bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The dynamic association between body mass index and cognition from midlife through late-life, and the effect of sex and genetic influences
Authors: Karlsson Ida K. , Gatz Margaret , Arpawong Thalida Em , Dahl Aslan Anna K. , Reynolds Chandra A.
Published: March 2021

Body mass index (BMI) is associated with cognitive abilities, but the nature of the relationship remains largely unexplored. We aimed to investigate the bidirectional relationship from midlife through late-life, while considering sex differences and genetic predisposition to higher BMI. We used data from 23,892 individuals of European ancestry from the Health and Retirement Study, with longitudinal data on BMI and three established cognitive indices: mental status, episodic memory, and their sum, called total cognition. To investigate the dynamic relationship between BMI and cognitive abilities, we applied dual change score models of change from age 50 through 89, with a breakpoint at age 65 or 70. Models were further stratified by sex and genetic predisposition to higher BMI using tertiles of a polygenic score for BMI (PGSBMI). We demonstrated bidirectional effects between BMI and all three cognitive indices, with higher BMI contributing to steeper decline in cognitive abilities in both midlife and late-life, and higher cognitive abilities contributing to less decline in BMI in late-life. The effects of BMI on change in cognitive abilities were more evident in men compared to women, and among those in the lowest tertile of the PGSBMI compared to those in the highest tertile, while the effects of cognition on BMI were similar across groups. In conclusion, these findings highlight a reciprocal relationship between BMI and cognitive abilities, indicating that the negative effects of a higher BMI persist from midlife through late-life, and that weight-loss in late-life may be driven by cognitive decline.
Structure of variability in scanning movement predicts braille reading performance in children
Authors: Nonaka Tetsushi , Ito Kiyohide , Stoffregen Thomas A.
Published: March 2021

Among children learning to read braille, we asked whether the quantitative kinematics of scanning movements of the reading finger would be related to the proficiency of braille reading. Over a period of 12 months, we recorded the position and orientation of the reading fingers of eight congenitally or early blind children. We found that the strength of long-range power-law temporal correlations in the velocity fluctuations increased with performance in braille reading. In addition, we found that the variability of the angular orientation of the reading finger that affects the contact region on the fingerpad was negatively related to braille reading performance. These results confirm that the quantitative kinematics of finger scanning movements were related to functional performance in braille reading. The results add to the growing body of evidence that long-range temporal correlations in exploratory behavior can predict perceptual performance, and that scanning movements that center important tactile information on the small, high resolution area contribute to the pickup of information.
Delineating proinflammatory microenvironmental signals by ex vivo modeling of the immature intestinal stroma
Authors: Ichinose Mari , Suzuki Nobumi , Wang Tongtong , Wright Josephine A. , Lannagan Tamsin R. M. , Vrbanac Laura , Kobayashi Hiroki , Gieniec Krystyna , Ng Jia Q. , Ihara Souzaburo , Mavrangelos Chris , Hayakawa Yoku , Hughes Patrick , Worthley Daniel L. , Woods Susan L.
Published: March 2021

The intestinal stroma provides an important microenvironment for immune cell activation. The perturbation of this tightly regulated process can lead to excessive inflammation. We know that upregulated Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) in the intestinal epithelium plays a key role in the inflammatory condition of preterm infants, such as necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC). However, the surrounding stromal contribution to excessive inflammation in the pre-term setting awaits careful dissection. Ex vivo co-culture of embryonic day 14.5 (E14.5) or adult murine intestinal stromal cells with exogenous monocytes was undertaken. We also performed mRNAseq analysis of embryonic and adult stromal cells treated with vehicle control or lipopolysaccharide (LPS), followed by pathway and network analyses of differentially regulated transcripts. Cell characteristics were compared using flow cytometry and pHrodo red phagocytic stain, candidate gene analysis was performed via siRNA knockdown and gene expression measured by qPCR and ELISA. Embryonic stromal cells promote the differentiation of co-cultured monocytes to CD11bhighCD11chigh mononuclear phagocytes, that in turn express decreased levels of CD103. Global mRNAseq analysis of stromal cells following LPS stimulation identified TLR signaling components as the most differentially expressed transcripts in the immature compared to adult setting. We show that CD14 expressed by CD11b+CD45+ embryonic stromal cells is a key inducer of TLR mediated inflammatory cytokine production and phagocytic activity of monocyte derived cells. We utilise transcriptomic analyses and functional ex vivo modelling to improve our understanding of unique molecular cues provided by the immature intestinal stroma.
Sensors for the detection of ammonia as a potential biomarker for health screening
Authors: Ricci Peter P. , Gregory Otto J.
Published: March 2021

The presence of ammonia within the body has long been linked to complications stemming from the liver, kidneys, and stomach. These complications can be the result of serious conditions such as chronic kidney disease (CKD), peptic ulcers, and recently COVID-19. Limited liver and kidney function leads to increased blood urea nitrogen (BUN) within the body resulting in elevated levels of ammonia in the mouth, nose, and skin. Similarly, peptic ulcers, commonly from H. pylori, result in ammonia production from urea within the stomach. The presence of these biomarkers enables a potential screening protocol to be considered for frequent, non-invasive monitoring of these conditions. Unfortunately, detection of ammonia in these mediums is rather challenging due to relatively small concentrations and an abundance of interferents. Currently, there are no options available for non-invasive screening of these conditions continuously and in real-time. Here we demonstrate the selective detection of ammonia using a vapor phase thermodynamic sensing platform capable of being employed as part of a health screening protocol. The results show that our detection system has the remarkable ability to selectively detect trace levels of ammonia in the vapor phase using a single catalyst. Additionally, detection was demonstrated in the presence of interferents such as carbon dioxide (CO2) and acetone common in human breath. These results show that our thermodynamic sensors are well suited to selectively detect ammonia at levels that could potentially be useful for health screening applications.
A systematic review and meta-analysis of obesity and COVID-19 outcomes
Authors: Zhang Xinya , Lewis Alexander M. , Moley John R. , Brestoff Jonathan R.
Published: March 2021

Some studies report that obesity is associated with more severe symptoms following SARS-CoV-2 infection and worse COVID-19 outcomes, however many other studies have not reproduced these findings. Therefore, it is uncertain whether obesity is in fact associated with worse COVID-19 outcomes compared to non-obese individuals. We conducted a systematic search of PubMed (including MEDLINE) and Google Scholar on May 18, 2020 to identify published studies on COVID-19 outcomes in non-obese and obese patients, covering studies published during the first 6 months of the pandemic. Meta-analyses with random effects modeling was used to determine unadjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for various COVID-19 outcomes in obese versus non-obese patients. By quantitative analyses of 22 studies from 7 countries in North America, Europe, and Asia, we found that obesity is associated with an increased likelihood of presenting with more severe COVID-19 symptoms (OR 3.03, 95% CI 1.45–6.28, P = 0.003; 4 studies, n = 974), developing acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS; OR 2.89, 95% CI 1.14–7.34, P = 0.025; 2 studies, n = 96), requiring hospitalization (OR 1.68, 95% CI 1.14–1.59, P < 0.001; 4 studies, n = 6611), being admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU; OR 1.35, 95% CI 1.15–1.65, P = 0.001; 9 studies, n = 5298), and undergoing invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV; OR 1.76, 95% CI 1.29–2.40, P < 0.001; 7 studies, n = 1558) compared to non-obese patients. However, obese patients had similar likelihoods of death from COVID-19 as non-obese patients (OR 0.96, 95% CI 0.74–1.25, P = 0.750; 9 studies, n = 20,597). Collectively, these data from the first 6 months of the pandemic suggested that obesity is associated with a more severe COVID-19 disease course but may not be associated with increased mortality.
Machine learning for patient risk stratification: standing on, or looking over, the shoulders of clinicians?
Authors: Beaulieu-Jones Brett K. , Yuan William , Brat Gabriel A. , Beam Andrew L. , Weber Griffin , Ruffin Marshall , Kohane Isaac S.
Published: March 2021

Machine learning can help clinicians to make individualized patient predictions only if researchers demonstrate models that contribute novel insights, rather than learning the most likely next step in a set of actions a clinician will take. We trained deep learning models using only clinician-initiated, administrative data for 42.9 million admissions using three subsets of data: demographic data only, demographic data and information available at admission, and the previous data plus charges recorded during the first day of admission. Models trained on charges during the first day of admission achieve performance close to published full EMR-based benchmarks for inpatient outcomes: inhospital mortality (0.89 AUC), prolonged length of stay (0.82 AUC), and 30-day readmission rate (0.71 AUC). Similar performance between models trained with only clinician-initiated data and those trained with full EMR data purporting to include information about patient state and physiology should raise concern in the deployment of these models. Furthermore, these models exhibited significant declines in performance when evaluated over only myocardial infarction (MI) patients relative to models trained over MI patients alone, highlighting the importance of physician diagnosis in the prognostic performance of these models. These results provide a benchmark for predictive accuracy trained only on prior clinical actions and indicate that models with similar performance may derive their signal by looking over clinician’s shoulders—using clinical behavior as the expression of preexisting intuition and suspicion to generate a prediction. For models to guide clinicians in individual decisions, performance exceeding these benchmarks is necessary.
Light control of the peptide-loading complex synchronizes antigen translocation and MHC I trafficking
Authors: Brunnberg Jamina , Herbring Valentina , Günther Castillo Esteban , Krüger Heike , Wieneke Ralph , Tampé Robert
Published: March 2021

Antigen presentation via major histocompatibility complex class I (MHC I) molecules is essential to mount an adaptive immune response against pathogens and cancerous cells. To this end, the transporter associated with antigen processing (TAP) delivers snippets of the cellular proteome, resulting from proteasomal degradation, into the ER lumen. After peptide loading and editing by the peptide-loading complex (PLC), stable peptide-MHC I complexes are released for cell surface presentation. Since the process of MHC I trafficking is poorly defined, we established an approach to control antigen presentation by introduction of a photo-caged amino acid in the catalytic ATP-binding site of TAP. By optical control, we initiate TAP-dependent antigen translocation, thus providing new insights into TAP function within the PLC and MHC I trafficking in living cells. Moreover, this versatile approach has the potential to be applied in the study of other cellular pathways controlled by P-loop ATP/GTPases.
Occipital Intralobar fasciculi: a description, through tractography, of three forgotten tracts
Authors: Bugain Maeva , Dimech Yana , Torzhenskaya Natalia , Thiebaut de Schotten Michel , Caspers Svenja , Muscat Richard , Bajada Claude J.
Published: March 2021

Diffusion MRI paired with tractography has facilitated a non-invasive exploration of many association, projection, and commissural fiber tracts. However, there is still a scarcity of research studies related to intralobar association fibers. The Dejerines’ (two of the most notable neurologists of 19th century France) gave an in-depth description of the intralobar fibers of the occipital lobe. Unfortunately, their exquisite work has since been sparsely cited in the modern literature. This work gives a modern description of many of the occipital intralobar lobe fibers described by the Dejerines. We perform a virtual dissection and reconstruct the tracts using diffusion MRI tractography. The dissection is guided by the Dejerines’ treatise, Anatomie des Centres Nerveux. As an accompaniment to this article, we provided a French-to-English translation of the treatise portion concerning five intra-occipital tracts, namely: the stratum calcarinum, the stratum proprium cunei, the vertical occipital fasciculus of Wernicke, the transverse fasciculus of the cuneus and the transverse fasciculus of the lingual lobule of Vialet. It was possible to reconstruct all but one of these tracts. For completeness, the recently described sledge runner fasciculus, although not one of the Dejerines’ tracts, was identified and successfully reconstructed.
Robust, flexible, freestanding and high surface area activated carbon and multi-walled carbon nanotubes composite material with outstanding electrode properties for aqueous-based supercapacitors
Authors: Freitas Bruno , Nunes Willian G. , Soares Davi Marcelo , Rufino Fernando C. , Moreira Cássio Murilo , Da Silva Leonardo Morais , Zanin Hudson
Published: March 2021

This novel carbon–carbon composite electrode has superlative electrochemical properties with flexibility, mechanical robustness, and weldability.
A new crystal family of GaNGeC quaternary compounds including direct band gap semiconductors and metals
Authors: Lou Ping , Lee Jin Yong
Published: March 2021

A new crystal family of quaternary GaNGeC compounds (six semiconductors and two metals) possesses band edge positions suitable for photocatalytic overall water splitting in visible region.
Nanomaterial-based encapsulation for controlled gastrointestinal delivery of viable probiotic bacteria
Authors: Razavi Seyedehhamideh , Janfaza Sajjad , Tasnim Nishat , Gibson Deanna L. , Hoorfar Mina
Published: March 2021

Nanomaterials have demonstrated significant promise as encapsulation materials to improve probiotic encapsulation. The integration of nanotechnology with microencapsulation techniques can improve the controlled delivery of viable probiotic bacteria to the gut.
Genetically encoded RNA nanodevices for cellular imaging and regulation
Authors: Yu Qikun , Ren Kewei , You Mingxu
Published: March 2021

Recent design and applications of emerging genetically encoded RNA nanodevices in regulating cellular gene expression, imaging, logic operation, structural biology, and optogenetics.
Recent progress of metal-halide perovskite-based tandem solar cells
Authors: Yan Cenqi , Huang Jiaming , Li Dongdong , Li Gang
Published: March 2021

This review presents critical advances of perovskite-based tandem solar cells (TSCs). Electrode engineering, interface engineering, bandgap engineering, and processing techniques are discussed, as well as the future directions and challenges.
Influence of the stoichiometry of tin-based 2D/3D perovskite active layers on solar cell performance
Authors: Shao Shuyan , Nijenhuis Maykel , Dong Jingjin , Kahmann Simon , ten Brink Gert H. , Portale Giuseppe , Loi Maria Antonietta
Published: March 2021

The starting stoichiometry of 2D/3D (PEA0.08FAxSnI3) tin perovskite films influences their crystallization and photophysical properties as well as the solar cell performance.
Development of novel apoptosis-assisted lung tissue decellularization methods
Authors: Song Young Hye , Maynes Mark A. , Hlavac Nora , Visosevic Daniel , Daramola Kaitlyn O. , Porvasnik Stacy L. , Schmidt Christine E.
Published: March 2021

Decellularized tissues hold great potential for both regenerative medicine and disease modeling applications.
Polydopamine and dopamine interfere with tetrazolium-based cytotoxicity assays and produce exaggerated cytocompatibility inferences
Authors: Awasthi Anand Kumar , Gupta Sakshi , Namdev Kavthekar Rupesh , Banerjee Aditi , Srivastava Aasheesh
Published: March 2021

Polydopamine (PDA) and dopamine (DA) can spontaneously reduce MTT reagent to formazan, resulting in incorrect cell-viability inferences. The non-redox Trypan Blue exclusion assay provides a more reliable estimate of cell viability with PDA and DA.
p-Type molecular doping by charge transfer in halide perovskite
Authors: Euvrard Julie , Gunawan Oki , Zhong Xinjue , Harvey Steven P. , Kahn Antoine , Mitzi David B.
Published: March 2021

Efficient p-type doping is achieved in a halide perovskite through energy band tuning to allow charge transfer with the acceptor molecule F4TCNQ. Complementary characterization confirms doping and assesses the impact on optoelectronic properties.
NiCo2O4 nanoparticles inlaid on sulphur and nitrogen doped and co-doped rGO sheets as efficient electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution and methanol oxidation reactions
Authors: Rebekah  , Viswanathan C. , Ponpandian N.
Published: March 2021

The present work depicts the fabrication of NiCo2O4 decorated on rGO, and doped and co-doped rGO and its electrocatalytic activity towards the oxygen evolution reaction and methanol oxidation reaction.
Self-supported nickel-doped molybdenum carbide nanoflower clusters on carbon fiber paper for an efficient hydrogen evolution reaction
Authors: Hu Zhihui , Zhang Lei , Huang Juntong , Feng Zhijun , Xiong Qingming , Ye Zhiguo , Chen Zhi , Li Xibao , Yu Zhaoju
Published: March 2021

Self-supported Ni-doped Mo2C nanoflowers assembled with ultrathin nanosheets on CFP as an excellent electrocatalyst for the hydrogen evolution reaction were prepared via a molten salt method.
Pillararene-based conjugated porous polymers
Authors: Zhang Huacheng , Han Jie , Li Chao
Published: March 2021

The synthesis and application of promising polymeric materials–pillararene-based conjugated porous polymers–are discussed and summarized in this review.
Efficient reduction of nitro compounds and domino preparation of 1-substituted-1H-1,2,3,4-tetrazoles by Pd(ii)-polysalophen coated magnetite NPs as a robust versatile nanocomposite
Authors: Xu DaPeng , Xiong Meilu , Kazemnejadi Milad
Published: March 2021

Facile nitroarene reduction as well as domino/reduction MCR preparation of 1-substituted-1H-1,2,3,4-tetrazoles from nitroarenes was performed by Pd(ii)-polysalophen coated magnetite NPs as a highly selective, recyclable and efficient nanocomposite.
A three-dimensional flower-like NiCo-layered double hydroxide grown on nickel foam with an MXene coating for enhanced oxygen evolution reaction electrocatalysis
Authors: Li Xuemei , Zhang Zilu , Xiang Qiankun , Chen Rongrong , Wu Di , Li Guangyao , Wang Linjiang
Published: March 2021

A three-dimensional flower-shaped layered double hydroxide is grown on MXene to fabricate a NiCo-LDH/MXene/NF hybrid electrocatalyst to enhance the OER performance.
Achievement of narrow-band blue-emitting phosphors KScSr1−yCaySi2O7:Bi3+ by the migration of luminescence centers
Authors: Yao Yao , Wang Zhijun , Cao Lingwei , Zheng Mingjie , Wang Xuejiao , Zhang Mengya , Cui Jia , Yang Zhibin , Ding Wenge , Li Panlai
Published: March 2021

Narrow-band blue emitting phosphor KScSr1−yCaySi2O7:0.07Bi3+ with FWHM 40 nm.
A hydrothermal synthesis of Ru-doped LiMn1.5Ni0.5O4 cathode materials for enhanced electrochemical performance
Authors: Zhou Dengfeng , Li Junqi , Chen Can , Lin Fangchang , Wu Hongming , Guo Jianbing
Published: March 2021

An Ru-doped spinel-structured LiNi0.5Mn1.5O4 (LNMO) cathode has been prepared via a simple hydrothermal synthesis method.
Retraction: Computational fluid dynamics modeling of the millisecond methane steam reforming in microchannel reactors for hydrogen production
Authors: Chen Junjie , Gao Xuhui , Yan Longfei , Xu Deguang
Published: March 2021

Retraction of ‘Computational fluid dynamics modeling of the millisecond methane steam reforming in microchannel reactors for hydrogen production’ by Junjie Chen et al., RSC Adv., 2018, 8, 25183–25200, DOI: 10.1039/C8RA04440F.
The construction of Ru-doped In2O3 hollow peanut-like structure for an enhanced photocatalytic nitrogen reduction under solar light irradiation
Authors: Vu Manh-Hiep , Quach Toan-Anh , Do Trong-On
Published: March 2021

Herein, we have synthesized Ru doped In2O3 hollow peanuts for the sunlight-driven photocatalytic nitrogen fixation.
Correction: Plateau–Rayleigh instability in a soft viscoelastic material
Authors: Tamim S. I. , Bostwick J. B.
Published: March 2021

Correction for ‘Plateau–Rayleigh instability in a soft viscoelastic material’ by S. I. Tamim et al., Soft Matter, 2021, DOI: 10.1039/d1sm00019e.
Embedding CsPbBr3 quantum dots into a pillar[5]arene-based supramolecular self-assembly for an efficient photocatalytic cross-coupling hydrogen evolution reaction
Authors: Zhong Kaipeng , Lu Siyu , Guo Wenting , Su Junxia , Sun Shihao , Hai Jun , Chen Fenjuan , Wang Aiqin , Wang Baodui
Published: March 2021

A highly efficient artificial light-harvesting system was successfully fabricated based on the in situ confined growth of CsPbBr3 QDs in a PTY⊃EYB assembly.
Tungsten disulfide-reduced GO/CNT aerogel: a tuned interlayer spacing anode for efficient water desalination
Authors: Vafakhah Sareh , Saeedikhani Mohsen , Huang Shaozhuan , Yan Dong , Leong Zhi Yi , Wang Ye , Hou Lijuan , Guo Lu , Valdivia y Alvarado Pablo , Yang Hui Ying
Published: March 2021

Enhanced desalination kinetics achieved by tuning the interlayer spacing of the redox-active material, and its incorporation into a highly conductive and free-standing three-dimensional structure.
Hybrid natural hydrogels integrated with voriconazole-loaded microspheres for ocular antifungal applications
Authors: Wang Fuyan , Zhao Long , Song Fangying , Wu Jingyi , Zhou Qingjun , Xie Lixin
Published: March 2021

Natural antifungal hydrogels that comprise a decellularized porcine cornea (DPC), gelatin and microspheres (MCs) containing voriconazole (Vor) were designed and fabricated. The natural DPC–gelatin hydrogel was used as a drug delivery vehicle for the release of Vor. This natural hydrogel-based drug delivery system holds great promise for preventing fungal keratitis infection while promoting focal corneal stromal regeneration.
From ambient- to high-pressure dielectric response of perovskite formamidinium manganese formate
Authors: Nowok Andrzej , Szeremeta Anna Z. , Sieradzki Adam , Šimėnas Mantas , Snarskis Gustautas , Vilčiauskas Linas , Mączka Mirosław , Zubko Maciej , Paluch Marian , Pawlus Sebastian
Published: March 2021

In this work, we discuss the ambient- and high-pressure dynamic behaviour and dielectric properties of perovskite-like formamidinium-templated inorganic–organic hybrid [NH2CHNH2][Mn(HCOO)3] (FAMn).
CRIP1 expression in monocytes related to hypertension
Authors: Schweigert Olga , Adler Julia , Längst Natalie , Aïssi Dylan , Duque Escobar Jorge , Tong Teng , Müller Christian , Trégouët David-Alexandre , Lukowski Robert , Zeller Tanja
Published: March 2021

Hypertension is a complex and multifactorial disorder caused by lifestyle and environmental factors, inflammation and disease-related genetic factors and is a risk factor for stroke, ischemic heart disease and renal failure. Although circulating monocytes and tissue macrophages contribute to the pathogenesis of hypertension, the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. Cysteine rich protein 1 (CRIP1) is highly expressed in immune cells, and CRIP1 mRNA expression in monocytes associates with blood pressure (BP) and is up-regulated by proinflammatory modulation suggesting a link between CRIP1 and BP regulation through the immune system. To address this functional link, we studied CRIP1 expression in immune cells in relation to BP using a human cohort study and hypertensive mouse models. CRIP1 expression in splenic monocytes/macrophages and in circulating monocytes was significantly affected by angiotensin II (Ang II) in a BP-elevating dose (2 mg/kg/day). In the human cohort study, monocytic CRIP1 expression levels were associated with elevated BP, whereas upon differentiation of monocytes to macrophages this association along with the CRIP1 expression level was diminished. In conclusion, CRIP1-positive circulating and splenic monocytes seem to play an important role in hypertension related inflammatory processes through endogenous hormones such as Ang II. These findings suggest that CRIP1 may affect the interaction between the immune system, in particular monocytes, and the pathogenesis of hypertension.
Procedural Learning, Grammar, and Motor Skills in Children With Childhood Apraxia of Speech, Speech Sound Disorder, and Typically Developing Speech
Authors: Iuzzini-Seigel Jenya
Published: March 2021

Purpose

This case–control study sought to determine if (a) children with childhood apraxia of speech (CAS), other speech sound disorders (SSDs), and typical development would perform differently on a procedural learning assessment and (b) whether grammatical ability would impact group differences.

Method

Communication, motor, and procedural learning abilities were assessed in 48 children with CAS (
n
= 13), SSD (
n
= 20), and typical development (
n
= 15), between 43 and 97 months of age (
M
= 66 months,
SD
= 12 months).

Results

On average, children with CAS demonstrated grammatical and motor impairments and required an increased number of exposures to the visuospatial sequence to demonstrate procedural learning, compared to peers with SSD or typical development. A subset of children from each group demonstrated an unanticipated procedural learning pattern wherein they evidenced an uptick in reaction time during the second sequenced block. Children with CAS with this pattern still evidenced procedural learning gains by the fifth sequenced block. In contrast, children with SSD and typical development with this pattern showed poor procedural learning outcomes and were characterized by lower scores on language and motor assessments as well.

Conclusions

This research provides partial support for the procedural learning deficit hypothesis in children with CAS and for a subset of children with SSD as well. Future research should examine the role of a serial reaction time task in identifying children at risk of multisystem communication and motor deficits.

Supplemental Material

https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.14173532
Does Sentence-Level Coarticulation Affect Speech Recognition in Noise or a Speech Masker?
Authors: Jett Brandi , Buss Emily , Best Virginia , Oleson Jacob , Calandruccio Lauren
Published: March 2021

Purpose

Three experiments were conducted to better understand the role of between-word coarticulation in masked speech recognition. Specifically, we explored whether naturally coarticulated sentences supported better masked speech recognition as compared to sentences derived from individually spoken concatenated words. We hypothesized that sentence recognition thresholds (SRTs) would be similar for coarticulated and concatenated sentences in a noise masker but would be better for coarticulated sentences in a speech masker.

Method

Sixty young adults participated (
n
= 20 per experiment). An adaptive tracking procedure was used to estimate SRTs in the presence of noise or two-talker speech maskers. Targets in Experiments 1 and 2 were matrix-style sentences, while targets in Experiment 3 were semantically meaningful sentences. All experiments included coarticulated and concatenated targets; Experiments 2 and 3 included a third target type, concatenated keyword-intensity–matched (KIM) sentences, in which the words were concatenated but individually scaled to replicate the intensity contours of the coarticulated sentences.

Results

Regression analyses evaluated the main effects of target type, masker type, and their interaction. Across all three experiments, effects of target type were small (< 2 dB). In Experiment 1, SRTs were slightly poorer for coarticulated than concatenated sentences. In Experiment 2, coarticulation facilitated speech recognition compared to the concatenated KIM condition. When listeners had access to semantic context (Experiment 3), a coarticulation benefit was observed in noise but not in the speech masker.

Conclusions

Overall, differences between SRTs for sentences with and without between-word coarticulation were small. Beneficial effects of coarticulation were only observed relative to the concatenated KIM targets; for unscaled concatenated targets, it appeared that consistent audibility across the sentence offsets any benefit of coarticulation. Contrary to our hypothesis, effects of coarticulation generally were not more pronounced in speech maskers than in noise maskers.
Toward an Index of Oral Somatosensory Acuity: Comparison of Three Measures in Adults
Authors: Gritsyk Olesia , Kabakoff Heather , Li Joanne Jingwen , Ayala Samantha , Shiller Douglas M. , McAllister Tara
Published: March 2021

Purpose

Somatosensory targets and feedback are instrumental in ensuring accurate speech production. Individuals differ in their ability to access and respond to somatosensory information, but there is no established standard for measuring somatosensory acuity. The primary objective of this study was to determine which of three measures of somatosensory acuity had the strongest association with change in production accuracy in a vowel learning task, while controlling for the better studied covariate of auditory acuity.

Method

Three somatosensory tasks were administered to 20 female college students: an oral stereognosis task, a bite block task with auditory masking, and a novel phonetic awareness task. Individual scores from the tasks were compared to their performance on a speech learning task in which participants were trained to produce novel Mandarin vowels with visual biofeedback.

Results

Of the three tasks, only bite block adaptation with auditory masking was significantly associated with performance in the speech learning task. Participants with weaker somatosensory acuity tended to demonstrate larger increases in production accuracy over the course of training.

Conclusions

The bite block adaptation task measures proprioceptive awareness rather than tactile acuity and assesses somatosensory knowledge implicitly, with limited metalinguistic demands. This small-scale study provides preliminary evidence that these characteristics may be desirable for the assessment of oral somatosensory acuity, at least in the context of vowel learning tasks. Well-normed somatosensory measures could be of clinical utility by informing diagnosis/prognosis and treatment planning.

Supplemental Material

https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.14044082
Survey on vehicle map matching techniques
Authors: Huang Zhenfeng , Qiao Shaojie , Han Nan , Yuan Chang‐an , Song Xuejiang , Xiao Yueqiang
Published: March 2021

With the development of location‐based services and Big data technology, vehicle map matching techniques are growing rapidly, which is the fundamental techniques in the study of exploring global positioning system (GPS) data. The pre‐processed GPS data can provide the guarantee of high‐quality data for the research of mining passenger’s points of interest and urban computing services. The existing surveys mainly focus on map‐matching algorithms, but there are few descriptions on the key phases of the acquisition of sampling data, floating car and road data preprocessing in vehicle map matching systems. To address these limitations, the contribution of this survey on map matching techniques lies in the following aspects: (i) the background knowledge, function and system framework of vehicle map matching techniques; (ii) description of floating car data and road network structure to understand the detailed phase of map matching; (iii) data preprocessing rules, specific methodologies, and significance of floating car and road data; (iv) map matching algorithms are classified by the sampling frequency and data information. The authors give the introduction of open‐source GPS sampling data sets, and the evaluation measurements of map‐matching approaches; (v) the suggestions on data preprocessing and map matching algorithms in the future work.
A novel random access scheme for M2M communication in crowded asynchronous massive MIMO systems
Authors: Han Huimei , Zhai Wenchao , Li Ying , Lu Weidang , Zhao Jun
Published: March 2021

A new random access scheme is proposed to solve the intra‐cell pilot collision for M2M communication in crowded asynchronous massive multiple‐input multiple‐output systems. The proposed scheme utilizes the proposed estimation method of signal parameters to estimate the effective timing offsets, and then active user equipments obtain their timing errors from the effective timing offsets for uplink message transmission. The mean squared error of the estimated effective timing offsets of user equipments and the uplink throughput are analysed. Simulation results show that, compared to the exiting random access scheme for the crowded asynchronous massive multiple‐input multiple‐output systems, the proposed scheme can improve the uplink throughput and estimate the effective timing offsets accurately at the same time.
Optimal economic dispatching of multi‐microgrids by an improved genetic algorithm
Authors: Jiang Haoyu , Ning Shiyuan , Ge Quanbo , Yun Wang , Xu JinQiang , Bin Yu
Published: March 2021

A multi‐microgrid economic dispatching strategy based on adaptive mutation genetic algorithm is proposed for multi‐microgrid systems with different load types and power demands. Based on the analysis of industrial, residential and commercial loads, considering the synergy and complementarity between multi‐microgrids, an optimal dispatching model of multi‐microgrids based on the minimum operation cost and environmental protection cost of multi‐microgrids is established from the point of view of environmental protection and economy. At the same time, an adaptive mutation genetic algorithm is proposed to optimize the system model and find the optimal economic dispatching scheme.
A minimal thrust vectoring rotor with six degree of freedom: Design and analysis
Authors: Qiu Wei , Xu Chao
Published: March 2021

This article presents a minimal thrust vectoring rotor (mTVR) with 6‐DoF motion ability. The mTVR is equipped with only three tiltable thrust units that deploy the coaxial counter‐propellers design for generating pure thrusts. Thus, the mTVR is able to perform 6‐DoF flight with decoupled translation and rotation based on the full rank Jacobian matrix. The geometry of the mTVR is optimised first, by studying the condition number of the Jacobian matrix that contains five geometry parameters. The overall system is then carefully modelled based on the actual hardware configuration of the mTVR prototype, including the coaxial counter‐propeller thruster, the high‐voltage servo for tilting, and the detailed multi‐rigid body motion dynamics of the vehicle. Next, the output envelop and dynamic response of the 6‐DoF actuator performance are evaluated. A 6‐DoF motion controller with disturbance rejection is designed and tested on a specialised multi‐functional software platform developed for the mTVR. The controller shows good stability in regular, even aggressive operation of the vehicle.
Experimental verification on the robustness and stability of an interaction control: Single‐degree‐of‐freedom robot case
Authors: Park Sang Hyun , Son Jeongwoo , Jin Maolin , Kang Sang Hoon
Published: March 2021

The nonlinear bang‐bang impact control (NBBIC) had been proposed for robots performing tasks having frequent contact with different environments because it takes advantage of the frictions in robot joints that are not helpful for constrained space control usually, does not need to change gains throughout tasks, and requires little information on robot dynamics. Despite these advantages, due to the lack of stability proof, it was not widely adopted. Recently, the stability of the NBBIC for one degree‐of‐freedom (DOF) robot has been proved almost two decades after its first proposal. The stability condition provided a theoretical stable region of the inertia estimate and was not dependent on environment dynamics, indicating the robustness of NBBIC to environment dynamics (e.g. stiffness). Thus, there is a strong need to verify the stability condition and the robustness of NBBIC to environment dynamics. Experiments of single DOF robots colliding with various environments showed that the stability condition predicted the stable range of the inertia estimate well, though there was a reduction in upper‐bound because of sensor noise. The impact force response did not vary significantly for environments with different stiffness (silicon, aluminium, and steel wall), thereby confirming the robustness of the NBBIC to environment dynamics.
Improving Access and Mental Health For Youth Using Smart Technologies
Authors: Forchuk Cheryl , Fisman Sandra , Reiss Jeffrey P. , Collins Kerry , Eichstedt Julie , Rudnick Abraham , Isaranuwatchai Wanrudee , Hoch Jeffrey S. , Wang Xianbin , Lizotte Daniel , Macpherson Shona , Booth Richard
Published: March 2021

The overall objective of this research is to evaluate the use of a mobile health smartphone application (app) to improve the mental health of youth between the ages of 14 and 25 years, with symptoms of anxiety and/or depression. This project includes 122 youth who are accessing outpatient mental health services at one of three hospitals and two community agencies. The youth and care providers are using the Smart technology to enhance care. The technology uses mobile questionnaires (QnairesTM) to help promote self‐assessment and track changes to support the plan of care. The youth were provided a smartphone and talk/text/data plan, if needed. The majority of participants identified themselves as Caucasian (73.5%). Expectedly, the demographics revealed that Anxiety Disorders and Mood Disorders were highly prevalent within the sample (73.6% and 66.9% respectively). Findings from the qualitative summary established that both staff and youth found having a smartphone and data plan beneficial. Demographic variables such as age, sex, mental health and physical health did not predict which youth were more likely to use the application.
Optimal stochastic scheduling of reconfigurable active distribution networks hosting hybrid renewable energy systems
Authors: Zare Oskouei Morteza , Mohammadi‐Ivatloo Behnam , Abapour Mehdi , Razzaghi Reza
Published: March 2021

Renewable energy sources (RESs) have a remarkable role in advancing the goals of restructured power systems to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase the level of reliability. However, due to the non‐uniform utilisation of these resources in various sectors of power grids, a major part of the generated renewable energies is spilled to satisfy the power system constraints. Motivated by this challenge, the role of the reconfiguration mechanism in maximising the utilisation of RESs in active distribution networks (ADNs) is investigated herein. To this end, a two‐stage stochastic model is presented for optimal scheduling of reconfigurable distribution networks in the presence of high‐power hybrid wind/photovoltaic systems. The main goal of the presented model is to maximise the hybrid system owner's profit. In the first stage of the presented structure, the optimal hourly bilateral dispatches between the hybrid system and the ADN in the day‐ahead electricity market are determined to maximise the hybrid system owner's profit. In the second stage, the power spillage of the hybrid renewable energy systems are minimised using reconfiguration technology in the real‐time electricity market. For practical implementation, the proposed operational strategy is applied to the modified 33‐bus and 69‐bus distribution test systems, and is solved using GAMS software. The simulation results indicate that the proposed strategy can considerably reduce renewable power spillage, increase the hybrid system owner's profit, and decrease total active power loss of the ADN. According to the obtained results in the 33‐bus test system, the profit of the hybrid system owner is increased by up to 6.8% as well as the total active power loss being decreased by up 75.58% through the presented structure.
Photoionisation modelling of the X-ray emission line regions within the Seyfert 2 AGN NGC 1068
Authors: Grafton-Waters S. , Branduardi-Raymont G. , Mehdipour M. , Page M. , Bianchi S. , Behar E. , Symeonidis M.
Published: March 2021

Aims.We investigate the photoionised X-ray emission line regions (ELRs) within the Seyfert 2 galaxy NGC 1068 to determine if there are any characteristic changes between observations taken 14 years apart.

Methods.We comparedXMM-Newtonobservations collected in 2000 and 2014, simultaneously fitting the reflection grating spectrometer and EPIC-pn spectra of each epoch, for the first time, with the photoionisation model,PION, inSPEX.

Results.We find that fourPIONcomponents are required to fit the majority of the emission lines in the spectra of NGC 1068, with log ξ = 1−4, log NH >  26 m−2, andvout = −100 to −600 km s−1for both epochs. Comparing the ionisation state of the components shows almost no difference between the two epochs, while there is an increase in the total equivalent column density. To estimate the locations of these plasma regions from the central black hole, we compare distance methods, excluding the variability arguments as there is no spectral change between observations. Although the methods are unable to constrain the distances for each plasma component, the locations are consistent with the narrow line region, with the possibility of the higher ionised component being part of the broad line region; we cannot conclude this for certain, but the photoionisation modelling does suggest this is possible. In addition, we find evidence for emission from collisionally ionised plasma, while previous analysis had suggested that collisional plasma emission was unlikely. However, althoughPIONis unable to account for the Fe XVIIemission lines at 15 and 17 Å, we do not rule out that photoexcitation is a valid processes to produce these lines as well.

Conclusions.NGC 1068 has not changed, both in terms of the observed spectra or from our modelling, within the 14 year time period between observations. This suggests that the ELRs are fairly static relative to the 14 year time frame between observations, or there is no dramatic change in the spectral energy distribution, resulting from a lack of black hole variability.
First light of a holographic aperture mask: Observation at the Keck OSIRIS Imager
Authors: Doelman David S. , Wardenier Joost P. , Tuthill Peter , Fitzgerald Michael P. , Lyke Jim , Sallum Steph , Norris Barnaby , Warriner N. Zane , Keller Christoph , Escuti Michael J. , Snik Frans
Published: March 2021

Context. As an interferometric technique, sparse aperture masking (SAM) is capable of imaging beyond the diffraction limit of single telescopes. This makes SAM an important technique for studying processes such as planet formation at Solar System scales. However, it comes at the cost of a reduction in throughput, typically by 80–90%.

Aims. We report on the design, construction, and commissioning of a prototype aperture masking technology implemented at the Keck OH-Suppressing Infrared Integral Field Spectrograph (OSIRIS) Imager: the holographic aperture mask. Holographic aperture masking (HAM) aims at (i) increasing the throughput of SAM by selectively combining all subapertures across a telescope pupil in multiple interferograms using a phase mask, and (ii) adding low-resolution spectroscopic capabilities.

Methods. Using liquid-crystal geometric phase patterns, we manufacture a HAM mask that uses an 11-hole SAM design as the central component and a holographic component comprising 19 different subapertures. Thanks to a multilayer liquid-crystal implementation, the mask has a diffraction efficiency higher than 96% from 1.1 to 2.5 micron. We create a pipeline that extracts monochromatic closure phases from the central component as well as multiwavelength closure phases from the holographic component. We test the performance of the HAM mask in the laboratory and on-sky.

Results. The holographic component yields 26 closure phases with spectral resolutions between R ∼ 6.5 and R ∼ 15, depending on the interferogram positions. On April 19, 2019, we observed the binary star HDS 1507 in the Hbb filter (λ0 = 1638 nm and Δλ = 330 nm) and retrieved a constant separation of 120.9 ± 0.5 mas for the independent wavelength bins, which is in excellent agreement with literature values. For both the laboratory measurements and the observations of unresolved reference stars, we recorded nonzero closure phases – a potential source of systematic error that we traced to polarization leakage of the HAM optic. We propose a future upgrade that improves the performance, reducing this effect to an acceptable level.

Conclusions. Holographic aperture masking is a simple upgrade of SAM with increased throughput and a new capability of simultaneous low-resolution spectroscopy that provides new differential observables (e.g., differential phases with wavelength).
Kink instability of triangular jets in the solar atmosphere
Authors: Zaqarashvili T. V. , Lomineishvili S. , Leitner P. , Hanslmeier A. , Gömöry P. , Roth M.
Published: March 2021

Context. It is known that hydrodynamic triangular jets (i.e. the jet with maximal velocity at its axis, which linearly decreases at both sides) are unstable to anti-symmetric kink perturbations. The inclusion of the magnetic field may lead to the stabilisation of the jets. Jets and complex magnetic fields are ubiquitous in the solar atmosphere, which suggests the possibility of the kink instability in certain cases.

Aims. The aim of the paper is to study the kink instability of triangular jets sandwiched between magnetic tubes (or slabs) and its possible connection to observed properties of the jets in the solar atmosphere.

Methods. A dispersion equation governing the kink perturbations is obtained through matching of analytical solutions at the jet boundaries. The equation is solved analytically and numerically for different parameters of jets and surrounding plasma. The analytical solution is accompanied by a numerical simulation of fully non-linear magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) equations for a particular situation of solar type II spicules.

Results. Magnetohydrodynamic triangular jets are unstable to the dynamic kink instability depending on the Alfvén Mach number (the ratio of flow to Alfvén speeds) and the ratio of internal and external densities. When the jet has the same density as the surrounding plasma, only super-Alfvénic flows are unstable. However, denser jets are also unstable in a sub-Alfvénic regime. Jets with an angle to the ambient magnetic field have much lower thresholds of instability than field-aligned flows. Growth times of the kink instability are estimated to be 6−15 min for type I spicules and 5−60 s for type II spicules matching with their observed lifetimes. The numerical simulation of full non-linear equations shows that the transverse kink pulse locally destroys the jet in less than a minute in type II spicule conditions.

Conclusions. Dynamic kink instability may lead to the full breakdown of MHD flows and consequently to an observed disappearance of spicules.