Melody Generator: A Device for Algorithmic Music Construction

This article describes the development of an application for generating tonal melodies. The goal of the project is to ascertain our current understanding of tonal music by means of algorithmic music generation. The method followed consists of four stages: 1) selection of music-theoretical insights, 2) translation of these insights into a set of principles, 3) conversion of the principles into a computational model having the form of an algorithm for music generation, 4) testing the “music” generated by the algorithm to evaluate the adequacy of the model. As an example, the method is implemented in Melody Generator, an algorithm for generating tonal melodies. The program has a structure suited for generating, displaying, playing and storing melodies, functions which are all accessible via a dedicated interface. The actual generation of melodies, is based in part on constraints imposed by the tonal context, i.e. by meter and key, the settings of which are controlled by means of parameters on the interface. For another part, it is based upon a set of construction principles including the notion of a hierarchical organization, and the idea that melodies consist of a skeleton that may be elaborated in various ways. After these aspects were implemented as specific sub-algorithms, the device produces simple but well-structured tonal melodies.

Audiometric Profile of Deafness at the University Hospital Center Gabriel Toure of Bamako

Objective: To determine the audiometric profile of deafness in our practice. Materials and Methods: Longitudinal prospective study was conducted out in the ENT department and cervicofacial surgery of Gabriel Toure University Hospital in Bamako, we made an exhaustive sampling of all the patients who consulted for hearing loss, tinnitus, vertigo, hiring report, medical expertise and whose deafness was confirmed to tonal audiometry with an age greater than or equal to 15 years. It was spread over 10 months (June 2016 to March 2017). A total of 200 patients were collected. Exclusion criteria were all patients under 15 years of age as well as deafness related to earwax or foreign bodies, and refusal to participate in the study Results: During our study period, 6055 outpatients were admitted out of which 734 patients underwent audiometric testing and 200 patients (3.30%) met our criteria. The male sex was the most represented with a rate of 60%. The sex ratio was 1.5 or 3 men for 2 women. The 15 to 25 age group was the most represented at 37.5%. The average age was 37.18 years old with extremes ranging from 15 to 83 years old. Pupils/students were the most represented with a rate of 29.5%, followed by housewives in 23%, farmers in 10.5% and military in 10%. As antecedent 26% of our patients had a chronic otitis media (OMC), against 23% who had no antecedent otological and 17% had a traumatic antecedent. Bilateral deafness was the most common with a rate of 64.5%. The mode of progressive appearance was the most frequent in 74.5%. As functional signs 46.22% of our patients had a hearing loss associated with tinnitus. Otoscopic examination was pathological in 34.5% of our patients. Mixed deafness was the most common in 43.35%, followed by perception deafness in 32.19% and transmission deafness 24.46%. Mean deafness was the most common with a rate of 48.91%, was severe in 20.22%, mild in 18.31%, deep in 11.47% and cophotic in 01.09%. Asymmetrical curves were the most found in 65.89% of our patients. Conclusion: Deafness is a sensory disability responsible for communication disorder, sometimes disabling. Audiometry, although subjective, remains essential in the diagnosis of deafness.

直方图校正在数字图像处理中消除色调灰度失真的应用（英文）

At the image preparation for reproduction in bit-by-bit processing systems is required a number of corrections.Among such corrections may be considered frequency correction,gradation correction and color correction.In this article our attention will be focused on the gradation correction,as the gradation reproduction forms first of all the feeling of psychological accuracy of the image reproduction.This is certainly applicable to black-and-white originals,but for color image is the color rendering ac-

A Comparative Study on Efficacy of Fludrocortisones versus Glucocorticoids and Vasodilators in the Treatment of Idiopathic Sensorineural Cochlear Hearing Loss

Introduction and Objectives: The idiopathic sensorineural cochlear hearing loss is one of the most frequent human sensory deficits and there is no specific drug therapy for it. The possible hearing recovery is related with the reestablishment of normal ionic homeostasis of the endolymph controlled by the mineralocorticoid as could be demonstrate experimentally. The purpose of this clinical trial was to confirm the efficacy of mineralocorticoids to the recovery of hearing level in patients suffering idiopathic sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) against the glucocorticoids and vasodilator drugs. Material and Methods: The research lasted three months and involved 90 patients allocated into four different groups: Placebo group, consisted of 20 patients (10 men and 10 women);the group consisting of 22 patients treated with glucocorticoid therapy (12 men and 10 female);the group treated with mineralocorticoid therapy encompassed 26 patients (13 males and 13 females) and the group of vasodilators formed by 22 patients (12 men and 10 women). The level of hearing loss was estimated by the tests Liminal Tone Audiometry (LTA) and Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR). Results: The main features in this research were overall better response in improving the hearing level with the mineralocorticoid therapy. This improvement in hearing levels was greater in women than in men, and a higher response was found in the left ear regardless of patient’s gender. Conclusions: The hearing gain was significantly superior in the mineralocorticoids group followed by the glucocorticoids group whereas the response to vasodilators was lesser and with no statistical significance.

Memory of Familiar Melodies： Comparison Between Original and Transposed Keys

The long-term memory for musical keys of familiar melodies was investigated. An experiment was conducted focusing on memory strength, music familiarity, and key transposition using musical pieces. Participants were eighty-one Japanese undergraduate and graduate students. Eight were absolute pitch （AP） possessors and seventy-three were non-AP possessors. Two pieces of well-known classical music were selected as stimuli. These pieces were played in seven different keys： One was an original key and the other six were transposed keys in which the linear distance and harmonic distance were varied. Participants rated their strength of long-term memory for a particular segment of well-known music by comparing it with their memory of this piece. Importantly they were not required to identify the musical key of the melody. Results indicated that the strength of memory for these musical segments depended mainly on the pitch range associated with the transposed piece and partially on its key. We discussed participants＇ memory of melodies in the light of linear distance between original and transposed keys, harmonic distance between these factors, and the possibility of absolute tonality.

Major and Minor Harmonic Keys： The Discrepancy in Chord Classification Under a Computational Tonality Analytical Method

Basing upon the tonality analytic method, the present paper aims at： （1） Drawing attention to the subordination of the minor key vs. the major key in the chord classification, using the same methodology; and （2） Showing the differences for the major key and the minor （harmonic） key in the classification of chords, as an aspect of importance for interpreting a piece＇s tonal structure diagram. The relations between chords appearing in the major and minor （harmonic） key will be shown by applying the comparisons of： （1） third-based chords; and （2） degrees in the C major and A minor keys, on which the same diatonic chords appear.

Some Remarks Regarding Originality and Historical Transformations of Chopin＇s Mazurkas, as Based on the Mathematical Systematic Method of the Tonal Structure Analysis

Musical analysis enables us to study the various elements of a musical work, for example texture, m dynamics, or harmony （including tonality）. Thanks to musical analysis we are able to trace the compos technique, or assess the artistic value of given work. In addition to traditional, descriptive methods of e it ody, onal music analysis, we can observe in 20th century the development of methods based on science （mathematics, otherwise statistics）. Such methodologies allow us to obtain a strict understanding of the structure of musical pieces Applying mathematical methods for musical analysis seems very reasonable in relation to the output of Frederic Chopin, due to large originality of the elements of musical pieces of this composer. Present paper was written as a result of research related to the applying of numerical method of analysis for exploring the tonal structure of Chopin＇s works. The author＇s research method enables a strict analysis of the chord＇s domination that can be classified under given key （range）--taking into consideration the harmonic functions. By the method of analysis we can get charts that depict whole diatonic vertical music material of the given piece. The main objective of the present study is to describe observations on the high uniqueness in the tonal construction of selected Chopin＇s mazurkas, especially, when compared to the miniatures of other composers of the first half of the 19th century and previously analyzed Chopin＇s pieces： etudes, preludes, and songs.

LI Bai＇s Eight Poems About XI Shi

The study traces Chinese poet LI Bai＇s eight poems about why none of these eight poems gets anthologized in Tang the mythical figure XI Shi and investigates the reasons Shi San Bai Shou （ 《唐诗三百首》）, the most popular poetry of Tang Dynasty anthology. Observations focus on the poems＇ departure from writing conventions, the poems＇ genre of huai gu （怀古）, the general assumption that may block our understandings and evaluations of these literary works such as LI Po is clumsy at describing feelings and he shows signs of hasty composition and his risky experiments with the tonal effects.

Some Tonal and Rhythmical Sequences in the Vocal Language of Dogs as Significant Earthquake Precursors

A monitoring of multiple physical parameters in a moderate seismic area in Western Piedmont (NW Italy) and the simultaneous observation of the behaviour of numerous species of domestic and wild animals gave in a period of over twenty years the possibility to distinguish the unusual animal behaviours due to local earthquake nucleation from other causes. In particular, the observation of the body and vocal language of dogs (Canis familiaris) in the same area has permitted not only to specify the different meanings of vocal language in connection to their body language, but also to classify the minimum elements into a vocal language that is linked together by tonal and rhythmical sequences of sounds that form a semantic lexicon. The usage of the same tonal and rhythmical vocal sequences in similar or identical situations, which are experienced by different groups of dogs, induces us to verify whether it could be possible to link particular vocal sequences to precise physical anomalies before earthquakes. The individuation of physical anomalies due to an earthquake nucleation or due to a hydro-geological destabilization, is possible thanks to a continuous long-term monitoring of some parameters. Moreover, the complexity of the vocal language of dogs increases if the dogs live in an area with a law population density. Then the correlation between some vocal sequences and some seismic precursors is better if dogs live free in yard or on farms, if they are in good health, and if they can establish a strong social relation of group. When dogs live closed in yards of houses that are far apart, they communicate with each other with an amazing vocal language, full of questions and answers, imitations of sequences, and information about situations that may be harmful to them.

Tonal Noise Prediction of an Automotive Engine Cooling Fan： Comparison between Analytical Models and Acoustic Analogy Results

Valeo, involved in engine cooling fan system design for many years, is interested in noise prediction tools for axial fans. Thus, this paper describes a two-part study of tonal noise computation. The first part deals with the prediction of tonal noise using analytical models. As for the second part, it describes a hybrid approach for predicting tonal noise where the sources are extracted from an Unsteady Reynolds-Averaged Naviers-Stocks （URANS） simulation and then propagated into the far, free field using the Ffowcs Williams and Hawkings＇ acoustic analogy. The computational domain is meshed with 46 million polyhedral elements and the simulation takes into account the exact geometry of the rotor blades, the stator blades and the shroud. The results from the first part show that analytical models can be used for comparisons between different fan geometries, but are unable to provide accurate noise predictions compared to experimental results. The simulation shows non-periodic blade loading over a whole fan revolution, and different blade loading between the blades. This introduces some bias in the assessment of the acoustic performance of the fan. Overall, the results from the hybrid method are in accordance with the experimental results.

An Analysis of the E.E. Cummings’ “L(a”

E.E. Cummings is an American poet who is famous for his fantastic poems. L(a, one of his representative works, is a unique visual poem that shows Cummings' feeling of loneliness and takes readers into a sentimental scene. A great many researches have been done on this poem focusing on the morphology, visual effects, tonality and Cummings' inner world. However, a comprehensive literature review of this poem has hardly been made. Thus, this paper sums up some representative comments of these aspects, doing a literature review of it and then puts forward the author's own interpretation to make a contribution to the future studies of the poem.

Interaction tonal noise generated by contra-rotating open rotors

Fast and accurate prediction of sound radiation of Contra-Rotating Open Rotors(CRORs)is an essential element of design methods of low-noise open rotor propulsion systems.In the present work,a previous frequency-domain model is extended to predict CROR noise.It builds explicitly the relationship between harmonic loadings and corresponding tonal noise,by which the influential parameters to noise generation can be clearly understood.The real distribu-tions of steady and unsteady blade loadings are calculated by the Nonlinear Harmonic(NLH)method.In the present hybrid approach,both the CFD and acoustic modules are solved in the fre-quency domain.To assess the accuracy of the developed method,the loading noise of a CROR is calculated and compared against results by using the time-domain FW-H module of NUMECA.The predicted sound directivities by the two methods are in good agreements.The present acoustic model in the frequency domain is proven to be accurate and have high efficiency in far-field noise prediction and data processing.Furthermore,the characteristics of the CROR interaction tonal noise are analyzed and discussed.

论英语语调的语义功能

语调是人类语言的灵魂。无论何种语言或方言,语调都不可避免,它具有丰富的情感和言外之意。本文旨在从语义角度阐明英语语调所蕴含的复杂意义,以期引起更多的学者专家予以关注。

Detection of time varying pitch in tonal languages: an approach based on ensemble empirical mode decomposition

A method based on ensemble empirical mode decomposition (EEMD) is proposed for accurately detecting the time varying pitch of speech in tonal languages. Unlike frame-, event-, or subspace-based pitch detectors, the time varying information of pitch within the short duration, which is of crucial importance in speech processing of tonal languages, can be accurately extracted. The Chinese Linguistic Data Consortium (CLDC) database for Mandarin Chinese was employed as standard speech data for the evaluation of the effectiveness of the method. It is shown that the proposed method provides more accurate and reliable results, particularly in estimating the tones of non-monotonically varying pitches like the third one in Mandarin Chinese. Also, it is shown that the new method has strong resistance to noise disturbance.

Analysis of Tonal Noise Generating Mechanisms in Low-Speed Axial-Flow Fans

The present paper reports a comparison of experimental SPL spectral data related to the tonal noise generated by axial-flow fans.A nine blade rotor has been operated at free discharge conditions and in four geometrical configurations in which different kinds of tonal noise generating mechanisms are present:large-scale inlet turbulent structures,tip-gap flow,turbulent wakes,and rotor-stator interaction.The measurements have been taken in a hemi-anechoic chamber at constant rotational speed and,in order to vary the acoustic source strength,during low angular acceleration,linear speed ramps.In order to avoid erroneous quantitative evaluations if the acoustic propagation effects are not considered,the acoustic response functions of the different test configurations have been computed by means of the spectral decomposition method.Then,the properties of the tonal noise generating mechanisms have been studied.To this aim,the constant-Strouhal number SPL,obtained by means of measurements taken during the speed ramps,have been compared with the propagation function.Finally,the analysis of the phase of the acoustic pressure has allowed to distinguish between random and deterministic tonal noise generating mechanisms and to collect information about the presence of important propagation effects.

Tonal coarticulation patterns in quadrisyllabic words and phrases with normal stress of mandarin

Quadrisyllabic words and phrases with normal stress of Mandarin were used to study the tonal coarticulation. It was firstly found that the F0perturbation at the starting-point and the ending-point of the F0 curve in each syllable caused by tonal coarticulation is larger than the intrinsic F0 difference of vowels at the starting-point and the ending-point of it. As for the tonal coarticulation, it was discovered that tonal coarticulation in word and phrase with normal stress is different to that in the nonsense sequence with even stress, and in word and phrase with normal stress, the tonal coarticulatory effects are unidirectional, and the carryover effect does not extend to the ending-point of tone-section of the following syllable and the anticipatory effect does not extend to the starting-point of tone-section of the preceding one, and the F0 perturbation by tonal coarticulation has its pattern.

Relations of intensity just noticeable difference to intensity of tonal bursts with various durations

The relations of intensity Just Noticeable Difference (JND) to intensity for tone bursts maybe,depend on signal durations according to Jont B.Allen's [J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 102 3, 1997, 3628--3646.]. The intensity just noticeable differences for tone bursts with durations of 1 ms, 10 ms, 100 ms, 1000 ms, 5000 ms and 10000 ms were measured at different intensity levels of 20 dB, 30 dB, 40 dB, 50 dB, 60 dB, 70 dB, 80 dB, 90 dB, 100 dB. The data show that variance of Weber fraction (△I/I) with intensity is distinct from Riesz's result and SPIN theory, and that the relations between Weber fraction and intensity for signals of different durations are similar in spite of Weber fraction decreasing to asymptote with signal duration increasing. This means the difference of pulse measurement of intensity JND from Riesz's result and SPIN theory does not arise from the limited signal duration of pulse method and provides new cue for hearing research.

A comparative study of F_0 patterns between Chinese and other languages

The fundamental frequency F0 patterns of Chinese were compared with that of English, Japanese, and German at both macro (passage) and micro (fundamental period) levels by using a Laryngograph in this paper. 14 Chinese and 14 foreigners were selected as speakers. The results show that: 1 .The 90% pitch range of Chinese is somewhat larger than that of other languages studied in Hz but it is near the same for all languages in relative scale logF0, 2. The average signed jitter factor in connected speech is neariy the same, about 3.2%, for both male and female speakers and for dif ferent languages studied; 3. The (-)jitter facior is highcr than (+) jitter factor in connected speech; 4. The rate of F0 fluctuation (peak and valley) for Chinese is higher than that for English; 5.The speech rated in syllables per second of Chinese speakers is lower than that of foreign speakers.

Alessi Tonale以设计向绘画大师致敬

意大利文Tonale有"色调"的意思,建筑及产品设计师David Chipperfield用这字命名他为Alessi设计的餐具系列,大概是因为其用色源自意大利画家Giorgio Morandi著名的色调处理方法。除了波隆那的风景外,Morandi最常画的便是常见的器物。他花了多年时间来钻研用色,不断地就色调、光度及所绘物件的排列等方面反复练习,提炼出他独有的和谐平静的画面。David Chipperfield把Morandi常用的泥土色系应用在立体的陶瓷、玻璃及木制的器皿上,设计出一系列盘子、酒瓶、碗、杯子等。每一件器皿单独看来或觉平平无奇,然而当它们被随意地排在一起,却构成一道简洁平和的桌上风景。网址:www.alessi.

Speaking Tonal Languages Promotes Perfect Pitch

一项新的研究得出这样一个结论:以有音调语言(如汉语)为母语的音乐家与以无音调语言(如英语)为母语的音乐家相比,前者的音高辨别力会更强些,因此可以这么说:中国人比英美人更有成为音乐家的天赋!