Comparing musicians and non-musicians in signal-in-noise perception.

Objectives: The objective is to compare musicians and non-musicians in signal-in-noise perception.Design: Participants underwent the following tests: (1) High-frequency (HF) audiometry, (2) QuickSIN (a test for speech perception in noise), and (3) Binaural Masking Level Difference (BMLD) test (a test that examines the hearing threshold of a low-frequency tone from noise masking when the phase of the signal or noise in one ear is reversed with respect to the phase of the signal or noise in the other ear, i.e. the difference in the threshold for detection of the tone in noise under the SπNo and SoNo conditions).Study sample: Thirty-four healthy young normal-hearing listeners including 17 musicians (M) and 17 non-musicians (NM).Results: There were no study group difference in HF audiometry and QuickSIN. The M group had a significantly better performance under the SoNo but not under the SπNo condition. As a result, the BMLD value (SoNo-SπNo) was significantly smaller in the M group than in the NM group.Conclusions: There is a musicians' advantage in binaural tone-in-noise detection in the BMLD task under the SoNo condition, suggesting that long-term music training positively shapes the auditory system.

Thermal and Guest-Assisted Structural Transition in the NH2-MIL-53(Al) Metal Organic Framework: A Molecular Dynamics Simulation Investigation.

Reversible structural transition between the Large (LP) and Narrow Pore (NP) forms (breathing phenomena) of the MIL-53(X, X = Al, Cr, Fe, Ga) Metal Organic Framework (MOF) is probably one of the most amazing physical properties of this class of soft-porous materials. Whereas great attention has been paid to the elucidation of the physical mechanism ruling this reversible transition, the effect of the functionalization on the flexibility has been less explored. Among functionalized MIL-53(Al) materials, the case of NH2-MIL-53(Al) is undoubtedly a very intriguing structural transition rarely observed, and the steadier phase corresponds to the narrow pore form. In this work, the flexibility of the NH2-MIL-53(Al) metal organic framework was investigated by means of molecular dynamics simulations. Guest (methanol) and thermal breathing of the NH2-MIL-53(Al) was thus explored. We show that it is possible to trigger a reversible transition between NP and LP forms upon adsorption, and we highlight the existence of stable intermediate forms and a very large pore phase. Furthermore, the NP form is found thermodynamically stable from 240 to 400 K, which is the result of strong intramolecular hydrogen bonds.