with a View towards Swedish and German
Authors: Grønnum Nina
Published: November 2009

Acoustic analysis of six different regional variants of Standard Danish, two forms of Swedish and two of German divides the ten into two major categories: those that signal sentence intonation function by local cues and those that do it by global means. The purely global types are also those that have no default sentence accents, and which signal focus by reduction of the surroundings rather than by boosting of the focussed element (a focal accent proper). A specific final completion cue is restricted to the local intonation types and is there an entity separate from that which cues prosodic terminal or nonterminal status. The implication for models of intonation is discussed.
Analysis of Periodic and Aperiodic Components during Fluent and Dysfluent Phases of Child and Adult Stutterers’ Speech
Authors: Howell Peter , Young Keith
Published: November 2009

The syllable repetitions of 6 child and 6 adult stutterers were investigated to establish whether dysfluent speech had a higher noise-to-signal ratio than fluent speech and whether this differed between children and adults. As predicted, the stuttered speech had a higher noise level for both age groups. During dysfluencies, the level of the noise components in the children’s speech was higher than in the adults.