bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Auditory abilities of experienced signal analysts
Authors: Sheft Stanley , Yost William A. , Weir Michael
Published: February 2014

Signal analysts continuously monitor audio communication signals for classification and identification. Performance levels of experienced analysts generally exceed that of most automated signal-classification schemes. Auditory abilities of four experienced military signal analysts were evaluated with both basic psychoacoustic listening tasks and multidimensional scaling of utility signals. The goal of the study was to determine the aspects of analysts’ auditory abilities relevant to job performance. Listening tasks were frequency discrimination, AM detection and rate discrimination, rippled-noise detection, delay discrimination, and detection of delay modulation. Across tasks, analysts’ thresholds were generally within the range of normative data. Results did suggest that frequency discrimination for both simple and complex stimuli is not a crucial ability for signal analysts. Stimuli used in the scaling study were first processed through a six-channel filterbank with both envelope- and phase-modulation functions extracted from each channel. Modulation functions were then applied to narrow-band carries. For some stimuli, functions were filtered or transposed across channel center frequencies. Multidimensional scaling of processed utility signals indicated that signal classification depends on both lower-rate amplitude and phase modulation. This result may have some bearing on the design of algorithms used in automated signal classification. [Work supported by AFRL.]
‘‘Second order’’ motion in the auditory system
Authors: Schneider Wendy E. , DeYoe Edgar A.
Published: February 2014

In both vision and audition the translation of activity across a recepto-topic set of neurons (e.g., ganglion, auditory nerve fibers) produces a percept of motion in physical space (vision) or in frequency space (audition). In vision, the translating ‘‘activity’’ can consist of either a net increase or decrease in activation (1st order motion), or a local transient that, on average, results in no net change. The purpose of the present study was to determine if such ‘‘2nd order’’ motion could also be perceived in audition. Subjects were asked to listen to a stimulus consisting of 16 discrete frequencies (87–6654 Hz). Initially, each frequency was randomly assigned either high or low amplitude. Then, in either ascending or descending order, each successive frequency was ‘‘flipped’’ to the alternative amplitude (e.g., low to high or high to low) with various stimulus onset asynchronies (SOA). On each trial subjects indicated if the ‘‘transients’’ were ascending or descending the frequency spectrum. This task proved to be more difficult than a simple frequency shift paradigm (1st order motion), but subjects were able to perform successfully at sufficient SOAs, consistent with a percept of 2nd order motion.
One factor underlies individual differences in informational masking
Authors: Lutfi Robert A. , Kistler Doris J. , Oh Eunmi , Callahan Michael , Wightman Frederic L. , Alexander Joshua M.
Published: February 2014

Masked threshold for a signal can be substantially elevated whenever the listener is uncertain about the spectral or temporal properties of the masker, an effect referred to as informational masking. Accounts often invoke multiple perceptual factors as listeners differ widely in the amount of informational masking they will exhibit under identical conditions. The present study reports results from a principal components analysis of the masking data from 76 listeners in four different studies. The studies included preschool children, adolescents, and adults, and involved only minor variations in stimuli and procedure. The premise underlying the analysis is that if different factors are involved, they should add largely independent sources of variance to the masking data. Hence, more than one principal component should be required to account for a substantial proportion of the variance in the data. The results, instead, supported the operation of a single underlying factor with all but 17% of the variance accounted for by the first principal component. The results are taken to suggest that individual differences reflect differences in the extent to which masker uncertainty adds variance to an otherwise optimal decision variable [R. A. Lutfi, J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 94, 748–758 (1993)]. [Research supported by NIDCD and NICHD.]
An interactive similarity rating program for large timbre sets
Authors: Lakatos Stephen , Scavone Gary , Cook Perry , Harbke Colin
Published: February 2014

A Linux-based program is described for collecting similarity data for large numbers of sounds in order to train an automated audio classifier. Most multidimensional-scaling (MDS) programs require similarity ratings for all pairwise comparisons in order to compute an optimal low-dimensional space, thereby discouraging their use for timbre sets comprising more than 25 or 30 sounds. The current program permits the testing of much larger stimulus sets (e.g., 150–200 sounds) through two principal innovations. First, the program initially assumes that the optimal perceptual space is two dimensional, and adds additional dimensions only if they are warranted. Second, it provides flexibility to listeners by allowing them to choose stimuli for comparison and to indicate their relative similarity in a highly interactive graphical format. The program has been used in listening experiments to study the perceptual criteria listeners apply in their timbral ratings for real-world sounds, and to assess the role that mental imagery may play in such ratings. [Research supported by Air Force Grant No. F49620-99-1-0293.]
Study of speech and hearing at Bell Telephone Laboratories: The Fletcher years
Authors: Rankovic Christine M.
Published: February 2014

During the first half of the twentieth century, Bell Telephone Laboratories carried out an extensive research program aimed at improving the intelligibility of speech transmitted over the telephone. Harvey Fletcher, a founding member and the first president of the Acoustical Society, led this effort. The contributions of Fletcher and his colleagues helped produce not only the world’s leading telephone system, but also established the speech and hearing sciences field. A compact disk (CD/ROM) containing nearly 10000 pages of recently discovered Bell Labs internal research documents dating from this era (1917–1933) is now available from the Acoustical Society. The majority of the documents are concise scientific reports that reveal the extraordinary thinking and insights of these world-class researchers. In addition to their historical significance, the documents also provide technical insight and clarity on topics of current interest to speech and hearing scientists. The discussion will include an overview of CD/ROM contents and a focused discussion on documents pertaining to speech intelligibility measurement and prediction.
Subjective listening tests by reference CD based on sound factors
Authors: Kim Ki Duk , Kim Chul Whan , Choi Hoon Ki , Ryu Dong Su
Published: February 2014

The audio analysis of sound reproduction equipment, such as loudspeakers, amplifiers, and so on, is composed of overall measurement (and analysis) of electric signals and acoustic signals. And the subjective listening test has been admitted as being a general measurement method also, because audio test equipment has limits of measurement and the human ear has a superior sensing ability. But the subjective listening test method varies according to personal taste and to the degree of skill for the sound. In addition, it varies according to the person’s mental state. So, there has been argument about the objectivity of it. This paper proposes that sound factors (parameters) should be classified into eight categories according to the specific character of the loudspeakers and the sense of hearing. We manufactured a test reference CD for an estimate.
Absolute instability or chaos?—A tribute to David Crighton
Authors: Wu Sean
Published: February 2014

David Crighton was the first person who revealed mechanisms leading to the onset of convective instability, and the first to derive an analytic formulation for predicting the critical mean flow speed beyond which absolute instability would occur. Crighton attributed the onset of absolute instability to a mathematical phenomenon known as a pinch of poles in a complex wave number domain. Crighton’s work aroused an immense interest of the present author to search for the cause of absolute instability. The present paper is concerned with flexural vibration of a finite plate clamped to an infinite baffle in mean flow. Results show that the instabilities of a baffled plate are caused by an added stiffness due to acoustic radiation in mean flow, and controlled by structural nonlinearities. The added stiffness is shown to be negative and to increase quadratically with the mean flow speed. Without structural nonlinearities, the plate has one equilibrium, namely, its undeformed position. Under this condition, the amplitude of plate flexural vibration would grow exponentially in time everywhere, known as absolute instability, when mean flow speed exceeds a critical value. With the inclusion of structural nonlinearities, the plate may possess multiple equilibria, but cannot be stabilized on any of them. Instead, the plate may jump from one equilibrium position to another. Since this jumping is random, the plate flexural vibration may seem chaotic. This chaotic behavior disappears when viscous damping is introduced. Accordingly, the plate settles down to a buckled-down position owning to the hydraulic fluid-loading effect.
Foreign accented speech: Encoding and generalization
Authors: Weil Shawn
Published: February 2014

Speech produced by a non-native talker of a language is influenced by the talkers native language, and the result is Foreign accented speech (FAS). Previous research regarding talker variability and normalization has found that indexical talker characteristics are encoded into memory along with phonetic information, and implicitly helps subsequent speech perception. Are the overarching properties of FAS encoded in the same manner? The current study explores what talker information is encoded into memory, and how learned talker qualities improve subsequent speech recognition. Listeners were exposed to one speaker for four experimental sessions via a battery of tests measuring speech intelligibility. On the fifth day, listeners were given a post-test in signal correlated noise which measured speech intelligibility for either the talker they had been trained on, a similarly accented talker, or a talker with a different, unrelated accent. Three control groups received only the post-tests. In sentential, exposure to a talker with an accent seemed to improve performance for talkers who have a similar accent. This was not the case for single word contexts. Implications onto models of speech perception are discussed.
Voice onset time of Jordanian Arabic stops
Authors: Mitleb Fares
Published: February 2014

This paper reports on findings of an acoustic measure of voice onset time (VOT) in Jordanian Arabic stops in syllable initial position. Results point out that VOT values corrolate to voice contrast. Also, a difference between VOT values is found due to the length contrast of the following vowel. In addition, our results seem to depart from the literature with regard to the effect of place of articulation on VOT values. The findings of this piece of research are discussed with respect to the importance of acoustic codes to the proper treatment of some low-level phonetic parameters. [This research was supported by Yarmouk University.]
Production and perception of authentic and feigned Spanish accent
Authors: Hill Rebecca
Published: February 2014

This experiment will be undertaken in order to examine the ability of native English speakers to distinguish between authentic and feigned Spanish accent. To that end, 50 English CVC words produced by 6 native Spanish speakers and 6 native English speakers will be recorded. The same six native English speakers will also be asked to produce the same words using self-determined Spanish-accented English. The English consonants chosen for analysis are [p/b, t/d, k/g] and the vowels chosen are [i,e,æ,u] and their lax counterparts. These consonants and vowels were chosen because they have been shown to be problematic for native speakers of Spanish learning English. The production experiment included the acoustic measurement of VOT and closure duration for the stop consonants and F1, F2, and duration for the vowels. The perception experiment will be conducted using ten native English speakers, five of whom are familiar with Spanish and five who are naïve. Listeners will hear the three types of speech (authentic Spanish accent, authentic American English accent, and feigned Spanish accent) and rate the degree of accentedness using a five-point scale. Results of the perception experiment will be examined and discussed in relation to the production data.
Language-specific knowledge and the perception of tonal contrasts in Italian and English
Authors: D’Imperio Mariapaola
Published: February 2014

Intonation, including details of tonal alignment [i.e., the synchronization of tones and segments (D’Imperio, 2000)], has been claimed to be part of the phonological knowledge of native speakers. This linguistic knowledge can be assumed to influence the perception of tonal contrasts. Both American English and Neapolitan Italian have two rising pitch accents (L+H* and L*+H) whose alignment is contrastive, although details of their implementation differ. The accents also cue different pragmatic functions (e.g., cuing the question/statement contrast only in Neapolitan) and are subject to different syntagmatic constraints in the two languages. This study tested the hypotheses that the American listeners would be able to perceive the contrast between the two Neapolitan accents, despite the aforementioned differences, and that they would respond similarly to a linguistic (question/statement) and a psychoacoustic (early/late peak) identification task. The stimuli were constructed by manipulating the alignment of a Neapolitan utterance through PSOLA. These stimuli were employed in a linguistic task for both language groups and a psychoacoustic task for the Americans only. Although the Americans could perform the linguistic task, scoring similarly to the Neapolitans, they could not perform the categorization in the psychoacoustic task. The results bear upon the ‘‘universality’’ of tonal perception.
Performance analysis of an underwater acoustic communications time diversity receiver
Authors: Richman Michael S. , Whitney Scott L. , Edelson Geoffrey S.
Published: February 2014

One method for introducing time diversity into a decision feedback equalizer (DFE) spatial diversity communications receiver operating in an underwater acoustic environment is presented and analyzed. Time diversity refers to the repetition of transmitted packets and the subsequent batch processing of these packets by an appropriately modified multichannel receiver. To overcome the effects of the time-varying nature of the channel, the modifications made to the spatial diversity-based multichannel DFE (SD-DFE) include appropriate Doppler shift compensation for each received packet and determination of the proper alignment among the time-displaced packets to allow for successful equalization. The proposed time diversity DFE (TD-DFE) receiver is shown to achieve a high rate of packet success under a variety of channel conditions. More significantly, the TD-DFE algorithm is able to equalize packets when a comparable SD-DFE might fail. The packet-to-packet coherence of a series of transmissions is analyzed to provide insight into how the characteristics of the channel affect the performance of the TD-DFE. This analysis illustrates why a time diversity-based equalization approach can be more robust for the underwater acoustic channel as compared to a standard TD-DFE algorithm at the possible expense of reducing throughput.
Traditions versus acoustics in the evolution of the Baltic psaltery
Authors: Haas Ain
Published: February 2014

The Baltic psaltery figures prominently in the musical heritage, folklore, and national symbolism of Finns, Estonians, Latvians, and Lithuanians. Despite its sacred aura, instrument makers have had considerable latitude in design. Positing the ancient Northern European lyre as the likely source of inspiration for the Baltic psaltery, the paper analyzes how acoustical considerations seem to have affected the transformation of the instrument. Archeological finds, manuscript illustrations, ethnographic museum specimens, and instrument reconstructions are examined for clues to the likely sequence of forms. Cultural interaction between Finnic and Indo-European peoples is presented as a major factor in opening the way for acoustically driven experimentation of the design of a traditional instrument.
Computation of the sources of sound in turbulent flow
Authors: Colonius Tim
Published: February 2014

Direct numerical simulations of turbulent flows and their radiated acoustic fields offer a detailed description of the acoustic sources at low Reynolds number. High Reynolds number jets will remain inaccessible to direct computation for many years to come, and there is thus a great need for good models of the acoustic sources. The low Reynolds number simulations can provide insight and data for such source modeling efforts. In this brief survey of research in this area, issues that were anticipated in the research of Professor David Crighton, for whom this session has been dedicated, are discussed. These include the technical challenges that must be overcome in order to accurately compute aeroacoustic flows, the modeling of acoustic sources in jets and mixing layers as wave packets, and the scattering and refraction of sound by turbulence.
Comparison of binaural beamformers for speech extraction in complex auditory scenes
Authors: Zheng Yang , Lockwood Michael E. , Wheeler Bruce C. , Jones Douglas L. , Feng Albert S. , O’Brien William D. , Bilger Robert C. , Lansing Charissa R.
Published: February 2014

The goal of this study was to assess and compare the capacities of several array-processing algorithms to extract on-axis signals in the presence of one or more off-axis interferers. Performance comparisons are made between the localization/extraction (L/E) algorithm [Liu et al., J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 108, 1888–1905 (2000)], the frequency-banded minimum-variance beamformer (FBMVB) [Lockwood et al., J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 106, 2278 (1999)], the Frost beamformer, the Griffiths–Jim generalized sidelobe canceller (GSC), and the Peissig–Kollmeier (P-K) algorithm [Kollmeier et al., J. Rehab. Res. Dev. 30, 82–94 (1993)]. The two metrics used to evaluate algorithm performance were the signal-to-noise ratio gain (SNRG) and the intelligibility-weighted signal-to-noise ratio gain (IWSNRG). The signals used simulated an omnidirectional microphone array in free field and were composed of sentence-length speech by male and female speakers against a background of one to four interfering sound sources. Overall, the IWSNRGs for the L/E and FBMVB algorithms were similar to those for the Frost, GSC, and P-K algorithms when there was a single interferer, but 3–4 dB higher when there were two or more interferers. This study shows that FBMVB and L/E algorithms hold promise for hearing aids to be used in noisy environments. [Work supported by NIH-NIDCD Grant R21DC04840.]
Ambient noise and source tracking in very shallow water
Authors: Glegg Stewart , LaVigne Antony
Published: February 2014

This paper will describe recent experiments on ambient noise levels and source tracking in shallow water. The measurements were made using a sparse acoustic array in approximately 20 m deep water at a location just south of the Port Everglades inlet. The ambient noise was dominated by local boat traffic events and was found to be very intermittent especially during daylight hours. Between events the noise was dominated by biological activity inshore of the array. It will be shown that the most important issue that adversely affects the acoustic tracking of AUVs is boat traffic noise. It was found that tracking accuracy at larger ranges is good, but the results are more inconsistent due to lower received signal levels. The algorithm used in this analysis was not necessarily optimized for noise rejection, but the results clearly indicate that signal fading and signal to noise are the main problems that have to be addressed to improve tracking performance. [Work supported by ONR.]
Effects of relative motion on linear and nonlinear waves in a bubbly medium
Authors: Cartmell Jerome J. , Nadim Ali , Barbone Paul E.
Published: February 2014

We describe a continuum formulation to model flow of a bubbly liquid. In our treatment, the bubbles are allowed to move relative to the host liquid. The continuum theory consists of conservation equations for bubble (number) density, mixture density, and momentum. These are closed via a constitutive equation which relates the instantaneous mixture pressure to the mass and number densities. The resulting continuum description of shock waves in a bubbly medium exhibits two distinct time scales. In addition to the usual time scale associated with bubble oscillation, there is a relaxation time scale associated with the velocity difference between the bubbles and their host liquid. Examples are presented.
The resolution of spectral peaks by cochlear implant and normal-hearing listeners
Authors: Henry Belinda A. , Turner Christopher W.
Published: February 2014

The ability to resolve spectral peaks is important in the discrimination of speech. This study investigated the differences in spectral resolution abilities between cochlear implant (CI) and normal-hearing (NH) listeners, and among CI listeners having different speech perception abilities. CI listeners using the Cochlear Ltd. CI-24M implant and SPrint processor, and NH listeners participated. The stimuli were rippled-spectrum noise signals, with ripple densities of approximately 1, 1.5, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 16, 32, 64, 126, and 252 peaks between 0 and 8 kHz. The stimuli were presented to the CI subjects (CIS) using a 12-channel CIS speech processing strategy via the direct processor input, and to NH subjects via headphones through a 12-channel CI simulation. The highest resolvable ripple density was determined for each listener as the ripple density at which an interchange of peak and trough positions in the rippled spectrum was discriminated at the 70.7% correct level. This efficient method of measuring ripple density resolution indicates that CI listeners have poorer spectral resolution abilities than NH listeners when listening with 12 channels. The relationship between ripple density resolution and vowel recognition in CI listeners will be discussed. [Work supported by NIDCD.]
β-Catenin Promotes Colitis and Colon Cancer Through Imprinting of Proinflammatory Properties in T Cells
Authors: Keerthivasan Shilpa , Aghajani Katayoun , Dose Marei , Molinero Luciana , Khan Mohammad W. , Venkateswaran Vysak , Weber Christopher , Emmanuel Akinola Olumide , Sun Tianjao , Bentrem David J. , Mulcahy Mary , Keshavarzian Ali , Ramos Elena M. , Blatner Nichole , Khazaie Khashayarsha , Gounari Fotini
Published: February 2014

Wnt/β-catenin signaling in T cells is activated during polyposis and colon cancer and drives inflammation and tumor growth by promoting expression of T
H
17-associated genes including RORγt.
THE PALLIATIVE AND END OF LIFE CARE PRIORITY SETTING PARTNERSHIP (PEOLCPSP): DETERMINING EVIDENCE UNCERTAINTIES FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE END USER OF RESEARCH
Authors: Best Sabine , Tate Teresa , Noble Bill , Eley Joanna , Black Joanna , Stockton Mike , Cheesley Amanda , Berry Lauren , Loftus Rosie , Dechamps Andrea , Stevens Elaine , Penny Alison , McEnhill Linda , McNair Alan , Cupid Belinda , Fryett Sarah , Kerr Angharad , McIlfatrick Sonja , Nelson Annmarie , Candy Bridget , Cowan Katherine
Published: February 2014

Background

Palliative and end of life care research is an underdeveloped research area [National end of life care strategy, 2008; Rapid Review NCRI, 2010].

The importance of involving patients and clinicians in the setting of research questions to avoid funding research that is of low relevance to the end users of the research findings has been highlighted [Chalmers and Glasziou, 2009].

Initiated by Marie Curie Cancer Care, a large number of organisations have come together to form the ‘Palliative and end of life care Priority Setting Partnership’ (PeolcPSP) with the James Lind Alliance. The PeolcPSP is co-funded by Marie Curie Cancer Care, Chief Scientist Office, NIHR, MND Association, NISCHR, Macmillan Cancer Support, CR-UK, HSCNI, MRC and ESRC.

Aims

The aim of the PeolcPSP is to identify unanswered questions about palliative and end of life care and then prioritise those that people who are likely to be in the last years of life, current and bereaved carers and professionals working with people at the end of life agree are the most important.

Methods

The process commences with a survey. People are asked to submit questions or ‘evidence uncertainties’ about care, support and treatment for people with life-limiting conditions who may be in the last years of life and about support for current or bereaved carers.

Survey responses are categorised by an information scientist who also checks whether any of the submitted evidence uncertainties have already been addressed by existing evidence. Priority setting workshops with patients, carers and professionals are carried out to determine the ‘top ten’ evidence uncertainties in any category, using the Nominal Group Technique.

Results

The results of the PeolcPSP will inform partners' research strategies and will allow funding bodies to target limited funds to research priorities of the end user.

We will report preliminary findings on the process and types of questions proposed.
HOSPICE AT HOME: OPTIMISING CARE AND ENABLING HOME DEATH
Authors: Buck Jackie , Moth Lorraine , Webb Liz , Morgan Lynn , Morris Zoe , Lay Maggie , Barclay Stephen
Published: February 2014

Background

The Cambridgeshire Hospice at Home (H@H) service provides specialist community care for people approaching the end of their lives, enabling them to be cared for and to die at home if that is their wish. An independent evaluation is underway that is both shaping the evolving service and providing commissioners with detailed information needed to ensure continuing NHS funding.

Methods

A multifaceted approach has employed:

a) Detailed case-note review of all 450 patients referred to the service between January 2012 and August 2013, from referral through to post bereavement follow-up. Data includes each patient/family assessment, multidisciplinary visit, telephone call and night care episode, collated to capture the range of holistic care. Analysis is descriptive.

b) Interviews with individuals clustered around 17 deceased patients, including bereaved carer, H@H staff member most involved in the case, the referring healthcare professional (HCP) and other professionals significantly involved. Carer interviews generate understanding of the patient and carer in their environment, background to the illness, care provided, service related issues and experience since the death. Interviews with H@H staff and HCPs address the experience of being a H@H Nurse, involvement with the patient, communication and service related issues. Analysis uses constant comparative methods.

Results/findings

Data collection is still underway and ends in October. Of the 207 deaths analysed to date, 166 (80.1%) died at home, 38 (18.8%) in hospice and 3 (1.4%) in hospital; 196 (94.7%) died in their preferred place. Description of the complete quantitative dataset will be presented, alongside analysis of the qualitative interviews (by group–carer/staff/other HCP and by cluster.
LIVING WITH COPD AND FACING DEATH: INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION NEEDS ABOUT END-OF-LIFE ISSUES
Authors: Hakkak Frances , Forbes Karen , Dowson Lee
Published: February 2014

Background

Existing studies suggest that patients with COPD would like to know more about end-of-life issues such as prognosis, advance directives, intubation/mechanical ventilation and what dying might be like. Most want to be involved in end-of-life decision making but feel that doctors should initiate such discussions. Knowing when to discuss these issues can be difficult as the length of time between diagnosis and pre-terminal events varies widely in this group.

Aims and objectives

The aim of this study was to explore COPD patients' understanding, experience, views and information needs regarding end-of-life issues using qualitative methods.

Methods

The study was carried out within a respiratory department of an acute NHS trust in the West Midlands. Patients from four groups were interviewed using a semi-structured interview schedule. 1. New referrals to a COPD clinic. 2. Patients undergoing pulmonary rehabilitation. 3. Patients on long term oxygen therapy. 4. Patients who have required one or more episode of ventilation. Transcribed data were analysed using thematic analysis.

Results

Twelve patients were interviewed. Three major themes were identified: “living with COPD”, “facing death”, and “planning for the end of life”. Patients knew very little about end-of-life issues and advance care planning. Patients were not keen to discuss these issues until they had reached the stage of having already been ventilated. When discussions did occur they were initiated by doctors.

Conclusions

Patients with COPD are reluctant to discuss end-of-life issues at a time when such discussions could be most helpful. Further research is required in order to determine how, in practice, information and discussions about end-of-life issues can be successfully introduced at an earlier stage whilst still being acceptable to patients.
WHAT NOW? HOSPITAL DOCTORS' EXPERIENCES AND PERCEPTIONS OF THE LIVERPOOL CARE PATHWAY IN TIMES OF CHANGE: A QUALITATIVE STUDY
Authors: Twigger Sharon , Yardley Sarah
Published: February 2014

Background

Introducing ‘The Liverpool Care Pathway for the Dying Patient’ (LCP) to acute settings in the UK was intended to transfer hospice models of high quality end-of-life care onto hospital wards. Growing criticism and concerns, (from the public, media, politicians and healthcare workers), regarding when and how the LCP was used has culminated in an independent review recommending the LCP is phased out of use. Despite this, limited research exists exploring doctors' perceptions of the LCP.

Aims

To explore lived experiences of hospital doctors using the LCP, how these experiences have influenced their practices and perceptions of the LCP and how wider application in hospitals went wrong, in order to inform future interventions seeking to improve end-of-life care.

Methods

Following a systematic review of the literature on use of the LCP in hospitals prospective ethical approval was received to recruit participants. Consultants and registrars, from an acute hospital in England, were purposively selected for one-to-one in-depth interviews. The topic guide covered positive and negative experiences of the LCP, individuals' perceptions, external influences and training. Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim for thematic analysis.

Results

In this paper we present our thematic findings and an interpretative analysis of lessons to be learned from the ‘LCP experience’ in hospitals. We will discuss how participants created meaning and constructed knowledge from their real life experiences. We will consider how these experiences, and external factors, influenced decision-making with respect to the LCP and end-of-life care more generally.

Conclusions

The need for high quality end-of-life care in hospitals remains, regardless of how history may judge the LCP from inception to withdrawal. Now is the time for specialist palliative care to learn the lessons of the LCP era and to work with generalists, the public, media and policy-makers to improve end-of-life care for the future.
Prevalence and molecular characterisation of the sessile serrated adenoma in a subset of the Chinese population
Authors: Qiu Ye , Fu Xiangsheng , Zhang Wei , Xu Yong , Xiao Lanyue , Chen Xia , Shi Lei , Zhou Xian , Xia Guodong , Peng Yan , Deng Mingming
Published: February 2014

Aims

The incidence and mortality rates from right-sided colorectal cancers (CRCs) have not decreased in recent years. It is very likely that a significant proportion of these cancers evolve from undetected sessile serrated adenomas (SSAs). The prevalence and molecular features of the SSAs in the Chinese population have seldom been investigated.

Methods

We retrospectively reviewed the colonoscopy database and pathology archives in our medical centre. Adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) and β-catenin expressions were examined in 28 right hyperplastic polyps (RHPs) and 21 SSAs by immunohistochemical staining. The mutations ofBRAF,KRAS,APCandβ-CATENINwere analysed by direct sequencing. The methylation status ofAPCpromoter in these polyps was analysed by methylation-specific PCR and bisulfite sequencing. Samples of left hyperplastic polyps, traditional adenomas and CRC were used as controls.

Results

SSAs accounted for 4.9% of serrated polyps and 1.0% of all colorectal polyps.BRAF(V600E)mutations were found in 14.3% of SSAs and 7.1% of RHPs. Nuclear accumulation of β-catenin was seen in 28.6% of SSAs and 17.9% of RHPs.APCmutations were detected in 57.1% of SSAs and 67.9% of RHPs.APCmethylation was detected in 14.3% of RHPs and 23.8% of SSAs.

Conclusions

The prevalence of SSAs in a subset of the Chinese population is much lower than that in the Western population.BRAF(V600E)mutation is not a frequent event in right colon serrated polyps in a subset of the Chinese population.APCmutation is possibly the main cause for the Wnt signalling activation in right colon serrated polyps.
ADAPT FAST study: a direct aspiration first pass technique for acute stroke thrombectomy
Authors: Turk Aquilla S , Frei Don , Fiorella David , Mocco J , Baxter Blaise , Siddiqui Adnan , Spiotta Alex , Mokin Maxim , Dewan Michael , Quarfordt Steve , Battenhouse Holly , Turner Raymond , Chaudry Imran
Published: February 2014

Background

The development of new revascularization devices has improved recanalization rates and time, but not clinical outcomes. We report a prospectively collected clinical experience with a new technique utilizing a direct aspiration first pass technique with large bore aspiration catheter as the primary method for vessel recanalization.

Methods

98 prospectively identified acute ischemic stroke patients with 100 occluded large cerebral vessels at six institutions were included in the study. The ADAPT technique was utilized in all patients. Procedural and clinical data were captured for analysis.

Results

The aspiration component of the ADAPT technique alone was successful in achieving Thrombolysis in Cerebral Infarction (TICI) 2b or 3 revascularization in 78% of cases. The additional use of stent retrievers improved the TICI 2b/3 revascularization rate to 95%. The average time from groin puncture to at least TICI 2b recanalization was 37 min. A 5MAX demonstrated similar success to a 5MAX ACE in achieving TICI 2b/3 revascularization alone (75% vs 82%, p=0.43). Patients presented with an admitting median National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score of 17.0 (12.0–21.0) and improved to a median NIHSS score at discharge of 7.3 (1.0–11.0). Ninety day functional outcomes were 40% (modified Rankin Scale (mRS) 0–2) and 20% (mRS 6). There were two procedural complications and no symptomatic intracerebral hemorrhages.

Discussion

The ADAPT technique is a fast, safe, simple, and effective method that has facilitated our approach to acute ischemic stroke thrombectomy by utilizing the latest generation of large bore aspiration catheters to achieve previously unparalleled angiographic outcomes.
Survey of the UK veterinary profession: common species and conditions nominated by veterinarians in practice
Authors: Nielsen T. D. , Dean R. S. , Robinson N. J. , Massey A. , Brennan M. L.
Published: February 2014

The practice of evidence‐based veterinary medicine involves the utilisation of scientific evidence for clinical decision making. To enable this, research topics pertinent to clinical practice need to be identified, and veterinary clinicians are best placed to do this. The main aim of this study was to describe the veterinary population, the common species and conditions veterinary clinicians nominated they saw in practice and how much information clinicians perceived was available in the literature for these. A questionnaire was distributed to all Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons registered veterinarians agreeing to be contacted for research purposes (n=14,532). A useable response rate of 33 per cent (4842/14,532) was achieved. The most commonly seen species reported by vets were dogs, cats and rabbits followed by equines and cattle. Overall, skin conditions were most commonly mentioned for small animals, musculoskeletal conditions for equines and reproduction conditions for production animals. Veterinary clinicians perceived there was a higher level of information available in the literature for conditions in dogs, cattle and equines and lower levels for rabbits and guinea pigs. The results from this study can be used to help define the research needs of the profession to aid the incorporation of evidence in veterinary practice.
An epidemiological study of diabetes mellitus in dogs attending first opinion practice in the UK
Authors: Mattin M. , O'Neill D. , Church D. , McGreevy P. D. , Thomson P. C. , Brodbelt D.
Published: February 2014

This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of canine diabetes mellitus (DM) in primary‐care clinics in England, to identify risk factors associated with DM and to describe the survival of affected dogs. Cases of DM were identified within the electronic patient records of 89 small‐animal practices. A nested case–control study identified risk factors for the diagnosis of DM using logistic regression models. Cox proportional hazards models were used to analyse variables associated with survival. Four‐hundred and thirty‐nine canine DM cases were identified, giving an apparent prevalence of 0.34% (95% CI 0.31% to 0.37%). Neutered males were at an increased risk of diabetes compared with entire males, whereas neutering was not associated with DM in females. When compared with crossbred dogs, Yorkshire terriers had increased odds, whereas German shepherd dogs and golden retrievers had lower odds of DM. Being classified as overweight and having a diagnosis of pancreatitis, hyperadrenocorticism or a urinary tract infection were positively associated with DM. Older dogs and those diagnosed with pancreatitis had a higher hazard of death, whereas insured and neutered dogs had a lower hazard. This study provides an objective assessment of canine DM using primary‐care veterinary practice data and is a valuable benchmark against which future epidemiological trends in DM can be assessed and improvements in the management of DM in primary‐care practice can be judged.
Synthesis, structural characterization, and reactivity of Cp*Ru(N-phosphinoamidinate) complexes
Authors: Kelly Colin M. , Ruddy Adam J. , Wheaton Craig A. , Sydora Orson L. , Small Brooke L. , Stradiotto Mark , Turculet Laura
Published: February 2014

We report herein on the synthesis and spectroscopic/crystallographic characterization of the first isolable, formally 16-electron Cp*Ru(κ2-P∼N) species, which are supported by N-phosphinoamidinate ligands. Despite the stability of such complexes, they have been shown to readily coordinate two-electron (L) donors including carbon monoxide and 2,6-xylylisocyanide, affording crystallographically characterized 18-electron Cp*Ru(L)(κ2-P∼N) adducts. Preliminary reactivity studies confirm that such complexes are capable of extruding hydrogen from ammonia borane.
Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercusurophasianus) hen survival: effects of raptors, anthropogenic and landscape features, and hen behavior
Authors: Dinkins J.B. , Conover M.R. , Kirol C.P. , Beck J.L. , Frey S.N.
Published: February 2014

Survival of breeding-age hens has been identified as the demographic rate with the greatest potential to influence population growth of Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus (Bonaparte, 1827); hereafter “Sage-Grouse”). During 2008–2011, we collected summer survival data from 427 Sage-Grouse hens in southern Wyoming, USA. We assessed the effects of raptor densities, anthropogenic features, landscape features, and Sage-Grouse hen behavior on Sage-Grouse hen survival. Survival of Sage-Grouse hens was positively associated with the proportion of big sagebrush (genus Artemisia L.) habitat within 0.27 km radius and road density and negatively associated with power-line density, proximity to forested habitat, and topographic ruggedness index within 0.27 km radius (TRI0.27). Raptor densities did not have individual effects on Sage-Grouse survival; however, an interaction between site-specific exposure to Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos (L., 1758)) density (GOEA) and TRI0.27indicated that negative effects of GOEA and TRI0.27were dampened in areas with both high TRI0.27and high GOEA. Survival of nonreproductive hens was greater than brooding or nesting hens. Hens that stayed in intermediate-size flocks and yearling hens had higher survival than hens in small or large flocks and hens >2 years old. Results indicated that risk of death for Sage-Grouse hens was greater relative to potential raptor perches but not anthropogenic and landscape variables that could provide food subsidies for predators.
PROJECT RISK RANKING IN LARGE-SCALE PROGRAMS: A FUZZY SET BASED APPROACH
Authors: ZACHARIAS OTHONAS , PANOU ELENI , ASKOUNIS D. TH. , VASSILIKOPOULOU AIKATERINI
Published: February 2014

As most of the global economic activity takes place in the form of projects/programs, their effective management and governance is becoming more and more critical to the competitive position of organizations and societies. Project auditing and risk management, elaborate on methodologies that could be used for analyzing project progress, by identifying potential risks and liabilities, and finally recommending corrective and preventive actions. In relation to these fields, this paper proposes a fuzzy set based approach for project risk ranking in large-scale programs. The proposed approach defines a generic list of risk factors which is used for the ranking and risk assessment of all projects of a program. Data describing projects' progress as well as expert's evaluation of risk factors and project's risk exposure are being used as input parameters to the fuzzy set system. The relative probability of risk appearance due to risk factors for each of the projects is being calculated by providing valuable means for efficient decision-making and success of the program. Finally, this paper describes a case study called Operational Program "Road Axes, Ports, Urban Development" of Community Support Framework III in Greece, where the proposed approach was successfully applied.
100 MS/s, 10-BIT ADC USING PIPELINED SUCCESSIVE APPROXIMATION
Authors: SARAFI SAHAR , HADIDI KHEYROLLAH , ABBASPOUR EBRAHIM , AAIN ABU KHARI BIN , ABBASZADEH JAVAD
Published: February 2014

This paper presents an analog-to-digital converter (ADC), using pipelined successive approximation register (SAR) architecture. The structure which is a combination of SAR-ADC and pipelined ADC benefits from each of their advantages. A new synchronization method is proposed to improve the pipelined SAR-ADC's speed. The proposed method reduces the total conversion without limiting the ADC performance. To evaluate the proposed method a 10-bit 100 MS/s is designed in 0.5 μm CMOS process technology. According to the obtained simulation results, the designed ADC digitizes a 9-MHz input with 54.19 dB SNDR while consuming 57.3 mw from a 5-V supply.
A 1/4-RATE LINEAR PHASE DETECTOR FOR HIGH SPEED PLL-BASED CLOCK AND DATA RECOVERY CIRCUIT
Authors: ADIBIFARD SOMAYEH , MOUSAVI SEYYED HASSAN , ZIABAKHSH SOHEYL , YAGOUB MUSTAPHA C. E.
Published: February 2014

A novel 1/4-rate clock phase detector (PD) structure for phase locked loop (PLL)-based clock and data recovery (CDR) is proposed. In this topology, the retimed data is generated within the circuit and no extra circuit is required. Furthermore, the error and reference signals are independent of delay time through gates and thus, no extra replica circuit is needed to compensate such delay. Designed in a 0.18-μm CMOS technology, the proposed 10 Gb/s PD consumes 30 mA from a 1.8 V supply, resulting in a lower power consumption for high-speed applications compared to conventional topologies.
PARTICLE SWARM OPTIMIZATION FOR MOR OF SINGULARLY PERTURBED SYSTEMS WITH CRITICAL FREQUENCY PRESERVATION AND APPLICATION TO POWER SYSTEMS SIMPLIFIED MODELING
Authors: ALSMADI OTHMAN M. K. , ABU-AL-NADI DIA I. , ABO-HAMMOUR ZAER. S.
Published: February 2014

In this paper, a model-order reduction (MOR) technique with the advantage of critical frequency preservation capability is proposed using the particle swarm optimization (PSO). The new approach is capable of simplifying single-input single-output (SISO) systems as well as multi-input multi-output (MIMO) systems. If critical frequency preservation is desired, then this objective is achieved by retaining the exact critical frequencies of the full-order model as a subset in the reduced-order model. Otherwise, the reduction process is proceeded without such restriction. The reduction process is performed using the PSO technique to determine all of the necessary parameters in the reduced model. Determining the reduced-order model is performed based on minimizing the mean square error between the outputs of the original full-order model and the outputs of the reduced model. For method evaluation and validation, the proposed technique was applied to different models and compared with some of the well-known methods and recently published work for MOR. Results' comparison shows clearly the superiority of the proposed technique in terms of quality performance and accuracy of substructure preservation.
ERRATA: EFFECTIVENESS OF NEURAL MOBILIZATION IN THE MANAGEMENT OF SCIATICA
Authors: Ahmed Nisar , Tufel Saba , Khan Moazzam H. , Bhatnagar Pradeep
Published: February 2014

The study was done to find out whether nerve mobilization techniques enhance patient outcomes in the management of sciatica when added to the standard care. A total of 30 patients, both male and female with a primary diagnosis of sciatica were recruited from the outpatient physical therapy department of G.B. Pant Neurology Hospital, New Delhi. Pre-test, post-test experimental design was used. After measuring the baseline pain (NPRS) and functional status (SF-12) scores, one group was treated with Nerve Mobilization along with conventional physical therapy while the other group was treated with conventional physical therapy alone. At discharge the patient's scores in both the groups were reassessed. Non-parametric tests were used to compare the mean statistical difference between the groups. Within group analysis was done using Wilcoxon signed ranks test and between groups analysis was done using Mann Whitney U Test. The results showed that there was significant difference in pain and functional status scores as indicated by the significance p > 0.05 obtained in their respective p values. The study results showed that neural mobilization techniques when added to standard care enhance patient outcomes in sciatica in comparison to conventional physical therapy alone.