bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
General-Purpose Equipment for Human Factors Research
Authors: Kelley Charles R.
Published: July 2017

The small laboratory that engages in a variety of human factors experiments must rely on equipment that can be easily assembled into widely different configurations. This article discusses analog computing units, digital logic modules, and interface and auxiliary equipment as these may be used in the small human factors or behavioral sciences laboratory. A novel use of a desk-top general-purpose digital computer, modified to allow it to serve as “nerve center” for conducting experiments and processing data, is then described.
The Internal Model Concept: An Application to Modeling Human Control of Large Ships
Authors: Veldhuyzen Wim , Stassen Henk G.
Published: July 2017

Many human operator studies have used successfully the concept that the human operator performs his task on the basis of certain knowledge about the system to be controlled, called the internal model. In this paper, the literature on manual control will be reviewed briefly with attention focused on the use of the internal model concept. To illustrate the applicability of the internal model concept in the field of man-machine systems, an application is given in the human control of large ships. A model to describe the helmsman's behavior in steering a supertanker, and the influence on his behavior of additional displays such as a rate of turn indicator will be described.
Control Theoretic Models of Human Drivers in Car Following
Authors: Bekey George A , Burnham Gerald O. , Seo Jinbom
Published: July 2017

This paper is concerned with mathematical models of the control behavior of human drivers while following another vehicle in single lane traffic. The emphasis is on the representation of the individual driver, rather than on such abstract parameters of multi-lane traffic as average density or average velocity. Three basic types of approaches to representing the driver's control strategy are reviewed. First is a classical control structure in which assumptions concerning the stimulus-response characteristics of the driver are included, and a form for his control strategy algorithm is assumed. The second class of models is based on optimal control theory. The major feature of this class of models is that an assumed performance index is explicitly included in the formulation, so that the driver's control strategy arises as a result of his attempts to minimize this index or criterion. The third class of models reviewed in the paper are heuristic models, which arise from control theory. The first of these, termed the “look-ahead” model, is based on the assumption that the driver is capable of observing more than one car ahead of him, and that he adjusts his own strategy from an analysis of the behavior of a majority of the vehicles he perceives. The second of these heuristic models is a finite state structure which is developed from the hypothesis that the driver attempts at all times to maintain a velocity equal to that of the lead car along with a safe headway. The paper concludes with a brief discussion of some current areas of research and possible applications.
Prediction of Pilot Opinion Ratings Using an Optimal Pilot Model
Authors: Hess Ronald A.
Published: July 2017

A brief review of some of the more pertinent applications of analytical pilot models to the prediction of aircraft handling qualities is undertaken. The relative ease with which multiloop piloting tasks can be modeled via the optimal control formulation makes the use of optimal pilot models particularly attractive for handling qualities research. To this end, a rating hypothesis is introduced which relates the numerical pilot opinion rating assigned to a particular vehicle and task to the numerical value of the index of performance resulting from an optimal pilot modeling procedure as applied to that vehicle and task. This hypothesis is tested using data from piloted simulations and is shown to be reasonable. An example concerning a helicopter landing approach is introduced to outline the predictive capability of the rating hypothesis in multiaxis piloting tasks.
Comparative Efficiencies of Conventional and Super-Swimfin Designs
Authors: McMurray Robert G.
Published: July 2017

One female and six male subjects were used to evaluate the effectiveness of four modern “super-swimfin” designs when compared to a set of conventional fins. Oxygen consumption and heart rates were measured at a predetermined submaximal workload using a swimming ergometer. Times for kicking 22.9 m were also compared. The results demonstrated that significantly less oxygen was consumed during the trials in which the vented super-fins of large surface area were used than when the conventional fins were used. Significant V̇O2differences were also noted between super-fins, with large surface area, inflexible, or venturi designs resulting in the consumption of more oxygen than the others. A statistically significant linear correlation (r = −.90) was computed when comparing oxygen consumption to fin surface area. Flexibility of the fins was noted to be directly related to the speed that could be attained (r = .90). It was concluded that only the super-fin designs that were vented and had a large surface area are more efficient than the conventional fins tested.
The Effects of Cockpit Environment on Long-Term Pilot Performance
Authors: Stave Allan M.
Published: July 2017

A fixed-base helicopter simulator was used to examine pilot performance as influenced by noise, vibration, and fatigue. Subjects flew the simulator for periods ranging between three and eight hours while exposed to vibrations (at 17 Hz) ranging from 0.1 to 0.3 g, and noise stimuli varying between 74 (ambient) and 100 dB. Despite reports of extreme fatigue on these long flights, subject performance did not degrade. Within the limits of this study, performance tended to improve as environmental stress increased. However, subjects did suffer from lapses resulting in abnormally poor performance. These lapses are probably of short duration (seconds) and occur at unpredictable times. If such lapses occur in actual flight, they could provide an explanation for many so-called “pilot error” accidents.
Removing Some of the Limitations of Mentally Retarded Workers by Improving Job Design
Authors: Wade Michael G. , Gold Marc W.
Published: July 2017

The traditionally low level of expectancy of persons with moderate, severe, or profound mental retardation in industrial work settings is reviewed from a human factors viewpoint. A case is made for interfacing the retarded worker into the human machine system by evaluating performance in terms of information processing ability. Data are reviewed which suggest that there are many industrial tasks at which such a worker can perform well and earn a wage comparable to his nonretarded co-worker. The issue of training workers versus screening workers is discussed as an additional factor in maximizing the role of workers with retardation in industry. The view of the retarded worker as a communication channel and his ability to process information is regarded as a central issue when discussing the optimization of the person-machine interface. The importance of task analysis in breaking down the task into sub-tasks of acceptable information processing demand is also discussed.
A Reaction Time Analysis of Instrument Scanning
Authors: Demaio Joseph , Parkinson Stanley R. , Crosby John V.
Published: July 2017

Detection and latency performance of instructor pilots and students pilots was compared in a task which required searching an aircraft instrument display for target deviations from a desired course. Performance of instructors was superior to that of students on both detection and latency measures. The use of stable fixation queues was reflected in the latency performance of students. The latency performance of instructors was much less affected by the use of such queues. Results were interpreted to suggest that experienced pilots are able to place a greater reliance on peripheral vision in scanning instrument displays.
How Authors Think about Their Writing, Dictating, and Speaking
Authors: Gould John D. , Boies Stephen J.
Published: July 2017

A recent study (Gould, 1978) showed that adults, after a few hours practice, dictate one-page letters of various complexities as well as they write them. This was true for time to compose and for quality of the resulting letters as judged by outside raters. These results are contrary to the common assumption that dictating requires a long time to learn. Why then do people not dictate more often? This study tested the hypothesis that authors just learning to dictate believe their written documents to be superior to their dictated documents. To test this, adult subjects, after being trained to dictate, composed letters of various complexities, sometimes writing them and sometimes dictating them. They were required to rate a letter's quality three times: immediately after composing it, after receiving it back from the typist and proof-editing it, and two weeks later. The results confirmed the hypothesis: subjects initially rated their written letters superior to their dictated letters, but subsequently both they and others (“recipients”) rated them as equivalent.
Rapid Comprehension of Verbal and Symbolic Traffic Sign Messages
Authors: Ells Jerry G. , Dewar Robert E.
Published: July 2017

A “same”-“different” reaction time procedure was used in two experiments to measure the times required to comprehend the meanings of projected slides of traffic signs. The results indicated that signs with symbolic messages could be understood more quickly than those with verbal messages. Visually degrading the signs resulted in a greater decrement in performance for verbal than for symbolic signs. Correlational analyses demonstrated reaction time to correlate significantly with a previously obtained measure of sign legibility taken from a moving motor vehicle on a roadway. The utility of reaction time as an index of traffic sign adequacy is discussed along with some possible practical implications of the research.
Problem Solving Performance of Maintenance Trainees in a Fault Diagnosis Task
Authors: Rouse William B.
Published: July 2017

Forty trainees in an FAA certificate program participated in an experimental study of trouble-shooting of graphically displayed networks. The effects of network size, computer aiding, and training were considered. It was found that performance degraded as network size increased, improved with the use of computer aiding, and that skills developed with computer aiding were transferred to the unaided situation.
Electrocutaneous Pulse Rate and Pulse Width Psychometric Functions for Sensory Communications
Authors: Szeto Andrew Y. J. , Lyman John , Prior Ronald E.
Published: July 2017

Psychometric functions of pulse rate (PR) and pulse width (PW) from electrocutaneous stimuli were determined using the method of comparative judgments. The study revealed that changes in PR were more easily detected than changes in PW, as measured by the percent of just noticeable difference (jnd). The PR jnd data from test subjects indicated that maximum frequency discrimination occurred near 20 pulses per second. Using the PR and PW psychometric curves, compensatory transfer functions can be determined which will improve the efficacy of sensory communication systems based on electrocutaneous stimulation.
Regression Models of Search Time for Color-Coded Information Displays
Authors: Carter Robert C. , Cahill Mary-Carol
Published: July 2017

Visual search time on color-coded information displays has previously been shown to depend upon the number of items displayed (density), the number of colors used (code size), and the number of items in the same color category as the target. The present paper employed regression analysis techniques to develop models of search time which explain the mode of operation of these factors. The initial model, based upon number of items per category as the effective parameter, was successful in explaining 58% of the variation in search time means. An improved model, which introduced the concept, “operative number of colors,” accounted for 84% of the variation. This model was able to postdict 82% of the actually obtained search time values within 0.76 s, with no postdiction in error by more than 2 s. The elevation in search times with larger display densities and code sizes observed in the data, and described by the improved model, was interpreted in terms of disruption of subjects' scan behavior on the more crowded displays.
Visual Search with Embedded Targets: Color and Texture Differences
Authors: Bloomfield John R.
Published: July 2017

Two embedded target visual search displays were used in three kinds of experiment. One display had a color and the other a monochrome texture background. In each trial of each experiment a single target was presented. First, 28 observers rated the discriminability of five color and four monochrome targets from the color and monochrome backgrounds, respectively. Second, five observers searched the color and six the monochrome display for the appropriate targets and, after practice, there were 60 trials per observer per target. Third, using the five observers who searched the color display and four of the six who searched the monochrome, the extent into the periphery that they could see the appropriate targets when the displays were exposed for 0.3 seconds was measured. Analysis of the data showed that, for the color displays, simple equations, developed for competition search situations, could be used to relate together the three types of measure. The equations were less successful for the monochrome display.
Abnormal WNT5A Signaling Causes Mandibular Hypoplasia in Robinow Syndrome
Authors: Hosseini-Farahabadi S. , Gignac S.J. , Danescu A. , Fu K. , Richman J.M.
Published: July 2017

The study of rare genetic diseases provides valuable insights into human gene function. Here, we investigate dominant Robinow syndrome (RS), which affects the WNT5A signaling pathway. Autosomal dominant RS is caused by missense mutations in WNT5A or nonsense mutations in the adaptor protein DVL1 or DVL3. The recessive form of the disease is caused by loss-of-function mutations in the receptor ROR2. RS is characterized by hypertelorism, midface, and mandibular hypoplasia. Here, we focus on the missense mutations in WNT5A, since the impact on function is difficult to predict from in silico analysis. We used chicken embryo to express wild-type or 2 mutant versions of human WNT5A in the mandible and then examined the morphologic, cellular, and molecular effects. The 3 experimental viruses—wt WNT5A, WNT5AC83S, or WNT5AC182R—all caused shortening of the mandible on the injected side as compared with GFP controls. Although the phenotypes initially appeared similar, we uncovered specific disruption of chondrocyte polarity and shape, inhibition of cell migration, differences in target gene expression, and absence of JNK signaling only in the presence of mutant viruses. In addition, the missense mutations do not appear to block receptor binding, since in paracrine experiments, the mutant protein inhibits cell migration. In this study, we ruled out a straightforward gain or loss of function caused by the WNT5A missense mutations. Instead, the mutations are likely redirecting WNT signaling away from JNK-PCP toward other noncanonical pathways. We conclude that in RS, WNT5A missense mutations have dominant neomorphic effects that interfere with the function of the wild-type protein.
Peculiarities of Thought in Patients with Sensory Aphasia
Authors: Beyn E. S.
Published: July 2017

This paper makes an attempt to characterize the intellectual peculiarities of patients with sensory aphasia. Long and detailed observation of more than 50 patients has shown that the most important factor in these cases is the inability to differentiate between speech sounds. This in turn affects other language levels, semantic, syntactic and grammatical, and also the personality and intellectual activity of the patients. The effects of aphasia on these features and on the comprehension of speech and the active speech behaviour of the patients are described.
The Effects of Early Deprivation on Speech Development: A Comparative Study of 4 Year Olds in a Nursery School and in Residential Nurseries
Authors: Pringle M. L. Kellmer , Tanner Margaret
Published: July 2017

TWO groups of pre-school children, matched for age, sex, intelligence and home background, were given a battery of verbal tests 2nd their conversations were recorded during periods of free play. Data were obtained on vocabulary and sentence structure under controlled and spontaneous conditions, on the children's ability to understand and express themselves in simple sentences and on verbal expression in social intercourse. In all quantitative comparisons, the nursery school children were found to be in advance of the children in residential nurseries. Among qualitative differences noted, was the cxtent to which speech was used for establishing social contacts with contemporaries and for obtaining adult attention. Although there was considerable overlap in the achievements of the two groups, our evidence confirms that there is some retardation in the language skills of pre-school children in care.
Perception of Compound Consonants
Authors: Pickett J. M.
Published: July 2017

The perceptual confusions among English compounds of two consonants were examined. One defined class of syllables, made up of 15 initial compound consonants in conjunction with three vowel sounds /i/, /a/, and /o/, and another class of 15 final compound consonants in conjunction with the same three vowel sounds, were employed. Recorded syllables were played back against a white noise background and against a low-frequency noise background. Confusion patterns among the compound consonants depended upon the articulatory dimensions of the individual consonant members which formed the compound. That is to say, there was little evidence of interaction among the members of the compound. The confusion patterns indicated that the low speech frequencies, i.e., those frequencies heard above the white noise, convey the consonant distinctions of nasal vs. glide vs. stop, and the distinctions among glides. On the other hand, the higher speech frequencies, heard above the low-frequency noise, conveyed the distinction of affrication and the place distinctions among nasals and stops. The different vowels had minor effects on the perception of the consonants adjacent to them.
Perception of Consonant Voicing in Noise
Authors: Pickett J. M. , Rueenstein Herbert
Published: July 2017

Measurements are reported of the perception in noise of the occurrence of voicing in the English consonants /p, b, t, d, f, v, s, z/. The listeners' task was to report whether the consonant spoken was of the class /b, d, v, z/ (voiced) or of the class /p, t, f, s/ (unvoiced). The factors investigated were (1) the position of the consonant in the test utterance: initial, intervocalic or final; (2) the place of articulation: alveolar /t, d, s, z/, or labial, /p, f, b, v/; (3) the degree of occlusion: stop, /p, b, t, d/, or fricative, /f, v, s, z/, and (4) the spectrum of the masking noise: white noise or low-frequency noise. The absence of voicing was perceived better in alveolar consonants than in labials in low-frequency noise. Otherwise there were no large effects of position, place of articulation, or degree of occlusion, on voicing perception. The results are interpreted in terms of low-frequency cues to voicing which are independent of place of articulation and high-frequency cues which vary with place of articulation.
The Syntactic Procedures of Zellig Harris
Authors: Cattell N. R.
Published: July 2017

This article presents a critical examination of some of the syntactic procedures of Zellig Harris, and contends that, in several particulars, he has distorted the natural structure of English to make it conform to his theories. Criticism is especially directed at his lack of respect for word divisions and word order; his theory of morphemic long components; his transformation procedures, and his treatment of auxiliaries, zeroed elements and pro-morphemes.
Subjective Estimates of Consonant Phoneme Frequencies
Authors: Carroll John B. , Lamendella John T.
Published: July 2017

Subjective magnitude estimates of the frequencies of 24 consonant phonemes were obtained from 65 university students, some with training in linguistics, by a method that had been used by Attneave (1953) for judgments of letter frequencies. Reliabilities of averaged judgments for comparably sized groups of 30 judges were estimated as in the neighbourhood of .95. Averages of logarithmically transformed judgments were correlated with log frequencies from objective counts with coefficients in the range .736 to .876 (or .764 to .907 when corrected for attenuation). Despite the high reliabilities and predictive validities, there was evidence that the judgments were strongly influenced by experienced frequencies of letters of the alphabet.
Distinctive Feature Confusions in Production and Discrimination of Selected Consonants
Authors: Lewis Frederick C.
Published: July 2017

Twenty five children with defective articulation and 25 normally speaking children were matched for age and IQ score. They identified pictures representing 18 consonants. The consonant confusions were analysed in terms of six selected distinctive features. The subjects also listened to syllable pairs containing consonants separated by one and two of the six features. Comparison of the performance on the discrimination task with that on the articulation task revealed that children with articulation disorders had significantly greater difficulty discriminating between consonants separated by one and two features than did the normally speaking children. In addition, children with defective articulation also had significantly greater difficulty discriminating auditorily between sounds separated by one feature than they did between consonants separated by two features. A tendency for the same feature to be confused in both the discrimination and the production of consonants was not noted. In addition, there was no carry over of distinctive feature confusion from consonants removed by a particular feature to consonants removed by that feature plus one other feature in auditory discrimination.
Artifacts in the Registration and Interpretation of Speech-Process Variables
Authors: Braehler E. , Zenz H.
Published: July 2017

Of the different interacting characteristics of the speech process such as level, intensity and range of voices, on-off-patterns etc., the on-off-patterns are the most readily formalized and objectively recorded; hence the appearance of this feature in particular in some hundred publications. However, the results of different research teams investigating the same subject-matter sometimes vary considerably.

In this article the authors report on their duplication of some of these published investigations, using an automatic speech analyser comparable to Cassota, Feldstein and Jaffe's AVTA. Their findings were similar to those of some other research workers, but they found evidence for the hypothesis that these results are based on technical artifacts and that some correlations obtained, for which psychological interpretations have been given, are in fact due to minor, unacknowledged circumstances of recording. The authors comment on these findings in the context of a broad discussion on the problem of artifacts and wrong conclusions arising from weaknesses of technique, interpretation and model construction.
Cross-Language Phonetic Interference: Arabic to English
Authors: Flege James Emil , Port Robert
Published: July 2017

This study compares phonetic implementation of the stop voicing contrast produced in Arabic by Saudi Arabians and by both Americans and Saudis in English. The English stops produced by Saudis manifested temporal acoustic correlates of stop voicing (VOT, stop closure duration, and vowel duration) similar to those found in Arabic stops. Despite such phonetic interference from Arabic to English, however, American listeners generally had little difficulty identifying the English stops produced by the Saudis, with the exception of /p/. This phoneme, which is absent in Arabic, was frequently produced with glottal pulsing during the stop closure interval. The timing of /p/, however, suggests that the Saudis did grasp the phonological nature of /p/ (i.e., that the contrast between /p—b/ is analogous to that between /t—d/ and /k—g/) but were unable to control all the articulatory dimensions by which this sound is produced.
Perception of CV-Syllables Isolated From Japanese Connected Speech
Authors: Kuwabara Hisao
Published: July 2017

From the standpoint of connected speech recognition, experiments were performed to investigate the perceptual nature of CV-syllables removed from Japanese connected speech. The recognition of individual vowels and syllables was found to be seriously impaired when they were taken out of their phonetic environments and presented as monosyllables to listeners. The recognition, however, substantially improved as the speech segments were lengthened. Finally, it was found that a vowel and a CV-syllable were completely recognized when they were in the middle position of a speech unit consisting of three successive CV-syllables. The results indicate that at least two syllables, one preceding and one following, are necessary to provide an acoustic environment for the correct identification of a CV-syllable.
An Empirical Test of the Gender-Linked Language Effect in a Public Speaking Setting
Authors: Mulac Anthony , Lundell Torborg Louisa
Published: July 2017

This study tested the gender-linked language effect in a public speaking setting by having university students and older non-students rate transcripts of beginning public speaking students' first in-class speech. The resulting Speech Dialect Attitudinal Scale (SDAS) data were of high reliability and across rater groups yielded a consistent factor structure: Socio-Intellectual Status, Aesthetic Quality, and Dynamism. The significant MANOVA and planned comparisons provided support for the gender-linked language effect and showed its dimensional makeup. On the basis of their language alone, female speakers were in general rated higher on both Socio-Intellectual Status and Aesthetic Quality, the former finding established for the first time. Males were in general rated higher on Dynamism. These judgments were similar for raters of both age groups, and for male and female raters alike. Results are discussed in terms of their support for the gender-linked language effect and their implications for further research.
"Auditory Feedback" or "Sidetone"? The Effects On Speech Production and Intelligibility of Auditory Stimulation from the Larynx
Authors: Sherrard C.A.
Published: July 2017

A distinction is proposed between auditory feedback effects and sidetone effects. Auditory feedback effects involve variations in self-hearing that are contingent upon initial speech behaviour. These effects impair speech. Sidetone effects involve variations in, or supplements to, self-hearing that are not contingent upon initial speech behaviour. Sidetones, in contrast to feedbacks, tend to enhance speech. However, the two have been conceptualized together by assimilating sidetone effects to feedback effects. This has led to a failure to recognize that sidetones can enhance, rather than impair, speech intelligibility. It is argued here that it is the contingency of the variation in the true feedbacks that makes them disruptive, while the noncontingency of the variation in the sidetones increases the overall level of auditory interference and enhances speakers' intelligibility as they try to overcome it. This proposition was tested by comparing contingent and noncontingent forms of a self-hearing variation, laryngeal self-hearing (LSH). LSH is obtained by recording the signal from laryngograph electrodes and returning it in audible form to the speaker. In Experiment I, phoneticians judged speech produced with contingent LSH to be more abnormal than speech with noncontingent LSH. In Experiment II, a panel of lay listeners found noncontingent LSH speech to be more intelligible than speech in a control condition that had no self-hearing variation. The two experiments are interpreted as giving support to the proposed distinction between feedbacks and sidetones.
"Once Upon a Time" — Aspects of Story-Telling in Normal and Retarded Children
Authors: Nwokah Evangeline E.
Published: July 2017

Previous studies of the language of retarded children have indicated that their understanding and use of language is poor when compared with their mental age and that they are more preoccupied with the "here and now" rather than past or future events. Fifty 4-year-olds, 50 5-year-olds and 50 E.S.N.(M) (moderately educationally subnormal) children were presented with a story-telling task using a book of pictures. A linguistic analysis was made of each story using a clausal analysis. The types of clauses, number of clauses, use of the past tense, and use of conjunctions were assessed. A longitudinal study of 12 of the E.S.N.(M) and 12 of the normal children was also carried out over one year. The longitudinal study showed a rapid increase in the use of the past tense in the normal children only, and that the length of story and use of tense were far less consistent over time in individual E.S.N.(M) children than in the normal children. There was no significant difference between the E.S.N.(M) and normal children of the same mental age in the cross-sectional study on any of the variables except in the use of conjunctions. It is suggested that there appears to be a difference in approach to language use that may reflect both social class and a slower developmental rate.
Experiments on Voice Qualities of Vowels in Males and Females and Correlation With Acoustic Features
Authors: Kuwabara Hisao , Ohgushi Kengo
Published: July 2017

An investigation was performed to find acoustic parameters that control voice-qualities of natural speech. Twelve utterances of the vowel [a] by six males and six females were used as speech stimuli, and four terms that express voice-qualities were employed for similarity judgments in paired comparisons. Listeners were asked to rate similarity on a five-point scale, and a correlation analysis was made between the similarity data and such acoustic parameters as fundamental frequency and the frequencies of the first three formants. "Pitch sensation" was found to correlate closely with the fundamental frequency, but no significant correlations were observed between each of these acoustic measures and other voice-qualities. The results varied with the listeners; every listener seemed to use his/her own acoustic cues, which may differ from those of other listeners, in judging the similarity of each voice-quality.
"Are There Cognitive Rhythms in Speech?" — a Reply To Beattie (1984)
Authors: Power M.J.
Published: July 2017

Beattie (1984) has criticized a previous study by Power (1983) which failed to find evidence for cognitive rhythms in a large sample of speech. Beattie's main criticisms were based on the contention that monologue speech and speech produced with an additional cognitive load were highly unnatural and that only speech produced in natural conversations will display such rhythms. In contrast, it is argued that monologue speech and speech produced with an additional task are commonplace in everyday life. It is also pointed out that previous research has not restricted the provenance of cognitive rhythms to natural conversation. In fact, Beattie's focus on the issue of naturalness leads him to ignore or evade a number of crucial questions raised in the earlier paper.
A Study of the Syntactic Skills of Normal Middle-School Males and Females
Authors: Klecan-Aker Joan S.
Published: July 2017

The purpose of this study was to examine the syntactic skills of school-age males and females. Subjects were chosen from the sixth and ninth grades and asked to create a narrative on a topic of their choice. Narratives were analyzed between sexes within each grade descriptively for differences in syntax using an adaptation of the Language Assessment Remediation Screening Procedure. Narratives were analyzed statistically for differences in T-unit length, clause length and number of clauses per T-unit. Findings indicated no significant differences between groups in the words per T-unit, and the words per clause used in the narratives. Additionally, differences were not found in the use of verb extensions between groups. Implications from these results are drawn relative to the need of a thorough data base on the language skills of normal school-age children as a critical factor in the evaluation and treatment of the language-disordered child.
English Stress Rules and Native Speakers
Authors: Baptista B.O.
Published: July 2017

In order to aid in the selection of rules to be included in an error analysis of Brazilian students of English, an experiment was undertaken comparing Chomsky and Halle's (1968) Main Stress Rule (divided into 16 smaller rules) with Guierre's (1970) stress rules, to discover which rules lead most frequently to the same stress assignment that native English speakers would give to unfamiliar words, nonsense words being used to guarantee lack of familiarity. Only five of Chomsky and Halle's rules (one of these coinciding with one of Guierre's) were as consistently followed as Guierre's suffix rules. The principle factors causing non-rule stress placement were a different interpretation of vowel quality (unknown underlying representation) and irrelevant consonant clusters and tense vowels. The high scores of three Alternating Stress Rules, compared to rules that are supposedly applied before them, leave doubts as to Chomsky and Halle's linear ordering.
Learning to be Contingent: Retarded Children's Responses To Their Mothers' Requests
Authors: Scherer Nancy J . , Owings Nathaniel O.
Published: July 2017

The development of conversation requires that children learn to relate their utterances to preceding utterances from other speakers. This investigation examined one way that retarded children relate their utterances to preceding utterances in conversation, namely, response to requests. Late Stage 1 Down's Syndrome children's responses were examined for their pragmatic and semantic relationships to four types of requests used by mothers. Conditional probabilities and unconditional probabilities were generated using the lag sequential analysis to evaluate the relationship between mothers' requests and children's responses. The level of significance of the difference between the conditional and unconditional probabilities was then determined with the binomial distribution. The results indicate that the children produced contingent linguistic responses to the mothers' requests based on the pragmatic intent of the requests; specifically, those requesting information, clarifying a misunderstood remark, and requesting agreement or disagreement with a proposition. The children produced contingent non-linguistic responses to the mothers' requests for action performance. These findings indicate that responses to requests used by retarded children in Late Stage 1 of linguistic development are the same responses used by normal children at this linguistic stage. In addition, the study suggests that other factors, such as the use of revision behaviors and semantically appropriate responses, account for individual differences observed in the communicative success of the retarded children.
The Distribution of Pitch Accents in Instructions as a Function of Discourse Structure
Authors: Terken J.M.B.
Published: July 2017

Speakers gave instructions to listeners to assemble the front view of a house from a set of ready-made parts. The main aim was to find out how the distribution of accents over expressions referring to the parts of the front view was related to the structure of the monologues containing the instructions. Each monologue was analysed as a series of instructions, each instruction specifying to the listener what to do with one part of the front view (the TOPIC of the instruction). It turned out that the instruction was a meaningful unit of analysis: when topics were introduced into an instruction, the speaker always used accented expressions; afterwards the topic was often referred to by a pronoun. When the speaker mentioned other parts of the front view in the course of an instruction, he mostly used the names of the parts; most of these names were accented, though more often when they were used for the first time in an instruction than when they were used later on. The results were interpreted to mean that the speakers used accentuation to signal to the listener the degree of availability of the information conveyed: an accented expression signals to the listener that he cannot easily map the expression onto the information it refers to in the context; an unaccented expression signals to the listener that he can map the expression directly onto the intended information, since the information at that point in the utterance may be supposed to be maximally activated due to the preceding context. Some consequences were considered for the listener's processing of the incoming information.
Intonation in English, French and German: Perception and Production
Authors: Grover Cynthia , Jamieson Donald G. , Dobrovolsky Michael B.
Published: July 2017

This article reports the results of three experiments which investigated the role of intonation in foreign accent. It was found that adult French, English and German speakers differ in the slopes (fundamental frequency divided by time) of their continuative intonation. Monolingual English and French children also differ in their continuative intonational slopes. Students who are native English speakers but attend French immersion schools, acquire appropriate French continuative intonation by age 10, but at age 16 they typically use English intonation when they speak French. A perception experiment showed that no language group chose intonation patterns with slopes based on native production data to be more native-like than those with slopes based on non-native data. Some remarks are made about language acquisition in the immersion setting and about convergence in intonational function.
Progressive Utterance-Final Lengthening in Syllables with Final Fricatives
Authors: Berkovits Rochele
Published: July 2017

The generality of the pattern of progressively greater lengthening within the utterance-final syllable, previously found with respect to final stops, is shown to extend to syllables in Hebrew with final fricatives. Seven native speakers of Hebrew read matched sentence pairs in which bisyllabic key words appeared in non-final and sentence-final position. Final fricatives showed almost four times as much utterance-final lengthening as the preceding stressed vowel. Final lengthening affected the duration of each segment of the final syllable, and also extended to the initial unstressed syllable of the final word. Though final fricatives showed more lengthening in sentence-final position than final-stop closures, no difference was found in the lengthening of the vowels preceding these consonants. The greater lengthening of the final fricative relative to the preceding vowel resulted in C/V ratios which failed to distinguish between the voiceless fricative in non-final position and the voiced fricative in utterance-final position. These results suggest that sentence position is taken into account in the perception of voicing, such that the C/V ratio applicable in non-final position is increased by a factor of two in final position.
Relating West Nile Virus Case Fatality Rates to Demographic and Surveillance Variables
Authors: Tackett Julie , Charnigo Richard , Caldwell Glyn
Published: July 2017

Objective.

The purpose of this ecological study was to relate West Nile virus (WNV) human case fatality rates to county-level demographic and surveillance variables, thereby characterizing the populations to which WNV poses the greatest threat.

Methods.

The authors acquired data on human, avian, and mosquito WNV infections for the 13 states in which there were 100 or more human cases during 2003. The data on avian and mosquito infections were converted into surveillance variables using empirical Bayes methodology. A preliminary logistic regression model was formulated to relate these surveillance variables and demographic variables to case fatality rates. The statistical technique of backward elimination was applied to obtain a final model in terms of the variables most useful for predicting case outcomes.

Results.

The probability of a fatal outcome depends on the poverty rate for the county in which the infected person lives ( p=0.0283), the average temperature ( p<0.0001), and surveillance variables reflecting the fractions of Culex pipiens and Culex restuans mosquitoes among infected mosquitoes ( p=0.0079; p=0.0076).

Conclusions.

Effective WNV educational programs and control measures are vital, especially in poverty-stricken areas. A uniform protocol for disseminating county-level data could facilitate timely responses to WNV outbreaks and to emerging infectious diseases more generally.
Can Data from Programs for the Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV Be Used for HIV Surveillance in Kenya?
Authors: Seguy Nicole , Hladik Wolfgang , Munyisia Esther , Bolu Omotayo , Marum Larry H. , Diaz Theresa
Published: July 2017

Objective.

In Africa, HIV surveillance is conducted among antenatal clinic (ANC) attendees using unlinked-anonymous testing (UAT). In Kenya, the utility of prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) program data for HIV surveillance was evaluated.

Methods.

UAT and PMTCT data were compared at the same clinics and for the same time (2003 UAT survey) period. The HIV testing uptake for PMTCT was defined as the number of ANC attendees tested for HIV out of those who had their first ANC visit during the ANC surveillance period. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were calculated to determine associations between demographic characteristics and HIV testing acceptance.

Results.

Of 39 ANC-UAT sites, six had PMTCT data. PMTCT data were recorded across several logbooks with varying quality. For PMTCT, 2,239 women were offered HIV testing and 1,258 (56%) accepted; for UAT, 1,852 women were sampled. Median UAT-based HIV prevalence was 12.8% (range, 8.1%–26.3%) compared with 14.4% (range, 7.0%–27.2%) in PMTCT. HIV testing acceptance for PMTCT ranged from 48% to 69% across clinics, and was more likely among primigravidae than multigravidae.

Conclusion.

Because of varying PMTCT data quality and varying HIV testing acceptance for PMTCT, PMTCT-based HIV prevalence estimates cannot currently replace UAT-based estimates in Kenya.
Self-Reported Hepatitis C Virus Antibody Status and Risk Behavior in Young Injectors
Authors: Hagan Holly , Campbell Jennifer , Thiede Hanne , Strathdee Steffanie , Ouellet Lawrence , Kapadia Farzana , Hudson Sharon , Garfein Richard S.
Published: July 2017

Objective.

This study was conducted to assess the accuracy of self-reported hepatitis C virus (HCV) antibody (anti-HCV) serostatus in injection drug users (IDUs), and examine whether self-reported anti-HCV serostatus was associated with recent injection risk behavior.

Methods.

In five U.S. cities (Baltimore, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, and Seattle), 3,004 IDUs from 15 to 30 years old were recruited for a baseline interview to determine eligibility for a randomized controlled trial of a behavioral intervention. HIV and HCV antibody testing were performed, and subject data (e.g., demographics, drug and sexual risk behavior, and history of HIV and HCV testing) were collected via audio computer-administered self-interview. Risk behavior during the previous three months was compared to self-reported anti-HCV serostatus.

Results.

Anti-HCV prevalence in this sample of young IDUs was 34.1%. Seventy-two percent of anti-HCV-positive and 46% of anti-HCV-negative IDUs in this sample were not aware of their HCV serostatus. Drug treatment or needle exchange use was associated with increased awareness of HCV serostatus. Anti-HCV-negative IDUs who knew their serostatus were less likely than those unaware of their status to inject with a syringe used by another IDU or to share cottons to filter drug solutions. Knowledge of one's positive anti-HCV status was not associated with safer injection practices.

Conclusions.

Few anti-HCV-positive IDUs in this study were aware of their serostatus. Expanded availability of HCV screening with high quality counseling is clearly needed for this population to promote the health of chronically HCV-infected IDUs and to decrease risk among injectors susceptible to acquiring or transmitting HCV.
The Association between Childhood Asthma and Community Violence, Los Angeles County, 2000
Authors: Jeffrey Jessica , Sternfeld Isabelle , Tager Ira
Published: July 2017

Objective.

This study's objective is to determine if there is an association between rates of violence and rates of childhood asthma in Los Angeles County communities.

Methods.

Rates of hospitalization for assault and for asthma were calculated for each ZIP Code and city in Los Angeles County. Linear regression was used to determine the effect of assault rates on asthma rates while controlling for potential confounders such as poverty and racial/ethnic distribution. At the city level, crime rates were included in the model as additional measures of community violence.

Results.

Hospitalization rates for childhood asthma and assaults were significantly correlated at both the city ( r=0.80) and the ZIP Code ( r=0.54) levels. The association remained significant when controlling for poverty and racial/ethnic distribution with linear regression ( p<0.0001). At the city level, the variables measuring the crime rate were not significant predictors of asthma hospitalizations.

Conclusions.

Community violence as measured by the rate of assault hospitalizations is associated with childhood asthma in Los Angeles County. Health care providers should consider their asthmatic patients' social environments when devising treatment plans.
A State-Based Analysis of Public Health Preparedness Programs in the United States
Authors: Beitsch Leslie M. , Kodolikar Samata , Stephens Tim , Shodell Daniel , Clawson Art , Menachemi Nir , Brooks Robert G.
Published: July 2017

Objectives.

Given the national effort to respond to the challenge of terrorism post-9/11, this study examined the organizational structure of state public health preparedness programs across the country, their administration, and the personnel and resources supported through federal cooperative agreements and state funds.

Methods.

In Fall 2004, the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials surveyed state public health preparedness directors of all 50 states and territories of the United States regarding the organizational structure, administration, personnel, and resources of the state public health preparedness programs.

Results.

Individuals representing 45 states and the District of Columbia responded to the web-based questionnaire for a response rate of 88.2%. States tended to subdivide their organizations into regions for preparedness purposes. More than half the established preparedness regions (53.8%) were created post-9/11. Preparedness program directors frequently reported directly to either the state health official (40.0%) or a deputy state health official (33.3%). Responsibility for both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) cooperative agreements was predominantly vested in one person (73.3%). Federal resources were found to support needed preparedness workforce (CDC mean=117.1 full-time equivalents [FTEs]; HRSA mean=10.6 FTEs). In addition, 36.6% of the states also contributed to the public health preparedness budget.

Conclusions.

This study of state public health agency preparedness provides new information about state-level organizational structure, administration, and support of preparedness programs. It offers the first comprehensive insights into the approaches states have adopted to build infrastructure and develop capacity through CDC and HRSA funding streams.