Hearing impairment is one of the most common health disorders, affecting individuals of all ages, reducing considerably their quality of life. At present, it is known that during an acoustic stimulation a travelling wave is developed inside the cochlea. Existing mathematical and numerical models available in the literature try to describe the shape of this travelling wave, the majority of them present a set of approaches based on some limitations either or both of the mechanical properties used and the geometrical description of the realistic representation. The present numerical study highlights the distinctions of using a spiral model of the cochlea, by comparing the obtained results with a straight, or simplified model. The influence of the implantation of transversely isotropic mechanical models was also studied, by comparing the basilar membrane with isotropic and transversely isotropic mechanical properties. Values of the root mean square error calculated for all models show a greater proximity of the cochlear mapping to the Greenwood function when the basilar membrane is assumed with transversely isotropic mechanical properties for both straight and spiral model. The root-mean square errors calculated were 2.05, 1.70, 2.72, 2.08 mm, for the straight-isotropic, straight-transversely isotropic, spiral-isotropic and spiral-transversely isotropic model, respectively.Neurofibroma is a rare nerve sheath tumor of neuroectodermal origin, especially the huge and isolated neurofibroma located in the inguinal region. To our knowledge, no such case has previously been reported. We report a case of 34-year-old male patient with a 4-year history of progressive enlargement of the medial root mass in his left thigh with sitting and standing disorders along with pain. The tumor was completely removed by operation, and pathological diagnosis showed neurofibroma. There was no obvious neurologic defect after surgery, and no recurrence tendency was found in the follow-up of 2 years. For a large solitary mass with slow growth and no malignant clinical manifestations for a long time, clinicians cannot rule out the hypothetical diagnosis of neurofibroma, even though its growth site is very rare, such as this case of a huge tumor located in the groin. For neurogenic tumors, early operation should be performed, and the prognosis of patients after tumor resection is excellent.Automatic behaviour is supposedly underlain by the unintentional retrieval of processing episodes, which are stored during the repeated overt practice of a task or activity. In the present study, we investigated whether covertly practicing a task (e.g., repeatedly imagining responding to a stimulus) also leads to the storage of processing episodes and thus to automatic behaviour. Participants first either responded overtly or covertly to stimuli according to a first categorization task in a practice phase. We then measured the presence of automatic response-congruency effects in a subsequent test phase that involved a different categorization task but the same stimuli and responses. Our results indicate that covert practice can lead to a response-congruency effect. We conclude that covert practice can lead to automatic behaviour and discuss the different components of covert practice, such as motor imagery, visual imagery, and inner speech, that contribute to the formation of processing episodes in memory.Which strategy people use to guide locomotor interception remains unclear despite considerable research and the importance of an answer with ramification into the heuristics and biases debate. Because the constant bearing (CB) strategy corresponds to the target-heading (CTH) strategy with an additional constraint, these two strategies can be confounded experimentally. But, the two strategies are distinct in the information they require while the CTH strategy only requires access to the relative angle between the direction of motion and the target, the CB strategy requires access to a stable allocentric reference frame. Here, we manipulated the visual information about allocentric reference frames in three virtual environments and asked participants to steer a car to intercept a moving target. Participants' interception paths showed different degrees of curvature and their target-heading angles were approximately constant, consistent with the CTH strategy.  https://www.selleckchem.com/products/cbl0137-cbl-0137.html  By contrast, the target's bearing angle continuously changed in all participants except one. This particular participant produced linear interception paths with little change in the target's bearing angle, seemingly consistent with both strategies. This participant continued this pattern of steering even in the environment without any visual information about allocentric reference frames. Therefore, this pattern of steering is attributed to the CTH strategy rather than the CB strategy. The overall results add important evidence for the conclusion that locomotor interception is better accounted for by the CTH strategy and that experimentally observing a straight interception trajectory with a CB angle is not sufficient evidence for the CB strategy.The rate of angular correction (ROAC) is very unpredictable and may be affected by various factors in the treatment of genu valgum and varum by means of guided growth. The purpose of this study was to assess the ROAC in cases from our institution and to identify risk factors associated with the occurrence of lower ROAC.We retrospectively reviewed the chart records of 68 patients undergoing guided growth with figure-eight plate for the correction of genu valgum and varum. Based on the data from these patients, the annual increment of physeal growth was calculated and compared with data from the Anderson chart. The associations between patient characteristics and ROAC were evaluated with the use of univariate logistic regression.The mean rate of femoral angular correction was 10.29 degrees/year, while the mean rate of tibial angular correction was 7.92 degrees/year. In a univariate logistic regression analysis, the variables associated with a higher risk of lower ROAC included non-idiopathic coronal deformity of the knee (odds ratio = 13.