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Locked metacarpophalangeal joint is an uncommon phenomenon with many possible etiologies. Diagnosis can be difficult because of the many more common pathologies (trigger finger, sagittal band lesion, etc.) that can lead to a clinical picture that may resemble the locked metacarpophalangeal joint. Once the differential diagnoses have been eliminated, the etiology of this blockage must be determined and the surgical procedure must be oriented. The origin of the problem is often difficult to determine, especially since standard imaging tests are often not very informative. Several clinical forms are possible, with blockages in extension or flexion, but which will have a disabling functional impact on the overall function of the hand. Currently, there is no gold standard for the management of this condition. In this study, we performed a review of the literature in order to better understand the different possible etiologies but also to analyze the different diagnostic and therapeutic management. IV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diagnosis of temporomandibular disorders is currently based on clinical examination and static MRI. Real-time MRI enables tracking of condylar motion and, thus, evaluation of their motion symmetricity (which could be associated with temporomandibular joint disorders). The purpose of this work is to propose an acquisition protocol, an image processing approach, and a set of parameters enabling objective assessment of motion asymmetry; to check the reliability and find the limitations of the approach, and to verify if the automatically calculated parameters are associated with the motion symmetricity. A rapid radial FLASH sequence was used to acquire a dynamic set of axial images for 10 subjects. One more subject was involved to estimate the dependence of the motion parameters on the slice placement. The images were segmented with a semi-automatic approach based on U-Net convolutional neural network, and the condyles' mass centers were projected on the mid-sagittal axis. Resulting projection curves were used for the extraction of various motion parameters including latency, velocity peak delay, and maximal displacement between the right and the left condyle. These automatically calculated parameters were compared with the physicians' scores. The proposed segmentation approach allowed a reliable center of mass tracking. Latency and velocity peak delay were found to be invariant to the slice position, and maximal displacement difference considerably varied. The automatically calculated parameters demonstrated a significant correlation with the experts' scores. The proposed acquisition and data processing protocol enables the automatizable extraction of quantitative parameters that characterize the symmetricity of condylar motion [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the case of a 58-year-old man who sustained an open palmar dislocation of the fifth metacarpophalangeal joint of the little finger secondary to a bicycle accident with an uncommon presentation. These open dislocations have only been reported once in the literature. A palmar and dorsal approach had to be used to completely free the joint from incarcerations and allow complete reduction and repair of the damaged anatomical structures. We then discuss this particular type of dislocation, its pathophysiology and management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of tongue−lip adhesion (TLA) on the long-term speech and articulation outcomes of patients with Robin sequence (RS) after cleft palate repair. Outcomes were compared to those in patients with RS who required positioning alone and to patients with isolated cleft palate (ICP). All consecutive patients with RS (with or without TLA) versus isolated cleft palate (ICP) who underwent cleft palate repair were retrospectively reviewed. Speech and articulation included all assessments between the age of 3–6 years. Secondary speech operations, velopharyngeal insufficiency (VPI), hypernasality, and articulation errors by cleft-type characteristics (CTC), including 4 categories (passive), non-oral, anterior-oral, and posterior-oral. A total of 41 RS patients and 61 ICP patients underwent repair with sufficient follow-up. Of them, 23 patients underwent a TLA at median age of 12 days. Rates of hypernasality (p = 0.004), secondary speech operations (p = 0.004), and posterior oral CTC (p = 0.042) were higher in RS compared to ICP. Isolated RS had speech outcomes similar to those of ICP; however, syndromic RS patients needed more secondary speech operations compared to isolated RS (p = 0.043). TLA-RS patients did not demonstrate differences in speech outcomes or any CTCs (all p > 0.05) compared to non−TLA-RS patients, except for the anterior oral CTC (74% TLA-RS vs 28% non−TLA-RS, p = 0.005). Within the limitations of the study, it seem that TLA does not affect long-term velopharyngeal function in patients with RS. However, TLA-RS patients demonstrated higher rates of anterior-oral CTC, which might be related to a different positioning of the tongue after TLA. Every effort should be taken to treat patients with RS conservatively instead of with TLA because of this demonstrated a negative effect on one type of articulation error. However, if conservative therapy fails, a TLA is still a valuable adjunct in the treatment of RS, and cleft speech pathologists who treat such patients should be more aware of this phenomenon in order to improve long-term articulation outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Modern small satellite constellations are demanding quick spacecraft commissioning and high duty cycle for their payload operations. In a conventional small satellite mission architecture, operations time is often split between different modes that require different spacecraft attitudes to achieve their goal. For example, drag-based orbit maneuvering can be used for creating relative separation between constellation members, and with spacecraft consisting of single rigid bodies, dedicated attitude manipulation is required to perform these operations. The attitudes that take advantage of the body asymmetries to modify the drag area are generally incompatible with the attitude maneuvering required for payload operations. At the constellation scale, these downtimes in the payload operation schedule can greatly reduce the overall capability of the system. By including deployable, articulating solar arrays in the design of small spacecraft, array pointing can be decoupled from the main payload pointing operations. With these pieces decoupled, payload operations can proceed uninterrupted while the articulating arrays enable power generation or drag-based orbit maneuvering. The focus of this paper is the demonstration of the articulating arrays as a means of enabling drag-based orbit phasing, while agile attitude maneuvering for payload operations proceeds concurrently. The dynamic equations of the multibody system are derived, and guidance, navigation, and control considerations for achieving decoupled attitude and articulation objectives are presented. Results are shown for attitude performance as well as for the orbit maneuvering performance achieved through array articulation. • Drag-based orbit phasing is achieved with decoupled attitude maneuvering. • Concurrent operations streamline the commissioning of satellite constellations. • Orbit phasing of 30 degrees is achieved in 120 days in a sample mission. • Payload-driven attitude maneuvering is minimally impacted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the present study was to establish the method for an acoustic simulation of a vocal tract created from CT data during phonation of the Japanese vowel /a/ and to verify the validity of the simulation. The subjects were 15 healthy adults (8 males, 7 females). The vocal tract model was created from CT data acquired during sustained phonation of the Japanese vowel /a/. After conversion to a mesh model for analysis, a wave acoustic analysis was performed with a boundary element method. The wall and the bottom of the vocal tract model were regarded as a rigid wall and a nonrigid wall, respectively. The acoustic medium was set to 37°C, and a point sound source was set in the place corresponding to the vocal cord as a sound source. The first and second formant frequencies (F1 and F2) were calculated. For 1 of the 15 subjects, the range from the upper end of the frontal sinus to the tracheal bifurcation was scanned, and 2 models were created: model 1 included the range from the frontal sinus to the tracheal bifurcation; and model 2 included the range from the frontal sinus to the glottis and added a virtually extended trachea by 12 cm cylindrically. F1 and F2 calculated from models 1 and 2 were compared. To evaluate the validity of the present simulation, F1 and F2 calculated from the simulation were compared with those of the actual voice and the sound generated using a solid model and a whistle-type artificial larynx. To judge the validity, the vowel formant frequency discrimination threshold reported in the past was used as a criterion. Namely, the relative discrimination thresholds (%), dividing ▵F by F, where F was the formant frequency calculated from the simulation, and ▵F was the difference between F and the formant frequency of the actual voice and the sound generated using the solid model and artificial larynx, were obtained. F1 and F2 calculated from models 1 and 2 were similar. Therefore, to reduce the exposure dose, the remaining 14 subjects were scanned from the upper end of the frontal sinus to the glottis, and model 2 with the trachea extended by 12 cm virtually was used for the simulation. The averages of the relative discrimination thresholds against F1 and F2 calculated from the actual voice were 5.9% and 4.6%, respectively. The averages of the relative discrimination thresholds against F1 and F2 calculated from the sound generated by using the solid model and the artificial larynx were 4.1% and 3.7%, respectively. The Japanese vowel /a/ could be simulated with high validity for the vocal tract models created from the CT data during phonation of /a/ using the boundary element method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cleft lip, with or without a cleft palate, is the most common craniofacial birth defect. Speech disorders, particularly impairment in articulation, are severe problems resulting from the velopharyngeal incompetence associated with a cleft palate. In cases requiring prolonged tracheal cannulation further delays speech and language development, especially during the pre-verbal period of an infant. In this case report, we describe the treatment course of an infant with bilateral cleft lip and palate requiring long-term cannulation. The patient underwent tracheotomy due to laryngotracheal stenosis after cheiloplasty at the age of 1 year. The tracheal cannula was in situ for a period of 6 years (to the age of 6 years). An intensive program of articulation and vocalization practice was performed during the period of tracheal cannulation. Following removal, the patient acquired almost normal speech and language functions. Coordination between several disciplines was critical for treatment to benefit the patient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maxillary advancement may affect speech in cleft patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of maxillary advancement on Finnish alveolar consonants /s/, /l/, and /r/ in cleft patients. Fifty-nine Finnish-speaking nonsyndromic cleft patients, who had undergone Le Fort I or bimaxillary osteotomies, were evaluated retrospectively Production of the Finnish alveolar consonants /s/, /l/, and /r/ was assessed from pre- and postoperative standardized video recordings by two experienced speech pathologists. McNemar's test was used in the statistical analyses. Kappa statistics were calculated to assess reliability. The patients included 35 females and 24 males with CP (n = 12), UCLP (n = 31), and BCLP (n = 16). There was a significant improvement in /s/ and /l/ sounds after maxillary advancement (p = 0.039 and p = 0.002, respectively). The preoperative mean percentage of /s/ errors was 34%; postoperatively it was 20%. /L/ was misarticulated preoperatively by 34% of the patients and postoperatively by 19%. /R/ was misarticulated preoperatively by 47% of the patients and postoperatively by 42%. The level of mild articulation errors rose from 25% to 31%, while severe articulation errors decreased from 37% to 25%. The reliabilities were good. When planning orthognathic surgery in cleft patients with maxillary retrusion and articulation errors, advancement of the maxilla might be a means for improving articulation of /s/ and /l/. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Theories of human cognition prominently feature 'Broca's area', which causally contributes to a myriad of mental functions. However, Broca's area is not a monolithic, multipurpose unit – it is structurally and functionally heterogeneous. Some functions engaging (subsets of) this area share neurocognitive resources, whereas others rely on separable circuits. A decade of converging evidence has now illuminated a fundamental distinction between two subregions of Broca's area that likely play computationally distinct roles in cognition: one belongs to the domain-specific 'language network', the other to the domain-general 'multiple-demand (MD) network'. Claims about Broca's area should be (re)cast in terms of these (and other, as yet undetermined) functional components, to establish a cumulative research enterprise where empirical findings can be replicated and theoretical proposals can be meaningfully compared and falsified. 'Broca's area' is structurally and functionally heterogeneous, containing a language-selective region and a domain-general MD region. These two regions exhibit drastically different functional response profiles and covary with two distinct brain networks: the core language-selective frontotemporal network and the domain-general frontoparietal MD network. High interindividual variability in the locations of different functional regions has muddled earlier theorizing and empirical work, much of which has relied on traditional group analyses. Functional localization in individual participants in future investigations of Broca's area will help to establish a robust and cumulative research enterprise. Any future theoretical proposal or empirical claim should specify the relevant functional component of Broca's area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The characterization of the vocal tract geometry during speech interests various research topics, including speech production modeling, motor control analysis, and speech therapy design. Real-time MRI is a reliable and non-invasive tool for this purpose. In most cases, it is necessary to know the contours of the individual articulators from the glottis to the lips. Several techniques have been proposed for segmenting vocal tract articulators, but most are limited to specific applications. Moreover, they often do not provide individualized contours for all soft-tissue articulators in a multi-speaker configuration. A Mask R-CNN network was trained to detect and segment the vocal tract articulator contours in two real-time MRI (RT-MRI) datasets with speech recordings of multiple speakers. Two post-processing algorithms were then proposed to convert the network's outputs into geometrical curves. Nine articulators were considered: the two lips, tongue, soft palate, pharynx, arytenoid cartilage, epiglottis, thyroid cartilage, and vocal folds. A leave-one-out cross-validation protocol was used to evaluate inter-speaker generalization. The evaluation metrics were the point-to-closest-point distance and the Jaccard index (for articulators annotated as closed contours). The proposed method accurately segmented the vocal tract articulators, with an average root mean square point-to-closest-point distance of less than 2.2 mm for all the articulators in the leave-one-out cross-validation setting. The minimum P2CP RMS was 0.91 mm for the upper lip, and the maximum was 2.18 mm for the tongue. The Jaccard indices for the thyroid cartilage and vocal folds were 0.60 and 0.61, respectively. Additionally, the method adapted to a new subject with only ten annotated samples. Our research introduced a method for individually segmenting nine non-rigid vocal tract articulators in real-time MRI movies. The software is openly available as an installable package to the speech community. It is designed to develop speech applications and clinical and non-clinical research in fields that require vocal tract geometry, such as speech, singing, and human beatboxing. • Describing the vocal tract geometry during speech interests various research topics. • A convolutional neural network segments non-rigid vocal tract articulators in speech RT-MRI recordings of multiple speakers. • The method results in an average P2CP-RMS distance of less than 2.2 mm for all articulators in an LOOCV setting. • We show that the method can be adapted to a new speaker with ten images if the speaker differs from the training subjects. • The source code is publicly available for reproducing and utilizing our methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Coins the notion of "sedimented subjectivities" to grasp the layering of subject formation in time and space. • Shows how the concept of articulation helps analyze the role of socio-economic position and identities in subject formation. • Emphasizes the importance of "colonial residue" in contemporary subject formation. • Develops a decentred approach to interpellation that foregrounds its dispersed and heterogeneous nature. • Underscores the pertinence of a spatio-temporal perspective on subject formation. In this contribution, we examine how people living around industrial gold mining concessions in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) view themselves in relation to the extractive industries. We apply Hall's notion of articulation to grasp the layering of extractive subject formation in time and space, or what we call the "sedimentation of subjectivities". The lens of articulation allows for a better understanding of how people engage with the subject positions they are interpellated into. Specifically, it helps uncover how this engagement is imprinted by subjects' socio-economic position and historically shaped forms of social identification. The notion of sedimentation, in turn, enables us to trace how the crystallization of subjectivities in one particular conjuncture influences subsequent processes of subject formation – a dynamic with distinct spatial dimensions. People's sense of place, including how they relate to the soil and subsoil, is an important vector of these historical influences. In sum, the notion of sedimented subjectivities captures the spatio-temporal dimensions of subject formation over the longue durée. It therefore helps establish the enduring influence of "colonial residue" on contemporary subject formation. In addition, our approach sheds further light on the overall modest imprint of the governmental schemes of extractive corporations on extractive subject formation. We ascribe this to the heterogeneity and sedimentation of the elements that shape subject formation and the dispersed nature of processes of interpellation. These observations further underscore the pertinence of a spatio-temporal perspective on subject formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Mastery of rhotic sounds is not strongly correlated with chronological age. • Relationship between rhotic vowel and rhotic consonant accuracy provides an estimate of rhotic sound developmental level. • Effects of phonetic context on the mastery of rhotic sounds appear to be dialect-specific. • Positional and phonetic contexts are important for assessment and clinical decision making for children with rhotic errors. Rhotic vowels are known to be difficult sounds for children to learn, but their acquisition has not been investigated in detail. This study examined rhotic vowel development, including accuracy and error patterns, in young children across age, diagnostic groups, and phonetic contexts. Participants included 34 children from 2 to 6 years of age with and without speech sound disorders (SSD). Data included 36 elicited single words containing stressed and unstressed rhotic monophthongs ([ɜ˞] and [ə˞]) and four rhotic diphthongs (/ɪ͡ə˞/, /ε͡ə˞/, /ɔ͡ə˞/, and /ɑ͡ə˞/). Additional words containing non-rhotic vowels and the consonant /ɹ/ were also included for comparison. A significant difference in rhotic vowel production accuracy was found between diagnostic groups (with vs. without SSD), but not across age groups or phonetic contexts. Yet, the accuracy scores for children without SSD were bimodally distributed, showing overlapping patterns with children with SSD. Error patterns were examined for all children with low rhotic vowel accuracy scores, regardless of age and diagnostic status. Results of this study highlight the variability in rhotic vowel development in young children and the importance of studying rhotic sounds using overall rhotic sound accuracy of each individual child regardless of their age or diagnostic status. Clinically, systematic within-speaker error patterns suggest the need for the detailed error pattern assessment of rhotic sounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper offers a new avenue in contemplating semiology beyond linguistics: it introduces accounting as ' Financial Semiology '. The paper discusses the implications of a semiological theorisation of accounting, particularly in problematising the conventional assumptions underlying two important accounting issues: recognition and measurement of the firm's assets, specifically with respect to the notion of alleged 'representation' of assets and their seemingly 'intrinsic value'. Through two core pillars in Saussure's semiology, re-titled here as 'reciprocal articulation' and 'value constellation', the paper offers an alternative theorisation of such accounting procedures. The paper also shows the implications of such Financial Semiology for the general theory of semiology, and distils its core characteristics as a framework for explicating the non-substantive operation of social sign systems. • Accounting is the one truly extra-linguistic semiology: a Financial Semiology. • Instead of 'representation', accounting manifests semiology's 'articulation'. • Instead of intrinsic value, accounting manifests semiology's 'value constellation'. • Accounting explicates the non-substantive operation of semiological systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Slower articulation rate is associated with slower information processing speed. • There is a strong relationship between reading speed and the SDMT. • Acoustic speech analysis can identify patients with cognitive impairment. Impairment of cognition and speech are common in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, but their relationship is not well understood. To describe the relationship between articulation rate characteristics and processing speed and to investigate the potential role of objective speech analysis for the detection of cognitive decline in MS. A total of 122 patients with clinically definite MS were included in this cross-sectional pilot study. Patients underwent three speaking tasks (oral diadochokinesis, reading text and monologue) and assessment of processing speed (Symbol Digit Modalities Test [SDMT], Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test-3 s [PASAT-3]). Association between articulation rate and cognition was analyzed using linear regression analysis. We estimated the area under the receiver operating characteristics curves (AUC) to evaluate the predictive accuracy of articulation rate measures for the detection of abnormal processing speed. We observed an association between articulation rate and cognitive measures (rho = 0.45–0.58; p < 0.001). Faster reading speed by one word per second was associated with an 18.7 point (95% confidence interval [CI] 14.9–22.5) increase of the SDMT score and 14.7 (95% CI 8.9–20.4) point increase of PASAT-3 score (both p < 0.001). AUC values of articulation rate characteristics for the identification of processing speed impairment ranged between 0.67 and 0.79. Using a cutoff of 3.10 in reading speed, we were able to identify impairment in both the SDMT and PASAT-3 with 91% sensitivity and 54% specificity. Slowed articulation rate is strongly associated with processing speed decline. Objective quantitative speech analysis identified patients with abnormal cognitive performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Evidence shows interaction between manipulative hand movements and movements of mouth in a vocal and non-vocal context. • In particular, motor planning for grasping and articulatory gestures appear to tightly integrated. • The article proposes novel views about how these hand-mouth connections can contribute to speech development and evolution. Abstract Mounting evidence shows interaction between manipulative hand movements and movements of tongue, lips and mouth in a vocal and non-vocal context. The current article reviews this evidence and discusses its contribution to perspectives of development and evolution of speech. In particular, the article aims to present novel insight on how processes controlling the two primary grasp components of manipulative hand movements, the precision and power grip, might be systematically connected to motor processes involved in producing certain articulatory gestures. This view assumes that due to these motor overlaps between grasping and articulation, development of these grip types in infancy can facilitate development of specific articulatory gestures. In addition, the hand-mouth connections might have even boosted the evolution of some articulatory gestures. This account also proposes that some semantic sound-symbolic pairings between a speech sound and a referent concept might be partially based on these hand-mouth interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Nasalization, tongue height, & breathiness contribute independently to F1 variation. • Network modeling allows bottom-up grouping of articulatory-to-acoustic strategies. • Group separation for nasal-oral vowel distinctions based primarily on tongue height. • Group separation is not based on language background, but speaker-dependent patterns. • A "nasal" vowel is not just velum lowering: it is articulatorily multi-dimensional. Graphical abstract Abstract This study represents an exploratory analysis of a novel method of investigating variation among individual speakers with respect to the articulatory strategies used to modify acoustic characteristics of their speech. Articulatory data (nasalization, tongue height, breathiness) and acoustic data (F1 frequency) related to the distinction of three nasal-oral vowel contrasts in French were co-registered. Data were collected first from four Southern French (FR) speakers and, subsequently, from nine naïve Australian English listeners who imitated the FR productions. Articulatory measurements were mapped to F1 measurements using relative importance analysis (RIA), and the RIA coefficients were used to create similarity scores among all of the speakers. The similarity scores were then used to build network models for each nasal-oral vowel pair, using the spinglass algorithm to identify communities of shared articulatory-to-acoustic strategies within each network. The results show that network grouping is rarely based on language-dependent articulatory-to-acoustic strategies, but evidence of inter- and intra-speaker consistency is observed: Individual speakers tend to group together in their articulatory-to-acoustic strategies across vowel pairs, and most speakers have consistent articulatory-to-acoustic mappings across vowel pairs. Evidence is also observed which highlights the multi-dimensional nature of vowel nasality, rather than the uni-dimensional assumption of "nasal" vowels as merely oral vowels produced with a lowered velum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Short silent intervals were statistically differentiated from pause intervals. • Short silent intervals in speakers with PD were significantly longer than controls. • Speakers with PD had longer Between-word silent intervals compared to controls. • No differences in silent interval duration were observed at any other boundary. Abstract The purpose of the current investigation was to examine a statistical approach to differentiating shorter silent intervals (e.g., stop gaps) from longer silent intervals (e.g., pause) at varying syntactic locations within a reading passage to better characterize articulatory and prosodic aspects of speech timing in Parkinson disease (PD). Silent intervals 15 ms and longer were extracted from reading sample. Logarithmic transformation of the silent interval durations yielded a bimodal distribution. Gaussian Mixture Model analysis was used to statistically differentiate the first mode (Mode 1) that corresponded to short silent intervals from the second mode (Mode 2) that corresponded to longer silent intervals. The syntactic context surrounding each silent interval was also categorized. Results revealed that the large majority of silent intervals that occurred within a clause, phrase, or word were assigned to Mode 1, while the majority of silent intervals that coincided with sentence-ending punctuation were assigned to Mode 2. Results revealed that Mode 1 intervals were slightly, but significantly longer for speakers with PD (Mean = 52.48 ms, SE = 3.23) compared to controls (Mean = 44.67 ms, SE = 2.00). Examination of the surrounding syntactic context revealed that this difference occurred at between-word boundaries contained within a phrase or clause. No between group differences were observed for the other inter- and intra-sentence syntactic boundaries or Mode 2 intervals. This study outlines a data-based approach to differentiating short between- and within-word intervals from longer silent intervals or pauses that reflect the prosodic and syntactic structure of a reading passage. Using this approach, the current data suggest that speakers with PD exhibit longer short silent intervals than controls, potentially reflecting a slight delay in the fluent segment-to-segment transition between words. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A method for quantifying local variation in the relative rates of speech signals is presented. • The method is based on warping curves obtained from dynamic time warping. • Measures of temporal variation obtained from the method can be used to characterize the internal temporal structure of events. • The method is applied to a case study of articulatory data from CVC syllables. This paper describes a method for quantifying temporally local variation in the relative rates of speech signals, based on warping curves obtained from dynamic time warping. Although the use of dynamic time warping for signal alignment is well established in speech science, its use to estimate local rate variation is quite rare. Here we introduce an extension of the local relative rate method that supports the quantification of variability in local relative rate, both within and across a set of events. We show how measures of temporal variation derived from this analysis method can be used to characterize the internal temporal structure of events. In order to achieve this, we first provide an overview of the standard dynamic time warping algorithm. We then introduce the local relative rate measure and describe our extensions, applying them to an articulatory and acoustic dataset of consonant-vowel-consonant syllable productions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • We studied productions of nasal, nasalized and oral vowels in Brazilian Portuguese. • Nasal and oral vowel congeners manifested distinct oropharyngeal articulations. • Systematic differences in F1 were observed for nasal and oral vowel congeners. • Nasalized vowels were not produced in the same manner as nasal vowels. • Nasal vowels are argued to be underlyingly nasal in Brazilian Portuguese. Abstract The phonological feature [± nasal ] does not distinguish systematic oropharyngeal differences between oral, nasal, and phonetically nasalized vowels. A variety of studies now show that oropharyngeal shape may systematically enhance or compensate for the acoustic effects of nasal coupling. Additionally, the phonetic implementation of [− nasal ] vowels in oral and nasal contexts is a matter of some controversy. While the velopharyngeal opening of these vowels has been inferred from aerodynamics, we know of no attempt to directly study the oropharyngeal articulation of underlyingly oral vowels in nasal and oral contexts in a language that may also have phonemically [+ nasal ] vowels. In this study, real-time magnetic resonance imaging (rt-MRI) is used to study vocal tract configuration in Brazilian Portuguese (BP), a language that arguably has [+ nasal ] (phonemically nasal) vowels and two classes of [− nasal ] vowels (oral and phonetically nasalized). Results show oropharyngeal differences between nasal and oral vowel congeners /a∼ã/, /i∼ĩ/ and /u∼ũ/, which arguably enhance well-known acoustic effects of nasal coupling on vowel height. In addition, nasal coda consonants emerge following nasal vowels. Phonetically nasalized vowels, on the other hand, show no sign of nasal enhancement, including nasal coda emergence, implying they are underlyingly oral vowels, despite the environment in which they occur. We argue that nasal vowels in BP are underlyingly / V ̃ / , rather than /VN/ sequences, the latter distinction being reserved for nasalized vowels. Articulatory divergence of [+ nasal ] and [− nasal ] vowels has implications in perception, sound change, and the phonetic implementation of nasality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Objectives Single word tests are used frequently to determine clients' speech sound errors. These tools are user-friendly and popular for speech and language pathologists. The aim of this study was to design and validate a single word test for the assessment of speech sound production for Persian speaking children. Methods The present study included two phases. In phase I, test material was developed. Psychometric properties were evaluated in phase II. In the next phase, 525 typically developing Persian-speaking children with the age range of 3–5 years old were studied. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences, version 24.0 (SPSS, Inc., Chicago, IL) was used for statistical analysis of this study. The significance level was set at (p < 0.05). Pilot study was performed by administrating the test on 25 typically developing children, construct validity: by administrating the test on 400 typically developing children and the comparison of performance of the children in 4 age groups (discriminative validity regarding age and by administration of this test and phonetic subtest of Persian version of diagnostic evaluation of articulation and phonology on 100 children (convergent validity)). Inter-rater reliability was performed by transcription and scoring of samples of 25 children and calculation of Intra Correlation Coefficient (ICC) was calculated. Test-retest was completed by administrating the test two times on 30 children with two weeks intervals. Internal consistency was achieved by the calculation of the correlation of the items of test. Results The final version of the test includes 70 target words for assessment of the consonants in three positions, vowels in medial position and consonant clusters (CVCC). There was 80% or more than it for the percentage agreement between experts for the content validity. There wasn't any significant difference between experts' responses about items of the test. 4 pictures were revised based on children's responses for the pilot study. All of the reliability values (test-re test, internal consistency and inter-rater reliability) were higher than 0.85. There was a significant difference between the four age groups for the mean value of Persian single word test for speech sound production (p < 0.0001). There was a high correlation between the score of this instrument and the scores of participants in the Phonetic sub-test of the Persian version of Diagnostic evaluation of articulation and phonology(r = 0.934, p < 0.0001). Conclusion It seems that the Persian Speech sound Production Test is a reliable and valid tool that can be used to measure speech sound errors for Persian speaking children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • A modified version of the Frenchay Dysarthria Assessment scale (m-FDA) is introduced. • The m-FDA is suitable to evaluate dysarthric speech signals. • Dysarthric speech signals can be accurately modeled using i-vectors. • Longitudinal analyses confirm the robustness and suitability of the method. Abstract Background Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurological disorder that produces motor and non-motor impairments. The evaluation of motor symptoms is currently performed following the third section of the Movement Disorder Society – Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS-III); however, only one item of that scale is related to speech impairments. It is necessary to develop a specific scale such that considers those aspects related to speech impairments of the patients. Aims (i) To introduce and evaluate the suitability of a modified version of the Frenchay Dysarthria Assessment (m-FDA) scale to quantify the dysarthria level of PD patients; (ii) to objectively model dysarthric speech signals considering four speech dimensions; (iii) to develop a methodology, based on speech processing and machine learning methods, to automatically quantify/predict the dysarthria level of patients with PD. Methods The speech recordings are modeled using features extracted from several dimensions of speech: phonation, articulation, prosody, and intelligibility. The dysarthria level is quantified using linear and non-linear regression models. Speaker models based on i-vectors are also explored. Results and conclusions The m-FDA scale was introduced to assess the dysarthria level of patients with PD. Articulation features extracted from continuous speech signals to create i-vectors were the most accurate to quantify the dysarthria level, with correlations of up to 0.69 between the predicted m-FDA scores and those assigned by the phoniatricians. When the dysarthria levels were estimated considering dedicated speech exercises such as rapid repetition of syllables (DDKs) and read texts, the correlations were 0.64 and 0.57, respectively. In addition, the combination of several feature sets and speech tasks improved the results, which validates the hypothesis about the contribution of information from different tasks and feature sets when assessing dysarthric speech signals. The speaker models seem to be promising to perform individual modeling for monitoring the dysarthria level of PD patients. The proposed approach may help clinicians to make more accurate and timely decisions about the evaluation and therapy associated to the dysarthria level of patients. The proposed approach is a great step towards unobtrusive/ecological evaluations of patients with dysarthric speech without the need of attending medical appointments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background Quality of life in tumour patients following combined ablative and reconstructive head and neck surgery varies significantly. This is at least partially due to differences in speech and swallowing function. A tool to objectively evaluate articulation by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has now been tested alongside ultrasound examination. Patients and methods A standardized sequence of phonemes from the German language was established in 20 healthy volunteers and recorded in different planes by MRI and ultrasound. Phonemes were identified through recognition of typical tongue configurations by two different observers. An algorithm for metric analysis of articulation in terms of distances and angles for five extreme points on the tongue (anterior, posterior, cranial and two basal corners) was designed. The findings in these volunteers were subsequently compared with the results of an examination of a tumour patient. Results Physiological articulation was visualized and evaluated both by MRI and ultrasound. There was a high intra-class correlation coefficient for measurements between independent observers. Tongue position for certain phonemes was mostly constant in healthy patients of different age groups, with gender-specific differences. In a first comparison, tongue position in a patient with tongue cancer differed significantly from this position, both pre- and postoperatively. In agreement with clinical articulation quality, the tongue position of the patient returned to almost normal within 12 months postoperatively. Conclusion Both ultrasound and MRI are appropriate instruments for visualization of articulation and objective measurements to evaluate speech in tumour patients. Whilst MRI is more precise and can identify more subtle differences, ultrasound is a valid alternative due to its wider availability and broader applicability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The focus of this case study is the articulation and the acoustics of laterals in Brazilian Portuguese. The study probes 1) the status of velarization in coronal laterals, 2) the articulation of palatal laterals in contrast with the palatal glide and coronal laterals with secondary palatalization, and 3) whether Brazilian Portuguese has 1, 2, or 3 lateral phonemes. As a case study, the findings cannot be generalized. Nevertheless, they generate predictions and demonstrate the capacity of the methods to test these predictions on a broader scale. It was found that for this speaker 1) coronal laterals are not velarized, but pharyngealized, 2) palatal laterals differ from the glide in that they maintain a coronal constriction, but they are minimally different from coronal laterals with secondary palatalization, and 3) the phonological system of this Brazilian Portuguese speaker is consistent with a 1, 2, or 3 lateral inventory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives As a standardized instrument to assess speech sound development in Italian-speaking children is currently lacking, norms used to diagnose speech sound disorders (SSD) are mainly based on studies including English-speaking participants. This application may result in misidentification of SSD due to linguistic differences. The aims of the study were to establish normative data on speech sound development of Italian-speaking children and to evaluate psychometric properties of Rossi's articulation test, the picture-naming test selected to assess speech sound development. Methods A cross-sectional study including 694 normally-developing Italian-speaking children aged from 3 to 7 years was conducted. Children were administered Rossi's articulation test, and percentages of speech sound correct production were calculated. To evaluate inter-rater reliability of the test, audio-recordings of 50 children were scored by an additional examiner. The same rater scored the audio-recordings of 50 children twice with an interval of at least 1 week. To evaluate test-retest reliability, 144 participants were re-tested after 1-3 weeks by the same assessor. Scores were compared through Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC). To assess construct validity, the developmental progression of total scores across age groups was verified by the estimation of the reference range for the test, using a regression procedure. Results Almost all Italian children in the sample produced vowels and approximants correctly. Singleton consonants were acquired before consonant clusters. Ages of acquisition of each consonant were presented: plosives and nasals were early mastered by Italian children, while dental affricates, alveolar fricatives and the palatal lateral were the latest acquired segments. All ICCs were superior to 0.9 (reliability). A statistically significant improvement in test score with age was found (construct validity). Conclusions The paper provides normative data for speech sound development of Italian-speaking children; preliminary psychometric analysis of Rossi's articulation test revealed satisfactory reliability and construct validity. Clinicians are recommended to use Rossi's articulation test to assess speech sound development in Italian children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated: 1) the influence of alphabet instructional content (letter names, letter sounds, or both) on alphabet learning and engagement of English only and dual language learner (DLL) children, and 2) the relation between children’s initial status and growth in three underlying cognitive learning processes (paired-associate, articulation referencing, and orthographic learning) and growth in alphabet learning. Subjects were 83 preschool children in six public preschool classrooms with low-income eligibility thresholds, including 30 DLLs. Children were screened for alphabet knowledge and randomly assigned to small groups and to one of four conditions: experimental letter names or letter sounds only, experimental letter names + sounds (LN + LS), or typical LN + LS. Research assistants provided nine weeks of instruction in each treatment, in 10-min sessions, four days/week. Irrespective of language status, children in the four groups made significant growth from pretest to posttest on measures of alphabet learning. The single-focus letter name or letter sound conditions led to significantly greater growth on taught alphabet content. The experimental LN + LS condition led to greater growth in taught letter names and sounds content compared to the typical LN + LS condition. Pretest vocabulary and alphabet knowledge did not moderate growth, and only limited evidence of differential response to instruction among DLLs was found. Paired associate and articulation referencing learning processes were related to alphabetic growth. Engagement during learning was high in all four treatments. Findings support the benefits of explicit alphabet instruction that enlists cognitive learning processes required for alphabet learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Speech, though communicative, is quite variable both in articulation and acoustics, and it has often been claimed that articulation is more variable. Here we compared variability in articulation and acoustics for 32 speakers in the X-ray microbeam database (XRMB; Westbury, 1994). Variability in tongue, lip and jaw positions for nine English vowels (/u, ʊ, æ, ɑ, ʌ, ɔ, ɛ, ɪ, i/) was compared to that of the corresponding formant values. The domains were made comparable by creating three-dimensional spaces for each: the first three principal components from an analysis of a 14-dimensional space for articulation, and an F1xF2xF3 space for acoustics. More variability occurred in the articulation than the acoustics for half of the speakers, while the reverse was true for the other half. Individual tokens were further from the articulatory median than the acoustic median for 40–60% of tokens across speakers. A separate analysis of three non-low front vowels (/ɛ, ɪ, i/, for which the XRMB system provides the most direct articulatory evidence) did not differ from the omnibus analysis. Speakers tended to be either more or less variable consistently across vowels. Across speakers, there was a positive correlation between articulatory and acoustic variability, both for all vowels and for just the three non-low front vowels. Although the XRMB is an incomplete representation of articulation, it nonetheless provides data for direct comparisons between articulatory and acoustic variability that have not been reported previously. The results indicate that articulation is not more variable than acoustics, that speakers had relatively consistent variability across vowels, and that articulatory and acoustic variability were related for the vowels themselves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A number of investigators have reported that event-related augmentation of high-gamma activity at 70–110 Hz on electrocorticography (ECoG) can localize functionally-important brain regions in children and adults who undergo epilepsy surgery. The advantages of ECoG-based language mapping over the gold-standard stimulation include: (i) lack of stimulation-induced seizures, (ii) better sensitivity of localization of language areas in young children, and (iii) shorter patient participant time. Despite its potential utility, ECoG-based language mapping is far less commonly practiced than stimulation mapping. Here, we have provided video presentations to explain, point-by-point, our own hardware setting and time–frequency analysis procedures. We also have provided standardized auditory stimuli, in multiple languages, ready to be used for ECoG-based language mapping. Finally, we discussed the technical aspects of ECoG-based mapping, including its pitfalls, to facilitate appropriate interpretation of the data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose Combined ablative and reconstructive oral maxillofacial surgery involves a multitude of anatomical and functional structures for speech and swallowing. Although there are a few methods to objectively examine swallowing function, this is not true for speech. We describe the development of an objective visualization and measurement tool for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to evaluate speech and its first application in a patient. Material and methods A total of 20 healthy patients and one patient with squamous cell carcinoma localized in the anterior floor of the mouth were included in the study. Examination included an MRI examination of a paced, defined set of fictive words representing all sounds of the German language. The patient underwent MRI preoperatively and 1, 3, 6 and 12 months postoperatively. MRI findings were correlated with speech intelligibility. Results In sagittal planes, the correct identification of vowels and consonants was feasible and showed a high accordance between two independent observers and repetitions. Measurements for the patient showed significant deviations 1 month postoperatively but gradually decreased over time. Aberrant values were persistent for sound /s/. Findings correlated with clinical findings of speech intelligibility. Conclusion The presented tool seems to be promising for evaluating articulation in (tumor) patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to present a tutorial on a diagnostic framework developed to assess children who stutter and exhibit co-existing disorders. While we have guidelines for treating these children, there are no specific guidelines for assessing them. We provide a rationale for the development of T-PALS with support from the literature. The T-PALS framework assesses 5 foundational key elements for the child: Temperament (T), Pragmatics (P), Articulation/phonology (A), Language (L), and Stuttering (S). Both qualitative and quantitative measures are used within each dimension. This framework is discussed with reference to using two clinical case examples. T-PALS observation data are presented as well as treatment suggestions for each case. We conclude that T-PALS may be a useful framework for both clinicians and researchers, working with children who present with stuttering and comorbid conditions. Clinicians are encouraged to reach beyond the traditional focus on solely assessing the stuttering behavior, even when that is the main concern for referral, and to consider a broader view of the child. It is hoped that this more integrative approach to assessment may yield a more holistic diagnostic picture of a dual diagnosis child from which treatment goals can be derived. • The T-PALS framework is explained to include the components of Temperament, Pragmatics, Language, Articulation, and Stuttering. • A view of each of component improves the SLP's ability to assess children who stutter and present with coexisting disorders. • Thorough assessment using T-PALS could lead to better treatment planning. • Using the T-PALS model, two case studies are provided of a preschooler and a school age child who stutter with coexisting concerns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Apraxia of speech (AOS), a speech impairment caused by left hemisphere stroke, is considered as a clinical model to study the organization of speech motor plans. An earlier nonlinear gestural (NLG) model of word production based on AOS speech error data informs about the structure of phonetic plans of words (Ziegler & Aichert, 2015), but with the disadvantage that it does not allow for single case testing. The latent trait approach presented here complements this model by permitting assessment of the extent to which an individual non-standard word production pattern conforms to the NLG framework. A Rasch model of speech planning ability was calculated using accuracy data from 2 examinations each of 33 clinical cases on 114 German words. Case fit parameters of the patient sample revealed high model conformity of all cases. In simulation studies, simulated cases with response patterns reflecting five different error mechanisms were examined: random, word frequency based, syllable number based, consonant number based, and NLG based. Inclusion of simulated cases in the Rasch model revealed that only the NLG simulation was compatible with the latent trait reflecting speech motor planning ability. Our approach provides a powerful tool to test whether an observed pattern of sound production impairment conforms to the AOS pattern. Under the premise that AOS is considered as a clinical model of acquired speech planning abilities, this framework allows for the testing of specific hypotheses concerning the phonetic basis of ease-of-articulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An articulatory study was conducted to investigate whether fluctuations in exertive mechanisms (attention, effort, motivation, arousal, etc.) have a global effect on articulatory control systems. Participants in the experiment produced an articulatory pattern 400 times, attempting to do so as consistently as possible. Evidence for global exertive modulation was obtained in the form of widespread correlations between variables associated with biomechanically independent systems such as phonation, linguo-labial coordination, and head movement/posture. Analyses of movement timing autocorrelation showed evidence for random walk-like dynamics on short timescales and equilibrium dynamics on long timescales, along with evidence for low- and high-exertion states of production. An extension of the coupled oscillators model of articulatory coordination is presented to account for these phenomena. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective The articulatory loop is a fundamental component of language function, involved in the short-term buffer of auditory information followed by its vocal reproduction. We characterized the network dynamics of the human articulatory loop, using invasive recording and stimulation. Methods We measured high-gamma activity 70–110 Hz recorded intracranially when patients with epilepsy either only listened to, or listened to and then reproduced two successive tones by humming. We also conducted network analyses, and analyzed behavioral responses to cortical stimulation. Results Presentation of the initial tone elicited high-gamma augmentation bilaterally in the superior-temporal gyrus (STG) within 40 ms, and in the precentral and inferior-frontal gyri (PCG and IFG) within 160 ms after sound onset. During presentation of the second tone, high-gamma augmentation was reduced in STG but enhanced in IFG. The task requiring tone reproduction further enhanced high-gamma augmentation in PCG during and after sound presentation. Event-related causality (ERC) analysis revealed dominant flows within STG immediately after sound onset, followed by reciprocal interactions involving PCG and IFG. Measurement of cortico-cortical evoked-potentials (CCEPs) confirmed connectivity between distant high-gamma sites in the articulatory loop. High-frequency stimulation of precentral high-gamma sites in either hemisphere induced speech arrest, inability to control vocalization, or forced vocalization. Vocalization of tones was accompanied by high-gamma augmentation over larger extents of PCG. Conclusions Bilateral PCG rapidly and directly receives feed-forward signals from STG, and may promptly initiate motor planning including sub-vocal rehearsal for short-term buffering of auditory stimuli. Enhanced high-gamma augmentation in IFG during presentation of the second tone may reflect high-order processing of the tone sequence. Significance The articulatory loop employs sustained reciprocal propagation of neural activity across a network of cortical sites with strong neurophysiological connectivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a variety of languages, changes in tongue height and breathiness have been observed to covary with nasalization in both phonetic and phonemic vowel nasality. It has been argued that this covariation stems from speakers using multiple articulations to enhance F1 modulation and/or from listeners misperceiving the articulatory basis for F1 modification. This study includes results from synchronous nasalance, ultrasound, EGG, and F1 data related to the realizations of the oral–nasal vowel pairs /ɛ/-/ɛ̃/, /a/-/ɑ̃/, and /o/-/ɔ̃/ of Southern French (SF) as produced by four male speakers in a laboratory setting. The aim of the study is to determine to what extent tongue height and breathiness covary with nasalization, as well as how these articulations affect the realization of F1. The following evidence is observed: (1) that nasalization, breathiness, and tongue height are used in idiosyncratic ways to distinguish F1 for each vowel pair; (2) that increased nasalization and breathiness significantly predict F1-lowering for all three nasal vowels; (3) that nasalization increases throughout the duration of the nasal vowels, supporting previous claims about the temporal nature of nasality in SF nasal vowels, but contradicting claims that SF nasal vowels comprise distinct oral and nasal elements; (4) that breathiness increases in a gradient manner as nasalization increases; and (5) that the acoustic and articulatory data provide limited support for claims of the existence of an excrescent nasal coda in SF nasal vowels. These results are discussed in the light of claims that the multiple articulatory components observed in the production of vowel nasalization may have arisen due to misperception-based sound change and/or to phonetic enhancement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The human vocal system is highly plastic, allowing for the flexible expression of language, mood and intentions. However, this plasticity is not stable throughout the life span, and it is well documented that adult learners encounter greater difficulty than children in acquiring the sounds of foreign languages. Researchers have used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to interrogate the neural substrates of vocal imitation and learning, and the correlates of individual differences in phonetic “talent”. In parallel, a growing body of work using MR technology to directly image the vocal tract in real time during speech has offered primarily descriptive accounts of phonetic variation within and across languages. In this paper, we review the contribution of neural MRI to our understanding of vocal learning, and give an overview of vocal tract imaging and its potential to inform the field. We propose methods by which our understanding of speech production and learning could be advanced through the combined measurement of articulation and brain activity using MRI – specifically, we describe a novel paradigm, developed in our laboratory, that uses both MRI techniques to for the first time map directly between neural, articulatory and acoustic data in the investigation of vocalisation. This non-invasive, multimodal imaging method could be used to track central and peripheral correlates of spoken language learning, and speech recovery in clinical settings, as well as provide insights into potential sites for targeted neural interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the acoustical features of speech sounds in children have been extensively studied, limited information is available as to their articulation during speech production. Instead of directly measuring articulatory movements, this study used an acoustic-to-articulatory inversion model with scalable vocal tract size to estimate developmental changes in articulatory state during vowel production. Using a pseudo-inverse Jacobian matrix of a model mapping seven articulatory parameters to acoustic ones, the formant frequencies of each vowel produced by three Japanese children over time at ages between 6 and 60 months were transformed into articulatory parameters. We conducted the discriminant analysis to reveal differences in articulatory states for production of each vowel. The analysis suggested that development of vowel production went through gradual functionalization of articulatory parameters. At 6-9 months, the coordination of position of tongue body and lip aperture forms three vowels: front, back, and central. At 10-17 months, recruitments of jaw and tongue apex enable differentiation of these three vowels into five. At 18 months and older, recruitment of tongue shape produces more distinct vowels specific to Japanese. These results suggest that the jaw and tongue apex contributed to speech production by young children regardless of kinds of vowel. Moreover, initial articulatory states for each vowel could be distinguished by the manner of coordination between lip and tongue, and these initial states are differentiated and refined into articulations adjusted to the native language over the course of development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several studies have reported hyperactivation in frontal and striatal regions in individuals with reading disorder (RD) during reading-related tasks. Hyperactivation in these regions is typically interpreted as a form of neural compensation related to articulatory processing. Fronto-striatal hyperactivation in RD could however, also arise from fundamental impairment in reading related processes, such as phonological processing and implicit sequence learning relevant to early language acquisition. We review current evidence for the compensation hypothesis in RD and apply large-scale reverse inference to investigate anatomical overlap between hyperactivation regions and neural systems for articulation, phonological processing, implicit sequence learning. We found anatomical convergence between hyperactivation regions and regions supporting articulation, consistent with the proposed compensatory role of these regions, and low convergence with phonological and implicit sequence learning regions. Although the application of large-scale reverse inference to decode function in a clinical population should be interpreted cautiously, our findings suggest future lines of research that may clarify the functional significance of hyperactivation in RD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Résumé L'arthrose est la maladie articulaire la plus fréquente. Le vieillissement de la population, l'hérédité, les anomalies du métabolisme ainsi que des pathologies telles que l'obésité et les traumatismes ou microtraumatismes répétés sont impliqués. Les principaux objectifs de prise en charge sont le soulagement de la douleur et le maintien de la fonction articulaire. Summary Osteoarthritis is the most common joint disease. The ageing of the population, heredity, metabolic anomalies as well as pathologies such as obesity and repeated trauma or microtrauma are involved. The main treatment objectives are pain relief and the maintenance of joint function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper investigates articulatory and acoustic variation in Polish palatalised retroflex sibilants compared with their plain counterparts. It tests the hypothesis advanced by Hamann (2003: 44) that palatalised retroflexes are non-existent and that retroflexes in Polish change to palato-alveolars [ʃ ʒ t͡ʃ d͡ʒ] when being palatalised. Based on articulatory data from 20 speakers we provide evidence that at least part of the data (53.5%) are palatalised retroflexes [ʂʲ ʐʲ ʈ͡ʂʲ ɖ͡ʐʲ]. The plain counterparts are shown to be retroflex, as proposed by Hamann (2003). Our averaged results indicate that both palatalised and plain retroflexes show a convex tongue shape. However, individual data reveals a wide range of realisations, from a bunched dorsum to flat and even hollowed tongue shapes. Taking this variability into account, we propose a new tongue shape classification based on Heron's Formula – i.e. concave, slightly concave, flat, convex and slightly convex. The different tongue shapes are also visualised in the form of videos created using GAMMs. Regarding acoustic results, our analysis reveals that the strongest correlate of palatalised retroflex sibilants is longer duration of frication in palatalised sibilants followed by higher Centre of Gravity (COG) and m1 spectral slope. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within the EU-funded Space@Sea project, a standardized floating solution for offshore space was developed, and modularity was one of the key elements. Computational tools used to design and analyze such modules must be validated. The objective here was to critically examine the capability of a potential-flow solver to predict wave-induced motions and loads on offshore systems consisting of such articulated modules, as this kind of solver is often used to assess the safety and effectiveness of articulated multibody offshore structures. A frequency-domain analysis considered only the hydrodynamic interactions between two floating modules, by locking the motions of interacting structures. A time-domain analysis treated also the mechanical coupling effects between the two articulated floating modules. Comparative computations from a RANS-based solver and experimental model measurements were available to validate the results. Although the agreement was reasonable between numerical predictions and experimental measurements for the floating modules in wave frequencies far away from their natural frequencies, deviations were observed in waves at frequencies in the neighborhood of the module's natural frequencies. Generally, the agreement between numerically predicted and experimentally measured hinge forces was favorable. The effects of incident wave angles on hinge forces revealed that numerically predicted hinge forces at all incident wave heading angles compared favorably to measurements. An accurate evaluation of wave-induced motions and loads on articulated floating structures was possible only by accounting also for nonlinearities associated with the connecting joints. [Display omitted] • Articulated modular floating structures were experimentally and numerically studied. • Multibody interactions together with the nonlinear mechanical joints were considered. • Validations against RANS computations and model test measurements were performed. • Numerical predictions agreed favorably to experimental measurements. • Capabilities of the adopted solver were characterized as well as its limitations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present studies examined a novel explanation for the in-out effect, the phenomenon that words with inward wanderings of consonantal articulation spots are preferred over words with outward wanderings. We hypothesized that processing fluency might account for the in-out effect instead of, or in addition to, the originally proposed mechanism of motor-associated motivational states. Inward words could be more fluently processed than outward words, which could lead to the preference effect. Corpus analyses ( Studies 1a and 1b ) revealed more inward than outward words in English and German, which could account for their differing fluency. Additionally, inward compared to outward words were pronounced faster ( Study 2 ) and were rated as being easier to pronounce ( Studies 3a and 3b ), indicating greater fluency. Crucially, a mediation analysis ( Study 4 ) suggests that the influence of consonantal direction on preference was partially mediated by fluency. However, accounting for the influence of fluency still left a significant residual in-out effect, not accounted for by our fluency measure. This evidence supports a partial causal contribution of articulation fluency to the in-out effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose Moebius Syndrome is a rare congenital neurological condition often characterized by multiple cranial nerve involvement. This case study presents an eight-year old girl with Moebius Syndrome (MC) who received 30 sessions of speech therapy. This occurred after presenting to clinic 11 months after left facial reanimation with gracilis thigh muscle transfer surgery. On examination, only flickers of left facial movement were observed. There was no movement on the right side of the face. As a consequence of the minimal movement, MC presented with drooling and unintelligible speech. The purpose of speech therapy was three fold: minimise the pooling of saliva, improve the placement of the articulators so that articulation of speech sounds would be more accurate, and gain advances in overall intelligibility. Methods Therapy focussed on speech, facial movement and saliva management using a combination of speech drills, evidence-based articulation therapies, facial exercises with surface electromyography biofeedback, self-awareness training and compensatory saliva management strategies. Results After a course of 30 one-hour speech therapy sessions, substantial improvements were seen in speech sound accuracy, overall intelligibility, facial movement and saliva control. Conclusions The combination of surgery and speech therapy led to functional gains that surgery alone did not achieve. The impact of speech therapy on surgical outcomes in individuals with Moebius syndrome deserves further investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gender-dependent differentiation of the brain at morphological, neurochemical and functional levels of organization have been shown to be primarily controlled by sex differences in gonadal hormone concentrations during pre- and early postnatal development. Indeed, previous studies have reported that pre- and perinatal hormonal environments influence brain development and, consequently, affect sex specific long-term language outcomes. Herein, we investigated whether postnatal surges of estrogen (estradiol) and androgen (testosterone) may predict properties of pre-speech babbling at five months. This study is the first attempt to investigate a possible correlation between sex hormones and infants' articulatory skills during the typical postnatal period of extended hormonal activity known as 'mini-puberty.' A hierarchical, multiple regression approach revealed a significant, robust positive relationship between 4-week concentrations of estradiol and individual articulatory skills. In contrast, testosterone concentrations at five months negatively correlated with articulatory skills at the same age in both boys and girls. Our findings reinforce the assumption of the importance of sex hormones for auditory-vocal development towards language in human infants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is known that articulating different syllables is linked to different grasp actions, e.g. [ti] is linked to precision grip, and [kɑ] to power grip. The aim of the present study was to test whether articulating or hearing these syllables would result in an increased activity in the representation of hand muscles involved in these two actions in a muscle-specific manner. To this end, we used transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to investigate changes in the excitability of the left primary motor cortex (M1) innervating hand muscles while participants articulated or listened to meaningless syllables, listened to a metronome, or observed a fixation cross. The motor-evoked potentials of two hand muscles associated with either a precision or power grip exhibited significantly greater amplitudes during articulation than in passive listening, metronome, and fixation cross conditions. Moreover, these muscles exhibited similar patterns of excitability during articulation regardless of which syllable was articulated. The increased excitability of the left M1 hand area during articulation, but not during perception of the syllables, might be due to the cortico-cortical interaction between the motor representations of oral organs with the hand area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives The purpose of the current study was to assess the short-term effectiveness of short and intensive speech therapy provided to patients with cleft (lip and) palate (C(L)P) in terms of articulation and resonance. Methods Five Ugandan patients (age: 7.3-19.6 years) with non-syndromic C(L)P received six hours of individualized speech therapy in three to four days. Speech therapy focused on correct phonetic placement and contrasts between oral and nasal airflow and resonance. Speech evaluations performed before and immediately after speech therapy, including perceptual and instrumental assessment techniques, were compared. Results Post-therapy, improvement of speech was noted for most of the patients, although to varying degrees. Clinically relevant progress of objective nasalance values and/or articulation was obtained in four patients. Overall, two patients showed normal speech intelligibility, while three patients required additional speech therapy. Conclusion These preliminary short-term results demonstrate that short and intensive speech therapy can be effective for patients with C(L)P in countries with limited access to speech-language therapy. However, further research is needed on the long-term effectiveness and the advantages of applying this treatment protocol in countries with good access to speech therapy. Learning outcomes The reader will be able to (1) list the challenges in resource poor-countries to achieve access to speech-language therapy services, (2) describe when the application of speech therapy is appropriate in patients with C(L)P, (3) describe the speech therapy that can be applied to reduce compensatory articulation and resonance disorders in patients with C(L)P, and (4) list the (possible) advantages of short, intensive speech therapy for both resource-poor and developed countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Can the articulation of government policy affect behavior? Participants in our experiment report their probability of purchasing health insurance under one of two financially equivalent policies: a government mandate to purchase insurance or a tax on the uninsured. During our one-year study frame, controversy arose over the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate. Pre-controversy, the mandate articulation increased purchase by 10.2 percentage points relative to the tax articulation (equivalent to a $1000 decrease in premiums). Post-controversy, the mandate was no more effective than the tax. We show that articulation affects behavior and should be considered when evaluating the efficacy of policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Résumé L’arthrose est une pathologie fréquente, qui altère fortement la qualité de vie. Cette affection est un véritable fardeau sociétal du fait de sa forte prévalence chez les patients âgés de plus de 45 ans. Elle est la résultante de phénomènes mécaniques et biologiques perturbant l’équilibre entre la synthèse et la dégradation du cartilage et de l’os sous-chondral. De nombreux facteurs, génétiques, métaboliques et traumatiques, interviennent. Summary Osteoarthritis is a common pathology which significantly affects the patient's quality of life. This condition is a real burden on society due to its prevalence among patients aged over 45. It is the result of mechanical and biological phenomena which alter the balance between the synthesis and the deterioration of the cartilage and the subchondral bone. Numerous factors, genetic, metabolic and traumatic, are involved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This acoustic and articulatory pilot study examines the North American English /ɹ/ productions of English-speaking children during acquisition, and compares their early- and later-stage productions with /ɹ/ allophony patterns reported in previous studies with adults. Ultrasound imaging is used to investigate the articulatory behavior of four children, aged 3–6 years, during production of familiar lexical items containing prevocalic, post-vocalic, and syllabic /ɹ/. Shape analysis of the tongue is conducted using a technique that is highly robust against rotational and translational differences from token to token. Participants exhibited behaviors that are consistent with adults' in previous studies, showing both intra- and inter-speaker variability, and similar patterns of allophony based on syllable position, consonant place of articulation, and vowel quality. For three participants, variable behavior occurred prevocalically, in contexts where adults tend to exhibit the greatest amount of allophonic variation. Variable behavior during acquisition of an articulatorily complex speech sound provides a plausible explanation for the variability that has been previously reported with adults. If a child's dominant strategy for reaching adult-like targets proves ineffective in certain contexts, that may motivate exploratory behavior that could lead to a stable alternative strategy in those contexts over time. Participants' later-stage productions mirror allophony patterns observed with adults in previous studies. The current research adds to the literature on children's articulatory behavior during acquisition, and to the body of accumulated knowledge on North American English /ɹ/. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the relationship between clearly produced and plain citation form speech styles and motion of visible articulators. Using state-of-the-art computer-vision and image processing techniques, we examined both front and side view videos of speakers’ faces while they recited six English words (keyed, kid, cod, cud, cooed, could) containing various vowels differing in visible articulatory features (e.g., lip spreading, lip rounding, jaw displacement), and extracted measurements corresponding to the lip and jaw movements. We compared these measurements in clear and plain speech produced by 18 native English speakers. Based on statistical analyses, we found significant effects of speech style as well as speaker gender and saliency of visual speech cues. Compared to plain speech, we found in clear speech longer duration, greater vertical lip stretch and jaw displacement across vowels, greater horizontal lip stretch for front unrounded vowels, and greater degree of lip rounding and protrusion for rounded vowels. Additionally, greater plain-to-clear speech modifications were found for male speakers than female speakers. These articulatory movement data demonstrate that speakers modify their speech productions in response to communicative needs in different speech contexts. These results also establish the feasibility of utilizing novel computerized facial detection techniques to measure articulatory movements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To compare the consonant production of Chinese-speaking cleft palate children with perceived hypernasal resonance (PHR) after palatoplasty and those with perceived normal resonance (PNR), and to assess the possible influence of language on articulation. Setting Two hospital cleft lip and palate centers in mainland China. Participants Thirty-one speakers were allocated into two groups based on perceptual judgment results of their resonance provided by three speech therapists: one group with PNR ( n = 20, average age = 9.3 years), and another group with PHR ( n = 11, average age = 8.3 years). All participants had no known hearing or cognitive deficits. Intervention Articulation was evaluated using two Mandarin Chinese assessment tools, the Putonghua Segmental Phonology Test and the Deep Test for Cleft Palate Speakers in Putonghua. Speaker consonant accuracy was evaluated by two experienced speech therapists. Results Compared to individuals with PNR, the PHR group exhibited more difficulties on production of unaspirated consonants, including/ b /,/ t /,/ k /,/ ts /,/ t ʂ/ and/ t ɕ/, than for aspirated consonants. Conclusion The distinctive feature of aspiration in Mandarin phonology brought a language specific pattern to consonant production among those speakers with PHR after primary palatal closure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]