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Affective and Psycholinguistic Norms for 1200 Two‐character Chinese Words
No full textABSTRACT The interplay between emotion and language has drawn increasing attention from researchers in various fields, such as psycholinguistics, neurolinguistics, and artificial intelligence. The classification of emotional words is crucial to experimental studies, as it serves as a fundamental step for unveiling the complex relationship between emotion and language. Hence, the current study introduces affective and psycholinguistic norms for 1200 two‐character Chinese words. The affective variables, including emotional prototypicality (EmoPro), valence, and arousal, as well as psycholinguistic variables (abstractness and familiarity), were rated by native speakers of Chinese using a 7‐point Likert scale. This set of norms, as far as we know, is the first one that provides words’ EmoPro together with other affective and psycholinguistic variables rated by the same group of participants. The results of inter‐rater reliability and correlation tests showed that this set of norms had good reliability and validity. The correlation between EmoPro and arousal was significant and strong. Valence and arousal exhibited an asymmetric U‐shaped relationship, with negative words being rated higher in arousal than positive ones. We also identified a quadratic relationship between EmoPro and valence, indicating that more prototypical emotion‐label words tend to trigger more extreme valence ratings. EmoPro significantly and positively correlated with abstractness, indicating that prototypical emotion‐label words tend to be more abstract. In addition, familiarity and word frequency predict lexical decision performance, whereas EmoPro does not after controlling for other variables. The present set of Chinese norms supports material selection in experimental research, enables cross‐linguistic comparisons, and has potential applications in natural language processing.摘要 情绪与语言的相互作用日益受到心理语言学、神经语言学及人工智能等多个领域研究者的关注。作为揭示情绪与语言复杂关系的基础, 情绪词分类对实验研究具有重要意义。因此, 本研究建立了包含1200 个汉语双字词的情绪及心理语言学词库。汉语母语者采用7 级李克特量表对情绪变量 (情绪典型性、效价和唤醒度) 和心理语言学变量 (抽象性和熟悉度) 进行评定。据我们所知, 这是首个由同批被试同时评定词汇情绪典型性及其他情绪与心理语言学变量的词库。评分者间信度及相关性检验结果表明, 该词库具有良好的信度和效度。情绪典型性与唤醒度之间存在显著的强相关性;效价与唤醒度呈现非对称U 型关系, 消极词的唤醒度显著高于积极词。此外, 情绪典型性与效价呈现二次函数关系, 表明更具典型性的情绪标签词往往引发更极端的效价评分。情绪典型性与抽象性显著正相关, 表明典型性高的情绪标签词通常更抽象。在控制其他变量后, 熟悉度和词频能有效预测词汇判断反应时, 而情绪典型性预测作用不显著。本汉语词库可为实验研究中的材料筛选提供支持, 促进跨语言比较, 并在自然语言处理中具有潜在应用价值。ABSTRACT The interplay between emotion and language has drawn increasing attention from researchers in various fields, such as psycholinguistics, neurolinguistics, and artificial intelligence. The classification of emotional words is crucial to experimental studies, as it serves as a fundamental step for unveiling the complex relationship between emotion and language. Hence, the current study introduces affective and psycholinguistic norms for 1200 two‐character Chinese words. The affective variables, including emotional prototypicality (EmoPro), valence, and arousal, as well as psycholinguistic variables (abstractness and familiarity), were rated by native speakers of Chinese using a 7‐point Likert scale. This set of norms, as far as we know, is the first one that provides words’ EmoPro together with other affective and psycholinguistic variables rated by the same group of participants. The results of inter‐rater reliability and correlation tests showed that this set of norms had good reliability and validity. The correlation between EmoPro and arousal was significant and strong. Valence and arousal exhibited an asymmetric U‐shaped relationship, with negative words being rated higher in arousal than positive ones. We also identified a quadratic relationship between EmoPro and valence, indicating that more prototypical emotion‐label words tend to trigger more extreme valence ratings. EmoPro significantly and positively correlated with abstractness, indicating that prototypical emotion‐label words tend to be more abstract. In addition, familiarity and word frequency predict lexical decision performance, whereas EmoPro does not after controlling for other variables. The present set of Chinese norms supports material selection in experimental research, enables cross‐linguistic comparisons, and has potential applications in natural language processing.摘要 情绪与语言的相互作用日益受到心理语言学、神经语言学及人工智能等多个领域研究者的关注。作为揭示情绪与语言复杂关系的基础, 情绪词分类对实验研究具有重要意义。因此, 本研究建立了包含1200 个汉语双字词的情绪及心理语言学词库。汉语母语者采用7 级李克特量表对情绪变量 (情绪典型性、效价和唤醒度) 和心理语言学变量 (抽象性和熟悉度) 进行评定。据我们所知, 这是首个由同批被试同时评定词汇情绪典型性及其他情绪与心理语言学变量的词库。评分者间信度及相关性检验结果表明, 该词库具有良好的信度和效度。情绪典型性与唤醒度之间存在显著的强相关性;效价与唤醒度呈现非对称U 型关系, 消极词的唤醒度显著高于积极词。此外, 情绪典型性与效价呈现二次函数关系, 表明更具典型性的情绪标签词往往引发更极端的效价评分。情绪典型性与抽象性显著正相关, 表明典型性高的情绪标签词通常更抽象。在控制其他变量后, 熟悉度和词频能有效预测词汇判断反应时, 而情绪典型性预测作用不显著。本汉语词库可为实验研究中的材料筛选提供支持, 促进跨语言比较, 并在自然语言处理中具有潜在应用价值
Integral points on cubic surfaces: heuristics and numerics
No full textAbstract We develop a heuristic for the density of integer points on affine cubic surfaces. Our heuristic applies to smooth surfaces defined by cubic polynomials that are log K3, but it can also be adjusted to handle singular cubic surfaces. We compare our heuristic to Heath-Brown’s prediction for sums of three cubes, as well as to asymptotic formulae in the literature around Zagier’s work on the Markoff cubic surface, and work of Baragar and Umeda on further surfaces of Markoff-type. We also test our heuristic against numerical data for several families of cubic surfaces
Circulating cytokine levels and 5-year vascular recurrence after stroke: A multicenter prospective cohort study
No full textBackground and objectives: Anti-inflammatory therapies are tested in randomized trials for secondary stroke prevention. Detecting inflammatory biomarkers that predict vascular recurrence could optimize patient selection for these trials. Methods: In a multicenter prospective cohort study, we measured plasma levels of 22 inflammatory cytokines in 486 acute stroke patients (474 ischemic strokes and 12 intracerebral hemorrhages; median age 68 years, 34% female, median 3 days post-stroke onset). Patients were followed for over 5 years through telephone and in-person interviews to record the occurrence of the following outcomes: (1) recurrent stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA; primary outcome); (2) a composite of recurrent vascular events (stroke, TIA, acute coronary syndrome, hospital admission due to heart failure, and death; secondary outcome). Associations between cytokine levels and these outcomes were analyzed using Cox proportional hazards models adjusted for demographic and vascular risk factors. Results: During the 5-year follow-up period, 59 patients (12.1%) experienced recurrent stroke or TIA, and 118 (24.3%) experienced recurrent vascular events. After adjustments for demographic and vascular risk factors, and correction for multiple comparisons, higher plasma levels of CD62E (adjusted Hazard Ratio (aHR)/SD increment: 1.63, 95%CI 1.22–2.20) and MIF (aHR: 1.56, 95%CI 1.18–2.06) in the acute phase after stroke were statistically significantly associated with increased risk of recurrent stroke or TIA. The associations followed a dose-response pattern across quartiles of CD62E and MIF levels. Adding baseline CD62E and MIF levels to models including age, sex, vascular risk factors, and baseline C-reactive protein (CRP) levels led to significant improvements in the prediction of 5-year risk of recurrent stroke or TIA (ΔC-index 0.030–0.050). Conclusion: Among stroke patients, higher baseline levels of CD62E and MIF improved prediction of 5-year risk of recurrent stroke or TIA on top of vascular risk factors and CRP levels. Whether assessment of these cytokines could improve patient selection for secondary prevention trials of anti-inflammatory treatments, should be explored in future studies.the Hertie Foundationthe German Research Foundationthe German Research Foundationthe German Research Foundation DFG under Germany’s Excellence Strategythe German Research Foundation DFG under Germany’s Excellence StrategyFöFoLe program of LMU Munichthe Fritz-Thyssen Foundationthe German Research Foundation (DFG) as part of the Munich Cluster for Systems Neurolog
Subdomains of Post-COVID Syndrome (PCS) – a population-based study
No full textAbstract Purpose ‘Post-COVID Syndrome’ (PCS), which encompasses the multifaceted sequelae of COVID-19, can be severity-graded by a previously defined score encompassing 12 different long-term symptom complexes. The PCS score was shown to have two main predictors, namely acute COVID-19 severity and individual resilience. The purpose of the present study was to verify these predictors and to assess their detailed relationship to the symptom complexes constituting the PCS score. Methods The study drew upon a largely expanded dataset ( n = 3,372) from COVIDOM, the cohort study underlying the original PCS score definition. Classification and Regression Tree (CART) analysis served to resolve the detailed relationship between the predictors and the constituting symptom complexes of the PCS score. Results Among newly recruited COVIDOM participants ( n = 1,930), the PCS score was again found to be associated with both its putative predictors. Of the score-constituting symptom complexes, neurological symptoms, sleep disturbance, and fatigue were predicted by individual resilience whereas the acute disease severity predicted exercise intolerance, chemosensory deficits, joint or muscle pain, signs of infection, and fatigue. These associations inspired the definition of two novel PCS scores that included the above-mentioned subsets of symptom complexes only. Similar to the original PCS score, both novel scores were found to be inversely correlated with quality of life as measured by the EQ-5D-5L index. Conclusion The two newly defined PCS scores may enable a more refined assessment of PCS severity, both in a research context and to delineate distinct PCS subdomains with possibly different therapeutic and interventional needs in clinical practise
Identification of a presymptomatic and early disease signature for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS): protocol of the premodiALS study
No full textAbstract Introduction The median time to diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is approximately 12 months after the onset of first symptoms. This diagnostic delay is primarily due to the nonspecific nature of early symptoms and the clinical challenges in differentiating ALS from its mimics. Therefore, the discovery of reliable biomarkers for the early and accurate diagnosis of ALS represents a critical medical need. Methods A total of 330 participants will be recruited across six international study sites. The cohort will include (1) pre-symptomatic gene mutation carriers, (2) symptomatic individuals up to 12 months after symptom onset with either ALS, ALS mimics, or a pure motor syndrome with yet unclear assignment, and (3) healthy controls. Participants will engage in a one-year longitudinal study, consisting of an initial evaluation at baseline visit and a follow-up visit 12 months later. Assessments will include an environmental and medical history questionnaire, neurological examinations, olfactory testing, cognitive/behavioral evaluations, and the collection of biological samples (serum, plasma, urine, tear fluid, and cerebrospinal fluid). Proteomic, metabolomic, and lipidomic analyses will be performed using mass spectrometry and targeted immunoassays, with all samples processed under standardized protocols. The resulting multimodal dataset will be systematically integrated in an effort to uncover a presymptomatic and early ALS signature. Perspective The premodiALS study aim to identify a clinico-molecular signature characteristic of presymptomatic and early ALS. These findings may have relevance to early diagnosis and future clinical practice for ALS disease.EU Joint Programme – Neurodegenerative Disease Research http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/100013278Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100002347Karlsruhe School of Elementary Particle and Astroparticle Physics: Science and Technology, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/100015817Germany’s Excellence Strategy within the framework of the Munich Cluster for Systems NeurologyEuropean Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation ProgrammeScientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey 501100004410Swiss National Science Foundation 501100001711Agence Nationale de la Recherche http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001665Polish National Science CenterMinistry of Health of IsraelAgentúra Ministerstva Školstva, Vedy, Výskumu a Športu SR http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100003194Swedish Research Council (SRCFightMND http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/100014012U.S. National Institutes of Health 100000002Suna and Inan Kıraç FoundationKlinikum rechts der Isar der Technischen Universität Münche
How Language Background Influences the Relationship Between Morphological Awareness and Literacy Skills in Monolingual and Bilingual Schoolchildren
No full textWe investigated differences in morphological awareness and literacy skills between monolingual and bilingual schoolchildren, and whether relationships between morphological awareness and literacy skills depend on language background. Fifty-six school children (n = 24 Arabic-German bilinguals; n = 32 German monolinguals) were assessed on measures of German morphological awareness, vocabulary, reading fluency, reading comprehension and spelling. Welch- and t-Tests were conducted to describe group differences, followed by correlation and regression analyses to examine how language background influences relations between morphological awareness and literacy skills. Results revealed that monolingual children outperformed bilinguals in morphological awareness for inflection. Across both groups, morphological awareness was generally linked to literacy skills. However, two exceptions emerged: morphological awareness for inflection was only associated with reading fluency in monolinguals, while morphological awareness for compounding showed a stronger tendency to influence reading fluency in bilinguals. The results highlight that interindividual differences can influence specific relations between morphological awareness and literacy. Arabic-German bilinguals may benefit from targeted training in inflectional morphology. To optimize literacy instruction, interventions should incorporate morphological instruction tailored to the needs of learners with diverse language backgrounds
The Impact of a Mobile Money–Based Intervention on Maternal and Neonatal Health Outcomes in Madagascar: Cluster-Randomized Controlled Trial
No full textBackground Financial barriers to accessing obstetric care persist in many low-resource settings. With increasing use of mobile phones, mobile money services appear as a promising tool to address this concern. Maternal health care is particularly suitable for a savings program using mobile money due to the predictable timing and costs of delivery. The mobile money–based Mobile Maternal Health Wallet (MMHW) intervention aimed to ease the burden of out-of-pocket expenses related to maternal health care by providing an accessible savings tool. Objective This study aimed to assess the impact of the MMHW on maternal and neonatal health outcomes. Methods We used a stratified cluster-randomized trial to assess the impact of the MMHW on maternal and neonatal health outcomes in the Analamanga region of Madagascar. All 63 eligible public sector primary care health facilities (Centres de Santé de Base [CSBs]) within 6 strata were randomized to either receive the intervention or not. We estimated intention-to-treat effects and contamination-adjusted effects following an instrumental variable approach. The primary outcomes included (1) delivery at a health facility, (2) antenatal care visits, and (3) total health care expenditure. Between March 2022 and December 2022, a total of 6483 women who had been pregnant between July 2020 and December 2021 were surveyed. Results Among women in catchment areas of treated CSBs, 38.79% (1297/3344) had heard of the MMHW, and 37.42% (485/1296) of them registered for the tool. There was considerable variation in uptake across treated CSBs. Descriptively, women in the catchment areas of treated CSBs were more likely to deliver in a facility and had more antenatal care visits and higher total health expenditures compared to women in control CSB catchment areas in the intention-to-treat and contamination-adjusted analyses. However, none of the effects were statistically significant. Conclusions While this study did not identify a statistically significant impact, the estimated contamination-adjusted effects suggest that the MMHW has potential to improve access to maternal care for women who are receptive to such a mobile money–based savings tool. Estimated population-level effects were much smaller, and this study was underpowered to detect such effects due to lower-than-anticipated uptake of the intervention. Trial Registration German Clinical Trials Register DRKS00014928; https://www.drks.de/search/de/trial/DRKS00014928 International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) RR2-10.1186/s13063-021-05694-
Matrisome remodeling in the myocardium of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy; novel targets for molecular diagnostics
No full textHypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is an inherited cardiac disorder characterized by left ventricular thickening and extracellular matrix (ECM) remodeling, often manifested as increased interstitial fibrosis that impair muscle function. The clinical and pathological presentations, as well as the genetic background, vary among patients, making HCM a heterogeneous disease with diverse clinical phenotyping and responses to treatment. In HCM, the myocardium exhibits an increased secretion of inflammatory mediators and ECM proteins, indicating a stress response to myocardial pathogenesis. The production of these ECM proteins is regulated by the interaction between cardiomyocytes and the surrounding stroma, including cardiac fibroblasts, immune cells, and microvasculature. This crosstalk defines the responsiveness to injury and the progression of the disease. In this review, we aim to dissect the composition of myocardial ECM in relation to HCM development, highlighting the key cellular contributions to ECM remodeling and identifying potential molecular targets for personalized diagnostics and therapeutics
Search for a light CP-odd Higgs boson decaying into a pair of τ-leptons in proton-proton collisions at s = 13 TeV with the ATLAS detector
No full textAbstract This paper reports a search for a light CP-odd scalar resonance with a mass of 20 GeV to 90 GeV in 13 TeV proton-proton collision data with an integrated luminosity of 140 fb−1 collected with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. The analysis assumes the resonance is produced via gluon-gluon fusion and decays into a τ+τ− pair which subsequently decays into a fully leptonic μ + ν μ ν ¯ τ e − ν ¯ e ν τ or e + ν e ν ¯ τ μ − ν ¯ μ ν τ final state. No significant excess of events above the predicted Standard Model background is observed. The results are interpreted within a flavour-aligned two-Higgs-doublet model, and a model-independent cross-section interpretation is also given. Upper limits at 95% confidence level between 3.0 pb and 68 pb are set on the cross-section for producing a CP-odd Higgs boson that decays into a τ+τ− pair