Types Of Modalities Research Articles

Classification of hyper-scale multimodal imaging datasets

Algorithms that classify hyper-scale multi-modal datasets, comprising of millions of images, into constituent modality types can help researchers quickly retrieve and classify diagnostic imaging data, accelerating clinical outcomes. This research aims to demonstrate that a deep neural network that is trained on a hyper-scale dataset (4.5 million images) composed of heterogeneous multi-modal data can be used to obtain significant modality classification accuracy (96%). By combining 102 medical imaging datasets, a dataset of 4.5 million images was created. A ResNet-50, ResNet-18, and VGG16 were trained to classify these images by the imaging modality used to capture them (Computed Tomography (CT), Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Positron Emission Tomography (PET), and X-ray) across many body locations. The classification accuracy of the models was then tested on unseen data. The best performing model achieved classification accuracy of 96% on unseen data, which is on-par, or exceeds the accuracy of more complex implementations using EfficientNets or Vision Transformers (ViTs). The model achieved a balanced accuracy of 86%. This research shows it is possible to train Deep Learning (DL) Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) with hyper-scale multimodal datasets, composed of millions of images. Such models can find use in real-world applications with volumes of image data in the hyper-scale range, such as medical imaging repositories, or national healthcare institutions. Further research can expand this classification capability to include 3D-scans.

Prognostic factors in young women with epithelial ovarian cancer: the Young Ovarian Cancer-Care (YOC-Care) study

ObjectiveTo determine oncological outcomes and to identify prognostic factors in women aged <45 years with epithelial ovarian cancer.MethodsA multicenter retrospective study was performed of patients treated for epithelial ovarian cancer...

Type of Surgeries and Modalities for Post Operative Pain Management in a Secondary Healthcare Institute

Type of Surgeries and Modalities for Post Operative Pain Management in a Secondary Healthcare Institute

Performance on a target acquisition task differs between augmented reality and touch screen displays

Target acquisition tasks quantify human motor and perceptual abilities while performing discrete tasks to support interface design and sensorimotor assessments. This study investigated the effects of display, Touchscreen and Augmented Reality (AR), on a standardized 2D multidirectional target acquisition task. Thirty-two participants performed the target acquisition task with both modality types and at two indexes of difficulty. The touchscreen modality yielded improved performance over AR as measured by accuracy, precision, error rates, throughput, and movement time. Throughput using the nominal index of difficulty was 10.12 bits/s for touchscreen and 3.11 bits/s for AR. AR designers can use the results to improve performance when designing AR interfaces by selecting larger buttons when accuracy and efficiency are required and by embedding perception cues to button target surfaces such as depth and proximity cues.

Opposing brain signatures of sleep in task-based and resting-state conditions

Sleep and depression have a complex, bidirectional relationship, with sleep-associated alterations in brain dynamics and structure impacting a range of symptoms and cognitive abilities. Previous work describing these relationships has provided an incomplete picture by investigating only one or two types of sleep measures, depression, or neuroimaging modalities in parallel. We analyze the correlations between brainwide neural signatures of sleep, cognition, and depression in task and resting-state data from over 30,000 individuals from the UK Biobank and Human Connectome Project. Neural signatures of insomnia and depression are negatively correlated with those of sleep duration measured by accelerometer in the task condition but positively correlated in the resting-state condition. Our results show that resting-state neural signatures of insomnia and depression resemble that of rested wakefulness. This is further supported by our finding of hypoconnectivity in task but hyperconnectivity in resting-state data in association with insomnia and depression. These observations dispute conventional assumptions about the neurofunctional manifestations of hyper- and hypo-somnia, and may explain inconsistent findings in the literature.

Modality Exploration, Retrieval and Adaptation for Trajectory Prediction.

Predicting future trajectories of dynamic agents is inherently riddled with uncertainty. Given a certain historical observation, there are multiple plausible future movements people can perform. Notably, these possible movements are usually centralized around a few representative motion patterns, e.g. acceleration, deceleration, turning, etc. In this paper, we propose a novel prediction scheme which explores human behavior modality representations from real-world trajectory data to discover such motion patterns and further uses them to aid in trajectory prediction. To explore potential behavior modalities, we introduce a deep feature clustering process on trajectory features and each cluster can represent a type of modality. Intuitively, each modality is naturally a class, and a classification network can be adopted to retrieve highly probable modalities about to happen in the future according to historical observations. On account of a wide variety of cues existing in the observation (e.g. agents' motion states, semantics of the scene, etc.), we further design a gated aggregation module to fuse different types of cues into a unified feature. Finally, an adaptation process is proposed to adapt a certain modality to specific historical observations and generate fine-grained prediction results. Extensive experiments on four widely-used benchmarks show the superiority of our proposed approach.

Patient Adherence to Oral Anticancer Agents: A Mapping Review of Supportive Interventions.

The development and use of oral anticancer agents (OAAs) continue to grow, and supporting individuals on OAAs is now a priority as they find themselves taking these drugs at home with little professional guidance. This mapping review provides an overview of the current evidence concerning OAA-supportive adherence interventions, identifying potential gaps, and making recommendations to guide future work. Four large databases and the grey literature were searched for publications from 2010 to 2022. Quantitative, qualitative, mixed-method, theses/dissertations, reports, and abstracts were included, whereas protocols and reviews were excluded. Duplicates were removed, and the remaining publications were screened by title and abstract. Full-text publications were assessed and those meeting the inclusion criteria were retained. Data extracted included the year of publication, theoretical underpinnings, study design, targeted patients, sample size, intervention type, and primary outcome(s). 3175 publications were screened, with 435 fully read. Of these, 314 were excluded with 120 retained. Of the 120 publications, 39.2% (n = 47) were observational studies, 38.3% (n = 46) were quasi-experimental, and 16.7% (n = 20) were experimental. Only 17.5% (n = 21) were theory-based. Despite the known efficacy of multi-modal interventions, 63.7% (n = 76) contained one or two modalities, 33.3% (n = 40) included 3, and 3.3% (n = 4) contained four types of modalities. Medication adherence was measured primarily through self-report (n = 31) or chart review/pharmacy refills (n = 28). Given the importance of patient tailored interventions, future work should test whether having four intervention modalities (behavioral, educational, medical, and technological) guided by theory can optimize OAA-related outcomes.

A case of complex asphyxia sheds light on problems in the classification of asphyxias

Death from positional asphyxia is often an accidental event occurring when the victim’s body assumes a position which can compromise an effective respiration. Its diagnosis is usually not simple, because it needs to know the exact circumstance in which the body was found and the original positioning of all the body segments. In this case, a 41-year-old man with a history of opioid drugs abuse was found dead in a knee-chest position; the head was down on the floor with the face resting on a plastic bag. Pictures of the scene of death was taken while the body was still in its original position. At first, the main suspicion was that of a fatal overdose. Following the autopsy examination, completed by histological and toxicological examinations, the cause of death was determined as postural asphyxia secondary to intoxication by methadone, in the presence of ischemic heart disease. Some features, moreover, were typical of the death in head down position, and the prolonged knee-chest position was also associated with the obstruction of mouth and nose by the plastic bag, which may have contributed to the asphyxiation. These cases of “combined” asphyxia represent a challenge for the current classifications of asphyxia, which are very variable and not standardized, as we observe from a brief review of the literature. The elaboration of new systems of classification for asphyxias, which must be clear, simple and shareable, is necessary to avoid confusion in categorizing cases that present overlapping between several types of asphyxiation modalities.

Laryngeal office-based procedures: A safe approach

PurposeLaryngeal surgeries using a flexible nasopharyngoscope equipped with an operative channel has gained popularity, with gradual increase in the variety of interventional office-based procedures, under local anesthesia. The purpose of this study is to analyze the tolerance of such procedures. Materials and methodsRetrospective cohort study. 337 cases were performed during 2 years. We collected the following data: type of pathology, type of procedure and modalities of anesthesia, adverse events. Results19 % of the visits were for the purpose of Biopsy, 65 % for an injection, and Trublue Laser was utilized in 12 % of the procedures. Regarding the pathologies, 27 % were vocal fold paralysis, 18 % leukoplakia or another suspicious lesion, 15 % recurrent respiratory papillomatosis, 13 % neuromuscular disorder, 9 % vocal fold scarring, 7 % vocal cord atrophy and 6 % had an inflammatory presentation. Side effects were documented in 26 visits (7.7 %) and were minor in almost all the encounters: they included strong reflexive cough, deep throat pain, discomfort, gag reflex, anxiety, vagal discomfort, malaise, hypersalivation, nose pain, labile hypertension. More severe side effects were very rare and included septal wound and epistaxis, erythematous rash, dyspnea, and transient dysarthria. 13 procedures were either aborted, or canceled at initial steps, due to inability of the patient to tolerate the procedure and were rescheduled for general anesthesia. 97 % of the cases were released home after 1 h of surveillance. ConclusionOffice-based flexible interventional laryngoscopy under local anesthesia is a safe and well-tolerated procedure, with abundance of various interventions feasible on ambulatory, office-based setup.

Combiner and HyperCombiner networks: Rules to combine multimodality MR images for prostate cancer localisation

One of the distinct characteristics of radiologists reading multiparametric prostate MR scans, using reporting systems like PI-RADS v2.1, is to score individual types of MR modalities, including T2-weighted, diffusion-weighted, and dynamic contrast-enhanced, and then combine these image-modality-specific scores using standardised decision rules to predict the likelihood of clinically significant cancer. This work aims to demonstrate that it is feasible for low-dimensional parametric models to model such decision rules in the proposed Combiner networks, without compromising the accuracy of predicting radiologic labels. First, we demonstrate that either a linear mixture model or a nonlinear stacking model is sufficient to model PI-RADS decision rules for localising prostate cancer. Second, parameters of these combining models are proposed as hyperparameters, weighing independent representations of individual image modalities in the Combiner network training, as opposed to end-to-end modality ensemble. A HyperCombiner network is developed to train a single image segmentation network that can be conditioned on these hyperparameters during inference for much-improved efficiency. Experimental results based on 751 cases from 651 patients compare the proposed rule-modelling approaches with other commonly-adopted end-to-end networks, in this downstream application of automating radiologist labelling on multiparametric MR. By acquiring and interpreting the modality combining rules, specifically the linear-weights or odds ratios associated with individual image modalities, three clinical applications are quantitatively presented and contextualised in the prostate cancer segmentation application, including modality availability assessment, importance quantification and rule discovery.

Global research hotspots and trends in exercise interventions for rheumatoid arthritis over the past two decades: A bibliometric and visualization study.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a prolonged multifactorial autoimmune disease of unknown etiology. With the global population aging, the incidence of RA is increasing, highlighting the need for more effective treatments. Exercise interventions have been recognized as safe and effective for managing pain, improving function, and reducing fatigue in RA patients. However, the existing literature in this field lacks a thorough, organized, and clear line of analysis. In this study, we conducted a comprehensive analysis of the 20-year literature on exercise interventions for RA, aiming to identify hotspots and cutting-edge trends. Our objective is to provide subsequent researchers with valuable ideas and references. Using Cite Space, VOS viewer, and R-bibliometrix software for visualization and analysis, we compiled the main dataset from the web of science database, consisting of 1790 articles on exercise interventions in RA published between 2000 and 2023. Among these articles, the United States contributed the highest number of papers (433), while Karolinska Institutet ranked first institutionally with 90 papers. The study focused on the keyword's quality of life, cardiovascular disease, aerobic exercise, social support, psychology, and multidisciplinary care. The research highlighted the importance of clinical efficacy studies that investigate different types of exercise modalities (cardiorespiratory aerobic, resistance, aquatic, and neurological) either alone or in combination, to improve pain and function and reduce cardiovascular disease risk in patients with RA. Additionally, sedentary behavior, fatigue, and multidisciplinary care were identified as potential areas for further research. Overall, this study provides a scientific perspective on exercise interventions for RA and offers valuable insights for academics, funding organizations, and policymakers.

Volumetric analysis of pharyngeal airway dimensions and hyoid bone position following orthognathic surgery in skeletal class III patients: a cross sectional cephalometric study

Background: Objective of the study was to determine linear and volumetric changes in pharyngeal airway dimensions in class III patients treated by different modalities of orthognathic surgery and to compare the results of different orthognathic surgical modalities, and determine the change at the position of the hyoid bone. Methods: Pre and post-treatment lateral cephalogram of 53 class III adult patients who were treated by different modalities of orthognathic surgery studied to assess the changes in pharyngeal airway dimensions and hyoid bone position after orthognathic surgery. 28 patients were treated with mandibular set back, and 25 patients were treated with Bijaw surgery. Lateral cephalogram records were taken before treatment (T1), after surgery (T2), the end of the fixed treatment (T3) and 1 year after debonding (T4). Results: Interception of both surgical modalities has significant impact on various skeletal and pharyngeal parameters i.e., BMeH (0.00), PNS (0.009), MPS (0.13), GOP (0.001), IPS (0.007), SAS (0.006), and MAS (0.00). OJ (overjet) and OB (overbite) was significant especially after time interval of one year. In Bijaw groups, PPST4 parameter was significantly increased (0.0000), SPST4 (0.000), GOP (0.000), EPS (0.000) and IPS parameter was significantly decreased (0.045). Significant difference was observed in T4 time interval in superior pharyngeal airway space, posterior airway space and middle airway space with (p&lt;0.05). Conclusions: Pharyngeal airway is significantly altered following orthognathic surgery in class III patients and it depends on the type of surgical modality employed were Bijaw surgery has significant impact on oropharyngeal and hypopharyngeal airway space.

Effect of Topical Application of Apamargadi Ghrita for Utsadana - Granulation Tissue Formation in Dushta Vranam

Non-healing ulcers are defined as spontaneous or traumatic lesions, mainly in lower extremities that persist despite appropriate treatment and do not proceed towards healing in a defined time period. Wound healing is a very dynamic and complex process. It is divided into 5 stages in which granulation tissue formation, angiogenesis and synthesis of collagen occurs in the proliferative phase. On the basis of clinical features, non-healing ulcers can be considered as Dushtavrana in Ayurveda. Different types of Vrana and sixty types of treatment modalities are well explained in Susrutha Samhitha. Utsadana karma is indicated in non-healing ulcers with poor granulation tissue. It is the procedure by which the deep floor of the wound is elevated using drugs which promote growth of new tissues. Utsadana of Vrana can be correlated with the proliferation of new tissues in the wound healing process. The conservative and surgical management for non-healing ulcers mainly includes debridement, skin grafting and wound dressings. Even though these treatment methods help in healing the ulcer, the rate of recurrence is more due to the formation of unhealthy granulation tissue. Also it leads to complications like infection, sensory deficits, scarring and bleeding. Susruthacharya mentioned the drugs for Utsadana in Misrakadhyaya, they are Apamarga, Aswagandha, Suvarchala, Talapatri and drugs of Kakolyadi gana. Dalhana in his commentary mentioned Ghrita preparation of these drugs for topical application. Rasayana, Brimhana and Balya properties of these drugs will help in the formation of healthy granulation tissue. In the present case study a 30yr old male patient visited the OPD with non healing ulcer was selected for Utsadana karma. Daily dressing was done with Apamargadi ghrita. The study was done for a period of 30 days The dimensions and attributes of the ulcer was systematically measured on 1st, 8th, 15th, 30th day and the result was assessed. The result shows that topical application of Apamargadi ghrita is effective in Utsadana- granulation tissue formation of Dushta vrana.

NCMP-29. THE NATURAL HISTORY OF NEUROLYMPHOMATOSIS

Abstract Neurolymphomatosis is a rare lymphoid malignancy of the peripheral nervous system. Patients suffer from debilitating neurological deficits due to lymphoma invasion into one or more peripheral nerves and the natural history of this disease is still poorly understood. We performed a PubMed search and extracted data on year of publication, age, gender, type of lymphoma, nerves involved, imaging modalities, treatment received, and survival times. Kaplan-Meier statistics were used to determine outcome parameters over time and compare prognostic factors. Multiple comparisons were done to determine differences among groups. Our search identified 559 patients from 286 articles. Median age was 61 years (range 2-92) from 326 males, 222 females, and 11 with unspecified gender. Median overall survival (OS) was 12.0 months (range 10.0-15.0) for the entire cohort. Most frequent histologies were diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, unspecified T-cell lymphoma, and unspecified B-cell lymphoma, involving the brachial plexus, cranial nerves, and sciatic nerve. None had molecular profiling. There was a progressive lengthening of OS in successive decades, from 0.5 (95%CI 0.0-0.8) to 26.4 (95%CI 18.0-34.8) months from 1951-2022 (r2=0.9432, p&amp;lt; 0.001). Time from first treatment to progression also increased from 2.0 (95%CI N/A) to 28.3 (95%CI 23.1-33.5) months (r2=0.6923, p&amp;lt; 0.001). However, time from symptom onset to diagnosis remained unchanged during this period (r2=0.6206, p=0.277). Patients were most frequently treated with methotrexate-based chemotherapies (n=81), rituximab-based chemotherapies (n=176), and/or radiation (n=79). Only 12 received 3 or more regimens. Primary neurolymphomatosis had a better prognosis than secondary neurolymphomatosis, median OS 15.0 (95%CI 11.0-33.0) vs. 10.0 (95%CI 10.0-10.0) months (p=0.016). No OS difference was noted between B- and T-cell disease (p=0.4393), while patients with low-grade B-cell neurolymphomatosis did better than those with Burkitt's lymphoma (p≤0.001). Outcome for patients with neurolymphomatosis has improved over time. But timely diagnosis remains a major problem that needs improvement.

Effectiveness of exercise for improving physical and renal function in older adults with pre-dialysis chronic kidney disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Purpose : Exercise may prevent the worsening of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and progression of cardiovascular diseases in patients with CKD. This review aims to identify the best type of exercise modality and summarizes the beneficial effects of exercise on physical and renal function among older adults with pre-dialysis CKD.Methods : A systematic search of PubMed, Embase, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, SCOPUS, and domestic database was performed for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) assessing the effect of exercise intervention on older adults with pre-dialysis CKD published until February 2023. A random-effects metaanalysis was conducted. The risk of bias was assessed using a Cochrane tool for assessing the risk of bias in RCTs (RoB 2.0).Results : The systematic review included 11 RCTs (n = 591, average age 60.2–76), of which 8 could be included for meta-analysis. Exercise was significant in increasing peak oxygen consumption and knee muscle strength among physical functions, and also in improving glomerular filtration rate among kidney functions.Conclusion : Exercise has beneficial effects on physical and renal function among older adults with pre-dialysis CKD. In the future, it is necessary to verify the effectiveness of exercise by subdividing it by type, intensity, duration, and delivery.

Mood and Modality in Interpersonal Meaning of Joseph Robinette Biden Victory Speech

Speech involves the articulation of one's ideas and emotions. Politicians must possess the skill to effectively utilize language. Prior research underscores the significance of studying the political language, as it empowers individuals to grasp how those aspiring to attain, wield, and retain authority employ language. The purpose of this study is to analyze how mood and modality were used in the victory speech. This research applies qualitative design. The transcription of Joe Biden's victory speech is the subject of this investigation. Mr. Biden convey commitments and responsibility connected with the program that he will run; however, we don't know whether it will be run or no. This research applied qualitative research. The analysis is using data collection, data reduction, data display, and conclusion. According to the findings of this study, there are three distinct categories: value, modality, and mood. Declarative mood is the most common type; 193 clauses, or about 94%, are in the imperative mood, followed by seven clauses, or 3,4%, and three clauses, or about 1,5 percent, in the interrogative mood. The dominant modality value is median, there are eighteen provisions or around 62,1%, then, at that point, trailed by eight clauses or around 27,6% as low worth and the latter is three conditions or 10,3% for high worth. The dominant type of modality is obligation. Eleven clauses, or approximately 37.9 percent, are classified as obligation, ten clauses, or approximately 34.5%, as probability, and eight clauses, or approximately 26.7 percent, as inclination.

Machine-learning-based performance comparison of two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) CT radiomics features for intracerebral haemorrhage expansion

To investigate the value of non-contrast CT (NCCT)-based two-dimensional (2D) radiomics features in predicting haematoma expansion (HE) after spontaneous intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) and compare its predictive ability with the three-dimensional (3D) signature. Three hundred and seven ICH patients who received baseline NCCT within 6 h of ictus from two stroke centres were analysed retrospectively. 2D and 3D radiomics features were extracted in the manner of one-to-one correspondence. The 2D and 3D models were generated by four different machine-learning algorithms (regularised L1 logistic regression, decision tree, support vector machine and AdaBoost), and the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to compare their predictive performance. A robustness analysis was performed according to baseline haematoma volume. Each feature type of 2D and 3D modalities used for subsequent analyses had excellent consistency (mean ICC >0.9). Among the different machine-learning algorithms, pairwise comparison showed no significant difference in both the training (mean area under the ROC curve [AUC] 0.858 versus 0.802, all p>0.05) and validation datasets (mean AUC 0.725 versus 0.678, all p>0.05), and the 10-fold cross-validation evaluation yielded similar results. The AUCs of the 2D and 3D models were comparable either in the binary or tertile volume analysis (all p>0.5). NCCT-derived 2D radiomics features exhibited acceptable and similar performance to the 3D features in predicting HE, and this comparability seemed unaffected by initial haematoma volume. The 2D signature may be preferred in future HE-related radiomic works given its compatibility with emergency condition of ICH.

Clinical characteristics, racial inequities, and outcomes in patients with breast cancer and COVID-19: A COVID-19 and cancer consortium (CCC19) cohort study.

Limited information is available for patients with breast cancer (BC) and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), especially among underrepresented racial/ethnic populations. This is a COVID-19 and Cancer Consortium (CCC19) registry-based retrospective cohort study of females with active or history of BC and laboratory-confirmed severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection diagnosed between March 2020 and June 2021 in the US. Primary outcome was COVID-19 severity measured on a five-level ordinal scale, including none of the following complications, hospitalization, intensive care unit admission, mechanical ventilation, and all-cause mortality. Multivariable ordinal logistic regression model identified characteristics associated with COVID-19 severity. 1383 female patient records with BC and COVID-19 were included in the analysis, the median age was 61 years, and median follow-up was 90 days. Multivariable analysis revealed higher odds of COVID-19 severity for older age (aOR per decade, 1.48 [95% CI, 1.32-1.67]); Black patients (aOR 1.74; 95 CI 1.24-2.45), Asian Americans and Pacific Islander patients (aOR 3.40; 95 CI 1.70-6.79) and Other (aOR 2.97; 95 CI 1.71-5.17) racial/ethnic groups; worse ECOG performance status (ECOG PS ≥2: aOR, 7.78 [95% CI, 4.83-12.5]); pre-existing cardiovascular (aOR, 2.26 [95% CI, 1.63-3.15])/pulmonary comorbidities (aOR, 1.65 [95% CI, 1.20-2.29]); diabetes mellitus (aOR, 2.25 [95% CI, 1.66-3.04]); and active and progressing cancer (aOR, 12.5 [95% CI, 6.89-22.6]). Hispanic ethnicity, timing, and type of anti-cancer therapy modalities were not significantly associated with worse COVID-19 outcomes. The total all-cause mortality and hospitalization rate for the entire cohort was 9% and 37%, respectively however, it varied according to the BC disease status. Using one of the largest registries on cancer and COVID-19, we identified patient and BC-related factors associated with worse COVID-19 outcomes. After adjusting for baseline characteristics, underrepresented racial/ethnic patients experienced worse outcomes compared to non-Hispanic White patients. This study was partly supported by National Cancer Institute grant number P30 CA068485 to Tianyi Sun, Sanjay Mishra, Benjamin French, Jeremy L Warner; P30-CA046592 to Christopher R Friese; P30 CA023100 for Rana R McKay; P30-CA054174 for Pankil K Shah and Dimpy P Shah; KL2 TR002646 for Pankil Shah and the American Cancer Society and Hope Foundation for Cancer Research (MRSG-16-152-01-CCE) and P30-CA054174 for Dimpy P Shah. REDCap is developed and supported by Vanderbilt Institute for Clinical and Translational Research grant support (UL1 TR000445 from NCATS/NIH). The funding sources had no role in the writing of the manuscript or the decision to submit it for publication. CCC19 registry is registered on ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04354701.

The role of the copula 是 si7 in the construal of focus structure in early Southern Min

ABSTRACT: The paper explores the role of the copula 是 si7 in the interpretation of the focus structure in early Southern Min playscripts. I examine the configuration of 是 si7 with respect to a range of functional/lexical categories such as kinds of adverbs, types of modals, voice (featuring causativity and passitivity), aspect, and negation as well as verb and noun phrases. I also put forward tree structures showing how focus vis-à-vis topic in cleft and pseudo-cleft clauses with 是 si7 as the pivot are derived. In a nutshell, the syntactic position of 是 si7 is versatile and yet constrained. There is an asymmetry of the distribution of subject and object focusing with respect to the position of the copula 是 si7 . I posit with Rizzi (2013) that the focus feature in the FocP triggers merging the focus constituent to the head Foc in FocP in CP. Apart from bearing the assertive force in the clause typing, the copula 是 si7 plays a supporting role of scoping over the focus constituent. I capture the syntactic behavior of the copula 是 si7 by construing it as an indispensable pivot in the derivation of focus structure. o put forward tree structures showing how focus vis 摘要: 本文探讨早期闽南戏文中系词"是" 在焦点结构中所扮演的角色。从和各类状语、情态词、语式(表被动或致使)、体貌、否定和动词、名词组成的相对位置可以确定"是"的结构特性。文中呈现分裂句及准分裂句中焦点相对于话题的树形图，其中"是"为轴心，约言之，"是"的句法位置多元而有限制。以系词"是"的位置为参照，可以看出主语焦点和宾语焦点在结构分布上有不对称的现象。以 Rizzi (2013)为依据本文假设焦点词组中的焦点征性触发焦点成分并入 CP 中的焦点中心语中，除了表示句式的论断语势外系词"是"还发挥辅助焦点成分的作用。总之，本文主张系词"是"是焦点结构中不可或缺的轴心，如此可以捕捉到"是"的句法行为。

What happened to the modal expressions? Modality in translating Chinese texts into English

This article investigates how modality is handled in Chinese-to-English translation, in order to identify a range of choices available for translators and the relative frequencies of the choices. The study uses a self-built parallel corpus of Chinese government documents on Tibet and Xinjiang and their English translations. Modal expressions in the source and translated texts are analyzed according to the type and value of modality. Results show that the strategies of modality omission, modality retaining, and modality addition are adopted in the process of translation. High-valued modal expressions in the Chinese source texts are likely to be left out or translated into expressions of lower values. Median-valued modal expressions tend to be retained, and most added English modal expressions are of median value. Low-valued modal expressions enjoy similar distributions in the source and translated texts. These translation strategies result in a decrease in high-valued modal expressions and an increase in median-valued modal expressions. The type of modality tends to remain unchanged in the process of translation. Possible factors affecting the translation choices are discussed in terms of the communicative conventions and the tenor of the source and target texts.