Characteristic Aspect Research Articles

Off the record: performing practices in Romantic piano playing

Off the Record: Performing Practices in Romantic Piano Playing. By Neal Peres Da Costa. NY: Oxford University Press, 2012. 342pp. (hardcover). Figures and Musical Examples, Index, Companion Website. ISBN 978-0-19-538691-2. $45 The recently published book, Off the Record, by Neal Peres Da Costa is a very welcome and important addition to our understanding of how pianists of an earlier generation performed nineteenth century romantic piano repertoire. The author, who is associate professor and chair of early music at the Sydney Conservatory of Music, has expanded upon his 2002 PhD dissertation (University of Leeds) and has drawn upon a wealth of piano rolls and early recordings in investigating the freedom of expression and individuality exhibited by many pianists of the so-called Golden Age. Oxford University Press has provided a website for the book containing innumerable recorded extracts from recordings discussed in the text, as well as additional musical examples that were either too large to include in the book or merely an appendix to the author's discussion. In his opening chapter, Peres Da Costa presents an extremely well-balanced discussion of the value of early sound recordings and piano rolls. His comments on the latter are especially appreciated since the accuracy of piano rolls has long been hotly debated. His treatment of the subject is both comprehensive and fair, with descriptions of the technical procedures involved in both sound recordings and piano rolls, as well as a careful noting of the limitations presented by each. Peres Da Costa's book is based upon the premise that such early recordings present us with an important historical picture of performance practice during the romantic period. Many of the recordings he considers date from the earliest years of the twentieth century, and some are even from the latter years of the preceding century. This evidence of performance practice and style has only recently begun to elicit sufficient interest from scholars, certainly long overdue. The second chapter deals with what is perhaps the most characteristic aspect of many pianists trained in the nineteenth century namely the practice of not synchronizing the two hands. Peres Da Costa refers to this as dislocation, and it traditionally involved delaying certain melody notes so that they sound after the bass (occasionally before) rather than simultaneously with the bass. This is followed in the next chapter by a thorough discussion of unnotated arpeggiation, also an example of non-synchronization in which notes of a chord are sounded individually (usually lowest note to top note) rather than being sounded simultaneously. Chapter Four is concerned with various aspects of rhythmic alteration, customarily involving a flexible placement of melodic notes that often leads to non-synchronization of the melody and accompaniment. In his fifth and final chapter, Peres Da Costa discusses tempo modification, which involves varying degrees of deviation from strict or metronomical tempo. All of the aforementioned performance practices were relatively prevalent among pianists trained in the nineteenth century, and the evidence for this is found not only in written commentary and contemporary pedagogical texts but also among the multitude of recordings that Peres Da Costa has examined. Yet he notes with justifiable surprise that there are often contradictions between the recordings and contemporaneous written texts. For example, recordings of a pianist might demonstrate significant dislocation of the hands, while the same pianist might have left a written text condemning the practice. The author offers no convincing explanation for this, but his research certainly compels us to consider both the written and aural evidence when discussing an appropriate approach to the performance of music from the romantic period. While I generally have much praise for Peres Da Costa, I do have a few reservations. …

Discovertebral Erosions in Patients with Enteropathic Spondyloarthritis

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is considered the modality of choice for the diagnosis of spondyloarthropathy (SpA)-related spondylodiscitis, or discovertebral erosions (DE). Our aim was to analyze the prevalence and the clinical features of DE in patients with enteropathic SpA (EA) using MRI. We evaluated 72 patients with EA and 43 controls for the study. All patients and controls underwent rheumatological and gastroenterological clinical examinations, and demographic features were recorded. For each patient, these factors were also recorded: duration of inflammatory bowel disease and arthritis from onset to enrollment, history of viral and bacterial infections, and occurrence of previous major trauma to the spine. These scores were taken: Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Metrology Index (BASMI), Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index (BASFI), Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI), Harvey-Bradshaw Index, and the Simple Clinical Colitis Activity Index. All subjects had MRI of the spine. On the basis of inclusion criteria, 43 patients with EA were included in the study. Twenty-three had axial EA (axEA) and 20 had axial and peripheral subset EA (overlap subset or peripheral type 3; axphEA). Twenty-two patients with EA (15/7 axEA/axphEA) showed DE (30.55%; p < 0.001). DE was significantly more prevalent in axEA subjects than in the overlap subset (p < 0.001). In axEA, DE had a significant direct correlation with arthritis duration (r = 0.546, p = 0.007). Patients with DE showed BASDAI, BASMI, and BASFI scores significantly higher than patients without DE (p < 0.001). We found a high prevalence of DE among patients with EA (30.55%), confirming that DE is an important characteristic aspect of SpA. We found a high prevalence in patients in the axphEA subset (31.82%), suggesting that DE could be a characterizing feature of the overlap subset.

An Orthonormally Weighted Standardized Time Series for the Error Estimation of Local Tallies in Monte Carlo Criticality Calculation

An orthonormally weighted standardized time series (OWSTS) was investigated for the statistical error estimation of local tallies in Monte Carlo criticality calculation. Unlike the original implementation of a standardized time series, the computation of standard deviation via OWSTS can be made free of the grouping of iteration cycles into batches. The characteristic aspect of OWSTS is the application of an arbitrary number of weighting functions to a standardized series of tallies such that asymptotically independent and unbiased estimates are produced based on the statistics of Brownian bridge. In the present work, a trigonometric set of weighting functions is extended and applied to local power tallies in the three-dimensional model of a pressurized water reactor core. Numerical results demonstrate that the OWSTS error estimation is unbiased for a sufficiently large number of iteration cycles.

Modeling squirt dispersion and attenuation in fluid-saturated rocks using pressure dependency of dry ultrasonic velocities

Modeling dispersion and attenuation of elastic waves in fluid-saturated rocks due to squirt flow requires the knowledge of a number of geometrical parameters of the pore space, in particular, the characteristic aspect ratio of the pores. These parameters are usually inferred by fitting measurements on saturated rocks to model predictions. To eliminate such fitting and thus make the model more predictive, we propose to recover the geometrical parameters of the pore space from the pressure dependency of elastic moduli on dry samples. Our analysis showed that the pressure dependency of elastic properties of rocks (and their deviation from Gassmann’s prediction) at ultrasonic frequencies is controlled by the squirt flow between equant, stiff, and so-called intermediate pores (with aspect ratios between [Formula: see text]). Such intermediate porosity is expected to close at confining pressures of between 200 and 2000 MPa, and thus cannot be directly obtained from ultrasonic experiments performed at pressures below 50 MPa. However, the presence of this intermediate porosity is inferred from the significant linear trend in the pressure dependency of elastic properties of the dry rock and the difference between the bulk modulus of the dry rock computed for spherical pores and the measured modulus at 50 MPa. Moreover, we can infer the magnitude of the intermediate porosity and its characteristic aspect ratio. Substituting these parameters into the squirt model, we have computed elastic moduli and velocities of the water-saturated rock and compared these predictions against laboratory measurements of these velocities. The agreement is good for a number of clean sandstones, but not unexpectedly worse for a broad range of shaley sandstones. Our predictions showed that dispersion and attenuation caused by the squirt flow between compliant and stiff pores may occur in the seismic frequency band. Confirmation of this prediction requires laboratory measurements of elastic properties at these frequencies.

Sliding crack model for nonlinearity and hysteresis in the uniaxial stress–strain curve of rock

Uniaxial compression tests on rocks, if conducted at stresses below failure, typically exhibit both non-linearity and hysteresis in the stress–strain curve. In a series of three papers in 1965, Walsh explained this behavior in terms of frictional sliding along the faces of closed cracks. Although well known and widely cited, Walsh’s model does not seem to have previously been developed in sufficient detail to be used for quantitative predictions. We revisit and extend his model, by including the effect of the stress required to close an initially open crack, and by examining the unloading process in detail. Our analysis leads to closed-form expressions for the loading and unloading portions of the stress–strain curve, as functions of elastic modulus of the uncracked rock, the crack density, the characteristic aspect ratio, and the crack friction coefficient. The model provides a good fit to the loading and unloading portions of the stress–strain curves, for some data on Berea sandstone taken from the literature, and for some new experimental data acquired on thermally cracked La Peyratte granite.

Rosai-Dorfman Disease With Widespread Oral-Maxillofacial Manifestations: A Case Report

a c s t e t t Rosai-Dorfman disease (RDD), first described in 1969, also known as sinus histiocytosis with massive lymphadenopathy, is an uncommon, benign histiocytic disorder of unknown etiology. It predominantly affects children and adolescents through involvement of the cervical lymph nodes, presenting a massive bilateral lymphadenopathy, the characteristic aspect most described in the literature. Fever, leukocytois, and high erythrocyte sedimentation rates have een reported. Although the presenting symptoms are comparable to an infection, its etiology remains unknown. A link to immunologic disorders has een suggested, yet there has been no confirmation of specific mechanism to support this claim. Extranodal manifestations of the disease occur in up to 43% of patients, with 75% presenting manifestations

Finite-size scaling in asymmetric systems of percolating sticks

We investigate finite-size scaling in percolating widthless stick systems with variable aspect ratios in an extensive Monte Carlo simulation study. A generalized scaling function is introduced to describe the scaling behavior of the percolation distribution moments and probability at the percolation threshold. We show that the prefactors in the generalized scaling function depend on the system aspect ratio and exhibit features that are generic to the whole class of the percolating systems. In particular, we demonstrate the existence of a characteristic aspect ratio for which percolation probability at the threshold is scale invariant and definite parity of the prefactors in the generalized scaling function for the first two percolation probability moments.

Ethics in Intellectual Property Negotiations: Issues and Illustrations

Negotiating – formally or informally – is a characteristic aspect of law practice. The requisite skills are acquired “on the job” and, for some, via the formal study of negotiation processes and attributes. The negotiator has much to consider, including the client’s goals and interests, likely litigation outcomes should negotiations fail or any ultimate agreement be breached, and what the counterparty is likely seeking to accomplish. The challenges include negotiating within the limits imposed by the ethics rules. This paper identifies key authorities relevant to negotiation ethics and illustrates their operation in the context of hypotheticals based on intellectual property practice. In particular, it highlights some hotly debated aspects and implications of the professional conduct rules relating to representing clients in negotiations.

An aqueous anionic/nonionic surfactant two-phase system in the presence of salt. 1. Rheological behavior and microstructure

Aqueous binary surfactant solutions, based on the cloud point phenomenon, have been utilized to design efficient extraction of a variety of substances. In this study, the effect of the anionic surfactant sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) on the clouding behaviour of aqueous nonionic surfactant solutions of Triton X-114 (TX-114), in the presence of 100 mM sodium chloride (NaCl), has been studied as a function of temperature by means of turbidity, dynamic light scattering (DLS), and rheo-small angle light scattering (Rheo-SALS). It is found that the addition of 2 mM SDS lowers the phase separation temperature of the surfactant solution by about 2 °C. The hydrodynamic radius of the surfactant aggregates increases with increase of temperature and SDS concentration. The change in microstructure of the surfactant aggregates at different temperature and SDS concentrations is also reflected by the characteristic length and aspect ratio extracted from their SALS patterns, which range from 269 to 623 nm and from 1.01 to 1.40, respectively. The increasing characteristic length and aspect ratio with SDS concentration indicate the growth of the mixed surfactant aggregates is in the flow direction and these elongated aggregates can align under shear.

Unique role of β-cyclodextrin in modifying aggregation of Triton X-114 in aqueous solutions

The effect of β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) on the aggregation behavior of a nonionic surfactant, Triton X-114 ((1,1,3,3-tetramethylbutyl)phenyl-polyethylene glycol), in aqueous solutions has been studied as a function of temperature by means of turbidity, dynamic light scattering (DLS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and rheo-small angle light scattering (rheo-SALS). The Triton X-114 (TX-114) solutions possess unique structural variations and display special aggregate transitions upon β-CD addition. In contrast to the reported aggregate disruption effect of β-CD for dilute nonionic surfactant solutions, aggregate growth is found in the aqueous TX-114 solutions of 93 mM upon β-CD addition. The micelle to vesicle transition induced by β-CD addition, which can greatly influence the turbidity and the viscosity of the solutions, is quantified by the characteristic length and aspect ratio of the aggregates. The characteristic length and aspect ratio of the aggregates change significantly after β-CD addition. It shows that aggregate growth may occur in nonionic surfactant–CD systems, as well as the reported ionic surfactant–CD systems. It is proposed that the CD–CD H-bonds create intermicelle interactions and promote aggregation of the CD/surfactant complexes, resulting in the formation of micrometer-scale phase-separated droplets.

Accelerated long-term forgetting in temporal lobe epilepsy: Evidence of improvement after left temporal pole lobectomy

Accelerated long term forgetting (ALF) is a characteristic cognitive aspect in patients affected by temporal lobe epilepsy that is probably due to an impairment of memory consolidation and retrieval caused by epileptic activity in hippocampal and parahippocampal regions. We describe a case of a patient with TLE who showed improvement in ALF and in remote memory impairment after an anterior left temporal pole lobectomy including the uncus and amygdala. Our findings confirm that impairment of hippocampal functioning leads to pathological ALF, whereas restoration of hippocampal functioning brings ALF to a level comparable to that of controls.

Tungiasis. Presentación de un caso clínico

Tungiasis, is a cutaneous parasitosis, native of America caused by Tunga penetrans. Infestations usually presents with black papular lesions, either single or multiple, most of them localized on the feet, mainly in the subungual and periungual areas. Diagnosis of tungiasis is based on the characteristic aspect of the lesions in a patient coming from an endemic area. Surgical removal of the flea and application of a topical antibiotic is the standard treatment. We describe a case of a 10-years-old girl, with multiple lesions localized on feet, who was succesfully treated with ivermectin and surgical removal of lesions.

Middle Pleistocene (Saalian) lake outburst floods in the Münsterland Embayment (NW Germany): impacts and magnitudes

During the late Saalian Drenthe glaciation ice-damming of the Upper Weser Valley led to the formation of glacial Lake Weser. The lake drained catastrophically into the Münsterland Embayment as the western ice dam failed, releasing up to 110 km 3 of water with a calculated peak discharge of 2.5 × 10 5 m 3/s to 1.3 × 10 6 m 3/s. Geographic information systems (GIS) and high-resolution digital elevation models (DEM) were used to map streamlined landforms and channel systems in front of lake overspills. Geological maps, 2450 boreholes and the DEM were integrated into the 3D modeling program GOCAD to reconstruct the distribution of flood-related deposits, palaeotopographic surfaces and the internal facies architecture of streamlined hills. The drainage pathways are characterized by the occurrence of deep plunge pools, channels, streamlined hills and 4 km long and 12 m deep V-shaped megaflutes. Plunge pools are deeply incised into Mesozoic basement rocks and occur in front of three major overspill channels. The plunge pools are up to 780 m long, 400 m wide and 35 m deep. Approximately 1–10.5 km downslope of the overspill channels fan shaped arrays of streamlined hills are developed, each covering an area of 60–130 km 2, indicating rapid flow expansion. The hills commonly have quadrilateral to elongated shapes and formed under submerged to partly submerged flow conditions, when the outburst flood entered a shallow lake in the Münsterland Embayment. Hills are up to 4300 m long, 1200 m wide, 11 m high and have characteristic average aspect ratios of 1:3.3. They are separated by shallow, anabranching channels in the outer zones and up to 30 m deep channels in the central zones. Hills partly display V-shaped chevron-like bedforms that have apices facing upslope, are 1.6–2.5 km long, 3–10 m high, 0.8–1.2 m from limb to limb, with limb separation angels of 20–35°. These bedforms are interpreted as mixed erosional depositional features. It is hypothesized that the post-Saalian landscape evolution of the Münsterland Embayment has considerably been influenced by catastrophic floods of glacial Lake Weser, creating large and deep valleys, which subsequently became the new site of river systems. The outburst floods probably followed the east-west-trending Saalian Rhine-Meuse river system eventually flowing into the North Sea, the Strait of Dover and the Bay of Biscay. It is speculated that the Hondsrug ice stream may have been enhanced or even triggered by the formation and outburst of glacial lakes in the study area.

Multicystic Dysplastic Kidney Disease Presenting With a Single Large Cyst in a Fetus–Anatomical Basis and Radiological Aspects

Multicystic dysplastic kidney (MCDK) is a congenital maldevelopment in which the renal cortex is characteristically replaced by numerous cysts of multiple sizes. MCDK presenting as a single predominant large cyst in morphology is less common. We report on the prenatal imaging findings and perinatal management of a fetus with MCDK unusually presenting as a single predominant large cyst, erroneously interpreted as a severe fetal hydronephrosis. Details of the perinatal history, radiological evaluation, morphological characteristic, and clinical aspect of this case are presented. We also discuss a few studies addressing the sensitivity of magnetic resonance urography for the prenatal diagnosis of MCDK.

Atrial fibrillation (part 1)

Affecting around 1% of the general population, the rate of atrial fibrillation (AF) rises to 9% after the age of 80 years, and probably even higher still over the age of 90. AF originates in the left atrium (LA), whereas typical atrial flutter stems from the right atrium (RA), giving it a characteristic aspect on the ECG. However, both these arrhythmias can occur in the same subject at different times. Among the many clinical manifestations, AF can give rise to a transient ischemic attack or cerebrovascular accident, generally non-syncopal, or on the contrary, may provoke syncope through reduced cardiac output in association with tachyarrhythmia, without neurological signs. AF is a frequent cause of heart failure in elderly subjects.

三次元角柱周りの乱流の組織的構造

In this study, we clarified a formation process of coherent structures of turbulent flow around a three dimensional rectangular solid. The flow around the rectangular solid with the aspect ratio L/H of 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, 4.5, 5.0 and 5.5, has been computed by the large eddy simulation at Reynolds number of 4 000. The computational results of the distribution of spectrum and Strouhal number correspond well with the flow around a two dimensional cylinder except for variation of peak value. And, in terms of Strouhal number, the result (L/H=1.0) corresponds with experimental result. In large aspect ratios, the visualization results show that a pair of hair pin vortex structures is shed from the vortex formation region alternately and periodically. The rectangular solid has two free ends. So, the aspects of the flow field around the three dimensional solid are different from that around the two dimensional cylinder, especially concerning the vortex formations. And, some characteristics of shear layer and vortex structures in a wake are found to be remarkably different with the aspect ratio. As for some vortices with characteristic aspect ratio, the formation and kinetic mechanisms of some vortices are described in details.

Acoustic Reconstructing Method in Prolate Spheroidal Coordinate System

An acoustic reconstructing method in prolate spheroidal coordinate system is proposed in this paper. Firstly, the entire acoustic field in prolate spheroidal coordinate system is divided by some infinite domains and every domain has some nodes. Then pressure functions are determined by requiring the assumed-form solution to satisfy the pressure boundary condition at the measured points. Finally, once nodal pressures are specified, the acoustic pressure everywhere is completely determined due to the known pressure function. The efficiency and precision of reconstruction can be significantly enhanced and satisfactory reconstruction can be obtained with relatively few measurements using the new method. The new method proposed in this paper is suitable for the acoustic sources with a characteristic aspect ratio y:z close 1:1 and x at random, which extends the appropriate application domain of traditional acoustic reconstructing method largely.

Unique discrepancy between cerebral blood flow and glucose metabolism in hemimegalencephaly

Hemimegalencephaly (HME) presents as severe refractory seizures and requires early surgical treatment to prevent progression to catastrophic epilepsy. Single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and positron emission tomography (PET) are useful imaging techniques for the presurgical evaluation of patients with intractable epilepsy. However, the results in HME are variable and no study has compared SPECT and PET performed at around the same time. We performed SPECT and PET for nine patients with HME, which was defined as a whole or part of affected hemisphere enlargement (three males, six females; age range 0.5-20 years). The ictal and interictal states were determined based on the presence or absence of clinical seizures during all PET examinations and majority of SPECT examinations. The perfusion pattern in the malformed hemisphere was increased or equal, despite the reduced glucose metabolism in six out of nine patients. Five of the six patients who underwent early surgical treatment showed this kind of perfusion/metabolism discrepancy. Importantly, even the non-affected hemisphere in early infantile cases already lacked the normal hypoperfusion and hypometabolism patterns of immature frontal lobes, which was most prominent in case with poor surgical prognosis. In all six surgical patients, epileptic seizures appeared before 4 months of age. By contrast, none of the non-surgical patients had seizures before 4 months of age. In conclusion, although the number of patients examined is small and the result is still preliminary, the perfusion/metabolism discrepancy found in this study may show potential characteristic aspect of HME and further study with simultaneous EEG recording will make clear if this finding can be useful indicator for early surgical treatment in HME.

Forced gravity wave response near the jet exit region in a linear model

This study investigates the propagation of gravity waves in the region of significant horizontal and vertical shear associated with a localized atmospheric jet using a linear model. Gravity waves are produced in the linear model by imposing prescribed divergence/convergence forcing of various scales near the core of an idealized local jet. The spatial structures of these forced gravity waves are nearly steady after a few inertial periods, despite the amplitudes slowly increasing with time. Linear model simulated wave response to prescribed forcing shows limited dependence on the scales of the forcing. It is found that the wave structure (e.g. horizontal/vertical wavelengths, phases and locations) away from the forcing are largely constrained by the environmental wind shear through the wave capture mechanism. Consequently, simulated gravity wave activities have the tendency to be focused on the vicinity where the line of constant shear aspect ratio approximates to the characteristic large-scale environmental aspect ratio (f /N). Ray tracing analysis is further used to demonstrate that wave capturing is the consequence of different influences of the horizontal and vertical shears upon longer and shorter waves. Copyright c

Familial Nephrogenic Syndrome of Inappropriate Antidiuresis: Dissociation between Aquaporin-2 and Vasopressin Excretion

Nephrogenic syndrome of inappropriate antidiuresis (NSIAD), the X-linked disease resulting from activating mutation of the vasopressin V2 receptor gene (AVPR2), is a recently described condition causative of episodes of hyponatremia in boys and male and female adults. The objective of the study was the pathophysiological characterization of NSIAD. A family with NSIAD was identified and investigated for hyponatremic episodes and degrees of urine dilution defects. For the first time, the impact of the mutated V2R on aquaporin 2 (AQP2) excretion is reported. The study was conducted at a referral center. Five patients of seven carriers (two young brothers and their mother and her two sisters) were investigated together with age-matched controls. There were no interventions. In NSIAD patients, urinary AQP2 excretion occurred independently of concomitant vasopressin excretion and strongly correlated with urine osmolality, confirming direct AQP2 involvement in urine concentration. Water loading was followed by a very slow and incomplete elimination in the asymptomatic hemizygous boy with no suppression of AQP2 excretion and a delayed elimination in the heterozygous women because of an incomplete suppression of AQP2, and it induced hyponatremia in all NSIAD patients. Two hemizygous carriers presented with severe hyponatremia-induced seizures, and the repetition in one of them led to mental retardation. Hyponatremia was a constant and characteristic aspect of the abnormal response to even mild water-loading tests in an asymptomatic hemizygous child as well as heterozygous adults. We confirm the phenotypic variability of NSIAD, a disease that should be regarded in pediatric intensive care units in presence of severe and/or recurrent hyponatremia, and also in adults, because carriers are prone to hyponatremia.