Idioms Research Articles

Prevalence of and Risk Factors for Hearing Impairment in Craniofacial Microsomia

BackgroundWhile ear anomalies and hearing impairment are common in patients with craniofacial microsomia (CFM), their prevalence, characteristics, and relationship to speech-language development remain unclear. PurposeThis study analyzed the prevalence and risk factors for hearing impairment in patients with CFM. Study Design, Setting, SampleThis retrospective cohort study included patients with unilateral or bilateral CFM from a single center between January 1980 and July 2023 who had evidence of a hearing assessment at <18 years. Exclusion criteria were inconclusive CFM diagnosis by clinical examination and/or radiographs or incomplete medical records. Predictor VariablesThe predictor variables included presence or absence of cleft lip and/or palate, laterality of CFM, and external ear and mandibular anomaly scores measured using the Orbit, Mandible, Ear, Nerve, and Soft Tissue (OMENS) and Pruzansky-Kaban classifications. Main Outcome VariablesPrimary outcome variable was hearing impairment, measured through air and bone conduction audiometry and categorized by type, severity, and side. Secondary outcome variable was speech-language delay, evaluated through assessments of expressive and receptive language skills, vocabulary, speech intelligibility, general articulation, and phonological speech. CovariatesThe covariates included sex and age at first hearing assessment. AnalysesLogistic regression models were used to analyze the effect of predictors on outcomes. P-value <0.05 was considered significant. ResultsThe sample included 213 patients (61.5% male). Hearing assessments were performed at a mean age of 4.6 ± 4.8 years. Hearing impairment was found in 183 (85.9%) and was predominantly conductive (n=130, 91.5%). Of subjects with hearing impairment, 158 (86.3%) had external ear anomalies (P<0.001). In patients with unilateral CFM, 38 (21.8%) had bilateral hearing loss and 9 (5.2%) had contralateral-only hearing loss. Both M3 and E3 scores were associated with the presence and severity of hearing loss (P=0.01 and P<0.001, respectively). There was no significant association between hearing impairment and speech-language development (P>0.05). Conclusion and RelevanceAlthough the severity of mandibular and external ear anomalies was significantly associated with the prevalence and severity of hearing loss, clinicians should remain alert for concomitant or isolated contralateral hearing loss, given the high prevalence of hearing loss in ears without ipsilateral facial involvement or external abnormalities.

Inherited PURA Pathogenic Variant Associated With a Mild Neurodevelopmental Disorder.

Purine-rich element-binding protein alpha (PURA) regulates gene expression and is ubiquitously expressed with an enrichment in neural tissues. Pathogenic variants in PURA cause the neurodevelopmental disorder PURA syndrome that has a variable phenotype but typically comprises moderate-to-severe global developmental delay, intellectual disability, early-onset hypotonia and hypothermia, epilepsy, feeding difficulties, movement disorders, and subtle facial dysmorphism. Speech is reportedly absent in most, but the specific linguistic phenotype is not well described. We used genome sequencing to identify a pathogenic gene variant as part of a study of children ascertained for severe primary speech disorder in the absence of moderate or severe ID. The novel PURA c.296G>T (p.Arg99Leu) pathogenic missense variant segregated in the female proband and her affected mother. The proband had dysarthria; phonological disorder; and severe receptive and expressive language impairment, borderline intellect, attention difficulties, oropharyngeal dysmotility, and dysmorphic facial features. Her mother had dysarthria, moderate receptive language impairment, and borderline intellect. Both the proband and her mother completed mainstream schooling with classroom support. This is the first inherited PURA pathogenic germline variant in over 600 unrelated families documented on ClinVar or reported in the literature. PURA testing should be considered in families with primary speech disorder and borderline intellectual disability, given the specific genetic counseling implications.

Extremely Low Birth Weight Infant (Gestational Age of 29 Weeks) With Kabuki Syndrome Type I: Case Report and Literature Review.

This paper aimed to investigate the clinical phenotype of Kabuki syndrome (KS) in premature infants. This paper presents a case of an extremely low birth weight infant (gestational age 29 weeks) with KS1 caused by a variant in the KMT2D gene. The clinical, pathological, and differential diagnostic findings were comprehensively analyzed. A thorough literature review was also performed to enhance the understanding of KS, revealing its unique features and prognostic significance. The infant was a male with a gestational age of 29 weeks and a birth weight of 850 g. He had intrauterine growth retardation, characterized by cleft palate, sacrococcygeal skin depressions, and recurrent metabolic acidosis. Whole-exome sequencing revealed the c.4267C > T (p.Arg1423Cys) variant in the KMT2D gene, which was absent in his parents. The patient was discharged after 67 days of treatment, and he was followed up to 19 months of corrected gestational age, with growth retardation and expression language delay. Ten previous studies on preterm infants were retrieved, with 10 preterm infants. They all had characteristic facial features, such as long blepharophimosis, sparse and lateral 1/3 eyebrows, and large and prominent/cupped ears. Other manifestations were extrauterine growth delay (7/10), abnormal development of the cardiovascular system (7/10), abnormal development of the nervous system (5/10), and cleft palate (2/10). Kabuki syndrome is a rare hereditary disorder involving multiple organs and systems. Genetic assessment for preterm infants with congenital abnormalities is recommended.

DNA methylation signatures of prenatal socioeconomic position associated with 36-month language outcomes

BackgroundSocioeconomic position (SEP), which reflects one’s position in society and access to resources, is strongly tied to neurodevelopment and is associated with epigenetic changes. AIM: This study examined whether DNA methylation signatures of prenatal SEP, measured in birth samples, are associated with child neurodevelopmental outcomes at 36 months of age. METHODS: Prenatal SEP DNA methylation scores were derived using 97 placenta and 127 cord blood biospecimens in the Early Autism Risk Longitudinal Investigation cohort. Participants completed the Mullen Scales of Early Learning (MSEL) and Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales (VABS) at 36 months of age. Generalized regression analyses, adjusting for maternal age and race, were performed to test the association between SEP methylation score, for each birth biospecimen type, and MSEL and VABS scores. RESULTS: Significant associations were observed between placenta SEP methylation score and MSEL Expressive Language outcomes (beta = −2.7, p = 0.046, 95 % CI [- 5.43, −0.05]) and Receptive Language outcomes (beta = −2.5, p = 0.037, 95 % CI [-4.82, −0.16]). In cord blood, methylation-SEP scores were significantly associated with Receptive Language outcomes (beta = −2.0, p = 0.037, 95 % CI [-3.85, −0.12]). No significant associations were observed with VABS scores. CONCLUSION: Our results confirm associations between prenatal SEP and early childhood language development using a novel empiric DNA methylation measure of exposure.

Music-stylized hierarchical dance synthesis with user control

BackgroundSynthesizing dance motions to match musical inputs is a significant challenge in animation research. Compared to functional human motions, such as locomotion, dance motions are creative and artistic, often influenced by music, and can be independent body language expressions. Dance choreography requires motion content to follow a general dance genre, whereas dance performances under musical influence are infused with diverse impromptu motion styles. Considering the high expressiveness and variations in space and time, providing accessible and effective user control for tuning dance motion styles remains an open problem. MethodsIn this study, we present a hierarchical framework that decouples the dance synthesis task into independent modules. We use a high-level choreography module built as a Transformer-based sequence model to predict the long-term structure of a dance genre and a low-level realization module that implements dance stylization and synchronization to match the musical input or user preferences. This novel framework allows the individual modules to be trained separately. Because of the decoupling, dance composition can fully utilize existing high-quality dance datasets that do not have musical accompaniments, and the dance implementation can conveniently incorporate user controls and edit motions through a decoder network. Each module is replaceable at runtime, which adds flexibility to the synthesis of dance sequences. ResultsSynthesized results demonstrate that our framework generates high-quality diverse dance motions that are well adapted to varying musical conditions and user controls.

CONTEXTUAL DISTANCE TEACHING TO IMPROVE TOURIST DRIVERS' ENGLISH LANGUAGE EXPRESSION

This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of Contextual Distance Teaching (CDT) in improving driver’s English language expression and enhancing motivation, while also evaluating its significant influence on their English proficiency. Utilizing an action research approach conducted via the WhatsApp online platform, this study engaged 10 tourist drivers associated with the Bali Transport group, aged between 22 and 50. The study comprised two cycles, each consisting of three sessions. Data collection involved administering tests and questionnaires, including pretest, post-test 1, and post-test 2. Analysis was conducted using descriptive statistics and paired sample t-tests. The initial findings indicate that CDT effectively enhances the language expression of drivers in service-related contexts. The average pretest score, initially categorized as "poor" at 39, improved to 65 in post-test 1 and further increased to 75.8 in post-test 2, now categorized as "fair.", The main score of the questionnaire was 4.4 of 0-5 Likert scale implying the drivers had positive motivation and perception on the strategy apllied. The second statistic finding indicated a significant difference in the mean between the pre-test (Sig. and the post-test 1 (0.000 &lt; 0.05) and post-test 2 (0.000 &lt; 0.05). This study suggests that the implementation of CBT has a positive influence on reducing the number of language expression errors made by drivers as adult learners, leading to better English proficiency.

A Contrastive Analysis between English Idioms and Their Indonesian Equivalents in the Book Tintin in America by Herge (1932)

This study focuses on employing a descriptive and qualitative research approach. The objective of this research is to discern similarities, differences, predictions of translating problems based on similarities and differences between English Idioms and their Indonesian equivalents. The analysis focuses on the book Tintin in America by Herge (1932). The results indicated the presence of 55 English idioms which consisted of 22 verbal idioms, 12 informal idioms, 5 idioms containing special keywords, 4 idioms related to specific themes, and 12 idiomatic pairs. Regarding the similarities and differences, within the Verbal Idiom category, researchers observed that there was 0 similarity between the 55 English Idioms and their Indonesian counterparts, and there were 55 differences between the 55 English Idioms and their Indonesian counterparts. Based on the differences, Indonesian learners may face problems when translating informal idioms, idioms containing special keywords, idioms related to specific themes, and idiomatic pairs. Within informal idioms, the Indonesian learners may make a mistake by translating, for example, It looks pretty phoney to me into *Bagi saya itu terlihat sangat palsu, instead of the better one Mencurigakan sekali. This is because the English expression is idiomatic, while its Indonesian equivalent is non-idiomatic. A word-by-word or literal translation is probably made due to the difference. The case may also happen when the Indonesian learners are translating idioms containing special keywords, idioms related to specific themes, and idiomatic pairs, for example: the English expression Good gracious! into the Indonesian equivalent *Baik hati, instead of the better one Astaga!; the English expression Glad to be back on my feet again into the Indonesian equivalent *Senang bisa kembali dengan kaki saya lagi, instead or the better one Senang sudah bisa jalan lagi; and the English expression The whole bunch of cut-throats into the Indonesian equivalent *Sejumlah pemotong tenggorokan, instead of the better one Semua bandit yang ada disini

Lesson study in Content and Language Integrated Learning: making young case pupils’ learning visible through English alongside translanguaging and trans-semiotising

PurposeThe paper reports how lesson study helped to make the learning of students with limited English competencies visible in Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL).Design/methodology/approachThe two lesson study cycles took place in a Swiss primary school with a focus on three case pupils each with heterogeneous attainment levels in English. The research group observed how the case pupils coped with learning English integrated with art, crafts, and sports in four research lessons. Following a case study methodology, the research focussed on how the case pupils used their limited English language competencies complemented with multilingual and multimodal means to make their learning visible.FindingsThanks to the close observations of students’ learning and the detailed analysis thereof as a cooperative effort of the research group, the lesson study revealed that the case pupils used varied means to express their learning partly depending on their levels of English.Research limitations/implicationsThis small-scale case study only describes data collected from four research lessons based on a total of 12 case pupils.Originality/valueCommonly during lesson study, the students’ learning is captured through the verbal language they use. But if the research lesson takes place in a foreign language setting in which students’ language competencies are limited in expressing their learning, other languages and modes of communication must be considered. To date, there are few papers on how lesson study helps to explore learners’ use of so-called translanguaging and trans-semiotising.

Genotype-phenotype correlations in 294 pediatric patients with osteogenesis imperfecta.

Osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) is an inherited disorder characterized by bone fragility with extraskeletal manifestations mostly due to COL1A1 and COL1A2 variants. Currently, 23 genes have been implicated in the pathogenesis of OI; however, literature on genotype-phenotype correlation and incidence of non-skeletal clinical features are limited. This study aims to identify genotype-phenotype correlations in patients with OI, allowing clinicians to better inform families of prognosis, optimize patient care, and facilitate evidence-based clinical decision-making. We retrospectively reviewed 294 patients with OI to collect demographic data, clinical characteristics, and genotypic information. Patients were stratified by COL1A1/1A2 vs non-COL1A1/1A2 variants to evaluate differences in phenotype. The majority of OI was due to variants in COL1A1/1A2 (91%), with the remaining 9% due to non-COL1A1/1A2 variants. Most patients in the COL1A1/2 group were White compared to the non-COL1A1/2 group (78% vs 50%; p = 0.004). COL1A/1A2 patients had higher incidence of blue sclerae (83% vs 58%, p = 0.002), dentinogenesis imperfecta (49% vs 15%, p < 0.001), and family history of OI (34% vs 12%, p = 0.03). Those in the non-COL1A1/1A2 group have higher rates of scoliosis compared to those in the COL1A1/1A2 group (62% vs 40%, p = 0.04), as well as higher rates of expressive language disorder/delay (15% vs 0.4% in non-COL1A1/1A2 and COL1A1/1A2 patients, respectively; p < 0.001). Identifying the underlying molecular etiology early is imperative for optimal clinical care, allowing for appropriate risk counseling, identification of affected relatives, and improved anticipatory care and management. These data support that rare subtypes of OI occur more frequently in non-White individuals and demonstrated genetic associations with incidence of blue sclera, dentinogenesis imperfecta, scoliosis, and expressive language disorders.

Electroencephalographic changes in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

BackgroundAttention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is the most prevalent psychiatric disorder in children who experience delayed language development. This work aimed to study electroencephalographic (EEG) changes in children with ADHD and establish a strategy for prompt identification and suitable management in the future.MethodsThis descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 100 children aged between 5 and 12 years old, both sexes, diagnosed with ADHD according to DSM-V Criteria, diagnosed as ADHD children with the Arabic version of Conner’s Parent Rating Scale. Psychometric evaluation by intelligence quotient (IQ) using Stanford Binet Intelligence test. The Receptive Expressive Arabic Language Scale was used to assess language profile.ResultsThere was a significant negative correlation between the severity of ADHD and IQ scores. There was an insignificant negative correlation between ADHD and scaled receptive language score and scaled expressive language score. There was an insignificant positive correlation between ADHD and scaled expressive language score. There was a significant difference between EEG changes and combined subtype of ADHD and scaled score of receptive language (P < 0.05). There was an insignificant difference between (EEG changes and language development), the scaled score of expressive, total language, and the scaled score of language.ConclusionsEEG has clinical utility in the diagnosis of ADHD. The results of EEG analysis in children with ADHD have been quite important, and this novel methodology could offer supplementary factors to strengthen its diagnostic impact.

녹차 가공 과자류의 제품명 연구

This study was to analyze the product name of the green tea processed confectionery and identify the characteristics reflected in those names, thereby providing insights necessary for developing such product names. For this purpose, this study collected data on 427 confectionery items with product names containing ‘green tea’ by searching the processed food database on the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety website from June 1 to June 16, 2024. The main research findings from the collected data analysis are as follows. First, the structural characteristics of confectionery product names included the prevalence of combinations of Sino-Korean words and loanwords, the use of neologisms or native words, and the need for improvement in foreign language expressions. Second, the semantic characteristics of the product names revealed the rise of foreign-style baked goods, the application of diversified confectionery ingredients, and the emergence of high-protein and vegan confectionery. In conclusion, green tea processed confectionery products should be named carefully compared to other products, as their names play a crucial role in conveying a healthy image and influencing consumer choice.

LINGUISTIC EXPLORATION OF IDIOMATIC EXPRESSIONS IN RATATOUILLE

This study examines the idiomatic expressions present in the movie Ratatouille. Idioms are fascinating aspects of language that add depth and color to our communication. They are expressions or phrases with a figurative meaning that differ from their literal interpretation. The purpose of using idioms in communication is to enhance the interest of the listener or reader. The author applies semantics theory to analyze idiomatic expressions in the movie Ratatouille in this study. The methodology systematically identifies and categorises idiomatic expressions into (McCarthy &amp; O’Dell, 2010) seven categories: similes, binomials, trinomials, proverbs, clichés, euphemisms, and fixed statements. The selection of the movie Ratatouille was based on its suitability for all audiences, particularly children, and its numerous idiomatic expressions. The study aims to analyze these expressions to avoid confusion. This study employs a descriptive-qualitative methodology to conduct qualitative research. The subject of this research is a movie entitled Ratatouille. This analysis provides insight into Ratatouille as a fascinating linguistic expression element that enriches and complicates human communication. The data consisted of various scenes from the movie Ratatouille, which included idiomatic expressions spoken by the characters. In order to draw meaningful conclusions from the data analysis, it was necessary to classify and categorize the data systematically. Furthermore, the fixed statement is the most used type of idiomatic expression. On the other hand, the cliché idiom is the least-used type of idiomatic expression found in the Ratatouille movie. In addition, the study revealed that incorporating idiomatic expressions in Ratatouille enhanced the narrative with depth and richness and offered the audience a distinctive cultural context. The fixed statements, like "anyone can cook," profoundly conveyed the movie's themes of ambition and defying societal expectations. Moreover, the fixed statement "anyone can cook" became a notable catchphrase from the movie, representing the idea that cooking is not limited to a certain group of individuals but rather a skill that anyone with passion and determination can acquire. In contrast, the cliché idioms, while less frequently used, still added a touch of familiarity and relatability to the characters, making their dialogue more believable and realistic. The presence of idiomatic expressions showcased the attention to detail in the film's writing, engaging with audiences and making Ratatouille a memorable experience.

Measurement of emerging neurocognitive and language skills in the HEALthy Brain and Child Development (HBCD) study

The HEALthy Brain and Child Development (HBCD) study, a multi-site prospective longitudinal cohort study, will examine human brain, cognitive, behavioral, social, and emotional development beginning prenatally and planned through early childhood. The study plans enrolling over 7000 families across 27 sites. This manuscript presents the measures from the Neurocognition and Language Workgroup. Constructs were selected for their importance in normative development, evidence for altered trajectories associated with environmental influences, and predictive validity for child outcomes. Evaluation of measures considered psychometric properties, brevity, and developmental and cultural appropriateness. Both performance measures and caregiver report were used wherever possible. A balance of norm-referenced global measures of development (e.g., Bayley Scales of Infant Development-4) and more specific laboratory measures (e.g., deferred imitation) are included in the HBCD study battery. Domains of assessment include sensory processing, visual-spatial reasoning, expressive and receptive language, executive function, memory, numeracy, adaptive behavior, and neuromotor. Strategies for staff training and quality control procedures, as well as anticipated measures to be added as the cohort ages, are reviewed. The HBCD study presents a unique opportunity to examine early brain and neurodevelopment in young children through a lens that accounts for prenatal exposures, health and socio-economic disparities.

Study of the Effect of ChatGpt on the Development of Research Capacity of Higher Education Students

As a relatively mature generative AI technology, ChatGPT's application in education and scientific research has attracted wide attention. This paper investigates the current situation of ChatGPT use among college students and the impact of ChatGPT on their scientific research capabilities and analyzes that the current application effect of ChatGPT in learning is relatively positive, but there are still problems such as inaccurate and insufficient quality of the generated text. At the same time, ChatGPT is of great help to college students in terms of perception ability, language comprehension ability, language expression ability, data collection ability, and knowledge construction ability, but it is not significantly helpful for the improvement of students' teamwork ability, problem discovery ability, innovative thinking ability, and innovative practice ability. Given the current problems in the use of ChatGPT and the challenges it brings to the development of students' scientific research ability, this article provides corresponding countermeasures and suggestions from multiple perspectives.

Deciphering Idioms: A Deep Dive into Elemental Force of Nature Movie Script

Idioms, intricate combinations of words whose meaning eludes straightforward interpretation, play an essential role in native speakers' discourse. It imbues speeches with a sense of fluency and creativity. Mastering idiomatic expressions is imperative for learners seeking linguistic authenticity and lexical proficiency. Thus, it is an urge to be mastered by the learners, especially English for Foreign Language (EFL) learners. This study aimed to explore the types of idioms in the Elemental Force of Nature Movie Script, employing O'Dell and McCarthy's framework. It utilized a qualitative study using content analysis. The researchers used documentation as the primary data collection method. as the data was taken from the Elemental: Force of Nature movie script dialogues. The findings unveil forty-one idioms in Elemental: Force of Nature movie. This research found four similes, two proverbs, four clichés, and thirty-three fixed statements. However, the most dominant type found in this movie was the fixed statement. It is expected that this research can provide additional insight into the types of idiomatic expressions. In addition, this study also provided valuable implications for the English learners, especially who study literary works.

CPMKG: a condition-based knowledge graph for precision medicine.

Personalized medicine tailors treatments and dosages based on a patient's unique characteristics, particularly its genetic profile. Over the decades, stratified research and clinical trials have uncovered crucial drug-related information-such as dosage, effectiveness, and side effects-affecting specific individuals with particular genetic backgrounds. This genetic-specific knowledge, characterized by complex multirelationships and conditions, cannot be adequately represented or stored in conventional knowledge systems. To address these challenges, we developed CPMKG, a condition-based platform that enables comprehensive knowledge representation. Through information extraction and meticulous curation, we compiled 307 614 knowledge entries, encompassing thousands of drugs, diseases, phenotypes (complications/side effects), genes, and genomic variations across four key categories: drug side effects, drug sensitivity, drug mechanisms, and drug indications. CPMKG facilitates drug-centric exploration and enables condition-based multiknowledge inference, accelerating knowledge discovery through three pivotal applications. To enhance user experience, we seamlessly integrated a sophisticated large language model that provides textual interpretations for each subgraph, bridging the gap between structured graphs and language expressions. With its comprehensive knowledge graph and user-centric applications, CPMKG serves as a valuable resource for clinical research, offering drug information tailored to personalized genetic profiles, syndromes, and phenotypes. Database URL: https://www.biosino.org/cpmkg/.

The cognitive and language development of young Flemish foster children

Foster children often experienced adversities, putting them at risk for problematic outcomes ( Dozier &amp; Rutter, 2016 ). To our knowledge, there is no research regarding the cognitive and language development of young Flemish foster children. In this study, we describe a study conducted longitudinal research over a one year period into the development of 53 young foster children (12–20 months old at T1). The cognitive and language development of the children was measured using the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development-Third-Edition (Bayley-III-NL). First, scaled scores of the Bayley subscales cognitive functioning, receptive language and expressive language, both at T1 and T2, were compared to the mean norm-scores. Second, the associated variables with the children’s functioning on cognitive and language scales were explored using Multilevel Modelling. For all subscales except receptive language at T2, the results did not significantly differ from the mean normative scores. The scores of the foster children in this study were significantly lower on receptive language at T2. When we looked at individual scores, most children (66%–83%) had scores that did not differ more than one standard deviation from the normative mean. Children in kinship foster care had lower scores in multiple developmental domains. There were also negative associations between both language subscales and insecure attachment behavior. For most subscales, the results did not significantly differ from the mean normative scores, which is promising.

Effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on infants' development: analyzing the results of developmental assessments at ages 10-11 and 18-24 months.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on infant development. The study investigated the development of infants at 10-11 months of age between 2020 and 2023 by using the Kyoto Scale of Psychological Development-2020 (KSPD2020), an individualized developmental scale, and the Kinder Infant Developmental Scale (KIDS), a developmental questionnaire. We compared the results of the KSPD2020 with those of a pre-pandemic developmental research and compared the developmental age (DA) of KIDS with children's chronological age (CA). Moreover, the same developmental research was conducted again on the same children at 18-24 months of age. DA for receptive language and expressive language was lower in the KIDS compared to CA in the investigation at 10-11 months. However, in the investigation at 18-24 months, there were no areas where KIDS' DA was lower than CA, and DA in the areas of manipulation, receptive language, social relationship with adults, discipline, and eating was higher than CA. On the other hand, using the KSPD2020, there were no differences when compared to pre-pandemic data in the investigation at 10-11 months. Furthermore, the investigation at 18-24 months showed that developmental quotient (DQ) was lower in the Language-Social (L-S) areas than in the investigation at 10-11 months. The lower DQ of L-S in this study was also evident in comparison to the 18-24 months pre-pandemic data. These results suggested that to investigate the medium- and long-term effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on children's development, it is necessary to use not only parent-filled questionnaires but also individualized developmental scales. In addition, the finding that results may differ depending on the method of developmental assessment is considered important not only for developmental researchers but also for professionals involved in supporting children's development.

Sentiment Analysis of Nigerian Opinions Using Logistic Regression and Random Forest Algorithms: A Comparative Study

This study investigates the efficacy of Logistic Regression and Random Forest models in sentiment analysis using Nigerian-based datasets, namely "Gangs of Lagos" and "PeterObi Politics." Sentiment analysis, a vital component of Natural Language Processing (NLP), plays a crucial role in understanding public opinion and sentiment trends, particularly in the context of Nigerian socio-political discourse. Leveraging machine learning techniques, the study examines the performance of these models in predicting sentiment classes, including positive, negative, and neutral sentiments, within the datasets. The findings shed light on the strengths and limitations of Logistic Regression and Random Forest in discerning sentiment nuances prevalent in Nigerian language expressions with Logistic Regression outperforming Random Forest in both cases. This research contributes to the advancement of sentiment analysis methodologies tailored to Nigerian linguistic and cultural contexts, with implications for various applications, including social media monitoring, political analysis, and market research.

Preoperative variables affecting outcome of cochlear implant

BackgroundCochlear implants made a great impact in the management of severe-to-profound hearing loss in both children and adults. Its greatest impact is in helping children born with a profound hearing loss and implanted early to attend mainstream education and using spoken language to communicate. However, the final outcome in pediatric implantation is not predictable as there are large number of factors which will affect the outcome of cochlear implantation. Studying these determinants increases the ability of clinicians to offer educated preoperative prognosis and might potentially allow for manipulation of variables in an attempt to achieve the best possible outcome.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to assess the preoperative factors affecting the audiological, speech, and language outcomes achieved by the recipients of cochlear implants.MethodologyA total of 39 children with severe-to-profound sensory neural hearing loss were implanted with cochlear implants. Children had received their implants before age of 5 years. Tests of receptive, expressive language quotient, aided cortical auditory-evoked potential using speech stimulus, aided free field audiometry, and aided speech reception thresholds were administered. Characteristics of the child and the family (age before implant and duration of implant use, cause of hearing loss, preimplant use of hearing aids and language therapy, and sociodemographic characteristics of their families) were the preoperative variables. These variables were considered predictors of audiological and language outcomes achieved by children and were determined using statistical analysis by univariate and multivariate analyses.ResultsAge of the studied children at time of cochlear implantation was statistically significant predictor for CI outcome as regard receptive language quotient and also for N1 latency. Hearing age of the studied children was a statistically significant predictor for CI outcome as regards P1 latency.ConclusionBased on our findings, two most important factors affecting outcome of cochlear implantation were the age at implantation and the hearing age. Other factors were important but did not affect the outcome significantly.