Speech compensation for time-scale-modified auditory feedback.

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to examine speech compensation in response to time-scale-modified auditory feedback during the transition of the semivowel for a target utterance of /ija/. METHOD Each utterance session consisted of 10 control trials in the normal feedback condition followed by 20 perturbed trials in the modified auditory feedback condition and 10 return trials in the normal feedback condition. The authors examined speech compensation and the aftereffect in terms of 3 acoustic features: the maximum velocities on the (a) F1 and (b) F2 trajectories (VF1 and VF2) and (c) the F1-F2 onset time difference (TD) during the transition.

Prediction of shot success for basketball free throws: visual search strategy.

In ball games, players have to pay close attention to visual information in order to predict the movements of both the opponents and the ball. Previous studies have indicated that players primarily utilise cues concerning the ball and opponents' body motion. The information acquired must be effective for observing players to select the subsequent action.

Dynamic visual acuity in baseball players is due to superior tracking abilities.

Purpose: Dynamic visual acuity (DVA) is defined as the ability to discriminate the fine parts of a moving object. DVA is generally better in baseball players than that in nonplayers. Although the better DVA of baseball players has been attributed to a better ability to track moving objects, it might be derived from the ability to perceive an object even in the presence of a great distance between the image on the retina and the fovea (retinal error).

Origins of superior dynamic visual acuity in baseball players: superior eye movements or superior image processing.

Dynamic visual acuity (DVA) is defined as the ability to discriminate the fine parts of a moving object. DVA is generally better in athletes than in non-athletes, and the better DVA of athletes has been attributed to a better ability to track moving objects. In the present study, we hypothesized that the better DVA of athletes is partly derived from better perception of moving images on the retina through some kind of perceptual learning.

A Japanese case of eosinophilic esophagitis.

Eosinophilic esophagitis (EE) is a rarely diagnosed condition involving eosinophilic infiltration of the esophageal mucosa. Here we present a case of EE in a 69-year-old Japanese man, who presented with abdominal pain, appetite loss, and a history of bronchial asthma. Laboratory findings included peripheral eosinophilia and an increased serum immunoglobulin E level.

Three-dimensional electromagnetic articulography: a measurement principle.

A measurement principle of the three-dimensional electromagnetic articulographic device is presented. The state of the miniature receiver coil is described by five variables representing the position in the three-dimensional coordinate system and the rotation angles relative to it. When the receiver coil is placed in the magnetic field produced from the distributed transmitter coils, its state can be optimally estimated by minimizing the difference between the measured strength of the received signal and the predicted one using the known spatial pattern of the magnetic field.

Dynamical simulation of speech cooperative articulation by muscle linkages.

Different kinds of articulators, such as the upper and lower lips, jaw, and tongue, are precisely coordinated in speech production. Based on a perturbation study of the production of a fricative consonant using the upper and lower lips, it has been suggested that increasing the stiffness in the muscle linkage between the upper lip and jaw is beneficial for maintaining the constriction area between the lips (Gomi et al. 2002).

Anti-apoptotic effect of atorvastatin, a 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme a reductase inhibitor, on cardiac myocytes through protein kinase C activation.

Pleiotropic effects of statins, which are independent of lipid lowering, have been reported. In the present study, we examined the effect of a statin on apoptosis of adult rat cultured cardiac myocytes. We used the protein kinase C (PKC) inhibitors staurosporine (1 micro mol/L), chelerythrine (10 micro mol/L) and rottlerin (5 micro mol/L) to induce myocyte apoptosis.

Electromagnetic articulograph based on a nonparametric representation of the magnetic field.

Electromagnetic articulograph (EMA) devices are capable of measuring movements of the articulatory organs inside and outside the vocal tract with fine spatial and temporal resolutions, thus providing useful articulatory data for investigating the speech production process. The position of the receiver coil is detected in the EMA device on the basis of a field function representing the spatial pattern of the magnetic field in relation to the relative positions of the transmitter and receiver coils. Therefore, the design and calibration of the field function are quite important and influence the accuracy of position detection.