Absolute pitch among students at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music: a large-scale direct-test study.

Science.gov (United States)

Deutsch, Diana; Li, Xiaonuo; Shen, Jing

2013-11-01

This paper reports a large-scale direct-test study of absolute pitch (AP) in students at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. Overall note-naming scores were very high, with high scores correlating positively with early onset of musical training. Students who had begun training at age ≤5 yr scored 83% correct not allowing for semitone errors and 90% correct allowing for semitone errors. Performance levels were higher for white key pitches than for black key pitches. This effect was greater for orchestral performers than for pianists, indicating that it cannot be attributed to early training on the piano. Rather, accuracy in identifying notes of different names (C, C#, D, etc.) correlated with their frequency of occurrence in a large sample of music taken from the Western tonal repertoire. There was also an effect of pitch range, so that performance on tones in the two-octave range beginning on Middle C was higher than on tones in the octave below Middle C. In addition, semitone errors tended to be on the sharp side. The evidence also ran counter to the hypothesis, previously advanced by others, that the note A plays a special role in pitch identification judgments.

Number 13 / Part I. Music. 7. Grounds of Absolute Pitch Development in Yamaha Music School

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Iușcă Dorina

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Absolute pitch is defined as the ability to identify the pitch class of a certain given sound without the aid of an external reference pitch (Takeuchi & Hulse, 1993; Deutsch, 2002. The incidence of absolute pitch is extremely rare among the general population, respectively 1 in 10.000 people and it depends on testing conditions such as the number of identified sounds, pitch Chroma, pitch height, timbre, register or requested reaction time, and also on subjects musical training commencing and Eastern-Asian origins. The way absolute pitch develops is described by three models: the tone language theory, the early training theory and the genetic theory. The early training theory states that absolute pitch appears due to the beginning of musical lessons during a critical development period situated before the age of 6. The educational implications of this theory are revealed in the principles and activities of Yamaha Music School which employs didactic strategies that naturally develop absolute pitch. Yamaha Music School is the largest private music education system from Japan, established by Torakusu Yamaha in 1954. Up to this day it has extended in 40 countries from Europe, Asia and the American continents, as it has about 710 million students and 30.000 teachers. The present study aims to illustrate a detailed analysis of the way the learning experiences offered by Yamaha School lead to the development of absolute pitch.

Absolute pitch among students in an American music conservatory: association with tone language fluency.

Science.gov (United States)

Deutsch, Diana; Dooley, Kevin; Henthorn, Trevor; Head, Brian

2009-04-01

Absolute pitch (AP), the ability to name a musical note in the absence of a reference note, is extremely rare in the U.S. and Europe, and its genesis is unclear. The prevalence of AP was examined among students in an American music conservatory as a function of age of onset of musical training, ethnicity, and fluency in speaking a tone language. Taking those of East Asian ethnicity, the performance level on a test of AP was significantly higher among those who spoke a tone language very fluently compared with those who spoke a tone language fairly fluently and also compared with those who were not fluent in speaking a tone language. The performance level of this last group did not differ significantly from that of Caucasian students who spoke only nontone language. Early onset of musical training was associated with enhanced performance, but this did not interact with the effect of language. Further analyses showed that the results could not be explained by country of early music education. The findings support the hypothesis that the acquisition of AP by tone language speakers involves the same process as occurs in the acquisition of a second tone language.

Multiple coding strategies in the retention of musical tones by possessors of absolute pitch.

Science.gov (United States)

Zatorre, R J; Beckett, C

1989-09-01

Eighteen musicians with absolute pitch (AP) confirmed by screening tests participated in tonal and verbal short-term-retention tasks. In the tonal task, subjects identified three successive piano tones by their letter names. Recall of these note names after 18 sec of counting backwards was near perfect. Recall after an 18-sec delay filled with random piano tones was also near perfect. In contrast, the same subjects demonstrated significant forgetting when required to retain letter trigrams while counting backwards for 18 sec. These results were essentially replicated in a second experiment using longer (27 sec) retention intervals, a more demanding verbal interference task, and an active musical interference task (singing a descending scale). We interpret these results as indicating that retention of note names by possessors of AP is not limited to verbal encoding; rather, multiple codes (e.g., auditory, kinesthetic, and visual imagery) are probably used.

Absolute pitch among American and Chinese conservatory students: prevalence differences, and evidence for a speech-related critical period.

Science.gov (United States)

Deutsch, Diana; Henthorn, Trevor; Marvin, Elizabeth; Xu, HongShuai

2006-02-01

Absolute pitch is extremely rare in the U.S. and Europe; this rarity has so far been unexplained. This paper reports a substantial difference in the prevalence of absolute pitch in two normal populations, in a large-scale study employing an on-site test, without self-selection from within the target populations. Music conservatory students in the U.S. and China were tested. The Chinese subjects spoke the tone language Mandarin, in which pitch is involved in conveying the meaning of words. The American subjects were nontone language speakers. The earlier the age of onset of musical training, the greater the prevalence of absolute pitch; however, its prevalence was far greater among the Chinese than the U.S. students for each level of age of onset of musical training. The findings suggest that the potential for acquiring absolute pitch may be universal, and may be realized by enabling infants to associate pitches with verbal labels during the critical period for acquisition of features of their native language.

Telling in-tune from out-of-tune: widespread evidence for implicit absolute intonation.

Science.gov (United States)

Van Hedger, Stephen C; Heald, Shannon L M; Huang, Alex; Rutstein, Brooke; Nusbaum, Howard C

2017-04-01

Absolute pitch (AP) is the rare ability to name or produce an isolated musical note without the aid of a reference note. One skill thought to be unique to AP possessors is the ability to provide absolute intonation judgments (e.g., classifying an isolated note as "in-tune" or "out-of-tune"). Recent work has suggested that absolute intonation perception among AP possessors is not crystallized in a critical period of development, but is dynamically maintained by the listening environment, in which the vast majority of Western music is tuned to a specific cultural standard. Given that all listeners of Western music are constantly exposed to this specific cultural tuning standard, our experiments address whether absolute intonation perception extends beyond AP possessors. We demonstrate that non-AP listeners are able to accurately judge the intonation of completely isolated notes. Both musicians and nonmusicians showed evidence for absolute intonation recognition when listening to familiar timbres (piano and violin). When testing unfamiliar timbres (triangle and inverted sine waves), only musicians showed weak evidence of absolute intonation recognition (Experiment 2). Overall, these results highlight a previously unknown similarity between AP and non-AP possessors' long-term musical note representations, including evidence of sensitivity to frequency.

Veridical mapping in savant abilities, absolute pitch, and synesthesia: An autism case study

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Lucie eBouvet

2014-02-01

Full Text Available An enhanced role and autonomy of perception are prominent in autism. Furthermore, savant abilities, absolute pitch, and synesthesia are all more commonly found in autistic individuals than in the typical population. The mechanism of veridical mapping has been proposed to account for how enhanced perception in autism leads to the high prevalence of these three phenomena and their structural similarity. Veridical mapping entails functional rededication of perceptual brain regions to higher order cognitive operations, allowing the enhanced detection and memorization of isomorphisms between perceptual and non-perceptual structures across multiple scales. In this paper, we present FC, an autistic individual who possesses several savant abilities in addition to both absolute pitch and synesthesia-like associations. The co-occurrence in FC of abilities, some of them rare, which share the same structure, as well as FC’s own accounts of their development, together suggest the importance of veridical mapping in the atypical range and nature of abilities displayed by autistic people.

Pitch memory and exposure effects.

Science.gov (United States)

Ben-Haim, Moshe Shay; Eitan, Zohar; Chajut, Eran

2014-02-01

Recent studies indicate that the ability to represent absolute pitch values in long-term memory, long believed to be the possession of a small minority of trained musicians endowed with "absolute pitch," is in fact shared to some extent by a considerable proportion of the population. The current study examined whether this newly discovered ability affects aspects of music and auditory cognition, particularly pitch learning and evaluation. Our starting points are two well-established premises: (1) frequency of occurrence has an influence on the way we process stimuli; (2) in Western music, some pitches and musical keys are much more frequent than others. Based on these premises, we hypothesize that if absolute pitch values are indeed represented in long-term memory, pitch frequency of occurrence in music would significantly affect cognitive processes, in particular pitch learning and evaluation. Two experiments were designed to test this hypothesis in participants with no absolute pitch, most with little or no musical training. Experiment 1 demonstrated a faster response and a learning advantage for frequent pitches over infrequent pitches in an identification task. In Experiment 2, participants evaluated infrequent pitches as more pleasing than frequent pitches when presented in isolation. These results suggest that absolute pitch representation in memory may play a substantial, hitherto unacknowledged role in auditory (and specifically musical) cognition. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved.

Gray- and White-Matter Anatomy of Absolute Pitch Possessors

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dohn, Anders; Garza-Villarreal, Eduardo A.; Chakravarty, Mallar

2015-01-01

structural differences in brains of musicians with and without AP, by means of whole brain vertex- wise cortical thickness analysis and tract-based spatial statistics (TBSS) analysis. AP possessors (APs) displayed increased cortical thickness in a number of areas including the left superior temporal gyrus......, the left inferior frontal gyrus, and the right supramarginal gyrus. Furthermore, we found increased fractional anisotropy in APs within the path of the inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus, the uncinate fasciculus and the inferior longitudinal fasciculus. The findings in gray matter support previous...... studies indicating an increased left lateralized posterior superior temporal gyrus in APs, yet they differ from previous findings of thinner cortex for a number of areas in APs. Finally, we found a correlation between the white matter cluster and the right parahippocampal gyrus. This is a novel finding...

Self-propelled heaving and pitching flexible fin in a quiescent flow

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Boyoung; Park, Sung Goon; Huang, Weixi; Sung, Hyung Jin

2016-01-01

Highlights: • A self-propelled flexible fin with heaving and pitching motions in a quiescent flow has been simulated by using the penalty immersed boundary method. • The cruising speed and the swimming efficiency of the self-propelled fin were determined as functions of the bending coefficient (γ), the heaving amplitude (A_h). • We optimized the cruising speed and the swimming efficiency with respect to γ, f, A_h, A_p, and Δϕ. - Abstract: A self-propelled flexible fin with heaving and pitching motions in a quiescent flow has been simulated by using the penalty immersed boundary method. The flexible fin can move freely in the horizontal direction and the body of the flexible fin moves passively along with the active head motion. The position of the head of the fin was described as a harmonic heaving oscillation in the vertical direction, while the inclination angle of the head was prescribed as a harmonic oscillation with a moving clamped condition for the heaving and pitching fin. The cruising speed and the swimming efficiency of the self-propelled fin were determined as functions of the bending stiffness (γ), the heaving amplitude (A_h), the pitching amplitude (A_p), the flapping frequency (f) and the phase difference (Δϕ) between A_h and A_p. We optimized the cruising speed and the swimming efficiency with respect to γ, f, A_h, A_p and Δϕ. For a certain range of A_p, the swimming efficiency of the heaving and pitching fin is larger than that of a heaving-only fin.

Long-term memory for pitch in six-month-old infants.

Science.gov (United States)

Plantinga, Judy; Trainor, Laurel J

2003-11-01

We examined 6-month-old infants' long-term memory representations for the pitch of familiar melodies. Infants remembered the relative pitch of the melodies, but the absolute pitch was either not remembered or not a particularly salient attribute.

New insights into the effects of styrene-butadiene-styrene polymer modifier on the structure, properties, and performance of asphalt binder: The case of AP-5 asphalt and solvent deasphalting pitch

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nciri, Nader, E-mail: nader.nciri@koreatech.ac.kr [Department of Energy, Materials, and Chemical Engineering, Korea University of Technology and Education, 1600 Chungjeol-ro, Byeongcheon-myeon, Dongnam-gu, Cheonan-City, Chungnam-Province 330-708 (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Namho [Department of Architectural Engineering, Korea University of Technology and Education, 1600 Chungjeol-ro, Byeongcheon-myeon, Dongnam-gu, Cheonan-City, Chungnam-Province 330-708 (Korea, Republic of); Cho, Namjun, E-mail: njuncho@koreatech.ac.kr [Department of Energy, Materials, and Chemical Engineering, Korea University of Technology and Education, 1600 Chungjeol-ro, Byeongcheon-myeon, Dongnam-gu, Cheonan-City, Chungnam-Province 330-708 (Korea, Republic of)

2017-06-01

This paper deals with the poorly understood effects of styrene-butadiene-styrene (SBS) copolymer on the bitumen performance. It focuses on determining the impact of various concentrations (e.g., 0, 4, 8, and 12 wt. %) of SBS on the attributes of two types of asphalt namely AP-5 asphalt and solvent deasphalting (SDA) pitch. The unmodified and modified binders were investigated in terms of their chemical compositions, microstructures, thermo-analytical behaviors, and physical properties. The intricate chemical compositions were evaluated by elemental analysis and thin layer chromatography-ionization detection (TLC-FID). Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopies, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were utilized to examine the microstructures. Whereas, thermal characteristics were evaluated by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA/DTGA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The physical behaviors were monitored through the softening point, penetration, viscosity, and ductility tests. The findings showed that the blending of asphalt with different amounts of SBS resulted into different rheological behaviors. This was reflected from the difference in the SARA (i.e., saturates, aromatics, resins, and asphaltenes) compositions and colloidal instability indexes of the modified asphalts. SEM exhibited a continuous asphalt phase with distributed SBS particles, a continuous polymer phase with distributed asphalt globules, or two interconnected continuous phases. FT-IR, {sup 1}H {sup 13}C NMR, and XRD data revealed that the AP-5 asphalt and SDA pitch experienced a number of distinct structural changes. TGA/DSC studies determined the occurrence of diverse events during thermal treatment. It is concluded that the degree of SBS modification depends strongly on SARA composition and polymer content. If the polymers are molded at higher concentrations along with aromatics-rich SDA pitches, then the mixtures

Pitch memory, labelling and disembedding in autism.

Science.gov (United States)

Heaton, Pamela

2003-05-01

Autistic musical savants invariably possess absolute pitch ability and are able to disembed individual musical tones from chords. Enhanced pitch discrimination and memory has been found in non-savant individuals with autism who also show superior performance on visual disembedding tasks. These experiments investigate the extent that enhanced disembedding ability will be found within the musical domain in autism. High-functioning children with autism, together with age- and intelligence-matched controls, participated in three experiments testing pitch memory, labelling and chord disembedding. The findings from experiment 1 showed enhanced pitch memory and labelling in the autism group. In experiment 2, when subjects were pre-exposed to labelled individual tones, superior chord segmentation was also found. However, in experiment 3, when disembedding performance was less reliant on pitch memory, no group differences emerged and the children with autism, like controls, perceived musical chords holistically. These findings indicate that pitch memory and labelling is superior in autism and can facilitate performance on musical disembedding tasks. However, when task performance does not rely on long-term pitch memory, autistic children, like controls, succumb to the Gestalt qualities of chords.

Half pitch lower sound perception caused by carbamazepine.

Science.gov (United States)

Konno, Shyu; Yamazaki, Etsuko; Kudoh, Masako; Abe, Takashi; Tohgi, Hideo

2003-09-01

We report a 16-year-old woman with secondary generalization of partial seizure, who complained of an auditory disturbance after carbamazepine (CBZ) administration. She had been taking sodium valproate (VPA) from the age of 15. However, her seizures remained poorly controlled. We changed her antiepileptic drug from VPA to CBZ. At 1 week after CBZ administration, she noticed that electone musical performances were heard as a semitone lower. When oral administration of CBZ was stopped, her pitch perception returned to normal. If she had not been able to discern absolute pitch, she might have been unable to recognize her lowered pitch perception. Auditory disturbance caused by CBZ is reversible and very rare.

Individuals with congenital amusia imitate pitches more accurately in singing than in speaking: implications for music and language processing.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Fang; Jiang, Cunmei; Pfordresher, Peter Q; Mantell, James T; Xu, Yi; Yang, Yufang; Stewart, Lauren

2013-11-01

In this study, we investigated the impact of congenital amusia, a disorder of musical processing, on speech and song imitation in speakers of a tone language, Mandarin. A group of 13 Mandarin-speaking individuals with congenital amusia and 13 matched controls were recorded while imitating a set of speech and two sets of song stimuli with varying pitch and rhythm patterns. The results indicated that individuals with congenital amusia were worse than controls in both speech and song imitation, in terms of both pitch matching (absolute and relative) and rhythm matching (relative time and number of time errors). Like the controls, individuals with congenital amusia achieved better absolute and relative pitch matching and made fewer pitch interval and contour errors in song than in speech imitation. These findings point toward domain-general pitch (and time) production deficits in congenital amusia, suggesting the presence of shared pitch production mechanisms but distinct requirements for pitch-matching accuracy in language and music processing.

Timing matters: The processing of pitch relations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Annekathrin eWeise

2014-06-01

Full Text Available The human central auditory system can automatically extract abstract regularities from a variant auditory input. To this end, temporarily separated events need to be related. This study tested whether the timing between events, falling either within or outside the temporal window of integration (~350 ms, impacts the extraction of abstract feature relations. We utilized tone pairs for which tones within but not across pairs revealed a constant pitch relation (e.g. pitch of 2nd tone of a pair higher than pitch of 1st tone, while absolute pitch values varied across pairs. We measured the Mismatch Negativity (MMN; the brain’s error signal to auditory regularity violations to 2nd tones that rarely violated the pitch relation (e.g. pitch of 2nd tone lower. A Short condition in which tone duration (90 ms and stimulus onset asynchrony between the tones of a pair were short (110 ms was compared to two conditions, where this onset asynchrony was long (510 ms. In the Long Gap condition the tone durations were identical to Short (90 ms, but the silent interval was prolonged by 400 ms. In Long Tone the duration of the first tone was prolonged by 400 ms, while the silent interval was comparable to Short (20 ms. Results show a frontocentral MMN of comparable amplitude in all conditions. Thus, abstract pitch relations can be extracted even when the within-pair timing exceeds the integration period. Source analyses indicate MMN generators in the supratemporal cortex. Interestingly, they were located more anterior in Long Gap than in Short and Long Tone. Moreover, frontal generator activity was found for Long Gap and Long Tone. Thus, the way in which the system automatically registers irregular abstract pitch relations depends on the timing of the events to be linked. Pending that the current MMN data mirror established abstract rule representations coding the regular pitch relation, neural processes building these templates vary with timing.

Timing matters: the processing of pitch relations

Science.gov (United States)

Weise, Annekathrin; Grimm, Sabine; Trujillo-Barreto, Nelson J.; Schröger, Erich

2014-01-01

The human central auditory system can automatically extract abstract regularities from a variant auditory input. To this end, temporarily separated events need to be related. This study tested whether the timing between events, falling either within or outside the temporal window of integration (~350 ms), impacts the extraction of abstract feature relations. We utilized tone pairs for which tones within but not across pairs revealed a constant pitch relation (e.g., pitch of second tone of a pair higher than pitch of first tone, while absolute pitch values varied across pairs). We measured the mismatch negativity (MMN; the brain’s error signal to auditory regularity violations) to second tones that rarely violated the pitch relation (e.g., pitch of second tone lower). A Short condition in which tone duration (90 ms) and stimulus onset asynchrony between the tones of a pair were short (110 ms) was compared to two conditions, where this onset asynchrony was long (510 ms). In the Long Gap condition, the tone durations were identical to Short (90 ms), but the silent interval was prolonged by 400 ms. In Long Tone, the duration of the first tone was prolonged by 400 ms, while the silent interval was comparable to Short (20 ms). Results show a frontocentral MMN of comparable amplitude in all conditions. Thus, abstract pitch relations can be extracted even when the within-pair timing exceeds the integration period. Source analyses indicate MMN generators in the supratemporal cortex. Interestingly, they were located more anterior in Long Gap than in Short and Long Tone. Moreover, frontal generator activity was found for Long Gap and Long Tone. Thus, the way in which the system automatically registers irregular abstract pitch relations depends on the timing of the events to be linked. Pending that the current MMN data mirror established abstract rule representations coding the regular pitch relation, neural processes building these templates vary with timing. PMID:24966823

Singing with yourself: evidence for an inverse modeling account of poor-pitch singing.

Science.gov (United States)

Pfordresher, Peter Q; Mantell, James T

2014-05-01

Singing is a ubiquitous and culturally significant activity that humans engage in from an early age. Nevertheless, some individuals - termed poor-pitch singers - are unable to match target pitches within a musical semitone while singing. In the experiments reported here, we tested whether poor-pitch singing deficits would be reduced when individuals imitate recordings of themselves as opposed to recordings of other individuals. This prediction was based on the hypothesis that poor-pitch singers have not developed an abstract "inverse model" of the auditory-vocal system and instead must rely on sensorimotor associations that they have experienced directly, which is true for sequences an individual has already produced. In three experiments, participants, both accurate and poor-pitch singers, were better able to imitate sung recordings of themselves than sung recordings of other singers. However, this self-advantage was enhanced for poor-pitch singers. These effects were not a byproduct of self-recognition (Experiment 1), vocal timbre (Experiment 2), or the absolute pitch of target recordings (i.e., the advantage remains when recordings are transposed, Experiment 3). Results support the conceptualization of poor-pitch singing as an imitative deficit resulting from a deficient inverse model of the auditory-vocal system with respect to pitch. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A new gap separation mechanism for APS insertion devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Trakhtenberg, E. M.; Tcheskidov, V.; Den Hartog, P. K.; Deriy, B.; Erdmann, M.; Makarov, O.; Moog, E. R.

1999-01-01

A new gap separation mechanism for use with the standard Advanced Photon Source (APS) 3.3-cm-period undulator magnetic structures has been designed and built and the first system has been installed in the APS storage ring. The system allows a minimum magnetic gap of 10 mm for use with the APS 8-mm insertion device vacuum chambers. The mechanism is a bolted steel frame structure with a simple 4-motor mechanical drive train. The control system uses servomotors with incremental rotary encoders and virtual absolute linear encoders

SEPTUM MAGNET DESIGN FOR THE APS-U

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Abliz, M.; Jaski, M.; Xiao, A.; Wienands, U.; Cease, H.; Borland, M.; Decker, G.; Kerby, J.

2017-06-25

The Advanced Photon Source is in the process of upgrading its storage ring from a double-bend to a multi-bend lattice as part of the APS Upgrade Project (APS-U). A swap-out injection scheme is planned for the APS-U to keep a constant beam current and to enable a small dynamic aperture. A septum magnet with a minimum thickness of 2 mm and an injection field of 1.06 T has been designed, delivering the required total deflecting angle is 89 mrad with a ring energy of 6 GeV. The stored beam chamber has an 8 mm x 6 mm super-ellipsoidal aperture. The magnet is straight; however, it is tilted in yaw, roll, and pitch from the stored beam chamber to meet the on axis swap out injection requirements for the APS-U lattice. In order to minimize the leakage field inside the stored beam chamber, four different techniques were utilized in the design. As a result, the horizontal deflecting angle of the stored beam was held to only 5 µrad, and the integrated skew quadrupole inside the stored beam chamber was held to 0.09 T. The detailed techniques that were applied to the design, field multipoles, and resulting trajectories of the injected and stored beams are reported.

Uncovering phenotypes of poor-pitch singing: the Sung Performance Battery (SPB)

Science.gov (United States)

Berkowska, Magdalena; Dalla Bella, Simone

2013-01-01

Singing is as natural as speaking for humans. Increasing evidence shows that the layman can carry a tune (e.g., when asked to sing a well-known song or to imitate single pitches, intervals and short melodies). Yet, important individual differences exist in the general population with regard to singing proficiency. Some individuals are particularly inaccurate or imprecise in producing or imitating pitch information (poor-pitch singers), thus showing a variety of singing phenotypes. Unfortunately, so far there is not a standard set of tasks for assessing singing proficiency in the general population, allowing to uncover and characterize individual profiles of poor-pitch singing. Different tasks and analysis methods are typically used in various experiments, making the comparison of the results across studies arduous. To fill this gap we propose here a new tool for assessing singing proficiency (the Sung Performance Battery, SPB). The SPB starts from the assessment of participants' vocal range followed by five tasks: (1) single-pitch matching, (2) pitch-interval matching, (3) novel-melody matching, (4) singing from memory of familiar melodies (with lyrics and on a syllable), and (5) singing of familiar melodies (with lyrics and on a syllable) at a slow tempo indicated by a metronome. Data analysis via acoustical methods provides objective measures of pitch accuracy and precision in terms of absolute and relative pitch. The SPB has been tested in a group of 50 occasional singers. The results indicate that the battery is useful for characterizing proficient singing and for detecting cases of inaccurate and/or imprecise singing. PMID:24151475

Uncovering phenotypes of poor-pitch singing: The Sung Performance Battery (SPB

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Magdalena eBerkowska

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Singing is as natural as speaking for humans. Increasing evidence shows that the layman can carry a tune (e.g., when asked to sing a well-known song or to imitate single pitches, intervals and short melodies. Yet, important individual differences exist in the general population with regard to singing proficiency. Some individuals are particularly inaccurate or imprecise in producing or imitating pitch information (poor-pitch singers, thus showing a variety of singing phenotypes. Unfortunately, so far there is not a standard set of tasks for assessing singing proficiency in the general population, allowing to uncover and characterize individual profiles of poor-pitch singing. Different tasks and analysis methods are typically used in various experiments, making the comparison of the results across studies arduous. To fill this gap we propose here a new tool for assessing singing proficiency (the Sung Performance Battery, SPB. The SPB starts from the assessment of participants’ vocal range followed by five tasks: 1 single-pitch matching, 2 pitch-interval matching, 3 novel-melody matching, 4 singing from memory of familiar melodies (with lyrics and on a syllable, and 5 singing of familiar melodies (with lyrics and on a syllable at a slow tempo indicated by a metronome. Data analysis via acoustical methods provides objective measures of pitch accuracy and precision in terms of absolute and relative pitch. The SPB has been tested in a group of 50 occasional singers. The results indicate that the battery is useful for characterizing proficient singing and for detecting cases of inaccurate and/or imprecise singing.

50 μm pixel pitch wafer-scale CMOS active pixel sensor x-ray detector for digital breast tomosynthesis.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, C; Konstantinidis, A C; Zheng, Y; Anaxagoras, T; Speller, R D; Kanicki, J

2015-12-07

Wafer-scale CMOS active pixel sensors (APSs) have been developed recently for x-ray imaging applications. The small pixel pitch and low noise are very promising properties for medical imaging applications such as digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT). In this work, we evaluated experimentally and through modeling the imaging properties of a 50 μm pixel pitch CMOS APS x-ray detector named DynAMITe (Dynamic Range Adjustable for Medical Imaging Technology). A modified cascaded system model was developed for CMOS APS x-ray detectors by taking into account the device nonlinear signal and noise properties. The imaging properties such as modulation transfer function (MTF), noise power spectrum (NPS), and detective quantum efficiency (DQE) were extracted from both measurements and the nonlinear cascaded system analysis. The results show that the DynAMITe x-ray detector achieves a high spatial resolution of 10 mm(-1) and a DQE of around 0.5 at spatial frequencies  CMOS APS x-ray detector, image aquisition geometry and image reconstruction techniques should be considered.

Vocal Pitch Shift in Congenital Amusia (Pitch Deafness)

Science.gov (United States)

Hutchins, Sean; Peretz, Isabelle

2013-01-01

We tested whether congenital amusics, who exhibit pitch perception deficits, nevertheless adjust the pitch of their voice in response to a sudden pitch shift applied to vocal feedback. Nine amusics and matched controls imitated their own previously-recorded speech or singing, while the online feedback they received was shifted mid-utterance by 25…

Difficulties with Pitch Discrimination Influences Pitch Memory Performance: Evidence from Congenital Amusia

OpenAIRE

Jiang, Cunmei; Lim, Vanessa K.; Wang, Hang; Hamm, Jeff P.

2013-01-01

Music processing is influenced by pitch perception and memory. Additionally these features interact, with pitch memory performance decreasing as the perceived distance between two pitches decreases. This study examined whether or not the difficulty of pitch discrimination influences pitch retention by testing individuals with congenital amusia. Pitch discrimination difficulty was equated by determining an individual's threshold with a two down one up staircase procedure and using this to crea...

Difficulties with pitch discrimination influences pitch memory performance: evidence from congenital amusia.

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, Cunmei; Lim, Vanessa K; Wang, Hang; Hamm, Jeff P

2013-01-01

Music processing is influenced by pitch perception and memory. Additionally these features interact, with pitch memory performance decreasing as the perceived distance between two pitches decreases. This study examined whether or not the difficulty of pitch discrimination influences pitch retention by testing individuals with congenital amusia. Pitch discrimination difficulty was equated by determining an individual's threshold with a two down one up staircase procedure and using this to create conditions where two pitches (the standard and the comparison tones) differed by 1x, 2x, and 3x the threshold setting. For comparison with the literature a condition that employed a constant pitch difference of four semitones was also included. The results showed that pitch memory performance improved as the discrimination between the standard and the comparison tones was made easier for both amusic and control groups, and more importantly, that amusics did not show any pitch retention deficits when the discrimination difficulty was equated. In contrast, consistent with previous literature, amusics performed worse than controls when the physical pitch distance was held constant at four semitones. This impaired performance has been interpreted as evidence for pitch memory impairment in the past. However, employing a constant pitch distance always makes the difference closer to the discrimination threshold for the amusic group than for the control group. Therefore, reduced performance in this condition may simply reflect differences in the perceptual difficulty of the discrimination. The findings indicate the importance of equating the discrimination difficulty when investigating memory.

Difficulties with pitch discrimination influences pitch memory performance: evidence from congenital amusia.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cunmei Jiang

Full Text Available Music processing is influenced by pitch perception and memory. Additionally these features interact, with pitch memory performance decreasing as the perceived distance between two pitches decreases. This study examined whether or not the difficulty of pitch discrimination influences pitch retention by testing individuals with congenital amusia. Pitch discrimination difficulty was equated by determining an individual's threshold with a two down one up staircase procedure and using this to create conditions where two pitches (the standard and the comparison tones differed by 1x, 2x, and 3x the threshold setting. For comparison with the literature a condition that employed a constant pitch difference of four semitones was also included. The results showed that pitch memory performance improved as the discrimination between the standard and the comparison tones was made easier for both amusic and control groups, and more importantly, that amusics did not show any pitch retention deficits when the discrimination difficulty was equated. In contrast, consistent with previous literature, amusics performed worse than controls when the physical pitch distance was held constant at four semitones. This impaired performance has been interpreted as evidence for pitch memory impairment in the past. However, employing a constant pitch distance always makes the difference closer to the discrimination threshold for the amusic group than for the control group. Therefore, reduced performance in this condition may simply reflect differences in the perceptual difficulty of the discrimination. The findings indicate the importance of equating the discrimination difficulty when investigating memory.

Establishment of expanded and streamlined pipeline of PITCh knock-in - a web-based design tool for MMEJ-mediated gene knock-in, PITCh designer, and the variations of PITCh, PITCh-TG and PITCh-KIKO.

Science.gov (United States)

Nakamae, Kazuki; Nishimura, Yuki; Takenaga, Mitsumasa; Nakade, Shota; Sakamoto, Naoaki; Ide, Hiroshi; Sakuma, Tetsushi; Yamamoto, Takashi

2017-05-04

The emerging genome editing technology has enabled the creation of gene knock-in cells easily, efficiently, and rapidly, which has dramatically accelerated research in the field of mammalian functional genomics, including in humans. We recently developed a microhomology-mediated end-joining-based gene knock-in method, termed the PITCh system, and presented various examples of its application. Since the PITCh system only requires very short microhomologies (up to 40 bp) and single-guide RNA target sites on the donor vector, the targeting construct can be rapidly prepared compared with the conventional targeting vector for homologous recombination-based knock-in. Here, we established a streamlined pipeline to design and perform PITCh knock-in to further expand the availability of this method by creating web-based design software, PITCh designer ( http://www.mls.sci.hiroshima-u.ac.jp/smg/PITChdesigner/index.html ), as well as presenting an experimental example of versatile gene cassette knock-in. PITCh designer can automatically design not only the appropriate microhomologies but also the primers to construct locus-specific donor vectors for PITCh knock-in. By using our newly established pipeline, a reporter cell line for monitoring endogenous gene expression, and transgenesis (TG) or knock-in/knockout (KIKO) cell line can be produced systematically. Using these new variations of PITCh, an exogenous promoter-driven gene cassette expressing fluorescent protein gene and drug resistance gene can be integrated into a safe harbor or a specific gene locus to create transgenic reporter cells (PITCh-TG) or knockout cells with reporter knock-in (PITCh-KIKO), respectively.

Imperfect pitch: Gabor's uncertainty principle and the pitch of extremely brief sounds.

Science.gov (United States)

Hsieh, I-Hui; Saberi, Kourosh

2016-02-01

How brief must a sound be before its pitch is no longer perceived? The uncertainty tradeoff between temporal and spectral resolution (Gabor's principle) limits the minimum duration required for accurate pitch identification or discrimination. Prior studies have reported that pitch can be extracted from sinusoidal pulses as brief as half a cycle. This finding has been used in a number of classic papers to develop models of pitch encoding. We have found that phase randomization, which eliminates timbre confounds, degrades this ability to chance, raising serious concerns over the foundation on which classic pitch models have been built. The current study investigated whether subthreshold pitch cues may still exist in partial-cycle pulses revealed through statistical integration in a time series containing multiple pulses. To this end, we measured frequency-discrimination thresholds in a two-interval forced-choice task for trains of partial-cycle random-phase tone pulses. We found that residual pitch cues exist in these pulses but discriminating them requires an order of magnitude (ten times) larger frequency difference than that reported previously, necessitating a re-evaluation of pitch models built on earlier findings. We also found that as pulse duration is decreased to less than two cycles its pitch becomes biased toward higher frequencies, consistent with predictions of an auto-correlation model of pitch extraction.

Establishment of expanded and streamlined pipeline of PITCh knock-in – a web-based design tool for MMEJ-mediated gene knock-in, PITCh designer, and the variations of PITCh, PITCh-TG and PITCh-KIKO

Science.gov (United States)

Nakamae, Kazuki; Nishimura, Yuki; Takenaga, Mitsumasa; Sakamoto, Naoaki; Ide, Hiroshi; Sakuma, Tetsushi; Yamamoto, Takashi

2017-01-01

ABSTRACT The emerging genome editing technology has enabled the creation of gene knock-in cells easily, efficiently, and rapidly, which has dramatically accelerated research in the field of mammalian functional genomics, including in humans. We recently developed a microhomology-mediated end-joining-based gene knock-in method, termed the PITCh system, and presented various examples of its application. Since the PITCh system only requires very short microhomologies (up to 40 bp) and single-guide RNA target sites on the donor vector, the targeting construct can be rapidly prepared compared with the conventional targeting vector for homologous recombination-based knock-in. Here, we established a streamlined pipeline to design and perform PITCh knock-in to further expand the availability of this method by creating web-based design software, PITCh designer (http://www.mls.sci.hiroshima-u.ac.jp/smg/PITChdesigner/index.html), as well as presenting an experimental example of versatile gene cassette knock-in. PITCh designer can automatically design not only the appropriate microhomologies but also the primers to construct locus-specific donor vectors for PITCh knock-in. By using our newly established pipeline, a reporter cell line for monitoring endogenous gene expression, and transgenesis (TG) or knock-in/knockout (KIKO) cell line can be produced systematically. Using these new variations of PITCh, an exogenous promoter-driven gene cassette expressing fluorescent protein gene and drug resistance gene can be integrated into a safe harbor or a specific gene locus to create transgenic reporter cells (PITCh-TG) or knockout cells with reporter knock-in (PITCh-KIKO), respectively. PMID:28453368

Pitch discrimination learning: specificity for pitch and harmonic resolvability, and electrophysiological correlates.

Science.gov (United States)

Carcagno, Samuele; Plack, Christopher J

2011-08-01

Multiple-hour training on a pitch discrimination task dramatically decreases the threshold for detecting a pitch difference between two harmonic complexes. Here, we investigated the specificity of this perceptual learning with respect to the pitch and the resolvability of the trained harmonic complex, as well as its cortical electrophysiological correlates. We trained 24 participants for 12 h on a pitch discrimination task using one of four different harmonic complexes. The complexes differed in pitch and/or spectral resolvability of their components by the cochlea, but were filtered into the same spectral region. Cortical-evoked potentials and a behavioral measure of pitch discrimination were assessed before and after training for all the four complexes. The change in these measures was compared to that of two control groups: one trained on a level discrimination task and one without any training. The behavioral results showed that learning was partly specific to both pitch and resolvability. Training with a resolved-harmonic complex improved pitch discrimination for resolved complexes more than training with an unresolved complex. However, we did not find evidence that training with an unresolved complex leads to specific learning for unresolved complexes. Training affected the P2 component of the cortical-evoked potentials, as well as a later component (250-400 ms). No significant changes were found on the mismatch negativity (MMN) component, although a separate experiment showed that this measure was sensitive to pitch changes equivalent to the pitch discriminability changes induced by training. This result suggests that pitch discrimination training affects processes not measured by the MMN, for example, processes higher in level or parallel to those involved in MMN generation.

Absolute Memory for Tempo in Musicians and Non-Musicians.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Irene Gratton

Full Text Available The ability to remember tempo (the perceived frequency of musical pulse without external references may be defined, by analogy with the notion of absolute pitch, as absolute tempo (AT. Anecdotal reports and sparse empirical evidence suggest that at least some individuals possess AT. However, to our knowledge, no systematic assessments of AT have been performed using laboratory tasks comparable to those assessing absolute pitch. In the present study, we operationalize AT as the ability to identify and reproduce tempo in the absence of rhythmic or melodic frames of reference and assess these abilities in musically trained and untrained participants. We asked 15 musicians and 15 non-musicians to listen to a seven-step `tempo scale' of metronome beats, each associated to a numerical label, and then to perform two memory tasks. In the first task, participants heard one of the tempi and attempted to report the correct label (identification task, in the second, they saw one label and attempted to tap the correct tempo (production task. A musical and visual excerpt was presented between successive trials as a distractor to prevent participants from using previous tempi as anchors. Thus, participants needed to encode tempo information with the corresponding label, store the information, and recall it to give the response. We found that more than half were able to perform above chance in at least one of the tasks, and that musical training differentiated between participants in identification, but not in production. These results suggest that AT is relatively wide-spread, relatively independent of musical training in tempo production, but further refined by training in tempo identification. We propose that at least in production, the underlying motor representations are related to tactus, a basic internal rhythmic period that may provide a body-based reference for encoding tempo.

Lung studies with spiral CT. pitch 1 versus pitch 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sartoni Galloni, S.; Miceli, M.; Lipparino, M.; Burzi, M.; Gigli, F.; Rossi, M.S.; Santoli, G.; Guidarelli, G.

1999-01-01

In Spiral CT, the pitch is the ratio of the distance to tabletop travels per 360 degrees rotation to nominal slice width, expressed in mm. Performing Spiral CT examination with pitch 2 allows to reduce examination time, exposure and contrast dose, and X-ray tube overload. The authors investigated the yield of pitch 2 in lung parenchyma studies, particular relative to diagnostic image quality [it

Consonance and pitch.

Science.gov (United States)

McLachlan, Neil; Marco, David; Light, Maria; Wilson, Sarah

2013-11-01

To date, no consensus exists in the literature as to theories of consonance and dissonance. Experimental data collected over the last century have raised questions about the dominant theories that are based on frequency relationships between the harmonics of music chords. This study provides experimental evidence that strongly challenges these theories and suggests a new theory of dissonance based on relationships between pitch perception and recognition. Experiment 1 shows that dissonance does not increase with increasing numbers of harmonics in chords as predicted by Helmholtz's (1863/1954) roughness theory, nor does it increase with fewer pitch-matching errors as predicted by Stumpf's (1898) tonal fusion theory. Dissonance was strongly correlated with pitch-matching error for chords, which in turn was reduced by chord familiarity and greater music training. This led to the proposition that long-term memory templates for common chords assist the perception of pitches in chords by providing an estimate of the chord intervals from spectral information. When recognition mechanisms based on these templates fail, the spectral pitch estimate is inconsistent with the period of the waveform, leading to cognitive incongruence and the negative affect of dissonance. The cognitive incongruence theory of dissonance was rigorously tested in Experiment 2, in which nonmusicians were trained to match the pitches of a random selection of 2-pitch chords. After 10 training sessions, they rated the chords they had learned to pitch match as less dissonant than the unlearned chords, irrespective of their tuning, providing strong support for a cognitive mechanism of dissonance. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved.

Pitch Discrimination Learning: Specificity for Pitch and Harmonic Resolvability, and Electrophysiological Correlates

OpenAIRE

Carcagno, Samuele; Plack, Christopher J.

2011-01-01

Multiple-hour training on a pitch discrimination task dramatically decreases the threshold for detecting a pitch difference between two harmonic complexes. Here, we investigated the specificity of this perceptual learning with respect to the pitch and the resolvability of the trained harmonic complex, as well as its cortical electrophysiological correlates. We trained 24 participants for 12 h on a pitch discrimination task using one of four different harmonic complexes. The complexes differed...

Pitch-verticality and pitch-size cross-modal interactions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bonetti, Leonardo; Costa, Marco

2017-01-01

Two studies were conducted on cross-modal matching between pitch and sound source localization on the vertical axis, and pitch and size. In the first study 100 Hz, 200 Hz, 600 Hz, and 800 Hz tones were emitted by a loudspeaker positioned 60 cm above or below to the participant’s ear level. Using...

Softball Pitching and Injury.

Science.gov (United States)

Lear, Aaron; Patel, Niraj

2016-01-01

The windmill softball pitch generates considerable forces about the athlete's shoulder and elbow. The injury pattern of softball pitchers seems to be primarily overuse injury, and they seem not to suffer the same volume of injury that baseball pitchers do. This article will explore softball pitching techniques, kinetics and kinematics of the windmill pitch, epidemiology of softball pitchers, and discuss possible etiologies of softball pitching injuries.

Factors affecting relative pitch perception

OpenAIRE

McClaskey, Carolyn Marie

2016-01-01

Sounds that evoke a sense of pitch are ubiquitous in our environment and important for speech, music, and auditory scene analysis. The frequencies of these sounds rarely remain constant, however, and the direction and extent of pitch change is often more important than the exact pitches themselves. This dissertation examines the mechanisms underlying how we perceive relative pitch distance, focusing on two types of stimuli: continuous pitch changes and discrete pitch changes. In a series of e...

Effect of Tube Pitch on Pool Boiling Heat Transfer of Vertical Tube Bundle

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kang, Myeong Gie

2016-01-01

Summarizing the previous results it can be stated that heat transfer coefficients are highly dependent on the tube pitch and the heat flux of the relevant tube. The published results are mostly about the horizontal tubes. However, there are many heat exchangers consisting of vertical tubes like AP600. Therefore, the focus of the present study is an identification of the effects of a tube pitch as well as the heat flux of a relevant tube on the heat transfer of a tube bundle installed vertically. When the heat flux is increased many bubbles are generating due to the increase of the nucleation sites. The bubbles become coalescing with the nearby bubbles and generates big bunches of bubbles on the tube surface. This prevents the access of the liquid to the surface and deteriorates heat transfer. The bubble coalescence is competing with the mechanisms enhancing heat transfer. The pitch was varied from 28.5 mm to 95 mm and the heat flux of the nearby tube was changed from 0 to 90kW/m"2. The enhancement of the heat transfer is clearly observed when the heat flux of the nearby tube becomes larger and the heat flux of the upper tube is less than 40kW/m"2. The effect of the tube pitch on heat transfer is negligible as the value of DP/ is increased more than 4.

Perceptual pitch deficits coexist with pitch production difficulties in music but not Mandarin speech

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Wu-xia; Feng, Jie; Huang, Wan-ting; Zhang, Cheng-xiang; Nan, Yun

2014-01-01

Congenital amusia is a musical disorder that mainly affects pitch perception. Among Mandarin speakers, some amusics also have difficulties in processing lexical tones (tone agnosics). To examine to what extent these perceptual deficits may be related to pitch production impairments in music and Mandarin speech, eight amusics, eight tone agnosics, and 12 age- and IQ-matched normal native Mandarin speakers were asked to imitate music note sequences and Mandarin words of comparable lengths. The results indicated that both the amusics and tone agnosics underperformed the controls on musical pitch production. However, tone agnosics performed no worse than the amusics, suggesting that lexical tone perception deficits may not aggravate musical pitch production difficulties. Moreover, these three groups were all able to imitate lexical tones with perfect intelligibility. Taken together, the current study shows that perceptual musical pitch and lexical tone deficits might coexist with musical pitch production difficulties. But at the same time these perceptual pitch deficits might not affect lexical tone production or the intelligibility of the speech words that were produced. The perception-production relationship for pitch among individuals with perceptual pitch deficits may be, therefore, domain-dependent. PMID:24474944

Perceptual Pitch Deficits Coexist with Pitch Production Difficulties in Music but Not Mandarin Speech

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wu-xia eYang

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Congenital amusia is a musical disorder that mainly affects pitch perception. Among Mandarin speakers, some amusics also have difficulties in processing lexical tones (tone agnosics. To examine to what extent these perceptual deficits may be related to pitch production impairments in music and Mandarin speech, 8 amusics, 8 tone agnosics, and 12 age- and IQ-matched normal native Mandarin speakers were asked to imitate music note sequences and Mandarin words of comparable lengths. The results indicated that both the amusics and tone agnosics underperformed the controls on musical pitch production. However, tone agnosics performed no worse than the amusics, suggesting that lexical tone perception deficits may not aggravate musical pitch production difficulties. Moreover, these three groups were all able to imitate lexical tones with perfect intelligibility. Taken together, the current study shows that perceptual musical pitch and lexical tone deficits might coexist with musical pitch production difficulties. But at the same time these perceptual pitch deficits might not affect lexical tone production or the intelligibility of the speech words that were produced. The perception-production relationship for pitch among individuals with perceptual pitch deficits may be, therefore, domain-dependent.

50 μm pixel pitch wafer-scale CMOS active pixel sensor x-ray detector for digital breast tomosynthesis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhao, C; Kanicki, J; Konstantinidis, A C; Zheng, Y; Speller, R D; Anaxagoras, T

2015-01-01

Wafer-scale CMOS active pixel sensors (APSs) have been developed recently for x-ray imaging applications. The small pixel pitch and low noise are very promising properties for medical imaging applications such as digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT). In this work, we evaluated experimentally and through modeling the imaging properties of a 50 μm pixel pitch CMOS APS x-ray detector named DynAMITe (Dynamic Range Adjustable for Medical Imaging Technology). A modified cascaded system model was developed for CMOS APS x-ray detectors by taking into account the device nonlinear signal and noise properties. The imaging properties such as modulation transfer function (MTF), noise power spectrum (NPS), and detective quantum efficiency (DQE) were extracted from both measurements and the nonlinear cascaded system analysis. The results show that the DynAMITe x-ray detector achieves a high spatial resolution of 10 mm −1 and a DQE of around 0.5 at spatial frequencies  <1 mm −1 . In addition, the modeling results were used to calculate the image signal-to-noise ratio (SNR i ) of microcalcifications at various mean glandular dose (MGD). For an average breast (5 cm thickness, 50% glandular fraction), 165 μm microcalcifications can be distinguished at a MGD of 27% lower than the clinical value (∼1.3 mGy). To detect 100 μm microcalcifications, further optimizations of the CMOS APS x-ray detector, image aquisition geometry and image reconstruction techniques should be considered. (paper)

Hemispheric lateralization for early auditory processing of lexical tones: dependence on pitch level and pitch contour.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Xiao-Dong; Wang, Ming; Chen, Lin

2013-09-01

In Mandarin Chinese, a tonal language, pitch level and pitch contour are two dimensions of lexical tones according to their acoustic features (i.e., pitch patterns). A change in pitch level features a step change whereas that in pitch contour features a continuous variation in voice pitch. Currently, relatively little is known about the hemispheric lateralization for the processing of each dimension. To address this issue, we made whole-head electrical recordings of mismatch negativity in native Chinese speakers in response to the contrast of Chinese lexical tones in each dimension. We found that pre-attentive auditory processing of pitch level was obviously lateralized to the right hemisphere whereas there is a tendency for that of pitch contour to be lateralized to the left. We also found that the brain responded faster to pitch level than to pitch contour at a pre-attentive stage. These results indicate that the hemispheric lateralization for early auditory processing of lexical tones depends on the pitch level and pitch contour, and suggest an underlying inter-hemispheric interactive mechanism for the processing. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Pumping Capacity of Pitched Blade Impellers in a Tall Vessel with a Draught Tube

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. Brož

2004-01-01

Full Text Available A study was made of the pumping capacity of pitched blade impellers (two, three, four, five and six blade pitched blade impellers with pitch angles α = 35° and 45° coaxially located in a cylindrical pilot plant vessel with cylindrical draught tube provided with a standard dished bottom. The draught tube was equipped with four equally spaced radial baffles above the impeller pumping liquid upwards towards the liquid surface. In all investigated cases the liquid aspect ratio H/T = 1.2 - 1.5, the draught tube / vessel diameter ratios DT /T = 0.2 and 0.4 and the impeller / draught tube diameter ratio D/DT = 0.875. The pumping capacity of the impeller was calculated from the radial profile of the axial component of the mean velocity in the draught tube below the impeller at such an axial distance from the impeller that the rotor does not affect the vorticity of the flow. The mean velocity was measured using a laser Doppler anemometer with forward scatter mode in a transparent draught tube and a transparent vessel of diameter T = 400 mm. Two series of experiments were performed, both of them under a turbulent regime of flow of the agitated liquid. First, the optimum height of the dished bottom was sought, and then the dependences of the dimensionless flow rate criterion and the impeller power number on the number of impeller blades were determined for both pitch angles tested under conditions of optimum ratio HT /DT. It follows from the results of the experiments that the optimum ratio HT /DT = 0.25 when the cross sectional areas of the horizontal flow around the bottom and the vertical inflow to the draught tube are the same. For all the tested pitched blade impellers the impeller power number when α = 45° exceeds the value of this quantity when pitch angle α  =   35°, while the flow rate number when α = 35° exceeds this quantity when α = 45°. On the other hand, the absolute values of the impeller power number when the draught tube was

Pitch-to-Pitch Correlation in Location, Velocity, and Movement ant Its Role in Predicting Strikeout Rate

OpenAIRE

Zhao, Shiyuan

2015-01-01

We evaluate a model for pitch sequencing in baseball that is defined by pitch-to-pitch correlation in location, velocity, and movement. The correlations quantify the average similarity of consecutive pitches and provide a measure of the batter's ability to predict the properties of the upcoming pitch. We examine the characteristics of the model for a set of major league pitchers using PITCHf/x data for nearly three million pitches thrown over seven major league seasons. After partitioning the...

Pianists exhibit enhanced memory for vocal melodies but not piano melodies.

Science.gov (United States)

Weiss, Michael W; Vanzella, Patrícia; Schellenberg, E Glenn; Trehub, Sandra E

2015-01-01

Nonmusicians remember vocal melodies (i.e., sung to la la) better than instrumental melodies. If greater exposure to the voice contributes to those effects, then long-term experience with instrumental timbres should elicit instrument-specific advantages. Here we evaluate this hypothesis by comparing pianists with other musicians and nonmusicians. We also evaluate the possibility that absolute pitch (AP), which involves exceptional memory for isolated pitches, influences melodic memory. Participants heard 24 melodies played in four timbres (voice, piano, banjo, marimba) and were subsequently required to distinguish the melodies heard previously from 24 novel melodies presented in the same timbres. Musicians performed better than nonmusicians, but both groups showed a comparable memory advantage for vocal melodies. Moreover, pianists performed no better on melodies played on piano than on other instruments, and AP musicians performed no differently than non-AP musicians. The findings confirm the robust nature of the voice advantage and rule out explanations based on familiarity, practice, and motor representations.

Task Force on Catastrophic Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS) and Non-criteria APS Manifestations (I): catastrophic APS, APS nephropathy and heart valve lesions.

Science.gov (United States)

Cervera, R; Tektonidou, M G; Espinosa, G; Cabral, A R; González, E B; Erkan, D; Vadya, S; Adrogué, H E; Solomon, M; Zandman-Goddard, G; Shoenfeld, Y

2011-02-01

The objectives of the 'Task Force on Catastrophic Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS) and Non-criteria APS Manifestations' were to assess the clinical utility of the international consensus statement on classification criteria and treatment guidelines for the catastrophic APS, to identify and grade the studies that analyse the relationship between the antiphospholipid antibodies and the non-criteria APS manifestations and to present the current evidence regarding the accuracy of these non-criteria APS manifestations for the detection of patients with APS. This article summarizes the studies analysed on the catastrophic APS, APS nephropathy and heart valve lesions, and presents the recommendations elaborated by the Task Force after this analysis.

Limitations of fixed pitch Darrieus hydrokinetic turbines and the challenge of variable pitch

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kirke, B.K. [Sustainable Energy Centre, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes, SA 5095 (Australia); Lazauskas, L. [Cyberiad, 25/65 King William Street, Adelaide, SA 5000 (Australia)

2011-03-15

Small Darrieus hydrokinetic turbines with fixed pitch blades typically suffer from poor starting torque, low efficiency and shaking due to large fluctuations in both radial and tangential force with azimuth angle. Efficiency improves as size increases, since adequate blade chord Reynolds numbers can be maintained with low solidity. Shaking can be eliminated by using helical blades, or reduced by using multiple blades. Starting torque can be marginally improved by the use of cambered blade profiles but may still be inadequate to overcome drive train friction for self-starting. Variable pitch can generate high starting torque, high efficiency and reduced shaking but active pitch control systems add considerably to complexity and cost, while passive systems must have effective pitch control to achieve higher efficiency than fixed pitch systems. (author)

Memory for pitch in congenital amusia: beyond a fine-grained pitch discrimination problem.

Science.gov (United States)

Williamson, Victoria Jane; Stewart, Lauren

2010-08-01

Congenital amusia is a disorder that affects the perception and production of music. While amusia has been associated with deficits in pitch discrimination, several reports suggest that memory deficits also play a role. The present study investigated short-term memory span for pitch-based and verbal information in 14 individuals with amusia and matched controls. Analogous adaptive-tracking procedures were used to generate tone and digit spans using stimuli that exceeded psychophysically measured pitch perception thresholds. Individuals with amusia had significantly smaller tone spans, whereas their digits spans were a similar size to those of controls. An automated operation span task was used to determine working memory capacity. Working memory deficits were seen in only a small subgroup of individuals with amusia. These findings support the existence of a pitch-specific component within short-term memory and suggest that congenital amusia is more than a disorder of fine-grained pitch discrimination.

Major League Baseball pitch velocity and pitch type associated with risk of ulnar collateral ligament injury.

Science.gov (United States)

Keller, Robert A; Marshall, Nathan E; Guest, John-Michael; Okoroha, Kelechi R; Jung, Edward K; Moutzouros, Vasilios

2016-04-01

The number of Major League Baseball (MLB) pitchers requiring ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) reconstructions is increasing. Recent literature has attempted to correlate specific stresses placed on the throwing arm to risk for UCL injury, with limited results. Eighty-three MLB pitchers who underwent primary UCL reconstruction were evaluated. Pitching velocity and percent of pitch type thrown (fastball, curve ball, slider, and change-up) were evaluated 2 years before and after surgery. Data were compared with control pitchers matched for age, position, size, innings pitched, and experience. The evaluation of pitch velocity compared with matched controls found no differences in pre-UCL reconstruction pitch velocities for fastballs (91.5 vs. 91.2 miles per hour [mph], P = .69), curveballs (78.2 vs. 77.9 mph, P = .92), sliders (83.3 vs. 83.5 mph, P = .88), or change-ups (83.9 vs. 83.8 mph, P = .96). When the percentage of pitches thrown was evaluated, UCL reconstructed pitchers pitch significantly more fastballs than controls (46.7% vs. 39.4%, P = .035). This correlated to a 2% increase in risk for UCL injury for every 1% increase in fastballs thrown. Pitching more than 48% fastballs was a significant predictor of UCL injury, because pitchers over this threshold required reconstruction (P = .006). MLB pitchers requiring UCL reconstruction do not pitch at higher velocities than matched controls, and pitch velocity does not appear to be a risk factor for UCL reconstruction. However, MLB pitchers who pitch a high percentage of fastballs may be at increased risk for UCL injury because pitching a higher percent of fastballs appears to be a risk factor for UCL reconstruction. Copyright © 2016 Journal of Shoulder and Elbow Surgery Board of Trustees. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Coal tar pitch. Interrelations between properties and utilization of coal tar pitch

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Collin, G; Koehler, H [Ruetgerswerke A.G., Duisburg (Germany, F.R.)

1977-06-01

Coal tar pitch is won as a highly aromatic, thermoplastic residue by destillating coal tar. In this paper the structure as well as the chemical and physical data of this pitch are introduced. In addition to this the actual as well as possible applications are indicated. For example, the pitch can be used for the production of binders, e.g. for electrodes and road construction as well as in combination with plastics for the production of insulating material and corrosion protection material.

Pitch perception prior to cortical maturation

Science.gov (United States)

Lau, Bonnie K.

Pitch perception plays an important role in many complex auditory tasks including speech perception, music perception, and sound source segregation. Because of the protracted and extensive development of the human auditory cortex, pitch perception might be expected to mature, at least over the first few months of life. This dissertation investigates complex pitch perception in 3-month-olds, 7-month-olds and adults -- time points when the organization of the auditory pathway is distinctly different. Using an observer-based psychophysical procedure, a series of four studies were conducted to determine whether infants (1) discriminate the pitch of harmonic complex tones, (2) discriminate the pitch of unresolved harmonics, (3) discriminate the pitch of missing fundamental melodies, and (4) have comparable sensitivity to pitch and spectral changes as adult listeners. The stimuli used in these studies were harmonic complex tones, with energy missing at the fundamental frequency. Infants at both three and seven months of age discriminated the pitch of missing fundamental complexes composed of resolved and unresolved harmonics as well as missing fundamental melodies, demonstrating perception of complex pitch by three months of age. More surprisingly, infants in both age groups had lower pitch and spectral discrimination thresholds than adult listeners. Furthermore, no differences in performance on any of the tasks presented were observed between infants at three and seven months of age. These results suggest that subcortical processing is not only sufficient to support pitch perception prior to cortical maturation, but provides adult-like sensitivity to pitch by three months.

CGM ApS Årsberetning til DANAK

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

De Chiffre, Leonardo

Denne årsberetning omfatter CGM ApS' akkrediterede virksomhed i kalenderåret 2003. Årsberetningen er udarbejdet til DANAK (Dansk Akkreditering, ErhvervsfremmeStyrelsen), som led i opfyldelsen af laboratoriets informationspligt i henhold til gældende regler.......Denne årsberetning omfatter CGM ApS' akkrediterede virksomhed i kalenderåret 2003. Årsberetningen er udarbejdet til DANAK (Dansk Akkreditering, ErhvervsfremmeStyrelsen), som led i opfyldelsen af laboratoriets informationspligt i henhold til gældende regler....

Renal involvement in the antiphospholipid syndrome (APS)-APS nephropathy.

Science.gov (United States)

Tektonidou, Maria G

2009-06-01

Although the kidney represents a major target organ in antiphospholipid syndrome (APS), renal involvement in APS was poorly recognized until recently. The most well-recognized renal manifestations of APS are the renal artery thrombosis/stenosis, renal infarction, hypertension, renal vein thrombosis, end-stage renal disease, increased allograft vascular thrombosis, some types of glomerular disease, and a small-vessel vaso-occlusive nephropathy, recently defined as APS nephropathy. APS nephropathy was first described in primary APS patients, characterized by acute thrombotic lesions in glomeruli and/or arterioles (thrombotic microangiopathy) and chronic vascular lesions such as fibrous intimal hyperplasia of arterioles and interlobular arteries, organized thrombi with or without recanalization, and fibrous arterial and arteriolar occlusions or focal cortical atrophy. APS nephropathy was also detected in further studies including patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)-related APS and SLE/non-APS patients with positive antiphospholipid antibodies, independently of lupus nephritis. The same histologic lesions, especially thrombotic mictroangiopathy, were also observed in patients with catastrophic APS. The most frequent clinical and laboratory characteristics of APS nephropathy in all the above groups of patients are hypertension (often severe), proteinuria (ranging from mild to nephrotic range), hematuria, and acute or chronic renal insufficiency.

Are pitch and roll compensations required in all pathologies? A data analysis of 2945 fractions.

Science.gov (United States)

Mancosu, Pietro; Reggiori, Giacomo; Gaudino, Anna; Lobefalo, Francesca; Paganini, Lucia; Palumbo, Valentina; Stravato, Antonella; Tomatis, Stefano; Scorsetti, Marta

2015-01-01

New linear accelerators can be equipped with a 6D robotic couch, providing two additional rotational motion axes: pitch and roll. These shifts in kilo voltage-cone beam CT (kV-CBCT) image-guided radiotherapy (IGRT) were evaluated over the first 6 months of usage of a 6D robotic couch-top, ranking the treatment sites for which the two compensations are larger for patient set-up. The couch compensations of 2945 fractions for 376 consecutive patients treated on the PerfectPitch™ 6D couch (Varian(®) Medical Systems, Palo Alto, CA) were analysed. Among these patients, 169 were treated for brain, 111 for lung, 54 for liver, 26 for pancreas and 16 for prostate tumours. During the set-up, patient anatomy from planning CT was aligned to kV-CBCT, and 6D movements were executed. Information related to pitch and roll were extracted by proper querying of the Microsoft(®) SQL server (Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, WA) ARIA database (Varian Medical Systems). Mean values and standard deviations were calculated for all sites. Kolmogorov-Smirnov (KS) test was performed. Considering all the data, mean pitch and roll adjustments were -0.10° ± 0.92° and 0.12° ± 0.96°, respectively; mean absolute values for both adjustments were 0.58° ± 0.69° and 0.69° ± 0.72°, respectively. Brain treatments showed the highest mean absolute values for pitch and roll rotations (0.73° ± 0.69° and 0.80° ± 0.78°, respectively); the lowest values of 0.36° ± 0.47° and 0.49° ± 0.58° were found for pancreas. KS test was significant for brain vs liver, pancreas and prostate. Collective corrections (pitch + roll) >0.5°, >1.0° and >2.0° were observed in, respectively, 79.8%, 61.0% and 29.1% for brain and 56.7%, 39.4% and 6.7% for pancreas. Adjustments in all six dimensions, including unconventional pitch and roll rotations, improve the patient set-up in all treatment sites. The greatest improvement was observed for patients with brain tumours. To

Switching between pitch surfaces

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rago, Vincenzo; Silva, João R; Brito, João

2018-01-01

Soccer training and completion is conventionally practiced on natural grass (NG) or artificial turf (AT). Recently, AT pitches for training / competition, and of unstable surfaces for injury prevention training has increased. Therefore, soccer players are frequently exposed to variations in pitch...... surface during either training or competition. These ground changes may impact physical and physiological responses, adaptations as well as the injury. The aim of this review was to summarize the acute physical and physiological responses, chronic adaptations, and injury risk associated with exercising...... on different pitch surfaces in soccer. Eligible studies were published in English, had pitch surface as an independent variable, and had physical, physiological or epidemiological information as outcome variables. Specific data extracted from the articles included the training response, training adaptations...

Three-dimensional cascaded system analysis of a 50 µm pixel pitch wafer-scale CMOS active pixel sensor x-ray detector for digital breast tomosynthesis.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, C; Vassiljev, N; Konstantinidis, A C; Speller, R D; Kanicki, J

2017-03-07

High-resolution, low-noise x-ray detectors based on the complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) active pixel sensor (APS) technology have been developed and proposed for digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT). In this study, we evaluated the three-dimensional (3D) imaging performance of a 50 µm pixel pitch CMOS APS x-ray detector named DynAMITe (Dynamic Range Adjustable for Medical Imaging Technology). The two-dimensional (2D) angle-dependent modulation transfer function (MTF), normalized noise power spectrum (NNPS), and detective quantum efficiency (DQE) were experimentally characterized and modeled using the cascaded system analysis at oblique incident angles up to 30°. The cascaded system model was extended to the 3D spatial frequency space in combination with the filtered back-projection (FBP) reconstruction method to calculate the 3D and in-plane MTF, NNPS and DQE parameters. The results demonstrate that the beam obliquity blurs the 2D MTF and DQE in the high spatial frequency range. However, this effect can be eliminated after FBP image reconstruction. In addition, impacts of the image acquisition geometry and detector parameters were evaluated using the 3D cascaded system analysis for DBT. The result shows that a wider projection angle range (e.g.  ±30°) improves the low spatial frequency (below 5 mm -1 ) performance of the CMOS APS detector. In addition, to maintain a high spatial resolution for DBT, a focal spot size of smaller than 0.3 mm should be used. Theoretical analysis suggests that a pixelated scintillator in combination with the 50 µm pixel pitch CMOS APS detector could further improve the 3D image resolution. Finally, the 3D imaging performance of the CMOS APS and an indirect amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) thin-film transistor (TFT) passive pixel sensor (PPS) detector was simulated and compared.

High-pitch metal-on-glass technology for pad pitch adaptation between detectors and readout electronics

CERN Document Server

Ullán, Miguel; Campabadal, Francesca; Fleta, Celeste; Garcia, Carmen; Gonzalez, Francisco; Bernabeu, Jose

2004-01-01

Modern high-energy physics and astrophysics strip detectors have increased channel density to levels at which their connection with readout electronics has become very complex due to high pad pitch. Also, direct wire bonding is prevented by the fact that typically detector's pad pitch and electronics' pad pitch do not match. A high- pitch metal-on-glass technology is presented, that allows pad pitch adaptation between detectors and readout electronics. It consists of high-density metal lines on top of an insulating glass substrate. A photoresist layer is deposited covering the metal tracks for passivation and protection The technology is tested for conductivity, bondability, bonding pull force, peel off, and radiation hardness, and it is an established technology in the clean room of the CNM Institute in Barcelona. This technology has been chosen by the ATLAS Collaboration for the pad pitch adapters (PPA) of the SCT Endcap Modules, by a Compton camera project, and by other HEP groups for interconnection betwe...

Disorders of pitch production in tone deafness

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Simone eDalla Bella

2011-07-01

Full Text Available Singing is as natural as speaking for the majority of people. Yet some individuals (i.e., 10-15% are inaccurate singers, typically performing or imitating pitches and melodies inaccurately. This condition, commonly referred to as tone deafness, has been observed both in the presence and absence of deficient pitch perception. In this article we review the existing literature concerning normal singing, poor-pitch singing, and, briefly, the sources of this condition. Considering that pitch plays a prominent role in the structure of both music and speech we also focus on the possibility that pitch production (or imitation is similarly impaired in poor-pitch singers. Preliminary evidence from our laboratory on poor-pitch singing suggests that pitch imitation may be selectively inaccurate in the music domain without being affected in speech. This finding points to separability of mechanisms subserving pitch production in music and language.

Tone language fluency impairs pitch discrimination

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Isabelle ePeretz

2011-07-01

Full Text Available Here we present evidence that native speakers of a tone language, in which pitch contributes to word meaning, are impaired in the discrimination of falling pitches in tone sequences, as compared to speakers of a non-tone language. Both groups were presented with monotonic and isochronous sequences of five tones (i.e., constant pitch and intertone interval. They were required to detect when the fourth tone was displaced in pitch or time. While speakers of a tone language performed more poorly in the detection of downward pitch changes, they did not differ from non-tone language speakers in their perception of upward pitch changes or in their perception of subtle time changes. Moreover, this impairment cannot be attributed to low musical aptitude since the impairment remains unchanged when individual differences in musical pitch-based processing is taken into account. Thus, the impairment appears highly specific and may reflect the influence of statistical regularities of tone languages.

Significant advantages of the safety-first concept in construction, operation, and maintenance of the Westinghosue AP1000 reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cummins, E.; Benitz, K.

2004-01-01

In June 2003, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (USNRC) published a draft opinion about safety of the AP1000 Westinghouse pressurized water reactor with 'passive safety' features. The report constitutes an important milestone in the development of the next generation of safe and cost-efficient nuclear power plants. A new AP1000 can be absolutely competitive with fossil fired power plants and may be able to revive the construction of new nuclear power plants worldwide. The reason for designing the AP1000 were safety considerations. The use of passive safety systems at the same time entails a considerable reduction in the costs of design, maintenance, and operation of an AP1000 plant. Independent experts confirmed that an AP1000 can be erected within three years or even less. The estimated electricity generating costs of an AP1000 plant in the United States amount to US Cent 3.2 to 3.6 per kilowatthour. (orig.)

Relative frequency of immature CD34+/CD90+ subset in peripheral blood following mobilization correlates closely and inversely with the absolute count of harvested stem cells in multiple myeloma patients

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Balint Bela

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Background/Aim. Stem cells (SCs guarantee complete/longterm bone marrow (BM repopulation after SC-transplants. The aim of the study was to evaluate absolute count of total SCs (determined by ISHAGE-sequential-gating protocol – SCish and relative frequency of immature CD34+/CD90+ (CD90+SCish subset in peripheral blood (PB as predictive factors of mobilization and apheresis product (AP quality. Methods. Mobilization included chemotherapy and granulocytegrowth- factor (G-CSF. Harvesting was performed by Spectra- Optia-IDL-system. The SCsish were determined as a constitutional part of CD34+ cells in the “stem-cell-region” using FC- 500 flow-cytometer. In this study, the original ISHAGEsequential- gating protocol was modified by introduction of anti-CD90-PE monoclonal-antibody into the analysis of CD90 expression on SCish (CD90+SCish. The results were presented as a percentage of SCish per nucleated-cell count, absolute SCish count in μL of the PB or the AP, percentage of the CD90+SCish expressed to SCish and absolute CD90+SCish count in μL of the PB or the AP. Results. The absolute count of total SCish and CD90+SCish was significantly higher (p = 0.0007 and p = 0.0266, respectively in the AP than in the PB samples. The CD90+SCish/total SCish indexes from PB were higher than indexes from the AP (p = 0.039. The relative frequency of CD90+SCish showed a highly significant inverse correlation with the absolute count of total SCish in both, the PB and AP (p = 0.0003 and p = 0.0013 respectively. The relative frequency of CD90+SCish from the PB also showed a significant (p = 0.0002 inverse relationship with total SCish count in the AP. Patients with less than 10% CD90+SCish in the PB had evidently higher (p = 0.0025 total SCish count in the AP. Conclusion. We speculate that lower CD90+SCish yield in the AP is not a consequence of an inferior collection efficacy, but most likely a result of several still not fully resolved immature SC

Attending to pitch information inhibits processing of pitch information: the curious case of amusia.

Science.gov (United States)

Zendel, Benjamin Rich; Lagrois, Marie-Élaine; Robitaille, Nicolas; Peretz, Isabelle

2015-03-04

In normal listeners, the tonal rules of music guide musical expectancy. In a minority of individuals, known as amusics, the processing of tonality is disordered, which results in severe musical deficits. It has been shown that the tonal rules of music are neurally encoded, but not consciously available in amusics. Previous neurophysiological studies have not explicitly controlled the level of attention in tasks where participants ignored the tonal structure of the stimuli. Here, we test whether access to tonal knowledge can be demonstrated in congenital amusia when attention is controlled. Electric brain responses were recorded while asking participants to detect an individually adjusted near-threshold click in a melody. In half the melodies, a note was inserted that violated the tonal rules of music. In a second task, participants were presented with the same melodies but were required to detect the tonal deviation. Both tasks required sustained attention, thus conscious access to the rules of tonality was manipulated. In the click-detection task, the pitch deviants evoked an early right anterior negativity (ERAN) in both groups. In the pitch-detection task, the pitch deviants evoked an ERAN and P600 in controls but not in amusics. These results indicate that pitch regularities are represented in the cortex of amusics, but are not consciously available. Moreover, performing a pitch-judgment task eliminated the ERAN in amusics, suggesting that attending to pitch information interferes with perception of pitch. We propose that an impaired top-down frontotemporal projection is responsible for this disorder. Copyright © 2015 the authors 0270-6474/15/353815-10$15.00/0.

High coking value pitch

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, Douglas J.; Chang, Ching-Feng; Lewis, Irwin C.; Lewis, Richard T.

2014-06-10

A high coking value pitch prepared from coal tar distillate and has a low softening point and a high carbon value while containing substantially no quinoline insolubles is disclosed. The pitch can be used as an impregnant or binder for producing carbon and graphite articles.

Pitch-Responsive Cortical Regions in Congenital Amusia.

Science.gov (United States)

Norman-Haignere, Sam V; Albouy, Philippe; Caclin, Anne; McDermott, Josh H; Kanwisher, Nancy G; Tillmann, Barbara

2016-03-09

Congenital amusia is a lifelong deficit in music perception thought to reflect an underlying impairment in the perception and memory of pitch. The neural basis of amusic impairments is actively debated. Some prior studies have suggested that amusia stems from impaired connectivity between auditory and frontal cortex. However, it remains possible that impairments in pitch coding within auditory cortex also contribute to the disorder, in part because prior studies have not measured responses from the cortical regions most implicated in pitch perception in normal individuals. We addressed this question by measuring fMRI responses in 11 subjects with amusia and 11 age- and education-matched controls to a stimulus contrast that reliably identifies pitch-responsive regions in normal individuals: harmonic tones versus frequency-matched noise. Our findings demonstrate that amusic individuals with a substantial pitch perception deficit exhibit clusters of pitch-responsive voxels that are comparable in extent, selectivity, and anatomical location to those of control participants. We discuss possible explanations for why amusics might be impaired at perceiving pitch relations despite exhibiting normal fMRI responses to pitch in their auditory cortex: (1) individual neurons within the pitch-responsive region might exhibit abnormal tuning or temporal coding not detectable with fMRI, (2) anatomical tracts that link pitch-responsive regions to other brain areas (e.g., frontal cortex) might be altered, and (3) cortical regions outside of pitch-responsive cortex might be abnormal. The ability to identify pitch-responsive regions in individual amusic subjects will make it possible to ask more precise questions about their role in amusia in future work. Copyright © 2016 the authors 0270-6474/16/362986-09$15.00/0.

VLSI implementation of an AMDF pitch detector

OpenAIRE

Smith, Tony; Gittel, Falko; Schwarzbacher, Andreas; Hilt, E.; Timoney, Joseph

2003-01-01

Pitch detectors are used in a variety of speech processing applications such as speech recognition systems where the pitch of the speaker is used as one parameter for identification purposes. Furthermore, pitch detectors are also sued with adaptive filters to achieve high quality adaptive noise cancellation of speech signals. In voice conversion systems, pitch detection is an essential step since the pitch of the modified signal is altered to model the target voice. This paper describes a ...

Measurement of pitch in speech : an implementation of Goldstein's theory of pitch perception

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Duifhuis, H.; Willems, L.F.; Sluyter, R.J.

1982-01-01

Recent developments in hearing theory have resulted in the rather general acceptance of the idea that the perception of pitch of complex sounds is the result of the psychological pattern recognition process. The pitch is supposedly mediated by the fundamental of the harmonic spectrum which fits the

Disorders of pitch production in tone deafness.

Science.gov (United States)

Bella, Simone Dalla; Berkowska, Magdalena; Sowiński, Jakub

2011-01-01

Singing is as natural as speaking for the majority of people. Yet some individuals (i.e., 10-15%) are poor singers, typically performing or imitating pitches and melodies inaccurately. This condition, commonly referred to as "tone deafness," has been observed both in the presence and absence of deficient pitch perception. In this article we review the existing literature concerning normal singing, poor-pitch singing, and, briefly, the sources of this condition. Considering that pitch plays a prominent role in the structure of both music and speech we also focus on the possibility that speech production (or imitation) is similarly impaired in poor-pitch singers. Preliminary evidence from our laboratory suggests that pitch imitation may be selectively inaccurate in the music domain without being affected in speech. This finding points to separability of mechanisms subserving pitch production in music and language.

Disorders of Pitch Production in Tone Deafness

Science.gov (United States)

Bella, Simone Dalla; Berkowska, Magdalena; Sowiński, Jakub

2011-01-01

Singing is as natural as speaking for the majority of people. Yet some individuals (i.e., 10–15%) are poor singers, typically performing or imitating pitches and melodies inaccurately. This condition, commonly referred to as “tone deafness,” has been observed both in the presence and absence of deficient pitch perception. In this article we review the existing literature concerning normal singing, poor-pitch singing, and, briefly, the sources of this condition. Considering that pitch plays a prominent role in the structure of both music and speech we also focus on the possibility that speech production (or imitation) is similarly impaired in poor-pitch singers. Preliminary evidence from our laboratory suggests that pitch imitation may be selectively inaccurate in the music domain without being affected in speech. This finding points to separability of mechanisms subserving pitch production in music and language. PMID:21811479

Thermosetting behavior of pitch-resin from heavy residue

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Qingfang, Z.; Yansheng, G.; Baohua, H.; Yuzhen, Z. [China Univ. of Petroleum, Dongying, Shandong (China). State Key LAboratory of Heavy Oil Processing, Heavy Oil Research Inst.

2006-07-01

Thermosetting resins are widely employed as a basic matrix for c/c composites in carbon materials production. A new type of synthesized thermosetting resin is called pitch resin. Pitch resin is a cheaper resin and possesses a potential opportunity for future use. However, the thermosetting behavior of pitch resin is not very clear. The hardening process and conditions for thermosetting are very important for future use of pitch resin. B-stage pitch resin is a soluble and meltable inter-media condensed polymer, which is not fully reacted and is of a low molecular weight. The insoluble and unmelted pitch resin can only be obtained from synthesized B-stage resin after a hardening stage. This paper presented an experiment that synthesized B-stage pitch resin with a link agent (PXG) under catalyst action from fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) of the slurry's aromatic enriched component (FCCDF). The paper discussed the experiment, including the synthesis of pitch resin and thermosetting of pitch resin. Two kinds of thermosetting procedures were used in the study called one-step thermosetting and two-step thermosetting. It was concluded that the B-stage pitch resin could be hardened after a thermosetting procedure by heat treatment. The thermosetting pitch resin from 2-step thermosetting possesses was found to have better thermal resistant properties than that of the 1-step thermosetting pitch resin. 13 refs., 2 tabs., 6 figs.

Norwegian Pitched Roof Defects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lars Gullbrekken

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The building constructions investigated in this work are pitched wooden roofs with exterior vertical drainpipes and wooden load-bearing system. The aim of this research is to further investigate the building defects of pitched wooden roofs and obtain an overview of typical roof defects. The work involves an analysis of the building defect archive from the research institute SINTEF Building and Infrastructure. The findings from the SINTEF archive show that moisture is a dominant exposure factor, especially in roof constructions. In pitched wooden roofs, more than half of the defects are caused by deficiencies in design, materials, or workmanship, where these deficiencies allow moisture from precipitation or indoor moisture into the structure. Hence, it is important to increase the focus on robust and durable solutions to avoid defects both from exterior and interior moisture sources in pitched wooden roofs. Proper design of interior ventilation and vapour retarders seem to be the main ways to control entry from interior moisture sources into attic and roof spaces.

Ideomotor effects of pitch on continuation tapping.

Science.gov (United States)

Ammirante, Paolo; Thompson, William F; Russo, Frank A

2011-02-01

The ideomotor principle predicts that perception will modulate action where overlap exists between perceptual and motor representations of action. This effect is demonstrated with auditory stimuli. Previous perceptual evidence suggests that pitch contour and pitch distance in tone sequences may elicit tonal motion effects consistent with listeners' implicit awareness of the lawful dynamics of locomotive bodies. To examine modulating effects of perception on action, participants in a continuation tapping task produced a steady tempo. Auditory tones were triggered by each tap. Pitch contour randomly and persistently varied within trials. Pitch distance between successive tones varied between trials. Although participants were instructed to ignore them, tones systematically affected finger dynamics and timing. Where pitch contour implied positive acceleration, the following tap and the intertap interval (ITI) that it completed were faster. Where pitch contour implied negative acceleration, the following tap and the ITI that it completed were slower. Tempo was faster with greater pitch distance. Musical training did not predict the magnitude of these effects. There were no generalized effects on timing variability. Pitch contour findings demonstrate how tonal motion may elicit the spontaneous production of accents found in expressive music performance.

Cross-Cultural Perspectives on Pitch Memory

Science.gov (United States)

Trehub, Sandra E.; Schellenberg, E. Glenn; Nakata, Takayuki

2008-01-01

We examined effects of age and culture on children's memory for the pitch level of familiar music. Canadian 9- and 10-year-olds distinguished the original pitch level of familiar television theme songs from foils that were pitch-shifted by one semitone, whereas 5- to 8-year-olds failed to do so (Experiment 1). In contrast, Japanese 5- and…

Adaptive sliding mode back-stepping pitch angle control of a variable-displacement pump controlled pitch system for wind turbines.

Science.gov (United States)

Yin, Xiu-xing; Lin, Yong-gang; Li, Wei; Liu, Hong-wei; Gu, Ya-jing

2015-09-01

A variable-displacement pump controlled pitch system is proposed to mitigate generator power and flap-wise load fluctuations for wind turbines. The pitch system mainly consists of a variable-displacement hydraulic pump, a fixed-displacement hydraulic motor and a gear set. The hydraulic motor can be accurately regulated by controlling the pump displacement and fluid flows to change the pitch angle through the gear set. The detailed mathematical representation and dynamic characteristics of the proposed pitch system are thoroughly analyzed. An adaptive sliding mode pump displacement controller and a back-stepping stroke piston controller are designed for the proposed pitch system such that the resulting pitch angle tracks its desired value regardless of external disturbances and uncertainties. The effectiveness and control efficiency of the proposed pitch system and controllers have been verified by using realistic dataset of a 750 kW research wind turbine. Copyright © 2015 ISA. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A Neuronal Network Model for Pitch Selectivity and Representation.

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Chengcheng; Rinzel, John

2016-01-01

Pitch is a perceptual correlate of periodicity. Sounds with distinct spectra can elicit the same pitch. Despite the importance of pitch perception, understanding the cellular mechanism of pitch perception is still a major challenge and a mechanistic model of pitch is lacking. A multi-stage neuronal network model is developed for pitch frequency estimation using biophysically-based, high-resolution coincidence detector neurons. The neuronal units respond only to highly coincident input among convergent auditory nerve fibers across frequency channels. Their selectivity for only very fast rising slopes of convergent input enables these slope-detectors to distinguish the most prominent coincidences in multi-peaked input time courses. Pitch can then be estimated from the first-order interspike intervals of the slope-detectors. The regular firing pattern of the slope-detector neurons are similar for sounds sharing the same pitch despite the distinct timbres. The decoded pitch strengths also correlate well with the salience of pitch perception as reported by human listeners. Therefore, our model can serve as a neural representation for pitch. Our model performs successfully in estimating the pitch of missing fundamental complexes and reproducing the pitch variation with respect to the frequency shift of inharmonic complexes. It also accounts for the phase sensitivity of pitch perception in the cases of Schroeder phase, alternating phase and random phase relationships. Moreover, our model can also be applied to stochastic sound stimuli, iterated-ripple-noise, and account for their multiple pitch perceptions.

Adaptive pitch control for variable speed wind turbines

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Kathryn E [Boulder, CO; Fingersh, Lee Jay [Westminster, CO

2012-05-08

An adaptive method for adjusting blade pitch angle, and controllers implementing such a method, for achieving higher power coefficients. Average power coefficients are determined for first and second periods of operation for the wind turbine. When the average power coefficient for the second time period is larger than for the first, a pitch increment, which may be generated based on the power coefficients, is added (or the sign is retained) to the nominal pitch angle value for the wind turbine. When the average power coefficient for the second time period is less than for the first, the pitch increment is subtracted (or the sign is changed). A control signal is generated based on the adapted pitch angle value and sent to blade pitch actuators that act to change the pitch angle of the wind turbine to the new or modified pitch angle setting, and this process is iteratively performed.

Pitch Based Sound Classification

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Andreas Brinch; Hansen, Lars Kai; Kjems, U

2006-01-01

A sound classification model is presented that can classify signals into music, noise and speech. The model extracts the pitch of the signal using the harmonic product spectrum. Based on the pitch estimate and a pitch error measure, features are created and used in a probabilistic model with soft......-max output function. Both linear and quadratic inputs are used. The model is trained on 2 hours of sound and tested on publicly available data. A test classification error below 0.05 with 1 s classification windows is achieved. Further more it is shown that linear input performs as well as a quadratic......, and that even though classification gets marginally better, not much is achieved by increasing the window size beyond 1 s....

[Factors influencing the pitch and loudness of tinnitus].

Science.gov (United States)

Ueda, S; Asoh, S; Watanabe, Y

1992-11-01

Pitch match and loudness balance tests were given to 397 cases with tinnitus. The factors which influenced tinnitus pitch and loudness were analyzed statistically from the clinical point of view. The results obtained were as follows: 1) Onomatopoeia of tinnitus, either [Keeeen] or [Jeeeen], were observed in a majority of cases. 2) Significantly sharp sounding onomatopoeia such as [Keeeen] or [Meeeen] had high pitches, over 4kHz, and dull sounds like [Gooooh] or [Buuuun] had low pitches, below 500Hz. 3) Acute stage tinnitus, within one month of onset, had a significantly depressed pitch and walked loudness, above 6dB. 4) The pitches observed in cases with Meniere's disease and chronic otitis media were distributed evenly from low frequencies to high. In other cases, especially presbyacusis and noise deafness, high pitch tinnitus (above 4kHz) was frequently noted. The loudness of tinnitus without hearing loss was significantly greater than in other diseases. 5) As a rule the more deteriorated the hearing level was, the lower the frequency of the pitch, and the smaller the loudness in tinnitus. 6) A high pitch of tinnitus nearly corresponded with hearing type, that is, the pitch of tinnitus was also in accordance with the disturbed frequency in the hearing threshold.

Center for Geometrisk Metrologi, CGM ApS

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

De Chiffre, Leonardo

Denne årsberetning omfatter CGM ApS' akkrediterede virksomhed i kalenderåret 2002. Årsberetningen er udarbejdet til DANAK (Dansk Akkreditering, Erhvervsfremme Styrelsen), som led i opfyldelsen af laboratoriets informationspligt i henhold til gældende regler (Teknisk Forskrift Nr. TF4 af 2000...

Memory for vocal tempo and pitch.

Science.gov (United States)

Boltz, Marilyn G

2017-11-01

Two experiments examined the ability to remember the vocal tempo and pitch of different individuals, and the way this information is encoded into the cognitive system. In both studies, participants engaged in an initial familiarisation phase while attending was systematically directed towards different aspects of speakers' voices. Afterwards, they received a tempo or pitch recognition task. Experiment 1 showed that tempo and pitch are both incidentally encoded into memory at levels comparable to intentional learning, and no performance deficit occurs with divided attending. Experiment 2 examined the ability to recognise pitch or tempo when the two dimensions co-varied and found that the presence of one influenced the other: performance was best when both dimensions were positively correlated with one another. As a set, these findings indicate that pitch and tempo are automatically processed in a holistic, integral fashion [Garner, W. R. (1974). The processing of information and structure. Potomac, MD: Erlbaum.] which has a number of cognitive implications.

Individual Pitch Control Using LIDAR Measurements

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mirzaei, Mahmood; Henriksen, Lars Christian; Poulsen, Niels Kjølstad

2012-01-01

In this work the problem of individual pitch control of a variable-speed variable-pitch wind turbine in the full load region is considered. Model predictive control (MPC) is used to solve the problem. However as the plant is nonlinear and time varying, a new approach is proposed to simplify......-of-plane blade root bending moments and a better transient response compared to a benchmark PI individual pitch controller....

Physicochemical characterization of pitches by differential scanning calorimetry

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lahaye, J.; Ehrburger, P.; Saint-Romain, J.L.; Couderc, P.

1987-11-01

The glass transition characterization of pitches has been studied by differential scanning calorimetry (d.s.c.). Experimental results and theoretical considerations indicate that: (1) the average molecular mass of pitches can be characterized by the apparent activation energy of the relaxation phenomenon of pitch molecules; (2) the molecular polydispersity is correlated with the width of the glass transition. Characterization of pitch by d.s.c. is well adapted to follow pitch transformation during heat treatment. 6 refs., 6 figs., 4 tabs.

A Neuronal Network Model for Pitch Selectivity and Representation

OpenAIRE

Huang, Chengcheng; Rinzel, John

2016-01-01

Pitch is a perceptual correlate of periodicity. Sounds with distinct spectra can elicit the same pitch. Despite the importance of pitch perception, understanding the cellular mechanism of pitch perception is still a major challenge and a mechanistic model of pitch is lacking. A multi-stage neuronal network model is developed for pitch frequency estimation using biophysically-based, high-resolution coincidence detector neurons. The neuronal units respond only to highly coincident input among c...

Characterization of pitches by differential scanning calorimetry

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ehrburger, P.; Martin, C.; Lahaye, J.; Saint-Romain, J.L.; Couderc, P.

1988-12-01

Pitch materials have generally a very complex composition with molecular mass ranging from a few hundred to several thousands units. In order to characterize these materials their properties related to the glassy transformation, in particular to enthalpy relaxation, have been investigated. Solvent soluble fractions have been characterized by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). As with polymeric materials, enthalpy relaxation can provide information about pitches and the interactions occurring between the different types of molecules present in the pitch: mean molecular size, structural factor, molecular-size distribution. The determination of glass transition properties provides a useful means for the characterization of pitch and of their solvent extracts. It also permits insight into the complex reactions which occur when pitch materials are heat-treated. 7 refs., 2 figs., 3 tabs.

Tank 241-AP-106, Grab samples, 6AP-98-1, 6AP-98-2 and 6AP-98-3 Analytical results for the final report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

FULLER, R.K.

1999-02-23

This document is the final report for tank 241-AP-106 grab samples. Three grab samples 6AP-98-1, 6AP-98-2 and 6AP-98-3 were taken from riser 1 of tank 241-AP-106 on May 28, 1998 and received by the 222-S Laboratory on May 28, 1998. Analyses were performed in accordance with the ''Compatability Grab Sampling and Analysis Plan'' (TSAP) (Sasaki, 1998) and the ''Data Quality Objectives for Tank Farms Waste Compatability Program (DQO). The analytical results are presented in the data summary report. No notification limits were exceeded. The request for sample analysis received for AP-106 indicated that the samples were polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) suspects. The results of this analysis indicated that no PCBs were present at the Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA) regulated limit of 50 ppm. The results and raw data for the PCB analysis are included in this document.

Tank 241-AP-106, Grab samples, 6AP-98-1, 6AP-98-2 and 6AP-98-3 Analytical results for the final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

FULLER, R.K.

1999-01-01

This document is the final report for tank 241-AP-106 grab samples. Three grab samples 6AP-98-1, 6AP-98-2 and 6AP-98-3 were taken from riser 1 of tank 241-AP-106 on May 28, 1998 and received by the 222-S Laboratory on May 28, 1998. Analyses were performed in accordance with the ''Compatability Grab Sampling and Analysis Plan'' (TSAP) (Sasaki, 1998) and the ''Data Quality Objectives for Tank Farms Waste Compatability Program (DQO). The analytical results are presented in the data summary report. No notification limits were exceeded. The request for sample analysis received for AP-106 indicated that the samples were polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) suspects. The results of this analysis indicated that no PCBs were present at the Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA) regulated limit of 50 ppm. The results and raw data for the PCB analysis are included in this document

Method of producing pitch (distillation residue)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stepanenko, M.A.; Belkina, T.V.; Krysin, V.P.

1979-08-15

A method is proposed for producing pitch by mixing hard coal pitch with anthracene fraction and thermal treatment of the mixture. The method is distinguished in that in order to increase the quality of the pitch, the anthracene fraction is subjected to thermal treatment at 250-300/sup 0/ for 10-13 hours in the presence of air. This duration of heat treatment allows one to build up in the anthracene fraction up to 20-24% of material which is not soluble and toluene, without the formation of products which are not soluble in quinoline. The fraction prepared in this manner is inserted into the initial pitch in the ratio 1:2 up to 1:9, the mixture is subject to heat treatment at temperature 360-380/sup 0/ and air consumption 7-91/kgX hours until the production of pitch with softening temperature of 85-90/sup 0/. As the initial raw material we used pitch with softening temperature of 60/sup 0/, content of substances which are not soluble in quinoline, 2.0% which are not soluble and toluene 20.6% and coking residue of 49.2%. Example. 80 grams of anthracene fraction is added to 320 grams of pitch. The anthracene fraction is subjected previously to heat treatment at 300/sup 0/ for 13 hours in the presence of air, supplied in the amount of 9 liters per hour. As a result of the heat treatment of the content of materials which are not soluble in toluence in the anthracene fraction is 24.0%, in quinoline it is 0.1%. The ratio of a pitch and thermally treated anthracene fraction in the mixture was 4:l. The produced mixture was subjected to heat treatment at 360/sup 0/ for 1.5 hours with air supply in the amount of 7 liters/ kilograms/hours. Pitch is produced with the following characteristics: softening temperature 88/sup 0/, content of substances which are not soluble in toluene 32.5%, in quinilone, 6.0%, coking residue, 56.7%. The invention can be used in the chemical coking and petrochemical industry.

Effects of Game Pitch Count and Body Mass Index on Pitching Biomechanics in 9- to 10-Year-Old Baseball Athletes.

Science.gov (United States)

Darke, Jim D; Dandekar, Eshan M; Aguinaldo, Arnel L; Hazelwood, Scott J; Klisch, Stephen M

2018-04-01

Pitching while fatigued and body composition may increase the injury risk in youth and adult pitchers. However, the relationships between game pitch count, biomechanics, and body composition have not been reported for a study group restricted to 9- to 10-year-old athletes. During a simulated game with 9- to 10-year-old athletes, (1) participants will experience biomechanical signs of fatigue, and (2) shoulder and elbow kinetics will correlate with body mass index (BMI). Descriptive laboratory study. Thirteen 9- to 10-year-old youth baseball players pitched a simulated game (75 pitches). Range of motion and muscular output tests were conducted before and after the simulated game to quantify fatigue. Kinematic parameters at foot contact, maximum external rotation, and maximum internal rotation velocity (MIRV), as well as maximum shoulder and elbow kinetics between foot contact and MIRV were compared at pitches 1-5, 34-38, and 71-75. Multivariate analyses of variance were used to test the first hypothesis, and linear regressions were used to test the second hypothesis. MIRV increased from pitches 1-5 to 71-75 ( P = .007), and head flexion at MIRV decreased from pitches 1-5 to 34-38 ( P = .022). Maximum shoulder horizontal adduction, external rotation, and internal rotation torques increased from pitches 34-38 to 71-75 ( P = .031, .023, and .021, respectively). Shoulder compression force increased from pitches 1-5 to 71-75 ( P = .011). Correlations of joint torque/force with BMI were found at every pitch period: for example, shoulder internal rotation ( R 2 = 0.93, P biomechanics for 9- to 10-year-old baseball pitchers and may be used in future studies to improve evidence-based injury prevention guidelines.

Thrombotic risk assessment in APS: the Global APS Score (GAPSS).

Science.gov (United States)

Sciascia, S; Bertolaccini, M L

2014-10-01

Recently, we developed a risk score for antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) (Global APS Score or GAPSS). This score derived from the combination of independent risk factors for thrombosis and pregnancy loss, taking into account the antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) profile (criteria and non-criteria aPL), the conventional cardiovascular risk factors, and the autoimmune antibodies profile. We demonstrate that risk profile in APS can be successfully assessed, suggesting that GAPSS can be a potential quantitative marker of APS-related clinical manifestations. © The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav.

Complex-tone pitch representations in the human auditory system

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bianchi, Federica

in listeners with SNHL, it is likely that HI listeners rely on the enhanced envelope cues to retrieve the pitch of unresolved harmonics. Hence, the relative importance of pitch cues may be altered in HI listeners, whereby envelope cues may be used instead of TFS cues to obtain a similar performance in pitch......Understanding how the human auditory system processes the physical properties of an acoustical stimulus to give rise to a pitch percept is a fascinating aspect of hearing research. Since most natural sounds are harmonic complex tones, this work focused on the nature of pitch-relevant cues...... that are necessary for the auditory system to retrieve the pitch of complex sounds. The existence of different pitch-coding mechanisms for low-numbered (spectrally resolved) and high-numbered (unresolved) harmonics was investigated by comparing pitch-discrimination performance across different cohorts of listeners...

Sensorimotor Mismapping in Poor-pitch Singing.

Science.gov (United States)

He, Hao; Zhang, Wei-Dong

2017-09-01

This study proposes that there are two types of sensorimotor mismapping in poor-pitch singing: erroneous mapping and no mapping. We created operational definitions for the two types of mismapping based on the precision of pitch-matching and predicted that in the two types of mismapping, phonation differs in terms of accuracy and the dependence on the articulation consistency between the target and the intended vocal action. The study aimed to test this hypothesis by examining the reliability and criterion-related validity of the operational definitions. A within-subject design was used in this study. Thirty-two participants identified as poor-pitch singers were instructed to vocally imitate pure tones and to imitate their own vocal recordings with the same articulation as self-targets and with different articulation from self-targets. Definitions of the types of mismapping were demonstrated to be reliable with the split-half approach and to have good criterion-related validity with findings that pitch-matching with no mapping was less accurate and more dependent on the articulation consistency between the target and the intended vocal action than pitch-matching with erroneous mapping was. Furthermore, the precision of pitch-matching was positively associated with its accuracy and its dependence on articulation consistency when mismapping was analyzed on a continuum. Additionally, the data indicated that the self-imitation advantage was a function of articulation consistency. Types of sensorimotor mismapping lead to pitch-matching that differs in accuracy and its dependence on the articulation consistency between the target and the intended vocal action. Additionally, articulation consistency produces the self-advantage. Copyright © 2017 The Voice Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effect of Pitching Consecutive Days in Youth Fast-Pitch Softball Tournaments on Objective Shoulder Strength and Subjective Shoulder Symptoms.

Science.gov (United States)

Skillington, S Andrew; Brophy, Robert H; Wright, Rick W; Smith, Matthew V

2017-05-01

The windmill pitching motion has been associated with risk for shoulder injury. Because there are no pitching limits on youth fast-pitch softball pitchers, these athletes often pitch multiple games across consecutive days. Strength changes, fatigue levels, and shoulder pain that develop among female fast-pitch pitchers over the course of consecutive days of pitching have not been investigated. Over the course of 2- and 3-day fast-pitch softball tournaments, pitchers will develop progressive objective weakness and increased subjective shoulder fatigue and pain without complete recovery between days. Cross-sectional study; Level of evidence, 3. Fourteen female fast-pitch softball pitchers between the ages of 14 and 18 years were evaluated for strength and fatigue changes across 2- and 3-day tournaments. At the beginning and end of each day of tournament play, pitchers were asked to quantify shoulder fatigue and shoulder pain levels of their dominant throwing arm using a 10-point visual analog scale (VAS). Shoulder abduction, flexion, external rotation, internal rotation, elbow flexion, and elbow extension strength measurements were gathered using a handheld dynamometer. Over the course of an average single day of tournament participation, pitchers developed significant increases in VAS scores for shoulder fatigue (median, 2.0; 95% CI, 1.3-3.0) and pain (median, 1.3; 95% CI, 0.5-2.3) and significant strength loss in all tested motions. Pitchers also developed significant increases in VAS shoulder fatigue (median, 3.5; 95% CI, 1.5-5.5), VAS shoulder pain (median, 2.5; 95% CI, 1.0-4.5), and strength loss in all tested motions over the entire tournament. Shoulder pain, fatigue, and strength do not fully recover between days. The accumulation of subjective shoulder pain and fatigue over the course of tournament play were closely correlated. Among youth female fast-pitch softball pitchers, there is a progressive increase in shoulder fatigue, pain, and weakness over the

Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) nephropathy in catastrophic, primary, and systemic lupus erythematosus-related APS.

Science.gov (United States)

Tektonidou, Maria G; Sotsiou, Flora; Moutsopoulos, Haralampos M

2008-10-01

Renal involvement in antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) has been poorly recognized. A renal small-vessel vasculopathy, defined as APS nephropathy, has recently been observed in small series of patients with primary APS (PAPS) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)-APS. We examined the renal histologic, clinical, and laboratory characteristics of different groups of patients with APS including catastrophic APS (CAPS). Our study included all CAPS (n=6), PAPS (n=8), and SLE-APS (n=23) patients with biopsy-proven renal involvement who were referred to our departments. The kidney biopsy specimens were retrospectively examined by the same renal pathologist. APS nephropathy was diagnosed as previously described. Demographic, clinical, and laboratory data were recorded. All patients with CAPS had acute and chronic renal vascular lesions compatible with diagnosis of APS nephropathy. Thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA), the acute lesion, was observed in all CAPS patients. Fibrous intimal hyperplasia of interlobular arteries (FIH) and focal cortical atrophy (FCA) were the most common chronic vascular lesions, occurring in 4 of 6 (66.7%) and 3 of 6 (50%) patients with CAPS, respectively. TMA was detected in 3 of 8 (37.5%) patients with PAPS and in 8 of 23 (35%) patients with SLE-APS, while FIH and FCA were found with similar frequencies in all 3 groups. Hypertension, proteinuria, hematuria, and renal insufficiency were the most common renal manifestations of all APS groups. Acute and chronic APS nephropathy lesions were detected in all 3 APS groups. Acute lesions were more prominent in CAPS, while chronic lesions were found with similar frequencies in all groups. Hypertension, proteinuria, hematuria, and renal insufficiency were the most common renal manifestations of all APS groups.

Pitch modelling for the Nguni languages

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Govender, N

2007-06-01

Full Text Available Govender ngovender@csir.co.za, Etienne Barnard ebarnard@csir.co.za, Marelie Davel mdavel@csir.co.za by varying the levels of pitch, intensity and duration in the voice. An overview of intonation as observed in a variety of languages is provided in [1... nature of laryngograph data in voiced speech) and thus either could be used as the basis for the experiments. The pitch values extracted by Yin for all the laryngograph databases was consequently used as the basis for our comparisons. Pitch...

Language experience enhances early cortical pitch-dependent responses

Science.gov (United States)

Krishnan, Ananthanarayan; Gandour, Jackson T.; Ananthakrishnan, Saradha; Vijayaraghavan, Venkatakrishnan

2014-01-01

Pitch processing at cortical and subcortical stages of processing is shaped by language experience. We recently demonstrated that specific components of the cortical pitch response (CPR) index the more rapidly-changing portions of the high rising Tone 2 of Mandarin Chinese, in addition to marking pitch onset and sound offset. In this study, we examine how language experience (Mandarin vs. English) shapes the processing of different temporal attributes of pitch reflected in the CPR components using stimuli representative of within-category variants of Tone 2. Results showed that the magnitude of CPR components (Na-Pb and Pb-Nb) and the correlation between these two components and pitch acceleration were stronger for the Chinese listeners compared to English listeners for stimuli that fell within the range of Tone 2 citation forms. Discriminant function analysis revealed that the Na-Pb component was more than twice as important as Pb-Nb in grouping listeners by language affiliation. In addition, a stronger stimulus-dependent, rightward asymmetry was observed for the Chinese group at the temporal, but not frontal, electrode sites. This finding may reflect selective recruitment of experience-dependent, pitch-specific mechanisms in right auditory cortex to extract more complex, time-varying pitch patterns. Taken together, these findings suggest that long-term language experience shapes early sensory level processing of pitch in the auditory cortex, and that the sensitivity of the CPR may vary depending on the relative linguistic importance of specific temporal attributes of dynamic pitch. PMID:25506127

Wing-pitching mechanism of hovering Ruby-throated hummingbirds

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Song, Jialei; Luo, Haoxiang; Hedrick, Tyson L

2015-01-01

In hovering flight, hummingbirds reverse the angle of attack of their wings through pitch reversal in order to generate aerodynamic lift during both downstroke and upstroke. In addition, the wings may pitch during translation to further enhance lift production. It is not yet clear whether these pitching motions are caused by the wing inertia or actuated through the musculoskeletal system. Here we perform a computational analysis of the pitching dynamics by incorporating the realistic wing kinematics to determine the inertial effects. The aerodynamic effect is also included using the pressure data from a previous three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics simulation of a hovering hummingbird. The results show that like many insects, pitch reversal of the hummingbird is, to a large degree, caused by the wing inertia. However, actuation power input at the root is needed in the beginning of pronation to initiate a fast pitch reversal and also in mid-downstroke to enable a nose-up pitching motion for lift enhancement. The muscles on the wing may not necessarily be activated for pitching of the distal section. Finally, power analysis of the flapping motion shows that there is no requirement for substantial elastic energy storage or energy absorption at the shoulder joint. (paper)

Wing-pitching mechanism of hovering Ruby-throated hummingbirds.

Science.gov (United States)

Song, Jialei; Luo, Haoxiang; Hedrick, Tyson L

2015-01-19

In hovering flight, hummingbirds reverse the angle of attack of their wings through pitch reversal in order to generate aerodynamic lift during both downstroke and upstroke. In addition, the wings may pitch during translation to further enhance lift production. It is not yet clear whether these pitching motions are caused by the wing inertia or actuated through the musculoskeletal system. Here we perform a computational analysis of the pitching dynamics by incorporating the realistic wing kinematics to determine the inertial effects. The aerodynamic effect is also included using the pressure data from a previous three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics simulation of a hovering hummingbird. The results show that like many insects, pitch reversal of the hummingbird is, to a large degree, caused by the wing inertia. However, actuation power input at the root is needed in the beginning of pronation to initiate a fast pitch reversal and also in mid-downstroke to enable a nose-up pitching motion for lift enhancement. The muscles on the wing may not necessarily be activated for pitching of the distal section. Finally, power analysis of the flapping motion shows that there is no requirement for substantial elastic energy storage or energy absorption at the shoulder joint.

Estimates of pitch strength for musicians and nonmusicians

Science.gov (United States)

Clarkson, Marsha G.; Zettler, Cynthia M.; Follmer, Michelle J.; Faulk, Margaret; Takagi, Michael J.

2003-04-01

To measure the strength of the pitch of iterated rippled noise (IRN), 19 adults were tested in an operant conditioning procedure. Seven adults had music training and currently played an instrument; 12 adults had no training and did not currently play an instrument. To generate IRN, a 500-ms Gaussian noise stimulus was delayed by 5 or 6 ms (pitches of 200 or 166 Hz) and added to the original for 16 iterations. IRN stimuli having one delay were presented repeatedly. On signal trials the delay changed for 6 s. Stimulus level roved from 63-67 dBA (background of 28 dBA). Adults learned to press a button when the stimulus changed. Testing started with IRN stimuli having 0-dB attenuation (i.e., maximal pitch strength). Stimuli having weaker pitches (i.e., progressively greater attenuation applied to the delayed noise) followed. Strength of pitch was quantified as the maximum attenuation for which pitch was discerned. For each subject, threshold attenuation for pitch strength was extrapolated as the 71% point on a psychometric function depicting percent correct performance as a function of attenuation. Mean thresholds revealed that the pitch percept was similar for both nonmusically trained (18.70 dB) and musically trained adults (18.73 dB).

APS Science 2006

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gibson, J.M.; Fenner, R.B.; Long, G.; Borland, M.; Decker, G.

2007-01-01

In my five years as the Director of the Advanced Photon Source (APS), I have been fortunate to see major growth in the scientific impact from the APS. This year I am particularly enthusiastic about prospects for our longer-term future. Every scientific instrument must remain at the cutting edge to flourish. Our plans for the next generation of APS--an APS upgrade--got seriously in gear this year with strong encouragement from our users and sponsors. The most promising avenue that has emerged is the energy-recovery linac (ERL) (see article on page xx), for which we are beginning serious R and D. The ERL(at)APS would offer revolutionary performance, especially for x-ray imaging and ultrafast science, while not seriously disrupting the existing user base. I am very proud of our accelerator physics and engineering staff, who not only keep the current APS at the forefront, but were able to greatly impress our international Machine Advisory Committee with the quality of their work on the possible upgrade option (see page xx). As we prepare for long-term major upgrades, our plans to develop and optimize all the sectors at APS in the near future are advancing. Several new beamlines saw first light this year, including a dedicated powder diffraction beamline (11-BM), two instruments for inelastic x-ray scattering at sector 30, and the Center for Nanoscale Materials (CNM) Nanoprobe beamline at sector 26. Our partnership in the first x-ray free-electron laser (LCLS) to be built at Stanford contributes to revolutionary growth in ultrafast science (see page xx), and we are developing a pulse chirping scheme to get ps pulses at sector 7 of the APS within a year or so. In this report, you will find selected highlights of scientific research at the APS from calendar year 2006. The highlighted work covers diverse disciplines, from fundamental to applied science. In the article on page xx you can see the direct impact of APS research on technology. Several new products have emerged

APS Science 2006.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gibson, J. M.; Fenner, R. B.; Long, G.; Borland, M.; Decker, G.

2007-05-24

In my five years as the Director of the Advanced Photon Source (APS), I have been fortunate to see major growth in the scientific impact from the APS. This year I am particularly enthusiastic about prospects for our longer-term future. Every scientific instrument must remain at the cutting edge to flourish. Our plans for the next generation of APS--an APS upgrade--got seriously in gear this year with strong encouragement from our users and sponsors. The most promising avenue that has emerged is the energy-recovery linac (ERL) (see article on page xx), for which we are beginning serious R&D. The ERL{at}APS would offer revolutionary performance, especially for x-ray imaging and ultrafast science, while not seriously disrupting the existing user base. I am very proud of our accelerator physics and engineering staff, who not only keep the current APS at the forefront, but were able to greatly impress our international Machine Advisory Committee with the quality of their work on the possible upgrade option (see page xx). As we prepare for long-term major upgrades, our plans to develop and optimize all the sectors at APS in the near future are advancing. Several new beamlines saw first light this year, including a dedicated powder diffraction beamline (11-BM), two instruments for inelastic x-ray scattering at sector 30, and the Center for Nanoscale Materials (CNM) Nanoprobe beamline at sector 26. Our partnership in the first x-ray free-electron laser (LCLS) to be built at Stanford contributes to revolutionary growth in ultrafast science (see page xx), and we are developing a pulse chirping scheme to get ps pulses at sector 7 of the APS within a year or so. In this report, you will find selected highlights of scientific research at the APS from calendar year 2006. The highlighted work covers diverse disciplines, from fundamental to applied science. In the article on page xx you can see the direct impact of APS research on technology. Several new products have emerged from

Language-dependent changes in pitch-relevant neural activity in the auditory cortex reflect differential weighting of temporal attributes of pitch contours

Science.gov (United States)

Krishnan, Ananthanarayan; Gandour, Jackson T.; Xu, Yi; Suresh, Chandan H.

2016-01-01

There remains a gap in our knowledge base about neural representation of pitch attributes that occur between onset and offset of dynamic, curvilinear pitch contours. The aim is to evaluate how language experience shapes processing of pitch contours as reflected in the amplitude of cortical pitch-specific response components. Responses were elicited from three nonspeech, bidirectional (falling-rising) pitch contours representative of Mandarin Tone 2 varying in location of the turning point with fixed onset and offset. At the frontocentral Fz electrode site, Na–Pb and Pb–Nb amplitude of the Chinese group was larger than the English group for pitch contours exhibiting later location of the turning point relative to the one with the earliest location. Chinese listeners’ amplitude was also greater than that of English in response to those same pitch contours with later turning points. At lateral temporal sites (T7/T8), Na–Pb amplitude was larger in Chinese listeners relative to English over the right temporal site. In addition, Pb–Nb amplitude of the Chinese group showed a rightward asymmetry. The pitch contour with its turning point located about halfway of total duration evoked a rightward asymmetry regardless of group. These findings suggest that neural mechanisms processing pitch in the right auditory cortex reflect experience-dependent modulation of sensitivity to weighted integration of changes in acceleration rates of rising and falling sections and the location of the turning point. PMID:28713201

Relating binaural pitch perception to the individual listener's auditory profile.

Science.gov (United States)

Santurette, Sébastien; Dau, Torsten

2012-04-01

The ability of eight normal-hearing listeners and fourteen listeners with sensorineural hearing loss to detect and identify pitch contours was measured for binaural-pitch stimuli and salience-matched monaurally detectable pitches. In an effort to determine whether impaired binaural pitch perception was linked to a specific deficit, the auditory profiles of the individual listeners were characterized using measures of loudness perception, cognitive ability, binaural processing, temporal fine structure processing, and frequency selectivity, in addition to common audiometric measures. Two of the listeners were found not to perceive binaural pitch at all, despite a clear detection of monaural pitch. While both binaural and monaural pitches were detectable by all other listeners, identification scores were significantly lower for binaural than for monaural pitch. A total absence of binaural pitch sensation coexisted with a loss of a binaural signal-detection advantage in noise, without implying reduced cognitive function. Auditory filter bandwidths did not correlate with the difference in pitch identification scores between binaural and monaural pitches. However, subjects with impaired binaural pitch perception showed deficits in temporal fine structure processing. Whether the observed deficits stemmed from peripheral or central mechanisms could not be resolved here, but the present findings may be useful for hearing loss characterization.

Effects of Culture on Musical Pitch Perception

Science.gov (United States)

Wong, Patrick C. M.; Ciocca, Valter; Chan, Alice H. D.; Ha, Louisa Y. Y.; Tan, Li-Hai; Peretz, Isabelle

2012-01-01

The strong association between music and speech has been supported by recent research focusing on musicians' superior abilities in second language learning and neural encoding of foreign speech sounds. However, evidence for a double association—the influence of linguistic background on music pitch processing and disorders—remains elusive. Because languages differ in their usage of elements (e.g., pitch) that are also essential for music, a unique opportunity for examining such language-to-music associations comes from a cross-cultural (linguistic) comparison of congenital amusia, a neurogenetic disorder affecting the music (pitch and rhythm) processing of about 5% of the Western population. In the present study, two populations (Hong Kong and Canada) were compared. One spoke a tone language in which differences in voice pitch correspond to differences in word meaning (in Hong Kong Cantonese, /si/ means ‘teacher’ and ‘to try’ when spoken in a high and mid pitch pattern, respectively). Using the On-line Identification Test of Congenital Amusia, we found Cantonese speakers as a group tend to show enhanced pitch perception ability compared to speakers of Canadian French and English (non-tone languages). This enhanced ability occurs in the absence of differences in rhythmic perception and persists even after relevant factors such as musical background and age were controlled. Following a common definition of amusia (5% of the population), we found Hong Kong pitch amusics also show enhanced pitch abilities relative to their Canadian counterparts. These findings not only provide critical evidence for a double association of music and speech, but also argue for the reconceptualization of communicative disorders within a cultural framework. Along with recent studies documenting cultural differences in visual perception, our auditory evidence challenges the common assumption of universality of basic mental processes and speaks to the domain generality of culture

Effects of culture on musical pitch perception.

Science.gov (United States)

Wong, Patrick C M; Ciocca, Valter; Chan, Alice H D; Ha, Louisa Y Y; Tan, Li-Hai; Peretz, Isabelle

2012-01-01

The strong association between music and speech has been supported by recent research focusing on musicians' superior abilities in second language learning and neural encoding of foreign speech sounds. However, evidence for a double association--the influence of linguistic background on music pitch processing and disorders--remains elusive. Because languages differ in their usage of elements (e.g., pitch) that are also essential for music, a unique opportunity for examining such language-to-music associations comes from a cross-cultural (linguistic) comparison of congenital amusia, a neurogenetic disorder affecting the music (pitch and rhythm) processing of about 5% of the Western population. In the present study, two populations (Hong Kong and Canada) were compared. One spoke a tone language in which differences in voice pitch correspond to differences in word meaning (in Hong Kong Cantonese, /si/ means 'teacher' and 'to try' when spoken in a high and mid pitch pattern, respectively). Using the On-line Identification Test of Congenital Amusia, we found Cantonese speakers as a group tend to show enhanced pitch perception ability compared to speakers of Canadian French and English (non-tone languages). This enhanced ability occurs in the absence of differences in rhythmic perception and persists even after relevant factors such as musical background and age were controlled. Following a common definition of amusia (5% of the population), we found Hong Kong pitch amusics also show enhanced pitch abilities relative to their Canadian counterparts. These findings not only provide critical evidence for a double association of music and speech, but also argue for the reconceptualization of communicative disorders within a cultural framework. Along with recent studies documenting cultural differences in visual perception, our auditory evidence challenges the common assumption of universality of basic mental processes and speaks to the domain generality of culture

Effects of culture on musical pitch perception.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Patrick C M Wong

Full Text Available The strong association between music and speech has been supported by recent research focusing on musicians' superior abilities in second language learning and neural encoding of foreign speech sounds. However, evidence for a double association--the influence of linguistic background on music pitch processing and disorders--remains elusive. Because languages differ in their usage of elements (e.g., pitch that are also essential for music, a unique opportunity for examining such language-to-music associations comes from a cross-cultural (linguistic comparison of congenital amusia, a neurogenetic disorder affecting the music (pitch and rhythm processing of about 5% of the Western population. In the present study, two populations (Hong Kong and Canada were compared. One spoke a tone language in which differences in voice pitch correspond to differences in word meaning (in Hong Kong Cantonese, /si/ means 'teacher' and 'to try' when spoken in a high and mid pitch pattern, respectively. Using the On-line Identification Test of Congenital Amusia, we found Cantonese speakers as a group tend to show enhanced pitch perception ability compared to speakers of Canadian French and English (non-tone languages. This enhanced ability occurs in the absence of differences in rhythmic perception and persists even after relevant factors such as musical background and age were controlled. Following a common definition of amusia (5% of the population, we found Hong Kong pitch amusics also show enhanced pitch abilities relative to their Canadian counterparts. These findings not only provide critical evidence for a double association of music and speech, but also argue for the reconceptualization of communicative disorders within a cultural framework. Along with recent studies documenting cultural differences in visual perception, our auditory evidence challenges the common assumption of universality of basic mental processes and speaks to the domain generality of

Impaired short-term memory for pitch in congenital amusia.

Science.gov (United States)

Tillmann, Barbara; Lévêque, Yohana; Fornoni, Lesly; Albouy, Philippe; Caclin, Anne

2016-06-01

Congenital amusia is a neuro-developmental disorder of music perception and production. The hypothesis is that the musical deficits arise from altered pitch processing, with impairments in pitch discrimination (i.e., pitch change detection, pitch direction discrimination and identification) and short-term memory. The present review article focuses on the deficit of short-term memory for pitch. Overall, the data discussed here suggest impairments at each level of processing in short-term memory tasks; starting with the encoding of the pitch information and the creation of the adequate memory trace, the retention of the pitch traces over time as well as the recollection and comparison of the stored information with newly incoming information. These impairments have been related to altered brain responses in a distributed fronto-temporal network, associated with decreased connectivity between these structures, as well as in abnormalities in the connectivity between the two auditory cortices. In contrast, amusic participants׳ short-term memory abilities for verbal material are preserved. These findings show that short-term memory deficits in congenital amusia are specific to pitch, suggesting a pitch-memory system that is, at least partly, separated from verbal memory. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled SI: Auditory working memory. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A perceptual pitch boundary in a non-human primate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Olivier eJoly

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Pitch is an auditory percept critical to the perception of music and speech, and for these harmonic sounds, pitch is closely related to the repetition rate of the acoustic wave. This paper reports a test of the assumption that non-human primates and especially rhesus monkeys perceive the pitch of these harmonic sounds much as humans do. A new procedure was developed to train macaques to discriminate the pitch of harmonic sounds and thereby demonstrate that the lower limit for pitch perception in macaques is close to 30 Hz, as it is in humans. Moreover, when the phases of successive harmonics are alternated to cause a pseudo-doubling of the repetition rate, the lower pitch boundary in macaques decreases substantially, as it does in humans. The results suggest that both species use neural firing times to discriminate pitch, at least for sounds with relatively low repetition rates.

Forced pitch motion of wind turbines

Science.gov (United States)

Leble, V.; Barakos, G.

2016-09-01

The possibility of a wind turbine entering vortex ring state during pitching oscillations is explored in this paper. The aerodynamic performance of the rotor was computed using the Helicopter Multi-Block flow solver. This code solves the Navier-Stokes equations in integral form using the arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian formulation for time-dependent domains with moving boundaries. A 10-MW wind turbine was put to perform yawing and pitching oscillations suggesting the partial vortex ring state during pitching motion. The results also show the strong effect of the frequency and amplitude of oscillations on the wind turbine performance.

Forced pitch motion of wind turbines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leble, V; Barakos, G

2016-01-01

The possibility of a wind turbine entering vortex ring state during pitching oscillations is explored in this paper. The aerodynamic performance of the rotor was computed using the Helicopter Multi-Block flow solver. This code solves the Navier-Stokes equations in integral form using the arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian formulation for time-dependent domains with moving boundaries. A 10-MW wind turbine was put to perform yawing and pitching oscillations suggesting the partial vortex ring state during pitching motion. The results also show the strong effect of the frequency and amplitude of oscillations on the wind turbine performance. (paper)

Auditory deficits in amusia extend beyond poor pitch perception.

Science.gov (United States)

Whiteford, Kelly L; Oxenham, Andrew J

2017-05-01

Congenital amusia is a music perception disorder believed to reflect a deficit in fine-grained pitch perception and/or short-term or working memory for pitch. Because most measures of pitch perception include memory and segmentation components, it has been difficult to determine the true extent of pitch processing deficits in amusia. It is also unclear whether pitch deficits persist at frequencies beyond the range of musical pitch. To address these questions, experiments were conducted with amusics and matched controls, manipulating both the stimuli and the task demands. First, we assessed pitch discrimination at low (500Hz and 2000Hz) and high (8000Hz) frequencies using a three-interval forced-choice task. Amusics exhibited deficits even at the highest frequency, which lies beyond the existence region of musical pitch. Next, we assessed the extent to which frequency coding deficits persist in one- and two-interval frequency-modulation (FM) and amplitude-modulation (AM) detection tasks at 500Hz at slow (f m =4Hz) and fast (f m =20Hz) modulation rates. Amusics still exhibited deficits in one-interval FM detection tasks that should not involve memory or segmentation. Surprisingly, amusics were also impaired on AM detection, which should not involve pitch processing. Finally, direct comparisons between the detection of continuous and discrete FM demonstrated that amusics suffer deficits in both coding and segmenting pitch information. Our results reveal auditory deficits in amusia extending beyond pitch perception that are subtle when controlling for memory and segmentation, and are likely exacerbated in more complex contexts such as musical listening. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Tinnitus pitch and acoustic trauma

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cahani, M; Paul, G; Shahar, A

1983-01-01

Fifty-six subjects complaining of tinnitus underwent an audiometric test and a test for identifying the analogous pitch of their tinnitus. All of the subjects reported that they had been exposed to noise in the past. The subjects were divided into two groups on the basis of their audiometric test results. Group P was composed of subjects who showed a sensorineural hearing loss typical of acoustic trauma. Group N was composed of subjects whose hearing was within normal limits. The pitch of the tinnitus in group P was concentrated in the high-frequency range, whereas in group N tinnitus pitch values were distributed over the low and mid-audiometric frequency spectrum. It was deduced that different processes are involved in the generation of tinnitus in the two groups.

Binaural Pitch Fusion in Bilateral Cochlear Implant Users.

Science.gov (United States)

Reiss, Lina A J; Fowler, Jennifer R; Hartling, Curtis L; Oh, Yonghee

Binaural pitch fusion is the fusion of stimuli that evoke different pitches between the ears into a single auditory image. Individuals who use hearing aids or bimodal cochlear implants (CIs) experience abnormally broad binaural pitch fusion, such that sounds differing in pitch by as much as 3-4 octaves are fused across ears, leading to spectral averaging and speech perception interference. The goal of this study was to determine if adult bilateral CI users also experience broad binaural pitch fusion. Stimuli were pulse trains delivered to individual electrodes. Fusion ranges were measured using simultaneous, dichotic presentation of reference and comparison stimuli in opposite ears, and varying the comparison stimulus to find the range that fused with the reference stimulus. Bilateral CI listeners had binaural pitch fusion ranges varying from 0 to 12 mm (average 6.1 ± 3.9 mm), where 12 mm indicates fusion over all electrodes in the array. No significant correlations of fusion range were observed with any subject factors related to age, hearing loss history, or hearing device history, or with any electrode factors including interaural electrode pitch mismatch, pitch match bandwidth, or within-ear electrode discrimination abilities. Bilateral CI listeners have abnormally broad fusion, similar to hearing aid and bimodal CI listeners. This broad fusion may explain the variability of binaural benefits for speech perception in quiet and in noise in bilateral CI users.

Testing of Solar Heated Domestic Hot Water System for Solahart Scandinavia ApS

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, Elsa

1997-01-01

The solar heating system marketed by Solahart Scandinavia ApS was tested in the Institutes test facility for SDHWsystems. The test results are described in the report.......The solar heating system marketed by Solahart Scandinavia ApS was tested in the Institutes test facility for SDHWsystems. The test results are described in the report....

Statistically Efficient Methods for Pitch and DOA Estimation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Jesper Rindom; Christensen, Mads Græsbøll; Jensen, Søren Holdt

2013-01-01

, it was recently considered to estimate the DOA and pitch jointly. In this paper, we propose two novel methods for DOA and pitch estimation. They both yield maximum-likelihood estimates in white Gaussian noise scenar- ios, where the SNR may be different across channels, as opposed to state-of-the-art methods......Traditionally, direction-of-arrival (DOA) and pitch estimation of multichannel, periodic sources have been considered as two separate problems. Separate estimation may render the task of resolving sources with similar DOA or pitch impossible, and it may decrease the estimation accuracy. Therefore...

Wind turbine pitch control using ICPSO-PID algorithm

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Xu, Chang; Tian, Qiangqiang; Shen, Wen Zhong

2013-01-01

For the traditional simplified first-order pitch-control system model, it is difficult to describe a real dynamic characteristic of a variable pitch action system, thus a complete high order mathematical model has to be developed for the pitch control of wind turbine generation (WTG). In the paper...... controller parameters quickly; and the feed-forward controller for wind speed can improve dynamics of a pitch-control system; additionally the power controller can allow a wind turbine to have a constant power output as a wind speed is over the rated one. Compared with a conventional PID, the controller...... with ICPSO-PID algorithm has a smaller overshoot, a shorter tuning time and better robustness. The design method proposed in the paper can be applied in a practical electro-hydraulic pitch control system for WTG....

A fundamental residue pitch perception bias for tone language speakers

Science.gov (United States)

Petitti, Elizabeth

A complex tone composed of only higher-order harmonics typically elicits a pitch percept equivalent to the tone's missing fundamental frequency (f0). When judging the direction of residue pitch change between two such tones, however, listeners may have completely opposite perceptual experiences depending on whether they are biased to perceive changes based on the overall spectrum or the missing f0 (harmonic spacing). Individual differences in residue pitch change judgments are reliable and have been associated with musical experience and functional neuroanatomy. Tone languages put greater pitch processing demands on their speakers than non-tone languages, and we investigated whether these lifelong differences in linguistic pitch processing affect listeners' bias for residue pitch. We asked native tone language speakers and native English speakers to perform a pitch judgment task for two tones with missing fundamental frequencies. Given tone pairs with ambiguous pitch changes, listeners were asked to judge the direction of pitch change, where the direction of their response indicated whether they attended to the overall spectrum (exhibiting a spectral bias) or the missing f0 (exhibiting a fundamental bias). We found that tone language speakers are significantly more likely to perceive pitch changes based on the missing f0 than English speakers. These results suggest that tone-language speakers' privileged experience with linguistic pitch fundamentally tunes their basic auditory processing.

Heavy vehicle pitch dynamics and suspension tuning

OpenAIRE

Cao, Dongpu; Rakheja, Subhash; Su, Chun-Yi

2008-01-01

The influence of suspension tuning of passenger cars on bounce and pitch ride performance has been explored in a number of studies, while only minimal efforts have been made for establishing similar rules for heavy vehicles. This study aims to explore pitch dynamics and suspension tunings of a two-axle heavy vehicle with unconnected suspension, which could also provide valuable information for heavy vehicles with coupled suspensions. Based on a generalised pitch-plane model of a two-axle heav...

Got AP?

Science.gov (United States)

Digby, Joan

2016-01-01

Families, especially those considering sending their children to a private four-year university, need all the help they can get in funding college. Annmarie Guzy's essay "AP, Dual Enrollment, and the Survival of Honors Education" in this issue powerfully spells out the financial benefits that accrue from using AP courses to satisfy…

Discriminating male and female voices: differentiating pitch and gender.

Science.gov (United States)

Latinus, Marianne; Taylor, Margot J

2012-04-01

Gender is salient, socially critical information obtained from faces and voices, yet the brain processes underlying gender discrimination have not been well studied. We investigated neural correlates of gender processing of voices in two ERP studies. In the first, ERP differences were seen between female and male voices starting at 87 ms, in both spatial-temporal and peak analyses, particularly the fronto-central N1 and P2. As pitch differences may drive gender differences, the second study used normal, high- and low-pitch voices. The results of these studies suggested that differences in pitch produced early effects (27-63 ms). Gender effects were seen on N1 (120 ms) with implicit pitch processing (study 1), but were not seen with manipulations of pitch (study 2), demonstrating that N1 was modulated by attention. P2 (between 170 and 230 ms) discriminated male from female voices, independent of pitch. Thus, these data show that there are two stages in voice gender processing; a very early pitch or frequency discrimination and a later more accurate determination of gender at the P2 latency.

Processing of Binaural Pitch Stimuli in Hearing-Impaired Listeners

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Santurette, Sébastien; Dau, Torsten

2009-01-01

Binaural pitch is a tonal sensation produced by introducing a frequency-dependent interaural phase shift in binaurally presented white noise. As no spectral cues are present in the physical stimulus, binaural pitch perception is assumed to rely on accurate temporal fine structure coding and intact...... binaural integration mechanisms. This study investigated to what extent basic auditory measures of binaural processing as well as cognitive abilities are correlated with the ability of hearing-impaired listeners to perceive binaural pitch. Subjects from three groups (1: normal-hearing; 2: cochlear...... hearingloss; 3: retro-cochlear impairment) were asked to identify the pitch contour of series of five notes of equal duration, ranging from 523 to 784 Hz, played either with Huggins’ binaural pitch stimuli (BP) or perceptually similar, but monaurally detectable, pitches (MP). All subjects from groups 1 and 2...

Westinghouse AP1000 licensing maturity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schulz, T.; Vijuk, R.P.

2005-01-01

The Westinghouse AP1000 Program is aimed at making available a nuclear power plant that is economical in the U.S deregulated electrical power industry in the near-term. The AP1000 is two-loop 1000 MWe pressurizer water reactor (PWR). It is an up rated version of the AP600. The AP1000 uses passive safety systems to provide significant and measurable improvements in plant simplification, safety, reliability, investment protection and plant costs. The AP1000 uses proven technology, which builds on over 35 years of operating PWR experience. The AP1000 received Final Design Approval by the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (U.S. NRC) in September 2004. The AP1000 meets the US utility requirements. The AP1000 and its sister plant the AP600 have gone through a very through and complete licensing review. This paper describes the U.S. NRC review efforts of both the AP600 and the AP1000. The detail of the review and the independent calculations, evaluations and testing is discussed. The AP600 licensing documentation was submitted in 1992. The U.S. NRC granted Final Design Approval in 1999. During the intervening 7 years, the U.S. NRC asked thousands of questions, performed independent safety analysis, audited Westinghouse calculations and analysis, and performed independent testing. The more significant areas of discussion will be described. For the AP1000 Westinghouse first engaged the U.S. NRC in pre-certification discussions to define the extent of the review required, since the design is so similar to the AP600. The AP1000 licensing documentation was submitted in March 2002. The U.S. NRC granted Final Design Approval in September 2004. During the intervening 2 1/2 years, the U.S. NRC asked hundreds of questions, performed independent safety analysis, audited Westinghouse calculations and analysis, and performed independent testing. The more significant areas of discussion will be described. The implications of this review and approval on AP1000 applications in

Kinematics and kinetics of elite windmill softball pitching.

Science.gov (United States)

Werner, Sherry L; Jones, Deryk G; Guido, John A; Brunet, Michael E

2006-04-01

A significant number of time-loss injuries to the upper extremity in elite windmill softball pitchers has been documented. The number of outings and pitches thrown in 1 week for a softball pitcher is typically far in excess of those seen in baseball pitchers. Shoulder stress in professional baseball pitching has been reported to be high and has been linked to pitching injuries. Shoulder distraction has not been studied in an elite softball pitching population. The stresses on the throwing shoulder of elite windmill pitchers are similar to those found for professional baseball pitchers. Descriptive laboratory study. Three-dimensional, high-speed (120 Hz) video data were collected on rise balls from 24 elite softball pitchers during the 1996 Olympic Games. Kinematic parameters related to pitching mechanics and resultant kinetics on the throwing shoulder were calculated. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to relate shoulder stress and pitching mechanics. Shoulder distraction stress averaged 80% of body weight for the Olympic pitchers. Sixty-nine percent of the variability in shoulder distraction can be explained by a combination of 7 parameters related to pitching mechanics. Excessive distraction stress at the throwing shoulder is similar to that found in baseball pitchers, which suggests that windmill softball pitchers are at risk for overuse injuries. Normative information regarding upper extremity kinematics and kinetics for elite softball pitchers has been established.

Binaural pitch perception in normal-hearing and hearing-impaired listeners

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Santurette, Sébastien; Dau, Torsten

2007-01-01

The effects of hearing impairment on the perception of binaural-pitch stimuli were investigated. Several experiments were performed with normal-hearing and hearing-impaired listeners, including detection and discrimination of binaural pitch, and melody recognition using different types of binaural...... pitches. For the normal-hearing listeners, all types of binaural pitches could be perceived immediately and were musical. The hearing-impaired listeners could be divided into three groups based on their results: (a) some perceived all types of binaural pitches, but with decreased salience or musicality...... compared to normal-hearing listeners; (b) some could only perceive the strongest pitch types; (c) some were unable to perceive any binaural pitch at all. The performance of the listeners was not correlated with audibility. Additional experiments investigated the correlation between performance in binaural...

APS Science 2009.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gibson, J. M; Mills, D. M.; Gerig, R.

2010-05-01

It is my pleasure to introduce the 2009 annual report of the Advanced Photon Source. This was a very good year for us. We operated with high reliability and availability, despite growing problems with obsolete systems, and our users produced a record output of publications. The number of user experiments increased by 14% from 2008 to more than 3600. We congratulate the recipients of the 2009 Nobel Prize in Chemistry-Venkatraman Ramakrishnan (Cambridge Institute for Medical Research), Thomas Steitz (Yale University), and Ada Yonath (Weizmann Institute) - who did a substantial amount of this work at APS beamlines. Thanks to the efforts of our users and staff, and the ongoing counsel of the APS Scientific Advisory Committee, we made major progress in advancing our planning for the upgrade of the APS (APS-U), producing a proposal that was positively reviewed. We hope to get formal approval in 2010 to begin the upgrade. With advocacy from our users and the support of our sponsor, the Office of Basic Energy Sciences in the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science, our operating budgets have grown to the level needed to more adequately staff our beamlines. We were also extremely fortunate to have received $7.9 M in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act ('stimulus') funding to acquire new detectors and improve several of our beamlines. The success of the new Linac Coherent Light Source at Stanford, the world's first x-ray free-electron laser, made us particularly proud since the undulators were designed and built by the APS. Among other highlights, we note that more than one-quarter of the 46 Energy Frontier Research Centers, funded competitively across the U.S. in 2009 by the DOE, included the Advanced Photon Source in their proposed work, which shows that synchrotron radiation, and the APS in particular, are central to energy research. While APS research covers everything from fundamental to applied science (reflected by the highlights in this report

Pitch discrimination associated with phonological awareness: Evidence from congenital amusia.

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Yanan; Lu, Xuejing; Ho, Hao Tam; Thompson, William Forde

2017-03-13

Research suggests that musical skills are associated with phonological abilities. To further investigate this association, we examined whether phonological impairments are evident in individuals with poor music abilities. Twenty individuals with congenital amusia and 20 matched controls were assessed on a pure-tone pitch discrimination task, a rhythm discrimination task, and four phonological tests. Amusic participants showed deficits in discriminating pitch and discriminating rhythmic patterns that involve a regular beat. At a group level, these individuals performed similarly to controls on all phonological tests. However, eight amusics with severe pitch impairment, as identified by the pitch discrimination task, exhibited significantly worse performance than all other participants in phonological awareness. A hierarchical regression analysis indicated that pitch discrimination thresholds predicted phonological awareness beyond that predicted by phonological short-term memory and rhythm discrimination. In contrast, our rhythm discrimination task did not predict phonological awareness beyond that predicted by pitch discrimination thresholds. These findings suggest that accurate pitch discrimination is critical for phonological processing. We propose that deficits in early-stage pitch discrimination may be associated with impaired phonological awareness and we discuss the shared role of pitch discrimination for processing music and speech.

Determination of prompt neutron decay constant of the AP-600 reactor core

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Surbakti, T.

1998-01-01

Determination of prompt neutron decay constant of the AP-600 reactor core has been performed using combination of two codes WIMS/D4 and Batan-2DIFF. The calculation was done at beginning of cycle and all of control rods pulled out. Cell generation from various kinds of core materials was done with 4 neutron energy group in 1-D transport code (WIMS/D4). The cell is considered for 1/4 fuel assembly in cluster model with square pitch arrange and then, the dimension of its unit cell is calculated. The unit cell consist of a fuel and moderator unit. The unit cell dimension as input data of WIMS/D4 code, called it annulus, is obtained from the equivalent unit cell. Macroscopic cross sections as output was used as input on neutron diffusion code Batan-2DIFF for core calculation as appropriate with three enrichment regions of the fuel of AP-600 core, namely 2, 2.5, and 3%. From result of diffusion code ( Batan-2DIFF) is obtained the value of delayed neutron fraction of 6.932E-03 and average prompt neutron life-time of 26.38 μs, so that the value of prompt neutron decay constant is 262.8 s-1. If it is compared the calculation result with the design value, the deviation are, for the design value of delayed neutron fraction is 7.5E-03, about 8% and the design value of average prompt neutron life time is 19.6 μs, about 34% respectively. The deviation because there are still unknown several core components of AP-600, so it didn't include in calculation yet

Vascular Manifestations in Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS): Is APS a Thrombophilia or a Vasculopathy?

Science.gov (United States)

Siddique, Salma; Risse, Jessie; Canaud, Guillaume; Zuily, Stéphane

2017-09-04

Antiphospholipid antibody syndrome (APS) is characterized primarily by thrombosis and pregnancy morbidity. Chronic vascular lesions can also occur. While the underlying mechanisms of these vascular lesions are not entirely known, there have been multiple theories describing the potential process of vasculopathy in APS and the various clinical manifestations associated with it. Recently, it has been demonstrated that endothelial proliferation in kidneys can be explained by the activation of the mammalian target of rapamycin complex (mTORC) pathway by antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL). These data support the existence of an APS-related vasculopathy in different locations which can explain-in part-the different manifestations of APS. This review focuses on the various manifestations of APS as a result of APS-related vasculopathy, as well as pathophysiology, current screening, and treatment options for clinicians to be aware of.

Kepler observations of rapidly oscillating Ap, δ Scuti and γ Doradus pulsations in Ap stars

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Balona, Luis A.; Cunha, Margarida S.; Kurtz, Donald W.

2011-01-01

Observations of the A5p star KIC 8677585 obtained during the Kepler 10-d commissioning run with 1-min time resolution show that it is a rapidly oscillating Ap (roAp) star with several frequencies with periods near 10 min. In addition, a low frequency at 3.142 d−1 is also clearly present....... Multiperiodic γ Doradus (γ Dor) and δ Scuti (δ Sct) pulsations, never before seen in any Ap star, are present in Kepler observations of at least three other Ap stars. Since γ Dor pulsations are seen in Ap stars, it is likely that the low frequency in KIC 8677585 is also a γ Dor pulsation. The simultaneous...... presence of both γ Dor and roAp pulsations and the unexpected detection of δ Sct and γ Dor pulsations in Ap stars present new opportunities and challenges for the interpretation of these stars. Since it is easy to confuse Am and Ap stars at classification dispersions, the nature of these Ap stars...

Pitch Counts in Youth Baseball and Softball: A Historical Review.

Science.gov (United States)

Feeley, Brian T; Schisel, Jessica; Agel, Julie

2018-07-01

Pitching injuries are getting increased attention in the mass media. Many references are made to pitch counts and the role they play in injury prevention. The original purpose of regulating the pitch count in youth baseball was to reduce injury and fatigue to pitchers. This article reviews the history and development of the pitch count limit in baseball, the effect it has had on injury, and the evidence regarding injury rates on softball windmill pitching. Literature search through PubMed, mass media, and organizational Web sites through June 2015. Pitch count limits and rest recommendations were introduced in 1996 after a survey of 28 orthopedic surgeons and baseball coaches showed injuries to baseball pitchers' arms were believed to be from the number of pitches thrown. Follow-up research led to revised recommendations with more detailed guidelines in 2006. Since that time, data show a relationship between innings pitched and upper extremity injury, but pitch type has not clearly been shown to affect injury rates. Current surveys of coaches and players show that coaches, parents, and athletes often do not adhere to these guidelines. There are no pitch count guidelines currently available in softball. The increase in participation in youth baseball and softball with an emphasis on early sport specialization in youth sports activities suggests that there will continue to be a rise in injury rates to young throwers. The published pitch counts are likely to positively affect injury rates but must be adhered to by athletes, coaches, and parents.

Subcortical plasticity following perceptual learning in a pitch discrimination task.

Science.gov (United States)

Carcagno, Samuele; Plack, Christopher J

2011-02-01

Practice can lead to dramatic improvements in the discrimination of auditory stimuli. In this study, we investigated changes of the frequency-following response (FFR), a subcortical component of the auditory evoked potentials, after a period of pitch discrimination training. Twenty-seven adult listeners were trained for 10 h on a pitch discrimination task using one of three different complex tone stimuli. One had a static pitch contour, one had a rising pitch contour, and one had a falling pitch contour. Behavioral measures of pitch discrimination and FFRs for all the stimuli were measured before and after the training phase for these participants, as well as for an untrained control group (n = 12). Trained participants showed significant improvements in pitch discrimination compared to the control group for all three trained stimuli. These improvements were partly specific for stimuli with the same pitch modulation (dynamic vs. static) and with the same pitch trajectory (rising vs. falling) as the trained stimulus. Also, the robustness of FFR neural phase locking to the sound envelope increased significantly more in trained participants compared to the control group for the static and rising contour, but not for the falling contour. Changes in FFR strength were partly specific for stimuli with the same pitch modulation (dynamic vs. static) of the trained stimulus. Changes in FFR strength, however, were not specific for stimuli with the same pitch trajectory (rising vs. falling) as the trained stimulus. These findings indicate that even relatively low-level processes in the mature auditory system are subject to experience-related change.

APS SCIENCE 2016

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fenner, Richard B. [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States). Advanced Photon Source (APS)

2017-05-01

The Advanced Photon Source (APS) occupies an 80-acre site on the Argonne national laboratory campus, about 25 miles from downtown chicago, illinois. it shares the site with the center for nanoscale materials and the Advanced Protein characterization facility. for directions to Argonne, see http://www.anl.gov/directions-and-visitor-information. The APS, a national synchrotron radiation research facility operated by Argonne for the u.S. department of energy (doe) office of Science, provides this nation’s brightest high-energy x-ray beams for science. research by APS users extends from the center of the earth to outer space, from new information on combustion engines and microcircuits to new drugs and nanotechnologies whose scale is measured in billionths of a meter. The APS helps researchers illuminate answers to the challenges of our high-tech world, from developing new forms of energy, to sustaining our nation’s technological and economic competitiveness, to pushing back against the ravages of disease. research at the APS promises to have far-reaching

Singing ability is rooted in vocal-motor control of pitch.

Science.gov (United States)

Hutchins, Sean; Larrouy-Maestri, Pauline; Peretz, Isabelle

2014-11-01

The inability to vocally match a pitch can be caused by poor pitch perception or by poor vocal-motor control. Although previous studies have tried to examine the relationship between pitch perception and vocal production, they have failed to control for the timbre of the target to be matched. In the present study, we compare pitch-matching accuracy with an unfamiliar instrument (the slider) and with the voice, designed such that the slider plays back recordings of the participant's own voice. We also measured pitch accuracy in singing a familiar melody ("Happy Birthday") to assess the relationship between single-pitch-matching tasks and melodic singing. Our results showed that participants (all nonmusicians) were significantly better at matching recordings of their own voices with the slider than with their voice, indicating that vocal-motor control is an important limiting factor on singing ability. We also found significant correlations between the ability to sing a melody in tune and vocal pitch matching, but not pitch matching on the slider. Better melodic singers also tended to have higher quality voices (as measured by acoustic variables). These results provide important evidence about the role of vocal-motor control in poor singing ability and demonstrate that single-pitch-matching tasks can be useful in measuring general singing abilities.

Facial Expression and Vocal Pitch Height: Evidence of an Intermodal Association

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

David Huron

2009-11-01

Full Text Available Forty-four participants were asked to sing moderate, high, and low pitches while their faces were photographed. In a two-alternative forced choice task, independent judges selected the high-pitch faces as more friendly than the low-pitch faces. When photographs were cropped to show only the eye region, judges still rated the high-pitch faces friendlier than the low-pitch faces. These results are consistent with prior research showing that vocal pitch height is used to signal aggression (low pitch or appeasement (high pitch. An analysis of the facial features shows a strong correlation between eyebrow position and sung pitch—consistent with the role of eyebrows in signaling aggression and appeasement. Overall, the results are consistent with an inter-modal linkage between vocal and facial expressions.

Unsteady force characteristics on foils undergoing pitching motion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang, Chang Jo

2006-01-01

In the present study the unsteady forces acting on the pitching foils such as a flat plate, NACA0010, NACA0020, NACA65-0910 and BTE have been measured by using a six-axis sensor in a circulating water tunnel at a low Reynolds number region. The unsteady characteristics of the dynamic drag and lift have been compared to the quasi-steady ones which are measured under the stationary condition. The pitching motion is available for keeping the lift higher after the separation occurs. Especially, the characteristics of the dynamic lift are quite different from the quasi-steady one at high pitching frequency regions. As the pitching frequency deceases, the amplitude of the dynamic lift becomes closer to the quasi-steady one. However, the phase remains different between the steady and unsteady conditions even at low pitching frequencies. On the other hand, the dynamic drag is governed strongly by the angle of attack

H-Darrieus Wind Turbine with Blade Pitch Control

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

I. Paraschivoiu

2009-01-01

Full Text Available A procedure for computing the optimal variation of the blades' pitch angle of an H-Darrieus wind turbine that maximizes its torque at given operational conditions is proposed and presented along with the results obtained on a 7 kW prototype. The CARDAAV code, based on the “Double-Multiple Streamtube” model developed by the first author, is used to determine the performances of the straight-bladed vertical axis wind turbine. This was coupled with a genetic algorithm optimizer. The azimuthal variation of the blades' pitch angle is modeled with an analytical function whose coefficients are used as variables in the optimization process. Two types of variations were considered for the pitch angle: a simple sinusoidal one and one which is more general, relating closely the blades' pitch to the local flow conditions along their circular path. A gain of almost 30% in the annual energy production was obtained with the polynomial optimal pitch control.

An Absolute Phase Space for the Physicality of Matter

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Valentine, John S.

2010-01-01

We define an abstract and absolute phase space (''APS'') for sub-quantum intrinsic wave states, in three axes, each mapping directly to a duality having fundamental ontological basis. Many aspects of quantum physics emerge from the interaction algebra and a model deduced from principles of 'unique solvability' and 'identifiable entity', and we reconstruct previously abstract fundamental principles and phenomena from these new foundations. The physical model defines bosons as virtual continuous waves pairs in the APS, and fermions as real self-quantizing snapshots of those waves when simple conditions are met. The abstraction and physical model define a template for the constitution of all fermions, a template for all the standard fundamental bosons and their local interactions, in a common framework and compactified phase space for all forms of real matter and virtual vacuum energy, and a distinct algebra for observables and unobservables. To illustrate our scheme's potential, we provide examples of slit experiment variations (where the model finds theoretical basis for interference only occurring between two final sources), QCD (where we may model most attributes known to QCD, and a new view on entanglement), and we suggest approaches for other varied applications. We believe this is a viable candidate for further exploration as a foundational proposition for physics.

Pitch Sequence Complexity and Long-Term Pitcher Performance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joel R. Bock

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Winning one or two games during a Major League Baseball (MLB season is often the difference between a team advancing to post-season play, or “waiting until next year”. Technology advances have made it feasible to augment historical data with in-game contextual data to provide managers immediate insights regarding an opponent’s next move, thereby providing a competitive edge. We developed statistical models of pitcher behavior using pitch sequences thrown during three recent MLB seasons (2011–2013. The purpose of these models was to predict the next pitch type, for each pitcher, based on data available at the immediate moment, in each at-bat. Independent models were developed for each player’s most frequent four pitches. The overall predictability of next pitch type is 74:5%. Additional analyses on pitcher predictability within specific game situations are discussed. Finally, using linear regression analysis, we show that an index of pitch sequence predictability may be used to project player performance in terms of Earned Run Average (ERA and Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP over a longer term. On a restricted range of the independent variable, reducing complexity in selection of pitches is correlated with higher values of both FIP and ERA for the players represented in the sample. Both models were significant at the α = 0.05 level (ERA: p = 0.022; FIP: p = 0.0114. With further development, such models may reduce risk faced by management in evaluation of potential trades, or to scouts assessing unproven emerging talent. Pitchers themselves might benefit from awareness of their individual statistical tendencies, and adapt their behavior on the mound accordingly. To our knowledge, the predictive model relating pitch-wise complexity and long-term performance appears to be novel.

AP Music Theory Applied

Science.gov (United States)

Spieker, Matthew H.

2016-01-01

Some American high schools include Advanced Placement (AP) Music Theory within their course offerings. Students who pass the AP exam can receive college credit either as a music or humanities credit. An AP class, however, offers music students more than future college credit; it ultimately improves musicianship skills and promotes deeper…

Fine-grained pitch processing of music and speech in congenital amusia.

Science.gov (United States)

Tillmann, Barbara; Rusconi, Elena; Traube, Caroline; Butterworth, Brian; Umiltà, Carlo; Peretz, Isabelle

2011-12-01

Congenital amusia is a lifelong disorder of music processing that has been ascribed to impaired pitch perception and memory. The present study tested a large group of amusics (n=17) and provided evidence that their pitch deficit affects pitch processing in speech to a lesser extent: Fine-grained pitch discrimination was better in spoken syllables than in acoustically matched tones. Unlike amusics, control participants performed fine-grained pitch discrimination better for musical material than for verbal material. These findings suggest that pitch extraction can be influenced by the nature of the material (music vs speech), and that amusics' pitch deficit is not restricted to musical material, but extends to segmented speech events. © 2011 Acoustical Society of America

The Effects of Lexical Pitch Accent on Infant Word Recognition in Japanese

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mitsuhiko Ota

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Learners of lexical tone languages (e.g., Mandarin develop sensitivity to tonal contrasts and recognize pitch-matched, but not pitch-mismatched, familiar words by 11 months. Learners of non-tone languages (e.g., English also show a tendency to treat pitch patterns as lexically contrastive up to about 18 months. In this study, we examined if this early-developing capacity to lexically encode pitch variations enables infants to acquire a pitch accent system, in which pitch-based lexical contrasts are obscured by the interaction of lexical and non-lexical (i.e., intonational features. Eighteen 17-month-olds learning Tokyo Japanese were tested on their recognition of familiar words with the expected pitch or the lexically opposite pitch pattern. In early trials, infants were faster in shifting their eyegaze from the distractor object to the target object than in shifting from the target to distractor in the pitch-matched condition. In later trials, however, infants showed faster distractor-to-target than target-to-distractor shifts in both the pitch-matched and pitch-mismatched conditions. We interpret these results to mean that, in a pitch-accent system, the ability to use pitch variations to recognize words is still in a nascent state at 17 months.

Perception of words and pitch patterns in song and speech

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Julia eMerrill

2012-03-01

Full Text Available This fMRI study examines shared and distinct cortical areas involved in the auditory perception of song and speech at the level of their underlying constituents: words, pitch and rhythm. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed on the brain activity patterns of six conditions, arranged in a subtractive hierarchy: sung sentences including words, pitch and rhythm; hummed speech prosody and song melody containing only pitch patterns and rhythm; as well as the pure musical or speech rhythm.Systematic contrasts between these balanced conditions following their hierarchical organization showed a great overlap between song and speech at all levels in the bilateral temporal lobe, but suggested a differential role of the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG and intraparietal sulcus (IPS in processing song and speech. The left IFG was involved in word- and pitch-related processing in speech, the right IFG in processing pitch in song.Furthermore, the IPS showed sensitivity to discrete pitch relations in song as opposed to the gliding pitch in speech. Finally, the superior temporal gyrus and premotor cortex coded for general differences between words and pitch patterns, irrespective of whether they were sung or spoken. Thus, song and speech share many features which are reflected in a fundamental similarity of brain areas involved in their perception. However, fine-grained acoustic differences on word and pitch level are reflected in the activity of IFG and IPS.

Kinematics changes in technique of a softball pitch

OpenAIRE

Tomášek, Petr

2007-01-01

Headline: Kinematic changes in technique of a softball pitch. Aims of thesis: I will compare the pitches ofprofessinal european softball wonam pitchers and then I will compare their technique with professional czech woman pitcher. Methods: Results: Key words: For examination of different techniques, I choosed thease professinal european softball wonam pitchers 3 Italians and 2 Greeks. Videotape was taken on European championship 2005 in Prague. For description of softball pitch I used a metho...

Void coefficient of reactivity calculation for AP-600 core

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suparlina, L.; Budiono, T.A.; Mardha, A.; Tukiran

1998-01-01

Void coefficient of reactivity as one of reactor kinetics parameters has been carried out. The calculation was done into two steps which is cell calculation using WIMSD/4 and core calculation using Batan-2DIFF code programs with the condition of beginning of cycle with all fresh fuels elements and all control rods withdrawn. The one dimension transport program in four neutron energy groups is used to calculate the cell generation of various core materials cell has been calculated in 1/4 fuel element with cluster model and square pitch arrange. Moderator density have been reduced until 20% for the void coefficient of reactivity calculation. Macroscopic cross-section as the out put of WIMSD/4 is being used as the input at the diffusion neutron program for core calculation. The void coefficient of reactivity of the AP-600 core can be determined with regular neutron flux and adjoint in four energy groups and X-Y geometry. The results is shown that the K eff calculation value is different 5.2% from the design data

Effects of Music and Tonal Language Experience on Relative Pitch Performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Ngo, Mary Kim; Vu, Kim-Phuong L; Strybel, Thomas Z

2016-01-01

We examined the interaction between music and tone language experience as related to relative pitch processing by having participants judge the direction and magnitude of pitch changes in a relative pitch task. Participants' performance on this relative pitch task was assessed using the Cochran-Weiss-Shanteau (CWS) index of expertise, based on a ratio of discrimination over consistency in participants' relative pitch judgments. Testing took place in 2 separate sessions on different days to assess the effects of practice on participants' performance. Participants also completed the Montreal Battery of Evaluation of Amusia (MBEA), an existing measure comprising subtests aimed at evaluating relative pitch processing abilities. Musicians outperformed nonmusicians on both the relative pitch task, as measured by the CWS index, and the MBEA, but tonal language speakers outperformed non-tonal language speakers only on the MBEA. A closer look at the discrimination and consistency component scores of the CWS index revealed that musicians were better at discriminating different pitches and more consistent in their assessments of the direction and magnitude of relative pitch change.

Tune That Beer! Listening for the Pitch of Beer

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Felipe Reinoso Carvalho

2016-11-01

Full Text Available We report two experiments designed to assess the key sensory drivers underlying people’s association of a specific auditory pitch with Belgian beer. In particular, we assessed if people would rely mostly on the differences between beers in terms of their relative alcohol strength, or on the contrast between the most salient taste attributes of the different beers. In Experiment 1, the participants rated three bitter beers (differing in alcohol content, using a narrow range of pitch choices (50–500 Hz. The results revealed that the beers were all rated around the same pitch (Mean = 232 Hz, SD = 136 Hz. In Experiment 2, a wider range of pitch choices (50–1500 Hz, along with the addition of a much sweeter beer, revealed that people mostly tend to match beers with bitter-range profiles at significantly lower pitch ranges when compared to the average pitch of a much sweeter beer. These results therefore demonstrate that clear differences in taste attributes lead to distinctly different matches in terms of pitch. Having demonstrated the robustness of the basic crossmodal matching, future research should aim to uncover the basis for such matches and better understand the perceptual effects of matching/non-matching tones on the multisensory drinking experience.

Relating the absence of binaural pitch percept to retro-cochlear impairment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Santurette, Sébastien; Dau, Torsten

Binaural pitch stimuli, created by introducing an interaural phase difference over a narrow band of otherwise diotic white noise, produce an immediate tonal sensation with a pitch close to the centre of the phase-shifted band. In Santurette and Dau [Hear. Res. 223(1-2):29-47, 2007], it was shown...... that the salience of binaural pitch was affected by hearing impairment. Specifically, for subjects with a sensorineural impairment, binaural pitch perception was weaker than the normal-hearing average but the pitch sensation was immediately present. In contrast, no binaural pitch sensation at all was found...... for the (only) two subjects with damage at central stages. The aim of the present study is to clarify whether such a sharp distinction between levels of impairment can be made using binaural pitch stimuli. A pitch detection test was performed by three groups of subjects with: 1) normal hearing; 2) a cochlear...

Relationship of radiation dose and spiral pitch for multi-slice CT system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Song Shaojuan; Wang Wei; Liu Chuanya

2006-01-01

Objective: To study the relations of radiation dose and spiral pitch for multi-slice CT system. Methods: 16 mm dose phantom with solidose 300/400 pen-style ion chamber inserted into each of five holes in turn was scanned with different spiral pitch by LightSpeed 16-slice CT and Sensation 16-slice and 64-slice CT and radiation dose. Results: CTDI vol of axial scan and spiral scan for the three types of CT system are: (1) LightSpeed 16-slice CT: 28.9 (axial), 51.4 (pitch 0.562), 30.8 (pitch 0.938) and 16.5 ( pitch 1.75 ); (2) Sensation 16-slice CT: 41.2(axial) and 40.3(pitch 0.5) ,41.5(pitch 1) and 43.2(pitch 1.5); (3) Sensation 64- slice CT: 41.2(axial) and 40.3(pitch 0.5),41.5(pitch 1),43.2(pitch 1.5). Conclusions: For LightSpeed 16-slice CT, the measured radiation dose decreased with the increase of spiral pitch, the image quality could keep constant only if we increase mAs. While for Sensation 16-slice and 64-slice CT system, the measured radiation dose was identical for different pitch, and the image quality was identical because of the use of mAs auto control technique The mAs should be adjusted in different way according to the type of CT system when the pitch is changed in daily operation. (authors)

AP1000 Design for Security

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Long, L.B.; Cummins, W.E.; Winters, J.W.

2006-01-01

Nuclear power plants are protected from potential security threats through a combination of robust structures around the primary system and other vital equipment, security systems and equipment, and defensive strategy. The overall objective for nuclear power plant security is to protect public health and safety by ensuring that attacks or sabotage do not challenge the ability to safely shutdown the plant or protect from radiological releases. In addition, plants have systems, features and operational strategies to cope with external conditions, such as loss of offsite power, which could be created as part of an attack. Westinghouse considered potential security threats during design of the AP1000 PWR. The differences in plant configuration, safety system design, and safe shutdown equipment between existing plants and AP1000 affect potential vulnerabilities. This paper provides an evaluation of AP1000 with respect to vulnerabilities to security threats. The AP1000 design differs from the design of operating PWRs in the US in the configuration and the functional requirements for safety systems. These differences are intentional departures from conventional PWR designs which simplify plant design and enhance overall safety. The differences between the AP1000 PWR and conventional PWRs can impact vulnerabilities to security threats. The NRC addressed security concerns as part of their reviews for AP1000 Design Certification, and did not identify any security issues of concern. However, much of the detailed security design information for the AP1000 was deferred to the combined Construction and Operating License (COL) phase as many of the security issues are site-specific. Therefore, NRC review of security issues related to the AP1000 is not necessarily complete. Further, since the AP1000 plant design differs from existing PWRs, it is not obvious that the analyses and assessments prepared for existing plants also apply to the AP1000. We conclude that, overall, the AP1000

Multi-pitch Estimation using Semidefinite Programming

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Tobias Lindstrøm; Vandenberghe, Lieven

2017-01-01

assuming a Nyquist sampled signal by adding an additional semidefinite constraint. We show that the proposed estimator has superior performance compared to state- of-the-art methods for separating two closely spaced fundamentals and approximately achieves the asymptotic Cramér-Rao lower bound.......Multi-pitch estimation concerns the problem of estimating the fundamental frequencies (pitches) and amplitudes/phases of multiple superimposed harmonic signals with application in music, speech, vibration analysis etc. In this paper we formulate a complex-valued multi-pitch estimator via...... a semidefinite programming representation of an atomic decomposition over a continuous dictionary of complex exponentials and extend this to real-valued data via a real semidefinite pro-ram with the same dimensions (i.e. half the size). We further impose a continuous frequency constraint naturally occurring from...

Optimal pitching axis location of flapping wings for efficient hovering flight.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Q; Goosen, J F L; van Keulen, F

2017-09-01

Flapping wings can pitch passively about their pitching axes due to their flexibility, inertia, and aerodynamic loads. A shift in the pitching axis location can dynamically alter the aerodynamic loads, which in turn changes the passive pitching motion and the flight efficiency. Therefore, it is of great interest to investigate the optimal pitching axis for flapping wings to maximize the power efficiency during hovering flight. In this study, flapping wings are modeled as rigid plates with non-uniform mass distribution. The wing flexibility is represented by a linearly torsional spring at the wing root. A predictive quasi-steady aerodynamic model is used to evaluate the lift generated by such wings. Two extreme power consumption scenarios are modeled for hovering flight, i.e. the power consumed by a drive system with and without the capacity of kinetic energy recovery. For wings with different shapes, the optimal pitching axis location is found such that the cycle-averaged power consumption during hovering flight is minimized. Optimization results show that the optimal pitching axis is located between the leading edge and the mid-chord line, which shows close resemblance to insect wings. An optimal pitching axis can save up to 33% of power during hovering flight when compared to traditional wings used by most of flapping wing micro air vehicles (FWMAVs). Traditional wings typically use the straight leading edge as the pitching axis. With the optimized pitching axis, flapping wings show higher pitching amplitudes and start the pitching reversals in advance of the sweeping reversals. These phenomena lead to higher lift-to-drag ratios and, thus, explain the lower power consumption. In addition, the optimized pitching axis provides the drive system higher potential to recycle energy during the deceleration phases as compared to their counterparts. This observation underlines the particular importance of the wing pitching axis location for energy-efficient FWMAVs when

Absolute risk, absolute risk reduction and relative risk

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jose Andres Calvache

2012-12-01

Full Text Available This article illustrates the epidemiological concepts of absolute risk, absolute risk reduction and relative risk through a clinical example. In addition, it emphasizes the usefulness of these concepts in clinical practice, clinical research and health decision-making process.

An investigation of spatial representation of pitch in individuals with congenital amusia.

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Xuejing; Sun, Yanan; Thompson, William Forde

2017-09-01

Spatial representation of pitch plays a central role in auditory processing. However, it is unknown whether impaired auditory processing is associated with impaired pitch-space mapping. Experiment 1 examined spatial representation of pitch in individuals with congenital amusia using a stimulus-response compatibility (SRC) task. For amusic and non-amusic participants, pitch classification was faster and more accurate when correct responses involved a physical action that was spatially congruent with the pitch height of the stimulus than when it was incongruent. However, this spatial representation of pitch was not as stable in amusic individuals, revealed by slower response times when compared with control individuals. One explanation is that the SRC effect in amusics reflects a linguistic association, requiring additional time to link pitch height and spatial location. To test this possibility, Experiment 2 employed a colour-classification task. Participants judged colour while ignoring a concurrent pitch by pressing one of two response keys positioned vertically to be congruent or incongruent with the pitch. The association between pitch and space was found in both groups, with comparable response times in the two groups, suggesting that amusic individuals are only slower to respond to tasks involving explicit judgments of pitch.

Pitch Angle Control for Variable Speed Wind Turbines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mouna Ben Smida

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract.Pitch control is a practical technique for power regulation above the rated wind speed it is considered as the most efficient and popular power control method. As conventional pitch control usually use PI controller, the mathematical model of the system should be known well.This paper deals with the operation and the control of the direct driven permanent magnet synchronous generator (PMSG.Different conventional strategies of pitch angle control are described and validated through simulation results under Matlab\\Simulink.

Selective attention to sound location or pitch studied with fMRI.

Science.gov (United States)

Degerman, Alexander; Rinne, Teemu; Salmi, Juha; Salonen, Oili; Alho, Kimmo

2006-03-10

We used 3-T functional magnetic resonance imaging to compare the brain mechanisms underlying selective attention to sound location and pitch. In different tasks, the subjects (N = 10) attended to a designated sound location or pitch or to pictures presented on the screen. In the Attend Location conditions, the sound location varied randomly (left or right), while the pitch was kept constant (high or low). In the Attend Pitch conditions, sounds of randomly varying pitch (high or low) were presented at a constant location (left or right). Both attention to location and attention to pitch produced enhanced activity (in comparison with activation caused by the same sounds when attention was focused on the pictures) in widespread areas of the superior temporal cortex. Attention to either sound feature also activated prefrontal and inferior parietal cortical regions. These activations were stronger during attention to location than during attention to pitch. Attention to location but not to pitch produced a significant increase of activation in the premotor/supplementary motor cortices of both hemispheres and in the right prefrontal cortex, while no area showed activity specifically related to attention to pitch. The present results suggest some differences in the attentional selection of sounds on the basis of their location and pitch consistent with the suggested auditory "what" and "where" processing streams.

A Computationally Efficient Method for Polyphonic Pitch Estimation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ruohua Zhou

2009-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a computationally efficient method for polyphonic pitch estimation. The method employs the Fast Resonator Time-Frequency Image (RTFI as the basic time-frequency analysis tool. The approach is composed of two main stages. First, a preliminary pitch estimation is obtained by means of a simple peak-picking procedure in the pitch energy spectrum. Such spectrum is calculated from the original RTFI energy spectrum according to harmonic grouping principles. Then the incorrect estimations are removed according to spectral irregularity and knowledge of the harmonic structures of the music notes played on commonly used music instruments. The new approach is compared with a variety of other frame-based polyphonic pitch estimation methods, and results demonstrate the high performance and computational efficiency of the approach.

Theoretical studies on the electronic and optoelectronic properties of [A.2AP(w)/A*.2AP(WC)/C.2AP(w)/C*.2AP(WC)/C.A(w)/C*.A(WC)]-Au8 mismatch nucleobase complexes

Science.gov (United States)

Srivastava, Ruby

2018-01-01

The electronic and optoelectronic properties of [A.2AP(w)/A*.2AP(WC)/C.2AP(w)/C*.2AP(WC)/C.A(w)/ C*.A(WC)]-Au8 metal-mismatch nucleobase complexes are investigated by means of density functional theory and time-dependent methods. We selected these mispairs as 2-aminopurine (2AP) produces incorporation errors when binding with cytosine (C) into the wobble (w) C.2AP(w) mispair, and is tautomerised into Watson-Crick (WC)-like base mispair C*.2AP(WC) and less effectively produces A.2AP(w)/A*.2AP(WC) mispairs. The vertical ionisation potential, vertical electron affinity, hardness and electrophilicity index of these complexes have also been discussed. The modifications of energy levels and charge density distributions of the frontier orbitals are also analysed. The absorption spectra of these complexes lie in the visible region, which suggests their application in fluorescent-bio imaging. The mechanism of cooperativity effect is studied by molecular orbital potential (MEP), atoms-in-molecules (AIM) and natural bond orbital analyses. Most metalated pairs have smaller HOMO-LUMO band gaps than the isolated mismatch nucleobases which suggest interesting consequences for electron transfer through DNA duplexes.

Variable Pitch Darrieus Water Turbines

Science.gov (United States)

Kirke, Brian; Lazauskas, Leo

In recent years the Darrieus wind turbine concept has been adapted for use in water, either as a hydrokinetic turbine converting the kinetic energy of a moving fluid in open flow like an underwater wind turbine, or in a low head or ducted arrangement where flow is confined, streamtube expansion is controlled and efficiency is not subject to the Betz limit. Conventional fixed pitch Darrieus turbines suffer from two drawbacks, (i) low starting torque and (ii) shaking due to cyclical variations in blade angle of attack. Ventilation and cavitation can also cause problems in water turbines when blade velocities are high. Shaking can be largely overcome by the use of helical blades, but these do not produce large starting torque. Variable pitch can produce high starting torque and high efficiency, and by suitable choice of pitch regime, shaking can be minimized but not entirely eliminated. Ventilation can be prevented by avoiding operation close to a free surface, and cavitation can be prevented by limiting blade velocities. This paper summarizes recent developments in Darrieus water turbines, some problems and some possible solutions.

Subcortical plasticity following perceptual learning in a pitch discrimination task

OpenAIRE

Carcagno, Samuele; Plack, Christopher J.

2011-01-01

Practice can lead to dramatic improvements in the discrimination of auditory stimuli. In this study, we investigated changes of the frequency-following response (FFR), a subcortical component of the auditory evoked potentials, after a period of pitch discrimination training. Twenty-seven adult listeners were trained for 10 h on a pitch discrimination task using one of three different complex tone stimuli. One had a static pitch contour, one had a rising pitch contour, and one had a falling pi...

Illusory conjunctions of pitch and duration in unfamiliar tone sequences.

Science.gov (United States)

Thompson, W F; Hall, M D; Pressing, J

2001-02-01

In 3 experiments, the authors examined short-term memory for pitch and duration in unfamiliar tone sequences. Participants were presented a target sequence consisting of 2 tones (Experiment 1) or 7 tones (Experiments 2 and 3) and then a probe tone. Participants indicated whether the probe tone matched 1 of the target tones in both pitch and duration. Error rates were relatively low if the probe tone matched 1 of the target tones or if it differed from target tones in pitch, duration, or both. Error rates were remarkably high, however, if the probe tone combined the pitch of 1 target tone with the duration of a different target tone. The results suggest that illusory conjunctions of these dimensions frequently occur. A mathematical model is presented that accounts for the relative contribution of pitch errors, duration errors, and illusory conjunctions of pitch and duration.

Two LQRI based Blade Pitch Controls for Wind Turbines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yoonsu Nam

2012-06-01

Full Text Available As the wind turbine size has been increasing and their mechanical components are built lighter, the reduction of the structural loads becomes a very important task of wind turbine control in addition to maximum wind power capture. In this paper, we present a separate set of collective and individual pitch control algorithms. Both pitch control algorithms use the LQR control technique with integral action (LQRI, and utilize Kalman filters to estimate system states and wind speed. Compared to previous works in this area, our pitch control algorithms can control rotor speed and blade bending moments at the same time to improve the trade-off between rotor speed regulation and load reduction, while both collective and individual pitch controls can be designed separately. Simulation results show that the proposed collective and individual pitch controllers achieve very good rotor speed regulation and significant reduction of blade bending moments.

Children’s identification of familiar songs from pitch and timing cues

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anna eVolkova

2014-08-01

Full Text Available The goal of the present study was to ascertain whether children with normal hearing and prelingually deaf children with cochlear implants could use pitch or timing cues alone or in combination to identify familiar songs. Children 4-7 years of age were required to identify the theme songs of familiar TV shows in a simple task with excerpts that preserved (1 the relative pitch and timing cues of the melody but not the original instrumentation, (2 the timing cues only (rhythm, meter, and tempo, and (3 the relative pitch cues only (pitch contour and intervals. Children with normal hearing performed at high levels and comparably across the three conditions. The performance of child implant users was well above chance levels when both pitch and timing cues were available, marginally above chance with timing cues only, and at chance with pitch cues only. This is the first demonstration that children can identify familiar songs from monotonic versions—timing cues but no pitch cues—and from isochronous versions—pitch cues but no timing cues. The study also indicates that, in the context of a very simple task, young implant users readily identify songs from melodic versions that preserve pitch and timing cues.

Pitch perception and production in congenital amusia: Evidence from Cantonese speakers.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Fang; Chan, Alice H D; Ciocca, Valter; Roquet, Catherine; Peretz, Isabelle; Wong, Patrick C M

2016-07-01

This study investigated pitch perception and production in speech and music in individuals with congenital amusia (a disorder of musical pitch processing) who are native speakers of Cantonese, a tone language with a highly complex tonal system. Sixteen Cantonese-speaking congenital amusics and 16 controls performed a set of lexical tone perception, production, singing, and psychophysical pitch threshold tasks. Their tone production accuracy and singing proficiency were subsequently judged by independent listeners, and subjected to acoustic analyses. Relative to controls, amusics showed impaired discrimination of lexical tones in both speech and non-speech conditions. They also received lower ratings for singing proficiency, producing larger pitch interval deviations and making more pitch interval errors compared to controls. Demonstrating higher pitch direction identification thresholds than controls for both speech syllables and piano tones, amusics nevertheless produced native lexical tones with comparable pitch trajectories and intelligibility as controls. Significant correlations were found between pitch threshold and lexical tone perception, music perception and production, but not between lexical tone perception and production for amusics. These findings provide further evidence that congenital amusia is a domain-general language-independent pitch-processing deficit that is associated with severely impaired music perception and production, mildly impaired speech perception, and largely intact speech production.

Tank 241-AP-107, grab samples 7AP-97-1, 7AP-97-2 and 7AP-97-3 analytical results for the final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Steen, F.H.

1997-01-01

This document is the final report for tank 241-AP-107 grab samples. Three grab samples were collected from riser 1 on September 11, 1997. Analyses were performed on samples 7AP-97-1, 7AP-97-2 and 7AP-97-3 in accordance with the Compatibility Grab Sampling and Analysis Plan (TSAP) (Sasaki, 1997) and the Data Quality Objectives for Tank Farms Waste Compatibility Program (DQO) (Rev. 1: Fowler, 1995; Rev. 2: Mulkey and Nuier, 1997). The analytical results are presented in the data summary report (Table 1). A notification was made to East Tank Farms Operations concerning low hydroxide in the tank and a hydroxide (caustic) demand analysis was requested. The request for sample analysis (RSA) (Attachment 2) received for AP-107 indicated that the samples were polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) suspects. Therefore, prior to performing the requested analyses, aliquots were made to perform PCB analysis in accordance with the 222-S Laboratory administrative procedure, LAP-101-100. The results of this analysis indicated that no PCBs were present at 50 ppm and analysis proceeded as non-PCB samples. The results and raw data for the PCB analysis will be included in a revision to this document. The sample breakdown diagrams (Attachment 1) are provided as a cross-reference for relating the tank farm customer identification numbers with the 222-S Laboratory sample numbers and the portion of sample analyzed

Pitch and time, tonality and meter: how do musical dimensions combine?

Science.gov (United States)

Prince, Jon B; Thompson, William F; Schmuckler, Mark A

2009-10-01

The authors examined how the structural attributes of tonality and meter influence musical pitch-time relations. Listeners heard a musical context followed by probe events that varied in pitch class and temporal position. Tonal and metric hierarchies contributed additively to the goodness-of-fit of probes, with pitch class exerting a stronger influence than temporal position (Experiment 1), even when listeners attempted to ignore pitch (Experiment 2). Speeded classification tasks confirmed this asymmetry. Temporal classification was biased by tonal stability (Experiment 3), but pitch classification was unaffected by temporal position (Experiment 4). Experiments 5 and 6 ruled out explanations based on the presence of pitch classes and temporal positions in the context, unequal stimulus quantity, and discriminability. The authors discuss how typical Western music biases attention toward pitch and distinguish between dimensional discriminability and salience. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2009 APA, all rights reserved.

ELECTROCHEMICAL CORROSION TESTING OF TANKS 241-AN-102 & 241-AP-107 & 241-AP-108 IN SUPPORT OF ULTRASONIC TESTING

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

WYRWAS RB; DUNCAN JB

2008-11-20

This report presents the results of the corrosion rates that were measured using electrochemical methods for tanks 241-AN-102 (AN-102), 241-AP-107 (AP 107), and 241-AP-108 (AP-108) performed under test plant RPP-PLAN-38215. The steel used as materials of construction for AN and AP tank farms was A537 Class 1. Test coupons of A537 Class 1 carbon steel were used for corrosion testing in the AN-107, AP-107, and AP-108 tank waste. Supernate will be tested from AN-102, AP-107, and Ap-108. Saltcake testing was performed on AP-108 only.

Radiation effects on active pixel sensors (APS); Effets de l'irradiation sur les capteurs a pixels actifs (APS)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cohen, M; David, J P [ONERA-CERT/, 31 - Toulouse (France)

1999-07-01

Active pixel sensor (APS) is a new generation of image sensors which presents several advantages relatively to charge coupled devices (CCDs) particularly for space applications (APS requires only 1 voltage to operate which reduces considerably current consumption). Irradiation was performed using {sup 60}Co gamma radiation at room temperature and at a dose rate of 150 Gy(Si)/h. 2 types of APS have been tested: photodiode-APS and photoMOS-APS. The results show that photoMOS-APS is more sensitive to radiation effects than photodiode-APS. Important parameters of image sensors like dark currents increase sharply with dose levels. Nevertheless photodiode-APS sensitivity is one hundred time lower than photoMOS-APS sensitivity.

Effects of harmonic roving on pitch discrimination

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Santurette, Sébastien; de Kérangal, Mathilde le Gal; Joshi, Suyash Narendra

2015-01-01

Performance in pitch discrimination tasks is limited by variability intrinsic to listeners which may arise from peripheral auditory coding limitations or more central noise sources. The present study aimed at quantifying such “internal noise” by estimating the amount of harmonic roving required...... to impair pitch discrimination performance. Fundamental-frequency difference limens (F0DLs) were obtained in normal-hearing listeners with and without musical training for complex tones filtered between 1.5 and 3.5 kHz with F0s of 300 Hz (resolved harmonics) and 75 Hz (unresolved harmonics). The harmonicity...... that could be used to quantify the internal noise and provide strong constraints for physiologically inspired models of pitch perception....

Addendum: ``Hard X-Rays and Gamma Rays from Type Ia Supernovae'' (ApJ, 492, 228 [1998])

Science.gov (United States)

Höflich, Peter; Wheeler, J. C.

2004-04-01

We report a subtle error in the normalization of the absolute flux published in our original article (hereafter HWK98), and some minor updates. The normalization problem is related to the post-processing. As a consequence, the reported line fluxes are too large at early times. Note that Figure 1 of P. Höflich (ApJ, 492, 228 [1998]) has been transferred from HWK98. Results of previous papers are not affected (E. Müller, P. Höflich, A. M. Khokhlov, & E. Müller, ApJ, 492, 228 [1998]; P. Höflich, A. M. Khokhlov, & E. Müller, ApJ, 492, 228 [1998]). For calculating the γ-ray spectra, the γ-ray transport is solved via a Monte Carlo code that produces an output file containing the Eddington flux, the energy input by radioactive decay and escape probability, ζ, of γ-ray photons. In a postprocessing step, the spectrum is renormalized and convolved with the instrumental response function of the γ-ray telescope. A two-step procedure is used to obtain the emergent spectra to separate the CPU-intensive Monte Carlo transport calculation from the ``fast'' second step, allowing us to study the influence of the instrument on the observables (e.g., E. Müller, P. Höflich, A. M. Khokhlov, & E. Müller, ApJ, 492, 228 [1998

Investors prefer entrepreneurial ventures pitched by attractive men.

Science.gov (United States)

Brooks, Alison Wood; Huang, Laura; Kearney, Sarah Wood; Murray, Fiona E

2014-03-25

Entrepreneurship is a central path to job creation, economic growth, and prosperity. In the earliest stages of start-up business creation, the matching of entrepreneurial ventures to investors is critically important. The entrepreneur's business proposition and previous experience are regarded as the main criteria for investment decisions. Our research, however, documents other critical criteria that investors use to make these decisions: the gender and physical attractiveness of the entrepreneurs themselves. Across a field setting (three entrepreneurial pitch competitions in the United States) and two experiments, we identify a profound and consistent gender gap in entrepreneur persuasiveness. Investors prefer pitches presented by male entrepreneurs compared with pitches made by female entrepreneurs, even when the content of the pitch is the same. This effect is moderated by male physical attractiveness: attractive males were particularly persuasive, whereas physical attractiveness did not matter among female entrepreneurs.

Clinical manifestations of antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) with and without antiphospholipid antibodies (the so-called 'seronegative APS').

Science.gov (United States)

Rodriguez-Garcia, Jose Luis; Bertolaccini, Maria Laura; Cuadrado, Maria Jose; Sanna, Giovanni; Ateka-Barrutia, Oier; Khamashta, Munther A

2012-02-01

Although the medical literature currently provides a growing number of isolated case reports of patients with clinically well-defined antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) and persistently negative antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL), there are no studies including a series of patients addressing the clinical features of this condition. The authors assessed clinical manifestations of APS in 154 patients: 87 patients with seropositive APS and 67 patients with thrombosis and/or pregnancy morbidity persistently negative for aPL and presenting with at least two additional non-criteria manifestations of APS (the so-called 'seronegative APS', SN-APS). Patients were interviewed at the time of recruitment, and a retrospective file review was carried out. There were no significant differences in the frequency of thrombotic events or obstetric morbidity in patients with SN-APS versus patients with seropositive APS: deep vein thrombosis (31.4% vs 31.0%), pulmonary embolism (23.8% vs 28.7%), stroke (14.9% vs 17.2%), transient ischaemic attack (11.9% vs 10.3%), early spontaneous abortions (67.1% vs 52.1%), stillbirths (62.5% vs 59.4%), prematurity (28.1% vs 21.7%) or pre-eclampsia (28.1% vs 23.1%). Classic and SN-APS patients show similar clinical profiles. The results suggest that clinical management in patients with APS should not be based only on the presence of conventional aPL.

DIAGNOSIS OF PITCH AND LOAD DEFECTS

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2009-01-01

The invention relates to a method, system and computer readable code for diagnosis of pitch and/or load defects of e.g. wind turbines as well as wind turbines using said diagnosis method and/or comprising said diagnosis system.......The invention relates to a method, system and computer readable code for diagnosis of pitch and/or load defects of e.g. wind turbines as well as wind turbines using said diagnosis method and/or comprising said diagnosis system....

Shoulder and Scapular Kinematics during the Windmill Softball Pitch

OpenAIRE

Backus, Sherry I.; Kraszewski, Andrew; Kontaxis, Andreas; Gibbons, Mandi; Bido, Jennifer; Graziano, Jessica; Hafer, Jocelyn; Jones, Kristofer J.; Hillstrom, Howard; Fealy, Stephen

2013-01-01

Objectives: Pitch count has been studied extensively in the overhand throwing athlete. However, pitch count and fatigue have not been systematically evaluated in the female windmill (underhand) throwing athlete. Direct kinematic measurements of the glenohumeral and scapulo-thoracic joint have not to be correlated and determined. The purpose is to measure scapular kinematics for the high school female windmill softball pitcher and identify kinematic adaptions and changes in pitching performanc...

Politeness, emotion, and gender: A sociophonetic study of voice pitch modulation

Science.gov (United States)

Yuasa, Ikuko

The present dissertation is a cross-gender and cross-cultural sociophonetic exploration of voice pitch characteristics utilizing speech data derived from Japanese and American speakers in natural conversations. The roles of voice pitch modulation in terms of the concepts of politeness and emotion as they pertain to culture and gender will be investigated herein. The research interprets the significance of my findings based on the acoustic measurements of speech data as they are presented in the ERB-rate scale (the most appropriate scale for human speech perception). The investigation reveals that pitch range modulation displayed by Japanese informants in two types of conversations is closely linked to types of politeness adopted by those informants. The degree of the informants' emotional involvement and expressions reflected in differing pitch range widths plays an important role in determining the relationship between pitch range modulation and politeness. The study further correlates the Japanese cultural concept of enryo ("self-restraint") with this phenomenon. When median values were examined, male and female pitch ranges across cultures did not conspicuously differ. However, sporadically occurring women's pitch characteristics which culturally differ in width and height of pitch ranges may create an 'emotional' perception of women's speech style. The salience of these pitch characteristics appears to be the source of the stereotypically linked sound of women's speech being identified as 'swoopy' or 'shrill' and thus 'emotional'. Such women's salient voice characteristics are interpreted in light of camaraderie/positive politeness. Women's use of conspicuous paralinguistic features helps to create an atmosphere of camaraderie. These voice pitch characteristics promote the establishment of a sense of camaraderie since they act to emphasize such feelings as concern, support, and comfort towards addressees, Moreover, men's wide pitch ranges are discussed in view

Pitch Angle Control for Variable Speed Wind Turbines

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Chen, Zhe; Zhang, Jianzhong; Cheng, M

2008-01-01

Pitch angle control is the most common means for adjusting the aerodynamic torque of the wind turbine when wind speed is above rated speed and various controlling variables may be chosen, such as wind speed, generator speed and generator power. As conventional pitch control usually use PI...... controller, the mathematical model of the system should be known well. A fuzzy logic pitch angle controller is developed in this paper, in which it does not need well known about the system and the mean wind speed is used to compensate the non-linear sensitivity. The fuzzy logic control strategy may have...... the potential when the system contains strong non-linearity, such as wind turbulence is strong, or the control objectives include fatigue loads. The design of the fuzzy logic controller and the comparisons with conversional pitch angle control strategies with various controlling variables are carried out...

Anomalous capillary flow of coal tar pitches

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Saint Romain, J.L.; Lahaye, J.; Ehrburger, P.; Couderc, P.

1986-06-01

Capillary flow of liquid coal tar pitch into a coke bed was studied. Anomalies in the flow could not be attributed to a plugging effect for mesophase content lower than 20 wt%. The flow behaviour of small pitch droplets can be correlated with the change in physicochemical properties, as measured by the glass transition temperature, on penetration into the coke bed. 4 references.

Detection and identification of monaural and binaural pitch contours in dyslexic listeners

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Santurette, Sébastien; Dau, Torsten; Poelmans, Hanne

2010-01-01

found that a majority of dyslexic subjects were unable to hear binaural pitch, the latter obtained a clear response of dyslexic listeners to Huggins’ pitch (HP) (Cramer and Huggins, 1958). The present study clarified whether impaired binaural pitch perception is found in dyslexia. Results from a pitch...

Neural mechanisms underlying melodic perception and memory for pitch.

Science.gov (United States)

Zatorre, R J; Evans, A C; Meyer, E

1994-04-01

The neural correlates of music perception were studied by measuring cerebral blood flow (CBF) changes with positron emission tomography (PET). Twelve volunteers were scanned using the bolus water method under four separate conditions: (1) listening to a sequence of noise bursts, (2) listening to unfamiliar tonal melodies, (3) comparing the pitch of the first two notes of the same set of melodies, and (4) comparing the pitch of the first and last notes of the melodies. The latter two conditions were designed to investigate short-term pitch retention under low or high memory load, respectively. Subtraction of the obtained PET images, superimposed on matched MRI scans, provides anatomical localization of CBF changes associated with specific cognitive functions. Listening to melodies, relative to acoustically matched noise sequences, resulted in CBF increases in the right superior temporal and right occipital cortices. Pitch judgments of the first two notes of each melody, relative to passive listening to the same stimuli, resulted in right frontal-lobe activation. Analysis of the high memory load condition relative to passive listening revealed the participation of a number of cortical and subcortical regions, notably in the right frontal and right temporal lobes, as well as in parietal and insular cortex. Both pitch judgment conditions also revealed CBF decreases within the left primary auditory cortex. We conclude that specialized neural systems in the right superior temporal cortex participate in perceptual analysis of melodies; pitch comparisons are effected via a neural network that includes right prefrontal cortex, but active retention of pitch involves the interaction of right temporal and frontal cortices.

Radiation effects on active pixel sensors (APS)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cohen, M.; David, J.P.

1999-01-01

Active pixel sensor (APS) is a new generation of image sensors which presents several advantages relatively to charge coupled devices (CCDs) particularly for space applications (APS requires only 1 voltage to operate which reduces considerably current consumption). Irradiation was performed using 60 Co gamma radiation at room temperature and at a dose rate of 150 Gy(Si)/h. 2 types of APS have been tested: photodiode-APS and photoMOS-APS. The results show that photoMOS-APS is more sensitive to radiation effects than photodiode-APS. Important parameters of image sensors like dark currents increase sharply with dose levels. Nevertheless photodiode-APS sensitivity is one hundred time lower than photoMOS-APS sensitivity

The intensity-pitch relation revisited: monopolar versus bipolar cochlear stimulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Arnoldner, Christoph; Riss, Dominik; Kaider, Alexandra; Mair, Alois; Wagenblast, Jens; Baumgartner, Wolf-Dieter; Gstöttner, Wolfgang; Hamzavi, Jafar-Sasan

2008-09-01

The very high speech perception scores now being achieved with cochlear implants have led to demands for similar levels of achievement in music perception and perception in noisy environments. One of the crucial factors in these fields is pitch perception. The aim of the present study was to investigate the extent to which pitch perception is influenced by the intensity of the stimulus, through the use of different stimulation modes (monopolar, bipolar) and different electrodes (lateral and perimodiolar). Sixteen postlingually deafened patients with an average implant use of 3.1 years were included in this study. All patients were using a Cochlear (CI24M, CI24R, CI24RE) cochlear implant. Subjects were asked to compare the pitch of an intensity-constant reference tone with the pitch of a test tone of varying intensity. The test was repeated for apical, mediocochlear, and basal channel locations, and also for monopolar and bipolar stimulation. It was found that in monopolar stimulation 87.5% and in bipolar stimulation 85.7% of the patients perceived a clear pitch change with changing intensity of the stimulus (Spearman correlation coefficients r 0.3, respectively). A total of 73.1% of these patients perceived lower pitches with increasing intensity, 26.9% reported the opposite effect. No statistically significant difference in the intensity-pitch correlation could be found between mono- and bipolar stimulation. Neither the mean dynamic range nor the type of electrode used was found to be related to the correlation coefficient. Although the majority of today's cochlear implant recipients perform well and the intensity-pitch relation in cochlear implant recipients is still poorly understood, rising demands on speech-coding strategies may soon make a compensation of the pitch shifts desirable. Although the results of our study tend to argue against a peripheral mechanism, the exact origin of this phenomenon remains unclear.

Task Force on Catastrophic Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS) and Non-criteria APS Manifestations (II): thrombocytopenia and skin manifestations.

Science.gov (United States)

Cervera, R; Tektonidou, M G; Espinosa, G; Cabral, A R; González, E B; Erkan, D; Vadya, S; Adrogué, H E; Solomon, M; Zandman-Goddard, G; Shoenfeld, Y

2011-02-01

The objectives of the 'Task Force on Catastrophic Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS) and Non-criteria APS Manifestations' were to assess the clinical utility of the international consensus statement on classification criteria and treatment guidelines for the catastrophic APS, to identify and grade the studies that analyze the relationship between the antiphospholipid antibodies and the non-criteria APS manifestations, and to present the current evidence regarding the accuracy of these non-criteria APS manifestations for the detection of patients with APS. This article summarizes the studies analyzed on thrombocytopenia and skin manifestations, and presents the recommendations elaborated by the Task Force after this analysis.

Encasing the Absolutes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Uroš Martinčič

2014-05-01

Full Text Available The paper explores the issue of structure and case in English absolute constructions, whose subjects are deduced by several descriptive grammars as being in the nominative case due to its supposed neutrality in terms of register. This deduction is countered by systematic accounts presented within the framework of the Minimalist Program which relate the case of absolute constructions to specific grammatical factors. Each proposal is shown as an attempt of analysing absolute constructions as basic predication structures, either full clauses or small clauses. I argue in favour of the small clause approach due to its minimal reliance on transformations and unique stipulations. Furthermore, I propose that small clauses project a singular category, and show that the use of two cases in English absolute constructions can be accounted for if they are analysed as depictive phrases, possibly selected by prepositions. The case of the subject in absolutes is shown to be a result of syntactic and non-syntactic factors. I thus argue in accordance with Minimalist goals that syntactic case does not exist, attributing its role in absolutes to other mechanisms.

Dynamics of fluidic devices with applications to rotor pitch links

Science.gov (United States)

Scarborough, Lloyd H., III

Coupling a Fluidic Flexible Matrix Composite (F2MC) to an air-pressurized fluid port produces a fundamentally new class of tunable vibration isolator. This fluidlastic device provides significant vibration reduction at an isolation frequency that can be tuned over a broad frequency range. The material properties and geometry of the F2MC element, as well as the port inertance, determine the isolation frequency. A unique feature of this device is that the port inertance depends on pressure so the isolation frequency can be adjusted by changing the air pressure. For constant port inertance, the isolation frequency is largely independent of the isolated mass so the device is robust to changes in load. A nonlinear model is developed to predict isolator length and port inertance. The model is linearized and the frequency response calculated. Experiments agree with theory, demonstrating a tunable isolation range from 9 Hz to 36 Hz and transmitted force reductions of up to 60 dB at the isolation frequency. Replacing rigid pitch links on rotorcraft with coupled fluidic devices has the potential to reduce the aerodynamic blade loads transmitted through the pitch links to the swashplate. Analytical models of two fluidic devices coupled with three different fluidic circuits are derived. These passive fluidlastic systems are tuned, by varying the fluid inertances and capacitances of each fluidic circuit, to reduce the transmitted pitch-link loads. The different circuit designs result in transmitted pitch link loads reduction at up to three main rotor harmonics. The simulation results show loads reduction at the targeted out-of-phase and in-phase harmonics of up to 88% and 93%, respectively. Experimental validation of two of the fluidic circuits demonstrates loads reduction of up to 89% at the out-of-phase isolation frequencies and up to 81% at the in-phase isolation frequencies. Replacing rigid pitch links on rotorcraft with fluidic pitch links changes the blade torsional

Relationship between noise, dose, and pitch in cardiac multi-detector row CT.

Science.gov (United States)

Primak, Andrew N; McCollough, Cynthia H; Bruesewitz, Michael R; Zhang, Jie; Fletcher, Joel G

2006-01-01

In spiral computed tomography (CT), dose is always inversely proportional to pitch. However, the relationship between noise and pitch (and hence noise and dose) depends on the scanner type (single vs multi-detector row) and reconstruction mode (cardiac vs noncardiac). In single detector row spiral CT, noise is independent of pitch. Conversely, in noncardiac multi-detector row CT, noise depends on pitch because the spiral interpolation algorithm makes use of redundant data from different detector rows to decrease noise for pitch values less than 1 (and increase noise for pitch values > 1). However, in cardiac spiral CT, redundant data cannot be used because such data averaging would degrade the temporal resolution. Therefore, the behavior of noise versus pitch returns to the single detector row paradigm, with noise being independent of pitch. Consequently, since faster rotation times require lower pitch values in cardiac multi-detector row CT, dose is increased without a commensurate decrease in noise. Thus, the use of faster rotation times will improve temporal resolution, not alter noise, and increase dose. For a particular application, the higher dose resulting from faster rotation speeds should be justified by the clinical benefits of the improved temporal resolution. RSNA, 2006

Lower extremity muscle activation during baseball pitching.

Science.gov (United States)

Campbell, Brian M; Stodden, David F; Nixon, Megan K

2010-04-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate muscle activation levels of select lower extremity muscles during the pitching motion. Bilateral surface electromyography data on 5 lower extremity muscles (biceps femoris, rectus femoris, gluteus maximus, vastus medialis, and gastrocnemius) were collected on 11 highly skilled baseball pitchers and compared with individual maximal voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC) data. The pitching motion was divided into 4 distinct phases: phase 1, initiation of pitching motion to maximum stride leg knee height; phase 2, maximum stride leg knee height to stride foot contact (SFC); phase 3, SFC to ball release; and phase 4, ball release to 0.5 seconds after ball release (follow-through). Results indicated that trail leg musculature elicited moderate to high activity levels during phases 2 and 3 (38-172% of MVIC). Muscle activity levels of the stride leg were moderate to high during phases 2-4 (23-170% of MVIC). These data indicate a high demand for lower extremity strength and endurance. Specifically, coaches should incorporate unilateral and bilateral lower extremity exercises for strength improvement or maintenance and to facilitate dynamic stabilization of the lower extremities during the pitching motion.

Series pid pitch controller of large wind turbines generator

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Micić Aleksandar D.

2015-01-01

Full Text Available For this stable process with oscillatory dynamics, characterized with small damping ratio and dominant transport delay, design of the series PID pitch controller is based on the model obtained from the open-loop process step response, filtered with the second-order Butterworth filter Fbw. Performance of the series PID pitch controller, with the filter Fbw, is analyzed by simulations of the set-point and input/output disturbance responses, including simulations with a colored noise added to the control variable. Excellent performance/robustness tradeoff is obtained, compared to the recently proposed PI pitch controllers and to the modified internal model pitch controller, developed here, which has a natural mechanism to compensate effect of dominant transport delay. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. III 47016

Determination of pitch rotation in a spherical birefringent microparticle

Science.gov (United States)

Roy, Basudev; Ramaiya, Avin; Schäffer, Erik

2018-03-01

Rotational motion of a three dimensional spherical microscopic object can happen either in pitch, yaw or roll fashion. Among these, the yaw motion has been conventionally studied using the intensity of scattered light from birefringent microspheres through crossed polarizers. Up until now, however, there is no way to study the pitch motion in spherical microspheres. Here, we suggest a new method to study the pitch motion of birefringent microspheres under crossed polarizers by measuring the 2-fold asymmetry in the scattered signal either using video microscopy or with optical tweezers. We show a couple of simple examples of pitch rotation determination using video microscopy for a microsphere attached with a kinesin molecule while moving along a microtubule and of a particle diffusing freely in water.

Congenital amusics use a secondary pitch mechanism to identify lexical tones.

Science.gov (United States)

Bones, Oliver; Wong, Patrick C M

2017-09-01

Amusia is a pitch perception disorder associated with deficits in processing and production of both musical and lexical tones, which previous reports have suggested may be constrained to fine-grained pitch judgements. In the present study speakers of tone-languages, in which lexical tones are used to convey meaning, identified words present in chimera stimuli containing conflicting pitch-cues in the temporal fine-structure and temporal envelope, and which therefore conveyed two distinct utterances. Amusics were found to be more likely than controls to judge the word according to the envelope pitch-cues. This demonstrates that amusia is not associated with fine-grained pitch judgements alone, and is consistent with there being two distinct pitch mechanisms and with amusics having an atypical reliance on a secondary mechanism based upon envelope cues. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Calculation and characteristics analysis of blade pitch loads for large scale wind turbines

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

无

2010-01-01

Based on the electric pitch system of large scale horizontal-axis wind turbines,the blade pitch loads coming mainly from centrifugal force,aerodynamic force and gravity are analyzed,and the calculation models for them are established in this paper.For illustration,a 1.2 MW wind turbine is introduced as a practical sample,and its blade pitch loads from centrifugal force,aerodynamic force and gravity are calculated and analyzed separately and synthetically.The research results showed that in the process of rotor rotating 360o,the fluctuation of blade pitch loads is similar to cosine curve when the rotor rotational speed,in-flow wind speed and pitch angle are constant.Furthermore,the amplitude of blade pitch load presents quite a difference at a different pitch angle.The ways of calculation for blade pitch loads are of the universality,and are helpful for further research of the individual pitch control system.

Radiation effects on active pixel sensors (APS); Effets de l'irradiation sur les capteurs a pixels actifs (APS)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cohen, M.; David, J.P. [ONERA-CERT/, 31 - Toulouse (France)

1999-07-01

Active pixel sensor (APS) is a new generation of image sensors which presents several advantages relatively to charge coupled devices (CCDs) particularly for space applications (APS requires only 1 voltage to operate which reduces considerably current consumption). Irradiation was performed using {sup 60}Co gamma radiation at room temperature and at a dose rate of 150 Gy(Si)/h. 2 types of APS have been tested: photodiode-APS and photoMOS-APS. The results show that photoMOS-APS is more sensitive to radiation effects than photodiode-APS. Important parameters of image sensors like dark currents increase sharply with dose levels. Nevertheless photodiode-APS sensitivity is one hundred time lower than photoMOS-APS sensitivity.

Shoulder joint velocity during fastball pitching in baseball

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gasparutto, X.; van der Graaff, E; van der Helm, F.C.T.; Veeger, H.E.J.; Colloud, F.; Domalain, M.; Monnet, T.

2015-01-01

The purpose of this study was to assess the rotation and translation velocity of the shoulder complex during fastball pitching in baseball. 8 pitchers from the Dutch AAA team performed each 3 fastball pitches. Their motion was recorded by an opto-electronic device. Kinematic computation was

Center for Geometrisk Metrologi CGM ApS, Årsberetning 2001 til DANAK

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

De Chiffre, Leonardo

Denne årsberetning omfatter CGM ApS' akkrediterede virksomhed i kalenderåret 2001. Årsberetningen er udarbejdet til DANAK (Dansk Akkreditering, Erhvervsfremme Styrelsen), som led i opfyldelsen af laboratoriets informationspligt i henhold til gældende regler (Teknisk Forskrift Nr. TF4 af 2000...

Thermal Decomposition Characteristics of Orthorhombic Ammonium Perchlorate (o-AP) and an 0-AP/HTPB-Based Propellant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

BEHRENS JR., RICHARD; MINIER, LEANNA M.G.

1999-01-01

A study to characterize the low-temperature reactive processes for o-AP and an AP/HTPB-based propellant (class 1.3) is being conducted in the laboratory using the techniques of simultaneous thermogravimetric modulated beam mass spectrometry (STMBMS) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results presented in this paper are a follow up of the previous work that showed the overall decomposition to be complex and controlled by both physical and chemical processes. The decomposition is characterized by the occurrence of one major event that consumes up to(approx)35% of the AP, depending upon particle size, and leaves behind a porous agglomerate of AP. The major gaseous products released during this event include H(sub 2)O, O(sub 2), Cl(sub 2), N(sub 2)O and HCl. The recent efforts provide further insight into the decomposition processes for o-AP. The temporal behaviors of the gas formation rates (GFRs) for the products indicate that the major decomposition event consists of three chemical channels. The first and third channels are affected by the pressure in the reaction cell and occur at the surface or in the gas phase above the surface of the AP particles. The second channel is not affected by pressure and accounts for the solid-phase reactions characteristic of o-AP. The third channel involves the interactions of the decomposition products with the surface of the AP. SEM images of partially decomposed o-AP provide insight to how the morphology changes as the decomposition progresses. A conceptual model has been developed, based upon the STMBMS and SEM results, that provides a basic description of the processes. The thermal decomposition characteristics of the propellant are evaluated from the identities of the products and the temporal behaviors of their GFRs. First, the volatile components in the propellant evolve from the propellant as it is heated. Second, the hot AP (and HClO(sub 4)) at the AP-binder interface oxidize the binder through reactions that

Comparative analysis between radiographic views for knee osteoarthrosis (bipedal AP versus monopedal AP

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rodrigo Pires e Albuquerque

2013-08-01

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: A comparative analysis by applying the criteria of the original classification Ahlbäck in the anteroposterior (AP bipedal knee in extension and anteroposterior (AP monopodal knee in symptomatic knee arthrosis. With this analysis we intend to observe the agreement, any advantage or difference between the incidence and degree of joint involvement between the orthopedic surgeons and radiologists with the referring physician. METHODS: From January 2012 to March 2012, was a prospective study of 60 symptomatic arthrosis knees (60 patients, clinically selected group of outpatient knee and radiographic proposals submitted to the search. Of the 60 patients, 39 were female and 21 male, mean age 64 years (ranging from 50 to 84 years. Of the 60 knees studied, 37 corresponded to the right side and 23 on the left side. Statistical analysis was performed by Kappa statistics, which evaluates the interobserver agreement for qualitative data. RESULTS: According to the scale of Ahlbäck, there was a significant agreement (p < 0.0001 intra-observer in the classification of knee osteoarthritis among the five evaluators. There was a significant agreement (p < 0.0001 with inter-observer referring physician in the incidence of AP monopodal and AP bipedal for the four raters. CONCLUSION: The study found no difference between the incidence in the AP monopodal versus AP bipedal in osteoarthritis of the knee.

AIRE variations in Addison's disease and autoimmune polyendocrine syndromes (APS): partial gene deletions contribute to APS I.

Science.gov (United States)

Bøe Wolff, A S; Oftedal, B; Johansson, S; Bruland, O; Løvås, K; Meager, A; Pedersen, C; Husebye, E S; Knappskog, P M

2008-03-01

Autoimmune Addison's disease (AAD) is often associated with other components in autoimmune polyendocrine syndromes (APS). Whereas APS I is caused by mutations in the AIRE gene, the susceptibility genes for AAD and APS II are unclear. In the present study, we investigated whether polymorphisms or copy number variations in the AIRE gene were associated with AAD and APS II. First, nine SNPs in the AIRE gene were analyzed in 311 patients with AAD and APS II and 521 healthy controls, identifying no associated risk. Second, in a subgroup of 25 of these patients, AIRE sequencing revealed three novel polymorphisms. Finally, the AIRE copy number was determined by duplex quantitative PCR in 14 patients with APS I, 161 patients with AAD and APS II and in 39 healthy subjects. In two Scandinavian APS I patients previously reported to be homozygous for common AIRE mutations, we identified large deletions of the AIRE gene covering at least exon 2 to exon 8. We conclude that polymorphisms in the AIRE gene are not associated with AAD and APS II. We further suggest that DNA analysis of the parents of patients found to be homozygous for mutations in AIRE, always should be performed.

Analysis of pitch system data for condition monitoring

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Jannie Sønderkær; van de Pieterman, René P.; Sørensen, John Dalsgaard

2014-01-01

with a theoretical model based on aeroelastic simulations. The blade moment is found to have only minor influence on the friction in the blade bearing. The main factors affecting the static friction are the temperature and time after the latest pitch movement. Pitch motor current and torque are proportional...

The effect of pitch in multislice spiral/helical CT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, G.; Vannier, M.W.

2000-01-01

The purpose of this study is to understand the effect of pitch on raw data interpolation in multislice spiral/helical computed tomography (CT) and provide guidelines for scanner design and protocol optimization. Multislice spiral CT is mainly characterized by the three parameters: the number of detector arrays, the detector collimation, and the table increment per x-ray source rotation. The pitch in multislice spiral CT is defined as the ratio of the table increment over the detector collimation in this study. In parallel to the current framework for studying longitudinal image resolution, the central fan-beam rays of direct and opposite directions are considered, assuming a narrow cone-beam angle. Generally speaking, sampling in the Radon domain by the direct and opposite central rays is nonuniform along the longitudinal axis. Using a recently developed methodology for quantifying the sensibility of signal reconstruction from non-uniformly sampled finite points, the effect of pitch on raw data interpolation is analyzed in multislice spiral CT. Unlike single-slice spiral CT, in which image quality decreases monotonically as the pitch increases, the sensibility of raw data interpolation in multislice spiral CT increases, suggesting that image quality does not decrease monotonically in this case. The most favorable pitch can be found from the sensitivity-slice spiral CT is provided. The study on the effect of pitch using the sensitivity analysis approach reveals the fundamental characteristics of raw data interpolation in multislice spiral CT, and gives insights into interaction between pitch and image quality. These results may be valuable for design of multislice spiral CT scanners and imaging protocol optimization in clinical applications. (authors)

Autoantibody profiling in APS.

Science.gov (United States)

Roggenbuck, D; Somma, V; Schierack, P; Borghi, M O; Meroni, P L

2014-10-01

The international consensus for the classification of antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) requires clinical and laboratory criteria to be considered at an equal level for diagnosing APS. Thus, detection of antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) being a hallmark of APS has been the object of intensive investigation over the past 40 years. However, appropriate detection of aPL still remains a laboratory challenge due to their heterogeneity comprising autoantibodies reactive to different phospholipid-binding plasma proteins, such as beta-2 glycoprotein I (β2GPI) and prothrombin. The relevance of aPL interacting with phospholipids other than cardiolipin (CL, diphosphatidylglycerol), such as phosphatidylserine (PS), remains elusive with regard to the diagnosis of APS. Recently, the concept of aPL profiling has been introduced to assess the risk of thrombotic complications in patients with APS. New assay techniques, apart from enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) recommended by the international consensus for the classification of APS, have been proposed for multiplexing of aPL testing. Line immunoassays (LIAs) employing a novel hydrophobic solid phase for the simultaneous detection of different aPL seem to be an intriguing alternative. We evaluated a novel multiplex LIA employing a hydrophobic membrane coated with different phospholipid (PL)-binding proteins or PLs. The performance characteristics of this new multiplexing assay technique demonstrated its usefulness for aPL profiling. © The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav.

Absolute advantage

NARCIS (Netherlands)

J.G.M. van Marrewijk (Charles)

2008-01-01

textabstractA country is said to have an absolute advantage over another country in the production of a good or service if it can produce that good or service using fewer real resources. Equivalently, using the same inputs, the country can produce more output. The concept of absolute advantage can

Physico-chemical profiles of the wobble ↔ Watson-Crick G*·2AP(w) ↔ G·2AP(WC) and A·2AP(w) ↔ A*·2AP(WC) tautomerisations: a QM/QTAIM comprehensive survey.

Science.gov (United States)

Brovarets', Ol'ha O; Voiteshenko, Ivan S; Hovorun, Dmytro M

2017-12-20

This study is intended to clarify in detail the tautomeric transformations of the wobble (w) G*·2AP(w) and A·2AP(w) nucleobase mispairs involving 2-aminopurine (2AP) into the Watson-Crick (WC) G·2AP(WC) and A*·2AP(WC) base mispairs (asterisks denote mutagenic tautomers of the DNA bases), respectively, by quantum-mechanical methods and Bader's Quantum Theory of Atoms in Molecules. Our previously reported methodology has been used, which allows the evolution of the physico-chemical parameters to be tracked along the entire internal reaction coordinate (IRC), not exclusively in the stationary states of these reactions. These biologically important G*·2AP(w) ↔ G·2AP(WC) and A·2AP(w) ↔ A*·2AP(WC) w ↔ WC tautomerisations, which are involved in mutagenic tautomerically-conformational pathways, determine the origin of the transitions and transversions induced by 2AP. In addition, it is established that they proceed through planar, highly stable, zwitterionic transition states and they exhibit similar physico-chemical profiles and stages of sequential intrapair proton transfer, followed by spatial rearrangement of the nucleobases relative to each other within the base pairs. These w ↔ WC tautomerisations occur non-dissociatively and are accompanied by a significant alteration in geometry (from wobble to Watson-Crick and vice versa) and redistribution of the specific intermolecular interactions, which can be divided into 10 patterns including AHB H-bonds and loosened A-H-B covalent bridges along the IRC of tautomerisation. Based on the redistribution of the geometrical and electron-topological parameters of the intrapair hydrogen bonds, exactly 9 key points have been allocated to characterize the evolution of these reactions.

Pulping Variables, Storage Time and Pitch Deposit | Ogunwusi ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Pulp resin is also influenced by effective alkali concentration of the pulping medium. With increase in effective alkali concentration from 13% to 15%, pulp pitch is reduced. The interaction effect of storage and effective alkali concentration was not significant indicating that reduction in pulp pitch caused by effective alkali ...

The Influence of Second Harmonic Phase and Amplitude Variation in Cyclically Pitching Wings

Science.gov (United States)

Culler, Ethan; Farnsworth, John

2017-11-01

From wind tunnel testing of a cyber-physical wing model, it has been found that the pitch trajectory for stall flutter is described by an array of higher harmonic frequencies with decaying energy content. These frequencies distort the stall flutter motion from that of a pure sinusoidal oscillation in pitch and can have a significant effect on the resulting force production. In order to understand how these higher harmonic frequencies contribute to the overall pitching moment characteristics of a wing in stall flutter, a rigid finite span wing model, with aspect ratio four, was pitched in the wind tunnel. The prescribed motion of the pitch cycle was varied by changing the amplitude ratio and phase of the second harmonic of the oscillation frequency. The second harmonic represents the second highest energy mode in the pitching cycle spectra. Pitching moment and planar particle image velocimetry data was collected. From these pitching trajectories, a significant dependence of pitching moment on both the phase and amplitude of the prescribed waveforms was found. Specifically, for the same amplitude ratio, variations in the phase produced changes of approximately 30 percent in the phase averaged pitching moment.

Spectral Envelope Transformation in Singing Voice for Advanced Pitch Shifting

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

José L. Santacruz

2016-11-01

Full Text Available The aim of the present work is to perform a step towards more natural pitch shifting techniques in singing voice for its application in music production and entertainment systems. In this paper, we present an advanced method to achieve natural modifications when applying a pitch shifting process to singing voice by modifying the spectral envelope of the audio excerpt. To this end, an all-pole model has been selected to model the spectral envelope, which is estimated using a constrained non-linear optimization. The analysis of the global variations of the spectral envelope was carried out by identifying changes of the parameters of the model along with the changes of the pitch. With the obtained spectral envelope transformation functions, we applied our pitch shifting scheme to some sustained vowels in order to compare results with the same transformation made by using the Flex Pitch plugin of Logic Pro X and pitch synchronous overlap and add technique (PSOLA. This comparison has been carried out by means of both an objective and a subjective evaluation. The latter was done with a survey open to volunteers on our website.

Crackle Pitch Rises Progressively during Inspiration in Pneumonia, CHF, and IPF Patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Vyshedskiy, Andrey; Murphy, Raymond

2012-01-01

Objective. It is generally accepted that crackles are due to sudden opening of airways and that larger airways produce crackles of lower pitch than smaller airways do. As larger airways are likely to open earlier in inspiration than smaller airways and the reverse is likely to be true in expiration, we studied crackle pitch as a function of crackle timing in inspiration and expiration. Our goal was to see if the measurement of crackle pitch was consistent with this theory. Methods. Patients with a significant number of crackles were examined using a multichannel lung sound analyzer. These patients included 34 with pneumonia, 38 with heart failure, and 28 with interstitial fibrosis. Results. Crackle pitch progressively increased during inspirations in 79% of all patients. In these patients crackle pitch increased by approximately 40 Hz from the early to midinspiration and by another 40 Hz from mid to late-inspiration. In 10% of patients, crackle pitch did not change and in 11% of patients crackle pitch decreased. During expiration crackle pitch progressively decreased in 72% of patients and did not change in 28% of patients. Conclusion. In the majority of patients, we observed progressive crackle pitch increase during inspiration and decrease during expiration. Increased crackle pitch at larger lung volumes is likely a result of recruitment of smaller diameter airways. An alternate explanation is that crackle pitch may be influenced by airway tension that increases at greater lung volume. In any case improved understanding of the mechanism of production of these common lung sounds may help improve our understanding of pathophysiology of these disorders.

Rapid area change in pitch-up manoeuvres of small perching birds.

Science.gov (United States)

Polet, D T; Rival, D E

2015-10-26

Rapid pitch-up has been highlighted as a mechanism to generate large lift and drag during landing manoeuvres. However, pitching rates had not been measured previously in perching birds, and so the direct applicability of computations and experiments to observed behaviour was not known. We measure pitch rates in a small, wild bird (the black-capped chickadee; Poecile atricapillus), and show that these rates are within the parameter range used in experiments. Pitching rates were characterized by the shape change number, a metric comparing the rate of frontal area increase to acceleration. Black-capped chickadees increase the shape change number during perching in direct proportion to their total kinetic and potential energy at the start of the manoeuvre. The linear relationship between dissipated energy and shape change number is in accordance with a simple analytical model developed for two-dimensional pitching and decelerating airfoils. Black-capped chickadees use a wing pitch-up manoeuvre during perching to dissipate energy quickly while maintaining lift and drag through rapid area change. It is suggested that similar pitch-and-decelerate manoeuvres could be used to aid in the controlled, precise landings of small manoeuvrable air vehicles.

A comparative Tg-Ms study of the carbonization behaviour of different pitches

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Garcia, R.; Arenillas, A.; Crespo, J.L.; Pis, J.J.; Moinelo, S.R. [CSIC, Oviedo (Spain). Inst. Nacional del Carbon

2002-08-01

The purpose of this work was to study the formation of mesophase spherules from a low-temperature coal tar pitch under carbonization conditions. For comparison, the carbonization of a high-temperature coal tar pitch and a petroleum pitch were also considered. Different degrees of mesophase formation and development for each pitch. The results from Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), elemental analysis, and the thermogravimetric analyzer mass spectrometer (TG-MS) tests were compared with the different extents of mesophase formation, checked by optical microscopy. According to the results, several stages can be distinguished as temperature increases in the carbonization process of the pitches. In the low-temperature coal tar pitch, the devolatilization of light components, especially phenols, accounts for the most significant weight loss. Moreover, cross-linking contributes greatly to the formation and development of mesophase, resulting in the predominance of bulk mesophase in a relatively short time in the case of the low-temperature coal tar pitch. 19 refs., 10 figs., 2 tabs.

Metallized solid rocket propellants based on AN/AP and PSAN/AP for access to space

Science.gov (United States)

Levi, S.; Signoriello, D.; Gabardi, A.; Molinari, M.; Galfetti, L.; Deluca, L. T.; Cianfanelli, S.; Klyakin, G. F.

2009-09-01

Solid rocket propellants based on dual mixes of inorganic crystalline oxidizers (ammonium nitrate (AN) and ammonium perchlorate (AP)) with binder and a mixture of micrometric-nanometric aluminum were investigated. Ammonium nitrate is a low-cost oxidizer, producing environment friendly combustion products but with lower specific impulse compared to AP. The better performance obtained with AP and the low quantity of toxic emissions obtained by using AN have suggested an interesting compromise based on a dual mixture of the two oxidizers. To improve the thermal response of raw AN, different types of phase stabilized AN (PSAN) and AN/AP co-crystals were investigated.

Prediction of HS Soderberg plant PAH emissions from a laboratory evaluation of a pitch

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Castonguay, L.; Mirtchi, A. A.; Proulx, A. L.; Savard, G.; Simard, E.; Steward, N.; Tremblay, C. [Alcan International Ltd., Arvida Research and Development Centre, Jonquiere, PQ (Canada)

1998-12-31

The presence of certain polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in coal tar pitch has been identified as a possible limit to the long-term viability of horizontal stud (HS) Soderberg technology, a technology of importance in the aluminum industry. This paper presents the results of a comparative study of pitch PAH content and HS Soderberg cell emissions. Laboratory results are compared with plant emissions for two regular and low PAH pitches with the same softening points. The results indicate the existence of a correlation between pitch PAH content and cell emission, which is valid for regular tar pitches, low tar pitches, as well as for hybrid pitches. These findings make it possible to predict the quantity and distribution of HS Soderberg cell PAH emissions from the analysis of PAHs in the pitch. The results also justify the conclusion that the emission of genotoxic compounds from pitch in the HS Soderberg technology can be decreased by using a pitch with low PAH content. 4 refs., 5 tabs., 5 figs.

Crackle Pitch Rises Progressively during Inspiration in Pneumonia, CHF, and IPF Patients

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrey Vyshedskiy

2012-01-01

Methods. Patients with a significant number of crackles were examined using a multichannel lung sound analyzer. These patients included 34 with pneumonia, 38 with heart failure, and 28 with interstitial fibrosis. Results. Crackle pitch progressively increased during inspirations in 79% of all patients. In these patients crackle pitch increased by approximately 40 Hz from the early to midinspiration and by another 40 Hz from mid to late-inspiration. In 10% of patients, crackle pitch did not change and in 11% of patients crackle pitch decreased. During expiration crackle pitch progressively decreased in 72% of patients and did not change in 28% of patients. Conclusion. In the majority of patients, we observed progressive crackle pitch increase during inspiration and decrease during expiration. Increased crackle pitch at larger lung volumes is likely a result of recruitment of smaller diameter airways. An alternate explanation is that crackle pitch may be influenced by airway tension that increases at greater lung volume. In any case improved understanding of the mechanism of production of these common lung sounds may help improve our understanding of pathophysiology of these disorders.

arXiv Signal coupling to embedded pitch adapters in silicon sensors

CERN Document Server

Artuso, M.; Bezshyiko, I.; Blusk, S.; Bruendler, R.; Bugiel, S.; Dasgupta, R.; Dendek, A.; Dey, B.; Ely, S.; Lionetto, F.; Petruzzo, M.; Polyakov, I.; Rudolph, M.; Schindler, H.; Steinkamp, O.; Stone, S.

2018-01-01

We have examined the effects of embedded pitch adapters on signal formation in n-substrate silicon microstrip sensors with data from beam tests and simulation. According to simulation, the presence of the pitch adapter metal layer changes the electric field inside the sensor, resulting in slowed signal formation on the nearby strips and a pick-up effect on the pitch adapter. This can result in an inefficiency to detect particles passing through the pitch adapter region. All these effects have been observed in the beam test data.

Variability of a "force signature" during windmill softball pitching and relationship between discrete force variables and pitch velocity.

Science.gov (United States)

Nimphius, Sophia; McGuigan, Michael R; Suchomel, Timothy J; Newton, Robert U

2016-06-01

This study assessed reliability of discrete ground reaction force (GRF) variables over multiple pitching trials, investigated the relationships between discrete GRF variables and pitch velocity (PV) and assessed the variability of the "force signature" or continuous force-time curve during the pitching motion of windmill softball pitchers. Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) for all discrete variables was high (0.86-0.99) while the coefficient of variance (CV) was low (1.4-5.2%). Two discrete variables were significantly correlated to PV; second vertical peak force (r(5)=0.81, p=0.03) and time between peak forces (r(5)=-0.79; p=0.03). High ICCs and low CVs support the reliability of discrete GRF and PV variables over multiple trials and significant correlations indicate there is a relationship between the ability to produce force and the timing of this force production with PV. The mean of all pitchers' curve-average standard deviation of their continuous force-time curves demonstrated low variability (CV=4.4%) indicating a repeatable and identifiable "force signature" pattern during this motion. As such, the continuous force-time curve in addition to discrete GRF variables should be examined in future research as a potential method to monitor or explain changes in pitching performance. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Surface Electromyography of the Forearm Musculature During the Windmill Softball Pitch

Science.gov (United States)

Remaley, D. Trey; Fincham, Bryce; McCullough, Bryan; Davis, Kirk; Nofsinger, Charles; Armstrong, Charles; Stausmire, Julie M.

2015-01-01

Background: Previous studies investigating the windmill softball pitch have focused primarily on shoulder musculature and function, collecting limited data on elbow and forearm musculature. Little information is available in the literature regarding the forearm. This study documents forearm muscle electromyographic (EMG) activity that has not been previously published. Purpose: Elbow and upper extremity overuse injuries are on the rise in fast-pitch softball pitchers. This study attempts to describe forearm muscle activity in softball pitchers during the windmill softball pitch. Overuse injuries can be prevented if a better understanding of mechanics is defined. Study Design: Descriptive laboratory study. Methods: Surface EMG and high-speed videography was used to study forearm muscle activation patterns during the windmill softball pitch on 10 female collegiate-level pitchers. Maximum voluntary isometric contraction of each muscle was used as a normalizing value. Each subject was tested during a single laboratory session per pitcher. Data included peak muscle activation, average muscle activation, and time to peak activation for 6 pitch types: fastball, changeup, riseball, curveball, screwball, and dropball. Results: During the first 4 phases, muscle activity (seen as signal strength on the EMG recordings) was limited and static in nature. The greatest activation occurred in phases 5 and 6, with increased signal strength, evidence of stretch-shortening cycle, and different muscle characteristics with each pitch style. These 2 phases of the windmill pitch are where the arm is placed in the 6 o’clock position and then at release of the ball. The flexor carpi ulnaris signal strength was significantly greater than the other forearm flexors. Timing of phases 1 through 5 was successively shorter for each pitch. There was a secondary pattern of activation in the flexor carpi ulnaris in phase 4 for all pitches except the fastball and riseball. Conclusion: During the 6

Surface Electromyography of the Forearm Musculature During the Windmill Softball Pitch.

Science.gov (United States)

Remaley, D Trey; Fincham, Bryce; McCullough, Bryan; Davis, Kirk; Nofsinger, Charles; Armstrong, Charles; Stausmire, Julie M

2015-01-01

Previous studies investigating the windmill softball pitch have focused primarily on shoulder musculature and function, collecting limited data on elbow and forearm musculature. Little information is available in the literature regarding the forearm. This study documents forearm muscle electromyographic (EMG) activity that has not been previously published. Elbow and upper extremity overuse injuries are on the rise in fast-pitch softball pitchers. This study attempts to describe forearm muscle activity in softball pitchers during the windmill softball pitch. Overuse injuries can be prevented if a better understanding of mechanics is defined. Descriptive laboratory study. Surface EMG and high-speed videography was used to study forearm muscle activation patterns during the windmill softball pitch on 10 female collegiate-level pitchers. Maximum voluntary isometric contraction of each muscle was used as a normalizing value. Each subject was tested during a single laboratory session per pitcher. Data included peak muscle activation, average muscle activation, and time to peak activation for 6 pitch types: fastball, changeup, riseball, curveball, screwball, and dropball. During the first 4 phases, muscle activity (seen as signal strength on the EMG recordings) was limited and static in nature. The greatest activation occurred in phases 5 and 6, with increased signal strength, evidence of stretch-shortening cycle, and different muscle characteristics with each pitch style. These 2 phases of the windmill pitch are where the arm is placed in the 6 o'clock position and then at release of the ball. The flexor carpi ulnaris signal strength was significantly greater than the other forearm flexors. Timing of phases 1 through 5 was successively shorter for each pitch. There was a secondary pattern of activation in the flexor carpi ulnaris in phase 4 for all pitches except the fastball and riseball. During the 6 pitches, the greatest muscular activity was in phases 5 and 6

Joint Pitch and DOA Estimation Using the ESPRIT method

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wu, Yuntao; Amir, Leshem; Jensen, Jesper Rindom

2015-01-01

In this paper, the problem of joint multi-pitch and direction-of-arrival (DOA) estimation for multi-channel harmonic sinusoidal signals is considered. A spatio-temporal matrix signal model for a uniform linear array is defined, and then the ESPRIT method based on subspace techniques that exploits...... the invariance property in the time domain is first used to estimate the multi pitch frequencies of multiple harmonic signals. Followed by the estimated pitch frequencies, the DOA estimations based on the ESPRIT method are also presented by using the shift invariance structure in the spatial domain. Compared...... to the existing stateof-the-art algorithms, the proposed method based on ESPRIT without 2-D searching is computationally more efficient but performs similarly. An asymptotic performance analysis of the DOA and pitch estimation of the proposed method are also presented. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed...

AP1000. The PWR revisited

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gaio, P.

2006-01-01

The distinguishing features of Westinghouse's AP1000 advanced passive pressurized water reactor are highlighted. In particular, the AP1000's passive safety features are described as well as their implications for simplifying the design, construction, and operation of this design compared to currently operating plants, and significantly increasing safety margins over current plants as well. The AP1000 design specifically incorporates the knowledge acquired from the substantial accumulation of power reactor operating experience and benefits from the application of the Probabilistic Risk Assessment in the design process itself. The AP1000 design has been certified by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission under its new rules for licensing new nuclear plants, 10 CFR Part 52, and is the subject of six combined Construction and Operating License applications now being developed. Currently the AP1000 design is being assessed against the EUR Rev C requirements for new nuclear power plants in Europe. (author)

Risk-based Comparative Study of Fluid Power Pitch Concepts

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Liniger, Jesper; Pedersen, Henrik Clemmensen; N. Soltani, Mohsen

2017-01-01

Proper functioning of the pitch system is essential to both normal operation and safety critical shut down of modern multi megawatt wind turbines. Several studies on field failure rates for such turbines show that pitch systems are a major contributor to failures which entails an increased risk....... Thus, more reliable and safe concepts are needed. A review of patents and patent applications covering fluid power pitch concepts, reveals that many propose closed-type hydraulic systems. This paper proposes a closed-type concept with a bootstrap reservoir. In contrary to a conventional system where...

AP statistics crash course

CERN Document Server

D'Alessio, Michael

2012-01-01

AP Statistics Crash Course - Gets You a Higher Advanced Placement Score in Less Time Crash Course is perfect for the time-crunched student, the last-minute studier, or anyone who wants a refresher on the subject. AP Statistics Crash Course gives you: Targeted, Focused Review - Study Only What You Need to Know Crash Course is based on an in-depth analysis of the AP Statistics course description outline and actual Advanced Placement test questions. It covers only the information tested on the exam, so you can make the most of your valuable study time. Our easy-to-read format covers: exploring da

The musical environment and auditory plasticity: Hearing the pitch of percussion

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Neil M Mclachlan

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Although musical skills clearly improve with training, pitch processing has generally been believed to be biologically determined by the behavior of brain stem neural mechanisms. Two main classes of pitch models have emerged over the last 50 years. Harmonic template models have been used to explain cross-channel integration of frequency information, and waveform periodicity models have been used to explain pitch discrimination that is much finer than the resolution of the auditory nerve. It has been proposed that harmonic templates are learnt from repeated exposure to voice, and so it may also be possible to learn inharmonic templates from repeated exposure to inharmonic music instruments. This study investigated whether pitch-matching accuracy for inharmonic percussion instruments was better in people who have trained on these instruments and could reliably recognize their timbre. We found that adults who had trained with Indonesian gamelan instruments were better at recognizing and pitch-matching gamelan instruments than people with similar levels of music training, but no prior exposure to these instruments. These findings suggest that gamelan musicians were able to use inharmonic templates to support accurate pitch processing for these instruments. We suggest that recognition mechanisms based on spectrotemporal patterns of afferent auditory excitation in the early stages of pitch processing allow rapid priming of the lowest frequency partial of inharmonic timbres, explaining how music training can adapt pitch processing to different musical genres and instruments.

Pitch and Time, Tonality and Meter: How Do Musical Dimensions Combine?

Science.gov (United States)

Prince, Jon B.; Thompson, William F.; Schmuckler, Mark A.

2009-01-01

The authors examined how the structural attributes of tonality and meter influence musical pitch-time relations. Listeners heard a musical context followed by probe events that varied in pitch class and temporal position. Tonal and metric hierarchies contributed additively to the goodness-of-fit of probes, with pitch class exerting a stronger…

29 CFR 1910.1002 - Coal tar pitch volatiles; interpretation of term.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 29 Labor 6 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Coal tar pitch volatiles; interpretation of term. 1910.1002... Hazardous Substances § 1910.1002 Coal tar pitch volatiles; interpretation of term. As used in § 1910.1000 (Table Z-1), coal tar pitch volatiles include the fused polycyclic hydrocarbons which volatilize from the...

Petrographic characterization of the solid products of coal- pitch coprocessing

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Potter, J.; Kybett, B.D.; McDougall, W.J.; Nambudiri, E.M.V.; Rahimi, P.; Price, J.T.

1986-06-01

Petrographic studies were conducted on four solid residues resulting from the hydrogenation process of 1) Forestburg sub- bituminous coal alone, 2) the coal with a non-coking solvent (anthracene oil), 3) pitch (Cold Lake vacuum-bottom deposits), and 4) a mixture of coal and pitch. The purpose was to determine the amounts of coal and pitch-derived solids in the residues. All the residues were produced under identical severe conditions of liquefaction to promote the formation of solids. The coal processed with anthracene oil gives a residue consisting mainly of isotropic huminitic solids. If the coal is hydrogenated under similar conditions but without a solvent, the predominant residual solids are anisotropic semicokes displaying coarse mosaic textures, which form from vitroplast. The residual products from the hydrogenated Cold Lake vacuum- bottom deposits are also dominantly anisotropic semicokes; these display coarse mosaics and flow textures, and form by the growth and coalescence of mesophase spherules. Both coal- and pitch-derived solids are identified in a residue produced by coprocessing the Forestburg coal with the pitch from the Cold Lake vacuum-bottom deposits. It is concluded that the huminite macerals in the coal generate the fine-grained, mosaic-textured semicokes, whereas the pitch produces the coarse mosaics and flow-textured semicokes.

A novel homozygous AP4B1 mutation in two brothers with AP-4 deficiency syndrome and ocular anomalies.

Science.gov (United States)

Accogli, Andrea; Hamdan, Fadi F; Poulin, Chantal; Nassif, Christina; Rouleau, Guy A; Michaud, Jacques L; Srour, Myriam

2018-04-01

Adaptor protein complex-4 (AP-4) is a heterotetrameric protein complex which plays a key role in vesicle trafficking in neurons. Mutations in genes affecting different subunits of AP-4, including AP4B1, AP4E1, AP4S1, and AP4M1, have been recently associated with an autosomal recessive phenotype, consisting of spastic tetraplegia, and intellectual disability (ID). The overlapping clinical picture among individuals carrying mutations in any of these genes has prompted the terms "AP-4 deficiency syndrome" for this clinically recognizable phenotype. Using whole-exome sequencing, we identified a novel homozygous mutation (c.991C>T, p.Q331*, NM_006594.4) in AP4B1 in two siblings from a consanguineous Pakistani couple, who presented with severe ID, progressive spastic tetraplegia, epilepsy, and microcephaly. Sanger sequencing confirmed the mutation was homozygous in the siblings and heterozygous in the parents. Similar to previously reported individuals with AP4B1 mutations, brain MRI revealed ventriculomegaly and white matter loss. Interestingly, in addition to the typical facial gestalt reported in other AP-4 deficiency cases, the older brother presented with congenital left Horner syndrome, bilateral optic nerve atrophy and cataract, which have not been previously reported in this condition. In summary, we report a novel AP4B1 homozygous mutation in two siblings and review the phenotype of AP-4 deficiency, speculating on a possible role of AP-4 complex in eye development. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Long-term pitch memory for music recordings is related to auditory working memory precision.

Science.gov (United States)

Van Hedger, Stephen C; Heald, Shannon Lm; Nusbaum, Howard C

2018-04-01

Most individuals have reliable long-term memories for the pitch of familiar music recordings. This pitch memory (1) appears to be normally distributed in the population, (2) does not depend on explicit musical training and (3) only seems to be weakly related to differences in listening frequency estimates. The present experiment was designed to assess whether individual differences in auditory working memory could explain variance in long-term pitch memory for music recordings. In Experiment 1, participants first completed a musical note adjustment task that has been previously used to assess working memory of musical pitch. Afterward, participants were asked to judge the pitch of well-known music recordings, which either had or had not been shifted in pitch. We found that performance on the pitch working memory task was significantly related to performance in the pitch memory task using well-known recordings, even when controlling for overall musical experience and familiarity with each recording. In Experiment 2, we replicated these findings in a separate group of participants while additionally controlling for fluid intelligence and non-pitch-based components of auditory working memory. In Experiment 3, we demonstrated that participants could not accurately judge the pitch of unfamiliar recordings, suggesting that our method of pitch shifting did not result in unwanted acoustic cues that could have aided participants in Experiments 1 and 2. These results, taken together, suggest that the ability to maintain pitch information in working memory might lead to more accurate long-term pitch memory.

Study of Pumping Capacity of Pitched Blade Impellers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

I. Fořt

2002-01-01

Full Text Available A study was made of the pumping capacity of pitched blade impellers in a cylindrical pilot plant vessel with four standard radial baffles at the wall under a turbulent regime of flow. The pumping capacity was calculated from the radial profile of the axial flow, under the assumption of axial symmetry of the discharge flow. The mean velocity was measured using laser Doppler anemometry in a transparent vessel of diameter T = 400 mm, provided with a standard dished bottom. Three and six blade pitched blade impellers (the pitch angle varied within the interval a Îá24°; 45°ń of impeller/vessel diameter ratio D/T = 0.36, as well as a three blade pitched blade impeller with folded blades of the same diameter, were tested. The calculated results were compared with the results of experiments mentioned in the literature, above all in cylindrical vessels with a flat bottom. Both arrangements of the agitated system were described by the impeller energetic efficiency, i.e, a criterion including in dimensionless form both the impeller energy consumption (impeller power input and the impeller pumping effect (impeller pumping capacity. It follows from the results obtained with various geometrical configurations that the energetic efficiency of pitched blade impellers is significantly lower for configurations suitable for mixing solid-liquid suspensions (low impeller off bottom clearances than for blending miscible liquids in mixing (higher impeller off bottom clearances.

Performance Demands in Softball Pitching: A Comprehensive Muscle Fatigue Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Corben, Jeffrey S; Cerrone, Sara A; Soviero, Julie E; Kwiecien, Susan Y; Nicholas, Stephen J; McHugh, Malachy P

2015-08-01

Monitoring pitch count is standard practice in minor league baseball but not in softball because of the perception that fast-pitch softball pitching is a less stressful motion. To examine muscle fatigue after fast-pitch softball performances to provide an assessment of performance demand. Descriptive laboratory study. Bilateral strength measurements (handheld dynamometer) were made on 19 female softball pitchers (mean age [±SD], 15.2 ± 1.2 years) before and after pitching a game (mean number of pitches, 99 ± 21; mean innings pitched, 5 ± 1). A total of 20 tests were performed on the dominant and nondominant sides: forearm (grip, wrist flexion/extension, pronation/supination, elbow flexion/extension), shoulder (flexion, abduction/adduction, external/internal rotation, empty can test), scapula (middle/lower trapezius, rhomboid), and hip (hip flexion/extension, abduction/adduction). Fatigue (percentage strength loss) was categorized based on bilateral versus unilateral presentation using paired t tests: bilateral symmetric (significant on dominant and nondominant and not different between sides), bilateral asymmetric (significant on dominant and nondominant but significantly greater on dominant), unilateral asymmetric (significant on dominant only and significantly greater than nondominant), or unilateral equivocal (significant on dominant only but not different from nondominant). Bilateral symmetric fatigue was evident for all hip (dominant, 19.3%; nondominant, 15.2%) and scapular tests (dominant, 19.2%; nondominant, 19.3%). In general, shoulder tests exhibited bilateral asymmetric fatigue (dominant, 16.9%; nondominant, 11.6%). Forearm tests were more variable, with bilateral symmetric fatigue in the elbow flexors (dominant, 22.5%; nondominant, 19.2%), and wrist flexors (dominant, 21.6%; nondominant, 19.0%), bilateral asymmetric fatigue in the supinators (dominant, 21.8%; nondominant, 15.5%), unilateral asymmetric fatigue in the elbow extensors (dominant, 22

Unaccounted Workload Factor: Game-Day Pitch Counts in High School Baseball Pitchers—An Observational Study

Science.gov (United States)

Zaremski, Jason L.; Zeppieri, Giorgio; Jones, Deborah L.; Tripp, Brady L.; Bruner, Michelle; Vincent, Heather K.; Horodyski, MaryBeth

2018-01-01

Background: Throwing injuries are common in high school baseball. Known risk factors include excessive pitch counts, year-round pitching, and pitching with arm pain and fatigue. Despite the evidence, the prevalence of pitching injuries among high school players has not decreased. One possibility to explain this pattern is that players accumulate unaccounted pitch volume during warm-up and bullpen activity, but this has not yet been examined. Hypotheses: Our primary hypothesis was that approximately 30% to 40% of pitches thrown off a mound by high school pitchers during a game-day outing are unaccounted for in current data but will be revealed when bullpen sessions and warm-up pitches are included. Our secondary hypothesis was that there is wide variability among players in the number of bullpen pitches thrown per outing. Study Design: Cross-sectional study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: Researchers counted all pitches thrown off a mound during varsity high school baseball games played by 34 high schools in North Central Florida during the 2017 season. Results: We recorded 13,769 total pitches during 115 varsity high school baseball starting pitcher outings. The mean ± SD pitch numbers per game were calculated for bullpen activity (27.2 ± 9.4), warm-up (23.6 ±8.0), live games (68.9 ±19.7), and total pitches per game (119.7 ± 27.8). Thus, 42.4% of the pitches performed were not accounted for in the pitch count monitoring of these players. The number of bullpen pitches thrown varied widely among players, with 25% of participants in our data set throwing fewer than 22 pitches and 25% throwing more than 33 pitches per outing. Conclusion: In high school baseball players, pitch count monitoring does not account for the substantial volume of pitching that occurs during warm-up and bullpen activity during the playing season. These extra pitches should be closely monitored to help mitigate the risk of overuse injury. PMID:29662911

Unaccounted Workload Factor: Game-Day Pitch Counts in High School Baseball Pitchers-An Observational Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Zaremski, Jason L; Zeppieri, Giorgio; Jones, Deborah L; Tripp, Brady L; Bruner, Michelle; Vincent, Heather K; Horodyski, MaryBeth

2018-04-01

Throwing injuries are common in high school baseball. Known risk factors include excessive pitch counts, year-round pitching, and pitching with arm pain and fatigue. Despite the evidence, the prevalence of pitching injuries among high school players has not decreased. One possibility to explain this pattern is that players accumulate unaccounted pitch volume during warm-up and bullpen activity, but this has not yet been examined. Our primary hypothesis was that approximately 30% to 40% of pitches thrown off a mound by high school pitchers during a game-day outing are unaccounted for in current data but will be revealed when bullpen sessions and warm-up pitches are included. Our secondary hypothesis was that there is wide variability among players in the number of bullpen pitches thrown per outing. Cross-sectional study; Level of evidence, 3. Researchers counted all pitches thrown off a mound during varsity high school baseball games played by 34 high schools in North Central Florida during the 2017 season. We recorded 13,769 total pitches during 115 varsity high school baseball starting pitcher outings. The mean ± SD pitch numbers per game were calculated for bullpen activity (27.2 ± 9.4), warm-up (23.6 ±8.0), live games (68.9 ±19.7), and total pitches per game (119.7 ± 27.8). Thus, 42.4% of the pitches performed were not accounted for in the pitch count monitoring of these players. The number of bullpen pitches thrown varied widely among players, with 25% of participants in our data set throwing fewer than 22 pitches and 25% throwing more than 33 pitches per outing. In high school baseball players, pitch count monitoring does not account for the substantial volume of pitching that occurs during warm-up and bullpen activity during the playing season. These extra pitches should be closely monitored to help mitigate the risk of overuse injury.

Absence of modulatory action on haptic height perception with musical pitch

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michele eGeronazzo

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Although acoustic frequency is not a spatial property of physical objects, in common language, pitch, i.e., the psychological correlated of frequency, is often labeled spatially (i.e., high in pitch or low in pitch. Pitch-height is known to modulate (and interact with the response of participants when they are asked to judge spatial properties of non-auditory stimuli (e.g., visual in a variety of behavioral tasks. In the current study we investigated whether the modulatory action of pitch-height extended to the haptic estimation of height of a virtual step.We implemented a HW/SW setup which is able to render virtual 3D objects (stair-steps haptically through a PHANTOM device, and to provide real-time continuous auditory feedback depending on the user interaction with the object. The haptic exploration was associated with a sinusoidal tone whose pitch varied as a function of the interaction point’s height within (i a narrower and (ii a wider pitch range, or (iii a random pitch variation acting as a control audio condition. Explorations were also performed with no sound (haptic only. Participants were instructed to explore the virtual step freely, and to communicate height estimation by opening their thumb and index finger to mimic the step riser height, or verbally by reporting the height in centimeters of the step riser. We analyzed the role of musical expertise by dividing participants into non musicians and musicians. Results showed no effects of musical pitch on high-realistic haptic feedback. Overall there is no difference between the two groups in the proposed multimodal conditions. Additionally, we observed a different haptic response distribution between musicians and non musicians when estimations of the auditory conditions are matched with estimations in the no sound condition.

Pitch Discrimination and Melodic Memory in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Science.gov (United States)

Stanutz, Sandy; Wapnick, Joel; Burack, Jacob A.

2014-01-01

Background: Pitch perception is enhanced among persons with autism. We extended this finding to memory for pitch and melody among school-aged children. Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate pitch memory in musically untrained children with autism spectrum disorders, aged 7-13 years, and to compare it to that of age- and…

Human vertical eye movement responses to earth horizontal pitch

Science.gov (United States)

Wall, C. 3rd; Petropoulos, A. E.

1993-01-01

The vertical eye movements in humans produced in response to head-over-heels constant velocity pitch rotation about a horizontal axis resemble those from other species. At 60 degrees/s these are persistent and tend to have non-reversing slow components that are compensatory to the direction of rotation. In most, but not all subjects, the slow component velocity was well characterized by a rapid build-up followed by an exponential decay to a non-zero baseline. Super-imposed was a cyclic or modulation component whose frequency corresponded to the time for one revolution and whose maximum amplitude occurred during a specific head orientation. All response components (exponential decay, baseline and modulation) were larger during pitch backward compared to pitch forward runs. Decay time constants were shorter during the backward runs, thus, unlike left to right yaw axis rotation, pitch responses display significant asymmetries between paired forward and backward runs.

Development in children's interpretation of pitch cues to emotions.

Science.gov (United States)

Quam, Carolyn; Swingley, Daniel

2012-01-01

Young infants respond to positive and negative speech prosody (A. Fernald, 1993), yet 4-year-olds rely on lexical information when it conflicts with paralinguistic cues to approval or disapproval (M. Friend, 2003). This article explores this surprising phenomenon, testing one hundred eighteen 2- to 5-year-olds' use of isolated pitch cues to emotions in interactive tasks. Only 4- to 5-year-olds consistently interpreted exaggerated, stereotypically happy or sad pitch contours as evidence that a puppet had succeeded or failed to find his toy (Experiment 1) or was happy or sad (Experiments 2, 3). Two- and 3-year-olds exploited facial and body-language cues in the same task. The authors discuss the implications of this late-developing use of pitch cues to emotions, relating them to other functions of pitch. © 2011 The Authors. Child Development © 2011 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

Faster decline of pitch memory over time in congenital amusia.

Science.gov (United States)

Williamson, Victoria J; McDonald, Claire; Deutsch, Diana; Griffiths, Timothy D; Stewart, Lauren

2010-04-26

Congenital amusia (amusia, hereafter) is a developmental disorder that impacts negatively on the perception of music. Psychophysical testing suggests that individuals with amusia have above average thresholds for detection of pitch change and pitch direction discrimination; however, a low-level auditory perceptual problem cannot completely explain the disorder, since discrimination of melodies is also impaired when the constituent intervals are suprathreshold for perception. The aim of the present study was to test pitch memory as a function of (a) time and (b) tonal interference, in order to determine whether pitch traces are inherently weaker in amusic individuals. Memory for the pitch of single tones was compared using two versions of a paradigm developed by Deutsch (1970a). In both tasks, participants compared the pitch of a standard (S) versus a comparison (C) tone. In the time task, the S and C tones were presented, separated in time by 0, 1, 5, 10, and 15 s (blocked presentation). In the interference task, the S and C tones were presented with a fixed time interval (5 s) but with a variable number of irrelevant tones in between 0, 2, 4, 6, and 8 tones (blocked presentation). In the time task, control performance remained high for all time intervals, but amusics showed a performance decrement over time. In the interference task, controls and amusics showed a similar performance decrement with increasing number of irrelevant tones. Overall, the results suggest that the pitch representations of amusic individuals are less stable and more prone to decay than those of matched non-amusic individuals.

Analysis of Pitch Gear Deterioration using Indicators

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Jannie Jessen; Sørensen, John Dalsgaard

2011-01-01

This work concerns a case study in the context of risk-based operation and maintenance of offshore wind turbines. For wind turbines with electrical pitch systems, deterioration can generally be observed at the pitch gear teeth; especially at the point where the blades are located during normal...... of the damage, and can be used for Bayesian updating of a damage model used for risk-based decision making. For this decision problem, the risk of failure should be compared to the cost of preventive maintenance. The hypothesis that the maximum pitch motor torque is an indicator of the damage size is supported...... changes in the temperature are the primary cause of the decrease. A model is established to remove the effect of the explained variation, and it is investigated if deterioration can be detected as changes in the peak torque. A small increase could be detected after the maintenance, but before...

Comparison of individual pitch and smart rotor control strategies for load reduction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Plumley, C; Leithead, W; Jamieson, P; Bossanyi, E; Graham, M

2014-01-01

Load reduction is increasingly seen as an essential part of controller and wind turbine design. On large multi-MW wind turbines that experience high levels of wind shear and turbulence across the rotor, individual pitch control and smart rotor control are being considered. While individual pitch control involves adjusting the pitch of each blade individually to reduce the cyclic loadings on the rotor, smart rotor control involves activating control devices distributed along the blades to alter the local aerodynamics of the blades. Here we investigate the effectiveness of using a DQ-axis control and a distributed (independent) control for both individual pitch and trailing edge flap smart rotor control. While load reductions are similar amongst the four strategies across a wide range of variables, including blade root bending moments, yaw bearing and shaft, the pitch actuator requirements vary. The smart rotor pitch actuator has reduced travel, rates, accelerations and power requirements than that of the individual pitch controlled wind turbines. This benefit alone however would be hard to justify the added design complexities of using a smart rotor, which can be seen as an alternative to upgrading the pitch actuator and bearing. In addition, it is found that the independent control strategy is apt at roles that the collective pitch usually targets, such as tower motion and speed control, and it is perhaps here, in supplementing other systems, that the future of the smart rotor lies

Comparison of individual pitch and smart rotor control strategies for load reduction

Science.gov (United States)

Plumley, C.; Leithead, W.; Jamieson, P.; Bossanyi, E.; Graham, M.

2014-06-01

Load reduction is increasingly seen as an essential part of controller and wind turbine design. On large multi-MW wind turbines that experience high levels of wind shear and turbulence across the rotor, individual pitch control and smart rotor control are being considered. While individual pitch control involves adjusting the pitch of each blade individually to reduce the cyclic loadings on the rotor, smart rotor control involves activating control devices distributed along the blades to alter the local aerodynamics of the blades. Here we investigate the effectiveness of using a DQ-axis control and a distributed (independent) control for both individual pitch and trailing edge flap smart rotor control. While load reductions are similar amongst the four strategies across a wide range of variables, including blade root bending moments, yaw bearing and shaft, the pitch actuator requirements vary. The smart rotor pitch actuator has reduced travel, rates, accelerations and power requirements than that of the individual pitch controlled wind turbines. This benefit alone however would be hard to justify the added design complexities of using a smart rotor, which can be seen as an alternative to upgrading the pitch actuator and bearing. In addition, it is found that the independent control strategy is apt at roles that the collective pitch usually targets, such as tower motion and speed control, and it is perhaps here, in supplementing other systems, that the future of the smart rotor lies.

Absolutely relative or relatively absolute: violations of value invariance in human decision making.

Science.gov (United States)

Teodorescu, Andrei R; Moran, Rani; Usher, Marius

2016-02-01

Making decisions based on relative rather than absolute information processing is tied to choice optimality via the accumulation of evidence differences and to canonical neural processing via accumulation of evidence ratios. These theoretical frameworks predict invariance of decision latencies to absolute intensities that maintain differences and ratios, respectively. While information about the absolute values of the choice alternatives is not necessary for choosing the best alternative, it may nevertheless hold valuable information about the context of the decision. To test the sensitivity of human decision making to absolute values, we manipulated the intensities of brightness stimuli pairs while preserving either their differences or their ratios. Although asked to choose the brighter alternative relative to the other, participants responded faster to higher absolute values. Thus, our results provide empirical evidence for human sensitivity to task irrelevant absolute values indicating a hard-wired mechanism that precedes executive control. Computational investigations of several modelling architectures reveal two alternative accounts for this phenomenon, which combine absolute and relative processing. One account involves accumulation of differences with activation dependent processing noise and the other emerges from accumulation of absolute values subject to the temporal dynamics of lateral inhibition. The potential adaptive role of such choice mechanisms is discussed.

Project W-211, initial tank retrieval systems, description of operations for 241-AP-102 and 241-AP-104

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

RIECK, C.A.

1999-02-25

The primary purpose of the Initial Tank Retrieval Systems (ITRS) is to provide systems for retrieval of radioactive wastes stored in underground double-shell tanks (DSTS) for transfer to alternate storage, evaporation, pretreatment or treatment, while concurrently reducing risks associated with safety watch list and other DSTs. This Description of Operations (DOO) defines the control philosophy for the waste retrieval system for tanks 241-AP-102 (AP-102) and 241-AP-104 (AP-104). This DOO will provide a basis for the detailed design of the Retrieval Control System (RCS) for AP-102 and AP-104 and establishes test criteria for the RCS. The test criteria will be used during qualification testing and acceptance testing to verify operability.

Project W-211, initial tank retrieval systems, description of operations for 241-AP-102 and 241-AP-104

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

RIECK, C.A.

1999-01-01

The primary purpose of the Initial Tank Retrieval Systems (ITRS) is to provide systems for retrieval of radioactive wastes stored in underground double-shell tanks (DSTS) for transfer to alternate storage, evaporation, pretreatment or treatment, while concurrently reducing risks associated with safety watch list and other DSTs. This Description of Operations (DOO) defines the control philosophy for the waste retrieval system for tanks 241-AP-102 (AP-102) and 241-AP-104 (AP-104). This DOO will provide a basis for the detailed design of the Retrieval Control System (RCS) for AP-102 and AP-104 and establishes test criteria for the RCS. The test criteria will be used during qualification testing and acceptance testing to verify operability

Learning of pitch and time structures in an artificial grammar setting.

Science.gov (United States)

Prince, Jon B; Stevens, Catherine J; Jones, Mari Riess; Tillmann, Barbara

2018-04-12

Despite the empirical evidence for the power of the cognitive capacity of implicit learning of structures and regularities in several modalities and materials, it remains controversial whether implicit learning extends to the learning of temporal structures and regularities. We investigated whether (a) an artificial grammar can be learned equally well when expressed in duration sequences as when expressed in pitch sequences, (b) learning of the artificial grammar in either duration or pitch (as the primary dimension) sequences can be influenced by the properties of the secondary dimension (invariant vs. randomized), and (c) learning can be boosted when the artificial grammar is expressed in both pitch and duration. After an exposure phase with grammatical sequences, learning in a subsequent test phase was assessed in a grammaticality judgment task. Participants in both the pitch and duration conditions showed incidental (not fully implicit) learning of the artificial grammar when the secondary dimension was invariant, but randomizing the pitch sequence prevented learning of the artificial grammar in duration sequences. Expressing the artificial grammar in both pitch and duration resulted in disproportionately better performance, suggesting an interaction between the learning of pitch and temporal structure. The findings are relevant to research investigating the learning of temporal structures and the learning of structures presented simultaneously in 2 dimensions (e.g., space and time, space and objects). By investigating learning, the findings provide further insight into the potential specificity of pitch and time processing, and their integrated versus independent processing, as previously debated in music cognition research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Contributions of pitch contour, tonality, rhythm, and meter to melodic similarity.

Science.gov (United States)

Prince, Jon B

2014-12-01

The identity of a melody resides in its sequence of pitches and durations, both of which exhibit surface details as well as structural properties. In this study, pitch contour (pattern of ups and downs) served as pitch surface information, and tonality (musical key) as pitch structure; in the temporal dimension, surface information was the ordinal duration ratios of adjacent notes (rhythm), and meter (beat, or pulse) comprised the structure. Factorially manipulating the preservation or alteration of all of these forms of information in 17 novel melodies (typifying Western music) enabled measuring their effect on perceived melodic similarity. In Experiment 1, 34 participants (varied musical training) rated the perceived similarity of melody pairs transposed to new starting pitches. Rhythm was the largest contributor to perceived similarity, then contour, meter, and tonality. Experiment 2 used the same melodies but varied the tempo within a pair, and added a prefix of 3 chords, which oriented the listener to the starting pitch and tempo before the melody began. Now contour was the strongest influence on similarity ratings, followed by tonality, and then rhythm; meter was not significant. Overall, surface features influenced perceived similarity more than structural, but both had observable effects. The primary theoretical advances in melodic similarity research are that (a) the relative emphasis on pitch and temporal factors is flexible; (b) pitch and time functioned independently when factorially manipulated, regardless of which dimension is more influential; and (c) interactions between surface and structural information were unreliable and never occurred between dimensions. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved.

The Association Between Pitch Conditions and the Incidence of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

shown to influence incidence of rugby injuries. Harsh weather conditions and detrimental effect on poor Kenyan rugby pitches create a unique environment for injury exposure. We conducted a whole population prospective cohort study to determine the association of pitch conditions with injury incidence and severity.

Pointed and plateau-shaped pitch accents in North Frisian

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Niebuhr, Oliver; Hoekstra, Jarich

2015-01-01

for language documentation and conservation purposes. We selected a small part of this corpus – interviews of 10 elderly speakers – and conducted multiparametric F0 and duration measurements, focusing on nuclear rising-falling pitch accent patterns. We found strong evidence for a phonological pitch...

Greenhouse evaluation of Bacillus subtilis AP-01 and Trichoderma harzianum AP-001 in controlling tobacco diseases.

Science.gov (United States)

Maketon, Monchan; Apisitsantikul, Jirasak; Siriraweekul, Chatchai

2008-04-01

Two biological control agents, Bacillus subtilis AP-01 (Larminar(™)) and Trichoderma harzianum AP-001 (Trisan(™)) alone or/in combination were investigated in controlling three tobacco diseases, including bacterial wilt (Ralstonia solanacearum), damping-off (Pythium aphanidermatum), and frogeye leaf spot (Cercospora nicotiana). Tests were performed in greenhouse by soil sterilization prior to inoculation of the pathogens. Bacterial-wilt and damping off pathogens were drenched first and followed with the biological control agents and for comparison purposes, two chemical fungicides. But for frogeye leaf spot, which is an airborne fungus, a spraying procedure for every treatment including a chemical fungicide was applied instead of drenching. Results showed that neither B. subtilis AP-01 nor T harzianum AP-001 alone could control the bacterial wilt, but when combined, their controlling capabilities were as effective as a chemical treatment. These results were also similar for damping-off disease when used in combination. In addition, the combined B. subtilis AP-01 and T. harzianum AP-001 resulted in a good frogeye leaf spot control, which was not significantly different from the chemical treatment.

A Novel Degradation Identification Method for Wind Turbine Pitch System

Science.gov (United States)

Guo, Hui-Dong

2018-04-01

It’s difficult for traditional threshold value method to identify degradation of operating equipment accurately. An novel degradation evaluation method suitable for wind turbine condition maintenance strategy implementation was proposed in this paper. Based on the analysis of typical variable-speed pitch-to-feather control principle and monitoring parameters for pitch system, a multi input multi output (MIMO) regression model was applied to pitch system, where wind speed, power generation regarding as input parameters, wheel rotation speed, pitch angle and motor driving currency for three blades as output parameters. Then, the difference between the on-line measurement and the calculated value from the MIMO regression model applying least square support vector machines (LSSVM) method was defined as the Observed Vector of the system. The Gaussian mixture model (GMM) was applied to fitting the distribution of the multi dimension Observed Vectors. Applying the model established, the Degradation Index was calculated using the SCADA data of a wind turbine damaged its pitch bearing retainer and rolling body, which illustrated the feasibility of the provided method.

PRODUCTION OF FOAMS, FIBERS AND PITCHES USING A COAL EXTRACTION PROCESS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chong Chen; Elliot B. Kennel; Liviu Magean; Pete G. Stansberry; Alfred H. Stiller; John W. Zondlo

2004-06-20

This Department of Energy National Energy Technology Laboratory sponsored project developed processes for converting coal feedstocks to carbon products, including coal-derived pitch, coke foams and fibers based on solvent extraction processes. A key technology is the use of hydrogenation accomplished at elevated temperatures and pressures to obtain a synthetic coal pitch. Hydrogenation, or partial direct liquefaction of coal, is used to modify the properties of raw coal such that a molten synthetic pitch can be obtained. The amount of hydrogen required to produce a synthetic pitch is about an order of magnitude less than the amount required to produce synthetic crude oil. Hence the conditions for synthetic pitch production consume very little hydrogen and can be accomplished at substantially lower pressure. In the molten state, hot filtration or centrifugation can be used to separate dissolved coal chemicals from mineral matter and insolubles (inertinite), resulting in the production of a purified hydrocarbon pitch. Alternatively, if hydrogenation is not used, aromatic hydrocarbon liquids appropriate for use as precursors to carbon products can obtained by dissolving coal in a solvent. As in the case for partial direct liquefaction pitches, undissolved coal is removed via hot filtration or centrifugation. Excess solvent is boiled off and recovered. The resultant solid material, referred to as Solvent Extracted Carbon Ore or SECO, has been used successfully to produce artificial graphite and carbon foam.

Structural Load Analysis of a Wind Turbine under Pitch Actuator and Controller Faults

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Etemaddar, Mahmoud; Gao, Zhen; Moan, Torgeir

2014-01-01

In this paper, we investigate the characteristics of a wind turbine under blade pitch angle and shaft speed sensor faults as well as pitch actuator faults. A land-based NREL 5MW variable speed pitch reg- ulated wind turbine is considered as a reference. The conventional collective blade pitch angle controller strategy with independent pitch actuators control is used for load reduction. The wind turbine class is IEC-BII. The main purpose is to investigate the severity of end effects on structural loads and responses and consequently identify the high-risk components according to the type and amplitude of fault using a servo-aero-elastic simulation code, HAWC2. Both transient and steady state effects of faults are studied. Such information is useful for wind turbine fault detection and identification as well as system reliability analysis. Results show the effects of faults on wind turbine power output and responses. Pitch sensor faults mainly affects the vibration of shaft main bearing, while generator power and aerodynamic thrust are not changed significantly, due to independent pitch actuator control of three blades. Shaft speed sensor faults can seriously affect the generator power and aerodynamic thrust. Pitch actuator faults can result in fully pitching of the blade, and consequently rotor stops due to negative aerodynamic torque

Thermal transformations of pitch and its compositions with thermoanthracite

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Belkina, T.V.; Ulanovskii, M.L.; Krysin, V.P.

1983-01-01

Derivatogrphy is used to investigate the character of thermal transformations of hard coal pitch in compositions with thermoanthracite. It was shown that losses in mass during thermal transformations of hard coal pitch in the temperature interval 200-1000 C occur in two stages, at a varying rate in the 200-600 C range and at a constant rate in the 600-1000 C range. The rate of loss in the 200-600 C range is determined primarily by the rate of diffusion of volatile components and products of pitch conversion and in the 600-1000 C range mainly by the rate of the elemental chemical event. The thermal transformation is essentially unchanged in the presence of thermoanthracite. Silica intensifies the synthesis and increases the solid residue yield. Increasing the rate of heating of the pitch-thermoanthracite brings about incomplete separation of volatile products and a corresponding increase in the solid residue yield. (9 refs.)

Embedded pitch adapters for the ATLAS Tracker Upgrade

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ullan, Miguel; Benitez, Victor; Pellegrini, Giulio; Fleta, Celeste; Lozano, Manuel; Lacasta, Carlos; Soldevila, Urmila; Garcia, Carmen

2013-01-01

In the current ATLAS tracker modules, sensor bonding pads are placed on their corresponding strips and oriented along the strips. This creates a difference in pitch and orientation between sensor bond pads and readout electronics bond pads. Therefore, a pitch adapter (PA), or “fan-in”, is needed. The purpose of these PA is the electrical interconnection of every channel from the detector bonding pads to the read-out chips, adapting the different pad pitch. Our new approach is to build those PAs inside the sensor; this is what we call Embedded Pitch Adapters. The idea is to use an additional metal layer in order to define a new group of pads, connected to the strips via tracks with the second metal. The embedded PAs have been fabricated on 4-in. prototype sensors for the ATLAS-Upgrade Endcap Tracker to test their performance and suitability. The tests confirm proper fabrication of the second metal tracks, and no effects on detector performance. No indication of cross-talk between first and second metal channels has been observed. A small indication of possible signal pick-up from the bulk has been observed in a few channels, which needs to be further investigated

Learning for pitch and melody discrimination in congenital amusia.

Science.gov (United States)

Whiteford, Kelly L; Oxenham, Andrew J

2018-03-23

Congenital amusia is currently thought to be a life-long neurogenetic disorder in music perception, impervious to training in pitch or melody discrimination. This study provides an explicit test of whether amusic deficits can be reduced with training. Twenty amusics and 20 matched controls participated in four sessions of psychophysical training involving either pure-tone (500 Hz) pitch discrimination or a control task of lateralization (interaural level differences for bandpass white noise). Pure-tone pitch discrimination at low, medium, and high frequencies (500, 2000, and 8000 Hz) was measured before and after training (pretest and posttest) to determine the specificity of learning. Melody discrimination was also assessed before and after training using the full Montreal Battery of Evaluation of Amusia, the most widely used standardized test to diagnose amusia. Amusics performed more poorly than controls in pitch but not localization discrimination, but both groups improved with practice on the trained stimuli. Learning was broad, occurring across all three frequencies and melody discrimination for all groups, including those who trained on the non-pitch control task. Following training, 11 of 20 amusics no longer met the global diagnostic criteria for amusia. A separate group of untrained controls (n = 20), who also completed melody discrimination and pretest, improved by an equal amount as trained controls on all measures, suggesting that the bulk of learning for the control group occurred very rapidly from the pretest. Thirty-one trained participants (13 amusics) returned one year later to assess long-term maintenance of pitch and melody discrimination. On average, there was no change in performance between posttest and one-year follow-up, demonstrating that improvements on pitch- and melody-related tasks in amusics and controls can be maintained. The findings indicate that amusia is not always a life-long deficit when using the current standard

ApS de Mediación Artística: Mujer y violencia de género

OpenAIRE

GUILLEM CASAÑ, LIVIA

2018-01-01

Proyecto basado en ApS a través de la programación de acción de Mediación Artística dirigida a un colectivo con necesidades especiales, en este caso, mujeres que han sufrido maltrato. Proponiendo realizar una serie de prácticas artísticas que tienen como objetivos ayudar a potenciar la confianza, el desarrollo integral, la autonomía, la cooperación y la superación de conflictos. Todo ello coordinado junto con las terapeutas de la Asociación ALANNA y LILITH. Project based on ApS through the...

179 Extraction of Coal-tar Pitch by Supercritical Carbon Dioxide ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Meyer

Several extractions of coal-tar pitch were performed using supercritical fluid ..... pressure and temperature, unlike exhaustive extraction, which involves a change in ... mechanism that is operative on extracting coal-tar pitch components with.

Individual blade pitch for yaw control

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Navalkar, S T; Van Wingerden, J W; Van Kuik, G A M

2014-01-01

Individual pitch control (IPC) for reducing blade loads has been investigated and proven successful in recent literature. For IPC, the multi-blade co-ordinate (MBC) transformation is used to process the blade load signals from the rotating to a stationary frame of reference. In the stationary frame of reference, the yaw error of a turbine can be appended to generate IPC actions that are able to achieve turbine yaw control for a turbine in free yaw. In this paper, IPC for yaw control is tested on a high-fidelity numerical model of a commercially produced wind turbine in free yaw. The tests show that yaw control using IPC has the distinct advantage that the yaw system loads and support structure loading are substantially reduced. However, IPC for yaw control also shows a reduction in IPC blade load reduction potential and causes a slight increase in pitch activity. Thus, the key contribution of this paper is the concept demonstration of IPC for yaw control. Further, using IPC for yaw as a tuning parameter, it is shown how the best trade-off between blade loading, pitch activity and support structure loading can be achieved for wind turbine design

Detection and identification of monaural and binaural pitch contours in dyslexic listeners

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Santurette, Sébastien; Poelmans, Hanne; Luts, Heleen

2010-01-01

of dyslexic listeners to Huggins' pitch (HP). The present study clarified whether impaired binaural pitch perception is found in dyslexia. Results from a pitch contour identification test, performed in 31 dyslexic listeners and 31 matched controls, clearly showed that dyslexics perceived HP as well...

Full field image reconstruction is suitable for high-pitch dual-source computed tomography.

Science.gov (United States)

Mahnken, Andreas H; Allmendinger, Thomas; Sedlmair, Martin; Tamm, Miriam; Reinartz, Sebastian D; Flohr, Thomas

2012-11-01

The field of view (FOV) in high-pitch dual-source computed tomography (DSCT) is limited by the size of the second detector. The goal of this study was to develop and evaluate a full FOV image reconstruction technique for high-pitch DSCT. For reconstruction beyond the FOV of the second detector, raw data of the second system were extended to the full dimensions of the first system, using the partly existing data of the first system in combination with a very smooth transition weight function. During the weighted filtered backprojection, the data of the second system were applied with an additional weighting factor. This method was tested for different pitch values from 1.5 to 3.5 on a simulated phantom and on 25 high-pitch DSCT data sets acquired at pitch values of 1.6, 2.0, 2.5, 2.8, and 3.0. Images were reconstructed with FOV sizes of 260 × 260 and 500 × 500 mm. Image quality was assessed by 2 radiologists using a 5-point Likert scale and analyzed with repeated-measure analysis of variance. In phantom and patient data, full FOV image quality depended on pitch. Where complete projection data from both tube-detector systems were available, image quality was unaffected by pitch changes. Full FOV image quality was not compromised at pitch values of 1.6 and remained fully diagnostic up to a pitch of 2.0. At higher pitch values, there was an increasing difference in image quality between limited and full FOV images (P = 0.0097). With this new image reconstruction technique, full FOV image reconstruction can be used up to a pitch of 2.0.

Development of advanced blade pitching kinematics for cycloturbines and cyclorotors

Science.gov (United States)

Adams, Zachary Howard

Cycloturbines and cyclorotors are established concepts for extracting freesteam fluid energy and producing thrust which promise to exceed the performance of traditional horizontal axis turbines and rotors while maintaining unique operational advantages. However, their potential is not yet realized in widespread applications. A central barrier to their proliferation is the lack of fundamental understanding of the aerodynamic interaction between the turbine and the freestream flow. In particular, blade pitch must be precisely actuated throughout the revolution to achieve the proper blade angle of attack and maximize performance. So far, there is no adequate method for determining or implementing the optimal blade pitching kinematics for cyclorotors or cycloturbines. This dissertation bridges the pitching deficiency by introducing a novel low order model to predict improved pitch kinematics, experimentally demonstrating improved performance, and evaluating flow physics with a high order Navier-Stokes computational code. The foundation for developing advanced blade pitch motions is a low order model named Fluxline Theory. Fluid calculations are performed in a coordinate system fixed to streamlines whose spatial locations are not pre-described in order to capture the flow expansion/contraction and bending through the turbine. A transformation then determines the spatial location of streamlines through the rotor disk and finally blade element method integrations determine the power and forces produced. Validation against three sets of extant cycloturbine experimental data demonstrates improvement over other existing streamtube models. Fluxline Theory was extended by removing dependence on a blade element model to better understand how turbine-fluid interaction impacts thrust and power production. This pure momentum variation establishes a cycloturbine performance limit similar to the Betz Limit for horizontal axis wind turbines, as well as the fluid deceleration required

Sparse Multi-Pitch and Panning Estimation of Stereophonic Signals

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kronvall, Ted; Jakobsson, Andreas; Hansen, Martin Weiss

2016-01-01

In this paper, we propose a novel multi-pitch estimator for stereophonic mixtures, allowing for pitch estimation on multi-channel audio even if the amplitude and delay panning parameters are unknown. The presented method does not require prior knowledge of the number of sources present in the mix...

Investigation of habitual pitch during free play activities for preschool-aged children.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Yang; Kimelman, Mikael D Z; Micco, Katie

2009-01-01

This study is designed to compare the habitual pitch measured in two different speech activities (free play activity and traditionally used structured speech activity) for normally developing preschool-aged children to explore to what extent preschoolers vary their vocal pitch among different speech environments. Habitual pitch measurements were conducted for 10 normally developing children (2 boys, 8 girls) between the ages of 31 months and 71 months during two different activities: (1) free play; and (2) structured speech. Speech samples were recorded using a throat microphone connected with a wireless transmitter in both activities. The habitual pitch (in Hz) was measured for all collected speech samples by using voice analysis software (Real-Time Pitch). Significantly higher habitual pitch is found during free play in contrast to structured speech activities. In addition, there is no showing of significant difference of habitual pitch elicited across a variety of structured speech activities. Findings suggest that the vocal usage of preschoolers appears to be more effortful during free play than during structured activities. It is recommended that a comprehensive evaluation for young children's voice needs to be based on the speech/voice samples collected from both free play and structured activities.

Frogs Call at a Higher Pitch in Traffic Noise

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kirsten M. Parris

2009-06-01

Full Text Available Male frogs call to attract females for mating and to defend territories from rival males. Female frogs of some species prefer lower-pitched calls, which indicate larger, more experienced males. Acoustic interference occurs when background noise reduces the active distance or the distance over which an acoustic signal can be detected. Birds are known to call at a higher pitch or frequency in urban noise, decreasing acoustic interference from low-frequency noise. Using Bayesian linear regression, we investigated the effect of traffic noise on the pitch of advertisement calls in two species of frogs, the southern brown tree frog (Litoria ewingii and the common eastern froglet (Crinia signifera. We found evidence that L. ewingii calls at a higher pitch in traffic noise, with an average increase in dominant frequency of 4.1 Hz/dB of traffic noise, and a total effect size of 123 Hz. This frequency shift is smaller than that observed in birds, but is still large enough to be detected by conspecific frogs and confer a significant benefit to the caller. Mathematical modelling predicted a 24% increase in the active distance of a L. ewingii call in traffic noise with a frequency shift of this size. Crinia signifera may also call at a higher pitch in traffic noise, but more data are required to be confident of this effect. Because frog calls are innate rather than learned, the frequency shift demonstrated by L. ewingii may represent an evolutionary adaptation to noisy conditions. The phenomenon of frogs calling at a higher pitch in traffic noise could therefore constitute an intriguing trade-off between audibility and attractiveness to potential mates.

Fine-pitch glass GEM for high-resolution X-ray imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fujiwara, T.; Toyokawa, H.; Mitsuya, Y.

2016-01-01

We have developed a fine-pitch glass gas electron multiplier (G-GEM) for high-resolution X-ray imaging. The fine-pitch G-GEM is made of a 400 μm thick photo-etchable glass substrate with 150 μm pitch holes. It is fabricated using the same wet etching technique as that for the standard G-GEM. In this work, we present the experimental results obtained with a single fine-pitch G-GEM with a 50 × 50 mm 2 effective area. We recorded an energy resolution of 16.2% and gas gain up to 5,500 when the detector was irradiated with 5.9 keV X-rays. We present a 50 × 50 mm 2 X-ray radiograph image acquired with a scintillation gas and optical readout system.

Congenital amusia (or tone-deafness interferes with pitch processing in tone languages

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Barbara eTillmann

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Congenital amusia is a neurogenetic disorder that affects music processing and that is ascribed to a deficit in pitch processing. We investigated whether this deficit extended to pitch processing in speech, notably the pitch changes used to contrast lexical tones in tonal languages. Congenital amusics and matched controls, all non-tonal language speakers, were tested for lexical tone discrimination in Mandarin Chinese (Experiment 1 and in Thai (Experiment 2. Tones were presented in pairs and participants were required to make same/different judgments. Experiment 2 additionally included musical analogs of Thai tones for comparison. Performance of congenital amusics was inferior to that of controls for all materials, suggesting a domain-general pitch-processing deficit. The pitch deficit of amusia is thus not limited to music, but may compromise the ability to process and learn tonal languages. Combined with acoustic analyses of the tone material, the present findings provide new insights into the nature of the pitch-processing deficit exhibited by amusics.

Congenital Amusia (or Tone-Deafness) Interferes with Pitch Processing in Tone Languages.

Science.gov (United States)

Tillmann, Barbara; Burnham, Denis; Nguyen, Sebastien; Grimault, Nicolas; Gosselin, Nathalie; Peretz, Isabelle

2011-01-01

Congenital amusia is a neurogenetic disorder that affects music processing and that is ascribed to a deficit in pitch processing. We investigated whether this deficit extended to pitch processing in speech, notably the pitch changes used to contrast lexical tones in tonal languages. Congenital amusics and matched controls, all non-tonal language speakers, were tested for lexical tone discrimination in Mandarin Chinese (Experiment 1) and in Thai (Experiment 2). Tones were presented in pairs and participants were required to make same/different judgments. Experiment 2 additionally included musical analogs of Thai tones for comparison. Performance of congenital amusics was inferior to that of controls for all materials, suggesting a domain-general pitch-processing deficit. The pitch deficit of amusia is thus not limited to music, but may compromise the ability to process and learn tonal languages. Combined with acoustic analyses of the tone material, the present findings provide new insights into the nature of the pitch-processing deficit exhibited by amusics.

Fundamental study on aerodynamic force of floating offshore wind turbine with cyclic pitch mechanism

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Qing'an; Kamada, Yasunari; Maeda, Takao; Murata, Junsuke; Iida, Kohei; Okumura, Yuta

2016-01-01

Wind turbines mounted on floating platforms are subjected to completely different and soft foundation properties, rather than onshore wind turbines. Due to the flexibility of their mooring systems, floating offshore wind turbines are susceptible to large oscillations such as aerodynamic force of the wind and hydrodynamic force of the wave, which may compromise their performance and structural stability. This paper focuses on the evaluation of aerodynamic forces depending on suppressing undesired turbine's motion by a rotor thrust control which is controlled by pitch changes with wind tunnel experiments. In this research, the aerodynamic forces of wind turbine are tested at two kinds of pitch control system: steady pitch control and cyclic pitch control. The rotational speed of rotor is controlled by a variable speed generator, which can be measured by the power coefficient. Moment and force acts on model wind turbine are examined by a six-component balance. From cyclic pitch testing, the direction and magnitude of moment can be arbitrarily controlled by cyclic pitch control. Moreover, the fluctuations of thrust coefficient can be controlled by collective pitch control. The results of this analysis will help resolve the fundamental design of suppressing undesired turbine's motion by cyclic pitch control. - Highlights: • Offshore wind offers additional options in regions with low onshore potential. • Two kinds of pitch control system: Steady pitch control and Cyclic pitch control. • Performance curves and unsteady aerodynamics are investigated in wind tunnel. • Fluctuations of thrust coefficient can be controlled by collective pitch control.

A Fröhlich effect and representational gravity in memory for auditory pitch.

Science.gov (United States)

Hubbard, Timothy L; Ruppel, Susan E

2013-08-01

Memory for the initial pitch of an auditory target that increased or decreased in auditory frequency was examined. Memory was displaced forward in the direction of pitch motion, and this is consistent with the Fröhlich effect previously observed for visual targets moving in visual physical space. The Fröhlich effect for pitch increased with faster target velocity and decreased if an auditory cue with the same pitch as the initial pitch of the target was presented before the target was presented. The Fröhlich effect was larger for descending pitch motion than for ascending pitch motion, and this is consistent with an influence of representational gravity. The data suggest that representation of auditory frequency space exhibits some of the same biases as representation of visual physical space, and implications for theories of attention in displacement and for crossmodal and multisensory representation of space are discussed. 2013 APA, all rights reserved

The effects of medial ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction on Major League pitching performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Keller, Robert A; Steffes, Matthew J; Zhuo, David; Bey, Michael J; Moutzouros, Vasilios

2014-11-01

Medial ulnar collateral ligament (MUCL) reconstruction is commonly performed on Major League Baseball (MLB) pitchers. Previous studies have reported that most pitchers return to presurgical statistical performance levels after MUCL reconstruction. Pitching performance data--specifically, earned run average (ERA), walks and hits per inning pitched (WHIP), winning percentage, and innings pitched--were acquired for 168 MLB pitchers who had undergone MUCL reconstruction. These data were averaged over the 3 years before surgery and the 3 years after surgery and also acquired from 178 age-matched, uninjured MLB pitchers. Of the pitchers who had MUCL reconstruction surgery, 87% returned to MLB pitching. However, compared with presurgical data, pitching performance declined in terms of ERA (P = .001), WHIP (P = .011), and innings pitched (P = .026). Pitching performance also declined in the season before the surgery compared with previous years (ERA, P = .014; WHIP, P = .036; innings pitched, P risk factor for requiring surgery. In addition, there is an increased risk of MUCL reconstruction for pitchers who enter the major leagues at a younger age. Copyright © 2014 Journal of Shoulder and Elbow Surgery Board of Trustees. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Pitch Perception, Working Memory, and Second-Language Phonological Production

Science.gov (United States)

Posedel, James; Emery, Lisa; Souza, Benjamin; Fountain, Catherine

2012-01-01

Previous research has suggested that training on a musical instrument is associated with improvements in working memory and musical pitch perception ability. Good working memory and musical pitch perception ability, in turn, have been linked to certain aspects of language production. The current study examines whether working memory and/or pitch…

An AP Calculus Classroom Amusement Park

Science.gov (United States)

Ferguson, Sarah

2016-01-01

Throughout the school year, AP Calculus teachers strive to teach course content comprehensively and swiftly in an effort to finish all required material before the AP Calculus exam. As early May approaches and the AP Calculus test looms, students and teachers nervously complete lessons, assignments, and assessments to ensure student preparation.…

AP1000, a nuclear central of advanced design; AP1000, una central nuclear de diseno avanzado

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hernandez M, N.; Viais J, J. [ININ, 52045 Ocoyoacac, Estado de Mexico (Mexico)]. e-mail: nhm@nuclear.inin.mx

2005-07-01

The AP1000 is a design of a nuclear reactor of pressurized water (PWR) of 1000 M We with characteristic of safety in a passive way; besides presenting simplifications in the systems of the plant, the construction, the maintenance and the safety, the AP1000 is a design that uses technology endorsed by those but of 30 years of operational experience of the PWR reactors. The program AP1000 of Westinghouse is focused to the implementation of the plant to provide improvements in the economy of the same one and it is a design that is derived directly of the AP600 designs. On September 13, 2004 the US-NRC (for their initials in United States- Nuclear Regulatory Commission) approved the final design of the AP1000, now Westinghouse and the US-NRC are working on the whole in a complete program for the certification. (Author)

TRUNK LEAN DURING A SINGLE-LEG SQUAT IS ASSOCIATED WITH TRUNK LEAN DURING PITCHING.

Science.gov (United States)

Plummer, Hillary A; Oliver, Gretchen D; Powers, Christopher M; Michener, Lori A

2018-02-01

Impaired trunk motion during pitching may be a risk factor for upper extremity injuries. Specifically, increased forces about the shoulder and elbow have been observed in pitchers with excessive contralateral trunk lean during pitching. Because of the difficulty in identifying abnormal trunk motions during a high-speed task such as pitching, a clinical screening test is needed to identify pitchers who have impaired trunk motion during pitching. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between the degree of lateral trunk lean during the single-leg squat and amount of trunk lean during pitching and if trunk lean during pitching can be predicted from lean during the single-leg squat. Controlled Laboratory Study; Cross-sectional. Seventy-three young baseball pitchers (11.4 ± 1.7 years; 156.3 ± 11.9 cm; 50.5 ± 8.8 kg) participated. An electromagnetic tracking system was used to obtain trunk kinematic data during a single-leg squat task (lead leg) and at maximum shoulder external rotation of a fastball pitch. Pearson correlation coefficients for trunk lean during the single-leg squat and pitching were calculated. A linear regression analysis was performed to determine if trunk lean during pitching can be predicted from lean during the single-leg squat. There was a positive correlation between trunk lean during the single-leg squat and trunk lean during pitching (r = 0.53; plean during the single-leg squat predicted the amount of lateral trunk lean during pitching (R 2 = 0.28; p lean during an SLS and pitching. Trunk lean during the single-leg squat explained 28% of the variance in trunk lean during pitching. Diagnosis, level 3.

Meta-analytic evidence for the non-modularity of pitch processing in congenital amusia.

Science.gov (United States)

Vuvan, Dominique T; Nunes-Silva, Marilia; Peretz, Isabelle

2015-08-01

A major theme driving research in congenital amusia is related to the modularity of this musical disorder, with two possible sources of the amusic pitch perception deficit. The first possibility is that the amusic deficit is due to a broad disorder of acoustic pitch processing that has the effect of disrupting downstream musical pitch processing, and the second is that amusia is specific to a musical pitch processing module. To interrogate these hypotheses, we performed a meta-analysis on two types of effect sizes contained within 42 studies in the amusia literature: the performance gap between amusics and controls on tasks of pitch discrimination, broadly defined, and the correlation between specifically acoustic pitch perception and musical pitch perception. To augment the correlation database, we also calculated this correlation using data from 106 participants tested by our own research group. We found strong evidence for the acoustic account of amusia. The magnitude of the performance gap was moderated by the size of pitch change, but not by whether the stimuli were composed of tones or speech. Furthermore, there was a significant correlation between an individual's acoustic and musical pitch perception. However, individual cases show a double dissociation between acoustic and musical processing, which suggests that although most amusic cases are probably explainable by an acoustic deficit, there is heterogeneity within the disorder. Finally, we found that tonal language fluency does not influence the performance gap between amusics and controls, and that there was no evidence that amusics fare worse with pitch direction tasks than pitch discrimination tasks. These results constitute a quantitative review of the current literature of congenital amusia, and suggest several new directions for research, including the experimental induction of amusic behaviour through transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and the systematic exploration of the developmental

Genome-Wide Identification of the Target Genes of AP2-O, a Plasmodium AP2-Family Transcription Factor.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Izumi Kaneko

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Stage-specific transcription is a fundamental biological process in the life cycle of the Plasmodium parasite. Proteins containing the AP2 DNA-binding domain are responsible for stage-specific transcriptional regulation and belong to the only known family of transcription factors in Plasmodium parasites. Comprehensive identification of their target genes will advance our understanding of the molecular basis of stage-specific transcriptional regulation and stage-specific parasite development. AP2-O is an AP2 family transcription factor that is expressed in the mosquito midgut-invading stage, called the ookinete, and is essential for normal morphogenesis of this stage. In this study, we identified the genome-wide target genes of AP2-O by chromatin immunoprecipitation-sequencing and elucidate how this AP2 family transcription factor contributes to the formation of this motile stage. The analysis revealed that AP2-O binds specifically to the upstream genomic regions of more than 500 genes, suggesting that approximately 10% of the parasite genome is directly regulated by AP2-O. These genes are involved in distinct biological processes such as morphogenesis, locomotion, midgut penetration, protection against mosquito immunity and preparation for subsequent oocyst development. This direct and global regulation by AP2-O provides a model for gene regulation in Plasmodium parasites and may explain how these parasites manage to control their complex life cycle using a small number of sequence-specific AP2 transcription factors.

Defining the biological bases of individual differences in musicality.

Science.gov (United States)

Gingras, Bruno; Honing, Henkjan; Peretz, Isabelle; Trainor, Laurel J; Fisher, Simon E

2015-03-19

Advances in molecular technologies make it possible to pinpoint genomic factors associated with complex human traits. For cognition and behaviour, identification of underlying genes provides new entry points for deciphering the key neurobiological pathways. In the past decade, the search for genetic correlates of musicality has gained traction. Reports have documented familial clustering for different extremes of ability, including amusia and absolute pitch (AP), with twin studies demonstrating high heritability for some music-related skills, such as pitch perception. Certain chromosomal regions have been linked to AP and musical aptitude, while individual candidate genes have been investigated in relation to aptitude and creativity. Most recently, researchers in this field started performing genome-wide association scans. Thus far, studies have been hampered by relatively small sample sizes and limitations in defining components of musicality, including an emphasis on skills that can only be assessed in trained musicians. With opportunities to administer standardized aptitude tests online, systematic large-scale assessment of musical abilities is now feasible, an important step towards high-powered genome-wide screens. Here, we offer a synthesis of existing literatures and outline concrete suggestions for the development of comprehensive operational tools for the analysis of musical phenotypes. © 2015 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.

Defining the biological bases of individual differences in musicality

Science.gov (United States)

Gingras, Bruno; Honing, Henkjan; Peretz, Isabelle; Trainor, Laurel J.; Fisher, Simon E.

2015-01-01

Advances in molecular technologies make it possible to pinpoint genomic factors associated with complex human traits. For cognition and behaviour, identification of underlying genes provides new entry points for deciphering the key neurobiological pathways. In the past decade, the search for genetic correlates of musicality has gained traction. Reports have documented familial clustering for different extremes of ability, including amusia and absolute pitch (AP), with twin studies demonstrating high heritability for some music-related skills, such as pitch perception. Certain chromosomal regions have been linked to AP and musical aptitude, while individual candidate genes have been investigated in relation to aptitude and creativity. Most recently, researchers in this field started performing genome-wide association scans. Thus far, studies have been hampered by relatively small sample sizes and limitations in defining components of musicality, including an emphasis on skills that can only be assessed in trained musicians. With opportunities to administer standardized aptitude tests online, systematic large-scale assessment of musical abilities is now feasible, an important step towards high-powered genome-wide screens. Here, we offer a synthesis of existing literatures and outline concrete suggestions for the development of comprehensive operational tools for the analysis of musical phenotypes. PMID:25646515

Testbeam Studies on Pick-Up in Sensors with Embedded Pitch Adapters

CERN Document Server

Rehnisch, Laura; The ATLAS collaboration

2018-01-01

Embedded pitch adapters are an alternative solution to external pitch adapters widely used to facilitate the wire-bonding step when connecting silicon strip sensors and readout electronics of different pitch. The pad-pitch adaption can be moved into the sensor fabrication step by implementing a second layer of metal tracks, connected by vias to the primary metal layer of sensor strips. Such a solution, however, might bear the risk of performance losses introduced by various phenomena. One of these effects, the undesired capacitive coupling between the silicon bulk and this second metal layer (pick-up) has been investigated in photon testbeam measurements. For a worst-case embedded pitch adapter design, expected to be maximally susceptible to pick-up, a qualitative analysis has visualized the effect as a function of the location on the second metal layer structure. It was further found that the unwanted effect decreases towards expected values for operating thresholds of the binary readout used. Suggestions fo...

Evidence for shared cognitive processing of pitch in music and language.

Science.gov (United States)

Perrachione, Tyler K; Fedorenko, Evelina G; Vinke, Louis; Gibson, Edward; Dilley, Laura C

2013-01-01

Language and music epitomize the complex representational and computational capacities of the human mind. Strikingly similar in their structural and expressive features, a longstanding question is whether the perceptual and cognitive mechanisms underlying these abilities are shared or distinct--either from each other or from other mental processes. One prominent feature shared between language and music is signal encoding using pitch, conveying pragmatics and semantics in language and melody in music. We investigated how pitch processing is shared between language and music by measuring consistency in individual differences in pitch perception across language, music, and three control conditions intended to assess basic sensory and domain-general cognitive processes. Individuals' pitch perception abilities in language and music were most strongly related, even after accounting for performance in all control conditions. These results provide behavioral evidence, based on patterns of individual differences, that is consistent with the hypothesis that cognitive mechanisms for pitch processing may be shared between language and music.

Pitch perception and production in congenital amusia: Evidence from Cantonese speakers

OpenAIRE

Liu, Fang; Chan, Alice H. D.; Ciocca, Valter; Roquet, Catherine; Peretz, Isabelle; Wong, Patrick C. M.

2016-01-01

This study investigated pitch perception and production in speech and music in individuals with congenital amusia (a disorder of musical pitch processing) who are native speakers of Cantonese, a tone language with a highly complex tonal system. Sixteen Cantonese-speaking congenital amusics and 16 controls performed a set of lexical tone perception, production, singing, and psychophysical pitch threshold tasks. Their tone production accuracy and singing proficiency were subsequently judged by ...

Evaluation of pitches and cokes from solvent-extracted coal materials

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

McHenry, E.R.

1996-12-01

Three initial coal-extracted (C-E) samples were received from the West Virginia University (WVU) Chemical Engineering Department. Two samples had been hydrogenated to obtain pitches that satisfy Theological requirements. One of the hydrogenated (HC-E) samples had been extracted by toluene to remove ash and higher molecular weight aromatic compounds. We were unable to measure the softening point and viscosity of the non-hydro treated solid extract sample, Positive characteristics in the HC-E materials were softening points of 113-119{degrees}C, low sulfur and ash. The oxygen and nitrogen content of the HC-E samples may limit future usage in premium carbon and graphite products. Coking values were similar to petroleum pitches. Laboratory anode testing indicates that in combination with standard coal-tar pitch, the HC-E material can be used as a binder pitch.

Advanced APS Impacts on Vehicle Payloads

Science.gov (United States)

Schneider, Steven J.; Reed, Brian D.

1989-01-01

Advanced auxiliary propulsion system (APS) technology has the potential to both, increase the payload capability of earth-to-orbit (ETO) vehicles by reducing APS propellant mass, and simplify ground operations and logistics by reducing the number of fluids on the vehicle and eliminating toxic, corrosive propellants. The impact of integrated cryogenic APS on vehicle payloads is addressed. In this system, launch propulsion system residuals are scavenged from integral launch propulsion tanks for use in the APS. Sufficient propellant is preloaded into the APS to return to earth with margin and noncomplete scavenging assumed. No propellant conditioning is required by the APS, but ambient heat soak is accommodated. High temperature rocket materials enable the use of the unconditioned hydrogen/oxygen in the APS and are estimated to give APS rockets specific impulse of up to about 444 sec. The payload benefits are quantified and compared with an uprated monomethyl hydrazine/nitrogen tetroxide system in a conservative fashion, by assuming a 25.5 percent weight growth for the hydrogen/oxygen system and a 0 percent weight growth for the uprated system. The combination and scavenging and high performance gives payload impacts which are highly mission specific. A payload benefit of 861 kg (1898 lbm) was estimated for a Space Station Freedom rendezvous mission and 2099 kg (4626 lbm) for a sortie mission, with payload impacts varying with the amount of launch propulsion residual propellants. Missions without liquid propellant scavenging were estimated to have payload penalties, however, operational benefits were still possible.

Influence of Pitch Height on the Perception of Submissiveness and Threat in Musical Passages

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

David Huron

2006-09-01

Full Text Available Bolinger, Ohala, Morton and others have established that vocal pitch height is perceived to be associated with social signals of dominance and submissiveness: higher vocal pitch is associated with submissiveness, whereas lower vocal pitch is associated with social dominance. An experiment was carried out to test this relationship in the perception of non-vocal melodies. Results show a parallel situation in music: higher-pitched melodies sound more submissive (less threatening than lower-pitched melodies.

Detection of pitch failures in wind turbines using environmental noise recognition techniques

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Skrimpas, Georgios Alexandros; Marhadi, Kun S.; Gomez, Robert

2015-01-01

Modern wind turbines employ pitch regulated control strategies in order to optimise the yielded power production. Pitch systems can be subjected to various failure modes related to cylinders, bearings and loose mounting, leading to poor pitching and aerodynamic imbalance. Early stage pitch....... The proposed method is built upon the following three processes. Firstly, the impacts are identified using envelope analysis, followed by the extraction of 12 features, such as energy, crest factor and peak to peak amplitude and finally the classification of the events based on the above features. Eighty nine...

Major League pitching workload after primary ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction and risk for revision surgery.

Science.gov (United States)

Keller, Robert A; Mehran, Nima; Marshall, Nathan E; Okoroha, Kelechi R; Khalil, Lafi; Tibone, James E; Moutzouros, Vasilios

2017-02-01

Literature has attempted to correlate pitching workload with risk of ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) injury; however, limited data are available in evaluating workload and its relationship with the need for revision reconstruction in Major League Baseball (MLB) pitchers. We identified 29 MLB pitchers who underwent primary UCL reconstruction surgery and subsequently required revision reconstruction and compared them with 121 MLB pitchers who underwent primary reconstruction but did not later require revision surgery. Games pitched, pitch counts, and innings pitched were evaluated and compared for the seasons after returning from primary reconstruction and for the last season pitched before undergoing revision surgery. The difference in workload between pitchers who did and did not require revision reconstruction was not statistically significant in games pitched, innings pitched, and MLB-only pitch counts. The one significant difference in workload was in total pitch counts (combined MLB and minor league), with the pitchers who required revision surgery pitching less than those who did not (primary: 1413.6 pitches vs. revision: 959.0 pitches, P = .04). In addition, pitchers who required revision surgery underwent primary reconstruction at an early age (22.9 years vs. 27.3 years, P risk for injury after primary UCL reconstruction. However, correlations of risk may be younger age and less MLB experience at the time of the primary reconstruction. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Fault Detection and Isolation for Wind Turbine Electric Pitch System

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zhu, Jiangsheng; Ma, Kuichao; Hajizadeh, Amin

2017-01-01

This paper presents a model-based fault detection and isolation scheme applied on electric pitch system of wind turbines. Pitch system is one of the most critical components due to its effect on the operational safety and the dynamics of wind turbines. Faults in this system should be precisely...... detected to prevent failures and decrease downtime. To detect faults of electric pitch actuators and sensors, an extended kalman filter (EKF) based multiple model adaptive estimation (MMAE) designed to estimate the states of the system. The proposed method is demonstrated in case studies. The simulation...

Discrete Element Method Modeling of the Rheological Properties of Coke/Pitch Mixtures.

Science.gov (United States)

Majidi, Behzad; Taghavi, Seyed Mohammad; Fafard, Mario; Ziegler, Donald P; Alamdari, Houshang

2016-05-04

Rheological properties of pitch and pitch/coke mixtures at temperatures around 150 °C are of great interest for the carbon anode manufacturing process in the aluminum industry. In the present work, a cohesive viscoelastic contact model based on Burger's model is developed using the discrete element method (DEM) on the YADE, the open-source DEM software. A dynamic shear rheometer (DSR) is used to measure the viscoelastic properties of pitch at 150 °C. The experimental data obtained is then used to estimate the Burger's model parameters and calibrate the DEM model. The DSR tests were then simulated by a three-dimensional model. Very good agreement was observed between the experimental data and simulation results. Coke aggregates were modeled by overlapping spheres in the DEM model. Coke/pitch mixtures were numerically created by adding 5, 10, 20, and 30 percent of coke aggregates of the size range of 0.297-0.595 mm (-30 + 50 mesh) to pitch. Adding up to 30% of coke aggregates to pitch can increase its complex shear modulus at 60 Hz from 273 Pa to 1557 Pa. Results also showed that adding coke particles increases both storage and loss moduli, while it does not have a meaningful effect on the phase angle of pitch.

Exploring the Effects of Pitch Layout on Learning a New Musical Instrument

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jennifer MacRitchie

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Although isomorphic pitch layouts are proposed to afford various advantages for musicians playing new musical instruments, this paper details the first substantive set of empirical tests on how two fundamental aspects of isomorphic pitch layouts affect motor learning: shear, which makes the pitch axis vertical, and the adjacency (or nonadjacency of pitches a major second apart. After receiving audio-visual training tasks for a scale and arpeggios, performance accuracies of 24 experienced musicians were assessed in immediate retention tasks (same as the training tasks, but without the audio-visual guidance and in a transfer task (performance of a previously untrained nursery rhyme. Each participant performed the same tasks with three different pitch layouts and, in total, four different layouts were tested. Results show that, so long as the performance ceiling has not already been reached (due to ease of the task or repeated practice, adjacency strongly improves performance accuracy in the training and retention tasks. They also show that shearing the layout, to make the pitch axis vertical, worsens performance accuracy for the training tasks but, crucially, it strongly improves performance accuracy in the transfer task when the participant needs to perform a new, but related, task. These results can inform the design of pitch layouts in new musical instruments.

Pitch structure, but not selective attention, affects accent weightings in metrical grouping.

Science.gov (United States)

Prince, Jon B

2014-10-01

Among other cues, pitch and temporal accents contribute to grouping in musical sequences. However, exactly how they combine remains unclear, possibly because of the role of structural organization. In 3 experiments, participants rated the perceived metrical grouping of sequences that either adhered to the rules of tonal Western musical pitch structure (musical key) or did not (atonal). The tonal status of sequences did not provide any grouping cues and was irrelevant to the task. Experiment 1 established equally strong levels of pitch leap accents and duration accents in baseline conditions, which were then recombined in subsequent experiments. Neither accent type was stronger or weaker for tonal and atonal contexts. In Experiment 2, pitch leap accents dominated over duration accents, but the extent of this advantage was greater when sequences were tonal. Experiment 3 ruled out an attentional origin of this effect by replicating this finding while explicitly manipulating attention to pitch or duration accents between participant groups. Overall, the presence of tonal pitch structure made the dimension of pitch more salient at the expense of time. These findings support a dimensional salience framework in which the presence of organizational structure prioritizes the processing of the more structured dimension regardless of task relevance, independent from psychophysical difficulty, and impervious to attentional allocation.

E6AP is Required for Human Papillomavirus type 16 E6 to Cause Cervical Cancer in Mice

Science.gov (United States)

Shai, Anny; Pitot, Henry C.; Lambert, Paul F.

2010-01-01

High-risk human papillomaviruses cause certain anogenital and head and neck cancers. E6, one of three potent HPV oncogenes that contribute to the development of these malignancies, is a multifunctional protein with many biochemical activities. Among these activities are its ability to bind and inactivate the cellular tumor suppressor p53, induce expression of telomerase, and bind to various other proteins including Bak, E6BP1, E6TP1, and proteins that contain PDZ domains such as hScrib and hDlg. Many of these activities are thought to contribute to E6’s role in carcinogenesis. E6’s interaction with many of these cellular proteins, including p53, leads to their destabilization. This property is mediated at least in part through E6’s ability to recruit the ubiquitin ligase, E6AP into complexes with these cellular proteins resulting in their ubiquitin–mediated degradation by the proteasome. In this study, we address the requirement for E6AP in mediating E6's acute and oncogenic phenotypes, including induction of epithelial hyperplasia, abrogation of DNA damage response and induction of cervical cancer. Loss of E6AP had no discernable effect on E6's ability to induce hyperplasia or abrogate DNA damage responses, akin to what we had earlier observed in the mouse epidermis. Nevertheless, in cervical carcinogenesis studies, there was a complete loss of E6’s oncogenic potential in mice nulligenic for E6AP. Thus, E6AP is absolutely required for E6 to cause cervical cancer. PMID:20530688

Boosting pitch encoding with audiovisual interactions in congenital amusia.

Science.gov (United States)

Albouy, Philippe; Lévêque, Yohana; Hyde, Krista L; Bouchet, Patrick; Tillmann, Barbara; Caclin, Anne

2015-01-01

The combination of information across senses can enhance perception, as revealed for example by decreased reaction times or improved stimulus detection. Interestingly, these facilitatory effects have been shown to be maximal when responses to unisensory modalities are weak. The present study investigated whether audiovisual facilitation can be observed in congenital amusia, a music-specific disorder primarily ascribed to impairments of pitch processing. Amusic individuals and their matched controls performed two tasks. In Task 1, they were required to detect auditory, visual, or audiovisual stimuli as rapidly as possible. In Task 2, they were required to detect as accurately and as rapidly as possible a pitch change within an otherwise monotonic 5-tone sequence that was presented either only auditorily (A condition), or simultaneously with a temporally congruent, but otherwise uninformative visual stimulus (AV condition). Results of Task 1 showed that amusics exhibit typical auditory and visual detection, and typical audiovisual integration capacities: both amusics and controls exhibited shorter response times for audiovisual stimuli than for either auditory stimuli or visual stimuli. Results of Task 2 revealed that both groups benefited from simultaneous uninformative visual stimuli to detect pitch changes: accuracy was higher and response times shorter in the AV condition than in the A condition. The audiovisual improvements of response times were observed for different pitch interval sizes depending on the group. These results suggest that both typical listeners and amusic individuals can benefit from multisensory integration to improve their pitch processing abilities and that this benefit varies as a function of task difficulty. These findings constitute the first step towards the perspective to exploit multisensory paradigms to reduce pitch-related deficits in congenital amusia, notably by suggesting that audiovisual paradigms are effective in an appropriate

Pitch and Loudness Tinnitus in Individuals with Presbycusis.

Science.gov (United States)

Seimetz, Bruna Macangnin; Teixeira, Adriane Ribeiro; Rosito, Leticia Petersen Schmidt; Flores, Leticia Sousa; Pappen, Carlos Henrique; Dall'igna, Celso

2016-10-01

Introduction  Tinnitus is a symptom that is often associated with presbycusis. Objective  This study aims to analyze the existence of association among hearing thresholds, pitch, and loudness of tinnitus in individuals with presbycusis, considering the gender variable. Methods  Cross-sectional, descriptive, and prospective study, whose sample consisted of individuals with tinnitus and diagnosis of presbycusis. For the evaluation, we performed anamnesis along with otoscopy, pure tone audiometry, and acuphenometry to analyze the psychoacoustic characteristics of tinnitus individuals. Results  The sample consisted of 49 subjects, with a mean age of 69.57 ± 6.53 years, who presented unilateral and bilateral tinnitus, therefore, a sample of 80 ears. In analyzing the results, as for acuphenometry, the loudness of tinnitus was more present at 0dB and the pitch was 6HKz and 8HKz. Regarding the analysis of the association between the frequency of greater hearing threshold and tinnitus pitch, no statistical significance ( p  = 0.862) was found. As for the association between the intensity of greater hearing threshold and tinnitus loudness, no statistical significance ( p  = 0.115) was found. Conclusion  There is no significant association between the hearing loss of patients with presbycusis and the pitch and loudness of tinnitus.

Pitch and Loudness Tinnitus in Individuals with Presbycusis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Seimetz, Bruna Macangnin

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Introduction Tinnitus is a symptom that is often associated with presbycusis. Objective This study aims to analyze the existence of association among hearing thresholds, pitch, and loudness of tinnitus in individuals with presbycusis, considering the gender variable. Methods Cross-sectional, descriptive, and prospective study, whose sample consisted of individuals with tinnitus and diagnosis of presbycusis. For the evaluation, we performed anamnesis along with otoscopy, pure tone audiometry, and acuphenometry to analyze the psychoacoustic characteristics of tinnitus individuals. Results The sample consisted of 49 subjects, with a mean age of 69.57 ± 6.53 years, who presented unilateral and bilateral tinnitus, therefore, a sample of 80 ears. In analyzing the results, as for acuphenometry, the loudness of tinnitus was more present at 0dB and the pitch was 6HKz and 8HKz. Regarding the analysis of the association between the frequency of greater hearing threshold and tinnitus pitch, no statistical significance (p = 0.862 was found. As for the association between the intensity of greater hearing threshold and tinnitus loudness, no statistical significance (p = 0.115 was found. Conclusion There is no significant association between the hearing loss of patients with presbycusis and the pitch and loudness of tinnitus.

Comparison of Two Independent LIDAR-Based Pitch Control Designs

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dunne, F.; Schlipf, D.; Pao, L. Y.

2012-08-01

Two different lidar-based feedforward controllers have previously been designed for the NREL 5 MW wind turbine model under separate studies. Feedforward controller A uses a finite-impulse-response design, with 5 seconds of preview, and three rotating lidar measurements. Feedforward controller B uses a static-gain design, with the preview time defined by the pitch actuator dynamics, a simulation of a real nacelle-based scanning lidar system, and a lowpass filter defined by the lidar configuration. These controllers are now directly compared under the same lidar configuration, in terms of fatigue load reduction, rotor speed regulation, and power capture. The various differences in design choices are discussed and compared. We also compare frequency plots of individual pitch feedforward and collective pitch feedforward load reductions, and we see that individual pitch feedforward is effective mainly at the once-per-revolution and twice-per-revolution frequencies. We also explain how to determine the required preview time by breaking it down into separate parts, and we then compare it to the expected preview time available.

Hydrodynamics of a flexible plate between pitching rigid plates

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Junyoung; Kim, Daegyoum

2017-11-01

The dynamics of a flexible plate have been studied as a model problem in swimming and flying of animals and fluid-structure interaction of plants and flags. Motivated by fish schooling and an array of sea grasses, we investigate the dynamics of a flexible plate closely placed between two pitching rigid plates. In most studies on passive deformation of the flexible plate, the plate is immersed in a uniform flow or a wavy flow. However, in this study, the flexible plate experiences periodic deformation by the oscillatory flow generated by the prescribed pitching motion of the rigid plates. In our model, the pitching axes of the rigid plates and the clamping position of the flexible plate are aligned on the same line. The flexible plate shows various responses depending on length and pitching frequency of rigid plates, thickness of a flexible plate, and free-stream velocity. To find the effect of each variable on the response of the flexible plate, amplitude of a trailing edge and modal contribution of a flapping motion are compared, and flow structure around the flexible plate is examined.

Multilingual evaluation of voice disability index using pitch rate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shuji Shinohara

2017-06-01

Full Text Available We propose the use of the pitch rate of free-form speech recorded by smartphones as an index of voice disability. This research compares the effectiveness of pitch rate, jitter, shimmer, and harmonic-to-noise ratio (HNR as indices of voice disability in English, German, and Japanese. Normally, the evaluation of these indices is performed using long-vowel sounds; however, this study included the recitation of a set passage, which is more similar to free-form speech. The results showed that for English, the jitter, shimmer, and HNR were very effective indices for long-vowel sounds, but the shimmer and HNR for read speech were considerably worse. Although the effectiveness of jitter as an index was maintained for read speech, the pitch rate was better in distinguishing between healthy individuals and patients with illnesses affecting their voice. The read speech results in German, Japanese, and English were similar, and the pitch rate showed the greatest efficiency for identification. Nevertheless, compared to English, the identification efficiency for the other two languages was lower.

Prospective Player-Reported Injuries in Female Youth Fast-Pitch Softball Players.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Matthew V; Davis, Randi; Brophy, Robert H; Prather, Heidi; Garbutt, Jane; Wright, Rick W

2015-01-01

There is a scarcity of literature evaluating injuries in youth fast-pitch softball players. To perform a descriptive analysis of player-reported injuries in youth fast-pitch softball position players and pitchers during a single select-level season. Prospective observation cohort study. Level 3. Ninety-eight athletes (48 pitchers, 50 position players) were followed for a single select fast-pitch softball season. Study participants completed web-based surveys every 3 weeks reporting injuries related to participation in fast-pitch softball. Injury was defined as pain causing cessation of participation in the current game or practice that prevents the player's return to that session or any pain that causes cessation of a player's customary participation on the day after the day of onset. The median age of the study participants was 14 years (range, 9-18 years). There were 49 reported injuries in 98 athletes. The average age was 13 years for those not injured and 14 years for those who were injured (P softball players. Better off-season and preseason conditioning may be a key factor for reducing pitching injuries. Recognition of injury patterns in fast-pitch softball players is critical to developing strategies to keep these athletes competing safely. © 2015 The Author(s).

Prospective Player-Reported Injuries in Female Youth Fast-Pitch Softball Players

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Matthew V.; Davis, Randi; Brophy, Robert H.; Prather, Heidi; Garbutt, Jane; Wright, Rick W.

2015-01-01

Background: There is a scarcity of literature evaluating injuries in youth fast-pitch softball players. Purpose: To perform a descriptive analysis of player-reported injuries in youth fast-pitch softball position players and pitchers during a single select-level season. Study Design: Prospective observation cohort study. Level of Evidence: Level 3. Methods: Ninety-eight athletes (48 pitchers, 50 position players) were followed for a single select fast-pitch softball season. Study participants completed web-based surveys every 3 weeks reporting injuries related to participation in fast-pitch softball. Injury was defined as pain causing cessation of participation in the current game or practice that prevents the player’s return to that session or any pain that causes cessation of a player’s customary participation on the day after the day of onset. Results: The median age of the study participants was 14 years (range, 9-18 years). There were 49 reported injuries in 98 athletes. The average age was 13 years for those not injured and 14 years for those who were injured (P softball players. Better off-season and preseason conditioning may be a key factor for reducing pitching injuries. Clinical Relevance: Recognition of injury patterns in fast-pitch softball players is critical to developing strategies to keep these athletes competing safely. PMID:26502442

Unsteady aerodynamics of a pitching-flapping-perturbed revolving wing at low Reynolds number

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Long; Wu, Jianghao; Zhou, Chao; Hsu, Shih-Jung; Cheng, Bo

2018-05-01

Due to adverse viscous effects, revolving wings suffer universally from low efficiency at low Reynolds number (Re). By reciprocating wing revolving motion, natural flyers flying at low Re successfully exploit unsteady effects to augment force production and efficiency. Here we investigate the aerodynamics of an alternative, i.e., a revolving wing with concomitant unsteady pitching and vertical flapping perturbations (a pitching-flapping-perturbed revolving wing). The current work builds upon a previous study on flapping-perturbed revolving wings (FP-RWs) and focuses on combined effects of pitching-flapping perturbation on force generation and vortex behaviors. The results show that, compared with a FR-RW, pitching motion further (1) reduces the external driving torque for rotating at 0° angle of attack (α0) and (2) enhances lift and leads to a self-rotating equilibrium at α0 = 20°. The power loading of a revolving wing at α0 = 20° can be improved using pitching-flapping perturbations with large pitching amplitude but small Strouhal number. Additionally, an advanced pitching improves the reduction of external driving torque, whereas a delayed pitching weakens both the lift enhancement and the reduction of external driving torque. Further analysis shows that pitching effects can be mainly decomposed into the Leading-Edge-Vortex (LEV)-mediated pressure component and geometric projection component, together they determine the force performance. LEV circulation is found to be determined by the instantaneous effective angle of attack but could be affected asymmetrically between upstroke and downstroke depending on the nominal angle of attack. Pitching-flapping perturbation thus can potentially inspire novel mechanisms to improve the aerodynamic performance of rotary wing micro air vehicles.

Pitch Fork

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Williams, Peter Leslie; Overholt, Daniel

2017-01-01

Pitch Fork is a prototype of an alternate, actuated digital musical instrument (DMI). It uses 5 infra-red and 4 piezoelectric sensors to control an additive synthesis engine. Iron bars are used as the physical point of contact in interaction with the aim of using this materials natural acoustic p...... properties as a control signal for aspects of the digitally produced sound. This choice of material was also chosen to affect player experience. Sensor readings are relayed to a Macbook via an Arduino Mega. Mappings and audio output signal is carried out with Pure Data Extended....

Servo-Elastic Dynamics of a Hydraulic Actuator Pitching a Blade with Large Deflections

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hansen, M H; Kallesoee, B S

2007-01-01

This paper deals with the servo-elastic dynamics of a hydraulic pitch actuator acting on a largely bend wind turbine blade. The compressibility of the oil and flexibility of the hoses introduce a dynamic mode in the pitch bearing degree of freedom. This mode may obtain negative damping if the proportional gain on the actuator position error is defined too large relative to the viscous forces in the hydraulic system and the total rotational inertia of the pitch bearing degree of freedom. A simple expression for the stability limit of this proportional gain is derived for tuning the gain based on the Ziegler-Nichols method. Computed transfer functions from reference to actual pitch angles indicate that the actuator can be approximated as a low-pass filter with some appropriate limitations on pitching speed and acceleration. The structural blade model includes the geometrical coupling of edgewise bending and torsion for large flapwise deflections. This coupling is shown to introduce edgewise bending response for pitch reference oscillations around the natural frequency of the edgewise bending mode, in which frequency range the transfer function from reference to actual pitch angle cannot be modeled as a simple low-pass filter. The pitch bearing is assumed to be frictionless as a first approximation

Electrically tuned photoluminescence in large pitch cholesteric liquid crystal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Middha, Manju; Kumar, Rishi; Raina, K. K.

2014-01-01

Cholesteric liquid crystals are known as 1-D photonic band gap materials due to their periodic helical supramolecular structure and larger birefringence. Depending upon the helical twisted pitch length, they give the characteristic contrast due to selective Bragg reflections when viewed through the polarizing optical microscope and hence affect the electro-optic properties. So the optimization of chiral dopant concentration in nematic liquid crystal leads to control the transmission of polarized light through the microscope. Hence transmission based polarizing optical microscope is used for the characterization of helical pitch length in the optical texture. The unwinding of helical pitch was observed with the application of electric field which affects the intensity of photoluminescence

AP1000 design and construction integration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Winters, James W.; Clelland, Jill A.

2004-01-01

Construction costs of commercial nuclear generating plants must be reduced in order to expand the future use of nuclear energy. Two of the drivers of plant construction costs are the cost of financing during the construction duration and the substantial amount of skilled craft labor hours needed on site during construction. The application of information technology (IT) has been used to understand and reduce both of these drivers by establishing parallel construction paths using modules and integrating construction sequence review into the design process. In a program sponsored by EPRI, Westinghouse has modeled the construction of AP1000 in '4D' to show its viability, to improve its logic, to improve the plant design for constructibility and overall to reduce time and risk in the construction schedule. The design of most of AP1000 was constrained to be a duplicate of AP600 except where components required expansion for the higher power level. As a result, the construction schedule for AP1000 is as mature and as robust as that for AP600. Two areas important to the construction of AP1000 did require some design work because they could not remain the same as AP1000. First, the turbine building had to be redesigned to accommodate the larger turbine and its support systems. Again, as much of the AP600 design and philosophy as possible was retained. The building required enlargement and the basemat, foundations, steel structure and structural modules required modification. As concrete, steel, and equipment were defined by the designers, they were matched to the original AP600 turbine building schedule. This forced designers to assemble files to be consistent with building assembly activities and to think about constructibility as they defined the final design. Second, the reinforcement structure within the concrete under and supporting the containment vessel required detail design. Westinghouse was fortunate to have the constructor Obayashi of Japan recommend a detailed

Pitched Blade Turbine Efficiency at Particle Suspension

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

D. Ceres

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Mixing suspensions is a very important hydraulic operation. The pitched six-blade turbine is a widely-used axial-flow impeller. This paper deals with effect relative impeller size and particle content on theefficiency of a pitched six-blade turbine at particle suspension. Two pitched six-blade turbines were used in model measurements of just suspension impeller speed. The ratios of the vessel to agitator diameter D/d were 3 and 4.5. The measurements were carried out in a dish-bottomed vessel 300 mm in diameter. The just suspension impeller speeds were measured using an electrochemical method, and were checked visually. A 2.5 % NaCl water solution was used as the liquid phase, and glass particles with four equivalent diameters between 0.18 and 0.89 mmand volumetric concentration from 2.5 % to 40% were usedasthesolid phase. The criterion values πs=Po√Fr'3(d/D7 were calculated from the particle suspension and power consumption measurements. The dependencies of πs on particle content cv show that larger agitators are more efficient for higher particle content.

AP1000{sup TM} plant modularization

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cantarero L, C.; Demetri, K. J. [Westinghouse Electric Co., 1000 Westinghouse Drive, Cranberry Township, PA 16066 (United States); Quintero C, F. P., E-mail: cantarc@westinghouse.com [Westinghouse Electric Spain, Padilla 17, 28006 Madrid (Spain)

2016-09-15

The AP1000{sup TM} plant is an 1100 M We pressurized water reactor (PWR) with passive safety features and extensive plant simplifications that enhance construction, operation, maintenance and safety. Modules are used extensively in the design of the AP1000 plant nuclear island. The AP1000 plant uses modern, modular-construction techniques for plant construction. The design incorporates vendor-designed skids and equipment packages, as well as large, multi-ton structural modules and special equipment modules. Modularization allows traditionally sequential construction tasks to be completed simultaneously. Factory-built modules can be installed at the site in a planned construction schedule. The modularized AP1000 plant allows many more construction activities to proceed in parallel. This reduces plant construction calendar time, thus lowering the costs of plant financing. Furthermore, performing less work onsite significantly reduces the amount of skilled field-craft labor, which costs more than shop labor. In addition to labor cost savings, doing more welding and fabrication in a factory environment raises the quality of work, allowing more scheduling flexibility and reducing the amount of specialized tools required onsite. The site layout for the AP1000 plant has been established to support modular construction and efficient operations during construction. The plant layout is compact, using less space than previous conventional plant layouts. This paper provides and overview of the AP1000 plant modules with an emphasis on structural modules. Currently the Westinghouse AP1000 plant has four units under construction in China and four units under construction in the United States. All have shown successful fabrication and installation of various AP1000 plant modules. (Author)

AP1000"T"M plant modularization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cantarero L, C.; Demetri, K. J.; Quintero C, F. P.

2016-09-01

The AP1000"T"M plant is an 1100 M We pressurized water reactor (PWR) with passive safety features and extensive plant simplifications that enhance construction, operation, maintenance and safety. Modules are used extensively in the design of the AP1000 plant nuclear island. The AP1000 plant uses modern, modular-construction techniques for plant construction. The design incorporates vendor-designed skids and equipment packages, as well as large, multi-ton structural modules and special equipment modules. Modularization allows traditionally sequential construction tasks to be completed simultaneously. Factory-built modules can be installed at the site in a planned construction schedule. The modularized AP1000 plant allows many more construction activities to proceed in parallel. This reduces plant construction calendar time, thus lowering the costs of plant financing. Furthermore, performing less work onsite significantly reduces the amount of skilled field-craft labor, which costs more than shop labor. In addition to labor cost savings, doing more welding and fabrication in a factory environment raises the quality of work, allowing more scheduling flexibility and reducing the amount of specialized tools required onsite. The site layout for the AP1000 plant has been established to support modular construction and efficient operations during construction. The plant layout is compact, using less space than previous conventional plant layouts. This paper provides and overview of the AP1000 plant modules with an emphasis on structural modules. Currently the Westinghouse AP1000 plant has four units under construction in China and four units under construction in the United States. All have shown successful fabrication and installation of various AP1000 plant modules. (Author)

AP calculus AB & BC crash course

CERN Document Server

Rosebush, J

2012-01-01

AP Calculus AB & BC Crash Course - Gets You a Higher Advanced Placement Score in Less Time Crash Course is perfect for the time-crunched student, the last-minute studier, or anyone who wants a refresher on the subject. AP Calculus AB & BC Crash Course gives you: Targeted, Focused Review - Study Only What You Need to Know Crash Course is based on an in-depth analysis of the AP Calculus AB & BC course description outline and actual AP test questions. It covers only the information tested on the exams, so you can make the most of your valuable study time. Written by experienced math teachers, our

Westinghouse AP 1000 program status

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Doehnert, B.

2002-01-01

The project 1000 is presented and features are discussed in the paper. Design maturity is characterized by 1300 man-year / $400 million design and testing effort, more than 12 000 design documents completed; 3D computer model developed. It includes structures, equipment, small / large pipe, cable trays, ducts etc. Licensing Maturity is determined by a very thorough and complete NRC review of AP600; 110 man-year effort (NRC) over 6 years, $30 million; independent, confirmatory plant analysis; independent, confirmatory plant testing (ROSA, OSU); over 7400 questions answered, no open items; over 380 meeting with NRC, 43 meetings with ACRS. NRC Design Certification is issued in December 1999. Reasons for developing AP 1000 and design changes are presented. Economic analysis shows an expectation for payback within 20 years. AP1000 provides 75% power uprate for 15% increment in capital cost. AP1000 meets new plant economic targets in the near term

Application of the matching law to pitch selection in professional baseball.

Science.gov (United States)

Cox, David J; Sosine, Jacob; Dallery, Jesse

2017-04-01

This study applied the generalized matching equation (GME) to pitch selection in professional baseball. The GME was fitted to the relation between pitch selection and hitter outcomes for five professional baseball pitchers during the 2014 Major League Baseball season. The GME described pitch selection well. Pitch allocation varied across different game contexts such as inning, count, and number of outs in a manner consistent with the GME. Finally, within games, bias decreased for four of the five pitchers and the sensitivity parameter increased for three of the five pitchers. The results extend the generality of the GME to multialternative natural sporting contexts, and demonstrate the influence of context on behavior in natural environments. © 2017 Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior.

Pitch Tracking and Voiced/Unvoiced Detection in Noisy Environment using Optimat Sequence Estimation

OpenAIRE

Wasserblat, Moshe; Gainza, Mikel; Dorran, David; Domb, Yuval

2008-01-01

This paper addresses the problem of pitch tracking and voiced/unvoiced detection in noisy speech environments. An algorithm is presented which uses a number of variable thresholds to track pitch contour with minimal error. This is achieved by modeling the pitch tracking problem in such a way that allows the use of optimal estimation methods, such MLSE. The performance of the algorithm is evaluated using the Keele pitch detection database with realistic background noise. Results show best perf...

Pitch Synchronous Segmentation of Speech Signals

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The Pitch Synchronous Segmentation (PSS) that accelerates speech without changing its fundamental frequency method could be applied and evaluated for use at NASA....

Discrete Element Method Modeling of the Rheological Properties of Coke/Pitch Mixtures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Behzad Majidi

2016-05-01

Full Text Available Rheological properties of pitch and pitch/coke mixtures at temperatures around 150 °C are of great interest for the carbon anode manufacturing process in the aluminum industry. In the present work, a cohesive viscoelastic contact model based on Burger’s model is developed using the discrete element method (DEM on the YADE, the open-source DEM software. A dynamic shear rheometer (DSR is used to measure the viscoelastic properties of pitch at 150 °C. The experimental data obtained is then used to estimate the Burger’s model parameters and calibrate the DEM model. The DSR tests were then simulated by a three-dimensional model. Very good agreement was observed between the experimental data and simulation results. Coke aggregates were modeled by overlapping spheres in the DEM model. Coke/pitch mixtures were numerically created by adding 5, 10, 20, and 30 percent of coke aggregates of the size range of 0.297–0.595 mm (−30 + 50 mesh to pitch. Adding up to 30% of coke aggregates to pitch can increase its complex shear modulus at 60 Hz from 273 Pa to 1557 Pa. Results also showed that adding coke particles increases both storage and loss moduli, while it does not have a meaningful effect on the phase angle of pitch.

Developmental trajectories of pitch-related music skills in children with Williams syndrome.

Science.gov (United States)

Martínez-Castilla, Pastora; Rodríguez, Manuel; Campos, Ruth

2016-01-01

The study of music cognition in Williams syndrome (WS) has resulted in theoretical debates regarding cognitive modularity and development. However, no research has previously investigated the development of music skills in this population. In this study, we used the cross-sectional developmental trajectories approach to assess the development of pitch-related music skills in children with WS compared with typically developing (TD) peers. Thus, we evaluated the role of change over time on pitch-related music skills and the developmental relationships between music skills and different cognitive areas. In the TD children, the pitch-related music skills improved with chronological age and cognitive development. In the children with WS, developmental relationships were only found between several pitch-related music skills and specific cognitive processes. We also found non-systematic relationships between chronological age and the pitch-related music skills, stabilization in the level reached in music when cognitive development was considered, and uneven associations between cognitive and music skills. In addition, the TD and WS groups differed in their patterns of pitch-related music skill development. These results suggest that the development of pitch-related music skills in children with WS is atypical. Our findings stand in contrast with the views that claim innate modularity for music in WS; rather, they are consistent with neuroconstructivist accounts. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

ABSOLUTE NEUTRINO MASSES

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schechter, J.; Shahid, M. N.

2012-01-01

We discuss the possibility of using experiments timing the propagation of neutrino beams over large distances to help determine the absolute masses of the three neutrinos.......We discuss the possibility of using experiments timing the propagation of neutrino beams over large distances to help determine the absolute masses of the three neutrinos....

Modeling unsteady forces and pressures on a rapidly pitching airfoil

Science.gov (United States)

Schiavone, Nicole K.; Dawson, Scott T. M.; Rowley, Clarence W.; Williams, David R.

2014-11-01

This work develops models to quantify and understand the unsteady aerodynamic forces arising from rapid pitching motion of a NACA0012 airfoil at a Reynolds number of 50 000. The system identification procedure applies a generalized DMD-type algorithm to time-resolved wind tunnel measurements of the lift and drag forces, as well as the pressure at six locations on the suction surface of the airfoil. Models are identified for 5-degree pitch-up and pitch-down maneuvers within the overall range of 0-20 degrees. The identified models can accurately capture the effects of flow separation and leading-edge vortex formation and convection. We demonstrate that switching between different linear models can give accurate prediction of the nonlinear behavior that is present in high-amplitude maneuvers. The models are accurate for a wide-range of motions, including pitch-and-hold, sinusoidal, and pseudo-random pitching maneuvers. Providing the models access to a subset of the measured data channels can allow for improved estimates of the remaining states via the use of a Kalman filter, suggesting that the modeling framework could be useful for aerodynamic control applications. This work was supported by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, under Award No. FA9550-12-1-0075.

Binaural fusion and the representation of virtual pitch in the human auditory cortex.

Science.gov (United States)

Pantev, C; Elbert, T; Ross, B; Eulitz, C; Terhardt, E

1996-10-01

The auditory system derives the pitch of complex tones from the tone's harmonics. Research in psychoacoustics predicted that binaural fusion was an important feature of pitch processing. Based on neuromagnetic human data, the first neurophysiological confirmation of binaural fusion in hearing is presented. The centre of activation within the cortical tonotopic map corresponds to the location of the perceived pitch and not to the locations that are activated when the single frequency constituents are presented. This is also true when the different harmonics of a complex tone are presented dichotically. We conclude that the pitch processor includes binaural fusion to determine the particular pitch location which is activated in the auditory cortex.

The shoulder in baseball pitching: biomechanics and related injuries-part 1.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Samuel S; Loebenberg, Mark L; Rokito, Andrew S; Zuckerman, Joseph D

The extreme range of motion at the shoulder, the high angular velocities and torques, and the repetitious nature of the pitching motion combine to make the shoulder vulnerable to injury during the baseball pitch. An understanding of the biomechanics that contribute to shoulder injuries during each phase of the pitching motion can facilitate the athlete's diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation. Common injuries that occur during the late cocking and acceleration phases of the pitch include anterior instability and impingement, bicipital tendinitis, and subacromial impingement. Nonoperative treatment consisting of an initial period of rest and NSAIDS, followed by physical therapy and a gradual return to activity, is usually successful. When this approach fails, surgical intervention, either arthroscopic or open, may be necessary. Physical therapy and rehabilitation are directed toward restoring the integrity and strength of the dynamic and static stabilizers of the shoulder joint, yet preserving the range of motion necessary for performance. Through rehabilitation, the dedicated athlete can often return to the pitching mound at his previous level of performance.

Pitch, roll, and yaw variations in patient positioning

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaiser, Adeel; Schultheiss, Timothy E.; Wong, Jeffrey Y.C.; Smith, David D.; Han, Chunhui; Vora, Nayana L.; Pezner, Richard D.; Chen Yijen; Radany, Eric H.

2006-01-01

Purpose: To use pretreatment megavoltage-computed tomography (MVCT) scans to evaluate positioning variations in pitch, roll, and yaw for patients treated with helical tomotherapy. Methods and Materials: Twenty prostate and 15 head-and-neck cancer patients were selected. Pretreatment MVCT scans were performed before every treatment fraction and automatically registered to planning kilovoltage CT (KVCT) scans by bony landmarks. Image registration data were used to adjust patient setups before treatment. Corrections for pitch, roll, and yaw were recorded after bone registration, and data from fractions 1-5 and 16-20 were used to analyze mean rotational corrections. Results: For prostate patients, the means and standard deviations (in degrees) for pitch, roll, and yaw corrections were -0.60 ± 1.42, 0.66 ± 1.22, and -0.33 ± 0.83. In head-and-neck patients, the means and standard deviations (in degrees) were -0.24 ± 1.19, -0.12 ± 1.53, and 0.25 ± 1.42 for pitch, roll, and yaw, respectively. No significant difference in rotational variations was observed between Weeks 1 and 4 of treatment. Head-and-neck patients had significantly smaller pitch variation, but significantly larger yaw variation, than prostate patients. No difference was found in roll corrections between the two groups. Overall, 96.6% of the rotational corrections were less than 4 deg. Conclusions: The initial rotational setup errors for prostate and head-and-neck patients were all small in magnitude, statistically significant, but did not vary considerably during the course of radiotherapy. The data are relevant to couch hardware design for correcting rotational setup variations. There should be no theoretical difference between these data and data collected using cone beam KVCT on conventional linacs

APS Education and Diversity Efforts

Science.gov (United States)

Prestridge, Katherine; Hodapp, Theodore

2015-11-01

American Physical Society (APS) has a wide range of education and diversity programs and activities, including programs that improve physics education, increase diversity, provide outreach to the public, and impact public policy. We present the latest programs spearheaded by the Committee on the Status of Women in Physics (CSWP), with highlights from other diversity and education efforts. The CSWP is working to increase the fraction of women in physics, understand and implement solutions for gender-specific issues, enhance professional development opportunities for women in physics, and remedy issues that impact gender inequality in physics. The Conferences for Undergraduate Women in Physics, Professional Skills Development Workshops, and our new Professional Skills program for students and postdocs are all working towards meeting these goals. The CSWP also has site visit and conversation visit programs, where department chairs request that the APS assess the climate for women in their departments or facilitate climate discussions. APS also has two significant programs to increase participation by underrepresented minorities (URM). The newest program, the APS National Mentoring Community, is working to provide mentoring to URM undergraduates, and the APS Bridge Program is an established effort that is dramatically increasing the number of URM PhDs in physics.

[Apheresis in antiphospholipid syndrome (APS)].

Science.gov (United States)

De Silvestro, Giustina; Tison, Tiziana; Marson, Piero

2012-01-01

Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is a rare clinical disorder characterized by thromboembolic manifestations and/or obstetric complications. Along with the clinical symptoms and signs, serum antiphospholipid antibodies have to be detected. APS can be primary, i.e., without any concomitant disorders, or secondary to other autoimmune diseases, particularly systemic lupus erythematosus. Criteria for the diagnosis of APS have been clearly established. Hyperacute APS (or catastrophic antiphospholipid syndrome), often with a poor prognosis, must meet four criteria: involvement of three or more organs, rapid evolution of clinical manifestations, microangiopathic occlusion of small blood vessels at biopsy, and presence of antiphospholipid antibodies. The rationale for apheresis treatment is the removal of pathogenetic antibodies involved in the development of tissue damage. Our experience includes 23 patients, in particular 15 women treated for 19 pregnancies. According to the National Guidelines Program, the effectiveness of apheresis in catastrophic syndrome has a level of evidence of V/VI, with a strength of recommendation A; in highrisk pregnancy it has a level of evidence of V with a strength of recommendation B. It will be necessary to better define the prognosis of various categories of pregnant patients with APS, as well as useful laboratory parameters to monitor its clinical course and anticipate any complications of pregnancy.

Pitch identification and discrimination for complex tones with many harmonics

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Houtsma, A.J.M.; Smurzyński, J.

1990-01-01

Four experiments are reported that deal with pitch perception of harmonic complex tones containing up to 11 successive harmonics. In particular, the question is raised whether the pitch percept of the missing fundamental is mediated only by low-order resolvable harmonics, or whether it can also be

Pitch discrimination and melodic memory in children with autism spectrum disorders.

Science.gov (United States)

Stanutz, Sandy; Wapnick, Joel; Burack, Jacob A

2014-02-01

Pitch perception is enhanced among persons with autism. We extended this finding to memory for pitch and melody among school-aged children. The purpose of this study was to investigate pitch memory in musically untrained children with autism spectrum disorders, aged 7-13 years, and to compare it to that of age- and IQ-matched typically developing children. The children were required to discriminate isolated tones in two differing contexts as well to remember melodies after a period of 1 week. The tasks were designed to employ both short- and long-term memory for music. For the pitch discrimination task, the children first had to indicate whether two isolated tones were the same or different when the second was the same or had been altered to be 25, 35, or 45 cents sharp or flat. Second, the children discriminated the tones within the context of melody. They were asked whether two melodies were the same or different when the leading tone of the second melody was the same or had been altered to be 25, 35, or 45 cents sharp or flat. Long-term memory for melody was also investigated, as the children attempted to recall four different two-bar melodies after 1 week. The children with autism spectrum disorders demonstrated elevated pitch discrimination ability in the single-tone and melodic context as well as superior long-term memory for melody. Pitch memory correlated positively with scores on measures of nonverbal fluid reasoning ability. Superior short- and long-term pitch memory was found among children with autism spectrum disorders. The results indicate an aspect to cognitive functioning that may predict both enhanced nonverbal reasoning ability and atypical language development.

The role of the auditory brainstem in processing musically-relevant pitch

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gavin M. Bidelman

2013-05-01

Full Text Available Neuroimaging work has shed light on the cerebral architecture involved in processing the melodic and harmonic aspects of music. Here, recent evidence is reviewed illustrating that subcortical auditory structures contribute to the early formation and processing of musically-relevant pitch. Electrophysiological recordings from the human brainstem and population responses from the auditory nerve reveal that nascent features of tonal music (e.g., consonance/dissonance, pitch salience, harmonic sonority are evident at early, subcortical levels of the auditory pathway. The salience and harmonicity of brainstem activity is strongly correlated with listeners’ perceptual preferences and perceived consonance for the tonal relationships of music. Moreover, the hierarchical ordering of pitch intervals/chords described by the Western music practice and their perceptual consonance is well-predicted by the salience with which pitch combinations are encoded in subcortical auditory structures. While the neural correlates of consonance can be tuned and exaggerated with musical training, they persist even in the absence of musicianship or long-term enculturation. As such, it is posited that the structural foundations of musical pitch might result from innate processing performed by the central auditory system. A neurobiological predisposition for consonant, pleasant sounding pitch relationships may be one reason why these pitch combinations have been favored by composers and listeners for centuries. It is suggested that important perceptual dimensions of music emerge well before the auditory signal reaches cerebral cortex and prior to attentional engagement. While cortical mechanisms are no doubt critical to the perception, production, and enjoyment of music, the contribution of subcortical structures implicates a more integrated, hierarchically organized network underlying music processing within the brain.

Cross-Sensory Correspondences: Heaviness is Dark and Low-Pitched.

Science.gov (United States)

Walker, Peter; Scallon, Gabrielle; Francis, Brian

2017-07-01

Everyday language reveals how stimuli encoded in one sensory feature domain can possess qualities normally associated with a different domain (e.g., higher pitch sounds are bright, light in weight, sharp, and thin). Such cross-sensory associations appear to reflect crosstalk among aligned (corresponding) feature dimensions, including brightness, heaviness, and sharpness. Evidence for heaviness being one such dimension is very limited, with heaviness appearing primarily as a verbal associate of other feature contrasts (e.g., darker objects and lower pitch sounds are heavier than their opposites). Given the presumed bidirectionality of the crosstalk between corresponding dimensions, heaviness should itself induce the cross-sensory associations observed elsewhere, including with brightness and pitch. Taking care to dissociate effects arising from the size and mass of an object, this is confirmed. When hidden objects varying independently in size and mass are lifted, objects that feel heavier are judged to be darker and to make lower pitch sounds than objects feeling less heavy. These judgements track the changes in perceived heaviness induced by the size-weight illusion. The potential involvement of language, natural scene statistics, and Bayesian processes in correspondences, and the effects they induce, is considered.

Autistic Traits and Enhanced Perceptual Representation of Pitch and Time

Science.gov (United States)

Stewart, Mary E.; Griffiths, Timothy D.; Grube, Manon

2018-01-01

Enhanced basic perceptual discrimination has been reported for pitch in individuals with autism spectrum conditions. We test whether there is a correlational pattern of enhancement across the broader autism phenotype and whether this correlation occurs for the discrimination of pitch, time and loudness. Scores on the Autism-Spectrum Quotient…

Polarity-Specific Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation Disrupts Auditory Pitch Learning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Reiko eMatsushita

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS is attracting increasing interest because of its potential for therapeutic use. While its effects have been investigated mainly with motor and visual tasks, less is known in the auditory domain. Past tDCS studies with auditory tasks demonstrated various behavioural outcomes, possibly due to differences in stimulation parameters or task measurements used in each study. Further research using well-validated tasks are therefore required for clarification of behavioural effects of tDCS on the auditory system. Here, we took advantage of findings from a prior functional magnetic resonance imaging study, which demonstrated that the right auditory cortex is modulated during fine-grained pitch learning of microtonal melodic patterns. Targeting the right auditory cortex with tDCS using this same task thus allowed us to test the hypothesis that this region is causally involved in pitch learning. Participants in the current study were trained for three days while we measured pitch discrimination thresholds using microtonal melodies on each day using a psychophysical staircase procedure. We administered anodal, cathodal, or sham tDCS to three groups of participants over the right auditory cortex on the second day of training during performance of the task. Both the sham and the cathodal groups showed the expected significant learning effect (decreased pitch threshold over the three days of training; in contrast we observed a blocking effect of anodal tDCS on auditory pitch learning, such that this group showed no significant change in thresholds over the three days. The results support a causal role for the right auditory cortex in pitch discrimination learning.

A kinetic study of pyrolysis in pitch impregnated electrodes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kocaefe, D.; Charette, A.; Ferland, J.; Couderc, P.; Saint-Romain, J.L. (Universite du Quebec a Chicoutini, Chicoutini, PQ (Canada))

1990-12-01

A study was conducted on carbon electrodes which were impregnated with three different pitches. The focus of the study was to investigate the pyrolysis of pitch impregnated electrodes. For the purposes of the research an experimental technique and calculation procedure were developed. A kinetic model was used to interpret the data, comparison of model predictions and experimental data showed good agreement. 17 refs., 10 figs., 2 tabs.

Jet meandering by a foil pitching in quiescent fluid

Science.gov (United States)

Shinde, Sachin Y.; Arakeri, Jaywant H.

2013-04-01

The flow produced by a rigid symmetric NACA0015 airfoil purely pitching at a fixed location in quiescent fluid (the limiting case of infinite Strouhal number) is studied using visualizations and particle image velocimetry. A weak jet is generated whose inclination changes continually with time. This meandering is observed to be random and independent of the initial conditions, over a wide range of pitching parameters.

Pitch range variations improve cognitive processing of audio messages

OpenAIRE

Rodero Antón, Emma; Potter, Rob F.; Prieto Vives, Pilar, 1965-

2017-01-01

This study explores the effect of different speaker intonation strategies in audio messages on attention, autonomic arousal, and memory. An experiment was conducted in which participants listened to 16 radio commercials produced to vary in pitch range across sentences. Dependent variables were self-reported effectiveness and adequacy, psychophysiological arousal and attention, immediate word recall and recognition of information. Results showed that messages conveyed with pitch variations ach...

Absolute nuclear material assay

Science.gov (United States)

Prasad, Manoj K [Pleasanton, CA; Snyderman, Neal J [Berkeley, CA; Rowland, Mark S [Alamo, CA

2010-07-13

A method of absolute nuclear material assay of an unknown source comprising counting neutrons from the unknown source and providing an absolute nuclear material assay utilizing a model to optimally compare to the measured count distributions. In one embodiment, the step of providing an absolute nuclear material assay comprises utilizing a random sampling of analytically computed fission chain distributions to generate a continuous time-evolving sequence of event-counts by spreading the fission chain distribution in time.

APS Science 2007.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

2008-05-30

This report provides research highlights from the Advanced Photon Source (APS). Although these highlights represent less than 10% of the published work from the APS in 2007, they give a flavor of the diversity and impact of user research at the facility. In the strategic planning the aim is to foster the growth of existing user communities and foresee new areas of research. This coming year finds the APS engaged in putting together, along with the users, a blueprint for the next five years, and making the case for a set of prioritized investments in beamlines, the accelerator, and infrastructure, each of which will be transformational in terms of scientific impact. As this is written plans are being formulated for an important user workshop on October 20-21, 2008, to prioritize strategic plans. The fruit from past investments can be seen in this report. Examples include the creation of a dedicated beamline for x-ray photon correlation spectroscopy at Sector 8, the evolution of dedicated high-energy x-ray scattering beamlines at sectors 1 and 11, a dedicated imaging beamline at Sector 32, and new beamlines for inelastic scattering and powder diffraction. A single-pulse facility has been built in collaboration with Sector 14 (BioCARS) and Phil Anfinrud at the National Institutes of Health, which will offer exceptionally high flux for single-pulse diffraction. The nanoprobe at Sector 26, built and operated jointly by the Argonne Center for Nanoscale Materials and the X-ray Operations and Research (XOR) section of the APS X-ray Science Division, has come on line to define the state of the art in nanoscience.

APS Science 2007

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2008-01-01

This report provides research highlights from the Advanced Photon Source (APS). Although these highlights represent less than 10% of the published work from the APS in 2007, they give a flavor of the diversity and impact of user research at the facility. In the strategic planning the aim is to foster the growth of existing user communities and foresee new areas of research. This coming year finds the APS engaged in putting together, along with the users, a blueprint for the next five years, and making the case for a set of prioritized investments in beamlines, the accelerator, and infrastructure, each of which will be transformational in terms of scientific impact. As this is written plans are being formulated for an important user workshop on October 20-21, 2008, to prioritize strategic plans. The fruit from past investments can be seen in this report. Examples include the creation of a dedicated beamline for x-ray photon correlation spectroscopy at Sector 8, the evolution of dedicated high-energy x-ray scattering beamlines at sectors 1 and 11, a dedicated imaging beamline at Sector 32, and new beamlines for inelastic scattering and powder diffraction. A single-pulse facility has been built in collaboration with Sector 14 (BioCARS) and Phil Anfinrud at the National Institutes of Health, which will offer exceptionally high flux for single-pulse diffraction. The nanoprobe at Sector 26, built and operated jointly by the Argonne Center for Nanoscale Materials and the X-ray Operations and Research (XOR) section of the APS X-ray Science Division, has come on line to define the state of the art in nanoscience

Tonal Scales and Minimal Simple Pitch Class Cycles

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Meredith, David

2011-01-01

Numerous studies have explored the special mathematical properties of the diatonic set. However, much less attention has been paid to the sets associated with the other scales that play an important rôle in Western tonal music, such as the harmonic minor scale and ascending melodic minor scale....... This paper focuses on the special properties of the class, T, of sets associated with the major and minor scales (including the harmonic major scale). It is observed that T is the set of pitch class sets associated with the shortest simple pitch class cycles in which every interval between consecutive pitch...... classes is either a major or a minor third, and at least one of each type of third appears in the cycle. Employing Rothenberg’s definition of stability and propriety, T is also the union of the three most stable inversional equivalence classes of proper 7-note sets. Following Clough and Douthett’s concept...

Numerical Prediction of Hydromechanical Behaviour of Controllable Pitch Propeller

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Saman Tarbiat

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The research described in this paper was carried out to predict hydrodynamic and frictional forces of controllable pitch propeller (CPP that bring about fretting problems in a blade bearing. The governing equations are Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS and are solved by OpenFOAM solver for hydrodynamic forces behind the ship’s wake. Frictional forces are calculated by practical mechanical formulae. Different advance velocities with constant rotational speed for blades are used to achieve hydrodynamic coefficients in open water and the wake behind the propeller. Results are compared at four different pitches. Detailed numerical results of 3D modelling of the propeller, hydrodynamic characteristics, and probability of the fretting motion in the propeller are presented. Results show that the probability of the fretting movement is related to the pitch.

Self-optimizing Pitch Control for Large Scale Wind Turbine Based on ADRC

Science.gov (United States)

Xia, Anjun; Hu, Guoqing; Li, Zheng; Huang, Dongxiao; Wang, Fengxiang

2018-01-01

Since wind turbine is a complex nonlinear and strong coupling system, traditional PI control method can hardly achieve good control performance. A self-optimizing pitch control method based on the active-disturbance-rejection control theory is proposed in this paper. A linear model of the wind turbine is derived by linearizing the aerodynamic torque equation and the dynamic response of wind turbine is transformed into a first-order linear system. An expert system is designed to optimize the amplification coefficient according to the pitch rate and the speed deviation. The purpose of the proposed control method is to regulate the amplification coefficient automatically and keep the variations of pitch rate and rotor speed in proper ranges. Simulation results show that the proposed pitch control method has the ability to modify the amplification coefficient effectively, when it is not suitable, and keep the variations of pitch rate and rotor speed in proper ranges

Bolus timing in high-pitch CT angiography of the aorta

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beeres, Martin; Loch, Matthias; Schulz, Boris; Kerl, Matthias; Al-Butmeh, Firas; Bodelle, Boris; Herrmann, Eva; Gruber-Rouh, Tatjana; Lee, Clara; Jacobi, Volkmar; Vogl, Thomas J.

2013-01-01

Objective: To investigate the bolus geometry in high-pitch CT angiography (CTA) of the aorta without ECG synchronisation in comparison to single-source CT. Methods: Overall 160 consecutive patients underwent CTA either in conventional single-source mode with a pitch of 1.2 (group 1), or in dual-source mode with a pitch of 3.0 (groups 2, 3 and 4) using different contrast media timings with bolus triggering at 140 HU (5 s, group 1; 10 s, group 2; 12 s, group 3; 14 s, group 4). Contrast material, saline flush, flow rate and kV/mAs settings were kept equal for optimum comparability. Aortic attenuation was measured along the z-axis of the patient at different anatomic landmarks and subjective image quality was compared. Results: The most homogeneous enhancement of the aorta was reached with a delay of 10 s after reaching the trigger threshold. The imaging length was not significantly different, but the examination time was significantly (p < 0.001) shorter in the high-pitch group (7.7 s vs. 1.7 s for group 1 vs. 2, 3 and 4). Conclusion: In high-pitch CT angiography using a start delay of 10 s after a trigger threshold of 140 HU in the descending aorta is reached, a homogenous contrast along the z-axis is accomplished

[Traditional risk factors for cardiovascular disease in primary antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) when compared with secondary APS: a study with 96 patients].

Science.gov (United States)

Ribeiro, A R; Carvalho, J F

2010-01-01

To evaluate the prevalence of traditional risk factors in patients with primary antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) in comparison to those with systemic lupus erythematosus-secondary APS. Transversal study of 96 APS patients (Sapporo's criteria). Demographic and clinical data, cardiovascular risk factors and drug use were investigated. Thirty-nine Primary APS and 57 secondary APS were included. The groups did not differ regarding age (38.5 +/- 9.9 vs. 39.4 +/- 10.5 years, p=0.84) and female gender (84.6 vs. 96.5%, p=0.06), respectively. Arterial events were more observed in primary than secondary APS (59 vs. 36.8%, p=0.04) patients. No difference was seen concerning venous and obstetric events. In regard to traditional risk factors for cardiovascular disease, both groups were comparable related to current or previous smoking, sedentarism, family history for coronary disease, systemic hypertension, diabetes mellitus, overweight and obesity. The frequencies of altered lipid profiles were alike in the two groups, except for a higher prevalence of low HDL-c levels in primary APS group (84.6 vs. 45.5%, p=0.0001). Concerning drug use, no significant differences were observed related to chloroquine and statin use, however the secondary APS patients had a higher rate of prednisone use (10.2 vs. 57.9%, pAPS, except for a high frequency of low HDL-c in primary APS patients.

ADSORPTION OF PITCH AND STICKIES ON MAGNESIUM ALUMINUM HYDROXIDES TREATED AT DIFFERENT TEMPERAURES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Guodong Li

2011-04-01

Full Text Available Magnesium aluminum hydroxides (MAH of nitrate and carbonate forms were prepared by co-precipitation, dried at different temperatures, and employed as an adsorbent for pitch and stickies in papermaking. Results indicated that MAH that had been heat-treated had higher adsorption capacity to model pitch and stickies at neutral pH. Low-temperature-dried magnesium aluminum hydroxides of nitrate form (MAH-NO3 had higher adsorption capacity to model pitch and model stickies than those of the carbonate form (MAH-CO3. Increasing the drying temperature of MAH reduced the difference of adsorption capacity between MAH-NO3 and MAH-CO3. Higher-temperature-dried magnesium aluminum hydroxides also showed higher adsorption capacity to model pitch and stickies when the drying temperature was lower than 550 oC. MAH displayed higher adsorption capacity while a lower initial adsorption rate of model stickies than of model pitch. The model pitch and stickies were adsorbed on MAH significantly by charge neutralization and distributed mainly on the surface of the platelets of magnesium aluminum hydroxides. The experimental isothermal adsorption data of model pitch and stickies on MAH dried at 500 oC fit well to the Freundlich and Dubinin–Radushkevich isotherm equations.

Exploration of coal-based pitch precursors for ultra-high thermal conductivity graphite fibers. Final report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Deshpande, G.V. [Amoco Performance Products, Inc., Alpharetta, GA (United States)

1996-12-27

Goal was to explore the utility of coal-based pitch precursors for use in ultra high thermal conductivity carbon (graphite) fibers. From graphite electrode experience, it was established that coal-based pitches tend to form more highly crystalline graphite at lower temperatures. Since the funding was limited to year 1 effort of the 3 year program, the goal was only partially achieved. The coal-base pitches can form large domain mesophase in spite of high N and O contents. The mesophase reactivity test performed on one of the variants of coal-based pitch (DO84) showed that it was not a good candidate for carbon fiber processing. Optimization of WVU`s isotropic pitch process is required to tailor the pitch for carbon fiber processing. The hetero atoms in the coal pitch need to be reduced to improve mesophase formation.

Thermodynamics of negative absolute pressures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lukacs, B.; Martinas, K.

1984-03-01

The authors show that the possibility of negative absolute pressure can be incorporated into the axiomatic thermodynamics, analogously to the negative absolute temperature. There are examples for such systems (GUT, QCD) processing negative absolute pressure in such domains where it can be expected from thermodynamical considerations. (author)

Individual differences in the perception of melodic contours and pitch-accent timing in speech: Support for domain-generality of pitch processing.

Science.gov (United States)

Morrill, Tuuli H; McAuley, J Devin; Dilley, Laura C; Hambrick, David Z

2015-08-01

Do the same mechanisms underlie processing of music and language? Recent investigations of this question have yielded inconsistent results. Likely factors contributing to discrepant findings are use of small samples and failure to control for individual differences in cognitive ability. We investigated the relationship between music and speech prosody processing, while controlling for cognitive ability. Participants (n = 179) completed a battery of cognitive ability tests, the Montreal Battery of Evaluation of Amusia (MBEA) to assess music perception, and a prosody test of pitch peak timing discrimination (early, as in insight vs. late, incite). Structural equation modeling revealed that only music perception was a significant predictor of prosody test performance. Music perception accounted for 34.5% of variance on prosody test performance; cognitive abilities and music training added only about 8%. These results indicate musical pitch and temporal processing are highly predictive of pitch discrimination in speech processing, even after controlling for other possible predictors of this aspect of language processing. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Completed Ulnar Shaft Stress Fracture in a Fast-Pitch Softball Pitcher.

Science.gov (United States)

Wiltfong, Roger E; Carruthers, Katherine H; Popp, James E

2017-03-01

Stress fractures of the upper extremity have been previously described in the literature, yet reports of isolated injury to the ulna diaphysis or olecranon are rare. The authors describe a case involving an 18-year-old fast-pitch softball pitcher. She presented with a long history of elbow and forearm pain, which was exacerbated during a long weekend of pitching. Her initial physician diagnosed her as having forearm tendinitis. She was treated with nonsurgical means including rest, anti-inflammatory medications, therapy, and kinesiology taping. She resumed pitching when allowed and subsequently had an acute event immediately ceasing pitching. She presented to an urgent care clinic that evening and was diagnosed as having a complete ulnar shaft fracture subsequently needing surgical management. This case illustrates the need for a high degree of suspicion for ulnar stress fractures in fast-pitch soft-ball pitchers with an insidious onset of unilateral forearm pain. Through early identification and intervention, physicians may be able to reduce the risk of injury progression and possibly eliminate the need for surgical management. [Orthopedics. 2017; 40(2):e360-e362.]. Copyright 2016, SLACK Incorporated.

Pitch Systems and Curwen Hand Signs: A Review of Literature

Science.gov (United States)

Frey-Clark, Marta

2017-01-01

Learning to sing from notation is a complex task, and accurately performing pitches without an external reference can be particularly challenging. As such, the use of mnemonic devices to reinforce tonal relationships is a long-standing practice among musicians. Chief among these mnemonic devices are pitch syllable systems and Curwen hand signs.…

Reliable Fluid Power Pitch Systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Liniger, Jesper; Pedersen, Henrik Clemmensen; Soltani, Mohsen

2015-01-01

The key objectives of wind turbine manufactures and buyers are to reduce the Total Cost of Ownership and Total Cost of Energy. Among others, low downtime of a wind turbine is important to increase the amount of energy produced during its lifetime. Historical data indicate that pitch systems accou...

[Type 2 autoimmune polyendocrine syndromes (APS-2)].

Science.gov (United States)

Vialettes, Bernard; Dubois-Leonardon, Noémie

2013-01-01

Type 2 autoimmune polyendocrine syndromes (APS-2) are the most frequent disorders associating several organ-specific autoimmune diseases. Their high prevalence is due to the fact that the main manifestations of APS-2, such as thyroidal autoimmunity, type 1 diabetes, autoimmune gastric atrophy and vitiligo, are common diseases. APS-2 represents a clinical model that can serve to help unravel the mechanisms underlying autoimmunity. Diagnosis of APS-2 is a challenge for the clinician, especially in poorly symptomatic forms, and may require systematic screening based on measurement of autoantibodies and functional markers.

Pitch Motion Stabilization by Propeller Speed Control Using Statistical Controller Design

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nakatani, Toshihiko; Blanke, Mogens; Galeazzi, Roberto

2006-01-01

This paper describes dynamics analysis of a small training boat and a possibility of ship pitch stabilization by control of propeller speed. After upgrading the navigational system of an actual small training boat, in order to identify the model of the ship, the real data collected by sea trials...... were used for statistical analysis and system identification. This analysis shows that the pitching motion is indeed influenced by engine speed and it is suggested that there exists a possibility of reducing the pitching motion by properly controlling the engine throttle. Based on this observation...

A method to estimate the necessary twist pitch in multi-filamentary superconductors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lindau, S; Magnusson, N; Taxt, H

2014-01-01

Twisting of multi-filamentary superconductors is an important step in the development of wires with AC losses at an acceptable level for AC applications. The necessary twist pitch depends on wire architecture, critical current density, matrix material, and external factors such as temperature, frequency and applied magnetic field. The development of an AC optimized MgB 2 superconductor would be facilitated by a fast method to set the requirements for the twist pitch. A problem often encountered when comparing wires with different twist pitches is the degradation in critical current occurring at small twist pitches due to mechanical deformation. In this work we propose to use a non-twisted conductor to estimate the influence of twisting on the AC losses. A long superconductor is cut into smaller lengths, each simulating one third of the twist pitch, and the AC losses due to applied magnetic fields are compared between samples of different lengths. With this method, the effect of reducing the size of the loop of the coupling currents is studied without changing the superconducting parameters. AC loss measurement results are presented for a round titanium matrix MgB 2 wire with simulated twist pitches between 9 mm and 87 mm.

Emotions in freely varying and mono-pitched vowels, acoustic and EGG analyses.

Science.gov (United States)

Waaramaa, Teija; Palo, Pertti; Kankare, Elina

2015-12-01

Vocal emotions are expressed either by speech or singing. The difference is that in singing the pitch is predetermined while in speech it may vary freely. It was of interest to study whether there were voice quality differences between freely varying and mono-pitched vowels expressed by professional actors. Given their profession, actors have to be able to express emotions both by speech and singing. Electroglottogram and acoustic analyses of emotional utterances embedded in expressions of freely varying vowels [a:], [i:], [u:] (96 samples) and mono-pitched protracted vowels (96 samples) were studied. Contact quotient (CQEGG) was calculated using 35%, 55%, and 80% threshold levels. Three different threshold levels were used in order to evaluate their effects on emotions. Genders were studied separately. The results suggested significant gender differences for CQEGG 80% threshold level. SPL, CQEGG, and F4 were used to convey emotions, but to a lesser degree, when F0 was predetermined. Moreover, females showed fewer significant variations than males. Both genders used more hypofunctional phonation type in mono-pitched utterances than in the expressions with freely varying pitch. The present material warrants further study of the interplay between CQEGG threshold levels and formant frequencies, and listening tests to investigate the perceptual value of the mono-pitched vowels in the communication of emotions.

From amusic to musical?--Improving pitch memory in congenital amusia with transcranial alternating current stimulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Schaal, Nora K; Pfeifer, Jasmin; Krause, Vanessa; Pollok, Bettina

2015-11-01

Brain imaging studies highlighted structural differences in congenital amusia, a life-long perceptual disorder that is associated with pitch perception and pitch memory deficits. A functional anomaly characterized by decreased low gamma oscillations (30-40 Hz range) in the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) during pitch memory has been revealed recently. Thus, the present study investigates whether applying transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) at 35 Hz to the right DLPFC would improve pitch memory. Nine amusics took part in two tACS sessions (either 35 Hz or 90 Hz) and completed a pitch and visual memory task before and during stimulation. 35 Hz stimulation facilitated pitch memory significantly. No modulation effects were found with 90 Hz stimulation or on the visual task. While amusics showed a selective impairment of pitch memory before stimulation, the performance during 35 Hz stimulation was not significantly different to healthy controls anymore. Taken together, the study shows that modulating the right DLPFC with 35 Hz tACS in congenital amusia selectively improves pitch memory performance supporting the hypothesis that decreased gamma oscillations within the DLPFC are causally involved in disturbed pitch memory and highlight the potential use of tACS to interact with cognitive processes. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

STEREO/LET Observations of Solar Energetic Particle Pitch Angle Distributions

Science.gov (United States)

Leske, Richard; Cummings, Alan; Cohen, Christina; Mewaldt, Richard; Labrador, Allan; Stone, Edward; Wiedenbeck, Mark; Christian, Eric; von Rosenvinge, Tycho

2015-04-01

As solar energetic particles (SEPs) travel through interplanetary space, the shape of their pitch angle distributions is determined by magnetic focusing and scattering. Measurements of SEP anisotropies therefore probe interplanetary conditions far from the observer and can provide insight into particle transport. Bidirectional flows of SEPs are often seen within interplanetary coronal mass ejections (ICMEs), resulting from injection of particles at both footpoints of the CME or from mirroring of a unidirectional beam. Mirroring is clearly implicated in those cases that show a loss cone distribution, in which particles with large pitch angles are reflected but the magnetic field enhancement at the mirror point is too weak to turn around particles with the smallest pitch angles. The width of the loss cone indicates the magnetic field strength at the mirror point far from the spacecraft, while if timing differences are detectable between outgoing and mirrored particles they may help constrain the location of the reflecting boundary.The Low Energy Telescopes (LETs) onboard both STEREO spacecraft measure energetic particle anisotropies for protons through iron at energies of about 2-12 MeV/nucleon. With these instruments we have observed loss cone distributions in several SEP events, as well as other interesting anisotropies, such as unusual oscillations in the widths of the pitch angle distributions on a timescale of several minutes during the 23 July 2012 SEP event and sunward-flowing particles when the spacecraft was magnetically connected to the back side of a distant shock well beyond 1 AU. We present the STEREO/LET anisotropy observations and discuss their implications for SEP transport. In particular, we find that the shapes of the pitch angle distributions generally vary with energy and particle species, possibly providing a signature of the rigidity dependence of the pitch angle diffusion coefficient.

Congenital Amusia (or Tone-Deafness) Interferes with Pitch Processing in Tone Languages

OpenAIRE

Tillmann, Barbara; Burnham, Denis; Nguyen, Sebastien; Grimault, Nicolas; Gosselin, Nathalie; Peretz, Isabelle

2011-01-01

Congenital amusia is a neurogenetic disorder that affects music processing and that is ascribed to a deficit in pitch processing. We investigated whether this deficit extended to pitch processing in speech, notably the pitch changes used to contrast lexical tones in tonal languages. Congenital amusics and matched controls, all non-tonal language speakers, were tested for lexical tone discrimination in Mandarin Chinese (Experiment 1) and in Thai (Experiment 2). Tones were presented in pairs an...

AP1000 Containment Design and Safety Assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wright, Richard F.; Ofstun, Richard P.; Bachere, Sebastien

2002-01-01

The AP1000 is an up-rated version of the AP600 passive plant design that recently received final design certification from the US NRC. Like AP600, the AP1000 is a two-loop, pressurized water reactor featuring passive core cooling and passive containment safety systems. One key safety feature of the AP1000 is the passive containment cooling system which maintains containment integrity in the event of a design basis accident. This system utilizes a high strength, steel containment vessel inside a concrete shield building. In the event of a pipe break inside containment, a high pressure signal actuates valves which allow water to drain from a storage tank atop the shield building. Water is applied to the top of the containment shell, and evaporates, thereby removing heat. An air flow path is formed between the shield building and the containment to aid in the evaporation and is exhausted through a chimney at the top of the shield building. Extensive testing and analysis of this system was performed as part of the AP600 design certification process. The AP1000 containment has been designed to provide increased safety margin despite the increased reactor power. The containment volume was increased to accommodate the larger steam generators, and to provide increased margin for containment pressure response to design basis events. The containment design pressure was increased from AP600 by increasing the shell thickness and by utilizing high strength steel. The passive containment cooling system water capacity has been increased and the water application rate has been scaled to the higher decay heat level. The net result is higher margins to the containment design pressure limit than were calculated for AP600 for all design basis events. (authors)

Visually induced gains in pitch discrimination: Linking audio-visual processing with auditory abilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Møller, Cecilie; Højlund, Andreas; Bærentsen, Klaus B; Hansen, Niels Chr; Skewes, Joshua C; Vuust, Peter

2018-05-01

Perception is fundamentally a multisensory experience. The principle of inverse effectiveness (PoIE) states how the multisensory gain is maximal when responses to the unisensory constituents of the stimuli are weak. It is one of the basic principles underlying multisensory processing of spatiotemporally corresponding crossmodal stimuli that are well established at behavioral as well as neural levels. It is not yet clear, however, how modality-specific stimulus features influence discrimination of subtle changes in a crossmodally corresponding feature belonging to another modality. Here, we tested the hypothesis that reliance on visual cues to pitch discrimination follow the PoIE at the interindividual level (i.e., varies with varying levels of auditory-only pitch discrimination abilities). Using an oddball pitch discrimination task, we measured the effect of varying visually perceived vertical position in participants exhibiting a wide range of pitch discrimination abilities (i.e., musicians and nonmusicians). Visual cues significantly enhanced pitch discrimination as measured by the sensitivity index d', and more so in the crossmodally congruent than incongruent condition. The magnitude of gain caused by compatible visual cues was associated with individual pitch discrimination thresholds, as predicted by the PoIE. This was not the case for the magnitude of the congruence effect, which was unrelated to individual pitch discrimination thresholds, indicating that the pitch-height association is robust to variations in auditory skills. Our findings shed light on individual differences in multisensory processing by suggesting that relevant multisensory information that crucially aids some perceivers' performance may be of less importance to others, depending on their unisensory abilities.

Identification and treatment of APS renal involvement.

Science.gov (United States)

Tektonidou, M G

2014-10-01

Renal involvement in antiphospholipid syndrome (APS), either primary or systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)-related APS, includes renal artery stenosis or thrombosis, renal infarction, renal vein thrombosis and a small-vessel vaso-occlusive nephropathy defined as "antiphospholipid antibody (aPL)-associated nephropathy." aPL-associated nephropathy is characterized by acute lesions, thrombotic microangiopathy, and chronic lesions such as fibrous intimal hyperplasia, organizing thrombi with or without recanalization, fibrous occlusions of arteries or arterioles and focal cortical atrophy. Systemic hypertension, hematuria, proteinuria (ranging from mild to nephrotic level) and renal insufficiency represent the major clinical manifestations associated with aPL-associated nephropathy. Similar renal histologic and clinical characteristics have been described among all different groups of patients with positive aPL (primary APS, SLE-related APS, catastrophic APS and SLE/non-APS with positive aPL). In patients with aPL-associated nephropathy lesions in the absence of other causes associated with similar histological characteristics, aPL testing needs to be considered. © The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav.

Raising the acceptance of the AP2-line

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Trbojevic, D.

1989-01-01

The 120 GeV Main Ring proton beam collides with the target at the end of the AP-1 line and creates antiprotons and other secondary particles. The AP-2 line transfers the negative particles from the target to the Debuncher. To provide a bigger antiproton stack size in the Accumulator, both the Debuncher as well as the AP-2 line acceptance have to be raised. This is a proposal for the improvement of the AP-2 line acceptance. The first part of the memo presents an acceptance examination of the existing AP-2 line by computer simulation, while the second presents a short proposal for aperture corrections. The computer program TURTLE was used to trace antiprotons through the AP-2 line without taking into account other negative charged particles. Betatron functions were obtained from the output of the SYNCH computer program. The SYNCH program was also used to check the dispersion match between the AP-2 line and the Debuncher. 3 refs., 6 figs., 5 tabs

Microstructure and properties of lignite tar and pitch. Part II

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Walther, H

1954-01-01

Photomicrographs reveal the presence of crystalline wax which affects the working properties in lignite tars and pitch. The crystals are large needles after slow cooling and small after rapid cooling. The crystals are paraffinic in character. All samples were nonhomogeneous. Thus the properties of lignite tar and pitch are varied by the source of the lignite and history of the specimen, neither softening point nor dropping point seems to satisfactorily characterize these tars. The samples exhibit thixotropic behavior characteristic of a structural viscosity and show hysteresis loops on varying the working rate. The variations have hindered use of lignite tars and pitches except where solubility in a solvent such as coal tar oil can be used to advantage.

Automatic pitch detection for a computer game interface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fonseca Solis, Juan M.

2015-01-01

A software able to recognize notes played by musical instruments is created through automatic pitch recognition. A pitch recognition algorithm is embedded into a software project, using the C implementation of SWIPEP. A memory game is chosen for project. A sequence of notes is listened and played by user to the computer, using a soprano recorder flute. The basic concepts to understand the acoustic phenomena involved are explained. The paper is aimed for all students with basic programming knowledge and want to incorporate sound processing to their projects. (author) [es

Development of a superconducting undulator for the APS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ivanyushenkov, Y; Abliz, M; Doose, C; Fuerst, J; Hasse, Q; Kasa, M; Trakhtenberg, E; Vasserman, I; Gluskin, E; Lev, V; Mezentsev, N; Syrovatin, V; Tsukanov, V

2013-01-01

As the western hemisphere's premier x-ray synchrotron radiation source, the Advanced Photon Source (APS) continues to advance the state of the art in insertion device technology in order to maintain record high brightness, especially in the hard x-ray wavelength region. Due to the unique bunch pattern used for normal APS operations and its ultimate capabilities, the APS has chosen superconducting technology for its future hard x-ray undulator sources. In the last several years, the APS in collaboration with the Budker Institute of Nuclear Physics has being developing the technology for planar, small-period superconducting undulators (SCUs). These developments include the design and construction of several prototypes and the construction of the necessary mechanical, vacuum, and cryogenic infrastructure at the APS site. Several prototypes of the SCU magnetic structure have been built and tested. The first SCU is assembled and will be installed in the APS storage ring at the end of 2012. Expected SCU performance in terms of x-ray brightness should noticeably exceed that of existing APS undulators. Immediately after commissioning, the SCU will be used at APS Sector 6 as the radiation source for high-energy x-ray studies.

Vortex scale of unsteady separation on a pitching airfoil.

Science.gov (United States)

Fuchiwaki, Masaki; Tanaka, Kazuhiro

2002-10-01

The streaklines of unsteady separation on two kinds of pitching airfoils, the NACA65-0910 and a blunt trailing edge airfoil, were studied by dye flow visualization and by the Schlieren method. The latter visualized the discrete vortices shed from the leading edge. The results of these visualization studies allow a comparison between the dynamic behavior of the streakline of unsteady separation and that of the discrete vortices shed from the leading edge. The influence of the airfoil configuration on the flow characteristics was also examined. Furthermore, the scale of a discrete vortex forming the recirculation region was investigated. The non-dimensional pitching rate was k = 0.377, the angle of attack alpha(m) = 16 degrees and the pitching amplitude was fixed to A = +/-6 degrees for Re = 4.0 x 10(3) in this experiment.

Comparison of Spectral and Scintillation Properties of LuAP:Ce and LuAP:Ce,Sc Single Crystals

Science.gov (United States)

Petrosyan, Ashot G.; Derdzyan, Marina; Ovanesyan, Karine; Shirinyan, Grigori; Lecoq, Paul; Auffray, Etiennette; Kronberger, Matthias; Frisch, Benjamin; Pedrini, Christian; Dujardin, Christophe

2009-10-01

Scintillation properties of LuAP:Ce and LuAP:Ce,Sc crystal series were studied under excitation by gamma-rays from a 137Cs source. Both series demonstrated comparable optical quality in terms of underlying absorption at 260 nm, slope of the optical edge and transmission in the range of emission. The light yield of LuAP:Ce crystals measured in 0.2 cm times 0.2 cm times 0.8 cm pixels increases linearly with the Ce concentration reaching at 0.58 at. % 6448 plusmn 322 ph/MeV and 9911 plusmn 496 ph/MeV in the long and in the short directions respectively (the light yield ratio is 65%) and shows no sign of light saturation. The energy resolution is found to depend, among other factors, on the uniformity of Ce concentration within the pixels and is improved to 7.1 plusmn 0.4% (I = 0.2 cm), 9.5 plusmn 0.5% (I = 0.8 cm). Intentional co-doping with Sc + ions was tested and resulted in increase of the Ce distribution coefficient to about 0.3. This enabled to increase the concentration of Ce in LuAP:Ce,Sc crystals up to 0.7 at. %, while conserving high optical quality. In contrast to LuAP:Ce, the light yield in LuAP:Ce,Sc crystals does not increase with Ce concentration, the photo peak being gradually suppressed. The involved mechanisms are discussed basing on measurements of the unit cell volumes, Ce concentration uniformity, x-ray rocking spectra, absorption spectra of pure and variously doped LuAP crystals, and emission spectra under different excitations.

Development of a Pitch Discrimination Screening Test for Preschool Children.

Science.gov (United States)

Abramson, Maria Kulick; Lloyd, Peter J

2016-04-01

There is a critical need for tests of auditory discrimination for young children as this skill plays a fundamental role in the development of speaking, prereading, reading, language, and more complex auditory processes. Frequency discrimination is important with regard to basic sensory processing affecting phonological processing, dyslexia, measurements of intelligence, auditory memory, Asperger syndrome, and specific language impairment. This study was performed to determine the clinical feasibility of the Pitch Discrimination Test (PDT) to screen the preschool child's ability to discriminate some of the acoustic demands of speech perception, primarily pitch discrimination, without linguistic content. The PDT used brief speech frequency tones to gather normative data from preschool children aged 3 to 5 yrs. A cross-sectional study was used to gather data regarding the pitch discrimination abilities of a sample of typically developing preschool children, between 3 and 5 yrs of age. The PDT consists of ten trials using two pure tones of 100-msec duration each, and was administered in an AA or AB forced-choice response format. Data from 90 typically developing preschool children between the ages of 3 and 5 yrs were used to provide normative data. Nonparametric Mann-Whitney U-testing was used to examine the effects of age as a continuous variable on pitch discrimination. The Kruskal-Wallis test was used to determine the significance of age on performance on the PDT. Spearman rank was used to determine the correlation of age and performance on the PDT. Pitch discrimination of brief tones improved significantly from age 3 yrs to age 4 yrs, as well as from age 3 yrs to the age 4- and 5-yrs group. Results indicated that between ages 3 and 4 yrs, children's auditory discrimination of pitch improved on the PDT. The data showed that children can be screened for auditory discrimination of pitch beginning with age 4 yrs. The PDT proved to be a time efficient, feasible tool for

Utterance-final position and pitch marking aid word learning in school-age children.

Science.gov (United States)

Filippi, Piera; Laaha, Sabine; Fitch, W Tecumseh

2017-08-01

We investigated the effects of word order and prosody on word learning in school-age children. Third graders viewed photographs belonging to one of three semantic categories while hearing four-word nonsense utterances containing a target word. In the control condition, all words had the same pitch and, across trials, the position of the target word was varied systematically within each utterance. The only cue to word-meaning mapping was the co-occurrence of target words and referents. This cue was present in all conditions. In the Utterance-final condition, the target word always occurred in utterance-final position, and at the same fundamental frequency as all the other words of the utterance. In the Pitch peak condition, the position of the target word was varied systematically within each utterance across trials, and produced with pitch contrasts typical of infant-directed speech (IDS). In the Pitch peak + Utterance-final condition, the target word always occurred in utterance-final position, and was marked with a pitch contrast typical of IDS. Word learning occurred in all conditions except the control condition. Moreover, learning performance was significantly higher than that observed with simple co-occurrence ( control condition) only for the Pitch peak + Utterance-final condition. We conclude that, for school-age children, the combination of words' utterance-final alignment and pitch enhancement boosts word learning.

Local and global pitch perception in L1 and L2 readers of Dutch

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Jong, Chiara; Postma, Marie; Mos, Maria; Vedder, Kayleigh; Hendriks, Danielle; Maggiore, G.

2017-01-01

Prior research showed a relationship between reading skills and pitch perception, however the exact nature remained unclear. By means of reading tests and a pitch perception test, we examined the relation between reading abilities and local and global pitch perception for 92 native Dutch children

Voltage harmonic variation in three-phase induction motors with different coil pitches

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Deshmukh, Ram; Moses, Anthony John; Anayi, Fatih

2006-01-01

A pulse-width modulation (PWM) inverter feeding four different chorded three-phase induction motors was tested for low-order odd harmonic voltage component and efficiency at different loads. Total harmonic distortion (THD) due to 3rd, 5th and 9th harmonics was less in a motor with 160 o coil pitch. Particular harmonic order for each coil pitch was suppressed and the efficiency of a 120 o coil pitch motor was increased by 7.5%

Preparation and characterization of pitch-based nanoporous carbons for improving CO{sub 2} capture

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Seul-Yi; Yoo, Hye-Min [Department of Chemistry, Inha University, 100 Inharo, Nam-gu, Incheon (Korea, Republic of); Park, Sang Wook; Hee Park, Sang; Oh, Young Se [GS Caltex Corporation, Munji-dong, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Rhee, Kyong Yop [Industrial Liaison Research Institute, Department of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering, Kyung Hee University, Yongin (Korea, Republic of); Park, Soo-Jin, E-mail: sjpark@inha.ac.kr [Department of Chemistry, Inha University, 100 Inharo, Nam-gu, Incheon (Korea, Republic of)

2014-07-01

Pitch is considered a promising low-cost carbon precursor. However, when pitch is pyrolyzed, it forms polycrystalline graphite, which is non-porous, and therefore, not useful for CO{sub 2} adsorption. In this work, pitch was chemically activated to obtain a large specific surface area and micropore volume. Varying weight ratios of KOH (i.e., 0, 1, 2, and 3) were used as the activating agent. The characteristics of the samples were investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), N{sub 2}/77 K adsorption isotherms, and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The CO{sub 2} adsorption performance was studied by isothermal adsorption/desorption measurements. The results showed that an increase in specific surface areas and total pore volumes of pitch-based nanoporous carbons, resulted in an enhancement of CO{sub 2} adsorption capacity. - Graphical abstract: This is the surface morphologies of pitch precursor and pitch-derived activated carbon (AC-2). - Highlights: • Pitch is considered a promising low-cost carbon precursor. • Specific surface area: 1442 m{sup 2}/g and micropore volume: 0.504 cm{sup 3}/g. • CO{sub 2} adsorption capacity showed 203 mg/g (@ RT/1 bar)

Suggestion on Information Sharing for AP implementation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shim, Hye Won; Kim, Min Su; Koh, Byung Marn [Korea Institute of Nuclear Nonproliferation and Control, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2013-10-15

Under the Additional Protocol, States should provide the IAEA with expanded declarations of activities related to the nuclear fuel cycle and other nuclear activities, and with expanded access to the relevant information and sites to allow the IAEA to verify the completeness of these declarations. The AP to the Safeguards Agreement (the Additional Protocol) was signed on June 21{sup st}, 1999 and entered into force on February 19{sup th}, 2004. ROK submitted initial declarations in August 2004. Since then, ROK has been submitting annual updated reports of initial declaration on every May 15{sup th}. To achieve successful implementation, it is necessary to collect the information for each individual article in Article 2 of the AP and verify the declared information provided by facility operators. Therefore, the cooperation among the ministries and offices concerned is a prerequisite for successful implementation of AP. Unfortunately, the formal procedure for inter-organizational information sharing and cooperation is not established. This paper will briefly outline the AP declarations and suggest the information sharing among the ministries, offices and organizations for effective and efficient implementation of AP. The State authority has responsibility for AP implementation and it should verify correctness and completeness of the information declared by facility operators before submitting the declarations. The close cooperation and information sharing among the ministries, offices and organizations are indispensable to effective and efficient implementation of AP.

Binaural pitch perception in hearing-impaired listeners

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dau, Torsten; Santurette, Sébastien; Strelcyk, Olaf

2007-01-01

When two white noises differing only in phase in a particular frequency range are presented simultaneously each to one of our ears, a pitch sensation may be perceived inside the head. This phenomenon, called ’binaural pitch’ or ’dichotic pitch’, can be produced by frequency-dependent interaural...... phasedifference patterns. The evaluation of these interaural phase differences depends on the functionality of the binaural auditory system and the spectro-temporal information at its input. A melody recognition task was performed in the present study using pure-tone stimuli and six different types of noises...... that can generate a binaural pitch sensation. Normal-hearing listeners and hearing-impaired listeners with different kinds of hearing impairment participated in the experiment....

The Low Pitch of High-Frequency Complex Tones Relies on Temporal Fine Structure Information

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Santurette, Sébastien; Dau, Torsten

2010-01-01

High-frequency complex tones containing only unresolved harmonic components with a frequency spacing Δf usually evoke a low pitch equal to Δf. However, for inharmonic components, the low pitch is often found to deviate slightly from Δf. Whether this pitch shift relies exclusively on temporal fine...... structure (TFS) cues has been a matter of debate. It is also controversial up to which frequency TFS information remains available, and to what extent envelope cues become dominant as frequency increases. Using a pitch-matching paradigm, this study investigated whether the pitch of transposed tones.......5]. All stimuli were presented at 50 dB SPL in broadband pink-noise (13.5 dB/Hz at 1 kHz), and 40 matches per condition were obtained. For fenv = fc/11.5, the results favored hypothesis A for all values of fc, indicating that TFS cues are available and used for pitch extraction, up to at least 7 k...

Integrating cues of social interest and voice pitch in men's preferences for women's voices.

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Benedict C; Feinberg, David R; Debruine, Lisa M; Little, Anthony C; Vukovic, Jovana

2008-04-23

Most previous studies of vocal attractiveness have focused on preferences for physical characteristics of voices such as pitch. Here we examine the content of vocalizations in interaction with such physical traits, finding that vocal cues of social interest modulate the strength of men's preferences for raised pitch in women's voices. Men showed stronger preferences for raised pitch when judging the voices of women who appeared interested in the listener than when judging the voices of women who appeared relatively disinterested in the listener. These findings show that voice preferences are not determined solely by physical properties of voices and that men integrate information about voice pitch and the degree of social interest expressed by women when forming voice preferences. Women's preferences for raised pitch in women's voices were not modulated by cues of social interest, suggesting that the integration of cues of social interest and voice pitch when men judge the attractiveness of women's voices may reflect adaptations that promote efficient allocation of men's mating effort.

Relating Pitch Awareness to Phonemic Awareness in Children: Implications for Tone-Deafness and Dyslexia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Psyche eLoui

2011-05-01

Full Text Available Language and music are complex cognitive and neural functions that rely on awareness of one’s own sound productions. Information on the awareness of vocal pitch, and its relation to phonemic awareness which is crucial for learning to read, will be important for understanding the relationship between tone-deafness and developmental language disorders such as dyslexia. Here we show that phonemic awareness skills are positively correlated with pitch perception-production skills in children. Children between the ages of 7 and 9 were tested on pitch perception and production, phonemic awareness, and IQ. Results showed a significant positive correlation between pitch perception-production and phonemic awareness, suggesting that the relationship between musical and linguistic sound processing is intimately linked to awareness at the level of pitch and phonemes. Since tone-deafness is a pitch-related impairment and dyslexia is a deficit of phonemic awareness, we suggest that dyslexia and tone-deafness may have a shared and/or common neural basis.

KOH activation of pitch-derived carbonaceous materials - Effect of carbonization degree

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Krol, Magdalena [Institute of Open Cast Mining POLTEGOR-Institute, Parkowa, Wroclaw (Poland); Gryglewicz, Grazyna; Machnikowski, Jacek [Division of Polymer and Carbonaceous Materials, Faculty of Chemistry, Wroclaw University of Technology, Gdanska (Poland)

2011-01-15

Two series of mesophase pitches and semi-cokes of different carbonization degree were produced by heat treatment of anthracene oil derived pitches P1 and P4 in the temperature range of 460-700 C. These carbonaceous materials were activated with potassium hydroxide at 700 C using 1:3 reagents ratio to assess the effects of the precursor optical texture and carbonization degree on the activation behavior. The results show that the increase in the pitch pretreatment temperature suppresses propensity to the pore generation while enhancing particle breaking. The effect can be illustrated by decreases in the BET surface area S{sub BET} from {proportional_to} 2700 to {proportional_to} 1500 m{sup 2} g{sup -1} and the micropore volume V{sub DR} from {proportional_to} 0.85 to {proportional_to} 0.45 cm{sup 3} g{sup -1}. These parameters are inversely related with the H/C atomic ratio of precursor. In contrast, the anisotropic development of pitch coke, varying from flow type to mosaics, has a slight effect on the activation behaviour. The mechanism of porosity generation, that is proposed, stresses the role of hydrogen occurring at the edges of graphene layers and potassium metal insertion/deinsertion on the porosity development and particle disintegration during KOH activation of pitch-derived carbons. (author)

Promoting Increased Pitch Variation in Oral Presentations with Transient Visual Feedback

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rebecca Hincks

2009-10-01

Full Text Available This paper investigates learner response to a novel kind of intonation feedback generated from speech analysis. Instead of displays of pitch curves, our feedback is flashing lights that show how much pitch variation the speaker has produced. The variable used to generate the feedback is the standard deviation of fundamental frequency as measured in semitones. Flat speech causes the system to show yellow lights, while more expressive speech that has used pitch to give focus to any part of an utterance generates green lights. Participants in the study were 14 Chinese students of English at intermediate and advanced levels. A group that received visual feedback was compared with a group that received audio feedback. Pitch variation was measured at four stages: in a baseline oral presentation; for the first and second halves of three hours of training; and finally in the production of a new oral presentation. Both groups increased their pitch variation with training, and the effect lasted after the training had ended. The test group showed a significantly higher increase than the control group, indicating that the feedback is effective. These positive results imply that the feedback could be beneficially used in a system for practicing oral presentations.

Light and dark adaptation of visually perceived eye level controlled by visual pitch.

Science.gov (United States)

Matin, L; Li, W

1995-01-01

The pitch of a visual field systematically influences the elevation at which a monocularly viewing subject sets a target so as to appear at visually perceived eye level (VPEL). The deviation of the setting from true eye level average approximately 0.6 times the angle of pitch while viewing a fully illuminated complexly structured visual field and is only slightly less with one or two pitched-from-vertical lines in a dark field (Matin & Li, 1994a). The deviation of VPEL from baseline following 20 min of dark adaptation reaches its full value less than 1 min after the onset of illumination of the pitched visual field and decays exponentially in darkness following 5 min of exposure to visual pitch, either 30 degrees topbackward or 20 degrees topforward. The magnitude of the VPEL deviation measured with the dark-adapted right eye following left-eye exposure to pitch was 85% of the deviation that followed pitch exposure of the right eye itself. Time constants for VPEL decay to the dark baseline were the same for same-eye and cross-adaptation conditions and averaged about 4 min. The time constants for decay during dark adaptation were somewhat smaller, and the change during dark adaptation extended over a 16% smaller range following the viewing of the dim two-line pitched-from-vertical stimulus than following the viewing of the complex field. The temporal course of light and dark adaptation of VPEL is virtually identical to the course of light and dark adaptation of the scotopic luminance threshold following exposure to the same luminance. We suggest that, following rod stimulation along particular retinal orientations by portions of the pitched visual field, the storage of the adaptation process resides in the retinogeniculate system and is manifested in the focal system as a change in luminance threshold and in the ambient system as a change in VPEL. The linear model previously developed to account for VPEL, which was based on the interaction of influences from the

Operation of the APS rf gun

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lewellen, J. W.

1998-01-01

The Advanced Photon Source (APS) has a thermionic-cathode rf gun system capable of providing beam to the APS linac. The gun system consists of a 1.6-cell thermionic-cathode rf gun, a fast kicker for beam current control, and an alpha magnet for bunch compression and injection into the APS linac line. This system is intended for use both as an injector for positron creation, and as a first beam source for the Low-Energy Undulator Test Line (LEUTL) project [1]. The first measured performance characteristics of the gun are presented.

The Ped-APS Registry: the antiphospholipid syndrome in childhood.

Science.gov (United States)

Avcin, T; Cimaz, R; Rozman, B

2009-09-01

In recent years, antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) has been increasingly recognised in various paediatric autoimmune and nonautoimmune diseases, but the relatively low prevalence and heterogeneity of APS in childhood made it very difficult to study in a systematic way. The project of an international registry of paediatric patients with APS (the Ped-APS Registry) was initiated in 2004 to foster and conduct multicentre, controlled studies with large number of paediatric APS patients. The Ped-APS Registry is organised as a collaborative project of the European Forum on Antiphospholipid Antibodies and Juvenile Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Working Group of the Paediatric Rheumatology European Society. Currently, it documents a standardised clinical, laboratory and therapeutic data of 133 children with antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL)-related thrombosis from 14 countries. The priority projects for future research of the Ped-APS Registry include prospective enrollment of new patients with aPL-related thrombosis, assessment of differences between the paediatric and adult APS, evaluation of proinflammatory genotype as a risk factor for APS manifestations in childhood and evaluation of patients with isolated nonthrombotic aPL-related manifestations.

Visuoauditory mappings between high luminance and high pitch are shared by chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and humans

Science.gov (United States)

Ludwig, Vera U.; Adachi, Ikuma; Matsuzawa, Tetsuro

2011-01-01

Humans share implicit preferences for certain cross-sensory combinations; for example, they consistently associate higher-pitched sounds with lighter colors, smaller size, and spikier shapes. In the condition of synesthesia, people may experience such cross-modal correspondences to a perceptual degree (e.g., literally seeing sounds). So far, no study has addressed the question whether nonhuman animals share cross-modal correspondences as well. To establish the evolutionary origins of cross-modal mappings, we tested whether chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) also associate higher pitch with higher luminance. Thirty-three humans and six chimpanzees were required to classify black and white squares according to their color while hearing irrelevant background sounds that were either high-pitched or low-pitched. Both species performed better when the background sound was congruent (high-pitched for white, low-pitched for black) than when it was incongruent (low-pitched for white, high-pitched for black). An inherent tendency to pair high pitch with high luminance hence evolved before the human lineage split from that of chimpanzees. Rather than being a culturally learned or a linguistic phenomenon, this mapping constitutes a basic feature of the primate sensory system. PMID:22143791

Feedback brake distribution control for minimum pitch

Science.gov (United States)

Tavernini, Davide; Velenis, Efstathios; Longo, Stefano

2017-06-01

The distribution of brake forces between front and rear axles of a vehicle is typically specified such that the same level of brake force coefficient is imposed at both front and rear wheels. This condition is known as 'ideal' distribution and it is required to deliver the maximum vehicle deceleration and minimum braking distance. For subcritical braking conditions, the deceleration demand may be delivered by different distributions between front and rear braking forces. In this research we show how to obtain the optimal distribution which minimises the pitch angle of a vehicle and hence enhances driver subjective feel during braking. A vehicle model including suspension geometry features is adopted. The problem of the minimum pitch brake distribution for a varying deceleration level demand is solved by means of a model predictive control (MPC) technique. To address the problem of the undesirable pitch rebound caused by a full-stop of the vehicle, a second controller is designed and implemented independently from the braking distribution in use. An extended Kalman filter is designed for state estimation and implemented in a high fidelity environment together with the MPC strategy. The proposed solution is compared with the reference 'ideal' distribution as well as another previous feed-forward solution.

Voice pitch influences perceptions of sexual infidelity.

Science.gov (United States)

O'Connor, Jillian J M; Re, Daniel E; Feinberg, David R

2011-02-28

Sexual infidelity can be costly to members of both the extra-pair and the paired couple. Thus, detecting infidelity risk is potentially adaptive if it aids in avoiding cuckoldry or loss of parental and relationship investment. Among men, testosterone is inversely related to voice pitch, relationship and offspring investment, and is positively related to the pursuit of short-term relationships, including extra-pair sex. Among women, estrogen is positively related to voice pitch, attractiveness, and the likelihood of extra-pair involvement. Although prior work has demonstrated a positive relationship between men's testosterone levels and infidelity, this study is the first to investigate attributions of infidelity as a function of sexual dimorphism in male and female voices. We found that men attributed high infidelity risk to feminized women's voices, but not significantly more often than did women. Women attributed high infidelity risk to masculinized men's voices at significantly higher rates than did men. These data suggest that voice pitch is used as an indicator of sexual strategy in addition to underlying mate value. The aforementioned attributions may be adaptive if they prevent cuckoldry and/or loss of parental and relationship investment via avoidance of partners who may be more likely to be unfaithful.

Voice Pitch Influences Perceptions of Sexual Infidelity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jillian J.M. O'Connor

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Sexual infidelity can be costly to members of both the extra-pair and the paired couple. Thus, detecting infidelity risk is potentially adaptive if it aids in avoiding cuckoldry or loss of parental and relationship investment. Among men, testosterone is inversely related to voice pitch, relationship and offspring investment, and is positively related to the pursuit of short-term relationships, including extra-pair sex. Among women, estrogen is positively related to voice pitch, attractiveness, and the likelihood of extra-pair involvement. Although prior work has demonstrated a positive relationship between men's testosterone levels and infidelity, this study is the first to investigate attributions of infidelity as a function of sexual dimorphism in male and female voices. We found that men attributed high infidelity risk to feminized women's voices, but not significantly more often than did women. Women attributed high infidelity risk to masculinized men's voices at significantly higher rates than did men. These data suggest that voice pitch is used as an indicator of sexual strategy in addition to underlying mate value. The aforementioned attributions may be adaptive if they prevent cuckoldry and/or loss of parental and relationship investment via avoidance of partners who may be more likely to be unfaithful.

Development of a Mechanical Passive Pitch System for a 500W Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Poryzala, Tomek; Mikkelsen, Robert Flemming; Kim, Taeseong

2017-01-01

The goal of this paper is to design, analyze, manufacture, and test a mechanical passive pitch mechanism for a small horizontal axis wind turbine. Several pitching concepts were investigated in the wind industry and related fields before ultimately deciding on a centrifugal governor design concept...... in a pitch-to-stall configuration. Inertial and aerodynamic models were developed in order to predict steady-state performance and an optimization routine was created to optimize the pitch mechanism configuration subject to manufacturing constraints. Dynamic modeling in HAWC2 validated the steady......-state design code, aeroelastic simulations were performed in turbulent wind conditions to simulate the pitch system dynamics. Physical testing of the full turbine was not completed, however the hub sub-assembly was tested on its own to validate the passive pitch characteristics and showed good agreement...

A Comparative Analysis of Pitch Detection Methods Under the Influence of Different Noise Conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Sukhostat, Lyudmila; Imamverdiyev, Yadigar

2015-07-01

Pitch is one of the most important components in various speech processing systems. The aim of this study was to evaluate different pitch detection methods in terms of various noise conditions. Prospective study. For evaluation of pitch detection algorithms, time-domain, frequency-domain, and hybrid methods were considered by using Keele and CSTR speech databases. Each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages. Experiments have shown that BaNa method achieves the highest pitch detection accuracy. The development of methods for pitch detection, which are robust to additive noise at different signal-to-noise ratio, is an important field of research with many opportunities for enhancement the modern methods. Copyright © 2015 The Voice Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Crackle Pitch Rises Progressively during Inspiration in Pneumonia, CHF, and IPF Patients

OpenAIRE

Vyshedskiy, Andrey; Murphy, Raymond

2012-01-01

Objective. It is generally accepted that crackles are due to sudden opening of airways and that larger airways produce crackles of lower pitch than smaller airways do. As larger airways are likely to open earlier in inspiration than smaller airways and the reverse is likely to be true in expiration, we studied crackle pitch as a function of crackle timing in inspiration and expiration. Our goal was to see if the measurement of crackle pitch was consistent with this theory. Methods. Patient...

Discrete Element Method Modeling of the Rheological Properties of Coke/Pitch Mixtures

OpenAIRE

Majidi, Behzad; Taghavi, Seyed Mohammad; Fafard, Mario; Ziegler, Donald P.; Alamdari, Houshang

2016-01-01

Rheological properties of pitch and pitch/coke mixtures at temperatures around 150 °C are of great interest for the carbon anode manufacturing process in the aluminum industry. In the present work, a cohesive viscoelastic contact model based on Burger’s model is developed using the discrete element method (DEM) on the YADE, the open-source DEM software. A dynamic shear rheometer (DSR) is used to measure the viscoelastic properties of pitch at 150 °C. The experimental data obtained is then use...

In search of rules behind environmental framing; the case of head pitch.

Science.gov (United States)

Wilson, Gwendoline Ixia; Norman, Brad; Walker, James; Williams, Hannah J; Holton, M D; Clarke, D; Wilson, Rory P

2015-01-01

Whether, and how, animals move requires them to assess their environment to determine the most appropriate action and trajectory, although the precise way the environment is scanned has been little studied. We hypothesized that head attitude, which effectively frames the environment for the eyes, and the way it changes over time, would be modulated by the environment. To test this, we used a head-mounted device (Human-Interfaced Personal Observation platform - HIPOP) on people moving through three different environments; a botanical garden ('green' space), a reef ('blue' space), and a featureless corridor, to examine if head movement in the vertical axis differed between environments. Template matching was used to identify and quantify distinct behaviours. The data on head pitch from all subjects and environments over time showed essentially continuous clear waveforms with varying amplitude and wavelength. There were three stylised behaviours consisting of smooth, regular peaks and troughs in head pitch angle and variable length fixations during which the head pitch remained constant. These three behaviours accounted for ca. 40 % of the total time, with irregular head pitch changes accounting for the rest. There were differences in rates of manifestation of behaviour according to environment as well as environmentally different head pitch values of peaks, troughs and fixations. Finally, although there was considerable variation in head pitch angles, the peak and trough values bounded most of the variation in the fixation pitch values. It is suggested that the constant waveforms in head pitch serve to inform people about their environment, providing a scanning mechanism. Particular emphasis to certain sectors is manifest within the peak and trough limits and these appear modulated by the distribution of the points where fixation, interpreted as being due to objects of interest, occurs. This behaviour explains how animals allocate processing resources to the

29 CFR 1926.1102 - Coal tar pitch volatiles; interpretation of term.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 29 Labor 8 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Coal tar pitch volatiles; interpretation of term. 1926.1102 Section 1926.1102 Labor Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH... Hazardous Substances § 1926.1102 Coal tar pitch volatiles; interpretation of term. Note: The requirements...

Differential recognition of pitch patterns in discrete and gliding stimuli in congenital amusia: evidence from Mandarin speakers.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Fang; Xu, Yi; Patel, Aniruddh D; Francart, Tom; Jiang, Cunmei

2012-08-01

This study examined whether "melodic contour deafness" (insensitivity to the direction of pitch movement) in congenital amusia is associated with specific types of pitch patterns (discrete versus gliding pitches) or stimulus types (speech syllables versus complex tones). Thresholds for identification of pitch direction were obtained using discrete or gliding pitches in the syllable /ma/ or its complex tone analog, from nineteen amusics and nineteen controls, all healthy university students with Mandarin Chinese as their native language. Amusics, unlike controls, had more difficulty recognizing pitch direction in discrete than in gliding pitches, for both speech and non-speech stimuli. Also, amusic thresholds were not significantly affected by stimulus types (speech versus non-speech), whereas controls showed lower thresholds for tones than for speech. These findings help explain why amusics have greater difficulty with discrete musical pitch perception than with speech perception, in which continuously changing pitch movements are prevalent. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A Method for Low-Delay Pitch Tracking and Smoothing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christensen, Mads Græsbøll

2012-01-01

. In the second step, a Kalman filter is used to smooth the estimates and separate the pitch into a slowly varying component and a rapidly varying component. The former represents the mean pitch while the latter represents vibrato, slides and other fast changes. The method is intended for use in applica- tions...... that require fast and sample-by-sample estimates, like tuners for musical instruments, transcription tasks requiring details like vi- brato, and real-time tracking of voiced speech....

Rarefied-flow pitching moment coefficient measurements of the Shuttle Orbiter

Science.gov (United States)

Blanchard, R. C.; Hinson, E. W.

1988-01-01

An overview of the process for obtaining the Shuttle Orbiter rarefied-flow pitching moment from flight gyro data is presented. The extraction technique involves differentiation of the output of the pitch gyro after accounting for nonaerodynamic torques, such as those produced by gravity gradient and the Orbiter's auxiliary power unit and adjusting for drift biases. The overview of the extraction technique includes examples of results from each of the steps involved in the process, using the STS-32 mission as a typical sample case. The total pitching moment and moment coefficient (Cm) for that flight are calculated and compared with preflight predictions. The flight results show the anticipated decrease in Cm with increasing altitude. However, the total moment coefficient is less than predicted using preflight estimates.

Evaluating the pitch bias of CryoSat exploiting stacks of single look ehoes

Science.gov (United States)

Scagliola, Michele; Tagliani, Nicolas; Fornari, Marco; Bouzinac, Catherine; Parrinello, Tommaso

2014-05-01

CryoSat was launched on the 8th April 2010 and it is the first European ice mission dedicated to monitoring precise changes in the thickness of polar ice sheets and floating sea ice over a 3-year period. CryoSat carries an innovative radar altimeter called the Synthetic Aperture Interferometric Altimeter (SIRAL), that transmits pulses at a high pulse repetition frequency thus making the received echoes phase coherent and suitable for azimuth processing. The attitude information of the spacecraft is provided by star trackers, that have an internal accuracy of few arc-seconds. By analysis of the CryoSat products, two different studies [1, 2] verified the existence of a bias between the pitch reported by the star trackers and the actual pitch of CryoSat during its flight. However those studies, that use two different methods to evaluate the actual pitch, provided different values for the pitch bias. This poster is aimed at describing a further method to estimated the pitch with which the satellite is actually flying by analysis of the stacks of the single look echoes that are accumulated for a given location of sea surface during the Level1 processing. In fact, over ocean the power of the single look echoes for a given point is shaped by the along-track antenna pattern. As a consequence, estimating the angular direction of pointing of the antenna from the stack, an estimate of the pitch can be obtained. Finally, the bias evaluated starting from the pitch measured with the proposed method is compared with the pitch bias measured in [1, 2]. [1] Galin,N. and Wingham, D., Estimating Pitch Angle of CryoSat-2 using the Power Distribution of the Synthetic Aperture, presented at SAR Altimetry Expert Group Meeting, Southampton UK, June 25-27, 2013. [2] Smith, W.H.F. and Scharroo, R., Retracking range, SWH, sigma-naught, and attitude in CryoSat conventional ocean data. In proceedings of Ocean Surface Topography Science Team Meeting. San Diego, October 19-21, 2011.

Effect of oxygen and nitroaromatic cell radiosensitizers on radiation-induced cleavage of internucleotide bonds: ApA, dApA, and poly(A)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Raleigh, J.A.; Kremers, W.; Whitehouse, R.

1975-01-01

Irradiation of the dinucleoside monophosphates ApA and dApA in deoxygenated solution leads to a preferential cleavage of the 3' end of the internucleotide bond. Cleavage at the 3' bond is favored to the extent of 2 to 1 over 5' cleavage. Oxygen and nitroaromatic compounds inhibit 3' bond breaking in ApA and dApA in agreement with earlier findings from studies of 3'- and 5'-mononucleotides. In contrast to the mononucleotide results, no enhancement of 5' cleavage is observed for ApA and dApA irradiated in the presence of oxygen or the nitroaromatic additives. The over-all effect of the additives is to decrease the combined (3' and 5') yield of internucleotide bond breaking in ApA and dApA. This phenomenon is also observed for polyadenylic acid in the presence of the nitroaromatics. Oxygen marginally enhances internucleotide bond breaking in polyadenylic acid (factor 1.1) over that seen in deoxygenated solution. Postirradiation alkaline hydrolysis of dApA leads to further ester cleavage revealing the presence of radiation-induced alkali-labile bonds. The number of these bonds decreases in the order oxygen greater than nitrofurans greater than nitrobenzenes approximately irradiation in the absence of additives

APS beamline standard components handbook

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kuzay, T.M.

1992-01-01

It is clear that most Advanced Photon Source (APS) Collaborative Access Team (CAT) members would like to concentrate on designing specialized equipment related to their scientific programs rather than on routine or standard beamline components. Thus, an effort is in progress at the APS to identify standard and modular components of APS beamlines. Identifying standard components is a nontrivial task because these components should support diverse beamline objectives. To assist with this effort, the APS has obtained advice and help from a Beamline Standardization and Modularization Committee consisting of experts in beamline design, construction, and operation. The staff of the Experimental Facilities Division identified various components thought to be standard items for beamlines, regardless of the specific scientific objective of a particular beamline. A generic beamline layout formed the basis for this identification. This layout is based on a double-crystal monochromator as the first optical element, with the possibility of other elements to follow. Pre-engineering designs were then made of the identified standard components. The Beamline Standardization and Modularization Committee has reviewed these designs and provided very useful input regarding the specifications of these components. We realize that there will be other configurations that may require special or modified components. This Handbook in its current version (1.1) contains descriptions, specifications, and pre-engineering design drawings of these standard components. In the future, the APS plans to add engineering drawings of identified standard beamline components. Use of standard components should result in major cost reductions for CATs in the areas of beamline design and construction

Feasibility and radiation dose of high-pitch acquisition protocols in patients undergoing dual-source cardiac CT.

Science.gov (United States)

Sommer, Wieland H; Albrecht, Edda; Bamberg, Fabian; Schenzle, Jan C; Johnson, Thorsten R; Neumaier, Klement; Reiser, Maximilian F; Nikolaou, Konstatin

2010-12-01

The objective of this study was to compare image quality and radiation dose between high-pitch and established retrospectively and prospectively gated cardiac CT protocols using an Alderson-Rando phantom and a set of patients. An anthropomorphic Alderson-Rando phantom equipped with thermoluminiscent detectors and a set of clinical patients underwent the following cardiac CT protocols: high-pitch acquisition (pitch 3.4), prospectively triggered acquisition, and retrospectively gated acquisition (pitch 0.2). For patients with sinus rhythm below 65 beats per minute (bpm), high-pitch protocol was used, whereas for patients in sinus rhythm between 65 and 100 bpm, prospective triggering was used. Patients with irregular heart rates or heart rates of ≥ 100 bpm, were examined using retrospectively gated acquisition. Evaluability of coronary artery segments was determined, and effective radiation dose was derived from the phantom study. In the phantom study, the effective radiation dose as determined with thermoluminescent detector (TLD) measurements was lowest in the high-pitch acquisition (1.21, 3.12, and 11.81 mSv, for the high-pitch, the prospectively triggered, and the retrospectively gated acquisition, respectively). There was a significant difference with respect to the percentage of motion-free coronary artery segments (99%, 87%, and 92% for high-pitch, prospectively triggered, and retrospectively gated, respectively (p pitch protocol (p pitch scans have the potential to reduce radiation dose up to 61.2% and 89.8% compared with prospectively triggered and retrospectively gated scans. High-pitch protocols lead to excellent image quality when used in patients with stable heart rates below 65 bpm.

Danish Towns during Absolutism

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

This anthology, No. 4 in the Danish Urban Studies Series, presents in English recent significant research on Denmark's urban development during the Age of Absolutism, 1660-1848, and features 13 articles written by leading Danish urban historians. The years of Absolutism were marked by a general...

Solid state 13 C NMR quantitative study of wood tar pitches

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Prauchner, Marcos Juliano; Pasa, Vanya Marcia Duarte; Menezes, Sonia Maria Cabral de

1999-01-01

In this work, solid-state 13 C NMR is used with other techniques to characterize Eucalyptus tar pitches and to follow their polymerization reactions. The pitches are the residues of distillation (about 50% m;m) of the tar generated in Eucalyptus slow pyrolysis for charcoal production in metal industry

29 CFR 1915.1002 - Coal tar pitch volatiles; interpretation of term.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 29 Labor 7 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Coal tar pitch volatiles; interpretation of term. 1915.1002 Section 1915.1002 Labor Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH... Toxic and Hazardous Substances § 1915.1002 Coal tar pitch volatiles; interpretation of term. Note: The...

Pitch perception and retention: two cumulative benefits of selective attention.

Science.gov (United States)

Demany, Laurent; Montandon, Gaspard; Semal, Catherine

2004-05-01

By presenting, before a "chord" of three pure tones with remote frequencies, a tone relatively close in frequency to one component (T1) of the chord, one can direct the listener's attention onto T1 within the chord. In the first part of the present study, it was found that this increases the accuracy with which the pitch of T1 is perceived. The attentional cue improved the discrimination between the frequency of T1 and that of another tone (T2) presented immediately after the chord or very shortly (300 msec) after it. No improvement was found when T1 was presented alone instead of within a chord. A subsequent experiment, in which the chord and T2 were separated by either 300 msec or 4 sec, indicated that the attentional cue improved not only the perception, but also the memorization of the pitch of T1 (especially when T1 was the intermediate component of the chord). It is argued that the positive effect of attention on memory took place when the pitch percept was encoded into memory, rather than after the formation of the pitch memory trace.

Roles of AP-2 in clathrin-mediated endocytosis.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Emmanuel Boucrot

2010-05-01

Full Text Available The notion that AP-2 clathrin adaptor is an essential component of an endocytic clathrin coat appears to conflict with recent observations that substantial AP-2 depletion, using RNA interference with synthesis of AP-2 subunits, fails to block uptake of certain ligands known to internalize through a clathrin-based pathway.We report here the use of in vivo imaging data obtained by spinning-disk confocal microscopy to study the formation of clathrin-coated structures at the plasma membranes of BSC1 and HeLa cells depleted by RNAi of the clathrin adaptor, AP-2. Very few clathrin coats continue to assemble after AP-2 knockdown. Moreover, there is a total absence of clathrin-containing structures completely lacking AP-2 while all the remaining coats still contain a small amount of AP-2. These observations suggest that AP-2 is essential for endocytic coated-pit and coated-vesicle formation. We also find that AP-2 knockdown strongly inhibits light-density lipoprotein (LDL receptor-mediated endocytosis, as long as cells are maintained in complete serum and at 37 degrees C. If cells are first incubated with LDL at 4 degrees C, followed by warming, there is little or no decrease in LDL uptake with respect to control cells. LDL uptake at 37 degrees C is also not affected in AP-2 depleted cells first deprived of LDL by incubation with either serum-starved or LDL-starved cells for 24 hr. The LDL-deprived cells display a significant increase in endocytic structures enriched on deeply invaginated tubes that contain LDL and we suggest that under this condition of stress, LDL might enter through this alternative pathway.These results suggest that AP-2 is essential for endocytic clathrin coated-pit and coated-vesicle formation. They also indicate that under normal conditions, functional endocytic clathrin coated pits are required for LDL internalization. We also show that under certain conditions of stress, cells can upregulate alternative endocytic structures

Distraction by novel and pitch-deviant sounds in children

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nicole Wetzel

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The control of attention is an important part of our executive functions and enables us to focus on relevant information and to ignore irrelevant information. The ability to shield against distraction by task-irrelevant sounds is suggested to mature during school age. The present study investigated the developmental time course of distraction in three groups of children aged 7 – 10 years. Two different types of distractor sounds that have been frequently used in auditory attention research – novel environmental and pitch-deviant sounds – were presented within an oddball paradigm while children performed a visual categorization task. Reaction time measurements revealed decreasing distractor-related impairment with age. Novel environmental sounds impaired performance in the categorization task more than pitch-deviant sounds. The youngest children showed a pronounced decline of novel-related distraction effects throughout the experimental session. Such a significant decline as a result of practice was not observed in the pitch-deviant condition and not in older children. We observed no correlation between cross-modal distraction effects and performance in standardized tests of concentration and visual distraction. Results of the cross-modal distraction paradigm indicate that separate mechanisms underlying the processing of novel environmental and pitch-deviant sounds develop with different time courses and that these mechanisms develop considerably within a few years in middle childhood.

Influence of musical and psychoacoustical training on pitch discrimination.

Science.gov (United States)

Micheyl, Christophe; Delhommeau, Karine; Perrot, Xavier; Oxenham, Andrew J

2006-09-01

This study compared the influence of musical and psychoacoustical training on auditory pitch discrimination abilities. In a first experiment, pitch discrimination thresholds for pure and complex tones were measured in 30 classical musicians and 30 non-musicians, none of whom had prior psychoacoustical training. The non-musicians' mean thresholds were more than six times larger than those of the classical musicians initially, and still about four times larger after 2h of training using an adaptive two-interval forced-choice procedure; this difference is two to three times larger than suggested by previous studies. The musicians' thresholds were close to those measured in earlier psychoacoustical studies using highly trained listeners, and showed little improvement with training; this suggests that classical musical training can lead to optimal or nearly optimal pitch discrimination performance. A second experiment was performed to determine how much additional training was required for the non-musicians to obtain thresholds as low as those of the classical musicians from experiment 1. Eight new non-musicians with no prior training practiced the frequency discrimination task for a total of 14 h. It took between 4 and 8h of training for their thresholds to become as small as those measured in the classical musicians from experiment 1. These findings supplement and qualify earlier data in the literature regarding the respective influence of musical and psychoacoustical training on pitch discrimination performance.

Impact of imaging quality of change pitch on coronary CTA with 64-detector row CT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Xiang; Jin Chaolin; Zhang Shutong

2009-01-01

Objective: To investigate the impact of imaging quality of pitch on coronary CT angiography (CTA) with 64-detector row CT. Methods: 566 patients were divided into four groups according to heart rate (≤ 50, 51 ∼ 70, 71 ∼ 80 and ≥ 80 bpm). Three dimensional reconstructions were used such as volume rendering (VR), maximum intensity projection(MIP) and curved planar reformation (CPR). Each group was divided into control group and experimential group randomly, using normal pitch and revised pitch respectively, and the imaging quality and influencing factors were analyzed among the four groups. Results: There was significant difference in imaging quality among the four groups (P < 0.05). Each group had difference in imaging quality with normal pitch and revised pitch. Conclusions: The revised pitch helps to improve the imaging quality and meet the demand of diagnosis. (authors)

Fine pitch thermosonic wire bonding: analysis of state-of-the-art manufacturing capability

Science.gov (United States)

Cavasin, Daniel

1995-09-01

A comprehensive process characterization was performed at the Motorola plastic package assembly site in Selangor, Malaysia, to document the current fine pitch wire bond process capability, using state-of-the-art equipment, in an actual manufacturing environment. Two machines, representing the latest technology from two separate manufacturers, were operated one shift per day for five days, bonding a 132 lead Plastic Quad Flat Pack. Using a test device specifically designed for fine pitch wire bonding, the bonding programs were alternated between 107 micrometers and 92 micrometers pad pitch, running each pitch for a total of 1600 units per machine. Wire, capillary type, and related materials were standardized and commercially available. A video metrology measurement system, with a demonstrated six sigma repeatability band width of 0.51 micrometers , was utilized to measure the bonded units for bond dimensions and placement. Standard Quality Assurance (QA) metrics were also performed. Results indicate that state-of-the-art thermosonic wire bonding can achieve acceptable assembly yields at these fine pad pitches.

Neural coding and perception of pitch in the normal and impaired human auditory system

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Santurette, Sébastien

2011-01-01

that the use of spectral cues remained plausible. Simulations of auditory-nerve representations of the complex tones further suggested that a spectrotemporal mechanism combining precise timing information across auditory channels might best account for the behavioral data. Overall, this work provides insights...... investigated using psychophysical methods. First, hearing loss was found to affect the perception of binaural pitch, a pitch sensation created by the binaural interaction of noise stimuli. Specifically, listeners without binaural pitch sensation showed signs of retrocochlear disorders. Despite adverse effects...... of reduced frequency selectivity on binaural pitch perception, the ability to accurately process the temporal fine structure (TFS) of sounds at the output of the cochlear filters was found to be essential for perceiving binaural pitch. Monaural TFS processing also played a major and independent role...

AP English language & composition crash course

CERN Document Server

Hogue, Dawn

2012-01-01

AP English Language & Composition Crash Course - Gets You a Higher Advanced Placement Score in Less Time Crash Course is perfect for the time-crunched student, the last-minute studier, or anyone who wants a refresher on the subject. AP English Language & Composition Crash Course gives you: Targeted, Focused Review - Study Only What You Need to Know Crash Course is based on an in-depth analysis of the AP English Language & Composition course description outline and actual Advanced Placement test questions. It covers only the information tested on the exam, so you can make the most of your valua

An Approximate Method for Pitch-Damping Prediction

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Danberg, James

2003-01-01

...) method for predicting the pitch-damping coefficients has been employed. The CFD method provides important details necessary to derive the correlation functions that are unavailable from the current experimental database...

Religião, política e ordem social nos Atos Apócrifos dos Apóstolos

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

José Adriano Filho

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Os Atos Apócrifos dos Apóstolos recontam a tradição dos apóstolos e suas façanhas públicas. Os apóstolos são apresentados em constante conflito com o mundo à sua volta. Eles demonstram o poder do único Deus verdadeiro por meio de milagres, ascetismo e martírio. O cristianismo que eles representam contrasta com as crenças e poder do mundo greco-romano. Esta instância antissocial é reforçada pela mensagem de castidade anunciada pelos apóstolos, a qual interrompe o casamento, e nos conflitos com as autoridades civis e religiosas. Eles têm preocupações apologéticas, missionárias e de edificação, mas rejeitam os ideais culturais e sociais tradicionais em favor de novos ideais. Os Atos Apócrifos também refletem a rede do patronato social e político contemporâneo do Império romano. Eles redefinem o patronato de uma perspectiva cristã e desafiam o sistema estabelecido ao apresentar a Cristo como o verdadeiro patrono, superior aos patronos humanos, incluindo o imperador. A tentativa de reformular as pressuposições estabelecidas é uma característica que define a identidade cristã representada nesta literatura.

The thermal transformations of pitch and its compositions with thermo-anthracite

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Belkina, T.V.; Ulanovskii, M.L.; Krysin, V.P.

1983-01-01

The derivatographic method was used to examine the nature of thermal treatment of pitch in a mixture with heat-treated anthracite. The basic effect of anthracite on the thermal conversion of pitch was established, as well as the stages of mass loss and the processes that limit such losses. (9 refs.)

Evaluation of dose delivery accuracy due to variation in pitch and roll

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jeong, Chang Young; Bae, Sun Myung; Lee, Dong Hyung; Min, Soon Ki; Kang, Tae Young; Baek, Geum Mun [Dept. of Radiation Oncology, ASAN Medical Center, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2014-12-15

The purpose of this study is to verify the accuracy of dose delivery according to the pitch and roll rotational setup error with 6D robotic couch in Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy ( IMRT ) for pelvic region in patients. Trilogy(Varian, USA) and 6D robotic couch(ProturaTM 1.4, CIVCO, USA) were used to measure and analyze the rotational setup error of 14 patients (157 setup cases) for pelvic region. The total 157 Images(CBCT 78, Radiography 79) were used to calculate the mean value and the incidence of pitch and roll rotational setup error with Microsoft Office Excel 2007. The measured data (3 mm, 3%) at the reference angle (0 °) without couch rotation of pitch and roll direction was compared to the others at different pitch and roll angles (1 °, 1.5 °, 2 °, 2.5 °) to verify the accuracy of dose delivery by using 2D array ionization chamber (I'mRT Matrixx, IBA Dosimetry, Germany) and MultiCube Phantom(IBA Dosimetry, Germany). Result from the data, gamma index was evaluated. The mean values of pitch and roll rotational setup error were 0.9±0.7 °, 0.5±0.6 °. The maximum values of them were 2.8 °, 2.0 °. All of the minimum values were zero. The mean values of gamma pass rate at four different pitch angles (1 °, 1.5 °, 2 °, 2.5 °) were 97.75%, 96.65%, 94.38% and 90.91%. The mean values of gamma pass rate at four different roll angles (1 °, 1.5 °, 2 °, 2.5 °) were 93.68%, 93.05%, 87.77% and 84.96%. when the same angles (1 °, 1.5 °, 2 ° ) of pitch and roll were applied simultaneously, The mean values of each angle were 94.90%, 92.37% and 87.88%, respectively. As a result of this study, it was able to recognize that the accuracy of dose delivered is lowered gradually as pitch and roll increases. In order to increase the accuracy of delivered dose, therefore, it is recommended to perform IGRT or correct patient's position in the pitch and roll direction, to improve the quality of treatment.

Tempo discrimination of musical patterns: effects due to pitch and rhythmic structure.

Science.gov (United States)

Boltz, M G

1998-11-01

The purpose of this research was to investigate a set of factors that may influence the perceived rate of an auditory event. In a paired-comparison task, subjects were presented with a set of music-like patterns that differed in their relative number of contour changes and in the magnitude of pitch skips (Experiment 1) as well as in the compatibility of rhythmic accent structure with the arrangement of pitch relations (Experiment 2) Results indicated that, relative to their standard referents, comparison melodies were judged to unfold more slowly when they displayed more changes in pitch direction, greater pitch distances, and an incompatible rhythmic accent structure. These findings are suggested to stem from an imputed velocity hypothesis, in which people overgeneralize certain invariant relations that typically occur between melodic and temporal accent structure within Western music.

Proactive AP Selection Method Considering the Radio Interference Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Taenaka, Yuzo; Kashihara, Shigeru; Tsukamoto, Kazuya; Yamaguchi, Suguru; Oie, Yuji

In the near future, wireless local area networks (WLANs) will overlap to provide continuous coverage over a wide area. In such ubiquitous WLANs, a mobile node (MN) moving freely between multiple access points (APs) requires not only permanent access to the Internet but also continuous communication quality during handover. In order to satisfy these requirements, an MN needs to (1) select an AP with better performance and (2) execute a handover seamlessly. To satisfy requirement (2), we proposed a seamless handover method in a previous study. Moreover, in order to achieve (1), the Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) is usually employed to measure wireless link quality in a WLAN system. However, in a real environment, especially if APs are densely situated, it is difficult to always select an AP with better performance based on only the RSSI. This is because the RSSI alone cannot detect the degradation of communication quality due to radio interference. Moreover, it is important that AP selection is completed only on an MN, because we can assume that, in ubiquitous WLANs, various organizations or operators will manage APs. Hence, we cannot modify the APs for AP selection. To overcome these difficulties, in the present paper, we propose and implement a proactive AP selection method considering wireless link condition based on the number of frame retransmissions in addition to the RSSI. In the evaluation, we show that the proposed AP selection method can appropriately select an AP with good wireless link quality, i.e., high RSSI and low radio interference.

Westinghouse AP1000 advanced passive plant: design features and benefits

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Walls, S.J.; Cummins, W.E.

2003-01-01

The Westinghouse AP1000 Program is aimed at implementing the AP1000 plant to provide a further major improvement in plant economics while maintaining the passive safety advantages established by the AP600. An objective is to retain to the maximum extent possible the plant design of the AP600 so as to retain the licensing basis, cost estimate, construction schedule, modularization scheme, and the detailed design from the AP600 program. Westinghouse and the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff have embarked on a program to complete Design Certification for the AP1000 by 2004. A pre-certification review phase was completed in March 2002 and was successful in establishing the applicability of the AP600 test program and AP600 safety analysis codes to the AP1000 Design Certification. On March 28, 2002, Westinghouse submitted to US NRC the AP1000 Design Control Document and Probabilistic Risk Assessment, thereby initiating the formal design certification review process. The results presented in these documents verify the safety performance of the API 000 and conformance with US NRC licensing requirements. Plans are being developed for implementation of a series of AP1000 plants in the US. Key factors in this planning are the economics of AP1000, and the associated business model for licensing, constructing and operating these new plants. Similarly plans are being developed to get the AP1000 design reviewed for use in the UK. Part of this planning has been to examine the AP1000 design relative to anticipated UK safety and licensing issues. (author)

A rule-based backchannel prediction model using pitch and pause information

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Truong, Khiet Phuong; Poppe, Ronald Walter; Heylen, Dirk K.J.

We manually designed rules for a backchannel (BC) prediction model based on pitch and pause information. In short, the model predicts a BC when there is a pause of a certain length that is preceded by a falling or rising pitch. This model was validated against the Dutch IFADV Corpus in a

Coal Tar and Coal-Tar Pitch

Science.gov (United States)

Learn about coal-tar products, which can raise your risk of skin cancer, lung cancer, and other types of cancer. Examples of coal-tar products include creosote, coal-tar pitch, and certain preparations used to treat skin conditions such as eczema, psoriasis, and dandruff.