Hearing aid delay in open-fit devices - coloration-pitch discrimination in normal-hearing and hearing-impaired.

OBJECTIVE: The delay in digital hearing aids is known to cause distortions due to the mixing of the delayed hearing aid sound with the undelayed direct sound. The most apparent delay-based distortion is a pitch sensation referred to as coloration-pitch. This study investigated coloration-pitch discrimination at the lower end of typical hearing aid delays and aimed at establishing thresholds where a large change in coloration-pitch is just perceptible. DESIGN: Simulations were verified against a reference hearing aid for numerous conditions of delay, insertion gain and incident direction. The simulations were used in a psycho-acoustics experiment in which coloration-pitch discrimination thresholds were measured as a function of hearing aid delay and gain. Participants discriminated between coloration-pitches produced by delay changes of 12%. Insertion gains compensating for mild to moderate hearing losses were used. STUDY SAMPLE: Nine normal-hearing and twelve hearing-impaired participants with mild to moderate hearing loss participated. RESULTS: The simulations accurately reflected the acoustics of the open-fit hearing aid. Discrimination thresholds were between 0.3 ms and 1 ms depending on insertion gain and hearing status. CONCLUSIONS: High sensitivity for changes in coloration-pitch was found for delays >1 ms. For shorter delays participants were increasingly insensitive to changes in coloration-pitch.

Fittings Detection Method Based on Multi-Scale Geometric Transformation and Attention-Masking Mechanism.

Overhead transmission lines are important lifelines in power systems, and the research and application of their intelligent patrol technology is one of the key technologies for building smart grids. The main reason for the low detection performance of fittings is the wide range of some fittings' scale and large geometric changes. In this paper, we propose a fittings detection method based on multi-scale geometric transformation and attention-masking mechanism. Firstly, we design a multi-view geometric transformation enhancement strategy, which models geometric transformation as a combination of multiple homomorphic images to obtain image features from multiple views. Then, we introduce an efficient multiscale feature fusion method to improve the detection performance of the model for targets with different scales. Finally, we introduce an attention-masking mechanism to reduce the computational burden of model-learning multiscale features, thereby further improving model performance. In this paper, experiments have been conducted on different datasets, and the experimental results show that the proposed method greatly improves the detection accuracy of transmission line fittings.

The Relationship between Triglyceride Glucose Index and Migraine: A Cross-Section Study from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).

BACKGROUND: Insulin resistance is a phenomenon in which the lowering blood glucose capacity of insulin is decreased, which is a feature of type 2 diabetes mellitus. Some previous studies have found an association between insulin resistance and migraine. The triglyceride glucose (TyG) index is used to assess insulin resistance. However, there is no report on the association between the TyG index and migraine. OBJECTIVE: We present a cross-sectional study from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) to clarify the association between the TyG index and migraine. METHODS: Data was acquired from the NHANES. Migraine was diagnosed based on patient selfreport and prescription medication. Data were analyzed using the weighted linear regression model, weighted chi-square test, logistic regression models, smooth curve fittings, and the twopiecewise linear regression model. Empower software was used for all data analysis. RESULTS: A total of 18704 participants were enrolled in this study, of which 209 were migraineurs. The rest were set as control. There was a statistically significant difference in mean age (p = 0.0222), gender (p < 0.0001), distribution of race (P < 0.0001), and drug usage between the two groups. However, there were no differences in type 2 diabetes mellitus, type 1 diabetes mellitus, total cholesterol, triglycerides, glucose, and TyG index between the two groups. According to logistic regression models, there was a linear relationship between TyG index and migraine in model 3 (odds ratio (OR = 0.54, p = 0.0165). particularly in female (OR= 0.51, p = 0.0202) or Mexican American (OR= 0.18, p = 0.0203). Moreover, there was no inflection point between the TyG index and migraine. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, there was a linear relationship between the TyG index and migraine. A higher TyG index predicts a lower incidence of migraine, particularly in females and Mexican Americans. Meanwhile, there is no inflection point between the TyG index and migraine.

Contamination of hospital tap water: the survival and persistence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa on conventional and 'antimicrobial' outlet fittings.

BACKGROUND: Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections have been linked to contaminated hospital taps, highlighting the potential for tap outlet fittings (OF) to harbour biofilm. P. aeruginosa may be transferred to OFs via contaminated cleaning cloths. Suggested interventions include flushing regimens and alternative OF designs. AIM: To investigate the transfer of P. aeruginosa from a contaminated cleaning cloth to conventional and 'antimicrobial/antibiofilm' OFs and to determine whether this contamination persists and/or leads to contamination of tap water. METHODS: Microfibre cloths contaminated with P. aeruginosa (108 cfu/mL) were used to wipe four different types of OF [one of conventional design (OF-A) and three marketed as 'antimicrobial' and/or 'antibiofilm' (OF- B, -C and -D)]. OFs were inserted into an experimental water distribution system for up to 24 h. Survival was assessed by culture. Single and multiple water samples were collected and cultured for P. aeruginosa. FINDINGS: The median number of P. aeruginosa transferred from cloth to OF was 5.7 × 105 cfu (OF-A), 1.9 × 106 cfu (OF-B), 1.4 × 105 cfu (OF-C) and 2.9 × 106 cfu (OF-D). Numbers declined on all OFs during the 24 h period with log reductions ranging from 3.5 (OF-C) to 5.2 (OF-B; P > 0.05). All water samples delivered immediately after OF contamination contained P. aeruginosa at ≥10 cfu per 100 mL. Contamination of water delivered from OF-A persisted despite continued flushing. Water delivered from OF-B did not contain P. aeruginosa beyond the first flush. CONCLUSION: Contaminated cleaning cloths may transfer P. aeruginosa to OFs, leading to contamination of tap water. Although not removing the potential for contamination, 'antimicrobial/antibiofilm' OFs may prevent P. aeruginosa from continually contaminating water delivered from the outlet.

Electrophysiological approach to determine kinetic parameters of sucrose uptake by single sieve elements or phloem parenchyma cells in intact Vicia faba plants.

Apart from cut aphid stylets in combination with electrophysiology, no attempts have been made thus far to measure in vivo sucrose-uptake properties of sieve elements. We investigated the kinetics of sucrose uptake by single sieve elements and phloem parenchyma cells in Vicia faba plants. To this end, microelectrodes were inserted into free-lying phloem cells in the main vein of the youngest fully-expanded leaf, half-way along the stem, in the transition zone between the autotrophic and heterotrophic part of the stem, and in the root axis. A top-to-bottom membrane potential gradient of sieve elements was observed along the stem (-130 mV to -110 mV), while the membrane potential of the phloem parenchyma cells was stable (approx. -100 mV). In roots, the membrane potential of sieve elements dropped abruptly to -55 mV. Bathing solutions having various sucrose concentrations were administered and sucrose/H(+)-induced depolarizations were recorded. Data analysis by non-linear least-square data fittings as well as by linear Eadie-Hofstee (EH) -transformations pointed at biphasic Michaelis-Menten kinetics (2 MM, EH: K m1 1.2-1.8 mM, K m2 6.6-9.0 mM) of sucrose uptake by sieve elements. However, Akaike's Information Criterion (AIC) favored single MM kinetics. Using single MM as the best-fitting model, K m values for sucrose uptake by sieve elements decreased along the plant axis from 1 to 7 mM. For phloem parenchyma cells, higher K m values (EH: K m1 10 mM, K m2 70 mM) as compared to sieve elements were found. In preliminary patch-clamp experiments with sieve-element protoplasts, small sucrose-coupled proton currents (-0.1 to -0.3 pA/pF) were detected in the whole-cell mode. In conclusion (a) K m values for sucrose uptake measured by electrophysiology are similar to those obtained with heterologous systems, (b) electrophysiology provides a useful tool for in situ determination of K m values, (c) As yet, it remains unclear if one or two uptake systems are involved in sucrose uptake by sieve elements, (d) Affinity for sucrose uptake by sieve elements exceeds by far that by phloem parenchyma cells, (e) Patch-clamp studies provide a feasible basis for quantification of sucrose uptake by single cells. The consequences of the findings for whole-plant carbohydrate partitioning are discussed.