Nest-site characteristics may affect the daily survival rate of avian nests. We monitored the nests of Chestnut Thrush Turdus rubrocanus breeding in an agricultural landscape near the Lianhuashan Natural Reserve (central China) during the breeding seasons of 2013 and 2014. We describe the Chestnut Thrush’s breeding ecology and used logistic-exposure methods and an information theoretic approach to assess the factors influencing daily survival rates of nests. Results from model averaging indicated that daily survival rates of nests consistently decreased from habitat edge to interior, contradicting the classic edge effect hypothesis describing predation of avian nests. Concealment of nests from below was positively correlated with nest daily survival rates, whereas concealment from the side and from above were not. These results suggest that determining the various effects of vertical and/or horizontal concealment on nest survival rates may help us assess the variation in the ability of local predators to detect nests.

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Nowadays, with a recent interest in robots, a lot of portal/news sites about the robots appeared on the Internet, and some robot magazines are first published. Furthermore, the activities of science communication and outreach has intensified. Therefore, researchers of robotics should consider how to be involved in these media/activities and how to cooperate with it for the promotion of robotics. To solve these problems, both the researchers and the media/activities have to enhance mutual understanding and exchange with each other. In this paper, we get an overview of the current state of these media/activities and express our point of view how researchers to be involved in it.

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In 1976, primary tracheoesophageal (TE) fistulisation with the membranous part of the trachea was established by Amatsu for the purpose of voice reconstruction following laryngectomy. In 1983, a short procedure against aspiration was added to the original method. It was arranged to obtain sphincter mechanism by looping both esophagus and TE fistula with inferiorly based esophageal muscle flaps obtained from the posterolateral aspect of the esophagus. The rate of aspiration during deglutition has been remarkably improved after this modification.
In this study, 4 TE speakers without aspiration were subjected to fluoroscopic examination to clarify the mechanism inhibiting aspiration. All of them had no aspiration with slight infiltration of the contrast medium into the TE fistula in 2 subjects. The contrast medium in the fistula was trapped at the level of the muscular loop. Esophageal dilatation with slight elevation at the upper level was the major finding. From these facts, the mechanism that blocks aspiration was concluded to be the muscular loop constricting the fistula when the esophagus dilates at swallowing.

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 A 55-year-old male was hospitalized with severe headache. On admission, neurological examination revealed no abnormal findings. Plain computed tomography (CT) showed a slightly high-density area in the medial surface of the right parietal lobe. A marked enhancement in the same region was noted in enhanced CT. Cerebral angiography showed an arteriovenous malformation (AVM) in the medial surface of the right parietal lobe and two aneurysms on the right pericallosal artery which fed the AVM. In addition, a saccular aneurysm was noted at the anterior communicating artery. It was not possible to treat the AVM, two aneurysms nearby the AVM, and the unruptured anterior communicating artery aneurysm simultaneously with a single craniotomy. It was therefore decided to perform surgery for the AVM and two aneurysms nearby the AVM prior to clipping of the anterior communicating artery aneurysm. Total excision of the AVM and two aneurysms nearby the AVM was performed. Cerebral angiography performed 18 days after surgery revealed no AVM and also reduction in size was noted of the anterior communicating artery aneurysm. Three months later, repeated cerebral angiography showed disappearance of the aneurysm. This was further confirmed 15 months after surgery by angiography. From the literature, 117 cases of coexistence of AVM and aneurysms of the brain were collected and classified into three types according to their anatomical and hemodynamic correlation. It is suggested that hemodynamic stress, due to increased blood flow caused by the AVM, played a major role in the development of the aneurysm. Therefore, a conservative attitude toward operation on an aneurysm on the feeding system of the AVM may be justified, provided both vascular lesions cannot be treated with a single craniotomy.

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The hemostatic management for tonisillectomy in a patient with hemophilia A is described. This report seems to be the first successful case in Japan.
A 6 years old boy, severely affected with hemophilia A, had swelling of tonsils and snoring at night from the age of 4 years repeatedly as a result of tonsillitis, and of late he developed tonsillar bleeding.
Under a general anesthetic, the tonsils were dissected on November 27, 1974. Twenty-five units of cryoprecipitate per kg body weight was given preoperatively, additionally 13 units/kg under operation, and 13-20 units/kg every 6 hours post-operatively for the next 14 days. The blood level of Factor VIII was assayed 40% of normal value at the beginning and end of this operation and between 13 and 72% post-operatively.
There was no undue hemorrhage during operation but three episodes of mild one after operation. Hemorrhage occurred under the blood level of F. VIII below 30% of normal value.
In conclusion, tonsillectomy required raise of the blood level of F. VIII over 40% throughout the operation and for next 2 days thereafter, and then its continuous maintaining at least 30% for following two weeks.
Some side effects such as post-infusion hepatitis, hyperfibrinogenemia, and severe vascular pain, were observed due to the replacement therapy, totally 149 vials of cryoprecipitate-AHF.

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During the past 14 years the tracheoesophageal (TE) shunt capability has been performed on 207 patients for primary voice restoration following total laryngectomy, and 172 patients (83%) retained fluent and intelligible speech with TE shunt. On the basis of successful results of postlaryngectomy speech with the TE shunt operation, the acquirement of both TE and esophageal speech, the primary tracheojejunal (TJ) shunt operation following pharyngolaryngoesophagectomy and the TE puncture operation for primary or secondary voice restoration reported by Singer and Blom were performed.
Out of 172 patients who had TE speech, 8 obtained voice capability with esophageal speech and the vibratory source during phonation with esophageal voice was located at the hypopharynx as well as with TE speech. These indicated that the TE speakers could acquire the esophageal voice.
The primary TJ shunt operation was performed on 6 patients for voice restoration following pharyngolaryngoesophagectomy with free jejunum reconstruction for advanced hypopharyngeal cancer. A fistula was created between the membraneous tracheal flap and the lower part of the transplanted jejunum. The membraneous part of the trachea was tubed to construct the TJ shunt. Out of 6 patients, 5 retained phonatory function. No leakage was seen at all during deglutition and a swallowing function was obtained in all 6 patients.
A total of 29 patients underwent the TE puncture operation. Seventeen and twelve were performed for primary and secondary voice restoration after total laryngectomy, respectively. Out of 29 patients, 24 acquired fluent speech with voice prosthesis.

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During the past 17 years we have been performing the tracheoesophageal (TE) fistulization for voice reconstruction following total laryngectomy. The principle of this technique is to divert the exhaled air through the TE fistula into the esophagus and vibrate hypopharyngeal mucosa. Radiographical examination and manometry during TE phonation reveal that the thyropharyngeal muscle forms the retropharyngeal prominence on which the neoglottis is located. It has been alreadly reported that the glottis is open for voiceless sounds with laryngeal articulatory adjustment in laryngeal speech. Although TE speakers have lost the larynx, they produce voiceless and voiced sounds with articulatory adjustment. This strongly suggests that neoglottic adjustment exists in TE speech. This study was designed to clarify its mechanism.
Ten speakers were subjected to this study consisting of the fiberoptic examination of the neoglottis, and aerodynamic and electromyographic (EMG) studies with the test words of voiceless or voiced plosives.
Fiberoptic examination revealed a transient neoglottal opening for voiceless sound production. The EMG activity of the thyropharyngeal muscle decreased for voiceless sound production. The EMG activity reduction started prior to the increase of the supraneoglottal pressure. These findings indicate that the neoglottic adjustment plays an important role to open the neoglottis in TE speech.

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