Approximately 50 % of all people with cerebral palsy (CP) have some form of speech or language disorder. Many of these have dysarthria, a neurological disorder that causes an impaired ability to articulate and effects respiration and phonation. Many people with CP consider dysarthria to be the biggest impairment as it has a major impact on their communication. Despite this there are limited voice and speech treatments for this group of patients. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether treatment of speech and voice functions with intensive voice treatment (LSVT LOUD) can improve the speech intelligibility in patients with dysarthria secondary to CP. Five participants (3 male and 2 female) were recruited and underwent 16 one-hour sessions of intensive voice treatment. A single-case experimental design (SCED) was used and testing occurred two weeks prior to (PRE), during (TREAT) and immediately following (POST) treatment. Measures of sound pressure level (SPL) in decibel (dB) and speech intelligibility on word and sentence level were conducted, alongside perceptual ratings of voice quality. Before and after treatment, participants answered a self-response form to evaluate their speech and communication. In addition to this the participants also estimated how effortful the treatment was. The results showed improvement in speech intelligibility and increased dB SPL on word and sentence level for four of the five participants. Perceptual ratings showed minor improvements in voice quality. Two out of five participants rated an improvement in their speech and communication. Overall the participants estimated the treatment as “very strenuous”. This study has contributed knowledge about the effects of LSVT LOUD on a new age group of people with dysarthria secondary to CP. More research is needed to draw conclusions on the effects of LSVT LOUD on speech intelligibility for people with dysarthria secondary to CP. / Ungefär 50 % av alla personer med cerebral pares (CP) har någon form av tal- eller språksvårighet. Många av dessa har dysartri, vilket innebär nedsatt artikulationsförmåga samt påverkan på andning och fonation till följd av neurologisk skada. Många personer med CP anser att dysartri är den största funktionsnedsättningen då den försvårar kommunikationen. Trots detta saknas utvärderade tal- och röstbehandlingsmetoder för patientgruppen. Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka om behandling av tal- och röstfunktionen med intensiv röstbehandling (LSVT LOUD) kan påverka talförståeligheten för patienter med dysartri sekundärt till CP. Fem deltagare rekryterades (3 manliga och 2 kvinnliga): dessa genomgick 16 behandlingssessioner med intensiv röstbehandling á 1 timme. Till studien användes en single-case experimental design (SCED) där testning utfördes två veckor innan (PRE), under (TREAT) och direkt efter (POST) behandling. Mätningar gjordes på sound pressure level (SPL) i decibel (dB) och talförståelighet på ord - och meningsnivå. Dessutom gjordes perceptuella bedömningar av röstkvaliteten. Innan och efter behandling utvärderades tal- och kommunikationsförmågan genom ett självsvarsformulär. Deltagarna skattade dessutom hur ansträngande de upplevt behandlingsperioden. Behandlingen resulterade i förbättringar för fyra av fem deltagare gällande röststyrka och ökad talförståelighet på ord- och meningsnivå. Perceptuella bedömningar visade på små förbättringar beträffande röstkvalitet. Två av fem deltagare skattade att deras tal- och kommunikationsförmåga förbättrats efter behandling. Generellt sett upplevde deltagarna behandlingen som “väldigt mycket ansträngande”. Studien har bidragit med kunskap om effekten av LSVT LOUD på en ny åldersgrupp av personer med dysartri till följd av CP. Mer forskning behövs för att kunna dra slutsatser om effekten av LSVT LOUD på talförståeligheten för personer med dysartri sekundärt till CP.

Tidigare forskning beskriver att högläsning främjar ett läsintresse. Samtidigt visarPISA-resultat att läsintresset hos elever minskar. Utifrån den inspektionen väcktes ennyfikenhet i mig att undersöka hur lärare arbetar med högläsning kombinerat med att främjaett läsintresse. Syftet med denna studie är därmed att undersöka hur lärare i årskurs 1–3beskriver att de arbetar med högläsning i svenskundervisningen för att främja elevernasläsintresse för skönlitteratur. I studien har sex behöriga lärare i årskurs 1–3 deltagit. För attkunna besvara studiens syfte användes en kvalitativ metod bestående av semistruktureradeintervjuer. Studiens resultat sammanställdes utifrån lärarnas uttalande och analyseradesdärefter. Studien utgår ifrån ett sociokulturellt perspektiv. Resultaten visar att samtliga lärareser högläsningen som viktig och att de därför läser varje dag. Däremot visar lärarna enbristande medvetenhet om planerade högläsningstillfällen samt hur lärarna aktivt kan arbetamed högläsning för att främja ett läsintresse. Slutsatsen blir därmed att lärare bör få merkunskap om hur det går att arbeta med en högläsningsbok för att kunna utveckla olikaaspekter i läsutvecklingen och läsintresset. / <p>Svenska</p>

Time reversal is a method often used to focus sound to a desired location, and works best in a reverberant environment. The effect of focus location within a reverberant environment is presented first, revealing that proximity to reflecting surfaces has a significant effect on the amplitude of the focus both experimentally and when using a modal summation model. These effects are a primary component to creating focus signals at high amplitudes. High-amplitude focusing experiments show that when multiple sources are used simultaneously to generate a focus, a peak amplitude pressure spike of 200 dB can be achieved in air. A pressure spike of this amplitude has multiple nonlinear characteristics, and an investigation into the spatiotemporal features and harmonic content of these signals was conducted. The peak amplitude of the focus signal also increases in amplitude nonlinearly as the loudspeaker volume is linearly increased. This nonlinear increase is the primary subject of investigation in this work. Experimental and computational methods are implemented in order to understand the mechanisms driving the nonlinear increases observed when the sources are combined acoustically as opposed to linear superposition of the contributions from each sound in post-processing. Finally, models of converging high-amplitude waves are generated using the k-Wave© package for MATLAB©. These show a similar nonlinear increase in amplitudes, supporting the hypothesis of a Mach wave coalescence. A COMSOL© finite element model allows visualization of the converging waves with Mach stems forming in free space to cause the nonlinear amplification.

This thesis is deals with Hrabal's novella Too Loud a Solitude in the English translation and its reception. First, it briefly describes Hrabal's life and work in the context of the co called normalization period in Czechoslovakia, focusing on the novella itself and the three variations of the original Czech text. Before the translation analysis, the possible source text for the translation is discussed since the endings of the Czech text and the English translation are considerably different. The source of the difference was determined by consulting the French translation and related commentary. The analysis compares the ending of the original with the endings of the English and the French translation, translation of proper names and three selected sections of the Czech and the English text. Afterwards, the thesis describes the reception of the novella in Czech and English literature and also readers' reviews at the Goodreads website. The analysis and the reception are assessed on the basis of the theory of cultural manipulation. The most important achievements are: identifying the source text for the English translation, description of translation method and shifts and discussion of differences between the Czech and the English attitude to the novella. Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)

Jonathan Safran Foer’s novel Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close stands out from the nationalistic-toned American “9/11 novels”. It depicts the story of a young boy and his grandparents who are left with the aftermath of losing a loved one in the attack on the twin towers. However, the complexity of the three main characters and the depth of their individual and common traumas make the novel go beyond the usual nationalistic 9/11 narrative and focus on the personal and, consequently, the national trauma.  This essay analyses the possibility of coping with and recovering from trauma through communication. Dominick LaCapra’s trauma theory notions of “working through” and “acting out”, as well as other traumatic memory research highlight the necessity of utterance in order to overcome trauma and to attempt an existence beyond it. In the instance of the three traumatized characters of the novel, the confessional language is entangled, broken and sometimes muted. This makes the recovery difficult in the case of the grandparents, almost impossible for the character of Grandpa. When it comes to the young boy, Oskar Schell, a more successful communication seems to open up the possibility of mental healing. These personal traumas are a reflection of a broader American trauma where an obsessive “rememoration” of the September 11 events and one-sided, revenge loaded public discourse do not seem to facilitate the national healing process. On all these levels, personal and community, the need and the difficult attempt to communicate the trauma of 9/11 does not necessarily grant recovery from it, but it facilitates a desired “working though” process.

Syftet med uppsatsen är att få en grundligare kunskap om berättande. I uppsatsen kan man läsa om vad författare anser om berättandets betydelse, medias påverkan på fantasin och vilka skyldigheter pedagoger har. Jag har även intervjuat tre pedagoger, från förskolan och skolans yngre år. Pedagogerna har givit en förståelse om hur berättande kan användas i praktiken och vilken betydelse de anser att berättande har för barnen. Jag har kommit fram till att berättande används i alla dess former ute i de verksamheter jag har besökt och är uppskattat från både lärare och barn. Jag kom också fram till att berättande hjälper barn att utveckla sitt språk, minne och fantasi. Men att viss media, d.v.s. dator och television, kan göra fantasin lat och hämma den språkliga utvecklingen. / The purpose of the essay is to get a thorough knowledge about narration. You can read about different authors’ opinions about narration, its significance, and the influence media has on the imagination and the duties educationists have. I’ve also interviewed three different educationists, from both pre-school and the early ages of school. They have provided insights about how to use narration in school, and the importance they think narration has for the children. The results show that narration is used in many forms an appreciated by both teachers and children. I’ve also discovered that narration helps children to develop their language skills, their memory and their imagination. But some media, like the computer and the television, could make the imagination lazy and obstruct the linguistic development.

One of two project reports. Part A can be found at: http://hdl.handle.net/11375/17932 / Time-averaged holographic interferometry is applied to the study of the resonance mode structures of an electromagnetic and a piezoelectric high frequency loud-speaker. Vibrational amplitude measurements were made using the simple concept of the holo-diagram. The vibrational amplitude sensitivity range was from 0.1 µm to 0.9 µm, which is an ideal range since the speaker vibrational amplitudes were always below 0.8 µm. Application of the technique to non-destructive speaker quality testing and optimum speaker design is also discussed in the report. / Thesis / Master of Engineering (ME)

Le rôle du parent est important dans le développement de la compétence en lecture de jeunes enfants et lire à son enfant est une pratique de littératie familiale fortement encouragée par la société. Cette étude a pour objectif de décrire cet accompagnement parental notamment en lien avec les stratégies de compréhension utilisées entre un parent et son enfant lors de la lecture à voix haute. Nous avons observé 10 parents lire un abécédaire, un texte narratif avec intrigue, un texte narratif sans intrigue et un texte informatif à leur enfant de cinq ans. Il s’avère que les stratégies utilisées par les parents et leurs enfants diffèrent selon le genre de texte. Les élèves ayant de faibles résultats (reconnaissance des lettres et de leurs sons, rappel du texte, compréhension du vocabulaire réceptif et de la morphosyntaxe) utilisent également moins de stratégies de compréhension lors de la lecture à voix haute que les enfants présentant de meilleurs résultats. Nous avons également vérifié l’étayage offert par les parents d’enfants présentant de bonnes et de faibles compétences en lecture. Ces deux groupes de parents se distinguent par la qualité et la fréquence de l’utilisation des stratégies de compréhension. En effet, nous remarquons que les parents qui guident leurs enfants dans l’utilisation des stratégies de compréhension sont davantage associés aux enfants démontrant une bonne compétence en lecture. Finalement, nous avons aussi vérifié les pratiques de littératie familiale (temps d’exposition et accessibilité à la lecture, modélisation par les membres de la famille, attitude des parents envers la lecture et mise en place d’activité favorisant la conscience phonologique de l’enfant). Seule la mise sur pied d’activités favorisant la conscience phonologique a pu être liée au rendement des enfants. / A parent’s role in their child’s reading development is important, and reading to your child is a family literacy practice that is strongly encouraged by society. This research describes parental support specifically in relation to reading comprehension strategies used between the parent and child while the parent is reading out loud. We observed 10 parents read aloud an alphabet book, a narrative text with an element of suspense, a narrative text without suspense, and a non-fiction text to their five year old child. It turns out that the reading comprehension strategies used by parents differed according to the type of text being read. The children with the lowest results (letter sound recognition, story recall, and comprehension of vocabulary and syntax) used less comprehension strategies during read alouds than the children with higher results. We also observed support offered by parents of children with lower and higher results. These two groups of parents differ by the quality and the frequency of their use of reading comprehension strategies. In fact, we noticed that parents who guide their child in using reading comprehension strategies are associated with their children having better results in reading. Finally, we verified the family literacy practices (time exposed to reading, accessibility of books, family members modelling reading, attitude of parents toward reading, and activities that promote letter sound knowledge/phonemic awareness). Only the family practice of creating activities to further develop letter sound knowledge/phonemic awareness was directly linked to the child’s results.

TITLE: Therapy of voice disorders AUTHOR: Michaela Horáková DEPARTMENT: Department of special education SUPERVISOR: Mgr. Miroslava Kotvová ABSTRACT: This diploma thesis deals with the voice disorders and their treatment options. The character of the thesis is mostly theoretical and the thesis is divided into four general parts. The first one elaborates the anatomy and physiology of the vocal tract as a basis for understanding mechanisms of voice pathology development, the second one is devoted to voice disorders and their categorization, and the third part deals with their therapy, as the czech literature reflects it. The last part of this thesis is dedicated to voice disorders therapy in the United States with a practical focus on therapeutical program Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT) widely used abroad during the treatment of voice disorders especially connected to Parkinson disease. The program is considered to be very effective and it is really popular outside of the Czech republic. LSVT is not well known in the Czech republic yet and there is actually only limited information devoted to this type of voice therapy. For this reason the thesis is based on analysis and comparison of the available foreign texts in order to inform the czech public about its theoretical basis, structure and system,...

This essay examines Jonathan Safran Foer’s Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close through an application of a theoretical framework of trauma studies, aiming to showcase the elements of personal trauma displayed in the novel. Moreover, it wishes to discern the mental and physical sufferings and working through of the trauma through a thematic analysis aimed at the concepts of loss, vicarious trauma and isolation. The study’s results indicate that trauma is inexplicably linked to the individual, demonstrating that prior trauma has a substantial impact on how one deals with more recent trauma. They also suggest that it is impossible to distinguish between first-hand trauma and second-hand trauma, instead focusing on the term vicarious trauma to describe the elements of personal trauma in a better way. Although Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is a work of fiction, this essay argues that it is valid in its portraying of trauma as it showcases the complex nature of trauma and its different aspects. In terms of the pedagogical implications of trauma, the essay suggests ways in which one can utilize and address fictional works in the Swedish EFL classroom supported by suggestions articulated by the Swedish National Agency for Education. It is done by raising students’ awareness for the elements of personal trauma, while at the same time improving their all-round communicative skills enabling them to discuss these issues at length.