Phonetic Transcription for Speech-Language Pathology in the 21st Century.

The past few decades have seen rapid changes in speech-language pathology in terms of technology, information on speech production and perception, and increasing levels of multilingualism in communities. This tutorial provides an overview of phonetic transcription for the modern world, both for work with clients, and for research and training. The authors draw on their backgrounds in phonetics, phonology and speech-language pathology, and their crosslinguistic project in the phonological acquisition of children with typical versus protracted phonological development. Challenges and solutions are presented, as well as resources for further training of students, clinicians and researchers.

Assessment of environmental and ergonomic hazard associated to printing and photocopying: a review.

"Knowledge is power" and distribution of knowledge is fueled by printing and photocopying industry. Even as printing and photocopying industry have revolutionized the availability of documents and perceptible image quickly at extremely inexpensive and affordable cost, the boon of its revolution has turned into a bane by irresponsible, uncontrolled and extensive use, causing irreversible degradation to not only ecosystem by continuous release of ozone and other volatile organic compounds (VOCs) but also the health of workers occupationally exposed to it. Indoor ozone level due to emission from different photocopying equipment's increases drastically and the condition of other air quality parameters are not different. This situation is particularly sedate in extremely sensitive educational and research industry where sharing of knowledge is extremely important to meet the demands. This work is an attempt to catalogue all the environmental as well as health impacts of printing or photocopying. It has been observed that printing/photocopying operation is a significant factor contributing to indoor air quality degradation, which includes increase in concentration of ozone, VOCs, semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) and heavy metals such as cadmium, selenium, arsenic, zinc, nickel, and other pollutants from photocopy machines. The outcome of this study will empower the manufactures with information regarding ozone and other significant emission, so that their impact can be reduced.

Audio-digital recordings used for independent confirmation of site-based MADRS interview scores.

Signal detection requires ratings reliability throughout a clinical trial. The confirmation of site-based rater scores by a second, independent and blinded rater is a reasonable metric of ratings reliability. We used audio-digital pens to record site-based interviews of the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) in a double-blind, placebo controlled trial of a novel antidepressant in treatment resistant depressed patients. Blinded, site-independent raters generated "dual" scores that revealed high correlations between site-based and site-independent raters (r=0.940 for all ratings) and high sensitivity, specificity, predictive values, and kappa coefficients for treatment response and non-response outcomes using the site-based rater scores as the standard. The blinded raters achieved an 89.4% overall accuracy and 0.786 kappa for matching the treatment response or non-response outcomes of the site-based raters. A limitation of this method is that independent ratings depend on the quality of site-based interviews and patient responses to the site-based interviewers. Nonetheless, this quality assurance strategy may have broad applicability for studies that use subjective measures and wherever ratings reliability is a concern. "Dual" scoring of recorded site-based ratings can be a relatively unobtrusive surveillance strategy to confirm scores and to identify and remediate rater "outliers" during a study.

3D printing of microscopic bacterial communities.

Bacteria communicate via short-range physical and chemical signals, interactions known to mediate quorum sensing, sporulation, and other adaptive phenotypes. Although most in vitro studies examine bacterial properties averaged over large populations, the levels of key molecular determinants of bacterial fitness and pathogenicity (e.g., oxygen, quorum-sensing signals) may vary over micrometer scales within small, dense cellular aggregates believed to play key roles in disease transmission. A detailed understanding of how cell-cell interactions contribute to pathogenicity in natural, complex environments will require a new level of control in constructing more relevant cellular models for assessing bacterial phenotypes. Here, we describe a microscopic three-dimensional (3D) printing strategy that enables multiple populations of bacteria to be organized within essentially any 3D geometry, including adjacent, nested, and free-floating colonies. In this laser-based lithographic technique, microscopic containers are formed around selected bacteria suspended in gelatin via focal cross-linking of polypeptide molecules. After excess reagent is removed, trapped bacteria are localized within sealed cavities formed by the cross-linked gelatin, a highly porous material that supports rapid growth of fully enclosed cellular populations and readily transmits numerous biologically active species, including polypeptides, antibiotics, and quorum-sensing signals. Using this approach, we show that a picoliter-volume aggregate of Staphylococcus aureus can display substantial resistance to ß-lactam antibiotics by enclosure within a shell composed of Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

2D and 3D anatomical analyses of hand dimensions for custom-made gloves.

Measuring hand anthropometric data for the development of good-fitting gloves is crucial. In pursuing higher accuracy in hand anthropometric measurements, scanning of hand surfaces with the aids of image analysis system to acquire measurements is an alternative to the manual methods. This study proposes a new hand measuring approach by using 2D and 3D scanning which are evaluated through comparisons of manual measurements. Thirty-three dimensions are measured by using (1) tape and calliper measurement; (2) 2D image analysis; (3) 3D image analysis based on ten captures; and (4) 3D image analysis based on three captures, respectively. Repeated-measures ANOVA, correlation analysis and RMSE are used to examine the results. The hand dimensions obtained from the four methods are highly linearly correlated. Hand data taken from 3D image analysis has no significant difference compared with manual measurements on hand and wrist circumferences, length and breadth dimension, regardless of the number of captures.

Paperless strategies rely on document imaging. Document imaging provides a bridge to the paperless hospital.

Hospitals that have tried to shed their reliance on paper have found the task fraught with challenges. Some have found that document imaging provides a useful interim step in meeting their goal.

Comparison of dry laser printer versus paper printer in full-field digital mammography.

BACKGROUND: Paper printers have been used to document radiological findings in some hospitals. It is critical to establish whether paper printers can achieve the same efficacy and quality as dry laser printers for full-field digital mammography (FFDM). PURPOSE: To compare the image quality and detection rate of dry laser printers and paper printers for FFDM. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Fifty-five cases (25 with single clustered microcalcifications and 30 controls) were selected by a radiologist not participating in the image review. All images were printed on film and paper by one experienced mammography technologist using the processing algorithm routinely used for our mammograms. Two radiologists evaluated hard copies from dry laser printers and paper printers for image quality and detectability of clustered microcalcifications. For the image quality comparisons, agreement between the reviewers was evaluated by means of kappa statistics. The significance of differences between both of the printers was determined using Wilcoxon's signed-rank test. The detection rate of two printing systems was evaluated using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. RESULTS: From 110 scores (55 patients, two readers) per printer system, the following quality results were achieved for dry laser printer images: 70 (63.6%) were rated as good and 40 (36.4%) as moderate. By contrast, for the paper printer images, 25 scores (22.7%) were rated as good and 85 (77.3%) as moderate. Therefore, the image quality of the dry laser printer was superior to that achieved by the paper printer (P=0.00). The average area-under-the-curve (Az) values for the dry laser printer and the paper printer were 0.991 and 0.805, respectively. The difference was 0.186. Results of ROC analysis showed significant difference in observer performance between the dry laser printer and paper printer (P=0.0015). CONCLUSION: The performance of dry laser printers is superior to that of paper printers. Paper printers should not be used in FFDM.

Efectos de la práctica asistida a través de ordenador en la lectura y ortografía de niños con dificultades de aprendizaje / Effects of computer-assisted practice on reading and spelling in children with learning disabilities

El objetivo de esta investigación consistió en analizar los efectos de la práctica asistida a través de ordenador en la lectura y ortografía de niños con dificultades de aprendizaje en escritura (DAE) en lengua española. Comparamos tres condiciones de práctica, una con lectura y las otras dos con escritura. Para ello se utilizó un diseño de grupo control pretest-postest. Participaron un total de 85 sujetos con DAE, entre 8 y 10 años de edad (M= 111.02; DT= 9.6). Los sujetos presentaban un retraso en escritura de dos años y se asignaron al azar a cuatro grupos experimentales: un grupo de tratamiento copiaba la palabra directamente de la pantalla del ordenador (n= 22), un grupo de tratamiento escribía la palabra de memoria (n= 21), un grupo de tratamiento solo leía la palabra en voz alta (n= 21) y un grupo control que no recibía tratamiento (n= 21). Se analizaron los efectos directos y de transferencia del tratamiento sobre la escritura de palabras que difieren en longitud, consistencia ortográfica y estructura silábica. Los resultados mostraron que la lectura no mejora la ortografía, y que la condición de copia ayudó a los niños con DAE a mejorar sus habilidades ortográficas (AU)

The main purpose of this study was to analyze the effects of computer-assisted practice on reading and spelling in children with learning disabilities (LD). We compared three practice conditions, one with reading and two with spelling, in order to test whether computer-based reading and spelling practice has an influence on the development of reading and spelling ability in children with LD. A sample was selected of 85 children with LD, with age range between 8 years and 10 years (age, M= 111.02, SD= 9.6), whose spelling performance was two years below grade level. The participants were randomly assigned to one of four groups: 1) Copy the target word from the computer screen (n= 22), 2) Memorize the target word and write it from memory (n= 21), 3) Word reading (n= 21), and 4) the untrained control group (n= 21). We administered measures of pseudoword reading, phonological awareness, phonological word decoding and orthographical word decoding tasks. We examined the learning effects and transfer effects on words classified as a function of length, consistency, and complexity of syllable structure. Overall, the results showed that reading training did not improve spelling; however, the children who participated in the copy training condition improved their spelling skills (AU)

Digital images obtained with a digital camera are not associated with a loss of critical information--a preliminary study.

AIM: To investigate whether digital images obtained by a digital camera are deficient compared to the original radiographs. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty pairs of bitewing radiographs of children and 40 anterior periapical radiographs were photographed using a digital camera. Images were saved as JPEG files and loaded onto a laptop. Film radiographs and digital images as scanned and after adjustments were evaluated for proximal caries and for periapical pathologies. RESULTS: A not statistically significant higher number of proximal lesions were observed on plain-film and enhanced digital images than on unenhanced images. Enhanced digital images resulted in significantly more diagnoses of external root resorption compared with conventional radiographs. Pulp canals appeared significantly more abnormal (obliterated or enlarged) in digital images compared with film radiographs. CONCLUSIONS: Storing existing radiographs in a digital medium for space saving purposes using a digital camera does not loose critical information.Clinical implication Clinicians can use digital cameras to digitise and store radiographic images without losing important diagnostic information.

Perpendicular magnetic recording--its development and realization.

The principle of conventional magnetic recording is that magnetic fields are applied parallel to the plane of the magnetic medium. As described in this paper, the invention and development of a new method of placing the magnetized information perpendicular to the plane of the magnetic recording medium is presented. The yield in the mass production of high-density hard disk drives (HDDs) for perpendicular recording is much higher than that of HDDs for conventional recording. Consequently, it is estimated that as many as 75% of the 500 million HDDs to be shipped this year will use this technology.

Copying letters to children and parents: audit and survey of nurses' views.

AIM: To discover whether community children's nurses and other members of the multi-disciplinary team had changed their practice in the light of the 'copying letters' initiative recommended by the Department of Health and to seek their views on the process. METHOD: A documentary analysis of the notes was undertaken on 30 sets of notes chosen at random from the community children's nursing team's caseload and the total number of letters in each child's notes was retrospectively recorded for periods before and after the implementation of the 'copying letter initiative'. In addition, 14 community children's nurses were interviewed about their communication practice. RESULTS: Letters accounted for 70 per cent of the total correspondence in the children's notes. Most of the 466 letters were from doctors (65 per cent) with nine per cent having been sent by community children's nurses. Before the initiative 70 per cent of letters from medical staff were copied compared to 74 per cent afterwards, with community children's nurses copying 19% of letters before and 47% afterwards. Only 13 were sent to the child. Nurses commented on changes to their practice since the copying initiative began and reported varying use of other forms of communication such as text messaging and email. CONCLUSION Professionals should be encouraged to copy letters to parents and children. A number of technologies are available to facilitate communication between patients, parents and other health care professionals. Careful consideration must be given to their introduction to ensure their use conforms to legal and professional codes and good practice principles.

Where have all the copy letters gone? A review of current practice in professional-patient correspondence.

OBJECTIVE: This article reviews the literature in relation to patients receiving copies of health professional correspondence. It examines progress in adopting the practice 3 years on from its introduction as policy in the UK, and considers potential benefits and obstacles to implementation. METHODS: A review of the literature on copy correspondence, accessed via Medline, PubMed, CINAHL and also online resources, using the search terms "patient letter", "copy letter", "copy correspondence" and "doctor letter". RESULTS: Studies describe a range of benefits from copying letters, but implementation remains inconsistent, ranging from 8 to 87% of patients reporting receiving copy correspondence. A number of concerns are identified which may be delaying whole scale adoption of the policy by health professionals. CONCLUSION: This review suggests that researchers should move from examining the benefits and concerns around copying letters to patients, and instead focus on exploring the quality of correspondence and the optimum process of implementing the practice. As patients can "opt out" of receiving copy correspondence, audit of service delivery may be better assessed by whether patients have been offered a letter, rather than the current measure of whether one has been received. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Copying letters to patients may have a number of important benefits and should be routine practice where patients wish to receive correspondence. Further discussion regarding the style and content of letters would be beneficial, together with attention paid to the mechanisms for recording patient preference. There is also a need for studies in non-medical professions.

Display considerations for hospital-wide viewing of soft copy images.

Digital imaging is progressively replacing film for the acquisition and display of diagnostic images in modern health care. Specifications for the devices used for the soft copy display of images are not currently well defined, nor are the requirements for optimal set-up and quality assurance. This paper considers the current situation and presents potential hospital-wide solutions for the outstanding issues.