Background: It is well documented in limb motor research that providing the optimal practice and feedback conditions can have positive outcomes for the learning of new movements. However, it remains unclear if the training conditions used for limb movements can be directly applied to the speech motor system of healthy adults and individuals with acquired motor speech disorders. Collectively these practice and feedback conditions are known as the principles of motor learning (PML), and they have recently been applied to the rehabilitation of motor speech disorders with promising results. Aims: The purpose of this systematic review is to identify which PML have been examined in the speech motor learning literature, to determine the effectiveness of these principles, and to ascertain future lines of research. Methods & Procedures:A systematic search of the literature was completed that involved the combination of a primary search term with a secondary search term. All articles were independently reviewed and scored by the first two authors. To guide the selection process strict inclusion and exclusion criteria were implemented. Additionally, authors used a 15-category evidence-rating system to judge the overall quality of each study. After the study was scored, points were totalled into an overall quality rating of high, intermediate, or low with respect to methodological rigour and interpretability.Outcomes & Results: Seven articles met inclusion criteria, including three randomised controlled trials and four single-participant designs. Five of the articles focused on motor speech disorders, including investigations of apraxia of speech (four studies) and hypokinetic dysarthria from Parkinson's disease (one study), while two studies focused on speech motor performance in healthy adults. Five of the articles were judged to be of high quality while two were judged to be of intermediate quality.Conclusions: Although limited, the current level of evidence for the application of the PML to speech motor learning in both healthy adults and individuals with motor speech disorders is promising and continued investigation is warranted.

Purpose: Parkinson's disease is among the most common of the motor-based progressive neurologic disorders. This article provides a review of the motor, cognitive, sensory-perceptual, and linguistic deficits that may occur as a result of the loss of dopaminergic neurons, which causes Parkinson's disease. Method: A review of the literature regarding the nature of Parkinson's disease points out the primary triad of symptoms, which are tremor, rigidity, and bradykinesia. Descriptions of these cardinal symptoms are discussed, as are the non-motor symptoms frequently seen in this disorder, including cognitive changes, sensory-perceptual deficits, and occasionally, linguistic deficits. Dysarthria and dysphagia are frequently seen as a result of the motor deficits associated with Parkinson's disease. Conclusions: Much has been learned about the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease, which has led to improved pharmacologic, surgical, and behavioral management. Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) need to be aware of these advances in order to better assess and treat patients and educate families.

Disposal options for muddy dredged material, especially if lightly contaminated, is an issue facing many countries, particularly if environmental protection and adherence to the Protocols of the London Dumping Convention is a regulatory requirement. For the case of the oceanic islands of New Zealand, disposal of muddy dredged material has become an issue for the prime city of Auckland. Accordingly, it has been necessary to investigate a suitable marine disposal site outside of the territorial seas in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Ideal properties for such a disposal site include a near flat surface on the continental shelf, with sediments of similar textural characteristics to the material being disposed, a site of non-critical benthic ecology, water depths sufficient to enable the disposal site to be monitored (as required under the London Dumping Convention), a site experiencing low shelf currents, not affected by significant wave agitation, and a site not of cultural significance. The approach for site establishment and gaining consent for disposal activities is reviewed. Preliminary investigations supporting a proposed site on the continental shelf in the EEZ are presented.