Therapy for word-finding in aphasia: working at the syntactic level

Therapy for word finding problems in aphasia has targeted semantic or phonological processing. However, an intermediate syntactic level may exist, and spoken word production in aphasia may be impaired here. We investigated semantic, syntactic, and phonological processing in noun production with two people with aphasia. The data indicate that syntactic processing was impaired for both speakers. We carried out two forms of therapy: phonological and syntactic. For one person both therapies were effective leading to gains in word-finding, but no change in syntactic processing; for the other person word-finding improved, and the syntactic therapy led to improved syntactic knowledge

Syntactic versus lexical therapy for anomia in acquired aphasia: differential effects on narrative and conversation

Background: Previous studies of therapy for acquired anomia have treated nouns in isolation. The effect on nouns in connected speech remains unclear. In a recent study in 2012, we used a novel noun syntax therapy and found an increase in the number of determiner plus noun constructions in narrative after therapy. Aims: Two aims arose from the previous study: to identify the critical ingredient in the noun syntax therapy, specifically whether this is lexical production, or the syntactic context; and to extend the analysis of the effects beyond narrative into conversation. Methods & Procedures: We compared the effects of lexical therapy with those of noun syntax therapy in one individual with aphasia, in a sequential intervention design. We analysed the effects on conversation and on narrative. Outcomes & Results: There was improved picture naming of treated words after both therapies. Lexical therapy had no impact on narrative and conversation, whereas noun syntax therapy led to more noun production, primarily in the context of determiner plus noun combinations. Conclusions & Implications: The results support the claim that greater impact on narrative and conversation can be achieved for some people with aphasia by treating nouns in syntactic contexts

Therapy for word finding difficulties using phonological and orthographic cues: a clinical application in progress

Semantic therapy for anomia is well established both in research and in clinical practise. Research into phonological therapy is more limited and the results more equivocal. This paper will describe an ongoing clinical study which uses combined phonological and orthographic cues to treat anomia in a case series design. The study includes a single cue and a choice of cue condition, and also assesses the effect of repeated presentation of a picture for naming without cues on word retrieval. The results of therapy for picture naming and for word retrieval in natural conversation will be presented for two participants

Black hole masses, accretion rates and hot- and cold-mode accretion in radio galaxies at z ~ 1

Date of Acceptance: 25/11/2014Understanding the evolution of accretion activity is fundamental to our understanding of how galaxies form and evolve over the history of the Universe. We analyse a complete sample of 27 radio galaxies which includes both high-excitation galaxies (HEGs) and low-excitation galaxies (LEGs), spanning a narrow redshift range of 0.9 < z < 1.1 and covering a factor of ~1000 in radio luminosity. Using data from the Spitzer Space Telescope combined with ground-based optical and near-infrared imaging, we show that the host galaxies have masses in the range of 10.7<log10(M/M⊙)<12.0with HEGs and LEGs exhibiting no difference in their mass distributions. We also find that HEGs accrete at significantly higher rates than LEGs, with the HEG/LEG division lying at an Eddington ratio of λ~0.04, which is in excellent agreement with theoretical predictions of where the accretion rate becomes radiatively inefficient, thus supporting the idea of HEGs and LEGs being powered by different modes of accretion. Our study also shows that at least up to L151MHz ~ 3 × 1027WHz-1 sr-1, HEGs and LEGs are indistinguishable in terms of their radio properties. From this result we infer that, at least for the lower radio luminosity range, another factor besides accretion rate must play an important role in the process of triggering jet activity.Peer reviewe

The role of world trade organisation in international trade and investment

This paper examines the role of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in the promotion of international trade and investment. It gives a brief&nbsp; historical background of the limitations and constrains of international trade prior to the establishment of the WTO. The establishment of the WTO heralded a multilateral international institution with a global face. The existence of WTO has led to the liberalisation of international trade and investment. The WTO also has well-structured institutions to ensure economic globalisation and enforcement of trade regimes amongst member states. However, the mistrust and lack of ability for states to put their economic difference aside has stalled trade negotiation rounds. The polemics between developed and developing member states have led to a proliferation of regional economic organisation which policies sometimes run foul with that of WTO. This has the potential of weakening the impact of WTO. It is thus concluded herein that, for WTO to continue to be effective and not lose its relevance, it must continue to assure its member states, especially the developing countries, of having their interest at heart by ensuring that it does not just promote free but fair trade. Keywords: World Trade Organisation, International Trade, General Agreement on Trade and Tariffs, Most Favoured Nation, National Treatmen

Conversation therapy with people with aphasia and conversation partners using video feedback: a group and case series investigation of changes in interaction

Conversation therapies employing video for feedback and to facilitate outcome measurement are increasingly used with people with post-stroke aphasia and their conversation partners; however the evidence base for change in everyday interaction remains limited. We investigated the effect of Better Conversations with Aphasia (BCA), an intervention that is freely available online at https://extend.ucl.ac.uk/. Eight people with chronic agrammatic aphasia, and their regular conversation partners participated in the tailored 8 week program involving significant video feedback. We explored changes in: (i) conversation facilitators (such as multi-modal turns by people with aphasia); and (ii) conversation barriers (such as use of test questions by conversation partners). The outcome of intervention was evaluated directly by measuring change in video-recorded everyday conversations. The study employed a pre-post design with multiple 5 minute samples of conversation before and after intervention, scored by trained raters blind to the point of data collection. Group level analysis showed no significant increase in conversation facilitators. There was, however, a significant reduction in the number of conversation barriers. The case series data revealed variability in conversation behaviors across occasions for the same dyad and between different dyads. Specifically, post-intervention there was a significant increase in facilitator behaviors for two dyads, a decrease for one and no significant change for five dyads. There was a significant decrease in barrier behaviors for five dyads and no significant change for three dyads. The reduction in barrier behaviors was considerable; on average change from over eight to fewer than three barrier behaviors in 5 minutes of conversation. The pre-post design has the limitation of no comparison group. However, change occurs in targeted conversational behaviors and in people with chronic aphasia and their partners. The findings suggest change can occur after eight therapy sessions and have implications for clinical practice. A reduction in barrier behaviors may be easier to obtain, although the controlled case series results demonstrate a significant increase in conversation facilitators is also possible. The rehabilitation tool is available online and video technology was central to delivering intervention and evaluating change

Star formation in high-redshift quasars: excess [O II] emission in the radio-loud population

We investigate the [O II] emission line properties of 18,508 quasars at z<1.6 drawn from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) quasar sample. The quasar sample has been separated into 1,692 radio-loud and 16,816 radio-quiet quasars (RLQs and RQQs hereafter) matched in both redshift and i'-band absolute magnitude. We use the [O II]\lambda3726+3729 line as an indicator of star formation. Based on these measurements we find evidence that star-formation activity is higher in the RLQ population. The mean equivalent widths (EW) for [O II] are EW([O II])_RL=7.80\pm0.30 \AA, and EW([O II])_RQ=4.77\pm0.06 \AA, for the RLQ and RQQ samples respectively. The mean [O II] luminosities are \log[L([O II])_RL/W]=34.31\pm0.01 and \log[L([O II])_RQ/W]=34.192\pm0.004 for the samples of RLQs and RQQs respectively. Finally, to overcome possible biases in the EW measurements due to the continuum emission below the [O II] line being contaminated by young stars in the host galaxy, we use the ratio of the [O II] luminosity to rest-frame i'-band luminosity, in this case, we find for the RLQs \log[L([O II])_RL/L_opt]=-3.89\pm0.01 and \log[L([O II])_RQ/L_opt]=-4.011\pm0.004 for RQQs. However the results depend upon the optical luminosity of the quasar. RLQs and RQQs with the same high optical luminosity \log(L_opt/W)>38.6, tend to have the same level of [O II] emission. On the other hand, at lower optical luminosities \log(L_opt/W)<38.6, there is a clear [O II] emission excess for the RLQs. As an additional check of our results we use the [O III] emission line as a tracer of the bolometric accretion luminosity, instead of the i'-band absolute magnitude, and we obtain similar results. Radio jets appear to be the main reason for the [O II] emission excess in the case of RLQs. In contrast, we suggest AGN feedback ensures that the two populations acquire the same [O II] emission at higher optical luminosities.Comment: 12 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA

Nigeryjski system zarządzania ryzykiem eksploatacji podmorskich złóż ropy naftowej. Czy ustawa o przemyśle naftowym z 2021 r. wypełnia istniejące luki?

The occurrence of several offshore petroleum accidents in Nigeria supports the conclusion by some authors that the Petroleum Act (PA) 1969 regime is fraught with lapses. Environmental protagonists have applauded the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021 as the way forward in the regulation of offshore risk. This paper uses the non-doctrinal methodology to investigate the extent to which the PIA 2021 has progressed beyond the PA 1969 in effectively regulating offshore risk in Nigeria’s petroleum sector. Such analyses are predicated on the general principles of effective risk governance regime evidenced in international best practices. This study finds that the PIA 2021 has not successfully filled the existing gaps identified in the PA 1969 regime. It was argued that while the PIA provides for the establishment of a separate regulator, it retains the defects of the 1969 Act, including conflict of interest replete in the regulator being the regulated and the dual role of the regulator in maximizing revenue and risk governance. Another defect is the retention of a prescriptive method of regulation, which was argued to be ineffective in regulating an ever-evolving risk environment. It is expected that such analyses will prove useful in guiding future reforms in the Nigerian petroleum sector, as well as other jurisdictions, given that risk regulation is an area of transnational law. The authors recommend the adoption of goal-setting risk governance regulation, which allows for flexibility, leaving safety in the hands of those with better expertise to guarantee it, i.e. the operator.Wystąpienie szeregu wypadków związanych z wydobyciem ropy naftowej ze złóż podmorskich w Nigerii jest potwierdzeniem wniosków niektórych autorów, że reżim ustawy naftowej z 1969 r. (Petroleum Act, PA) jest obarczony wieloma wadami. Obrońcy środowiska z zadowoleniem przyjęli ustawę o przemyśle naftowym z 2021 r. (Petroleum Industry Act, PIA) jako krok naprzód w regulacji ryzyka związanego z wydobyciem ropy ze złóż podmorskich. W artykule wykorzystano niedoktrynalną metodologię badania zakresu, w jakim PIA 2021 wyszła poza PA 1969 w skutecznej regulacji ryzyka działalności wydobywczej offshore w nigeryjskim sektorze naftowym. Takie analizy opierają się na ogólnych zasadach efektywnego systemu zarządzania ryzykiem, znajdujących potwierdzenie w najlepszych praktykach międzynarodowych. W opracowaniu zauważono, że PIA 2021 nie wypełniła skutecznie luk stwierdzonych w reżimie opartym na PA 1969. Wskazywano, że wprawdzie PIA przewiduje powołanie odrębnego regulatora, pozostawia jednak wady PA 1969, w tym wielość konfliktów interesów polegających na tożsamości regulatora oraz regulowanego i dwoistego charakteru zadań regulatora jako podmiotu maksymalizującego zysk i zarządzającego ryzykiem. Inną wadą jest zachowanie preskryptywnej metody regulacji, która jest oceniana jako nieskuteczna przy regulacji zmieniającego się środowiska ryzyka. Oczekuje się, że takie analizy okażą się użyteczne przy opracowywaniu przyszłych reform nigeryjskiego sektora naftowego oraz innych obszarów, zważywszy na to, że regulacja w zakresie ryzyka jest dziedziną prawa transnarodowego. Autorzy zalecają przyjęcie regulacji opartej na wyznaczeniu celów zarządzania ryzykiem, co daje elastyczność, przy pozostawieniu bezpieczeństwa w rękach podmiotu dysponującego lepszą wiedzą specjalistyczną, czyli operatora

Flawed Evidence : A Recipe for Wrongful Conviction in Nigeria

Judicial decisions are made based on the evidence presented before the court. In criminal cases, evidence must be overwhelmingly convincing—beyond a reasonable doubt—to secure a conviction of the defendant. When evidence is obtained through flawed processes or is improperly evaluated by the court, it often results in wrongful conviction. Reliance on coerced confessional statements, faulty eyewitness identifications, jailhouse informants, flawed forensic evidence, and improper judicial evaluation of evidence have been identified as major causes of wrongful conviction in Nigeria. This issue is prevalent in Nigeria, and the courts tend to be somewhat lenient regarding these practices. While learning from foreign jurisdictions, it is suggested that Nigerian courts strictly adhere to the provisions of the law on the admission of confessional statements and rigorously evaluate evidence to prevent miscarriages of justice. This would compel law enforcement agents and prosecutorial authorities to focus on intelligence gathering and the proper use of forensic science in criminal investigations, rather than relying heavily on confessional statements. There is also a need for statutory entrenchment of these recommendations

Writing in Britain and Ireland, c. 400 to c. 800

No abstract available