Efficacy of the accent method of voice therapy

The management of voice disorders may follow one of four approaches: surgical, pharmacological, technical aid, and/or voice therapy. The latter approach offers a wide variety of techniques, each based on certain theoretical beliefs. One of these techniques is the Smith Accent Method. The principles and goals of the Accent Method are presented. The results of its application are discussed. This technique proved effective for cases of functional voice disorders, vocal nodules, and some degrees of vocal fold paralysis.     

THERMODYNAMIC AND PARTICLE-DYNAMIC STUDIES ON SYNTHESIS OF SILICA NANOPARTICLES USING MICROWAVE-INDUCED PLASMA CVD

1. Introduction1.1 Silica nanoparticles and synthesis methods Silica (SiO2) nanoparticles are widely used in industry asan active filler for polymer reinforcement, a rheologicaladditive in fluids, a free flow agent in powders, and anagent for chemical mechanical polishing during IC (inte-grated circuit) fabrication (Sniegowski & de Boer, 2000).Silica powder is also used for producing silicon carbide(Koc & Cattamanchi, 1998) or opaque silica aerosols (Leeet al., 1995). Many methods can …     

Nonlinear compression of optical solitons

In this paper, we consider nonlinear Schrödinger (NLS) equations, both in the anomalous and normal dispersive regimes, which govern the propagation of a single field in a fiber medium with phase modulation and fibre gain (or loss). The integrability conditions are arrived from linear eigen value problem. The variable transformations which connect the integrable form of modified NLS equations are presented. We succeed in Hirota bilinearzing the equations and on solving, exact bright and dark soliton solutions are obtained. From the results, we show that the soliton is alive, i.e. pulse area can be conserved by the inclusion of gain (or loss) and phase modulation effects.     

Symplectic supercuspidal representations and related problems

In this paper, we summarize the basic structures and properties of irreducible symplectic supercuspidal representations of GLn(F) over a p-adic local field F with characteristic zero, and explore possible topics for further investigation.     

The accent method of voice therapy: Effect of accentuations on FO, SPL, and airflow

The effect of the increased flow rate (ΔU) in response to the Accent Method exercises on fundamental frequency (FO) and sound pressure level (SPL) was studied in three subjects (professionally trained, trained, and untrained in this method). In all the subjects, the rhythmic accentuated exercises produced a variable degree of increase in FO (ΔFO) and SPL (ΔSPL). The professionally trained subject showed greater ΔFO and ΔSPL in response to the ΔU in the fastest tempo, which requires higher skills. Both trained subjects showed a greater correlation between ΔU and both ΔSPL and ΔFO, as well as between ΔFO and ΔSPL, as compared to the untrained subject. The effects of the accentuated exercises on FO and SPL in response to the increased airflow rate (ΔU) thus appear to demonstrate the treating effectiveness of the Accent Method.     

Ultra-low-frequency dust-electromagnetic modes in self-gravitating magnetized dusty plasmas

Obliquely propagating altra-low-frequency dust-electromagnetic waves in a self-gravitating, warm, magnetized, two fluid dusty plasma system have been investigated. Two special cases, namely, dust-Alfvén mode propagating parallel to the external magnetic field and dustmagnetosonic mode propagating perpendicular to the external magnetic field have also been considered. It has been shown that effects of self-gravitational field, dust fluid temperature, and obliqueness significantly modify the dispersion properties of these ultra-low-frequency dust-electromagnetic modes. It is also found that in parallel propagating dust-Alfvén mode these effects play no role, but in obliquely propagating dust-Alfvén mode or perpendicular propagating dust-magnetosonic mode the effect of self-gravitational field plays destabilizing role whereas the effect of dust/ion fluid temperature plays stabilizing role.     

Animal model for training and improvement of the surgical skills in endolaryngeal microsurgery

Animal models for training of surgical skills were widely used for a long time in the education of medical practitioners. It is recognized, however, that endolaryngeal microsurgery requires highly refined skills to handle the delicate structures of the vocal folds under the microscope. The availability of fresh human laryngeal specimens is markedly restricted by legal and hygienic issues. The aim of this work was to report on the design of a feasible and effective model to provide the much needed skills in an animal laryngeal model that is as close as possible to the human vocal fold structure. In the initial phase of the research, three animal larynges were studied: porcine/pig, bovine/calf, and ovine/sheep larynges. The pig/porcine larynx was chosen for this experimental training model because it closely resembled the human laryngeal/glottal configurations. A study was carried out on 10 porcine/pig larynges to assess the dimensions of the glottis and study the histology of the layered structure of the vocal fold. The study was pursued to confirm the resemblance of this animal specimen to the human vocal fold. A wooden box with a black finished interior was prepared with an acrylic bed at its floor. This bed allows placement of the porcine/pig larynx. The design of the box allows the endoscopic exposure of the porcine/pig larynx through a rubber diaphragm. The darkness and confinement of the box, apart from the light of the endoscope, approximates the situation in live endoscopy. The operating microscope is then used to expose the glottis. Routine fine microlaryngeal instruments were used for training in the prescribed skills.