Azrieli College of Engineering Jerusalem

Background: Bone vibrator (BV) stimulation applied to skin sites on the body elicits hearing by soft tissue conduction (STC). However, BV stimulation to sites far from the ear requires the delivery of higher-intensity stimulus vibrations to achieve threshold, which can then induce hearing by air conduction (AC) contamination. This problem limits the study of STC thresholds at sites more distant from the ear. Objective: To overcome this problem, we evaluated the possibility of delivering STC vibratory stimuli to body sites in a water bath, based on the different acoustic impedances between air and water, which produces a 30 dB reduction in transmission from water to air. Methods: A standard clinical BV delivered vibration stimuli (tonal and speech stimuli) applied directly to two body sites: finger and foot. BV and body sites were immersed in a water bath. One control involved both stimulation site and BV both in water, but not in contact. In an additional control, the BV was in the bath, while the stimulation site was out of the bath. Results: STC hearing of both pure tones and speech could be elicited at stimulus intensities below those induced by control stimulation (body site and BV both in water, but not in contact; BV in bath, stimulation site out of bath). STC thresholds at the finger site were lower than those at the foot. Conclusions: The current results suggest that water-immersion method enables study of STC hearing in response to higher-intensity vibrational stimuli, and at body sites more distant from the ear, without contamination by AC hearing.

Background/Objectives: Congenital cytomegalovirus (cCMV) is a leading non-genetic cause of childhood sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL), characterized by heterogeneous and dynamic hearing outcomes. Hearing impairment may be present at birth or emerge later in childhood. This study aimed to characterize hearing trajectories and laterality patterns in children with cCMV, with emphasis on congenital versus delayed-onset SNHL. Methods: We conducted a retrospective study of children with confirmed cCMV who underwent longitudinal audiologic follow-up. Hearing loss was classified as congenital SNHL or delayed-onset SNHL. Better- and poorer-ear thresholds, bilateral involvement, longitudinal changes, and follow-up duration were analyzed. Results: Of 195 included children, 59 (30%) developed SNHL. Congenital SNHL was present in 34 children (17%), while delayed-onset SNHL developed in 25 of 161 children (16%) who were born with normal hearing. Of these delayed-onset cases, 20 (80%) were asymptomatic at birth, while 5 (20%) presented with non-audiological neonatal symptoms. Longitudinal observation of the delayed-onset subgroup revealed that 36 ears developed SNHL during follow-up, spanning infancy through later childhood, including one case identified in early adulthood. Better-ear thresholds were significantly better preserved in delayed-onset SNHL, while poorer-ear thresholds were comparable across groups. Children with SNHL had substantially longer follow-up duration (60 ± 44.5 months) compared with those with normal hearing (37 ± 24.4 months). Conclusions: Children with cCMV-related SNHL exhibit dynamic and asymmetric hearing trajectories with clinically relevant differences between congenital and delayed-onset SNHL. These findings underscore the necessity of a risk-stratified, long-term surveillance framework that ensures individualized long-term monitoring and promotes sustained adherence to follow-up.

This study explores the relationship between personality traits, perceived psychological stress, and blinking behavior. The research is grounded in the Big-Five personality model, particularly focusing on neuroticism, extraversion, and conscientiousness, and their associations with stress responses, and physiological markers such as spontaneous blink rate (SBR). Previous studies suggest that personality influences stress and physiological responses; however, the link to blinking behavior remains underexplored. The study hypothesized that neuroticism is positively associated with blinking variability, mediated by perceived stress, whereas extraversion and conscientiousness demonstrate negative associations. The study included 86 participants (74 females, mean age 21.94 ± 2.51 years, age range 18–31). Blink dynamics, expressed as blinks per minute, were measured during a sustained reading task on a laptop at a distance of 45 cm. Participants completed validated online questionnaires, including the Big-Five Inventory (BFI-2) and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-14). The relationships between blink rate and questionnaire outcomes were examined. Path analysis was used to test the hypothesized direct and indirect effects. Findings indicate that higher neuroticism correlates with increased perceived stress and an increased blink rate, supporting the mediation hypothesis. Additionally, conscientiousness was negatively associated with perceived stress, which in turn was related to reduced blinking. These findings suggest that personality traits influence physiological responses to stress, with potential implications for understanding stress-related behaviors and developing biomarkers for psychological states. This study is among the first to combine both objective and subjective assessments of spontaneous blink rate, providing a novel, multi-level perspective on stress reactivity that integrates behavioral and self-reported indicators. Overall, the study emphasizes the mediating role of perceived stress in linking personality and blinking behavior, thereby offering insights into their physiological and psychological interplay.

Abstract The pro-isomorphic zeta function of a finitely generated nilpotent group is a Dirichlet generating series that enumerates all finite-index subgroups whose profinite completion is isomorphic to that of the ambient group. We study the pro-isomorphic zeta functions of ℚ-indecomposable D *-groups of even Hirsch length. These groups are building blocks of finitely generated class-two nilpotent groups with rank-two centre, up to commensurability. Due to a classification by Grunewald and Segal, they are parameterised by primary polynomials whose companion matrices define commutator relations for an explicit presentation. For Grunewald–Segal representatives of even Hirsch length of type f ( t ) = t m , we give a complete description of the algebraic automorphism groups of associated Lie lattices. Utilising the automorphism groups, we determine the local pro-isomorphic zeta functions of groups associated to t 2 and t 3 . In both cases, the local zeta functions are uniform in the prime p and satisfy functional equations. The functional equations for these groups, not predicted by the currently available theory, prompt us to formulate a conjecture which prescribes, in particular, information about the symmetry factor appearing in local functional equations for pro-isomorphic zeta functions of nilpotent groups. Our description of the local zeta functions also yields information about the analytic properties of the corresponding global pro-isomorphic zeta functions. Some of our results for the D *-groups associated to t 2 and t 3 generalise to two infinite families of class-two nilpotent groups that result naturally from the initial groups via ‘base extensions’.

This chapter on motion control in 3D printing and Cartesian and Delta systems and the integration of stepper motors stepper, servo drives, controllers, and sensors to provide high precision and resolution. It considers axis cranking, kinematic stabilization, vibration correction and thermal offsetting. The complex techniques such as model predictive control (MPC) and machine learning are argued and practical reason demonstrated with the help of Arduino, Marlin, Raspberry Pi, and BeagleBone. Reliability is focused on by calibration, diagnostics and predictive maintenance. Optimization of G-codes, smoothing of paths, and acceleration control are benchmarked, which can provide practical experience in the field of the three main areas of digital manufacturing, robotics, and intelligent production systems

This study explored how meaning in life relates to death and dying anxiety among Israeli civilians during wartime by examining the mediating roles of cognitive age perception and intolerance of uncertainty. A sample of 400 adults (50.5% women; M age 47.76 years) completed measures of death anxiety, exposure to events related to the October 7th massacre, meaning, cognitive age, and uncertainty tolerance. Findings showed that cognitive age perception did not significantly mediate the association between meaning and anxiety. Conversely, intolerance of uncertainty significantly mediated this link. A serial pathway emerged: lower meaning in life associated with greater perceived cognitive aging, which predicted higher intolerance of uncertainty, followed by greater death and dying anxiety. These findings underscore the central role of intolerance of uncertainty in shaping death-related distress during armed conflict. Interventions that strengthen existential meaning and improve tolerance of uncertainty may help reduce death and dying anxiety in high-threat contexts.

Background/Objectives: Dry eye (DE) can cause persistent eye rubbing, contributing to keratoconus (KC) development and progression. Both keratoconus (KC) and dry eye (DE) significantly impact patients’ functional and emotional well-being, with KC patients exhibiting a higher prevalence of DE symptoms and signs. This study examined whether functional (KEPAQ-F) and emotional (KEPAQ-E) quality of life, assessed by the Keratoconus End-Points Assessment Questionnaire, differ when influenced by symptoms and clinical signs of general DE versus meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD) in KC patients. Methods: Volunteers with KC (ages 18–70) underwent DE and MGD assessments, completing OSDI, MGD (MGDQ), and KEPAQ questionnaires. Clinical measures included NITBUT, Schirmer, and meibography. Pearson correlations and path analysis assessed relationships between DE and MGD symptoms and KEPAQ-F/E. Results: Forty-five KC participants (mean age: 45 ± 13, range: 20–69 years, 25 males) were enrolled; 22 (49%) had DE, and 15 (33%) had MGD. Significant correlations were observed between KEPAQ-E (2.9 ± 3.0 Logit) and KEPAQ-F (1.7 ± 3.0 Logit) scores with OSDI (26.5 ± 26.7) and MGDQ (3.3 ± 2.2) scores, and all Belin outcome measures A-D for all participants. In participants with diagnosed dry eye, KEPAQ E and F were also significantly correlated with loss of meibomian glands in the lower eyelids (R = −0.44, p = 0.04). Path analysis showed both DE and MGD were negatively correlated with lower KEPAQ-E and KEPAQ-F scores, with DE symptoms more influential (p < 0.05). The model explained 42% of the KEPAQ-E variance and 41% of the KEPAQ-F variance. Conclusions: Emotional and functional quality of life in KC is significantly and negatively related to DE and MGD symptoms, with DE symptoms exhibiting a greater impact. Furthermore, greater loss of meibomian glands in the lower eyelids is significantly associated with reduced emotional and functional KEPAQ scores in DE patients. These results underscore the critical importance of evaluating DE in KC to improve patient-reported outcomes.

The proposed glasses-type wearable enhances social interaction for visually impaired individuals by recognizing and communicating facial expressions in real-time. Social interactions can be challenging, leading to isolation. It utilizes the ESP32-CAM module to capture facial images. XGBoost-based emotion recognition algorithms classify emotions accurately. The system transmits identified emotions to a mobile app via Bluetooth. The app provides auditory cues to convey emotional context. A vibration motor in the glasses delivers tactile feedback corresponding to detected emotions. This multi-modal feedback ensures users perceive and respond to social cues effectively. Designed for accessibility, this device fosters social inclusion and independence, improving users' quality of life.