Classification of dog barks: a machine learning approach

In this study we analyzed the possible context-specific and individual-specific features of dog barks using a new machine-learning algorithm. A pool containing more than 6,000 barks, which were recorded in six different communicative situations was used as the sound sample. The algorithm's task was to learn which acoustic features of the barks, which were recorded in different contexts and from different individuals, could be distinguished from another. The program conducted this task by analyzing barks emitted in previously identified contexts by identified dogs. After the best feature set had been obtained (with which the highest identification rate was achieved), the efficiency of the algorithm was tested in a classification task in which unknown barks were analyzed. The recognition rates we found were highly above chance level: the algorithm could categorize the barks according to their recorded situation with an efficiency of 43% and with an efficiency of 52% of the barking individuals. These findings suggest that dog barks have context-specific and individual-specific acoustic features. In our opinion, this machine learning method may provide an efficient tool for analyzing acoustic data in various behavioral studies.     

Longing for the Feminine: Reflections on Love,Sexual Orientation,Individuation, and the Soul

This article is a collaboration that represents several years of dialogue about our topic, alongside the individual depth work done by each of us to overcome the negativities that often poison collaborations and feeling connections: envy, enmeshment, and passivity. It is the unique expression of two women working together in a co-creative process pulsed by feminine principles. Diane is a Jungian analyst and has spent her life close to the unconscious. Fran is a writer, educator, and lifelong student of mystical paths. The article gives an account of Diane's longing for the divine feminine and the particular meaning it has for her as a lesbian in this time of global upheaval. In particular, her story highlights the psychic suffering that individuals go through when their same-sex attractions and love orientation are judged as psychologically “immature” or religiously “sinful.” Neither Christian-based “conversion therapy” nor Jungian analysis turned Diane into a heterosexual woman. Her story reveals the benefit of Jung's depth psychology even as it underscores the singularity of every person's individuation process. The article's unusual format is a tandem of Diane's first-person sharing of her soul's journey and Fran's witnessing of the journey's profound significance. We found that both voices were needed. Truth requires not only the one who lives a journey with courage but also the one who witnesses it with a loving heart. Ultimately, we see the personal journeys of gays and lesbians as significant to the larger context of the evolution of human consciousness.     

Maternal Sensitivity: a Resilience Factor against Internalizing Symptoms in Early Adolescents Born Very Preterm?

Compared with full-terms, preterm individuals are more at risk from infancy to adulthood for developing internalizing symptoms. Early maternal interactive behavior, especially maternal sensitivity, has been found to be a resilience factor in the developmental outcome of preterm children. The present longitudinal study aimed at examining whether early interactive parenting behaviors have a long term impact on the internalizing symptoms of preterm-born young adolescents. A total sample of 36 very preterm and 22 full-term children participated in an 11-year follow-up study. Maternal interactive behavior was assessed during a mother–infant interaction when the infant was 18 months old. At 11 years, internalizing symptoms were assessed with the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that the interaction between groups (preterm/full-term) and maternal sensitivity at 18 months significantly explained CBCL internalizing symptoms at 11 years (β = ?0.526; p < 0.05). Specifically, although prematurity was related to internalizing problems, preterm children with higher maternal sensitivity did not differ from their full-term-born peers on the CBCL internalizing problems domain. These results suggest that maternal sensitivity is a long-term resilience factor preventing the development of internalizing problems at early adolescence in very preterm individuals.     

Bidirectional lexical-gustatory synesthesia

In developmental lexical–gustatory synesthesia, specific words (inducers) can trigger taste perceptions (concurrents) and these synesthetic associations are generally stable. We describe a case of multilingual lexical–gustatory synesthesia for whom some synesthesias were bidirectional as some tastes also triggered auditory word associations. Evoked concurrents could be gustatory but also tactile sensations. In addition to words and pseudowords, many voices were effective inducers, suggesting increased connections between cortical taste areas and both voice-selective and language-selective areas. Lasting changes in some evoked tastes occurred during childhood suggesting that some plasticity can be present after the initial learning of associations. Inducers were often linked to taste concurrents phonologically or semantically, but also through identifiable childhood episodes (persons or events). Several inducers were phonologically linked to episodic inducers suggesting a process of secondary acquisition for many inducers. Implications of these observations are discussed.     

Learning as a Path,Not a Goal: Contemplative Pedagogy – Its Principles and Practices

What is contemplative pedagogy and how is it practiced in Religious Studies classrooms? Contemplative pedagogy cultivates inner awareness through first‐person investigations, often called “contemplative practices.” Contemplative teaching practices range widely: silent sitting meditation, compassion practices, walking meditation, deep listening, mindfulness, yoga, calligraphy, chant, guided meditations, nature observation, self‐inquiry, and many others. Since narrative is a mode of instruction prevalent in contemplative literature, the article includes first‐hand reflections from students and a narrative account of how an initially skeptical professor came to incorporate contemplative teaching methods into her courses. It expands from the personal narratives to highlight the work of many contemplative professors in the field. These real‐life examples are put into the context of recent publications on shifts in higher education and meditation research. The article seeks to demonstrate the power of contemplative teaching to fulfill many hopes for liberal arts learning. Of particular importance is its emphasis on interior qualities of lifelong impact, such as self‐knowledge and ethical cultivation.     

Quality of attachment,perinatal risk,and mother–infant interaction in a high‐risk premature sample

Thirty‐three families, each with a premature infant born less than 33 gestational weeks, were observed in a longitudinal exploratory study. Infants were recruited in a neonatal intensive care unit, and follow‐up visits took place at 4 months and 12 months of corrected age. The severity of the perinatal problems was evaluated using the Perinatal Risk Inventory (PERI; A.P. Scheiner & M.E. Sexton, 1991 ). At 4 months, mother–infant play interaction was observed and coded according to the CARE‐index (P.M. Crittenden, 2003 ); at 12 months, the Strange Situation Procedure (SSP; M.D.S. Ainsworth, M.C. Blehar, E. Waters, & S. Wall, 1978 ) was administered. Results indicate a strong correlation between the severity of perinatal problems and the quality of attachment at 12 months. Based on the PERI, infants with high medical risks more frequently tended to be insecurely attached. There also was a significant correlation between insecure attachment and dyadic play interaction at 4 months (i.e., maternal controlling behavior and infant compulsive compliance). Moreover, specific dyadic interactive patterns could be identified as protective or as risk factors regarding the quality of attachment. Considering that attachment may have long‐term influence on child development, these results underline the need for particular attention to risk factors regarding attachment among premature infants.     

Philosophical parrhesia as aesthetics of existence

According to some interpreters, Foucault's encounter with the Greek and Roman ethics led him to reconsider his earlier work and to turn away from politics. Drawing mostly from Foucault's last and hitherto unpublished lecture course, this paper argues that Foucault's turn to ethics should not be interpreted as a turn away from his previous work, but rather as its logical continuation and an attempt to resolve some of the outstanding questions. I argue that the 1984 lectures on parrhesia should be interpreted as Foucault's philosophical apology, as an attempt to defend himself against the charges of moral and epistemological nihilism, which were raised in response to his earlier work. In his last lectures, the Nietzschean Foucault somewhat surprisingly describes his earlier work as authentic Socratic philosophy and as ethical practice of freedom. In the conclusion, I assess the plausibility of Foucault's apology and speculate in which direction his work might have developed, had it not been cut off by his death.     

Effects of cognitive impairment on prosodic parameters of speech production planning in multiple sclerosis

Cognitive impairment (CI) affects 40–65% of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). CI can have a negative impact on a patient's everyday activities, such as engaging in conversations. Speech production planning ability is crucial for successful verbal interactions and thus for preserving social and occupational skills. This study investigates the effect of cognitive-linguistic demand and CI on speech production planning in MS, as reflected in speech prosody. A secondary aim is to explore the clinical potential of prosodic features for the prediction of an individual's cognitive status in MS. A total of 45 subjects, that is 22 healthy controls (HC) and 23 patients in early stages of relapsing-remitting MS, underwent neuropsychological tests probing specific cognitive processes involved in speech production planning. All subjects also performed a read speech task, in which they had to read isolated sentences manipulated as for phonological length. Results show that the speech of MS patients with CI is mainly affected at the temporal level (articulation and speech rate, pause duration). Regression analyses further indicate that rate measures are correlated with working memory scores. In addition, linear discriminant analysis shows the ROC AUC of identifying MS patients with CI is 0.70 (95% confidence interval: 0.68–0.73). Our findings indicate that prosodic planning is deficient in patients with MS-CI and that the scope of planning depends on patients’ cognitive abilities. We discuss how speech-based approaches could be used as an ecological method for the assessment and monitoring of CI in MS.     

Placing Age Differences in Cultural Context: A Comparison of the Effects of Age on PTSD After Disasters in the United States, Mexico, and Poland

Criterion symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) were measured 6–12 months after Hurricane Andrew in the United States (non-Hispanic n = 270), Hurricane Paulina in Mexico (n = 200), and the 1997 flood in Poland (n = 285), using English, Spanish, and Polish versions of the Revised Civilian Mississippi Scale. The samples ranged in age from 18 to 88. Linear and quadratic effects of age were tested by using hierarchical multiple regression, with the effects of gender, trauma, and education controlled. Among Americans, age had a curvilinear relation with PTSD such that middle-aged respondents were most distressed. Among Mexicans, age had a linear and negative relation with PTSD such that younger people were most distressed. Among Poles, age had a linear and positive relation with PTSD such that older people were most distressed. Thus, there was no one consistent effect of age; rather, it depended upon the social, economic, cultural, and historical context of the disaster-stricken setting.