Sample records for action remain largely

  1. Mechanisms of action of brief alcohol interventions remain largely unknown - a narrative review.

    PubMed

    Gaume, Jacques; McCambridge, Jim; Bertholet, Nicolas; Daeppen, Jean-Bernard

    2014-01-01

    A growing body of evidence has shown the efficacy of brief intervention (BI) for hazardous and harmful alcohol use in primary health care settings. Evidence for efficacy in other settings and effectiveness when implemented at larger scale are disappointing. Indeed, BI comprises varying content; exploring BI content and mechanisms of action may be a promising way to enhance efficacy and effectiveness. Medline and PsychInfo, as well as references of retrieved publications were searched for original research or review on active ingredients (components or mechanisms) of face-to-face BIs [and its subtypes, including brief advice and brief motivational interviewing (BMI)] for alcohol. Overall, BI active ingredients have been scarcely investigated, almost only within BMI, and mostly among patients in the emergency room, young adults, and US college students. This body of research has shown that personalized feedback may be an effective component; specific MI techniques showed mixed findings; decisional balance findings tended to suggest a potential detrimental effect; while change plan exercises, advice to reduce or stop drinking, presenting alternative change options, and moderation strategies are promising but need further study. Client change talk is a potential mediator of BMI effects; change in norm perceptions and enhanced discrepancy between current behavior and broader life goals and values have received preliminary support; readiness to change was only partially supported as a mediator; while enhanced awareness of drinking, perceived risks/benefits of alcohol use, alcohol treatment seeking, and self-efficacy were seldom studied and have as yet found no significant support as such. Research is obviously limited and has provided no clear and consistent evidence on the mechanisms of alcohol BI. How BI achieves the effects seen in randomized trials remains mostly unknown and should be investigated to inform the development of more effective interventions.

  2. Space Station: Actions Under Way to Manage Cost, but Significant Challenges Remain

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2002-07-01

    GAO United States General Accounting OfficeReport to Congressional CommitteesJuly 2002 SPACE STATION Actions Under Way to Manage Cost , but...because NASA does not have good cost - accounting systems or practices. 1 The estimated cost growth is having a profound effect on the utility of the...SPACE STATION: Actions Under Way to Manage Cost , but Significant Challenges Remain Contract Number Grant Number Program Element Number Author(s

  3. On large-scale dynamo action at high magnetic Reynolds number

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Cattaneo, F.; Tobias, S. M., E-mail: smt@maths.leeds.ac.uk

    2014-07-01

    We consider the generation of magnetic activity—dynamo waves—in the astrophysical limit of very large magnetic Reynolds number. We consider kinematic dynamo action for a system consisting of helical flow and large-scale shear. We demonstrate that large-scale dynamo waves persist at high Rm if the helical flow is characterized by a narrow band of spatial scales and the shear is large enough. However, for a wide band of scales the dynamo becomes small scale with a further increase of Rm, with dynamo waves re-emerging only if the shear is then increased. We show that at high Rm, the key effect ofmore » the shear is to suppress small-scale dynamo action, allowing large-scale dynamo action to be observed. We conjecture that this supports a general 'suppression principle'—large-scale dynamo action can only be observed if there is a mechanism that suppresses the small-scale fluctuations.« less

  4. Chemical plants remain vulnerable to terrorists: a call to action.

    PubMed

    Lippin, Tobi Mae; McQuiston, Thomas H; Bradley-Bull, Kristin; Burns-Johnson, Toshiba; Cook, Linda; Gill, Michael L; Howard, Donna; Seymour, Thomas A; Stephens, Doug; Williams, Brian K

    2006-09-01

    U.S. chemical plants currently have potentially catastrophic vulnerabilities as terrorist targets. The possible consequences of these vulnerabilities echo from the tragedies of the Bhopal incident in 1984 to the terrorist attacks on 11 September 2001 and, most recently, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Findings from a 2004 nationwide participatory research study of 125 local union leaders at sites with very large volumes of highly hazardous chemicals suggest that voluntary efforts to achieve chemical plant security are not succeeding. Study respondents reported that companies had only infrequently taken actions that are most effective in preventing or in preparing to respond to a terrorist threat. In addition, companies reportedly often failed to involve key stakeholders, including workers, local unions, and the surrounding communities, in these efforts. The environmental health community thus has an opportunity to play a key role in advocating for and supporting improvements in prevention of and preparation for terrorist attacks. Policy-level recommendations to redress chemical site vulnerabilities and the related ongoing threats to the nation's security are as follows: a) specify detailed requirements for chemical site assessment and security ; b) mandate audit inspections supported by significant penalties for cases of noncompliance ; c) require progress toward achieving inherently safer processes, including the minimizing of storage of highly hazardous chemicals ; d) examine and require additional effective actions in prevention, emergency preparedness, and response and remediation ; e) mandate and fund the upgrading of emergency communication systems ; and f) involve workers and community members in plan creation and equip and prepare them to prevent and respond effectively to an incident.

  5. Chemical Plants Remain Vulnerable to Terrorists: A Call to Action

    PubMed Central

    Lippin, Tobi Mae; McQuiston, Thomas H.; Bradley-Bull, Kristin; Burns-Johnson, Toshiba; Cook, Linda; Gill, Michael L.; Howard, Donna; Seymour, Thomas A.; Stephens, Doug; Williams, Brian K.

    2006-01-01

    U.S. chemical plants currently have potentially catastrophic vulnerabilities as terrorist targets. The possible consequences of these vulnerabilities echo from the tragedies of the Bhopal incident in 1984 to the terrorist attacks on 11 September 2001 and, most recently, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Findings from a 2004 nationwide participatory research study of 125 local union leaders at sites with very large volumes of highly hazardous chemicals suggest that voluntary efforts to achieve chemical plant security are not succeeding. Study respondents reported that companies had only infrequently taken actions that are most effective in preventing or in preparing to respond to a terrorist threat. In addition, companies reportedly often failed to involve key stakeholders, including workers, local unions, and the surrounding communities, in these efforts. The environmental health community thus has an opportunity to play a key role in advocating for and supporting improvements in prevention of and preparation for terrorist attacks. Policy-level recommendations to redress chemical site vulnerabilities and the related ongoing threats to the nation’s security are as follows: a) specify detailed requirements for chemical site assessment and security; b) mandate audit inspections supported by significant penalties for cases of noncompliance; c) require progress toward achieving inherently safer processes, including the minimizing of storage of highly hazardous chemicals; d) examine and require additional effective actions in prevention, emergency preparedness, and response and remediation; e) mandate and fund the upgrading of emergency communication systems; and f) involve workers and community members in plan creation and equip and prepare them to prevent and respond effectively to an incident. PMID:16966080

  6. Agri-Environmental Resource Management by Large-Scale Collective Action: Determining KEY Success Factors

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Uetake, Tetsuya

    2015-01-01

    Purpose: Large-scale collective action is necessary when managing agricultural natural resources such as biodiversity and water quality. This paper determines the key factors to the success of such action. Design/Methodology/Approach: This paper analyses four large-scale collective actions used to manage agri-environmental resources in Canada and…

  7. Verbal Synchrony and Action Dynamics in Large Groups

    PubMed Central

    von Zimmermann, Jorina; Richardson, Daniel C.

    2016-01-01

    While synchronized movement has been shown to increase liking and feelings of togetherness between people, we investigated whether collective speaking in time would change the way that larger groups played a video game together. Anthropologists have speculated that the function of interpersonal coordination in dance, chants, and singing is not just to produce warm, affiliative feelings, but also to improve group action. The group that chants and dances together hunts well together. Direct evidence for this is sparse, as research so far has mainly studied pairs, the effects of coordinated physical movement, and measured cooperation and affiliative decisions. In our experiment, large groups of people were given response handsets to play a computer game together, in which only joint coordinative efforts lead to success. Before playing, the synchrony of their verbal behavior was manipulated. After the game, we measured group members’ affiliation toward their group, their performance on a memory task, and the way in which they played the group action task. We found that verbal synchrony in large groups produced affiliation, enhanced memory performance, and increased group members’ coordinative efforts. Our evidence suggests that the effects of synchrony are stable across modalities, can be generalized to larger groups and have consequences for action coordination. PMID:28082944

  8. Large perceptual distortions of locomotor action space occur in ground-based coordinates: Angular expansion and the large-scale horizontal-vertical illusion

    PubMed Central

    Klein, Brennan J.; Li, Zhi; Durgin, Frank H.

    2015-01-01

    What is the natural reference frame for seeing large-scale spatial scenes in locomotor action space? Prior studies indicate an asymmetric angular expansion in perceived direction in large-scale environments: Angular elevation relative to the horizon is perceptually exaggerated by a factor of 1.5, whereas azimuthal direction is exaggerated by a factor of about 1.25. Here participants made angular and spatial judgments when upright or on their sides in order to dissociate egocentric from allocentric reference frames. In Experiment 1 it was found that body orientation did not affect the magnitude of the up-down exaggeration of direction, suggesting that the relevant orientation reference frame for this directional bias is allocentric rather than egocentric. In Experiment 2, the comparison of large-scale horizontal and vertical extents was somewhat affected by viewer orientation, but only to the extent necessitated by the classic (5%) horizontal-vertical illusion (HVI) that is known to be retinotopic. Large-scale vertical extents continued to appear much larger than horizontal ground extents when observers lay sideways. When the visual world was reoriented in Experiment 3, the bias remained tied to the ground-based allocentric reference frame. The allocentric HVI is quantitatively consistent with differential angular exaggerations previously measured for elevation and azimuth in locomotor space. PMID:26594884

  9. Highly effective action from large N gauge fields

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yang, Hyun Seok

    2014-10-01

    Recently Schwarz put forward a conjecture that the world-volume action of a probe D3-brane in an AdS5×S5 background of type IIB superstring theory can be reinterpreted as the highly effective action (HEA) of four-dimensional N =4 superconformal field theory on the Coulomb branch. We argue that the HEA can be derived from the noncommutative (NC) field theory representation of the AdS/CFT correspondence and the Seiberg-Witten (SW) map defining a spacetime field redefinition between ordinary and NC gauge fields. It is based only on the well-known facts that the master fields of large N matrices are higher-dimensional NC U(1) gauge fields and the SW map is a local coordinate transformation eliminating U(1) gauge fields known as the Darboux theorem in symplectic geometry.

  10. Large perceptual distortions of locomotor action space occur in ground-based coordinates: Angular expansion and the large-scale horizontal-vertical illusion.

    PubMed

    Klein, Brennan J; Li, Zhi; Durgin, Frank H

    2016-04-01

    What is the natural reference frame for seeing large-scale spatial scenes in locomotor action space? Prior studies indicate an asymmetric angular expansion in perceived direction in large-scale environments: Angular elevation relative to the horizon is perceptually exaggerated by a factor of 1.5, whereas azimuthal direction is exaggerated by a factor of about 1.25. Here participants made angular and spatial judgments when upright or on their sides to dissociate egocentric from allocentric reference frames. In Experiment 1, it was found that body orientation did not affect the magnitude of the up-down exaggeration of direction, suggesting that the relevant orientation reference frame for this directional bias is allocentric rather than egocentric. In Experiment 2, the comparison of large-scale horizontal and vertical extents was somewhat affected by viewer orientation, but only to the extent necessitated by the classic (5%) horizontal-vertical illusion (HVI) that is known to be retinotopic. Large-scale vertical extents continued to appear much larger than horizontal ground extents when observers lay sideways. When the visual world was reoriented in Experiment 3, the bias remained tied to the ground-based allocentric reference frame. The allocentric HVI is quantitatively consistent with differential angular exaggerations previously measured for elevation and azimuth in locomotor space. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

  11. The fate of human remains in a maritime context and feasibility for forensic humanitarian action to assist in their recovery and identification.

    PubMed

    Ellingham, Sarah Theresa Dorothea; Perich, Pierre; Tidball-Binz, Morris

    2017-10-01

    The number of annual maritime fatalities reported in the Mediterranean has more than doubled in the last two years, a phenomenon closely linked to the increase of migrants attempting to reach Europe via the Mediterranean. The majority of victims reportedly never gets recovered, which in part relates to the fact that the mechanisms and interaction of factors affecting marine taphonomy are still largely not understood. These factors include intrinsic factors such as whether the individual was alive or dead at the time of submergence, the individual's stature and clothing, as well as extrinsic factors such including ambient temperature, currents, water depth, salinity and oxygen levels. This paper provides a compilation of the current literature on factors influencing marine taphonomy, recovery and identification procedures for submerged remains, and discusses the implications for the retrieval and identification of maritime mass fatalities as part of the humanitarian response, specifically humanitarian forensic action, to the consequences of the current migration phenomenon. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  12. Watching novice action degrades expert motor performance: Causation between action production and outcome prediction of observed actions by humans

    PubMed Central

    Ikegami, Tsuyoshi; Ganesh, Gowrishankar

    2014-01-01

    Our social skills are critically determined by our ability to understand and appropriately respond to actions performed by others. However despite its obvious importance, the mechanisms enabling action understanding in humans have remained largely unclear. A popular but controversial belief is that parts of the motor system contribute to our ability to understand observed actions. Here, using a novel behavioral paradigm, we investigated this belief by examining a causal relation between action production, and a component of action understanding - outcome prediction, the ability of a person to predict the outcome of observed actions. We asked dart experts to watch novice dart throwers and predict the outcome of their throws. We modulated the feedbacks provided to them, caused a specific improvement in the expert's ability to predict watched actions while controlling the other experimental factors, and exhibited that a change (improvement) in their outcome prediction ability results in a progressive and proportional deterioration in the expert's own darts performance. This causal relationship supports involvement of the motor system in outcome prediction by humans of actions observed in others. PMID:25384755

  13. From Service to Action? Students, Volunteering and Community Action in Mid Twentieth-Century Britain

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brewis, Georgina

    2010-01-01

    Volunteering by higher education students in the UK has a long history which remains largely unexplored despite recent research and policy attention. This article offers a brief overview of the development of student volunteering before the 1960s and then discusses a shift from student social service to Student Community Action in the late 1960s…

  14. Sizzling Remains of a Dead Star

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2013-01-07

    This new view of the historical supernova remnant Cassiopeia A, located 11,000 light-years away, was taken by NASA Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array, or NuSTAR. While the star is long dead, its remains are still bursting with action.

  15. Cooperation, collective action, and the archeology of large-scale societies.

    PubMed

    Carballo, David M; Feinman, Gary M

    2016-11-01

    Archeologists investigating the emergence of large-scale societies in the past have renewed interest in examining the dynamics of cooperation as a means of understanding societal change and organizational variability within human groups over time. Unlike earlier approaches to these issues, which used models designated voluntaristic or managerial, contemporary research articulates more explicitly with frameworks for cooperation and collective action used in other fields, thereby facilitating empirical testing through better definition of the costs, benefits, and social mechanisms associated with success or failure in coordinated group action. Current scholarship is nevertheless bifurcated along lines of epistemology and scale, which is understandable but problematic for forging a broader, more transdisciplinary field of cooperation studies. Here, we point to some areas of potential overlap by reviewing archeological research that places the dynamics of social cooperation and competition in the foreground of the emergence of large-scale societies, which we define as those having larger populations, greater concentrations of political power, and higher degrees of social inequality. We focus on key issues involving the communal-resource management of subsistence and other economic goods, as well as the revenue flows that undergird political institutions. Drawing on archeological cases from across the globe, with greater detail from our area of expertise in Mesoamerica, we offer suggestions for strengthening analytical methods and generating more transdisciplinary research programs that address human societies across scalar and temporal spectra. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  16. Dynamic nigrostriatal dopamine biases action selection

    PubMed Central

    Howard, Christopher D.; Li, Hao; Geddes, Claire E.; Jin, Xin

    2017-01-01

    Summary Dopamine is thought to play a critical role in reinforcement learning and goal-directed behavior, but its function in action selection remains largely unknown. Here, we demonstrate that nigrostriatal dopamine biases ongoing action selection. When mice were trained to dynamically switch the action selected at different time points, changes in firing rate of nigrostriatal dopamine neurons, as well as dopamine signaling in the dorsal striatum, were found to be associated with action selection. This dopamine profile is specific to behavioral choice, scalable with interval duration, and doesn’t reflect reward prediction error, timing, or value as single factors alone. Genetic deletion of NMDA receptors on dopamine or striatal neurons, or optogenetic manipulation of dopamine concentration, alters dopamine signaling and biases action selection. These results unveil a crucial role of nigrostriatal dopamine in integrating diverse information for regulating upcoming actions and have important implications for neurological disorders including Parkinson’s disease and substance dependence. PMID:28285820

  17. Dynamic Nigrostriatal Dopamine Biases Action Selection.

    PubMed

    Howard, Christopher D; Li, Hao; Geddes, Claire E; Jin, Xin

    2017-03-22

    Dopamine is thought to play a critical role in reinforcement learning and goal-directed behavior, but its function in action selection remains largely unknown. Here we demonstrate that nigrostriatal dopamine biases ongoing action selection. When mice were trained to dynamically switch the action selected at different time points, changes in firing rate of nigrostriatal dopamine neurons, as well as dopamine signaling in the dorsal striatum, were found to be associated with action selection. This dopamine profile is specific to behavioral choice, scalable with interval duration, and doesn't reflect reward prediction error, timing, or value as single factors alone. Genetic deletion of NMDA receptors on dopamine or striatal neurons or optogenetic manipulation of dopamine concentration alters dopamine signaling and biases action selection. These results unveil a crucial role of nigrostriatal dopamine in integrating diverse information for regulating upcoming actions, and they have important implications for neurological disorders, including Parkinson's disease and substance dependence. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  18. Counseling Psychology and Large-Scale Disasters: Moving on to Action, Practice, and Research

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jacobs, Sue C.; Hoffman, Mary Ann; Leach, Mark M.; Gerstein, Lawrence H.

    2011-01-01

    Juntunen and Parham each reacted positively with important personal reflections and/or calls to action in response to "Counseling Psychology and Large-Scale Disasters, Catastrophes, and Traumas: Opportunities for Growth." We comment on the primary themes and suggestions they raised. Since the time we were stimulated by Katrina and its aftermath…

  19. Renormalization-group flow of the effective action of cosmological large-scale structures

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Floerchinger, Stefan; Garny, Mathias; Tetradis, Nikolaos

    Following an approach of Matarrese and Pietroni, we derive the functional renormalization group (RG) flow of the effective action of cosmological large-scale structures. Perturbative solutions of this RG flow equation are shown to be consistent with standard cosmological perturbation theory. Non-perturbative approximate solutions can be obtained by truncating the a priori infinite set of possible effective actions to a finite subspace. Using for the truncated effective action a form dictated by dissipative fluid dynamics, we derive RG flow equations for the scale dependence of the effective viscosity and sound velocity of non-interacting dark matter, and we solve them numerically. Physically,more » the effective viscosity and sound velocity account for the interactions of long-wavelength fluctuations with the spectrum of smaller-scale perturbations. We find that the RG flow exhibits an attractor behaviour in the IR that significantly reduces the dependence of the effective viscosity and sound velocity on the input values at the UV scale. This allows for a self-contained computation of matter and velocity power spectra for which the sensitivity to UV modes is under control.« less

  20. Comprehensive metabolic characterization of serum osteocalcin action in a large non-diabetic sample.

    PubMed

    Entenmann, Lukas; Pietzner, Maik; Artati, Anna; Hannemann, Anke; Henning, Ann-Kristin; Kastenmüller, Gabi; Völzke, Henry; Nauck, Matthias; Adamski, Jerzy; Wallaschofski, Henri; Friedrich, Nele

    2017-01-01

    Recent research suggested a metabolic implication of osteocalcin (OCN) in e.g. insulin sensitivity or steroid production. We used an untargeted metabolomics approach by analyzing plasma and urine samples of 931 participants using mass spectrometry to reveal further metabolic actions of OCN. Several detected relations between OCN and metabolites were strongly linked to renal function, however, a number of associations remained significant after adjustment for renal function. Intermediates of proline catabolism were associated with OCN reflecting the implication in bone metabolism. The association to kynurenine points towards a pro-inflammatory state with increasing OCN. Inverse relations with intermediates of branch-chained amino acid metabolism suggest a link to energy metabolism. Finally, urinary surrogate markers of smoking highlight its adverse effect on OCN metabolism. In conclusion, the present study provides a read-out of metabolic actions of OCN. However, most of the associations were weak arguing for a limited role of OCN in whole-body metabolism.

  1. Action Video Game Experience Related to Altered Large-Scale White Matter Networks.

    PubMed

    Gong, Diankun; Ma, Weiyi; Gong, Jinnan; He, Hui; Dong, Li; Zhang, Dan; Li, Jianfu; Luo, Cheng; Yao, Dezhong

    2017-01-01

    With action video games (AVGs) becoming increasingly popular worldwide, the cognitive benefits of AVG experience have attracted continuous research attention over the past two decades. Research has repeatedly shown that AVG experience can causally enhance cognitive ability and is related to neural plasticity in gray matter and functional networks in the brain. However, the relation between AVG experience and the plasticity of white matter (WM) network still remains unclear. WM network modulates the distribution of action potentials, coordinating the communication between brain regions and acting as the framework of neural networks. And various types of cognitive deficits are usually accompanied by impairments of WM networks. Thus, understanding this relation is essential in assessing the influence of AVG experience on neural plasticity and using AVG experience as an interventional tool for impairments of WM networks. Using graph theory, this study analyzed WM networks in AVG experts and amateurs. Results showed that AVG experience is related to altered WM networks in prefrontal networks, limbic system, and sensorimotor networks, which are related to cognitive control and sensorimotor functions. These results shed new light on the influence of AVG experience on the plasticity of WM networks and suggested the clinical applicability of AVG experience.

  2. Aerosol pH buffering in the southeastern US: Fine particles remain highly acidic despite large reductions in sulfate

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Weber, R. J.; Guo, H.; Russell, A. G.; Nenes, A.

    2015-12-01

    pH is a critical aerosol property that impacts many atmospheric processes, including biogenic secondary organic aerosol formation, gas-particle phase partitioning, and mineral dust or redox metal mobilization. Particle pH has also been linked to adverse health effects. Using a comprehensive data set from the Southern Oxidant and Aerosol Study (SOAS) as the basis for thermodynamic modeling, we have shown that particles are currently highly acidic in the southeastern US, with pH between 0 and 2. Sulfate and ammonium are the main acid-base components that determine particle pH in this region, however they have different sources and their concentrations are changing. Over 15 years of network data show that sulfur dioxide emission reductions have resulted in a roughly 70 percent decrease in sulfate, whereas ammonia emissions, mainly link to agricultural activities, have been largely steady, as have gas phase ammonia concentrations. This has led to the view that particles are becoming more neutralized. However, sensitivity analysis, based on thermodynamic modeling, to changing sulfate concentrations indicates that particles have remained highly acidic over the past decade, despite the large reductions in sulfate. Furthermore, anticipated continued reductions of sulfate and relatively constant ammonia emissions into the future will not significantly change particle pH until sulfate drops to clean continental background levels. The result reshapes our expectation of future particle pH and implies that atmospheric processes and adverse health effects linked to particle acidity will remain unchanged for some time into the future.

  3. 75 FR 62690 - Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Inseason Action To Close the Commercial Non-sandbar Large...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-10-13

    ... Coastal Shark Research Fishery AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and... the commercial shark research fishery for non- sandbar large coastal sharks (LCS). This action is... quota. DATES: The commercial shark research fishery for non-sandbar LCS is closed effective 11:30 p.m...

  4. Collective action and the collaborative brain

    PubMed Central

    Gavrilets, Sergey

    2015-01-01

    Humans are unique both in their cognitive abilities and in the extent of cooperation in large groups of unrelated individuals. How our species evolved high intelligence in spite of various costs of having a large brain is perplexing. Equally puzzling is how our ancestors managed to overcome the collective action problem and evolve strong innate preferences for cooperative behaviour. Here, I theoretically study the evolution of social-cognitive competencies as driven by selection emerging from the need to produce public goods in games against nature or in direct competition with other groups. I use collaborative ability in collective actions as a proxy for social-cognitive competencies. My results suggest that collaborative ability is more likely to evolve first by between-group conflicts and then later be utilized and improved in games against nature. If collaborative abilities remain low, the species is predicted to become genetically dimorphic with a small proportion of individuals contributing to public goods and the rest free-riding. Evolution of collaborative ability creates conditions for the subsequent evolution of collaborative communication and cultural learning. PMID:25551149

  5. 25 CFR 161.705 - How long will a written trespass notice remain in effect?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2012-04-01 2011-04-01 true How long will a written trespass notice remain in effect... NAVAJO PARTITIONED LANDS GRAZING PERMITS Trespass Notification § 161.705 How long will a written trespass notice remain in effect? A written trespass notice will remain in effect for the same action identified...

  6. 25 CFR 161.705 - How long will a written trespass notice remain in effect?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false How long will a written trespass notice remain in effect... NAVAJO PARTITIONED LANDS GRAZING PERMITS Trespass Notification § 161.705 How long will a written trespass notice remain in effect? A written trespass notice will remain in effect for the same action identified...

  7. 25 CFR 161.705 - How long will a written trespass notice remain in effect?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false How long will a written trespass notice remain in effect... NAVAJO PARTITIONED LANDS GRAZING PERMITS Trespass Notification § 161.705 How long will a written trespass notice remain in effect? A written trespass notice will remain in effect for the same action identified...

  8. 25 CFR 161.705 - How long will a written trespass notice remain in effect?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false How long will a written trespass notice remain in effect... NAVAJO PARTITIONED LANDS GRAZING PERMITS Trespass Notification § 161.705 How long will a written trespass notice remain in effect? A written trespass notice will remain in effect for the same action identified...

  9. 25 CFR 161.705 - How long will a written trespass notice remain in effect?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false How long will a written trespass notice remain in effect... NAVAJO PARTITIONED LANDS GRAZING PERMITS Trespass Notification § 161.705 How long will a written trespass notice remain in effect? A written trespass notice will remain in effect for the same action identified...

  10. Mill and the right to remain uninformed.

    PubMed

    Strasser, M

    1986-08-01

    In a recent article in the Journal of Medicine and Philosophy, David Ost (1984) claims that patients do not have a right to waive their right to information. He argues that patients cannot make informed rational decisions without full information and thus, a right to waive information would involve a right to avoid one's responsibility to act as an autonomous moral agent. In support of his position, Ost cites a passage from Mill. Yet, a correct interpretation of the passage in question would support one's right to remain uninformed in certain situations. If the information would hurt one's chances for survival or hurt one's ability to make calm, rational decisions, then one not only does not have a duty to find out the information, but one's exercising one's right to remain uninformed may be the only rational course of action to take.

  11. Large-scale dynamo action precedes turbulence in shearing box simulations of the magnetorotational instability

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Bhat, Pallavi; Ebrahimi, Fatima; Blackman, Eric G.

    Here, we study the dynamo generation (exponential growth) of large-scale (planar averaged) fields in unstratified shearing box simulations of the magnetorotational instability (MRI). In contrast to previous studies restricted to horizontal (x–y) averaging, we also demonstrate the presence of large-scale fields when vertical (y–z) averaging is employed instead. By computing space–time planar averaged fields and power spectra, we find large-scale dynamo action in the early MRI growth phase – a previously unidentified feature. Non-axisymmetric linear MRI modes with low horizontal wavenumbers and vertical wavenumbers near that of expected maximal growth, amplify the large-scale fields exponentially before turbulence and high wavenumbermore » fluctuations arise. Thus the large-scale dynamo requires only linear fluctuations but not non-linear turbulence (as defined by mode–mode coupling). Vertical averaging also allows for monitoring the evolution of the large-scale vertical field and we find that a feedback from horizontal low wavenumber MRI modes provides a clue as to why the large-scale vertical field sustains against turbulent diffusion in the non-linear saturation regime. We compute the terms in the mean field equations to identify the individual contributions to large-scale field growth for both types of averaging. The large-scale fields obtained from vertical averaging are found to compare well with global simulations and quasi-linear analytical analysis from a previous study by Ebrahimi & Blackman. We discuss the potential implications of these new results for understanding the large-scale MRI dynamo saturation and turbulence.« less

  12. Large-scale dynamo action precedes turbulence in shearing box simulations of the magnetorotational instability

    DOE PAGES

    Bhat, Pallavi; Ebrahimi, Fatima; Blackman, Eric G.

    2016-07-06

    Here, we study the dynamo generation (exponential growth) of large-scale (planar averaged) fields in unstratified shearing box simulations of the magnetorotational instability (MRI). In contrast to previous studies restricted to horizontal (x–y) averaging, we also demonstrate the presence of large-scale fields when vertical (y–z) averaging is employed instead. By computing space–time planar averaged fields and power spectra, we find large-scale dynamo action in the early MRI growth phase – a previously unidentified feature. Non-axisymmetric linear MRI modes with low horizontal wavenumbers and vertical wavenumbers near that of expected maximal growth, amplify the large-scale fields exponentially before turbulence and high wavenumbermore » fluctuations arise. Thus the large-scale dynamo requires only linear fluctuations but not non-linear turbulence (as defined by mode–mode coupling). Vertical averaging also allows for monitoring the evolution of the large-scale vertical field and we find that a feedback from horizontal low wavenumber MRI modes provides a clue as to why the large-scale vertical field sustains against turbulent diffusion in the non-linear saturation regime. We compute the terms in the mean field equations to identify the individual contributions to large-scale field growth for both types of averaging. The large-scale fields obtained from vertical averaging are found to compare well with global simulations and quasi-linear analytical analysis from a previous study by Ebrahimi & Blackman. We discuss the potential implications of these new results for understanding the large-scale MRI dynamo saturation and turbulence.« less

  13. Action Research: Trends and Variations

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Beaulieu, Rodney J.

    2013-01-01

    Action research continues to grow as a research tradition, yet misconceptions about what it is and is not remains, even among scholars. For example, some mistakenly believe action research is only about professional development and is not a scholarly research approach. Some assume action research must be accomplished through a collaborative…

  14. Investigating action understanding: inferential processes versus action simulation.

    PubMed

    Brass, Marcel; Schmitt, Ruth M; Spengler, Stephanie; Gergely, György

    2007-12-18

    In our daily life, we continuously monitor others' behaviors and interpret them in terms of goals, intentions, and reasons. Despite their central importance for predicting and interpreting each other's actions, the functional mechanisms and neural circuits involved in action understanding remain highly controversial. Two alternative accounts have been advanced. Simulation theory assumes that we understand actions by simulating the observed behavior through a direct matching process that activates the mirror-neuron circuit. The alternative interpretive account assumes that action understanding is based on specialized inferential processes activating brain areas with no mirror properties. Although both approaches recognize the central role of contextual information in specifying action intentions, their respective accounts of this process differ in significant respects. Here, we investigated the role of context in action understanding by using functional brain imaging while participants observed an unusual action in implausible versus plausible contexts. We show that brain areas that are part of a network involved in inferential interpretive processes of rationalization and mentalization but that lack mirror properties are more active when the action occurs in an implausible context. However, no differential activation was found in the mirror network. Our findings support the assumption that action understanding in novel situations is primarily mediated by an inferential interpretive system rather than the mirror system.

  15. Actionability and Simulation: No Representation without Communication

    PubMed Central

    Feldman, Jerome A.

    2016-01-01

    There remains considerable controversy about how the brain operates. This review focuses on brain activity rather than just structure and on concepts of action and actionability rather than truth conditions. Neural Communication is reviewed as a crucial aspect of neural encoding. Consequently, logical inference is superseded by neural simulation. Some remaining mysteries are discussed. PMID:27725807

  16. Guidelines for the recognition of cemetery remains in Greece.

    PubMed

    Eliopoulos, Constantine; Moraitis, Konstantinos; Reyes, Federico; Spiliopoulou, Chara; Manolis, Sotiris

    2011-06-01

    Forensic pathologists frequently consult anthropologists for the identification of skeletonized human remains. These remains may be the result of criminal activity or remains that were unearthed because of erosion, or during construction projects. In some cases, human remains that had been previously buried in a cemetery may be the subject of a forensic investigation. Early recognition of cemetery remains prevents unnecessary efforts and conserves precious resources. One of the key characteristics of cemetery remains is the presence of embalmed tissue. However, there are countries where embalming is not a common practice, and other clues must be sought for identifying previously buried remains. Current funerary customs in Greece and, in particular, the tradition of exhumations result in a large number of misplaced human remains. The present study presents examples of cemetery remains from Greece and offers guidelines for recognizing changes on skeletal remains that may be indicative of a cemetery origin. Location of discovery, condition of the remains, and the types of associated artifacts are all factors that aid forensic anthropologists in identifying cemetery remains.

  17. Hierarchical processing in music, language, and action: Lashley revisited.

    PubMed

    Fitch, W Tecumseh; Martins, Mauricio D

    2014-05-01

    Sixty years ago, Karl Lashley suggested that complex action sequences, from simple motor acts to language and music, are a fundamental but neglected aspect of neural function. Lashley demonstrated the inadequacy of then-standard models of associative chaining, positing a more flexible and generalized "syntax of action" necessary to encompass key aspects of language and music. He suggested that hierarchy in language and music builds upon a more basic sequential action system, and provided several concrete hypotheses about the nature of this system. Here, we review a diverse set of modern data concerning musical, linguistic, and other action processing, finding them largely consistent with an updated neuroanatomical version of Lashley's hypotheses. In particular, the lateral premotor cortex, including Broca's area, plays important roles in hierarchical processing in language, music, and at least some action sequences. Although the precise computational function of the lateral prefrontal regions in action syntax remains debated, Lashley's notion-that this cortical region implements a working-memory buffer or stack scannable by posterior and subcortical brain regions-is consistent with considerable experimental data. © 2014 The Authors. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences published by Wiley Periodicals Inc. on behalf of The New York Academy of Sciences.

  18. 77 FR 11583 - Notice of Inventory Completion for Native American Human Remains and Associated Funerary Objects...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-02-27

    ... Native American Human Remains and Associated Funerary Objects From Arizona in the Possession of San Diego State University, San Diego, CA; Correction AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior. ACTION: Notice... funerary objects in the possession of San Diego State University, San Diego, CA. The human remains and...

  19. Action Potential Dynamics in Fine Axons Probed with an Axonally Targeted Optical Voltage Sensor.

    PubMed

    Ma, Yihe; Bayguinov, Peter O; Jackson, Meyer B

    2017-01-01

    The complex and malleable conduction properties of axons determine how action potentials propagate through extensive axonal arbors to reach synaptic terminals. The excitability of axonal membranes plays a major role in neural circuit function, but because most axons are too thin for conventional electrical recording, their properties remain largely unexplored. To overcome this obstacle, we used a genetically encoded hybrid voltage sensor (hVOS) harboring an axonal targeting motif. Expressing this probe in transgenic mice enabled us to monitor voltage changes optically in two populations of axons in hippocampal slices, the large axons of dentate granule cells (mossy fibers) in the stratum lucidum of the CA3 region and the much finer axons of hilar mossy cells in the inner molecular layer of the dentate gyrus. Action potentials propagated with distinct velocities in each type of axon. Repetitive firing broadened action potentials in both populations, but at an intermediate frequency the degree of broadening differed. Repetitive firing also attenuated action potential amplitudes in both mossy cell and granule cell axons. These results indicate that the features of use-dependent action potential broadening, and possible failure, observed previously in large nerve terminals also appear in much finer unmyelinated axons. Subtle differences in the frequency dependences could influence the propagation of activity through different pathways to excite different populations of neurons. The axonally targeted hVOS probe used here opens up the diverse repertoire of neuronal processes to detailed biophysical study.

  20. Thought-action fusion and anxiety disorders symptoms in normal adolescents.

    PubMed

    Muris, P; Meesters, C; Rassin, E; Merckelbach, H; Campbell, J

    2001-07-01

    The present study examined thought-action fusion (TAF) in a large sample of normal adolescents (n=427). Participants completed the Thought-Action Fusion Questionnaire for Adolescents (TAFQ-A) and scales measuring trait anxiety, symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder, other anxiety disorders, and depression. Results showed that the TAFQ-A is a reliable instrument assessing two dimensions of TAF, viz. Morality (i.e., the belief that unacceptable thoughts are morally equivalent to overt actions) and Likelihood (i.e., the belief that thinking of an unacceptable or disturbing situation will increase the probability that that situation actually occurs). Furthermore, TAF was not only associated with symptoms of OCD, but also with symptoms of other anxiety disorders and depression. However, when controlling for levels of trait anxiety, most connections between TAF and anxiety disorders symptoms disappeared. Symptoms of OCD and generalised anxiety remained significantly related to TAF. Altogether, the data are supportive of the notion that TAF is involved in a broad range of anxiety disorders and in particular OCD.

  1. Neural theory for the perception of causal actions.

    PubMed

    Fleischer, Falk; Christensen, Andrea; Caggiano, Vittorio; Thier, Peter; Giese, Martin A

    2012-07-01

    The efficient prediction of the behavior of others requires the recognition of their actions and an understanding of their action goals. In humans, this process is fast and extremely robust, as demonstrated by classical experiments showing that human observers reliably judge causal relationships and attribute interactive social behavior to strongly simplified stimuli consisting of simple moving geometrical shapes. While psychophysical experiments have identified critical visual features that determine the perception of causality and agency from such stimuli, the underlying detailed neural mechanisms remain largely unclear, and it is an open question why humans developed this advanced visual capability at all. We created pairs of naturalistic and abstract stimuli of hand actions that were exactly matched in terms of their motion parameters. We show that varying critical stimulus parameters for both stimulus types leads to very similar modulations of the perception of causality. However, the additional form information about the hand shape and its relationship with the object supports more fine-grained distinctions for the naturalistic stimuli. Moreover, we show that a physiologically plausible model for the recognition of goal-directed hand actions reproduces the observed dependencies of causality perception on critical stimulus parameters. These results support the hypothesis that selectivity for abstract action stimuli might emerge from the same neural mechanisms that underlie the visual processing of natural goal-directed action stimuli. Furthermore, the model proposes specific detailed neural circuits underlying this visual function, which can be evaluated in future experiments.

  2. Mode of action of mosquito repellents

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    The mode of action of mosquito repellents remains a controversial topic. However, electrophysiological studies and molecular approaches have provided a better understanding of how repellents exert their effects. Here, we briefly discuss various notions of repellent action and present the current sta...

  3. Renewing the Fight against Affirmative Action

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Roach, Ronald

    2009-01-01

    Some affirmative action and diversity program critics are cheering President Barack Obama's election because they believe his success dramatically undermines the argument that discrimination remains a significant barrier for minorities in American life. Ward Connerly Jr., arguably the most visible anti-affirmative action activist in the United…

  4. Variability of human corticospinal excitability tracks the state of action preparation.

    PubMed

    Klein-Flügge, Miriam C; Nobbs, David; Pitcher, Julia B; Bestmann, Sven

    2013-03-27

    Task-evoked trial-by-trial variability is a ubiquitous property of neural responses, yet its functional role remains largely unclear. Recent work in nonhuman primates shows that the temporal structure of neural variability in several brain regions is task-related. For example, trial-by-trial variability in premotor cortex tracks motor preparation with increasingly consistent firing rates and thus a decline in variability before movement onset. However, whether noninvasive measures of the variability of population activity available from humans can similarly track the preparation of actions remains unknown. We tested this by using single-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) over primary motor cortex (M1) to measure corticospinal excitability (CSE) at different times during action preparation. First, we established the basic properties of intrinsic CSE variability at rest. Then, during the task, responses (left or right button presses) were either directly instructed (forced choice) or resulted from a value decision (choice). Before movement onset, we observed a temporally specific task-related decline in CSE variability contralateral to the responding hand. This decline was stronger in fast-response compared with slow-response trials, consistent with data in nonhuman primates. For the nonresponding hand, CSE variability also decreased, but only in choice trials, and earlier compared with the responding hand, possibly reflecting choice-specific suppression of unselected actions. These findings suggest that human CSE variability measured by TMS over M1 tracks the state of motor preparation, and may reflect the optimization of preparatory population activity. This provides novel avenues in humans to assess the dynamics of action preparation but also more complex processes, such as choice-to-action transformations.

  5. Key findings and remaining questions in the areas of core-concrete interaction and debris coolability

    DOE PAGES

    Farmer, M. T.; Gerardi, C.; Bremer, N.; ...

    2016-10-31

    The reactor accidents at Fukushima-Dai-ichi have rekindled interest in late phase severe accident behavior involving reactor pressure vessel breach and discharge of molten core melt into the containment. Two technical issues of interest in this area include core-concrete interaction and the extent to which the core debris may be quenched and rendered coolable by top flooding. The OECD-sponsored Melt Coolability and Concrete Interaction (MCCI) programs at Argonne National Laboratory included the conduct of large scale reactor material experiments and associated analysis with the objectives of resolving the ex-vessel debris coolability issue, and to address remaining uncertainties related to long-term two-dimensionalmore » molten core-concrete interactions under both wet and dry cavity conditions. These tests provided a broad database to support accident management planning, as well as the development and validation of models and codes that can be used to extrapolate the experiment results to plant conditions. This paper provides a high level overview of the key experiment results obtained during the program. Finally, a discussion is also provided that describes technical gaps that remain in this area, several of which have arisen based on the sequence of events and operator actions during Fukushima.« less

  6. Key findings and remaining questions in the areas of core-concrete interaction and debris coolability

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Farmer, M. T.; Gerardi, C.; Bremer, N.

    The reactor accidents at Fukushima-Dai-ichi have rekindled interest in late phase severe accident behavior involving reactor pressure vessel breach and discharge of molten core melt into the containment. Two technical issues of interest in this area include core-concrete interaction and the extent to which the core debris may be quenched and rendered coolable by top flooding. The OECD-sponsored Melt Coolability and Concrete Interaction (MCCI) programs at Argonne National Laboratory included the conduct of large scale reactor material experiments and associated analysis with the objectives of resolving the ex-vessel debris coolability issue, and to address remaining uncertainties related to long-term two-dimensionalmore » molten core-concrete interactions under both wet and dry cavity conditions. These tests provided a broad database to support accident management planning, as well as the development and validation of models and codes that can be used to extrapolate the experiment results to plant conditions. This paper provides a high level overview of the key experiment results obtained during the program. Finally, a discussion is also provided that describes technical gaps that remain in this area, several of which have arisen based on the sequence of events and operator actions during Fukushima.« less

  7. Additive Routes to Action Learning: Layering Experience Shapes Engagement of the Action Observation Network.

    PubMed

    Kirsch, Louise P; Cross, Emily S

    2015-12-01

    The way in which we perceive others in action is biased by one's prior experience with an observed action. For example, we can have auditory, visual, or motor experience with actions we observe others perform. How action experience via 1, 2, or all 3 of these modalities shapes action perception remains unclear. Here, we combine pre- and post-training functional magnetic resonance imaging measures with a dance training manipulation to address how building experience (from auditory to audiovisual to audiovisual plus motor) with a complex action shapes subsequent action perception. Results indicate that layering experience across these 3 modalities activates a number of sensorimotor cortical regions associated with the action observation network (AON) in such a way that the more modalities through which one experiences an action, the greater the response is within these AON regions during action perception. Moreover, a correlation between left premotor activity and participants' scores for reproducing an action suggests that the better an observer can perform an observed action, the stronger the neural response is. The findings suggest that the number of modalities through which an observer experiences an action impacts AON activity additively, and that premotor cortical activity might serve as an index of embodiment during action observation. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press.

  8. Tuberculosis remains a challenge despite economic growth in Panama.

    PubMed

    Tarajia, M; Goodridge, A

    2014-03-01

    Tuberculosis (TB) is a disease associated with inequality, and wise investment of economic resources is considered critical to its control. Panama has recently secured its status as an upper-middle-income country with robust economic growth. However, the prioritisation of resources for TB control remains a major challenge. In this article, we highlight areas that urgently require action to effectively reduce TB burden to minimal levels. Our conclusions suggest the need for fund allocation and a multidisciplinary approach to ensure prompt laboratory diagnosis, treatment assurance and workforce reinforcement, complemented by applied and operational research, development and innovation.

  9. Evidence for the Automatic Evaluation of Self-Generated Actions

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Aarts, Kristien; De Houwer, Jan; Pourtois, Gilles

    2012-01-01

    The accuracy of simple actions is swiftly determined through specific monitoring brain systems. However, it remains unclear whether this evaluation is accompanied by a rapid and compatible emotional appraisal of the action that allows to mark incorrect actions as negative/bad and conversely correct actions as positive/good. In this study, we used…

  10. Action spectra for photosynthetic inhibition

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Caldwell, M. M.; Flint, S.; Camp, L. B.

    1981-01-01

    The ultraviolet action spectrum for photosynthesis inhibition was determined to fall between that of the general DNA action spectrum and the generalized plant action spectrum. The characteristics of this action spectrum suggest that a combination of pronounced increase in effectiveness with decreasing wavelength, substantial specificity for the UV-B waveband, and very diminished response in the UV-A waveband result in large radiation amplification factors when the action spectra are used as weighting functions. Attempted determination of dose/response relationships for leaf disc inhibition provided inconclusive data from which to deconvolute an action spectrum.

  11. Recent advances quantifying the large wood dynamics in river basins: New methods and remaining challenges

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ruiz-Villanueva, Virginia; Piégay, Hervé; Gurnell, Angela A.; Marston, Richard A.; Stoffel, Markus

    2016-09-01

    Large wood is an important physical component of woodland rivers and significantly influences river morphology. It is also a key component of stream ecosystems. However, large wood is also a source of risk for human activities as it may damage infrastructure, block river channels, and induce flooding. Therefore, the analysis and quantification of large wood and its mobility are crucial for understanding and managing wood in rivers. As the amount of large-wood-related studies by researchers, river managers, and stakeholders increases, documentation of commonly used and newly available techniques and their effectiveness has also become increasingly relevant as well. Important data and knowledge have been obtained from the application of very different approaches and have generated a significant body of valuable information representative of different environments. This review brings a comprehensive qualitative and quantitative summary of recent advances regarding the different processes involved in large wood dynamics in fluvial systems including wood budgeting and wood mechanics. First, some key definitions and concepts are introduced. Second, advances in quantifying large wood dynamics are reviewed; in particular, how measurements and modeling can be combined to integrate our understanding of how large wood moves through and is retained within river systems. Throughout, we present a quantitative and integrated meta-analysis compiled from different studies and geographical regions. Finally, we conclude by highlighting areas of particular research importance and their likely future trajectories, and we consider a particularly underresearched area so as to stress the future challenges for large wood research.

  12. Quick action clamp

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Calco, Frank S. (Inventor)

    1991-01-01

    A quick release toggle clamp that utilizes a spring that requires a deliberate positive action for disengagement is presented. The clamp has a sliding bolt that provides a latching mechanism. The bolt is moved by a handle that tends to remain in an engaged position while under tension.

  13. Psychometric evaluation of the thought-action fusion scale in a large clinical sample.

    PubMed

    Meyer, Joseph F; Brown, Timothy A

    2013-12-01

    This study examined the psychometric properties of the 19-item Thought-Action Fusion (TAF) Scale, a measure of maladaptive cognitive intrusions, in a large clinical sample (N = 700). An exploratory factor analysis (n = 300) yielded two interpretable factors: TAF Moral (TAF-M) and TAF Likelihood (TAF-L). A confirmatory bifactor analysis was conducted on the second portion of the sample (n = 400) to account for possible sources of item covariance using a general TAF factor (subsuming TAF-M) alongside the TAF-L domain-specific factor. The bifactor model provided an acceptable fit to the sample data. Results indicated that global TAF was more strongly associated with a measure of obsessive-compulsiveness than measures of general worry and depression, and the TAF-L dimension was more strongly related to obsessive-compulsiveness than depression. Overall, results support the bifactor structure of the TAF in a clinical sample and its close relationship to its neighboring obsessive-compulsiveness construct.

  14. Psychometric Evaluation of the Thought–Action Fusion Scale in a Large Clinical Sample

    PubMed Central

    Meyer, Joseph F.; Brown, Timothy A.

    2015-01-01

    This study examined the psychometric properties of the 19-item Thought–Action Fusion (TAF) Scale, a measure of maladaptive cognitive intrusions, in a large clinical sample (N = 700). An exploratory factor analysis (n = 300) yielded two interpretable factors: TAF Moral (TAF-M) and TAF Likelihood (TAF-L). A confirmatory bifactor analysis was conducted on the second portion of the sample (n = 400) to account for possible sources of item covariance using a general TAF factor (subsuming TAF-M) alongside the TAF-L domain-specific factor. The bifactor model provided an acceptable fit to the sample data. Results indicated that global TAF was more strongly associated with a measure of obsessive-compulsiveness than measures of general worry and depression, and the TAF-L dimension was more strongly related to obsessive-compulsiveness than depression. Overall, results support the bifactor structure of the TAF in a clinical sample and its close relationship to its neighboring obsessive-compulsiveness construct. PMID:22315482

  15. Volunteer Conservation Action Data Reveals Large-Scale and Long-Term Negative Population Trends of a Widespread Amphibian, the Common Toad (Bufo bufo).

    PubMed

    Petrovan, Silviu O; Schmidt, Benedikt R

    2016-01-01

    Rare and threatened species are the most frequent focus of conservation science and action. With the ongoing shift from single-species conservation towards the preservation of ecosystem services, there is a greater need to understand abundance trends of common species because declines in common species can disproportionately impact ecosystems function. We used volunteer-collected data in two European countries, the United Kingdom (UK) and Switzerland, since the 1970s to assess national and regional trends for one of Europe's most abundant amphibian species, the common toad (Bufo bufo). Millions of toads were moved by volunteers across roads during this period in an effort to protect them from road traffic. For Switzerland, we additionally estimated trends for the common frog (Rana temporaria), a similarly widespread and common amphibian species. We used state-space models to account for variability in detection and effort and included only populations with at least 5 years of data; 153 populations for the UK and 141 for Switzerland. Common toads declined continuously in each decade in both countries since the 1980s. Given the declines, this common species almost qualifies for International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red-listing over this period despite volunteer conservation efforts. Reasons for the declines and wider impacts remain unknown. By contrast, common frog populations were stable or increasing in Switzerland, although there was evidence of declines after 2003. "Toads on Roads" schemes are vital citizen conservation action projects, and the data from such projects can be used for large scale trend estimations of widespread amphibians. We highlight the need for increased research into the status of common amphibian species in addition to conservation efforts focusing on rare and threatened species.

  16. Opportunities for State-Level Action to Reduce Firearm Violence: Proceeding From the Evidence

    PubMed Central

    Braga, Anthony A.

    2011-01-01

    Firearm violence remains an important problem, and a large body of evidence shows that guns used in crime follow generally predictable paths from manufacturer to criminal end user. Policy initiatives based on that evidence have been shown to be effective. A recently published study conducted by a leading policy organization presents new evidence and makes specific recommendations for action by state-level policymakers. Unfortunately, the study's analysis is overly simplified, and the recommendations are therefore misleading. We suggest alternatives that are evidence based. PMID:21778510

  17. 76 FR 58037 - Notice of Inventory Completion for Native American Human Remains and Associated Funerary Objects...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-09-19

    ... Mexico; and Pueblo of Zia, New Mexico. History and Description of the Remains Upon preparation for... Historical Society (History Colorado), Denver, CO; Correction AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior. ACTION...-10909, February 20, 2001). The Colorado Historical Society (History Colorado) completed an inventory of...

  18. Agricultural Bioterrorism What Challenges and Actions Remain

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2006-03-10

    African milk bush.29 In 1966, Bacillus subtilis was released in the New York City subway system to test the vulnerability of biowarfare.30 In 1984...These diseases include: Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD), Rift Valley Fever ( RVF ), Nipah Virus, Avian Influenza, Exotic Newcastle Disease, Classical Swine

  19. Magnetic Helicities and Dynamo Action in Magneto-rotational Turbulence

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Bodo, G.; Rossi, P.; Cattaneo, F.

    We examine the relationship between magnetic flux generation, taken as an indicator of large-scale dynamo action, and magnetic helicity, computed as an integral over the dynamo volume, in a simple dynamo. We consider dynamo action driven by magneto-rotational turbulence (MRT) within the shearing-box approximation. We consider magnetically open boundary conditions that allow a flux of helicity in or out of the computational domain. We circumvent the problem of the lack of gauge invariance in open domains by choosing a particular gauge—the winding gauge—that provides a natural interpretation in terms of the average winding number of pairwise field lines. We usemore » this gauge precisely to define and measure the helicity and the helicity flux for several realizations of dynamo action. We find in these cases that the system as a whole does not break reflectional symmetry and that the total helicity remains small even in cases when substantial magnetic flux is generated. We find no particular connection between the generation of magnetic flux and the helicity or the helicity flux through the boundaries. We suggest that this result may be due to the essentially nonlinear nature of the dynamo processes in MRT.« less

  20. [Mechanism of action of antiepileptic drugs].

    PubMed

    Saidón, Patricia

    2003-01-01

    Antiepileptic drugs (DAEs) act through different mechanisms of action: increase in central inhibition, inhibition of excitatorios mechanisms and modification of the excitability through their action on the ionic channels. Epilepsy is characterized by an abnormal and hypersynchronic unloading of a neuronal population. The activity of numerous drugs is associated to increase in gabaergic activity. Another group of drugs decreases excitatory mechanisms, through the inhibition of ionic channels, or through a decrease in the activity of the excitatory neurotransmitters. There are some of antiepileptic drugs, especially within the group of drugs of recent appearance, for wich the mechanism of action remains unknown.

  1. Large forest fires in Canada, 1959-1997

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Stocks, B. J.; Mason, J. A.; Todd, J. B.; Bosch, E. M.; Wotton, B. M.; Amiro, B. D.; Flannigan, M. D.; Hirsch, K. G.; Logan, K. A.; Martell, D. L.; Skinner, W. R.

    2003-01-01

    A Large Fire Database (LFDB), which includes information on fire location, start date, final size, cause, and suppression action, has been developed for all fires larger than 200 ha in area for Canada for the 1959-1997 period. The LFDB represents only 3.1% of the total number of Canadian fires during this period, the remaining 96.9% of fires being suppressed while <200 ha in size, yet accounts for ~97% of the total area burned, allowing a spatial and temporal analysis of recent Canadian landscape-scale fire impacts. On average ~2 million ha burned annually in these large fires, although more than 7 million ha burned in some years. Ecozones in the boreal and taiga regions experienced the greatest areas burned, with an average of 0.7% of the forested land burning annually. Lightning fires predominate in northern Canada, accounting for 80% of the total LFDB area burned. Large fires, although small in number, contribute substantially to area burned, most particularly in the boreal and taiga regions. The Canadian fire season runs from late April through August, with most of the area burned occurring in June and July due primarily to lightning fire activity in northern Canada. Close to 50% of the area burned in Canada is the result of fires that are not actioned due to their remote location, low values-at-risk, and efforts to accommodate the natural role of fire in these ecosystems. The LFDB is updated annually and is being expanded back in time to permit a more thorough analysis of long-term trends in Canadian fire activity.

  2. [Alcohol and work: remaining sober and return to work].

    PubMed

    Vittadini, G; Bandirali, M

    2007-01-01

    One of the most complex alcohol-driven problems is the job loss and the subsequent attempts to return to a professional activity. In order to better understand the issue, an epidemiologic investigation was carried out on a group of 162 alcoholics whilst hospitalised in a specialised clinic. The outcome shows the importance of remaining sober to keep or to be returned to one's own job. Unfortunately, local resources at hand, first of all joining an auto-mutual-help group, re still too little known and thus clearly underemployed. Therefore, an informative action within companies is highly desirable. Those alcoholics suffering from serious illnesses, especially mental ones represent a different issue. For these people a higher involvement of public authorities is desirable in creating protected job openings.

  3. Concepts Within Reach: Action Performance Predicts Action Language Processing in Stroke

    PubMed Central

    Desai, Rutvik H.; Herter, Troy; Riccardi, Nicholas; Rorden, Chris; Fridriksson, Julius

    2015-01-01

    The relationship between the brain’s conceptual or semantic and sensory-motor systems remains controversial. Here, we tested manual and conceptual abilities of 41 chronic stroke patients in order to examine their relationship. Manual abilities were assed through a reaching task using an exoskeleton robot. Semantic abilities were assessed with implicit as well as explicit semantic tasks, for both verbs and nouns. The results show that that the degree of selective impairment for action word processing was predicted by the degree of impairment in reaching performance. Moreover, the implicit semantic measures showed a correlation with a global reaching parameter, while the explicit semantic similarity judgment task predicted performance in action initiation. These results indicate that action concepts are dynamically grounded through motoric simulations, and that more details are simulated for more explicit semantic tasks. This is evidence for a close and causal relationship between sensory-motor and conceptual systems of the brain. PMID:25858602

  4. A code of ethics for evidence-based research with ancient human remains.

    PubMed

    Kreissl Lonfat, Bettina M; Kaufmann, Ina Maria; Rühli, Frank

    2015-06-01

    As clinical research constantly advances and the concept of evolution becomes a strong and influential part of basic medical research, the absence of a discourse that deals with the use of ancient human remains in evidence-based research is becoming unbearable. While topics such as exhibition and excavation of human remains are established ethical fields of discourse, when faced with instrumentalization of ancient human remains for research (i.e., ancient DNA extractions for disease marker analyses) the answers from traditional ethics or even more practical fields of bio-ethics or more specific biomedical ethics are rare to non-existent. The Centre for Evolutionary Medicine at the University of Zurich solved their needs for discursive action through the writing of a self-given code of ethics which was written in dialogue with the researchers at the Institute and was published online in Sept. 2011: http://evolutionäremedizin.ch/coe/. The philosophico-ethical basis for this a code of conduct and ethics and the methods are published in this article. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  5. How Large Scales Flows May Influence Solar Activity

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hathaway, D. H.

    2004-01-01

    Large scale flows within the solar convection zone are the primary drivers of the Sun's magnetic activity cycle and play important roles in shaping the Sun's magnetic field. Differential rotation amplifies the magnetic field through its shearing action and converts poloidal field into toroidal field. Poleward meridional flow near the surface carries magnetic flux that reverses the magnetic poles at about the time of solar maximum. The deeper, equatorward meridional flow can carry magnetic flux back toward the lower latitudes where it erupts through the surface to form tilted active regions that convert toroidal fields into oppositely directed poloidal fields. These axisymmetric flows are themselves driven by large scale convective motions. The effects of the Sun's rotation on convection produce velocity correlations that can maintain both the differential rotation and the meridional circulation. These convective motions can also influence solar activity directly by shaping the magnetic field pattern. While considerable theoretical advances have been made toward understanding these large scale flows, outstanding problems in matching theory to observations still remain.

  6. Relational information processing of novel unrelated actions by infants.

    PubMed

    Knopf, Monika; Kraus, Uta; Kressley-Mba, Regina A

    2006-01-01

    Declarative memory in infants is often assessed via deferred imitation. Not much is known about the information processing basis of the memory effect found in these experiments. While in the typical deferred imitation study the order of actions remains the same during demonstration and retrieval, in two experiments with n=30 respective n=25, 10- and 11-month-old infants, the order of novel unrelated actions in demonstration and retrieval was varied (same, reversed, mixed). This allowed a separation of item-specific from item-relational information processing. In both experiments best memory performance was found when the order of target actions remained the same during encoding and recall, demonstrating that infants seem to rely on item-specific as well as item-relational information which has to be ad hoc constructed while encoding.

  7. A Note on the Wave Action Density of a Viscous Instability Mode on a Laminar Free-shear Flow

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Balsa, Thomas F.

    1994-01-01

    Using the assumptions of an incompressible and viscous flow at large Reynolds number, we derive the evolution equation for the wave action density of an instability wave traveling on top of a laminar free-shear flow. The instability is considered to be viscous; the purpose of the present work is to include the cumulative effect of the (locally) small viscous correction to the wave, over length and time scales on which the underlying base flow appears inhomogeneous owing to its viscous diffusion. As such, we generalize our previous work for inviscid waves. This generalization appears as an additional (but usually non-negligible) term in the equation for the wave action. The basic structure of the equation remains unaltered.

  8. Large forest fires in Canada, 1959-1997

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Stocks, B. J.; Mason, J. A.; Todd, J. B.; Bosch, E. M.; Wotton, B. M.; Amiro, B. D.; Flannigan, M. D.; Hirsch, K. G.; Logan, K. A.; Martell, D. L.; Skinner, W. R.

    2002-01-01

    A Large Fire Database (LFDB), which includes information on fire location, start date, final size, cause, and suppression action, has been developed for all fires larger than 200 ha in area for Canada for the 1959-1997 period. The LFDB represents only 3.1% of the total number of Canadian fires during this period, the remaining 96.9% of fires being suppressed while <200 ha in size, yet accounts for ˜97% of the total area burned, allowing a spatial and temporal analysis of recent Canadian landscape-scale fire impacts. On average ˜2 million ha burned annually in these large fires, although more than 7 million ha burned in some years. Ecozones in the boreal and taiga regions experienced the greatest areas burned, with an average of 0.7% of the forested land burning annually. Lightning fires predominate in northern Canada, accounting for 80% of the total LFDB area burned. Large fires, although small in number, contribute substantially to area burned, most particularly in the boreal and taiga regions. The Canadian fire season runs from late April through August, with most of the area burned occurring in June and July due primarily to lightning fire activity in northern Canada. Close to 50% of the area burned in Canada is the result of fires that are not actioned due to their remote location, low values-at-risk, and efforts to accommodate the natural role of fire in these ecosystems. The LFDB is updated annually and is being expanded back in time to permit a more thorough analysis of long-term trends in Canadian fire activity.

  9. An emerging action science of social settings.

    PubMed

    Seidman, Edward

    2012-09-01

    Seymour B. Sarason's innovative ideas have influenced much of my work. These same ideas-in particular, his concepts of social settings, behavioral and programmatic regularities, and the universe of alternatives-also serve as the foundation for an action science of social settings. Questions regarding theory, measurement, intervention, and research design and data analysis are central to the development of this action science, and there have been recent innovations in each of these areas. However, future challenges remain for the field. We must continue to move forward to advance an action science of social settings and make a real difference in people's lives.

  10. Modeling Interdependent and Periodic Real-World Action Sequences

    PubMed Central

    Kurashima, Takeshi; Althoff, Tim; Leskovec, Jure

    2018-01-01

    Mobile health applications, including those that track activities such as exercise, sleep, and diet, are becoming widely used. Accurately predicting human actions in the real world is essential for targeted recommendations that could improve our health and for personalization of these applications. However, making such predictions is extremely difficult due to the complexities of human behavior, which consists of a large number of potential actions that vary over time, depend on each other, and are periodic. Previous work has not jointly modeled these dynamics and has largely focused on item consumption patterns instead of broader types of behaviors such as eating, commuting or exercising. In this work, we develop a novel statistical model, called TIPAS, for Time-varying, Interdependent, and Periodic Action Sequences. Our approach is based on personalized, multivariate temporal point processes that model time-varying action propensities through a mixture of Gaussian intensities. Our model captures short-term and long-term periodic interdependencies between actions through Hawkes process-based self-excitations. We evaluate our approach on two activity logging datasets comprising 12 million real-world actions (e.g., eating, sleep, and exercise) taken by 20 thousand users over 17 months. We demonstrate that our approach allows us to make successful predictions of future user actions and their timing. Specifically, TIPAS improves predictions of actions, and their timing, over existing methods across multiple datasets by up to 156%, and up to 37%, respectively. Performance improvements are particularly large for relatively rare and periodic actions such as walking and biking, improving over baselines by up to 256%. This demonstrates that explicit modeling of dependencies and periodicities in real-world behavior enables successful predictions of future actions, with implications for modeling human behavior, app personalization, and targeting of health interventions. PMID

  11. Population remains top priority for China.

    PubMed

    Li, H

    1998-04-01

    China, whose population was 430 million in 1840, is facing a population total of 1.3 billion in 2000. Population increased rapidly in the country during the 1950s, but early efforts at population control were abandoned from the start of the Cultural Revolution in 1966 until the 1970s. Today, the importance of family planning (FP) is recognized throughout Chinese society. With 20 million newborns adding 13 million people to the population each year, controlling the population increase will remain a top priority of China's population policy. Other priorities include 1) increasing the quality of life of the population by improving health, promoting literacy, and developing human resources; 2) facing the impact of population aging; 3) struggling to overcome the poverty experienced by 50 million people; and 4) dealing with the imbalanced sex ratio of newborns. China has been attempting to institute strategies to implement the Program of Action adopted by the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development and is attempting to adopt an integrated approach to population programs that combines FP with development measures and the delivery of multiple services to enhance reproductive health. Since 1984, China has worked with Japan's JOICFP on an Integrated Project that offers FP, maternal and child health services, and parasite control.

  12. The Interaction between Interoceptive and Action States within a Framework of Predictive Coding

    PubMed Central

    Marshall, Amanda C.; Gentsch, Antje; Schütz-Bosbach, Simone

    2018-01-01

    The notion of predictive coding assumes that perception is an iterative process between prior knowledge and sensory feedback. To date, this perspective has been primarily applied to exteroceptive perception as well as action and its associated phenomenological experiences such as agency. More recently, this predictive, inferential framework has been theoretically extended to interoception. This idea postulates that subjective feeling states are generated by top–down inferences made about internal and external causes of interoceptive afferents. While the processing of motor signals for action control and the emergence of selfhood have been studied extensively, the contributions of interoceptive input and especially the potential interaction of motor and interoceptive signals remain largely unaddressed. Here, we argue for a specific functional relation between motor and interoceptive awareness. Specifically, we implicate interoceptive predictions in the generation of subjective motor-related feeling states. Furthermore, we propose a distinction between reflexive and pre-reflexive modes of agentic action control and suggest that interoceptive input may affect each differently. Finally, we advocate the necessity of continuous interoceptive input for conscious forms of agentic action control. We conclude by discussing further research contributions that would allow for a fuller understanding of the interaction between agency and interoceptive awareness. PMID:29515495

  13. Efficient computation of optimal actions.

    PubMed

    Todorov, Emanuel

    2009-07-14

    Optimal choice of actions is a fundamental problem relevant to fields as diverse as neuroscience, psychology, economics, computer science, and control engineering. Despite this broad relevance the abstract setting is similar: we have an agent choosing actions over time, an uncertain dynamical system whose state is affected by those actions, and a performance criterion that the agent seeks to optimize. Solving problems of this kind remains hard, in part, because of overly generic formulations. Here, we propose a more structured formulation that greatly simplifies the construction of optimal control laws in both discrete and continuous domains. An exhaustive search over actions is avoided and the problem becomes linear. This yields algorithms that outperform Dynamic Programming and Reinforcement Learning, and thereby solve traditional problems more efficiently. Our framework also enables computations that were not possible before: composing optimal control laws by mixing primitives, applying deterministic methods to stochastic systems, quantifying the benefits of error tolerance, and inferring goals from behavioral data via convex optimization. Development of a general class of easily solvable problems tends to accelerate progress--as linear systems theory has done, for example. Our framework may have similar impact in fields where optimal choice of actions is relevant.

  14. Predictive Movements and Human Reinforcement Learning of Sequential Action

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    de Kleijn, Roy; Kachergis, George; Hommel, Bernhard

    2018-01-01

    Sequential action makes up the bulk of human daily activity, and yet much remains unknown about how people learn such actions. In one motor learning paradigm, the serial reaction time (SRT) task, people are taught a consistent sequence of button presses by cueing them with the next target response. However, the SRT task only records keypress…

  15. End or Means--The "What" and "How" of Observed Intentional Actions

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hesse, Maike D.; Sparing, Roland; Fink, Gereon R.

    2009-01-01

    Action understanding and learning are suggested to be mediated, at least in part, by the human mirror neuron system (hMNS). Static images as well as videos of actions with the outcome occluded have been shown to activate the hMNS. However, whether the hMNS preferentially responds to "end" or "means" of an action remains to be investigated. We,…

  16. Action adaptation during natural unfolding social scenes influences action recognition and inferences made about actor beliefs.

    PubMed

    Keefe, Bruce D; Wincenciak, Joanna; Jellema, Tjeerd; Ward, James W; Barraclough, Nick E

    2016-07-01

    When observing another individual's actions, we can both recognize their actions and infer their beliefs concerning the physical and social environment. The extent to which visual adaptation influences action recognition and conceptually later stages of processing involved in deriving the belief state of the actor remains unknown. To explore this we used virtual reality (life-size photorealistic actors presented in stereoscopic three dimensions) to see how visual adaptation influences the perception of individuals in naturally unfolding social scenes at increasingly higher levels of action understanding. We presented scenes in which one actor picked up boxes (of varying number and weight), after which a second actor picked up a single box. Adaptation to the first actor's behavior systematically changed perception of the second actor. Aftereffects increased with the duration of the first actor's behavior, declined exponentially over time, and were independent of view direction. Inferences about the second actor's expectation of box weight were also distorted by adaptation to the first actor. Distortions in action recognition and actor expectations did not, however, extend across different actions, indicating that adaptation is not acting at an action-independent abstract level but rather at an action-dependent level. We conclude that although adaptation influences more complex inferences about belief states of individuals, this is likely to be a result of adaptation at an earlier action recognition stage rather than adaptation operating at a higher, more abstract level in mentalizing or simulation systems.

  17. OVERVIEW OF CYANIDE PLANT REMAINS, TAILINGS PILES, PARKING LOT, AND ...

    Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

    OVERVIEW OF CYANIDE PLANT REMAINS, TAILINGS PILES, PARKING LOT, AND MINE MANAGER'S HOME, LOOKING SOUTH SOUTHEAST. RIGHT, TAILINGS PILES ARE AT CENTER WITH CYANIDE PLANT FOUNDATIONS TO THE LEFT OF THE PILES. PARKING LOT IS AT UPPER LEFT. THE AREA BETWEEN THE COLLAPSED TANK AT CENTER LEFT AND THE REMAINS OF THE MANAGER'S HOUSE AT LOWER RIGHT IS A TAILINGS HOLDING AREA. TAILINGS FROM THE MILL WERE HELD HERE. THE LARGE SETTLING TANKS WERE CHARGED FROM THIS HOLDING AREA BY A TRAM ON RAILS AND BY A SLUICEWAY SEEN AS THE DARK SPOT ON THE CENTER LEFT EDGE OF THE FRAME. AFTER THE TAILINGS WERE LEACHED, THEY WERE DEPOSITED ON THE LARGE WASTE PILE AT CENTER RIGHT. THE TANK AT CENTER RIGHT EDGE IS WHERE THE WATER PIPELINE ENTERED THE WORKS. A STRAIGHT LINE OF POSTS IN THE GROUND GO ACROSS THE CENTER FROM LEFT TO RIGHT, WHICH ORIGINALLY SUSPENDED THE WATER PIPELINE GOING FROM THE WATER HOLDING TANK AT RIGHT UP TO THE SECONDARY WATER TANKS ABOVE THE MILL. - Keane Wonder Mine, Park Route 4 (Daylight Pass Cutoff), Death Valley Junction, Inyo County, CA

  18. Corrective Action Decision Document/Closure Report for Corrective Action Unit 560: Septic Systems, Nevada Test Site, Nevada, Revision 0

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Grant Evenson

    2010-04-01

    of the leach pit chamber and leach rock. The contamination present at CAS 06-05-03 within the leach pit was not feasible to remove. •The surface and subsurface soils within and surrounding the septic system at CAS 06-05-04 contained PCB concentrations above the FAL of 0.74 mg/kg. The lateral and vertical extent of COCs was determined for this CAS. Contaminated soils were removed up to within 18 ft of the building. The remaining contamination is confined to subsurface soils adjacent to and beneath Building CP-162 and was not feasible to remove. •The solid materials within the septic tank and soils immediately surrounding the inlet end of the tank at CAS 06-59-03 contained benzo(a)pyrene above the FAL of 0.21 mg/kg. The soils, tank contents, and tank were removed. Materials remaining at this CAS do not contain contamination exceeding FALs. •The solids contained within the septic tank and inlet pipe at CAS 06-59-05 contained the following contaminants above their respective FALs: PCBs, arsenic, lead, benzo(a)pyrene, and pesticides. The tank and inlet pipe contents were removed. Materials remaining at this CAS do not contain contamination exceeding FALs. Therefore, the U.S. Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration Nevada Site Office (NNSA/NSO) provides the following corrective action recommendations: •No further action for CASs 03-51-01, 06-04-02, and 06-59-04, as no contaminants of potential concern were present that exceed FALs. •Closure in place for CAS 06-05-03 under a corrective action with a use restriction (UR) for remaining PCB- and arsenic-impacted potential source material (PSM). The UR form and map have been filed in the NNSA/NSO Facility Information Management System, the FFACO database, and NNSA/NSO CAU/CAS files. •Closure in place for CAS 06-05-04 under a corrective action with a UR for remaining PCBs in soil adjacent to and beneath Building CP-162. The UR form and map have been filed in the NNSA/NSO Facility Information

  19. Knowledge into action for child survival.

    PubMed

    Claeson, M; Gillespie, D; Mshinda, H; Troedsson, H; Victora, C G

    2003-07-26

    The child survival revolution of the 1980s contributed to steady decreases in child mortality in some populations, but much remains to be done. More than 10 million children will die this year, almost all of whom are poor. Two-thirds of these deaths could have been prevented if effective child survival interventions had reached all children and mothers who needed them. Translation of current knowledge into effective action for child survival will require leadership, strong health systems, targeted human and financial resources, and modified health system to ensure that poor children and mothers benefit. A group of concerned scientists and policy-makers issues a call to action to leaders, governments, and citizens to translate knowledge into action for child survival.

  20. Mini Review: Mode of Action of Mosquito Repellents

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2013-01-01

    Mini review: Mode of action of mosquito repellents Joseph C. Dickens ⇑, Jonathan D. Bohbot United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural...Modulation a b s t r a c t The mode of action of mosquito repellents remains a controversial topic. However, electrophysiological studies and molecular...annoyance that can disrupt outdoor activities. The use of repellents decreases contacts between mosquitoes and their hosts, and may even lower the rate of

  1. Shared Mechanisms in the Estimation of Self-Generated Actions and the Prediction of Other's Actions by Humans.

    PubMed

    Ikegami, Tsuyoshi; Ganesh, Gowrishankar

    2017-01-01

    The question of how humans predict outcomes of observed motor actions by others is a fundamental problem in cognitive and social neuroscience. Previous theoretical studies have suggested that the brain uses parts of the forward model (used to estimate sensory outcomes of self-generated actions) to predict outcomes of observed actions. However, this hypothesis has remained controversial due to the lack of direct experimental evidence. To address this issue, we analyzed the behavior of darts experts in an understanding learning paradigm and utilized computational modeling to examine how outcome prediction of observed actions affected the participants' ability to estimate their own actions. We recruited darts experts because sports experts are known to have an accurate outcome estimation of their own actions as well as prediction of actions observed in others. We first show that learning to predict the outcomes of observed dart throws deteriorates an expert's abilities to both produce his own darts actions and estimate the outcome of his own throws (or self-estimation). Next, we introduce a state-space model to explain the trial-by-trial changes in the darts performance and self-estimation through our experiment. The model-based analysis reveals that the change in an expert's self-estimation is explained only by considering a change in the individual's forward model, showing that an improvement in an expert's ability to predict outcomes of observed actions affects the individual's forward model. These results suggest that parts of the same forward model are utilized in humans to both estimate outcomes of self-generated actions and predict outcomes of observed actions.

  2. Development of a high-content screening assay panel to accelerate mechanism of action studies for oncology research.

    PubMed

    Towne, Danli L; Nicholl, Emily E; Comess, Kenneth M; Galasinski, Scott C; Hajduk, Philip J; Abraham, Vivek C

    2012-09-01

    Efficient elucidation of the biological mechanism of action of novel compounds remains a major bottleneck in the drug discovery process. To address this need in the area of oncology, we report the development of a multiparametric high-content screening assay panel at the level of single cells to dramatically accelerate understanding the mechanism of action of cell growth-inhibiting compounds on a large scale. Our approach is based on measuring 10 established end points associated with mitochondrial apoptosis, cell cycle disruption, DNA damage, and cellular morphological changes in the same experiment, across three multiparametric assays. The data from all of the measurements taken together are expected to help increase our current understanding of target protein functions, constrain the list of possible targets for compounds identified using phenotypic screens, and identify off-target effects. We have also developed novel data visualization and phenotypic classification approaches for detailed interpretation of individual compound effects and navigation of large collections of multiparametric cellular responses. We expect this general approach to be valuable for drug discovery across multiple therapeutic areas.

  3. Prairie Conservation in Canada: The Prairie Conservation Action Plan Experience

    Treesearch

    Dean Nernberg; David Ingstrup

    2005-01-01

    In Canada, grassland conservation has been mobilized and directed through the development of Prairie Conservation Action Plans and Action Plan Committees in the three prairie provinces of Alberta (45 partner agencies and organizations), Saskatchewan (26 partners), and Manitoba (26 partners). In Alberta, 43 percent of the native prairie remains; in Saskatchewan and...

  4. Fossil human remains from Bolomor Cave (Valencia, Spain).

    PubMed

    Arsuaga, Juan Luis; Fernández Peris, Josep; Gracia-Téllez, Ana; Quam, Rolf; Carretero, José Miguel; Barciela González, Virginia; Blasco, Ruth; Cuartero, Felipe; Sañudo, Pablo

    2012-05-01

    Systematic excavations carried out since 1989 at Bolomor Cave have led to the recovery of four Pleistocene human fossil remains, consisting of a fibular fragment, two isolated teeth, and a nearly complete adult parietal bone. All of these specimens date to the late Middle and early Late Pleistocene (MIS 7-5e). The fibular fragment shows thick cortical bone, an archaic feature found in non-modern (i.e. non-Homo sapiens) members of the genus Homo. Among the dental remains, the lack of a midtrigonid crest in the M(1) represents a departure from the morphology reported for the majority of Neandertal specimens, while the large dimensions and pronounced shoveling of the marginal ridges in the C(1) are similar to other European Middle and late Pleistocene fossils. The parietal bone is very thick, with dimensions that generally fall above Neandertal fossils and resemble more closely the Middle Pleistocene Atapuerca (SH) adult specimens. Based on the presence of archaic features, all the fossils from Bolomor are attributed to the Neandertal evolutionary lineage. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Overexpression of the Large-Conductance, Ca2+-Activated K+ (BK) Channel Shortens Action Potential Duration in HL-1 Cardiomyocytes.

    PubMed

    Stimers, Joseph R; Song, Li; Rusch, Nancy J; Rhee, Sung W

    2015-01-01

    Long QT syndrome is characterized by a prolongation of the interval between the Q wave and the T wave on the electrocardiogram. This abnormality reflects a prolongation of the ventricular action potential caused by a number of genetic mutations or a variety of drugs. Since effective treatments are unavailable, we explored the possibility of using cardiac expression of the large-conductance, Ca2+-activated K+ (BK) channel to shorten action potential duration (APD). We hypothesized that expression of the pore-forming α subunit of human BK channels (hBKα) in HL-1 cells would shorten action potential duration in this mouse atrial cell line. Expression of hBKα had minimal effects on expression levels of other ion channels with the exception of a small but significant reduction in Kv11.1. Patch-clamped hBKα expressing HL-1 cells exhibited an outward voltage- and Ca2+-sensitive K+ current, which was inhibited by the BK channel blocker iberiotoxin (100 nM). This BK current phenotype was not detected in untransfected HL-1 cells or in HL-1 null cells sham-transfected with an empty vector. Importantly, APD in hBKα-expressing HL-1 cells averaged 14.3 ± 2.8 ms (n = 10), which represented a 53% reduction in APD compared to HL-1 null cells lacking BKα expression. APD in the latter cells averaged 31.0 ± 5.1 ms (n = 13). The shortened APD in hBKα-expressing cells was restored to normal duration by 100 nM iberiotoxin, suggesting that a repolarizing K+ current attributed to BK channels accounted for action potential shortening. These findings provide initial proof-of-concept that the introduction of hBKα channels into a cardiac cell line can shorten APD, and raise the possibility that gene-based interventions to increase hBKα channels in cardiac cells may hold promise as a therapeutic strategy for long QT syndrome.

  6. Instantons and Large N

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mariño, Marcos

    2015-09-01

    Preface; Part I. Instantons: 1. Instantons in quantum mechanics; 2. Unstable vacua in quantum field theory; 3. Large order behavior and Borel summability; 4. Non-perturbative aspects of Yang-Mills theories; 5. Instantons and fermions; Part II. Large N: 6. Sigma models at large N; 7. The 1=N expansion in QCD; 8. Matrix models and matrix quantum mechanics at large N; 9. Large N QCD in two dimensions; 10. Instantons at large N; Appendix A. Harmonic analysis on S3; Appendix B. Heat kernel and zeta functions; Appendix C. Effective action for large N sigma models; References; Author index; Subject index.

  7. Woodworking & housing: Positive trends and actions

    Treesearch

    Urs Buehlmann; Matt Bumgardner; Karen Koenig

    2016-01-01

    This exclusive study looks at the housing market's impact on woodworking businesses and the actions taken to increase wood product sales. A majority of the woodworking industry remains intrinsically tied to the housing industry, particularly businesses involved in producing cabinetry, furniture, millwork and components. For that reason, construction market...

  8. Neural basis of understanding communicative actions: Changes associated with knowing the actor's intention and the meanings of the actions.

    PubMed

    Möttönen, Riikka; Farmer, Harry; Watkins, Kate E

    2016-01-29

    People can communicate by using hand actions, e.g., signs. Understanding communicative actions requires that the observer knows that the actor has an intention to communicate and the meanings of the actions. Here, we investigated how this prior knowledge affects processing of observed actions. We used functional MRI to determine changes in action processing when non-signers were told that the observed actions are communicative (i.e., signs) and learned the meanings of half of the actions. Processing of hand actions activated the left and right inferior frontal gyrus (IFG, BA 44 and 45) when the communicative intention of the actor was known, even when the meanings of the actions remained unknown. These regions were not active when the observers did not know about the communicative nature of the hand actions. These findings suggest that the left and right IFG play a role in understanding the intention of the actor, but do not process visuospatial features of the communicative actions. Knowing the meanings of the hand actions further enhanced activity in the anterior part of the IFG (BA 45), the inferior parietal lobule and posterior inferior and middle temporal gyri in the left hemisphere. These left-hemisphere language regions could provide a link between meanings and observed actions. In sum, the findings provide evidence for the segregation of the networks involved in the neural processing of visuospatial features of communicative hand actions and those involved in understanding the actor's intention and the meanings of the actions. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  9. Stage II Remedial Action Plan Deer Lake AOC

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    Michigan Department of Environmental Quality reports on actions taken that have resulted in the removal of two beneficial use impairments. Outlines plans to remove remaining BUI and to delist the Area Of Concern.

  10. Action Research and the Micropolitics in Schools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Eilertsen, Tor-Vidar; Gustafson, Niklas; Salo, Petri

    2008-01-01

    This paper is based on the assumption that action research always affects the micropolitical balance characteristic of a certain school setting. The authors claim that micropolitics, that is the patterns of formal power and informal influence, has largely been neglected in the literature on action research in schools. This means that action…

  11. Gap junction- and hemichannel-independent actions of connexins.

    PubMed

    Jiang, Jean X; Gu, Sumin

    2005-06-10

    Connexins have been known to be the protein building blocks of gap junctions and mediate cell-cell communication. In contrast to the conventional dogma, recent evidence suggests that in addition to forming gap junction channels, connexins possess gap junction-independent functions. One important gap junction-independent function for connexins is to serve as the major functional component for hemichannels, the un-apposed halves of gap junctions. Hemichannels, as independent functional units, play roles that are different from that of gap junctions in the cell. The other functions of connexins appear to be gap junction- and hemichannel-independent. Published studies implicate the latter functions of connexins in cell growth, differentiation, tumorigenicity, injury, and apoptosis, although the mechanistic aspects of these actions remain largely unknown. In this review, gap junction- and hemichannel-independent functions of connexins are summarized, and the molecular mechanisms underlying these connexin functions are speculated and discussed.

  12. The quantitation of buffering action I. A formal & general approach.

    PubMed

    Schmitt, Bernhard M

    2005-03-15

    Although "buffering" as a homeostatic mechanism is a universal phenomenon, the quantitation of buffering action remains controversial and problematic. Major shortcomings are: lack of a buffering strength unit for some buffering phenomena, multiple and mutually incommensurable units for others, and lack of a genuine ratio scale for buffering strength. Here, I present a concept of buffering that overcomes these shortcomings. Briefly, when, for instance, some "free" H+ ions are added to a solution (e.g. in the form of strong acid), buffering is said to be present when not all H+ ions remain "free" (i.e., bound to H2O), but some become "bound" (i.e., bound to molecules other than H2O). The greater the number of H+ ions that become "bound" in this process, the greater the buffering action. This number can be expressed in two ways: 1) With respect to the number of total free ions added as "buffering coefficient b", defined in differential form as b = d(bound)/d(total). This measure expresses buffering action from nil to complete by a dimensionless number between 0 and 1, analogous to probabilites. 2) With respect to the complementary number of added ions that remain free as "buffering ratio B", defined as the differential B = d(bound)/d(free). The buffering ratio B provides an absolute ratio scale, where buffering action from nil to perfect corresponds to dimensionless numbers between 0 and infinity, and where equal differences of buffering action result in equal intervals on the scale. Formulated in purely mathematical, axiomatic form, the concept reveals striking overlap with the mathematical concept of probability. However, the concept also allows one to devise simple physical models capable of visualizing buffered systems and their behavior in an exact yet intuitive way. These two measures of buffering action can be generalized easily to any arbitrary quantity that partitions into two compartments or states, and are thus suited to serve as standard units for

  13. Kinematic dynamo action in square and hexagonal patterns.

    PubMed

    Favier, B; Proctor, M R E

    2013-11-01

    We consider kinematic dynamo action in rapidly rotating Boussinesq convection just above onset. The velocity is constrained to have either a square or a hexagonal pattern. For the square pattern, large-scale dynamo action is observed at onset, with most of the magnetic energy being contained in the horizontally averaged component. As the magnetic Reynolds number increases, small-scale dynamo action becomes possible, reducing the overall growth rate of the dynamo. For the hexagonal pattern, the breaking of symmetry between up and down flows results in an effective pumping velocity. For intermediate rotation rates, this additional effect can prevent the growth of any mean-field dynamo, so that only a small-scale dynamo is eventually possible at large enough magnetic Reynolds number. For very large rotation rates, this pumping term becomes negligible, and the dynamo properties of square and hexagonal patterns are qualitatively similar. These results hold for both perfectly conducting and infinite magnetic permeability boundary conditions.

  14. Remaining Sites Verification Package for the 100-F-54 Animal Farm Pastures, Waste Site Reclassification Form 2008-015

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    J. M. Capron

    2008-04-17

    The 100-F-54 waste site, part of the 100-FR-2 Operable Unit, is the soil associated with the former pastures for holding domestic farm animals used in experimental toxicology studies. Evaluation of historical information resulted in identification of the experimental animal farm pastures as having potential residual soil contamination due to excrement from experimental animals. The 100-F-54 animal farm pastures confirmatory sampling results support a reclassification of this site to No Action. The current site conditions achieve the remedial action objectives and the corresponding remedial action goals established in the Remaining Sites ROD. The results of confirmatory sampling show that residual contaminantmore » concentrations do not preclude any future uses and allow for unrestricted use of shallow zone soils. The results also demonstrate that residual contaminant concentrations are protective of groundwater and the Columbia River.« less

  15. [Mechanism of action and effects of corticoids in asthma].

    PubMed

    Lacronique, J; Russo-Marie, F; Marsac, J

    1989-01-01

    The value of oral or inhaled glucocorticoids (GCS) in asthma is well recognized. Their use has remained empirical for a long time. However, some progress has been achieved recently in the understanding of their general mode of action and of their bronchial effects suggesting that in the near future ther may be some new therapeutic perspectives. The fundamental action of GCS involves a close intracellular interaction between the specific glucocorticoid hormone receptor and the cellular genome which results in the activation of the genes coding the proteins responsible for the phenotypic response of the cell and thus for their biological action. The place of the extra-genomic mechanisms remains ill understood. The immunomodulating action of GCS is difficult to dissociate from their anti-inflammatory and anti-allergic effects which seem to predominate in asthma. They inhibit all stages of the inflammatory reaction in acting on the key mediators of the inflammatory response, the pharmacologically active lipids (LPA: prostaglandins, leukotrienes, PAF-acether) which are a result of the catabolism of arachidonic acid which occurs during the course of membrane activation. The phospholipid A2 (PLA2), a membrane enzyme responsible for the splitting of the phospholipids in the presence of calcium and leading to the liberation of LPA is the driving force of the reaction in such a way that the products of the nuclear activation subsequently reactivated. GCS is considered as a natural modulator of inflammation, inducing the synthesis of lipocortin, an inhibitory protein of PLA2, which explains the blockage in the generation of LPA and thus the inflammatory reaction. The regulation of the activity of these or of the lipocortin seems to lead to the intervention of the phosphorylation. But numerous questions remain concerning the precise action of PLO2, the existence of endogenous lipocortin, their secretion and their extra-cellular action. In spite of these unknown facts it is not

  16. Are Ca2+ channels targets of praziquantel action?

    PubMed

    Greenberg, Robert M

    2005-01-01

    Praziquantel is the current drug of choice for the control of schistosomiasis. It is highly effective against all species of schistosomes and shows minimal adverse effects. Though introduced for the treatment of schistosomiasis more than 20 years ago, the mode of action of praziquantel remains to be elucidated. This review will focus on advances in defining the molecular target of praziquantel action, with particular emphasis on recent work indicating an important role for voltage-gated calcium channels.

  17. Affirmative action and the allocation of health care.

    PubMed

    Francis, L P

    1999-09-01

    The justifications of affirmative action, the compensatory, corrective and redistributive, have been widely recognized in legal thinking. They have been applied, principally, to employment practices. They can also be applied to health care. Arguments for affirmative action in health care allocation shift the burden of proof to those who deny that racism is the root cause of differential morbidity and mortality experienced by, for example, African Americans. At the very least, these arguments mandate much needed research into the causes of minorities' poor health. Without such research, racism remains the presumptive cause of, and affirmative action the appropriate remedy for, the health care problems minorities face.

  18. Compensating Losses in Bridge Employment? Examining Relations between Compensation Strategies, Health Problems, and Intention to Remain at Work

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Muller, Andreas; De Lange, Annet; Weigl, Matthias; Oxfart, Caroline; Van der Heijden, Beatrice

    2013-01-01

    In order to better understand the precursors of bridge employment, this study aimed to investigate whether individual action strategies in terms of selection, optimization, and compensation (SOC; Baltes & Baltes, 1990) are able to buffer the well-known negative impact of poor health on the intention to remain in the workforce. 784 employees (60-85…

  19. Object words modulate the activity of the mirror neuron system during action imitation.

    PubMed

    Wu, Haiyan; Tang, Honghong; Ge, Yue; Yang, Suyong; Mai, Xiaoqin; Luo, Yue-Jia; Liu, Chao

    2017-11-01

    Although research has demonstrated that the mirror neuron system (MNS) plays a crucial role in both action imitation and action-related semantic processing, whether action-related words can inversely modulate the MNS activity remains unclear. Here, three types of task-irrelevant words (body parts, verbs, and manufactured objects) were presented to examine the modulation effect of these words on the MNS activity during action observation and imitation. Twenty-two participants were recruited for the fMRI scanning and remaining data from 19 subjects were reported here. Brain activity results showed that word types elicited different modulation effects over nodes of the MNS (i.e., the right inferior frontal gyrus, premotor cortex, inferior parietal lobule, and STS), especially during the imitation stage. Compared with other word conditions, action imitation following manufactured objects words induced stronger activation in these brain regions during the imitation stage. These results were consistent in both task-dependent and -independent ROI analysis. Our findings thus provide evidence for the unique effect of object words on the MNS during imitation of action, which may also confirm the key role of goal inference in action imitation.

  20. Rates of Student Disciplinary Action in Australian Universities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lindsay, Bruce

    2010-01-01

    Although a growing body of research has been conducted on student misconduct in universities, quantitative data on disciplinary action undertaken by institutions against student transgressions are largely absent from the literature. This paper provides baseline quantitative data on disciplinary action against students in the universities. It is…

  1. Remaining Sites Verification Package for the 1607-B1 Septic System, Waste Site Reclassification Form 2007-015

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    L. M. Dittmer

    2007-08-30

    The 1607-B1 Septic System includes a septic tank, drain field, and associated connecting pipelines and influent sanitary sewer lines. This septic system serviced the former 1701-B Badgehouse, 1720-B Patrol Building/Change Room, and the 1709-B Fire Headquarters. The 1607-B1 waste site received unknown amounts of nonhazardous, nonradioactive sanitary sewage from these facilities during its operational history from 1944 to approximately 1970. In accordance with this evaluation, the confirmatory sampling results support a reclassification of this site to No Action. The current site conditions achieve the remedial action objectives and the corresponding remedial action goals established in the Remaining Sites ROD. Themore » results of confirmatory sampling show that residual contaminant concentrations do not preclude any future uses and allow for unrestricted use of shallow zone soils. The results also demonstrate that residual contaminant concentrations are protective of groundwater and the Columbia River.« less

  2. Why the Affirmative Action Debate Persists: The Role of Moral Disagreement

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Moses, Michele S.

    2006-01-01

    This article concerns an issue that often remains implicit within the public debate about affirmative action and related race-conscious education policies: What role do contested moral ideals play in the disagreement about affirmative action? As background, the article first outlines what a moral disagreement is and then goes on to examine the…

  3. Adipokines and insulin action

    PubMed Central

    Knights, Alexander J; Funnell, Alister PW; Pearson, Richard CM; Crossley, Merlin; Bell-Anderson, Kim S

    2014-01-01

    Obesity is a major public health concern and a strong risk factor for insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), and cardiovascular disease. The last two decades have seen a reconsideration of the role of white adipose tissue (WAT) in whole body metabolism and insulin action. Adipose tissue-derived cytokines and hormones, or adipokines, are likely mediators of metabolic function and dysfunction. While several adipokines have been associated with obese and insulin-resistant phenotypes, a select group has been linked with insulin sensitivity, namely leptin, adiponectin, and more recently, adipolin. What is known about these insulin-sensitizing molecules and their effects in healthy and insulin resistant states is the subject of this review. There remains a significant amount of research to do to fully elucidate the mechanisms of action of these adipokines for development of therapeutics in metabolic disease. PMID:24719781

  4. Work-related factors influencing home care nurse intent to remain employed.

    PubMed

    Tourangeau, Ann E; Patterson, Erin; Saari, Margaret; Thomson, Heather; Cranley, Lisa

    Health care is shifting out of hospitals into community settings. In Ontario, Canada, home care organizations continue to experience challenges recruiting and retaining nurses. However, factors influencing home care nurse retention that can be modified remain largely unexplored. Several groups of factors have been identified as influencing home care nurse intent to remain employed including job characteristics, work structures, relationships and communication, work environment, responses to work, and conditions of employment. The aim of this study was to test and refine a model that identifies which factors are related to home care nurse intentions to remain employed for the next 5 years with their current home care employer organization. A cross-sectional survey design was implemented to test and refine a hypothesized model of home care nurse intent to remain employed. Logistic regression was used to determine which factors influence home care nurse intent to remain employed. Home care nurse intent to remain employed for the next 5 years was associated with increasing age, higher nurse-evaluated quality of care, having greater variety of patients, experiencing greater meaningfulness of work, having greater income stability, having greater continuity of client care, experiencing more positive relationships with supervisors, experiencing higher work-life balance, and being more satisfied with salary and benefits. Home care organizations can promote home care nurse intent to remain employed by (a) ensuring nurses have adequate training and resources to provide quality client care, (b) improving employment conditions to increase income stability and satisfaction with pay and benefits, (c) ensuring manageable workloads to facilitate improved work-life balance, and (d) ensuring leaders are accessible and competent.

  5. Review of nutrient actions on age-related macular degeneration.

    PubMed

    Zampatti, Stefania; Ricci, Federico; Cusumano, Andrea; Marsella, Luigi Tonino; Novelli, Giuseppe; Giardina, Emiliano

    2014-02-01

    The actions of nutrients and related compounds on age-related macular degeneration (AMD) are explained in this review. The findings from 80 studies published since 2003 on the association between diet and supplements in AMD were reviewed. Antioxidants and other nutrients with an effect on AMD susceptibility include carotenoids (lutein and zeaxanthin, β-carotene), vitamins (vitamin A, E, C, D, B), mineral supplements (zinc, copper, selenium), dietary fatty acids [monounsaturated fatty acids, polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA both omega-3 PUFA and omega-6 PUFA), saturated fatty acids and cholesterol], and dietary carbohydrates. The literature revealed that many of these antioxidants and nutrients exert a protective role by functioning synergistically. Specifically, the use of dietary supplements with targeted actions can provide minimal benefits on the onset or progression of AMD; however, this does not appear to be particularly beneficial in healthy people. Furthermore, some supplements or nutrients have demonstrated discordant effects on AMD in some studies. Since intake of dietary supplements, as well as exposure to damaging environmental factors, is largely dependent on population habits (including dietary practices) and geographical localization, an overall healthy diet appears to be the best strategy in reducing the risk of developing AMD. As of now, the precise mechanism of action of certain nutrients in AMD prevention remains unclear. Thus, future studies are required to examine the effects that nutrients have on AMD and to determine which factors are most strongly correlated with reducing the risk of AMD or preventing its progression. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. Shared Mechanisms in the Estimation of Self-Generated Actions and the Prediction of Other’s Actions by Humans

    PubMed Central

    Ganesh, Gowrishankar

    2017-01-01

    Abstract The question of how humans predict outcomes of observed motor actions by others is a fundamental problem in cognitive and social neuroscience. Previous theoretical studies have suggested that the brain uses parts of the forward model (used to estimate sensory outcomes of self-generated actions) to predict outcomes of observed actions. However, this hypothesis has remained controversial due to the lack of direct experimental evidence. To address this issue, we analyzed the behavior of darts experts in an understanding learning paradigm and utilized computational modeling to examine how outcome prediction of observed actions affected the participants’ ability to estimate their own actions. We recruited darts experts because sports experts are known to have an accurate outcome estimation of their own actions as well as prediction of actions observed in others. We first show that learning to predict the outcomes of observed dart throws deteriorates an expert’s abilities to both produce his own darts actions and estimate the outcome of his own throws (or self-estimation). Next, we introduce a state-space model to explain the trial-by-trial changes in the darts performance and self-estimation through our experiment. The model-based analysis reveals that the change in an expert’s self-estimation is explained only by considering a change in the individual’s forward model, showing that an improvement in an expert’s ability to predict outcomes of observed actions affects the individual’s forward model. These results suggest that parts of the same forward model are utilized in humans to both estimate outcomes of self-generated actions and predict outcomes of observed actions. PMID:29340300

  7. An integrated model for Jupiter's dynamo action and mean jet dynamics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gastine, Thomas; Wicht, Johannes; Duarte, Lucia; Heimpel, Moritz

    2014-05-01

    Data from various space crafts revealed that Jupiter's large scale interior magnetic field is very Earth-like. This is surprising since numerical simulations have demonstrated that, for example, the radial dependence of density, electrical conductivity and other physical properties, which is only mild in the iron cores of terrestrial planets but very drastic in gas planets, can significantly affect the interior dynamics. Jupiter's dynamo action is thought to take place in the deeper envelope where hydrogen, the main constituent of Jupiter's atmosphere, assumes metallic properties. The potential interaction between the observed zonal jets and the deeper dynamo region is an unresolved problem with important consequences for the magnetic field generation. Here we present the first numerical simulation that is based on recent interior models and covers 99% of the planetary radius (below the 1 bar level). A steep decease in the electrical conductivity over the outer 10% in radius allowed us to model both the deeper metallic region and the outer molecular layer in an integrated approach. The magnetic field very closely reproduces Jupiter's known large scale field. A strong equatorial zonal jet remains constrained to the molecular layer while higher latitude jets are suppressed by Lorentz forces. This suggests that Jupiter's higher latitude jets remain shallow and are driven by an additional effect not captured in our deep convection model. The dynamo action of the equatorial jet produces a band of magnetic field located around the equator. The unprecedented magnetic field resolution expected from the Juno mission will allow to resolve this feature allowing a direct detection of the equatorial jet dynamics at depth. Typical secular variation times scales amount to around 750 yr for the dipole contribution but decrease to about 5 yr at the expected Juno resolution (spherical harmonic degree 20). At a nominal mission duration of one year Juno should therefore be able to

  8. Liver diseases: A major, neglected global public health problem requiring urgent actions and large-scale screening.

    PubMed

    Marcellin, Patrick; Kutala, Blaise K

    2018-02-01

    CLDs represent an important, and certainly underestimated, global public health problem. CLDs are highly prevalent and silent, related to different, sometimes associated causes. The distribution of the causes of these diseases is slowly changing, and within the next decade, the proportion of virus-induced CLDs will certainly decrease significantly while the proportion of NASH will increase. There is an urgent need for effective global actions including education, prevention and early diagnosis to manage and treat CLDs, thus preventing cirrhosis-related morbidity and mortality. Our role is to increase the awareness of the public, healthcare professionals and public health authorities to encourage active policies for early management that will decrease the short- and long-term public health burden of these diseases. Because necroinflammation is the key mechanism in the progression of CLDs, it should be detected early. Thus, large-scale screening for CLDs is needed. ALT levels are an easy and inexpensive marker of liver necroinflammation and could be the first-line tool in this process. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  9. Where do those remains come from?

    PubMed

    Nociarová, Dominika; Adserias, M Jose; Malgosa, Assumpció; Galtés, Ignasi

    2014-12-01

    Part of the study of skeletal remains or corpses in advance decay located in the field involves determining their origin. They may be the result of criminal activity, accident, unearthed because of erosion, or they may also have originated from a cemetery. The discovery site, condition of the remains, and the associated artifacts, are factors that could be helpful for the forensic anthropologist to identify the origin of the remains. In order to contribute to this recognition, an analysis was made of the exhumations of 168 unclaimed human remains from the cemetery of Terrassa (Catalonia, Spain). This investigation presents a description of artifacts and conditions of remains that could indicate that the human remains may have originated from a cemetery. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Vascular Function, Insulin Action and Exercise: An Intricate Interplay

    PubMed Central

    Zheng, Chao; Liu, Zhenqi

    2015-01-01

    Insulin enhances the compliance of conduit arteries, relaxes resistance arterioles to increase tissue blood flow and dilates precapillary arterioles to expand muscle microvascular blood volume. These actions are impaired in the insulin resistant states. Exercise ameliorates endothelial dysfunction and improves insulin responses in insulin resistant patients, but the precise underlying mechanisms remain unclear. The microvasculature critically regulates insulin action in muscle by modulating insulin delivery to the capillaries nurturing the myocytes and trans-endothelial insulin transport. Recent data suggest that exercise may exert its insulin-sensitizing effect via recruiting muscle microvasculature to increase insulin delivery to and action in muscle. The current review focuses on how the interplay among exercise, insulin action and the vasculature contributes to exercise-mediated insulin sensitization in muscle. PMID:25735473

  11. The pharmacological actions of murexine (urocanylcholine)

    PubMed Central

    Erspamer, V.; Glässer, A.

    1957-01-01

    Murexine or urocanylcholine is a naturally occurring choline ester of urocanic acid which was found in very large amounts in the hypobranchial body of Murex trunculus and other prosobranchiate molluscs. In vertebrates and invertebrates, it was found to possess marked neuromuscular blocking and nicotinic actions, but was almost devoid of muscarinic effects. The blocking action of murexine was considered, on the basis of experimental and clinical evidence, to be of the “depolarizing” type. It was weaker than, but qualitatively very similar to, that produced by suxamethonium. The nicotinic action of murexine was stronger than that of suxamethonium in both experimental animals and human beings. ImagesFIG. 7 PMID:13446370

  12. Antidromic propagation of action potentials in branched axons: implications for the mechanisms of action of deep brain stimulation.

    PubMed

    Grill, Warren M; Cantrell, Meredith B; Robertson, Matthew S

    2008-02-01

    Electrical stimulation of the central nervous system creates both orthodromically propagating action potentials, by stimulation of local cells and passing axons, and antidromically propagating action potentials, by stimulation of presynaptic axons and terminals. Our aim was to understand how antidromic action potentials navigate through complex arborizations, such as those of thalamic and basal ganglia afferents-sites of electrical activation during deep brain stimulation. We developed computational models to study the propagation of antidromic action potentials past the bifurcation in branched axons. In both unmyelinated and myelinated branched axons, when the diameters of each axon branch remained under a specific threshold (set by the antidromic geometric ratio), antidromic propagation occurred robustly; action potentials traveled both antidromically into the primary segment as well as "re-orthodromically" into the terminal secondary segment. Propagation occurred across a broad range of stimulation frequencies, axon segment geometries, and concentrations of extracellular potassium, but was strongly dependent on the geometry of the node of Ranvier at the axonal bifurcation. Thus, antidromic activation of axon terminals can, through axon collaterals, lead to widespread activation or inhibition of targets remote from the site of stimulation. These effects should be included when interpreting the results of functional imaging or evoked potential studies on the mechanisms of action of DBS.

  13. Disciplinary and Legal Actions Against Dermatologists in Canada.

    PubMed

    Nasseri, Eiman

    2016-01-01

    Dermatologists face a litany of professional and legal risks in practice. To review cases of disciplinary and legal action against dermatologists in Canada. The Canadian Medical Protective Association, all 10 provincial medical colleges, and the Canadian Legal Information Institute were contacted to obtain data on legal or disciplinary action taken against dermatologists in their records. A literature review was performed regarding litigation against dermatologists in other countries. Six dermatologists in Canada faced disciplinary action in the last 5 to 30 years. Seven dermatologists and 5 other specialists in Canada faced lawsuits relating to dermatology in the last 1 to 144 years. Procedures and therapy are the most frequently sources of lawsuits against dermatologists both at home and abroad. Dermatologists need to remain vigilant to avoid disciplinary action and lawsuits from their increasing and varied interactions with patients. © The Author(s) 2015.

  14. "Ordinary men" or "evil monsters"? An action systems model of genocidal actions and characteristics of perpetrators.

    PubMed

    Hollows, Kerrilee; Fritzon, Katarina

    2012-10-01

    This study aimed to address the limitations of the existing genocide literature with the development of an empirically based classification system. Using Shye's (1985) action systems model, it was hypothesized that four types of perpetrators would exist and would be distinguishable by differences in the sources and target of individual criminal actions. Court transcripts from 80 perpetrators sentenced by the international courts were subject to content analysis and revealed 39 offense action variables, 17 perpetrator characteristic variables, and 6 perpetrator motive variables. A smallest space analysis using the Jaccard coefficient of association was conducted on the offense variables. The results supported the proposed framework, producing four distinct types of genocidal perpetrators. Correlational analyses were then conducted to examine the relationships between each of the perpetrator types and the remaining variables. The results of those correlations provided further support for the proposed framework. The implications of these findings are discussed. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved.

  15. Large thermo-erosional tunnel for a river in northeast Greenland

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Docherty, Catherine L.; Hannah, David M.; Riis, Tenna; Rosenhøj Leth, Simon; Milner, Alexander M.

    2017-12-01

    Thermo-erosional river bank undercutting is caused by the combined action of thermal and mechanical erosion of the permafrost by Arctic rivers whilst the overlying sediment withstands collapse temporarily. Here, we report the discovery of a large thermo-erosional tunnel that formed in the banks of a meltwater-fed stream in northeast Greenland in summer 2015. The tunnel was observed over eight days (14-22 July), during which period the tunnel remained open but bank-side slumping increased. Stream solute load increased immediately downstream and remained high 800 m from the tunnel. Whilst this field observation was opportunistic and information somewhat limited, our study provides a rare insight into an extreme event impacting permafrost, local geomorphology and stream habitat. With accelerated climate change in Arctic regions, increased permafrost degradation and warmer stream water temperature are predicted thereby enhancing potential for thermo-erosional niche development and associated stream bank slumping. This change could have significant implications for stream physicochemical habitat and, in turn, stream benthic communities, through changes in aquatic habitat conditions.

  16. The generic world-sheet action of irrational conformal field theory

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Clubok, K.; Halpern, M.B.

    1995-05-01

    We review developments in the world-sheet action formulation of the generic irrational conformal field theory, including the non-linear and the linearized forms of the action. These systems form a large class of spin-two gauged WZW actions which exhibit exotic gravitational couplings. Integrating out the gravitational field, we also speculate on a connection with sigma models.

  17. Toward a Problematic of Silence in Action Research

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mazzei, Lisa A.

    2007-01-01

    Action researchers often generate large amounts of textual material in the form of notes and transcripts, failing to account for those thoughts that we and our research participants silently voice. As such, action research that attempts to engage practitioners in self reflexivity and textual analysis is a fertile site for a consideration of how…

  18. Neuroendocrine androgen action is a key extraovarian mediator in the development of polycystic ovary syndrome.

    PubMed

    Caldwell, Aimee S L; Edwards, Melissa C; Desai, Reena; Jimenez, Mark; Gilchrist, Robert B; Handelsman, David J; Walters, Kirsty A

    2017-04-18

    Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a complex hormonal disorder characterized by reproductive, endocrine, and metabolic abnormalities. As the origins of PCOS remain unknown, mechanism-based treatments are not feasible and current management relies on treatment of symptoms. Hyperandrogenism is the most consistent PCOS characteristic; however, it is unclear whether androgen excess, which is treatable, is a cause or a consequence of PCOS. As androgens mediate their actions via the androgen receptor (AR), we combined a mouse model of dihydrotestosterone (DHT)-induced PCOS with global and cell-specific AR-resistant (ARKO) mice to investigate the locus of androgen actions that mediate the development of the PCOS phenotype. Global loss of the AR reveals that AR signaling is required for all DHT-induced features of PCOS. Neuron-specific AR signaling was required for the development of dysfunctional ovulation, classic polycystic ovaries, reduced large antral follicle health, and several metabolic traits including obesity and dyslipidemia. In addition, ovariectomized ARKO hosts with wild-type ovary transplants displayed normal estrous cycles and corpora lutea, despite DHT treatment, implying extraovarian and not intraovarian AR actions are key loci of androgen action in generating the PCOS phenotype. These findings provide strong evidence that neuroendocrine genomic AR signaling is an important extraovarian mediator in the development of PCOS traits. Thus, targeting AR-driven mechanisms that initiate PCOS is a promising strategy for the development of novel treatments for PCOS.

  19. New fossil remains of Homo naledi from the Lesedi Chamber, South Africa

    PubMed Central

    Hawks, John; Elliott, Marina; Schmid, Peter; Churchill, Steven E; de Ruiter, Darryl J; Roberts, Eric M; Hilbert-Wolf, Hannah; Garvin, Heather M; Williams, Scott A; Delezene, Lucas K; Feuerriegel, Elen M; Randolph-Quinney, Patrick; Kivell, Tracy L; Laird, Myra F; Tawane, Gaokgatlhe; DeSilva, Jeremy M; Bailey, Shara E; Brophy, Juliet K; Meyer, Marc R; Skinner, Matthew M; Tocheri, Matthew W; VanSickle, Caroline; Walker, Christopher S; Campbell, Timothy L; Kuhn, Brian; Kruger, Ashley; Tucker, Steven; Gurtov, Alia; Hlophe, Nompumelelo; Hunter, Rick; Morris, Hannah; Peixotto, Becca; Ramalepa, Maropeng; van Rooyen, Dirk; Tsikoane, Mathabela; Boshoff, Pedro; Dirks, Paul HGM; Berger, Lee R

    2017-01-01

    The Rising Star cave system has produced abundant fossil hominin remains within the Dinaledi Chamber, representing a minimum of 15 individuals attributed to Homo naledi. Further exploration led to the discovery of hominin material, now comprising 131 hominin specimens, within a second chamber, the Lesedi Chamber. The Lesedi Chamber is far separated from the Dinaledi Chamber within the Rising Star cave system, and represents a second depositional context for hominin remains. In each of three collection areas within the Lesedi Chamber, diagnostic skeletal material allows a clear attribution to H. naledi. Both adult and immature material is present. The hominin remains represent at least three individuals based upon duplication of elements, but more individuals are likely present based upon the spatial context. The most significant specimen is the near-complete cranium of a large individual, designated LES1, with an endocranial volume of approximately 610 ml and associated postcranial remains. The Lesedi Chamber skeletal sample extends our knowledge of the morphology and variation of H. naledi, and evidence of H. naledi from both recovery localities shows a consistent pattern of differentiation from other hominin species. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.24232.001 PMID:28483039

  20. New fossil remains of Homo naledi from the Lesedi Chamber, South Africa.

    PubMed

    Hawks, John; Elliott, Marina; Schmid, Peter; Churchill, Steven E; Ruiter, Darryl J de; Roberts, Eric M; Hilbert-Wolf, Hannah; Garvin, Heather M; Williams, Scott A; Delezene, Lucas K; Feuerriegel, Elen M; Randolph-Quinney, Patrick; Kivell, Tracy L; Laird, Myra F; Tawane, Gaokgatlhe; DeSilva, Jeremy M; Bailey, Shara E; Brophy, Juliet K; Meyer, Marc R; Skinner, Matthew M; Tocheri, Matthew W; VanSickle, Caroline; Walker, Christopher S; Campbell, Timothy L; Kuhn, Brian; Kruger, Ashley; Tucker, Steven; Gurtov, Alia; Hlophe, Nompumelelo; Hunter, Rick; Morris, Hannah; Peixotto, Becca; Ramalepa, Maropeng; Rooyen, Dirk van; Tsikoane, Mathabela; Boshoff, Pedro; Dirks, Paul Hgm; Berger, Lee R

    2017-05-09

    The Rising Star cave system has produced abundant fossil hominin remains within the Dinaledi Chamber, representing a minimum of 15 individuals attributed to Homo naledi . Further exploration led to the discovery of hominin material, now comprising 131 hominin specimens, within a second chamber, the Lesedi Chamber. The Lesedi Chamber is far separated from the Dinaledi Chamber within the Rising Star cave system, and represents a second depositional context for hominin remains. In each of three collection areas within the Lesedi Chamber, diagnostic skeletal material allows a clear attribution to H. naledi . Both adult and immature material is present. The hominin remains represent at least three individuals based upon duplication of elements, but more individuals are likely present based upon the spatial context. The most significant specimen is the near-complete cranium of a large individual, designated LES1, with an endocranial volume of approximately 610 ml and associated postcranial remains. The Lesedi Chamber skeletal sample extends our knowledge of the morphology and variation of H. naledi , and evidence of H. naledi from both recovery localities shows a consistent pattern of differentiation from other hominin species.

  1. The development of a mixing layer under the action of weak streamwise vortices

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Goldstein, Marvin E.; Mathew, Joseph

    1993-01-01

    The action of weak, streamwise vortices on a plane, incompressible, steady mixing layer is examined in the large Reynolds-number limit. The outer, inviscid region is bounded by a vortex sheet to which the viscous region is confined. It is shown that the local linear analysis becomes invalid at streamwise distances O(epsilon(sup -1)), where epsilon is much less than 1 is the cross flow amplitude, and a new nonlinear analysis is constructed for this region. Numerical solutions of the nonlinear problem show that the vortex sheet undergoes an O(1) change in position and that the solution is ultimately terminated by the appearance of a singularity. The corresponding viscous layer shows downstream thickening, but appears to remain well behaved up to the singular location.

  2. The development of a mixing layer under the action of weak streamwise vortices

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Goldstein, M. E.; Mathew, Joseph

    1993-01-01

    The action of weak, streamwise vortices on a plane, incompressible, steady mixing layer is examined in the large Reynolds number limit. The outer, inviscid region is bounded by a vortex sheet to which the viscous region is confined. It is shown that the local linear analysis becomes invalid at streamwise distances O(epsilon sup -1), where (epsilon much less than 1) is the crossflow amplitude, and a new nonlinear analysis is constructed for this region. Numerical solutions of the nonlinear problem show that the vortex sheet undergoes an O(1) change in position and that the solution is ultimately terminated by a breakdown in the numerical procedure. The corresponding viscous layer shows downstream thickening, but appears to remain well behaved up to the terminal location.

  3. Central Nervous System-Toxic Lidocaine Concentrations Unmask L-Type Ca²⁺ Current-Mediated Action Potentials in Rat Thalamocortical Neurons: An In Vitro Mechanism of Action Study.

    PubMed

    Putrenko, Igor; Ghavanini, Amer A; Meyer Schöniger, Katrin S; Schwarz, Stephan K W

    2016-05-01

    High systemic lidocaine concentrations exert well-known toxic effects on the central nervous system (CNS), including seizures, coma, and death. The underlying mechanisms are still largely obscure, and the actions of lidocaine on supraspinal neurons have received comparatively little study. We recently found that lidocaine at clinically neurotoxic concentrations increases excitability mediated by Na-independent, high-threshold (HT) action potential spikes in rat thalamocortical neurons. Our goal in this study was to characterize these spikes and test the hypothesis that they are generated by HT Ca currents, previously implicated in neurotoxicity. We also sought to identify and isolate the specific underlying subtype of Ca current. We investigated the actions of lidocaine in the CNS-toxic concentration range (100 μM-1 mM) on ventrobasal thalamocortical neurons in rat brain slices in vitro, using whole-cell patch-clamp recordings aided by differential interference contrast infrared videomicroscopy. Drugs were bath applied; action potentials were generated using current clamp protocols, and underlying currents were identified and isolated with ion channel blockers and electrolyte substitution. Lidocaine (100 μM-1 mM) abolished Na-dependent tonic firing in all neurons tested (n = 46). However, in 39 of 46 (85%) neurons, lidocaine unmasked evoked HT action potentials with lower amplitudes and rates of de-/repolarization compared with control. These HT action potentials remained during the application of tetrodotoxin (600 nM), were blocked by Cd (50 μM), and disappeared after superfusion with an extracellular solution deprived of Ca. These features implied that the unmasked potentials were generated by high-voltage-activated Ca channels and not by Na channels. Application of the L-type Ca channel blocker, nifedipine (5 μM), completely blocked the HT potentials, whereas the N-type Ca channel blocker, ω-conotoxin GVIA (1 μM), had little effect. At clinically CNS

  4. Probing links between action perception and action production in Parkinson's disease using Fitts' law.

    PubMed

    Sakurada, Takeshi; Knoblich, Guenther; Sebanz, Natalie; Muramatsu, Shin-Ichi; Hirai, Masahiro

    2018-03-01

    Information on how the subcortical brain encodes information required to execute actions or to evaluate others' actions remains scanty. To clarify this link, Fitts'-law tasks for perception and execution were tested in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). For the perception task, participants were shown apparent motion displays of a person moving their arm between two identical targets and reported whether they judged that the person could realistically move at the perceived speed without missing the targets. For the motor task, participants were required to touch the two targets as quickly and accurately as possible, similarly to the person observed in the perception task. In both tasks, the PD group exhibited, or imputed to others, significantly slower performances than those of the control group. However, in both groups, the relationships of perception and execution with task difficulty were exactly those predicted by Fitts' law. This suggests that despite dysfunction of the subcortical region, motor simulation abilities reflected mechanisms of compensation in the PD group. Moreover, we found that patients with PD had difficulty in switching their strategy for estimating others' actions when asked to do so. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Neurophysiology of action anticipation in athletes: A systematic review.

    PubMed

    Smith, Daniel M

    2016-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to provide a systematic review of action anticipation studies using functional neuroimaging or brain stimulation during a sport-specific anticipation task. A total of 15 studies from 2008 to 2014 were evaluated and are reported in four sections: expert-novice samples, action anticipation tasks, neuroimaging and stimulation techniques, and key findings. Investigators examined a wide range of action anticipation scenarios specific to eight different sports and utilized functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), electroencephalogram (EEG), and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). Expert-novice comparisons were commonly used to investigate differences in action anticipation performance and neurophysiology. Experts tended to outperform novices, and an extensive array of brain structures were reported to be involved differently for experts and novices during action anticipation. However, these neurophysiological findings were generally inconsistent across the studies reviewed. The discussion focuses on strengths and four key limitations. The conclusion posits remaining questions and recommendations for future research. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. Social interaction enhances motor resonance for observed human actions.

    PubMed

    Hogeveen, Jeremy; Obhi, Sukhvinder S

    2012-04-25

    Understanding the neural basis of social behavior has become an important goal for cognitive neuroscience and a key aim is to link neural processes observed in the laboratory to more naturalistic social behaviors in real-world contexts. Although it is accepted that mirror mechanisms contribute to the occurrence of motor resonance (MR) and are common to action execution, observation, and imitation, questions remain about mirror (and MR) involvement in real social behavior and in processing nonhuman actions. To determine whether social interaction primes the MR system, groups of participants engaged or did not engage in a social interaction before observing human or robotic actions. During observation, MR was assessed via motor-evoked potentials elicited with transcranial magnetic stimulation. Compared with participants who did not engage in a prior social interaction, participants who engaged in the social interaction showed a significant increase in MR for human actions. In contrast, social interaction did not increase MR for robot actions. Thus, naturalistic social interaction and laboratory action observation tasks appear to involve common MR mechanisms, and recent experience tunes the system to particular agent types.

  7. [Comprehension of emotions accompanied by everyday actions: comparison of biological-motion pictures with real-person pictures].

    PubMed

    Higashiyama, Atsuki; Imoto, Hisato; Tsuinashi, Seiichi

    2005-12-01

    Forty participants viewed and interpreted videotapes that were composed of displays representing different human actions (e.g., running and washing hands) and emotions (pleasant, neutral, and unpleasant). Half the videotapes were usual movies of real persons and the other videotapes were biological motions as produced by 22 light points on a human body in otherwise total darkness. In each display, an expert or a novice played a series of large or small body actions under each emotion. We found that (1) pleasant-unpleasant feeling was well discriminated in the real-person displays and in the biological motion display of large body actions, but it was less discriminated in the biological-motion displays of small body actions, (2) actions by experts were rated to be pleasant, and (3) actions were successfully identified for the real displays of large actions by experts, but they were poorly identified for the biological-motion displays of small body actions by novices. These results suggested that the observers correctly judged the emotion of players that was represented through suitable actions.

  8. Extending experiences of voluntary action by association

    PubMed Central

    Khalighinejad, Nima; Haggard, Patrick

    2016-01-01

    “Sense of agency” refers to the experience that links one’s voluntary actions to their external outcomes. It remains unclear whether this ubiquitous experience is hardwired, arising from specific signals within the brain’s motor systems, or rather depends on associative learning, through repeated cooccurrence of voluntary movements and their outcomes. To distinguish these two models, we asked participants to trigger a tone by a voluntary keypress action. The voluntary action was always associated with an involuntary movement of the other hand. We then tested whether the combination of the involuntary movement and tone alone might now suffice to produce a sense of agency, even when the voluntary action was omitted. Sense of agency was measured using an implicit marker based on time perception, namely a shift in the perceived time of the outcome toward the action that caused it. Across two experiments, repeatedly pairing an involuntary movement with a voluntary action induced key temporal features of agency, with the outcome now perceived as shifted toward the involuntary movement. This shift required involuntary movements to have been previously associated with voluntary actions. We show that some key aspects of agency may be transferred from voluntary actions to involuntary movements. An internal volitional signal is required for the primary acquisition of agency but, with repeated association, the involuntary movement in itself comes to produce some key temporal features of agency over the subsequent outcome. This finding may explain how humans can develop an enduring sense of agency in nonnatural cases, like brain–machine interfaces. PMID:27436902

  9. Evidence for sparse synergies in grasping actions.

    PubMed

    Prevete, Roberto; Donnarumma, Francesco; d'Avella, Andrea; Pezzulo, Giovanni

    2018-01-12

    Converging evidence shows that hand-actions are controlled at the level of synergies and not single muscles. One intriguing aspect of synergy-based action-representation is that it may be intrinsically sparse and the same synergies can be shared across several distinct types of hand-actions. Here, adopting a normative angle, we consider three hypotheses for hand-action optimal-control: sparse-combination hypothesis (SC) - sparsity in the mapping between synergies and actions - i.e., actions implemented using a sparse combination of synergies; sparse-elements hypothesis (SE) - sparsity in synergy representation - i.e., the mapping between degrees-of-freedom (DoF) and synergies is sparse; double-sparsity hypothesis (DS) - a novel view combining both SC and SE - i.e., both the mapping between DoF and synergies and between synergies and actions are sparse, each action implementing a sparse combination of synergies (as in SC), each using a limited set of DoFs (as in SE). We evaluate these hypotheses using hand kinematic data from six human subjects performing nine different types of reach-to-grasp actions. Our results support DS, suggesting that the best action representation is based on a relatively large set of synergies, each involving a reduced number of degrees-of-freedom, and that distinct sets of synergies may be involved in distinct tasks.

  10. Do Stimulus-Action Associations Contribute to Repetition Priming?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dennis, Ian; Perfect, Timothy J.

    2013-01-01

    Despite evidence that response learning makes a major contribution to repetition priming, the involvement of response representations at the level of motor actions remains uncertain. Levels of response representation were investigated in 4 experiments that used different tasks at priming and test. Priming for stimuli that required congruent…

  11. Understanding Participatory Action Research: A Qualitative Research Methodology Option

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    MacDonald, Cathy

    2012-01-01

    Participatory Action Research (PAR) is a qualitative research methodology option that requires further understanding and consideration. PAR is considered democratic, equitable, liberating, and life-enhancing qualitative inquiry that remains distinct from other qualitative methodologies (Kach & Kralik, 2006). Using PAR, qualitative features of an…

  12. Invariant recognition drives neural representations of action sequences

    PubMed Central

    Poggio, Tomaso

    2017-01-01

    Recognizing the actions of others from visual stimuli is a crucial aspect of human perception that allows individuals to respond to social cues. Humans are able to discriminate between similar actions despite transformations, like changes in viewpoint or actor, that substantially alter the visual appearance of a scene. This ability to generalize across complex transformations is a hallmark of human visual intelligence. Advances in understanding action recognition at the neural level have not always translated into precise accounts of the computational principles underlying what representations of action sequences are constructed by human visual cortex. Here we test the hypothesis that invariant action discrimination might fill this gap. Recently, the study of artificial systems for static object perception has produced models, Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs), that achieve human level performance in complex discriminative tasks. Within this class, architectures that better support invariant object recognition also produce image representations that better match those implied by human and primate neural data. However, whether these models produce representations of action sequences that support recognition across complex transformations and closely follow neural representations of actions remains unknown. Here we show that spatiotemporal CNNs accurately categorize video stimuli into action classes, and that deliberate model modifications that improve performance on an invariant action recognition task lead to data representations that better match human neural recordings. Our results support our hypothesis that performance on invariant discrimination dictates the neural representations of actions computed in the brain. These results broaden the scope of the invariant recognition framework for understanding visual intelligence from perception of inanimate objects and faces in static images to the study of human perception of action sequences. PMID:29253864

  13. Action Learning--An Experiential Tool for Solving Organizational Issues

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kinsey, Sharon B.

    2011-01-01

    Action Learning can be effectively used in both large and small businesses and organizations by employees, stakeholders, or volunteers through this "learning by doing" approach to evaluate an issue or issues of importance to the organization. First developed in the 1940s, Action Learning has increasingly been used as a method to explore questions…

  14. Oil and gas: Oilfield class actions

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    McArthur, J.B.

    1997-06-01

    The use of class actions is getting alot of attention in the oilfield. Plaintiffs have filed class actions challenging two of the most rooted industry practices, oil posted prices and deregulated natural gas affiliate deduction and charges. The classes will include tens or hundreds of thousands of plaintiffs and may transform two of the industry`s most settled practices. The emotions surrounding the class action risk obscuring the fact that it is an old and oft-used tool in oilfield litigation. The class action {open_quotes}provides a means by which, where a large group of persons are interested in a matter, one ormore » more may sue or be sued as representatives of the class without needing to join every member of the class.{close_quotes} The procedure avoids waste by combining scattered disputes, even if some injured might sue individually, and it enables plaintiffs who could not afford to sue to be represented anyway. The lawyers draw their fees from any recovery. Almost all oilpatch class actions are brought to resolve a {open_quotes}common question{close_quotes} under Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 23(b)(3) or state counterparts. The rule`s {open_quotes}opt-out{close_quotes} provisions give class actions a tremendous boost because members stay in unless they take steps to get out. This article discusses present and future class actions.« less

  15. A series of terpyridine containing flexible amino diethylacetate derivatives with large two-photon action cross-sections for effective mitochondrial imaging in living liver cancerous cells

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jia, Ran; Zhu, Yingying; Hu, Lei; Xiong, Qiru; Zhao, Meng; Zhang, Mingzhu; Tian, Xiaohe

    2018-01-01

    Small molecules possess large two-photon action cross sections (Φσ) are highly demanded for biological purpose. Herein, three novel terpyridine containing flexible amino diethylacetate organic small molecules (A1, A2 and A3) were rationally designed and their photophysical properties were investigated both experimentally and theoretically. The results revealed that the three chromophores possess large Φσ and remarkable Stokes' shift in high polar solvents, which are particularly benefit for further biological imaging application. One chromophore (A1) displayed an effective intracellular uptake against lung cancerous living cells A549. Colocalization studies suggested the internalized subcellular compartment was mitochondria. Consequently, chromophore A1 provides a promising platform to directly monitor mitochondria in living cells under two-photon confocal laser scanning microscopy.

  16. Remaining Sites Verification Package for the 100-F-50 Stormwater Runoff Culvert, Waste Site Reclassification Form 2007-001

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    J. M. Capron

    2008-04-15

    The 100-F-50 waste site, part of the 100-FR-2 Operable Unit, is a steel stormwater runoff culvert that runs between two railroad grades in the south-central portion of the 100-F Area. The culvert exiting the west side of the railroad grade is mostly encased in concrete and surrounded by a concrete stormwater collection depression partially filled with soil and vegetation. The drain pipe exiting the east side of the railroad grade embankment is partially filled with soil and rocks. The 100-F-50 stormwater diversion culvert confirmatory sampling results support a reclassification of this site to no action. The current site conditions achievemore » the remedial action objectives and corresponding remedial action goals established in the Remaining Sites ROD. The results of confirmatory sampling show that residual contaminant concentrations do not preclude any future uses and allow for unrestricted use of shallow zone soils. The results also demonstrate that residual contaminant concentrations are protective of groundwater and the Columbia River.« less

  17. {13C }/{12C } ratios of pleistocene mummified remains from beringia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bombin, Miguel; Muehlenbachs, Karlis

    1985-01-01

    During the Quaternary glacial episodes, when sea level was considerably lower, Asia and North America were linked by large extensions of circumarctic land (Beringia), which remained unglaciated. This land mass served not only as a biogeographical bridge for plants, animals, and humans, but also supported a biome very different from present tundra or boreal coniferous forests, which was dominated by steppes and a rich mammalian megafauna. Carbon stable isotope ratios of Beringian late Pleistocene mummified remains of bison, equids, mammoth, caribou, musk-ox, moose, woolly rhino, and other undetermined species, found preserved in permafrost, indicate that these megaherbivores fed exclusively on C 3 plants, and that C 4 grasses were not differentially ingested by bison, as previously suggested. Paleoclimatic constraints probably prevented the formation of a warm-season (C 4) guild during the later part of the growing season in the steppes of Beringia during the last glaciation.

  18. Neuroendocrine androgen action is a key extraovarian mediator in the development of polycystic ovary syndrome

    PubMed Central

    Caldwell, Aimee S. L.; Edwards, Melissa C.; Desai, Reena; Jimenez, Mark; Gilchrist, Robert B.; Walters, Kirsty A.

    2017-01-01

    Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a complex hormonal disorder characterized by reproductive, endocrine, and metabolic abnormalities. As the origins of PCOS remain unknown, mechanism-based treatments are not feasible and current management relies on treatment of symptoms. Hyperandrogenism is the most consistent PCOS characteristic; however, it is unclear whether androgen excess, which is treatable, is a cause or a consequence of PCOS. As androgens mediate their actions via the androgen receptor (AR), we combined a mouse model of dihydrotestosterone (DHT)-induced PCOS with global and cell-specific AR-resistant (ARKO) mice to investigate the locus of androgen actions that mediate the development of the PCOS phenotype. Global loss of the AR reveals that AR signaling is required for all DHT-induced features of PCOS. Neuron-specific AR signaling was required for the development of dysfunctional ovulation, classic polycystic ovaries, reduced large antral follicle health, and several metabolic traits including obesity and dyslipidemia. In addition, ovariectomized ARKO hosts with wild-type ovary transplants displayed normal estrous cycles and corpora lutea, despite DHT treatment, implying extraovarian and not intraovarian AR actions are key loci of androgen action in generating the PCOS phenotype. These findings provide strong evidence that neuroendocrine genomic AR signaling is an important extraovarian mediator in the development of PCOS traits. Thus, targeting AR-driven mechanisms that initiate PCOS is a promising strategy for the development of novel treatments for PCOS. PMID:28320971

  19. The Coordination Dynamics of Observational Learning: Relative Motion Direction and Relative Phase as Informational Content Linking Action-Perception to Action-Production.

    PubMed

    Buchanan, John J

    2016-01-01

    The primary goal of this chapter is to merge together the visual perception perspective of observational learning and the coordination dynamics theory of pattern formation in perception and action. Emphasis is placed on identifying movement features that constrain and inform action-perception and action-production processes. Two sources of visual information are examined, relative motion direction and relative phase. The visual perception perspective states that the topological features of relative motion between limbs and joints remains invariant across an actor's motion and therefore are available for pickup by an observer. Relative phase has been put forth as an informational variable that links perception to action within the coordination dynamics theory. A primary assumption of the coordination dynamics approach is that environmental information is meaningful only in terms of the behavior it modifies. Across a series of single limb tasks and bimanual tasks it is shown that the relative motion and relative phase between limbs and joints is picked up through visual processes and supports observational learning of motor skills. Moreover, internal estimations of motor skill proficiency and competency are linked to the informational content found in relative motion and relative phase. Thus, the chapter links action to perception and vice versa and also links cognitive evaluations to the coordination dynamics that support action-perception and action-production processes.

  20. Pavement Remaining Service Interval [Tech Brief

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2013-05-01

    This document is a technical summary of the Federal Highway Administration reports, "Reformulated Pavement Remaining Service Life Framework" (FHWA-HRT-13-038) and "Pavement Remaining Service Interval Implementation Guidelines" (FHWA-HRT-13-050). At t...

  1. Reference in Action: Links between Pointing and Language

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cooperrider, Kensy Andrew

    2011-01-01

    When referring to things in the world, speakers produce utterances that are composites of speech and action. Pointing gestures are a pervasive part of such composite utterances, but many questions remain about exactly how pointing is integrated with speech. In this dissertation I present three strands of research that investigate relations of…

  2. Remaining Sites Verification Package for the 100-F-46, 119-F Stack Sampling French Drain, Waste Site Reclassification Form 2008-021

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    J. M. Capron

    2008-08-08

    The 100-F-46 french drain consisted of a 1.5 to 3 m long, vertically buried, gravel-filled pipe that was approximately 1 m in diameter. Also included in this waste site was a 5 cm cast-iron pipeline that drained condensate from the 119-F Stack Sampling Building into the 100-F-46 french drain. In accordance with this evaluation, the confirmatory sampling results support a reclassification of this site to No Action. The current site conditions achieve the remedial action objectives and the corresponding remedial action goals established in the Remaining Sites ROD. The results of confirmatory sampling show that residual contaminant concentrations do notmore » preclude any future uses and allow for unrestricted use of shallow zone soils. The results also demonstrate that residual contaminant concentrations are protective of groundwater and the Columbia River.« less

  3. Progesterone Action in Endometrial Cancer, Endometriosis, Uterine Fibroids, and Breast Cancer

    PubMed Central

    Kim, J. Julie; Kurita, Takeshi

    2013-01-01

    Progesterone receptor (PR) mediates the actions of the ovarian steroid progesterone, which together with estradiol regulates gonadotropin secretion, prepares the endometrium for implantation, maintains pregnancy, and differentiates breast tissue. Separation of estrogen and progesterone actions in hormone-responsive tissues remains a challenge. Pathologies of the uterus and breast, including endometrial cancer, endometriosis, uterine fibroids, and breast cancer, are highly associated with estrogen, considered to be the mitogenic factor. Emerging evidence supports distinct roles of progesterone and its influence on the pathogenesis of these diseases. Progesterone antagonizes estrogen-driven growth in the endometrium, and insufficient progesterone action strikingly increases the risk of endometrial cancer. In endometriosis, eutopic and ectopic tissues do not respond sufficiently to progesterone and are considered to be progesterone-resistant, which contributes to proliferation and survival. In uterine fibroids, progesterone promotes growth by increasing proliferation, cellular hypertrophy, and deposition of extracellular matrix. In normal mammary tissue and breast cancer, progesterone is pro-proliferative and carcinogenic. A key difference between these tissues that could explain the diverse effects of progesterone is the paracrine interactions of PR-expressing stroma and epithelium. Normal endometrium is a mucosa containing large quantities of distinct stromal cells with abundant PR, which influences epithelial cell proliferation and differentiation and protects against carcinogenic transformation. In contrast, the primary target cells of progesterone in the breast and fibroids are the mammary epithelial cells and the leiomyoma cells, which lack specifically organized stromal components with significant PR expression. This review provides a unifying perspective for the diverse effects of progesterone across human tissues and diseases. PMID:23303565

  4. Eccentric action of muscles: physiology, injury, and adaptation.

    PubMed

    Stauber, W T

    1989-01-01

    Eccentric muscle action deserves special consideration from the standpoint of physiology, adaptation, and training. The function of muscles as shock absorbers or springs seems to be quite different from other actions described in classical descriptions of muscle biology. This uniqueness certainly requires a more careful understanding of muscle as a unit consisting of myofibers and fascia which may work together or in opposition in response to chronic or acute stimuli. In addition, the stretch-shortening cycle is a special case of its own. However, from the standpoint of maximum human performance, there remain tremendous gaps in our understanding of the role of eccentric muscle action and its use in athletic training. How much is good? Does microfibrosis represent a problem of overtraining and eventually limit performance, or is it advantageous for success? Is the body-builder really developing muscle or connective tissue separating muscles? How does eccentric muscle action sometimes produce pain but not always? It would appear that much work is needed before a complete understanding of eccentric muscle action is obtained. This brief review has been designed to encourage research, argument, and discussion.

  5. Ecological fire use for ecological fire management: Managing large wildfires by design

    Treesearch

    Timothy Ingalsbee

    2015-01-01

    Past fire exclusion policies and fire suppression actions have led to a historic "fire deficit" on public wildlands. These sociocultural actions have led to unprecedented environmental changes that have created conditions conducive to more frequent large-scale wildfires. Politicians, the newsmedia, and agency officials portray large wildland fires as...

  6. Freeze for action: neurobiological mechanisms in animal and human freezing

    PubMed Central

    2017-01-01

    Upon increasing levels of threat, animals activate qualitatively different defensive modes, including freezing and active fight-or-flight reactions. Whereas freezing is a form of behavioural inhibition accompanied by parasympathetically dominated heart rate deceleration, fight-or-flight reactions are associated with sympathetically driven heart rate acceleration. Despite the potential relevance of freezing for human stress-coping, its phenomenology and neurobiological underpinnings remain largely unexplored in humans. Studies in rodents have shown that freezing depends on amygdala projections to the brainstem (periaqueductal grey). Recent neuroimaging studies in humans have indicated that similar brain regions may be involved in human freezing. In addition, flexibly shifting between freezing and active defensive modes is critical for adequate stress-coping and relies on fronto-amygdala connections. This review paper presents a model detailing these neural mechanisms involved in freezing and the shift to fight-or-flight action. Freezing is not a passive state but rather a parasympathetic brake on the motor system, relevant to perception and action preparation. Study of these defensive responses in humans may advance insights into human stress-related psychopathologies characterized by rigidity in behavioural stress reactions. The paper therefore concludes with a research agenda to stimulate translational animal–human research in this emerging field of human defensive stress responses. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Movement suppression: brain mechanisms for stopping and stillness’. PMID:28242739

  7. A Neural Basis of Facial Action Recognition in Humans

    PubMed Central

    Srinivasan, Ramprakash; Golomb, Julie D.

    2016-01-01

    By combining different facial muscle actions, called action units, humans can produce an extraordinarily large number of facial expressions. Computational models and studies in cognitive science and social psychology have long hypothesized that the brain needs to visually interpret these action units to understand other people's actions and intentions. Surprisingly, no studies have identified the neural basis of the visual recognition of these action units. Here, using functional magnetic resonance imaging and an innovative machine learning analysis approach, we identify a consistent and differential coding of action units in the brain. Crucially, in a brain region thought to be responsible for the processing of changeable aspects of the face, multivoxel pattern analysis could decode the presence of specific action units in an image. This coding was found to be consistent across people, facilitating the estimation of the perceived action units on participants not used to train the multivoxel decoder. Furthermore, this coding of action units was identified when participants attended to the emotion category of the facial expression, suggesting an interaction between the visual analysis of action units and emotion categorization as predicted by the computational models mentioned above. These results provide the first evidence for a representation of action units in the brain and suggest a mechanism for the analysis of large numbers of facial actions and a loss of this capacity in psychopathologies. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Computational models and studies in cognitive and social psychology propound that visual recognition of facial expressions requires an intermediate step to identify visible facial changes caused by the movement of specific facial muscles. Because facial expressions are indeed created by moving one's facial muscles, it is logical to assume that our visual system solves this inverse problem. Here, using an innovative machine learning method and

  8. Distinctive Capillary Action by Micro-channels in Bone-like Templates can Enhance Recruitment of Cells for Restoration of Large Bony Defect.

    PubMed

    Oh, Daniel S; Koch, Alia; Eisig, Sidney; Kim, Sahng Gyoon; Kim, Yoon Hyuk; Kim, Do-Gyoon; Shim, Jae Hyuck

    2015-09-11

    Without an active, thriving cell population that is well-distributed and stably anchored to the inserted template, exceptional bone regeneration does not occur. With conventional templates, the absence of internal micro-channels results in the lack of cell infiltration, distribution, and inhabitance deep inside the templates. Hence, a highly porous and uniformly interconnected trabecular-bone-like template with micro-channels (biogenic microenvironment template; BMT) has been developed to address these obstacles. The novel BMT was created by innovative concepts (capillary action) and fabricated with a sponge-template coating technique. The BMT consists of several structural components: inter-connected primary-pores (300-400 µm) that mimic pores in trabecular bone, micro-channels (25-70 µm) within each trabecula, and nanopores (100-400 nm) on the surface to allow cells to anchor. Moreover, the BMT has been documented by mechanical test study to have similar mechanical strength properties to those of human trabecular bone (~3.8 MPa)12. The BMT exhibited high absorption, retention, and habitation of cells throughout the bridge-shaped (Π) templates (3 cm height and 4 cm length). The cells that were initially seeded into one end of the templates immediately mobilized to the other end (10 cm distance) by capillary action of the BMT on the cell media. After 4 hr, the cells homogenously occupied the entire BMT and exhibited normal cellular behavior. The capillary action accounted for the infiltration of the cells suspended in the media and the distribution (active migration) throughout the BMT. Having observed these capabilities of the BMT, we project that BMTs will absorb bone marrow cells, growth factors, and nutrients from the periphery under physiological conditions. The BMT may resolve current limitations via rapid infiltration, homogenous distribution and inhabitance of cells in large, volumetric templates to repair massive skeletal defects.

  9. [PALEOPATHOLOGY OF HUMAN REMAINS].

    PubMed

    Minozzi, Simona; Fornaciari, Gino

    2015-01-01

    Many diseases induce alterations in the human skeleton, leaving traces of their presence in ancient remains. Paleopathological examination of human remains not only allows the study of the history and evolution of the disease, but also the reconstruction of health conditions in the past populations. This paper describes the most interesting diseases observed in skeletal samples from the Roman Imperial Age necropoles found in urban and suburban areas of Rome during archaeological excavations in the last decades. The diseases observed were grouped into the following categories: articular diseases, traumas, infections, metabolic or nutritional diseases, congenital diseases and tumours, and some examples are reported for each group. Although extensive epidemiological investigation in ancient skeletal records is impossible, the palaeopathological study allowed to highlight the spread of numerous illnesses, many of which can be related to the life and health conditions of the Roman population.

  10. Responsible Action Research for the Pursuit of Justice

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Feldman, Allan; Bennett, Kory; Vernaza-Hernández, Vanessa

    2015-01-01

    The pursuit of justice has concerned human beings for centuries and, despite its importance, often remains outside the boundaries of our educational systems. This article reports on a study of an action research seminar for a group of teacher leaders in a position to instigate positive change within their educational context, and make their…

  11. The Affirmative Action Myth. Policy Analysis. No. 540

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gryphon, Marie

    2005-01-01

    In the wake of the Supreme Court's 2003 decision upholding admissions preferences, affirmative action remains a deeply divisive issue. This tendency to frame the argument over preferences in terms of fundamental values is common to both sides of the debate. Because the nation's history with respect to race is so painful, the resulting argument is…

  12. Barriers to women engaging in collective action to overcome sexism.

    PubMed

    Radke, Helena R M; Hornsey, Matthew J; Barlow, Fiona Kate

    2016-12-01

    Over centuries women have fought hard to obtain increasing gender equality, but despite these successes absolute equality remains an elusive goal. Theoretically, women's numerical strength makes them well-placed to take effective collective action, and millions of women engage in feminist collective action every day. In this article, however, we argue that women also face barriers to engaging in feminist collective action; barriers that are associated with the social construction and experience of what it means to be a woman. Our review synthesizes sexism research under a contemporary collective action framework to clarify our current understanding of the literature and to offer novel theoretical explanations for why women might be discouraged from engaging in feminist collective action. Using the antecedents of collective action identified by van Zomeren, Postmes, and Spears' (2008) meta-analysis, we critically review the sexism literature to argue that women face challenges when it comes to (a) identifying with other women and feminists, (b) perceiving sexism and expressing group-based anger, and (c) recognizing the efficacy of collective action. We then outline a research agenda with a view to investigating ways of overcoming these barriers. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

  13. Comparison of decomposition rates between autopsied and non-autopsied human remains.

    PubMed

    Bates, Lennon N; Wescott, Daniel J

    2016-04-01

    Penetrating trauma has been cited as a significant factor in the rate of decomposition. Therefore, penetrating trauma may have an effect on estimations of time-since-death in medicolegal investigations and on research examining decomposition rates and processes when autopsied human bodies are used. The goal of this study was to determine if there are differences in the rate of decomposition between autopsied and non-autopsied human remains in the same environment. The purpose is to shed light on how large incisions, such as those from a thorocoabdominal autopsy, effect time-since-death estimations and research on the rate of decomposition that use both autopsied and non-autopsied human remains. In this study, 59 non-autopsied and 24 autopsied bodies were studied. The number of accumulated degree days required to reach each decomposition stage was then compared between autopsied and non-autopsied remains. Additionally, both types of bodies were examined for seasonal differences in decomposition rates. As temperature affects the rate of decomposition, this study also compared the internal body temperatures of autopsied and non-autopsied remains to see if differences between the two may be leading to differential decomposition. For this portion of this study, eight non-autopsied and five autopsied bodies were investigated. Internal temperature was collected once a day for two weeks. The results showed that differences in the decomposition rate between autopsied and non-autopsied remains was not statistically significant, though the average ADD needed to reach each stage of decomposition was slightly lower for autopsied bodies than non-autopsied bodies. There was also no significant difference between autopsied and non-autopsied bodies in the rate of decomposition by season or in internal temperature. Therefore, this study suggests that it is unnecessary to separate autopsied and non-autopsied remains when studying gross stages of human decomposition in Central Texas

  14. Action Learning: Avoiding Conflict or Enabling Action

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Corley, Aileen; Thorne, Ann

    2006-01-01

    Action learning is based on the premise that action and learning are inextricably entwined and it is this potential, to enable action, which has contributed to the growth of action learning within education and management development programmes. However has this growth in action learning lead to an evolution or a dilution of Revan's classical…

  15. Large wood in the Snowy River estuary, Australia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hinwood, Jon B.; McLean, Errol J.

    2017-02-01

    In this paper we report on 8 years of data collection and interpretation of large wood in the Snowy River estuary in southeastern Australia, providing quantitative data on the amount, sources, transport, decay, and geomorphic actions. No prior census data for an estuary is known to the authors despite their environmental and economic importance and the significant differences between a fluvial channel and an estuarine channel. Southeastern Australian estuaries contain a significant quantity of large wood that is derived from many sources, including river flood flows, local bank erosion, and anthropogenic sources. Wind and tide are shown to be as important as river flow in transporting and stranding large wood. Tidal action facilitates trapping of large wood on intertidal bars and shoals; but channels are wider and generally deeper, so log jams are less likely than in rivers. Estuarine large wood contributes to localised scour and accretion and hence to the modification of estuarine habitat, but in the study area it did not have large-scale impacts on the hydraulic gradients nor the geomorphology.

  16. Taphonomic Patterning of Cemetery Remains Received at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, Boston, Massachusetts.

    PubMed

    Pokines, James T; Zinni, Debra Prince; Crowley, Kate

    2016-01-01

    A sample of 49 cases of cemetery remains received at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, Massachusetts (OCME-MA), in Boston was compared with published taphonomic profiles of cemetery remains. The present sample is composed of a cross section of typical cases in this region that ultimately are derived from modern to historical coffin burials and get turned over to or seized by law enforcement. The present sample was composed of a large portion of isolated remains, and most were completely skeletonized. The most prevalent taphonomic characteristics included uniform staining (77.6%), coffin wear (46.9%), and cortical Exfoliation (49.0%). Other taphonomic changes occurring due to later surface exposure of cemetery remains included subaerial weathering, animal gnawing, algae formation, and excavation marks. A case of one set of skeletal remains associated with coffin artifacts and cemetery offerings that was recovered from transported cemetery fill is also presented. © 2015 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

  17. Peripheral metabolic actions of leptin.

    PubMed

    Muoio, Deborah M; Lynis Dohm, G

    2002-12-01

    The adipocyte-derived hormone, leptin, regulates food intake and systemic fuel metabolism; ob /ob mice, which lack functional leptin, exhibit an obesity syndrome that is similar to morbid obesity in humans. Leptin receptors are expressed most abundantly in the brain but are also present in several peripheral tissues. The role of leptin in controlling energy homeostasis has thus far focused on brain receptors and neuroendocrine pathways that regulate feeding behaviour and sympathetic nervous system activity. This chapter focuses on mounting evidence that leptin's effects on energy balance are also mediated by direct peripheral actions on key metabolic organs such as skeletal muscle, liver, pancreas and adipose tissue. Strong evidence indicates that peripheral leptin receptors regulate cellular lipid balance, favouring beta-oxidation over triacylglycerol storage. There are data to indicate that peripheral leptin also modulates glucose metabolism and insulin action; however, its precise role in controlling gluco-regulatory pathways remains uncertain and requires further investigation.

  18. Neuroticism and Attitudes Toward Action in 19 Countries

    PubMed Central

    Ireland, Molly E.; Hepler, Justin; Li, Hong; Albarracín, Dolores

    2018-01-01

    Although individuals scoring high on Neuroticism tend to avoid taking action when faced with challenges, Neuroticism is also characterized by impulsivity. To explore cognitive biases related to this costly behavior pattern, we tested whether individuals who rated themselves as higher in Neuroticism would evaluate the general concepts of action and inaction as, respectively, more negative and positive. We further investigated whether anxiety and depression would mediate and individualism-collectivism would moderate these relations in a large international sample. Participants (N = 3,827 college students; 69% female) from 19 countries completed surveys measuring Neuroticism, attitudes toward action and inaction, depression, anxiety, and individualism-collectivism. Hierarchical linear models tested the above predictions. Neuroticism negatively correlated with attitudes toward action and positively correlated with attitudes toward inaction. Furthermore, anxiety was primarily responsible for emotionally unstable individuals’ less positive attitudes toward action, and individuals who endorsed more collectivistic than individualistic beliefs showed a stronger negative association between Neuroticism and attitudes toward action. Researchers and practitioners interested in understanding and remediating the negative consequences of Neuroticism should pay greater attention to attitudes toward action and inaction, particularly focusing on their links with anxiety and individualism-collectivism. PMID:24684688

  19. Neuroticism and attitudes toward action in 19 countries.

    PubMed

    Ireland, Molly E; Hepler, Justin; Li, Hong; Albarracín, Dolores

    2015-06-01

    Although individuals scoring high on Neuroticism tend to avoid taking action when faced with challenges, Neuroticism is also characterized by impulsivity. To explore cognitive biases related to this costly behavior pattern, we tested whether individuals who rated themselves as higher in Neuroticism would evaluate the general concepts of action and inaction as, respectively, more negative and positive. We further investigated whether anxiety and depression would mediate and individualism-collectivism would moderate these relations in a large international sample. Participants (N = 3,827 college students; 69% female) from 19 countries completed surveys measuring Neuroticism, attitudes toward action and inaction, depression, anxiety, and individualism-collectivism. Hierarchical linear models tested the above predictions. Neuroticism negatively correlated with attitudes toward action and positively correlated with attitudes toward inaction. Furthermore, anxiety was primarily responsible for emotionally unstable individuals' less positive attitudes toward action, and individuals who endorsed more collectivistic than individualistic beliefs showed a stronger negative association between Neuroticism and attitudes toward action. Researchers and practitioners interested in understanding and remediating the negative consequences of Neuroticism should pay greater attention to attitudes toward action and inaction, particularly focusing on their links with anxiety and individualism-collectivism. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  20. Action perception in individuals with congenital blindness or deafness: how does the loss of a sensory modality from birth affect perception-induced motor facilitation?

    PubMed

    Alaerts, Kaat; Swinnen, Stephan P; Wenderoth, Nicole

    2011-05-01

    Seeing or hearing manual actions activates the mirror neuron system, that is, specialized neurons within motor areas which fire when an action is performed but also when it is passively perceived. Using TMS, it was shown that motor cortex of typically developed subjects becomes facilitated not only from seeing others' actions, but also from merely hearing action-related sounds. In the present study, TMS was used for the first time to explore the "auditory" and "visual" responsiveness of motor cortex in individuals with congenital blindness or deafness. TMS was applied over left primary motor cortex (M1) to measure cortico-motor facilitation while subjects passively perceived manual actions (either visually or aurally). Although largely unexpected, congenitally blind or deaf subjects displayed substantially lower resonant motor facilitation upon action perception compared to seeing/hearing control subjects. Moreover, muscle-specific changes in cortico-motor excitability within M1 appeared to be absent in individuals with profound blindness or deafness. Overall, these findings strongly argue against the hypothesis that an increased reliance on the remaining sensory modality in blind or deaf subjects is accompanied by an increased responsiveness of the "auditory" or "visual" perceptual-motor "mirror" system, respectively. Moreover, the apparent lack of resonant motor facilitation for the blind and deaf subjects may challenge the hypothesis of a unitary mirror system underlying human action recognition and may suggest that action perception in blind and deaf subjects engages a mode of action processing that is different from the human action recognition system recruited in typically developed subjects.

  1. The busy social brain: evidence for automaticity and control in the neural systems supporting social cognition and action understanding.

    PubMed

    Spunt, Robert P; Lieberman, Matthew D

    2013-01-01

    Much social-cognitive processing is believed to occur automatically; however, the relative automaticity of the brain systems underlying social cognition remains largely undetermined. We used functional MRI to test for automaticity in the functioning of two brain systems that research has indicated are important for understanding other people's behavior: the mirror neuron system and the mentalizing system. Participants remembered either easy phone numbers (low cognitive load) or difficult phone numbers (high cognitive load) while observing actions after adopting one of four comprehension goals. For all four goals, mirror neuron system activation showed relatively little evidence of modulation by load; in contrast, the association of mentalizing system activation with the goal of inferring the actor's mental state was extinguished by increased cognitive load. These results support a dual-process model of the brain systems underlying action understanding and social cognition; the mirror neuron system supports automatic behavior identification, and the mentalizing system supports controlled social causal attribution.

  2. Facilitating dynamo action via control of large-scale turbulence.

    PubMed

    Limone, A; Hatch, D R; Forest, C B; Jenko, F

    2012-12-01

    The magnetohydrodynamic dynamo effect is considered to be the major cause of magnetic field generation in geo- and astrophysical systems. Recent experimental and numerical results show that turbulence constitutes an obstacle to dynamos; yet its role in this context is not totally clear. Via numerical simulations, we identify large-scale turbulent vortices with a detrimental effect on the amplification of the magnetic field in a geometry of experimental interest and propose a strategy for facilitating the dynamo instability by manipulating these detrimental "hidden" dynamics.

  3. Why have no new herbicide modes of action appeared in recent years?

    PubMed

    Duke, Stephen O

    2012-04-01

    Herbicides with new modes of action are badly needed to manage the evolution of resistance of weeds to existing herbicides. Yet no major new mode of action has been introduced to the market place for about 20 years. There are probably several reasons for this. New potential products may have remained dormant owing to concerns that glyphosate-resistant (GR) crops have reduced the market for a new herbicide. The capture of a large fraction of the herbicide market by glyphosate with GR crops led to significantly diminished herbicide discovery efforts. Some of the reduced herbicide discovery research was also due to company consolidations and the availability of more generic herbicides. Another problem might be that the best herbicide molecular target sites may have already been discovered. However, target sites that are not utilized, for which there are inhibitors that are highly effective at killing plants, suggests that this is not true. Results of modern methods of target site discovery (e.g. gene knockout methods) are mostly not public, but there is no evidence of good herbicides with new target sites coming from these approaches. In summary, there are several reasons for a long dry period for new herbicide target sites; however, the relative magnitude of each is unclear. The economic stimulus to the herbicide industry caused by the evolution of herbicide-resistant weeds, especially GR weeds, may result in one or more new modes of action becoming available in the not too distant future. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry.

  4. Greater involvement of action simulation mechanisms in emotional vs cognitive empathy

    PubMed Central

    Oliver, Lindsay D; Vieira, Joana B; Neufeld, Richard W J; Dziobek, Isabel; Mitchell, Derek G V

    2018-01-01

    Abstract Empathy is crucial for successful interpersonal interactions, and it is impaired in many psychiatric and neurological disorders. Action-perception matching, or action simulation mechanisms, has been suggested to facilitate empathy by supporting the simulation of perceived experience in others. However, this remains unclear, and the involvement of the action simulation circuit in cognitive empathy (the ability to adopt another’s perspective) vs emotional empathy (the capacity to share and react affectively to another’s emotional experience) has not been quantitatively compared. Presently, healthy adults completed a classic cognitive empathy task (false belief), an emotional empathy task and an action simulation button-pressing task during functional magnetic resonance imaging. Conjunction analyses revealed common recruitment of the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG), thought to be critical for action-perception matching, during both action simulation and emotional, but not cognitive, empathy. Furthermore, activation was significantly greater in action simulation regions in the left IFG during emotional vs cognitive empathy, and activity in this region was positively correlated with mean feeling ratings during the emotional empathy task. These findings provide evidence for greater involvement of action simulation mechanisms in emotional than cognitive empathy. Thus, the action simulation circuit may be an important target for delineating the pathophysiology of disorders featuring emotional empathy impairments. PMID:29462481

  5. Preliminary Investigation of Time Remaining Display on the Computer-based Emergency Operating Procedure

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Suryono, T. J.; Gofuku, A.

    2018-02-01

    One of the important thing in the mitigation of accidents in nuclear power plant accidents is time management. The accidents should be resolved as soon as possible in order to prevent the core melting and the release of radioactive material to the environment. In this case, operators should follow the emergency operating procedure related with the accident, in step by step order and in allowable time. Nowadays, the advanced main control rooms are equipped with computer-based procedures (CBPs) which is make it easier for operators to do their tasks of monitoring and controlling the reactor. However, most of the CBPs do not include the time remaining display feature which informs operators of time available for them to execute procedure steps and warns them if the they reach the time limit. Furthermore, the feature will increase the awareness of operators about their current situation in the procedure. This paper investigates this issue. The simplified of emergency operating procedure (EOP) of steam generator tube rupture (SGTR) accident of PWR plant is applied. In addition, the sequence of actions on each step of the procedure is modelled using multilevel flow modelling (MFM) and influenced propagation rule. The prediction of action time on each step is acquired based on similar case accidents and the Support Vector Regression. The derived time will be processed and then displayed on a CBP user interface.

  6. CAT-1 as a novel CAM stabilizes endothelial integrity and mediates the protective actions of L-Arg via a NO-independent mechanism.

    PubMed

    Guo, Lu; Tian, Shuang; Chen, Yuguo; Mao, Yun; Cui, Sumei; Hu, Aihua; Zhang, Jianliang; Xia, Shen-Ling; Su, Yunchao; Du, Jie; Block, Edward R; Wang, Xing Li; Cui, Zhaoqiang

    2015-10-01

    Interendothelial junctions play an important role in the maintenance of endothelial integrity and the regulation of vascular functions. We report here that cationic amino acid transporter-1 (CAT-1) is a novel interendothelial cell adhesion molecule (CAM). We identified that CAT-1 protein localized at cell-cell adhesive junctions, similar to the classic CAM of VE-cadherin, and knockdown of CAT-1 with siRNA led to an increase in endothelial permeability. In addition, CAT-1 formed a cis-homo-dimer and showed Ca(2+)-dependent trans-homo-interaction to cause homophilic cell-cell adhesion. Co-immunoprecipitation assays showed that CAT-1 can associate with β-catenin. Furthermore, we found that the sub-cellular localization and function of CAT-1 are associated with cell confluency, in sub-confluent ECs CAT-1 proteins distribute on the entire surface and function as L-Arg transporters, but most of the CAT-1 in the confluent ECs are localized at interendothelial junctions and serve as CAMs. Further functional characterization has disclosed that extracellular L-Arg exposure stabilizes endothelial integrity via abating the cell junction disassembly of CAT-1 and blocking the cellular membrane CAT-1 internalization, which provides the new mechanisms for L-Arg paradox and trans-stimulation of cationic amino acid transport system (CAAT). These results suggest that CAT-1 is a novel CAM that directly regulates endothelial integrity and mediates the protective actions of L-Arg to endothelium via a NO-independent mechanism. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. Constraining the noncommutative spectral action via astrophysical observations.

    PubMed

    Nelson, William; Ochoa, Joseph; Sakellariadou, Mairi

    2010-09-03

    The noncommutative spectral action extends our familiar notion of commutative spaces, using the data encoded in a spectral triple on an almost commutative space. Varying a rather simple action, one can derive all of the standard model of particle physics in this setting, in addition to a modified version of Einstein-Hilbert gravity. In this Letter we use observations of pulsar timings, assuming that no deviation from general relativity has been observed, to constrain the gravitational sector of this theory. While the bounds on the coupling constants remain rather weak, they are comparable to existing bounds on deviations from general relativity in other settings and are likely to be further constrained by future observations.

  8. Controlling Attention through Action: Observing Actions Primes Action-Related Stimulus Dimensions

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fagioli, Sabrina; Ferlazzo, Fabio; Hommel, Bernhard

    2007-01-01

    Previous findings suggest that planning an action "backward-primes" perceptual dimension related to this action: planning a grasp facilitates the processing of visual size information, while planning a reach facilitates the processing of location information. Here we show that dimensional priming of perception through action occurs even in the…

  9. Identifying the Priorities and Practices of Virtual School Educators Using Action Research

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dawson, Kara; Dana, Nancy Fichtman; Wolkenhauer, Rachel; Krell, Desi

    2013-01-01

    This study examined the nature of thirty virtual educators' action research questions during a yearlong action research professional development experience within a large, state-funded virtual school. Virtual educators included instructional personnel (i.e., individuals responsible for teaching virtual courses) and noninstructional personnel…

  10. Magnetorotational Dynamo Action in the Shearing Box

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Walker, Justin; Boldyrev, Stanislav

    2017-10-01

    Magnetic dynamo action caused by the magnetorotational instability is studied in the shearing-box approximation with no imposed net magnetic flux. Consistent with recent studies, the dynamo action is found to be sensitive to the aspect ratio of the box: it is much easier to obtain in tall boxes (stretched in the direction normal to the disk plane) than in long boxes (stretched in the radial direction). Our direct numerical simulations indicate that the dynamo is possible in both cases, given a large enough magnetic Reynolds number. To explain the relatively larger effort required to obtain the dynamo action in a long box, we propose that the turbulent eddies caused by the instability most efficiently fold and mix the magnetic field lines in the radial direction. As a result, in the long box the scale of the generated strong azimuthal (stream-wise directed) magnetic field is always comparable to the scale of the turbulent eddies. In contrast, in the tall box the azimuthal magnetic flux spreads in the vertical direction over a distance exceeding the scale of the turbulent eddies. As a result, different vertical sections of the tall box are permeated by large-scale nonzero azimuthal magnetic fluxes, facilitating the instability. NSF AGS-1261659, Vilas Associates Award, NSF-Teragrid Project TG-PHY110016.

  11. Annual Report on Our Call to Action: Strategic Plan for the Montgomery County Public Schools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Montgomery County Public Schools, 2004

    2004-01-01

    In June 2003 the Board of Education adopted "Our Call to Action, Pursuit of Excellence," the second edition of the school system's strategic plan. This update of the original November 1999 Our Call to Action, while remaining focused on the core mission of providing every student with a high-quality, world-class education, strengthened the…

  12. Learning Difficulties and Ethnicity: Updating a Framework for Action

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Poxton, Richard

    2012-01-01

    This update of the Framework for Action highlights the continuing relevance of its message as well as those raised by Valuing People Now. People with learning difficulties and their families from Black and minority ethnic (BME) communities have been highlighted as a priority group by Valuing People since 2001 and remain a priority for better…

  13. Remaining Sites Verification Package for the 100-F-44:2, Discovery Pipeline Near 108-F Building, Waste Site Reclassification Form 2007-006

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    J. M. Capron

    2008-05-30

    The 100-F-44:2 waste site is a steel pipeline that was discovered in a junction box during confirmatory sampling of the 100-F-26:4 pipeline from December 2004 through January 2005. The 100-F-44:2 pipeline feeds into the 100-F-26:4 subsite vitrified clay pipe (VCP) process sewer pipeline from the 108-F Biology Laboratory at the junction box. In accordance with this evaluation, the confirmatory sampling results support a reclassification of this site to No Action. The current site conditions achieve the remedial action objectives and the corresponding remedial action goals established in the Remaining Sites ROD. The results of confirmatory sampling show that residual contaminantmore » concentrations do not preclude any future uses and allow for unrestricted use of shallow zone soils. The results also demonstrate that residual contaminant concentrations are protective of groundwater and the Columbia River.« less

  14. Self-interest and the theory of action.

    PubMed

    Barbalet, Jack

    2012-09-01

    The concept of self-interest remains underdeveloped in sociology although central to economics. Recent methodological and social trends render sociological indifference to the concept untenable. The term has enjoyed historical predominance in the West since the sixteenth century. While it is seen in modern economics as a singular motivating force, Adam Smith regarded self-interest in economic action as necessarily moderated by sympathy. In addition to its problematic economic conceptualization self-interest has an experiential basis in unequal power relations. An alternative to the concept of self-interest is presented by Amartya Sen in his account of commitment; its inconsistencies, however, render Sen's statement unsatisfactory. Differences between present and future interests indicate that the distinction between self-interested and other-interested action is not sustainable. © London School of Economics and Political Science 2012.

  15. Bodily matters above and below ground: the treatment of American remains from the Korean War.

    PubMed

    Keene, Judith

    2010-02-01

    Throughout most of the twentieth century, depending on the capabilities of the military mortuary services and the time limits set by government, the bodies of the American fallen in foreign wars have been repatriated home to their families. In the Korean War the conditions of combat posed large challenges to the recovery and returns of bodily remains. Almost half a century after that conflict, the American missing in Korea have become significant players within the government's expanding efforts that were prompted in answer to demands to locate American soldiers who remain unaccounted for from the Vietnam War. The essay traces the background to U.S. military mortuary services and the operation in the Korean War and in the subsequent joint expeditions in North Korea. The analysis concludes that in most of these ventures the outlay of resources has produced few remains.

  16. Clostridium perfringens Enterotoxin: Action, Genetics, and Translational Applications

    PubMed Central

    Freedman, John C.; Shrestha, Archana; McClane, Bruce A.

    2016-01-01

    Clostridium perfringens enterotoxin (CPE) is responsible for causing the gastrointestinal symptoms of several C. perfringens food- and nonfood-borne human gastrointestinal diseases. The enterotoxin gene (cpe) is located on either the chromosome (for most C. perfringens type A food poisoning strains) or large conjugative plasmids (for the remaining type A food poisoning and most, if not all, other CPE-producing strains). In all CPE-positive strains, the cpe gene is strongly associated with insertion sequences that may help to assist its mobilization and spread. During disease, CPE is produced when C. perfringens sporulates in the intestines, a process involving several sporulation-specific alternative sigma factors. The action of CPE starts with its binding to claudin receptors to form a small complex; those small complexes then oligomerize to create a hexameric prepore on the membrane surface. Beta hairpin loops from the CPE molecules in the prepore assemble into a beta barrel that inserts into the membrane to form an active pore that enhances calcium influx, causing cell death. This cell death results in intestinal damage that causes fluid and electrolyte loss. CPE is now being explored for translational applications including cancer therapy/diagnosis, drug delivery, and vaccination. PMID:26999202

  17. Task-Based Language Learning and Teaching: An Action-Research Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Calvert, Megan; Sheen, Younghee

    2015-01-01

    The creation, implementation, and evaluation of language learning tasks remain a challenge for many teachers, especially those with limited experience with using tasks in their teaching. This action-research study reports on one teacher's experience of developing, implementing, critically reflecting on, and modifying a language learning task…

  18. Quadratic adaptive algorithm for solving cardiac action potential models.

    PubMed

    Chen, Min-Hung; Chen, Po-Yuan; Luo, Ching-Hsing

    2016-10-01

    An adaptive integration method is proposed for computing cardiac action potential models accurately and efficiently. Time steps are adaptively chosen by solving a quadratic formula involving the first and second derivatives of the membrane action potential. To improve the numerical accuracy, we devise an extremum-locator (el) function to predict the local extremum when approaching the peak amplitude of the action potential. In addition, the time step restriction (tsr) technique is designed to limit the increase in time steps, and thus prevent the membrane potential from changing abruptly. The performance of the proposed method is tested using the Luo-Rudy phase 1 (LR1), dynamic (LR2), and human O'Hara-Rudy dynamic (ORd) ventricular action potential models, and the Courtemanche atrial model incorporating a Markov sodium channel model. Numerical experiments demonstrate that the action potential generated using the proposed method is more accurate than that using the traditional Hybrid method, especially near the peak region. The traditional Hybrid method may choose large time steps near to the peak region, and sometimes causes the action potential to become distorted. In contrast, the proposed new method chooses very fine time steps in the peak region, but large time steps in the smooth region, and the profiles are smoother and closer to the reference solution. In the test on the stiff Markov ionic channel model, the Hybrid blows up if the allowable time step is set to be greater than 0.1ms. In contrast, our method can adjust the time step size automatically, and is stable. Overall, the proposed method is more accurate than and as efficient as the traditional Hybrid method, especially for the human ORd model. The proposed method shows improvement for action potentials with a non-smooth morphology, and it needs further investigation to determine whether the method is helpful during propagation of the action potential. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights

  19. Role of cyclophilins in somatolactogenic action.

    PubMed

    Rycyzyn, M A; Clevenger, C V

    2000-01-01

    Prolactin (PRL) and growth hormone (GH) are members of the somatolactogenic hormone family, the pleiotropic actions of which are necessary for vertebrate growth and mammary differentiation. The basis for the specific function of these hormones has remained uncertain; however, their action is associated with internalization and translocation into the nucleus. A yeast two-hybrid screen identified an interaction between PRL and cyclophilin B (CypB), a peptidyl prolyl isomerase (PPI) found in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), extracellular space, and nucleus. The interaction between CypB and PRL/GH was confirmed in vitro and in vivo through the use of recombinant proteins and coimmunoprecipitation studies. The exogenous addition of CypB potentiated the proliferation of PRL- and GH-dependent cell lines 18- and 40-fold, respectively. The potentiation of PRL action by CypB was accompanied by a dramatic increase in the nuclear retrotranslocation of PRL. Immunogold electron microscopy has revealed this retrotransport to occur via a vesicular pathway. A CypB mutant, termed CypB-NT, was generated that lacked the putative wild-type N-terminal nuclear localization sequence. Although CypB-NT demonstrated levels of PRL binding and PPI activity equivalent to wild-type CypB, it was incapable of mediating the nuclear retrotranslocation of PRL or enhancing PRL-driven proliferation. These studies reveal CypB as an important chaperone facilitating the nuclear retrotransport and action of the somatolactogenic hormone family.

  20. Scale Matters: An Action Plan for Realizing Sector-Wide"Zero-Energy" Performance Goals in Commercial Buildings

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Selkowitz, Stephen; Selkowitz, Stephen; Granderson, Jessica

    2008-06-16

    It is widely accepted that if the United States is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions it must aggressively address energy end use in the building sector. While there have been some notable but modest successes with mandatory and voluntary programs, there have also been puzzling failures to achieve expected savings. Collectively, these programs have not yet reached the majority of the building stock, nor have they yet routinely produced very large savings in individual buildings. Several trends that have the potential to change this are noteworthy: (1) the growing market interest in 'green buildings' and 'sustainable design', (2) the majormore » professional societies (e.g. AIA, ASHRAE) have more aggressively adopted significant improvements in energy efficiency as strategic goals, e.g. targeting 'zero energy', carbon-neutral buildings by 2030. While this vision is widely accepted as desirable, unless there are significant changes to the way buildings are routinely designed, delivered and operated, zero energy buildings will remain a niche phenomenon rather than a sector-wide reality. Toward that end, a public/private coalition including the Alliance to Save Energy, LBNL, AIA, ASHRAE, USGBC and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) are developing an 'action plan' for moving the U.S. commercial building sector towards zero energy performance. It addresses regional action in a national framework; integrated deployment, demonstration and R&D threads; and would focus on measurable, visible performance indicators. This paper outlines this action plan, focusing on the challenge, the key themes, and the strategies and actions leading to substantial reductions in GHG emissions by 2030.« less

  1. Binding action and emotion in first-episode schizophrenia.

    PubMed

    Ferri, Francesca; Costantini, Marcello; Salone, Anatolia; Ebisch, Sjoerd; De Berardis, Domenico; Mazzola, Viridiana; Arciero, Giampiero; Ferro, Filippo Maria; Di Giannantonio, Massimo; Romani, Gian Luca; Gallese, Vittorio

    2014-01-01

    Several components of social cognition are compromised in schizophrenia (SCZ) from the early stage of the illness. In this study we first investigated whether mirror neuron-driven embodied simulation (mnES) is altered in first-episode SCZ. Second, we tested whether emotional cues impact on the mnES in SCZ patients. Twenty-two SCZ patients and 22 healthy controls (HCs) observed goal-related actions in either a neutral or emotional context during functional magnetic resonance imaging scanning. Observation of neutral action elicited a lower activity in the frontoparietal network in SCZ patients, as compared to HCs. Particularly, activation in the left inferior parietal lobule in response to the same condition negatively correlated with patients' self-experience disturbances. Moreover, observation of an action performed by an angry agent produced poorer neural activity in the right anterior insula in SCZ patients as compared to HCs. This difference was mostly due to the negative β-values shown by SCZ patients, which positively correlated with their empathy scores. No differences were found contingent upon the observation of an action performed by a happy agent. Our results show that emotional cues allow SCZ patients to partially recover mnES. However, their understanding of the emotional components of the actions of others will likely remain deficient. © 2014 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  2. Are large-scale manipulations of streamflow for ecological outcomes effective either as experiments or management actions? (Invited)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Konrad, C. P.; Olden, J.

    2013-12-01

    Dams impose a host of impacts on freshwater and estuary ecosystems. In recent decades, dam releases for ecological outcomes have been increasingly implemented to mitigate for these impacts and are gaining global scope. Many are designed and conducted using an experimental framework. A recent review of large-scale flow experiments (FE) evaluates their effectiveness and identifies ways to enhance their scientific and management value. At least 113 large-scale flow experiments affecting 98 river systems globally have been documented over the last 50 years. These experiments span a range of flow manipulations from single pulse events to comprehensive changes in flow regime across all seasons and different water year types. Clear articulation of experimental objectives, while not universally practiced, was crucial for achieving management outcomes and changing dam operating policies. We found a strong disparity between the recognized ecological importance of a multi faceted flow regimes and discrete flow events that characterized 80% of FEs. Over three quarters of FEs documented both abiotic and biotic outcomes, but only one third examined multiple trophic groups, thus limiting how this information informs future dam management. Large-scale flow experiments represent a unique opportunity for integrated biophysical investigations for advancing ecosystem science. Nonetheless, they must remain responsive to site-specific issues regarding water management, evolving societal values and changing environmental conditions and, in particular, can characterize the incremental benefits from and necessary conditions for changing dam operations to improve ecological outcomes. This type of information is essential for understanding the full context of value based trade-offs in benefits and costs from different dam operations that can serve as an empirical basis for societal decisions regarding water and ecosystem management. FE may be the best approach available to managers for

  3. An Unlikely Alliance: Re-Examining the Architecture of Affirmative Action

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Graves, Karen

    2014-01-01

    The "Bakke" decision marked a turning point in higher education. Tested again most recently in "Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin," affirmative action policy remains in place even as the Roberts Court shakes its foundation by demanding a degree of administrative oversight not pursued by previous Courts. In spite of…

  4. Disciplinary Action as an Intervention That Supports Students: Lessons from a Large Comprehensive High School

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pharrams, Lorenza

    2013-01-01

    The purpose of this quantitative research study was to identify if there was a relationship between student or administrator characteristics (Independent variables) and the application of various disciplinary actions (Dependent variables). This study examined student's gender, race, grade point average, number of credits, and disciplinary…

  5. Harm avoiders suppress motor resonance to observed immoral actions

    PubMed Central

    Candidi, Matteo; Sforza, Anna Laura; Aglioti, Salvatore Maria

    2015-01-01

    Motor resonance (MR) contingent upon action observation is thought to occur largely automatically. Although recent studies suggest that this process is not completely impervious to top-down modulations, much less is known on the possible role of the moral connotation of observed action goal in modulating MR. Here, we explored whether observing actions with different moral connotations modulates MR and whether any modulation depends on the onlookers’ personality. To this aim, we recorded motor potentials evoked by single-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation from hand muscles of participants who were watching images of a model performing hand actions with the same postures and low-level goals (i.e. grasping an object) but with different moral connotations (‘stealing a wallet’ vs ‘picking up a notepaper’). Participants’ personality traits were measured using the temperament and character inventory. Results show a selective suppression of corticospinal excitability during observation of immoral actions in individuals with high scores in harm avoidance, a personality trait characterized by excessive worrying and fearfulness. Thus, a combination of dispositional (personality traits) and situational (morality of an action) variables appears to influence MR with the observed actions. PMID:24526183

  6. Large-strain, multiform movements from designable electrothermal actuators based on large highly anisotropic carbon nanotube sheets.

    PubMed

    Li, Qingwei; Liu, Changhong; Lin, Yuan-Hua; Liu, Liang; Jiang, Kaili; Fan, Shoushan

    2015-01-27

    Many electroactive polymer (EAP) actuators use diverse configurations of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) as pliable electrodes to realize discontinuous, agile movements, for CNTs are conductive and flexible. However, the reported CNT-based EAP actuators could only accomplish simple, monotonous actions. Few actuators were extended to complex devices because efficiently preparing a large-area CNT electrode was difficult, and complex electrode design has not been carried out. In this work, we successfully prepared large-area CNT paper (buckypaper, BP) through an efficient approach. The BP is highly anisotropic, strong, and suitable as flexible electrodes. By means of artful graphic design and processing on BP, we fabricated various functional BP electrodes and developed a series of BP-polymer electrothermal actuators (ETAs). The prepared ETAs can realize various controllable movements, such as large-stain bending (>180°), helical curling (∼ 630°), or even bionic actuations (imitating human-hand actions). These functional and interesting movements benefit from flexible electrode design and the anisotropy of BP material. Owing to the advantages of low driving voltage (20-200 V), electrolyte-free and long service life (over 10000 times), we think the ETAs will have great potential applications in the actuator field.

  7. Neighborhood walkability and walking behavior: the moderating role of action orientation.

    PubMed

    Friederichs, Stijn A H; Kremers, Stef P J; Lechner, Lilian; de Vries, Nanne K

    2013-05-01

    In promoting physical activity, it is important to gain insight into environmental factors that facilitate or hinder physical activity and factors that may influence this environment-behavior relationship. As the personality factor of action orientation reflects an individual's capacity to regulate behavior it may act as a moderator in the environment-behavior relationship. The current study addressed the relationship between neighborhood walkability and walking behavior and the influence of action orientation on this relationship. Three hundred and forty-seven Dutch inhabitants [mean age 43.1 (SD 17.1)] completed a web based questionnaire assessing demographic variables, neighborhood walkability (Neighborhood Environment Walkability Scale), variables of the Theory of Planned Behavior, action orientation, and walking behavior. The results show that high levels of neighborhood walkability are positively associated with walking behavior and that this influence is largely unmediated by cognitive processes. A positive influence of neighborhood walkability on walking behavior was identified in the action-oriented subpopulation, whereas in the state-oriented part of the population, this influence was absent. The findings suggest that the influence of neighborhood environment on walking behavior has a relatively large unconscious, automatic component. In addition, the results suggest that the walkability-walking relationship is moderated by action orientation.

  8. Tip60 HAT Action Mediates Environmental Enrichment Induced Cognitive Restoration.

    PubMed

    Xu, Songjun; Panikker, Priyalakshmi; Iqbal, Sahira; Elefant, Felice

    2016-01-01

    Environmental enrichment (EE) conditions have beneficial effects for reinstating cognitive ability in neuropathological disorders like Alzheimer's disease (AD). While EE benefits involve epigenetic gene control mechanisms that comprise histone acetylation, the histone acetyltransferases (HATs) involved remain largely unknown. Here, we examine a role for Tip60 HAT action in mediating activity- dependent beneficial neuroadaptations to EE using the Drosophila CNS mushroom body (MB) as a well-characterized cognition model. We show that flies raised under EE conditions display enhanced MB axonal outgrowth, synaptic marker protein production, histone acetylation induction and transcriptional activation of cognition linked genes when compared to their genotypically identical siblings raised under isolated conditions. Further, these beneficial changes are impaired in both Tip60 HAT mutant flies and APP neurodegenerative flies. While EE conditions provide some beneficial neuroadaptive changes in the APP neurodegenerative fly MB, such positive changes are significantly enhanced by increasing MB Tip60 HAT levels. Our results implicate Tip60 as a critical mediator of EE-induced benefits, and provide broad insights into synergistic behavioral and epigenetic based therapeutic approaches for treatment of cognitive disorder.

  9. Action preferences and the anticipation of action outcomes.

    PubMed

    Mann, David L; Schaefers, Teuntje; Cañal-Bruland, Rouwen

    2014-10-01

    Skilled performers of time-constrained motor actions acquire information about the action preferences of their opponents in an effort to better anticipate the outcome of that opponent's actions. However, there is reason to doubt that knowledge of an opponent's action preferences would unequivocally influence anticipatory responses in a positive way. It is possible that overt information about an opponent's actions could distract skilled performers from using the advance kinematic information they would usually rely on to anticipate actions, particularly when the opponent performs an 'unexpected' action that is not in accordance with his or her previous behaviour. The aim of this study was to examine how the ability to anticipate the outcome of an opponent's actions can be influenced by exposure to the action preferences of that opponent. Two groups of skilled handball goalkeepers anticipated the direction of penalty throws performed by opponents before and after a training intervention that provided situational probability information in the form of action preferences (AP). During the training phase participants in an AP-training group anticipated the action outcomes of two throwers who had a strong preference to throw in one particular direction, whilst participants in a NP-training group viewed players who threw equally to all directions. Exposure to opponents who did have an action preference during the training phase resulted in improved anticipatory performance if the opponent continued to bias their throws towards their preferred direction, but decreased performance if the opponent did not. These findings highlight that skilled observers use information about action preferences to enhance their anticipatory ability, but that doing so can be disadvantageous when the outcomes are no longer consistent with their generated expectations. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  10. Adipokines and insulin action: A sensitive issue.

    PubMed

    Knights, Alexander J; Funnell, Alister Pw; Pearson, Richard Cm; Crossley, Merlin; Bell-Anderson, Kim S

    2014-04-01

    Obesity is a major public health concern and a strong risk factor for insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), and cardiovascular disease. The last two decades have seen a reconsideration of the role of white adipose tissue (WAT) in whole body metabolism and insulin action. Adipose tissue-derived cytokines and hormones, or adipokines, are likely mediators of metabolic function and dysfunction. While several adipokines have been associated with obese and insulin-resistant phenotypes, a select group has been linked with insulin sensitivity, namely leptin, adiponectin, and more recently, adipolin. What is known about these insulin-sensitizing molecules and their effects in healthy and insulin resistant states is the subject of this review. There remains a significant amount of research to do to fully elucidate the mechanisms of action of these adipokines for development of therapeutics in metabolic disease.

  11. Influence of action-effect associations acquired by ideomotor learning on imitation.

    PubMed

    Bunlon, Frédérique; Marshall, Peter J; Quandt, Lorna C; Bouquet, Cedric A

    2015-01-01

    According to the ideomotor theory, actions are represented in terms of their perceptual effects, offering a solution for the correspondence problem of imitation (how to translate the observed action into a corresponding motor output). This effect-based coding of action is assumed to be acquired through action-effect learning. Accordingly, performing an action leads to the integration of the perceptual codes of the action effects with the motor commands that brought them about. While ideomotor theory is invoked to account for imitation, the influence of action-effect learning on imitative behavior remains unexplored. In two experiments, imitative performance was measured in a reaction time task following a phase of action-effect acquisition. During action-effect acquisition, participants freely executed a finger movement (index or little finger lifting), and then observed a similar (compatible learning) or a different (incompatible learning) movement. In Experiment 1, finger movements of left and right hands were presented as action-effects during acquisition. In Experiment 2, only right-hand finger movements were presented during action-effect acquisition and in the imitation task the observed hands were oriented orthogonally to participants' hands in order to avoid spatial congruency effects. Experiments 1 and 2 showed that imitative performance was improved after compatible learning, compared to incompatible learning. In Experiment 2, although action-effect learning involved perception of finger movements of right hand only, imitative capabilities of right- and left-hand finger movements were equally affected. These results indicate that an observed movement stimulus processed as the effect of an action can later prime execution of that action, confirming the ideomotor approach to imitation. We further discuss these findings in relation to previous studies of action-effect learning and in the framework of current ideomotor approaches to imitation.

  12. Influence of Action-Effect Associations Acquired by Ideomotor Learning on Imitation

    PubMed Central

    Bunlon, Frédérique; Marshall, Peter J.; Quandt, Lorna C.; Bouquet, Cedric A.

    2015-01-01

    According to the ideomotor theory, actions are represented in terms of their perceptual effects, offering a solution for the correspondence problem of imitation (how to translate the observed action into a corresponding motor output). This effect-based coding of action is assumed to be acquired through action-effect learning. Accordingly, performing an action leads to the integration of the perceptual codes of the action effects with the motor commands that brought them about. While ideomotor theory is invoked to account for imitation, the influence of action-effect learning on imitative behavior remains unexplored. In two experiments, imitative performance was measured in a reaction time task following a phase of action-effect acquisition. During action-effect acquisition, participants freely executed a finger movement (index or little finger lifting), and then observed a similar (compatible learning) or a different (incompatible learning) movement. In Experiment 1, finger movements of left and right hands were presented as action-effects during acquisition. In Experiment 2, only right-hand finger movements were presented during action-effect acquisition and in the imitation task the observed hands were oriented orthogonally to participants’ hands in order to avoid spatial congruency effects. Experiments 1 and 2 showed that imitative performance was improved after compatible learning, compared to incompatible learning. In Experiment 2, although action-effect learning involved perception of finger movements of right hand only, imitative capabilities of right- and left-hand finger movements were equally affected. These results indicate that an observed movement stimulus processed as the effect of an action can later prime execution of that action, confirming the ideomotor approach to imitation. We further discuss these findings in relation to previous studies of action-effect learning and in the framework of current ideomotor approaches to imitation. PMID:25793755

  13. Improved actions and asymptotic scaling in lattice Yang-Mills theory

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Langfeld, Kurt

    2007-11-01

    Improved actions in SU(2) and SU(3) lattice gauge theories are investigated with an emphasis on asymptotic scaling. A new scheme for tadpole improvement is proposed. The standard but heuristic tadpole improvement emerges from a mean field approximation from the new approach. Scaling is investigated by means of the large distance static quark potential. Both the generic and the new tadpole scheme yield significant improvements on asymptotic scaling when compared with loop improved actions. A study of the rotational symmetry breaking terms, however, reveals that only the new improvement scheme efficiently eliminates the leading irrelevant term from the action.

  14. A social identity model of pro-environmental action (SIMPEA).

    PubMed

    Fritsche, Immo; Barth, Markus; Jugert, Philipp; Masson, Torsten; Reese, Gerhard

    2018-03-01

    Large-scale environmental crises are genuinely collective phenomena: they usually result from collective, rather than personal, behavior and how they are cognitively represented and appraised is determined by collectively shared interpretations (e.g., differing across ideological groups) and based on concern for collectives (e.g., humankind, future generations) rather than for individuals. Nevertheless, pro-environmental action has been primarily investigated as a personal decision-making process. We complement this research with a social identity perspective on pro-environmental action. Social identity is the human capacity to define the self in terms of "We" instead of "I," enabling people to think and act as collectives, which should be crucial given personal insufficiency to appraise and effectively respond to environmental crises. We propose a Social Identity Model of Pro-Environmental Action (SIMPEA) of how social identity processes affect both appraisal of and behavioral responses to large-scale environmental crises. We review related and pertinent research providing initial evidence for the role of 4 social identity processes hypothesized in SIMPEA. Specifically, we propose that ingroup identification, ingroup norms and goals, and collective efficacy determine environmental appraisals as well as both private and public sphere environmental action. These processes are driven by personal and collective emotions and motivations that arise from environmental appraisal and operate on both a deliberate and automatic processing level. Finally, we discuss SIMPEA's implications for the research agenda in environmental and social psychology and for interventions fostering pro-environmental action. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

  15. Magnetorotational dynamo action in the shearing box

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Walker, Justin; Boldyrev, Stanislav

    2017-09-01

    Magnetic dynamo action caused by the magnetorotational instability is studied in the shearing-box approximation with no imposed net magnetic flux. Consistent with recent studies, the dynamo action is found to be sensitive to the aspect ratio of the box: it is much easier to obtain in tall boxes (stretched in the direction normal to the disc plane) than in long boxes (stretched in the radial direction). Our direct numerical simulations indicate that the dynamo is possible in both cases, given a large enough magnetic Reynolds number. To explain the relatively larger effort required to obtain the dynamo action in a long box, we propose that the turbulent eddies caused by the instability most efficiently fold and mix the magnetic field lines in the radial direction. As a result, in the long box the scale of the generated strong azimuthal (stream-wise directed) magnetic field is always comparable to the scale of the turbulent eddies. In contrast, in the tall box the azimuthal magnetic flux spreads in the vertical direction over a distance exceeding the scale of the turbulent eddies. As a result, different vertical sections of the tall box are permeated by large-scale non-zero azimuthal magnetic fluxes, facilitating the instability. In agreement with this picture, the cases when the dynamo is efficient are characterized by a strong intermittency of the local azimuthal magnetic fluxes.

  16. Commercial motor vehicles : significant actions remain to improve truck safety

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2000-03-02

    Typically, about 5,000 people die each year in truck-related crashes. This Subcommittee and others have been critical of the Department of Transportation's (DOT) progress in reducing this death toll. In May 1999, in part as a response to this concern...

  17. Remaining Sites Verification Package for the 118-C-3:3, 105-C French Drains, Waste Site Reclassification Form 2006-016

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    R. A. Carlson

    2006-04-24

    The 118-C-3:3 french drains received condensate from the steam heating system in the 105-C Reactor Building. The 118-C-3:3 french drain meets the remedial action objectives specified in the Remaining Sites ROD. The results demonstrate that residual contaminant concentrations do not preclude any future uses and allow for unrestricted use of shallow zone soils. The results also demonstrate that residual contaminant concentrations are protective of groundwater and the Columbia River.

  18. Mathematical modeling of shell configurations made of homogeneous and composite materials experiencing intensive short actions and large displacements

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Khairnasov, K. Z.

    2018-04-01

    The paper presents a mathematical model for solving the problem of behavior of shell configurations under the action of static and dynamic impacts. The problem is solved in geometrically nonlinear statement with regard to the finite element method. The composite structures with different material layers are considered. The obtained equations are used to study the behavior of shell configurations under the action of dynamic loads. The results agree well with the experimental data.

  19. Choosing Actions

    PubMed Central

    Rosenbaum, David A.; Chapman, Kate M.; Coelho, Chase J.; Gong, Lanyun; Studenka, Breanna E.

    2013-01-01

    Actions that are chosen have properties that distinguish them from actions that are not. Of the nearly infinite possible actions that can achieve any given task, many of the unchosen actions are irrelevant, incorrect, or inappropriate. Others are relevant, correct, or appropriate but are disfavored for other reasons. Our research focuses on the question of what distinguishes actions that are chosen from actions that are possible but are not. We review studies that use simple preference methods to identify factors that contribute to action choices, especially for object-manipulation tasks. We can determine which factors are especially important through simple behavioral experiments. PMID:23761769

  20. Cultivating Uncultured Bacteria from Northern Wetlands: Knowledge Gained and Remaining Gaps

    PubMed Central

    Dedysh, Svetlana N.

    2011-01-01

    Northern wetlands play a key role in the global carbon budget, particularly in the budgets of the greenhouse gas methane. These ecosystems also determine the hydrology of northern rivers and represent one of the largest reservoirs of fresh water in the Northern Hemisphere. Sphagnum-dominated peat bogs and fens are the most extensive types of northern wetlands. In comparison to many other terrestrial ecosystems, the bacterial diversity in Sphagnum-dominated wetlands remains largely unexplored. As demonstrated by cultivation-independent studies, a large proportion of the indigenous microbial communities in these acidic, cold, nutrient-poor, and water-saturated environments is composed of as-yet-uncultivated bacteria with unknown physiologies. Most of them are slow-growing, oligotrophic microorganisms that are difficult to isolate and to manipulate in the laboratory. Yet, significant breakthroughs in cultivation of these elusive organisms have been made during the last decade. This article describes the major prerequisites for successful cultivation of peat-inhabiting microbes, gives an overview of the currently captured bacterial diversity from northern wetlands and discusses the unique characteristics of the newly discovered organisms. PMID:21954394

  1. Do as I … Did! Long-term memory of imitative actions in dogs (Canis familiaris).

    PubMed

    Fugazza, Claudia; Pogány, Ákos; Miklósi, Ádám

    2016-03-01

    This study demonstrates long-term declarative memory of imitative actions in a non-human animal species. We tested 12 pet dogs for their ability to imitate human actions after retention intervals ranging from 1 to 24 h. For comparison, another 12 dogs were tested for the same actions without delay between demonstration and recall. Our test consisted of a modified version of the Do as I Do paradigm, combined with the two-action procedure to control for non-imitative processes. Imitative performance of dogs remained consistently high independent of increasing retention intervals, supporting the idea that dogs are able to retain mental representations of human actions for an extended period of time. The ability to imitate after such delays supports the use of long-term declarative memory.

  2. The Impact of Nursing Leader's Behavioral Integrity and Intragroup Relationship Conflict on Staff Nurses' Intention to Remain.

    PubMed

    Kang, Seung-Wan; Lee, Soojin; Choi, Suk Bong

    2017-05-01

    This study tested a multilevel model examining the effect of nursing leader's behavioral integrity and intragroup relationship conflict on staff nurses' intent to remain. In the challenging situation of nursing shortage, nurse executives are required to focus on the retention of nurses. No previous studies have examined the impact of nursing leader's behavioral integrity and intragroup relationship conflict on nurses' intention to remain. A cross-sectional survey of 480 RNs in 34 nursing units of a large public hospital in South Korea was conducted to test the hypothesized multilevel model. Nursing leader's behavioral integrity was positively related to nurses' intention to remain (b = 0.34, P < .001). This relationship was enhanced when the level of intragroup relationship conflict was high (b = 0.21, P < .05). Nursing leaders assigned to units with a high level of intragroup relationship conflict should endeavor to maintain their behavioral integrity to promote nurses' intention to remain.

  3. Bulk Fuel: Actions Needed to Improve DODs Fuel Consumption Budget Data

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2016-09-01

    BULK FUEL Actions Needed to Improve DOD’s Fuel Consumption Budget Data Report to Congressional Committees...16-644, a report to congressional committees. September 2016 BULK FUEL Actions Needed to Improve DOD’s Fuel Consumption Budget Data What GAO...of about $10.1 billion in fiscal year 2015 but differed from budget estimates, which officials largely attributed to changes in operations and

  4. What's she doing in the kitchen? Context helps when actions are hard to recognize.

    PubMed

    Wurm, Moritz F; Schubotz, Ricarda I

    2017-04-01

    Specific spatial environments are often indicative of where certain actions may take place: In kitchens we prepare food, and in bathrooms we engage in personal hygiene, but not vice versa. In action recognition, contextual cues may constrain an observer's expectations toward actions that are more strongly associated with a particular context than others. Such cues should become particularly helpful when the action itself is difficult to recognize. However, to date only easily identifiable actions were investigated, and the effects of context on recognition were rather interfering than facilitatory. To test whether context also facilitates action recognition, we measured recognition performance of hardly identifiable actions that took place in compatible, incompatible, and neutral contextual settings. Action information was degraded by pixelizing the area of the object manipulation while the room in which the action took place remained fully visible. We found significantly higher accuracy for actions that took place in compatible compared to incompatible and neutral settings, indicating facilitation. Additionally, action recognition was slower in incompatible settings than in compatible and neutral settings, indicating interference. Together, our findings demonstrate that contextual information is effectively exploited during action observation, in particular when visual information about the action itself is sparse. Differential effects on speed and accuracy suggest that contexts modulate action recognition at different levels of processing. Our findings emphasize the importance of contextual information in comprehensive, ecologically valid models of action recognition.

  5. Action recognition using mined hierarchical compound features.

    PubMed

    Gilbert, Andrew; Illingworth, John; Bowden, Richard

    2011-05-01

    The field of Action Recognition has seen a large increase in activity in recent years. Much of the progress has been through incorporating ideas from single-frame object recognition and adapting them for temporal-based action recognition. Inspired by the success of interest points in the 2D spatial domain, their 3D (space-time) counterparts typically form the basic components used to describe actions, and in action recognition the features used are often engineered to fire sparsely. This is to ensure that the problem is tractable; however, this can sacrifice recognition accuracy as it cannot be assumed that the optimum features in terms of class discrimination are obtained from this approach. In contrast, we propose to initially use an overcomplete set of simple 2D corners in both space and time. These are grouped spatially and temporally using a hierarchical process, with an increasing search area. At each stage of the hierarchy, the most distinctive and descriptive features are learned efficiently through data mining. This allows large amounts of data to be searched for frequently reoccurring patterns of features. At each level of the hierarchy, the mined compound features become more complex, discriminative, and sparse. This results in fast, accurate recognition with real-time performance on high-resolution video. As the compound features are constructed and selected based upon their ability to discriminate, their speed and accuracy increase at each level of the hierarchy. The approach is tested on four state-of-the-art data sets, the popular KTH data set to provide a comparison with other state-of-the-art approaches, the Multi-KTH data set to illustrate performance at simultaneous multiaction classification, despite no explicit localization information provided during training. Finally, the recent Hollywood and Hollywood2 data sets provide challenging complex actions taken from commercial movie sequences. For all four data sets, the proposed hierarchical

  6. Neurons in Anterior Cingulate Cortex Multiplex Information about Reward and Action

    PubMed Central

    Hayden, Benjamin Y.; Platt, Michael L.

    2010-01-01

    The dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) is thought to play a critical role in forming associations between rewards and actions. Currently available physiological data, however, remain inconclusive regarding the question of whether dACC neurons carry information linking particular actions to reward or, instead, encode abstract reward information independent of specific actions. Here we show that firing rates of a majority of dACC neurons in a population studied in an eight-option variably rewarded choice task were sensitive to both saccade direction and reward value. Furthermore, the influences of reward and saccade direction on neuronal activity were roughly equal in magnitude over the range of rewards tested and were statistically independent. Our results indicate that dACC neurons multiplex information about both reward and action, endorsing the idea that this area links motivational outcomes to behavior and undermining the notion that its neurons solely contribute to reward processing in the abstract. PMID:20203193

  7. Mechanisms of action of ligands of potential-dependent sodium channels.

    PubMed

    Tikhonov, D B

    2008-06-01

    Potential-dependent sodium channels play a leading role in generating action potentials in excitable cells. Sodium channels are the site of action of a variety of modulator ligands. Despite numerous studies, the mechanisms of action of many modulators remain incompletely understood. The main reason that many important questions cannot be resolved is that there is a lack of precise data on the structures of the channels themselves. Structurally, potential-dependent sodium channels are members of the P-loop channel superfamily, which also include potassium and calcium channels and glutamate receptor channels. Crystallization of a series of potassium channels showed that it was possible to analyze the structures of different members of the superfamily using the "homologous modeling" method. The present study addresses model investigations of the actions of ligands of sodium channels, including tetrodotoxin and batrachotoxin, as well as local anesthetics. Comparison of experimental data on sodium channel ligands with x-ray analysis data allowed us to reach a new level of understanding of the mechanisms of channel modulation and to propose a series of experimentally verifiable hypotheses.

  8. Everyday robotic action: lessons from human action control

    PubMed Central

    de Kleijn, Roy; Kachergis, George; Hommel, Bernhard

    2014-01-01

    Robots are increasingly capable of performing everyday human activities such as cooking, cleaning, and doing the laundry. This requires the real-time planning and execution of complex, temporally extended sequential actions under high degrees of uncertainty, which provides many challenges to traditional approaches to robot action control. We argue that important lessons in this respect can be learned from research on human action control. We provide a brief overview of available psychological insights into this issue and focus on four principles that we think could be particularly beneficial for robot control: the integration of symbolic and subsymbolic planning of action sequences, the integration of feedforward and feedback control, the clustering of complex actions into subcomponents, and the contextualization of action-control structures through goal representations. PMID:24672474

  9. 76 FR 9608 - Certain Welded Large Diameter Line Pipe From Mexico

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-02-18

    ... Large Diameter Line Pipe From Mexico AGENCY: United States International Trade Commission. ACTION... duty order on certain welded large diameter line pipe from Mexico. For further information concerning... welded large diameter line pipe from Mexico would not be likely to lead to continuation or recurrence of...

  10. Inspiring your audience to action: insights from theory and practice

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wong, W.; Hekkers, J.; Mott, B.

    2011-12-01

    Findings from market research sponsored by The Ocean Project, along with many other recent studies, have revealed two troubling facts: 1. Despite increased efforts to grow climate and ocean literacy among the general public, American adult's knowledge of climate and ocean health has remained stagnant in the past decade; and 2. Knowledge and level of concern about climate change show little correlation, i.e. the people who are most concerned about climate change are not the ones who know most about the science of climate change, and vice versa. If knowledge does not lead to action among the general public, what implications does this have for those of us working for conservation? How can we motivate people to act for conservation? The Ocean Project's large-scale survey of American attitudes and values vis-à-vis ocean, climate change, and related conservation issues provides answers to many such burning questions. Our research findings reveal critical insights about what, who, and how we can communicate for maximum efficacy. In particular, youth and minorities emerged as important constituencies: not only are they more environmentally aware and/or socially conscious, they are important influencers who demonstrate greater propensity to modify their behaviors and/or engage in conservation advocacy. Our presentation will discuss the implications of these findings for strategic communication for conservation action as well as present case studies from the Monterey Bay Aquarium that support these research findings and provide insights from evaluation of two significantly different interpretive approaches to communicate about climate change-a live animal exhibit and a video-based, live-narrated auditorium program.

  11. Action-based flood forecasting for triggering humanitarian action

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Coughlan de Perez, Erin; van den Hurk, Bart; van Aalst, Maarten K.; Amuron, Irene; Bamanya, Deus; Hauser, Tristan; Jongma, Brenden; Lopez, Ana; Mason, Simon; Mendler de Suarez, Janot; Pappenberger, Florian; Rueth, Alexandra; Stephens, Elisabeth; Suarez, Pablo; Wagemaker, Jurjen; Zsoter, Ervin

    2016-09-01

    Too often, credible scientific early warning information of increased disaster risk does not result in humanitarian action. With financial resources tilted heavily towards response after a disaster, disaster managers have limited incentive and ability to process complex scientific data, including uncertainties. These incentives are beginning to change, with the advent of several new forecast-based financing systems that provide funding based on a forecast of an extreme event. Given the changing landscape, here we demonstrate a method to select and use appropriate forecasts for specific humanitarian disaster prevention actions, even in a data-scarce location. This action-based forecasting methodology takes into account the parameters of each action, such as action lifetime, when verifying a forecast. Forecasts are linked with action based on an understanding of (1) the magnitude of previous flooding events and (2) the willingness to act "in vain" for specific actions. This is applied in the context of the Uganda Red Cross Society forecast-based financing pilot project, with forecasts from the Global Flood Awareness System (GloFAS). Using this method, we define the "danger level" of flooding, and we select the probabilistic forecast triggers that are appropriate for specific actions. Results from this methodology can be applied globally across hazards and fed into a financing system that ensures that automatic, pre-funded early action will be triggered by forecasts.

  12. Coupling between perception and action timing during sensorimotor synchronization.

    PubMed

    Serrien, Deborah J; Spapé, Michiel M

    2010-12-17

    Time is an important parameter in behaviour, especially when synchronization with external events is required. To evaluate the nature of the association between perception and action timing, this study introduced pitch accented tones during performance of a sensorimotor tapping task. Furthermore, regularity of the pacing cues was modified by small (subliminal) or large (conscious) timing perturbations. A global analysis across the intervals showed that repeated accented tones increased the tap-tone asynchrony in the regular (control) and irregular (subliminal) trials but not in the irregular trials with awareness of the perturbations. Asynchrony variability demonstrated no effect of accentuation in the regular and subliminal irregular trials, whereas it increased in the conscious irregular trials. A local analysis of the intervals showed that pitch accentuation lengthened the duration of the tapping responses, but only in the irregular trials with large timing perturbations. These data underline that common timing processes are automatically engaged for perception and action, although this arrangement can be overturned by cognitive intervention. Overall, the findings highlight a flexible association between perception and action timing within a functional information processing framework. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. Reconsidering Affirmative Action in Education as a Good for the Disadvantaged

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jackson, Liz

    2008-01-01

    Affirmative action in higher education remains a controversial topic in the US today, as it is tied in directly with citizens' varying conceptions of the larger society, and the importance of racial and other differences (in particular, socioeconomic class) in individual experiences and outcomes. This essay examines different arguments for and…

  14. Move Your Audience to Action: Using YouTube to Teach Persuasion

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Quagliata, Andrew B.

    2014-01-01

    For more than 75 years, instructors have taught students to use Monroe's (1935) Motivated Sequence (MMS) when organizing speeches designed to move audiences to action. However, modern approaches to teaching the sequence are needed to help instructors remain relevant and effective. This activity advocates the use of constructivist pedagogical…

  15. Unmanned Aerial Systems: Further Actions Needed to Fully Address Air Force and Army Pilot Workforce Challenges

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2016-03-16

    UNMANNED AERIAL SYSTEMS Further Actions Needed to Fully Address Air Force and Army Pilot Workforce Challenges...Armed Services, U.S. Senate March 16, 2016 UNMANNED AERIAL SYSTEMS Further Actions Needed to Fully Address Air Force and Army Pilot Workforce ...High-performing organizations use complete and current data to inform their strategic human capital planning and remain open to reevaluating workforce

  16. Hearing sounds, understanding actions: action representation in mirror neurons.

    PubMed

    Kohler, Evelyne; Keysers, Christian; Umiltà, M Alessandra; Fogassi, Leonardo; Gallese, Vittorio; Rizzolatti, Giacomo

    2002-08-02

    Many object-related actions can be recognized by their sound. We found neurons in monkey premotor cortex that discharge when the animal performs a specific action and when it hears the related sound. Most of the neurons also discharge when the monkey observes the same action. These audiovisual mirror neurons code actions independently of whether these actions are performed, heard, or seen. This discovery in the monkey homolog of Broca's area might shed light on the origin of language: audiovisual mirror neurons code abstract contents-the meaning of actions-and have the auditory access typical of human language to these contents.

  17. Lawn Care Pesticides. Risks Remain Uncertain While Prohibited Safety Claims Continue

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1990-03-23

    Trade Commission (FrC), under its own legislative authority to protect consumers against false and deceptive advertising , can take enforcement action...vides to the public about the safety of its products, federal enforcement actions taken against lawn care pesticide safety advertising claims, and...in reassessing the risks of these pesticides. FIFRA also authorizes EPA to take enforcement action against advertising claims made by pesticide

  18. Reafferent copies of imitated actions in the right superior temporal cortex

    PubMed Central

    Iacoboni, Marco; Koski, Lisa M.; Brass, Marcel; Bekkering, Harold; Woods, Roger P.; Dubeau, Marie-Charlotte; Mazziotta, John C.; Rizzolatti, Giacomo

    2001-01-01

    Imitation is a complex phenomenon, the neural mechanisms of which are still largely unknown. When individuals imitate an action that already is present in their motor repertoire, a mechanism matching the observed action onto an internal motor representation of that action should suffice for the purpose. When one has to copy a new action, however, or to adjust an action present in one's motor repertoire to a different observed action, an additional mechanism is needed that allows the observer to compare the action made by another individual with the sensory consequences of the same action made by himself. Previous experiments have shown that a mechanism that directly matches observed actions on their motor counterparts exists in the premotor cortex of monkeys and humans. Here we report the results of functional magnetic resonance experiments, suggesting that in the superior temporal sulcus, a higher order visual region, there is a sector that becomes active both during hand action observation and during imitation even in the absence of direct vision of the imitator's hand. The motor-related activity is greater during imitation than during control motor tasks. This newly identified region has all the requisites for being the region at which the observed actions, and the reafferent motor-related copies of actions made by the imitator, interact. PMID:11717457

  19. Characteristics of action potentials and their underlying outward currents in rat taste receptor cells.

    PubMed

    Chen, Y; Sun, X D; Herness, S

    1996-02-01

    use of calcium-free bathing solution. It was most obvious at more depolarized holding potentials that inactivated much of the transient and sustained outward currents. 5. Potassium currents contribute to both the repolarization and afterhyperpolarization phases of the action potential. These currents were blocked by bath application of tetraethylammonium, which also substantially broadened the action potential. Application of 4-aminopyridine was able to selectively block transient potassium currents without affecting sustained currents. This also broadened the action potential as well as eliminated the afterhyperpolarization. 6. A second type of action potential was observed that differed in duration. These slow action potentials had t1/2 durations of 9.6 ms compared with 1.4 ms for fast action potentials. Input resistances of the two groups were indistinguishable. Approximately one-fourth of the cells eliciting action potentials were of the slow type. 7. Cells eliciting fast action potentials had large outward currents capable of producing a quick repolarization, whereas cells with slow action potentials had small outward currents by comparison. The average values of fast cells were 2,563 pA and 1.4 ms compared with 373 pA and 9.6 ms for slow cells. Current and duration values were related exponentially. No significant difference was noted for inward currents. 8. These results suggest that many taste receptor cells conduct action potentials, which may be classified broadly into two groups on the basis of action potential duration and potassium current magnitude. These groups may be related to cell turnover. The physiological role of action potentials remains to be elucidated but may be important for communication within the taste bud as well as to the afferent nerve.

  20. 49 CFR 27.11 - Remedial action, voluntary action and compliance planning.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 1 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Remedial action, voluntary action and compliance....11 Remedial action, voluntary action and compliance planning. (a) Remedial action. (1) If the... discrimination not occurred. (b) Voluntary action. A recipient may take steps, in addition to any action that is...

  1. Large engines and vehicles, 1958

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1978-01-01

    During the mid-1950s, the Air Force sponsored work on the feasibility of building large, single-chamber engines, presumably for boost-glide aircraft or spacecraft. In 1956, the Army missile development group began studies of large launch vehicles. The possibilities opened up by Sputnik accelerated this work and gave the Army an opportunity to bid for the leading role in launch vehicles. The Air Force had the responsibility for the largest ballistic missiles and hence a ready-made base for extending their capability for spaceflight. During 1958, actions taken to establish a civilian space agency, and the launch vehicle needs seen by its planners, added a third contender to the space vehicle competition. These activities during 1958 are examined as to how they resulted in the initiation of a large rocket engine and the first large launch vehicle.

  2. Identification of the remains of King Richard III.

    PubMed

    King, Turi E; Fortes, Gloria Gonzalez; Balaresque, Patricia; Thomas, Mark G; Balding, David; Maisano Delser, Pierpaolo; Neumann, Rita; Parson, Walther; Knapp, Michael; Walsh, Susan; Tonasso, Laure; Holt, John; Kayser, Manfred; Appleby, Jo; Forster, Peter; Ekserdjian, David; Hofreiter, Michael; Schürer, Kevin

    2014-12-02

    In 2012, a skeleton was excavated at the presumed site of the Grey Friars friary in Leicester, the last-known resting place of King Richard III. Archaeological, osteological and radiocarbon dating data were consistent with these being his remains. Here we report DNA analyses of both the skeletal remains and living relatives of Richard III. We find a perfect mitochondrial DNA match between the sequence obtained from the remains and one living relative, and a single-base substitution when compared with a second relative. Y-chromosome haplotypes from male-line relatives and the remains do not match, which could be attributed to a false-paternity event occurring in any of the intervening generations. DNA-predicted hair and eye colour are consistent with Richard's appearance in an early portrait. We calculate likelihood ratios for the non-genetic and genetic data separately, and combined, and conclude that the evidence for the remains being those of Richard III is overwhelming.

  3. Identification of the remains of King Richard III

    PubMed Central

    King, Turi E.; Fortes, Gloria Gonzalez; Balaresque, Patricia; Thomas, Mark G.; Balding, David; Delser, Pierpaolo Maisano; Neumann, Rita; Parson, Walther; Knapp, Michael; Walsh, Susan; Tonasso, Laure; Holt, John; Kayser, Manfred; Appleby, Jo; Forster, Peter; Ekserdjian, David; Hofreiter, Michael; Schürer, Kevin

    2014-01-01

    In 2012, a skeleton was excavated at the presumed site of the Grey Friars friary in Leicester, the last-known resting place of King Richard III. Archaeological, osteological and radiocarbon dating data were consistent with these being his remains. Here we report DNA analyses of both the skeletal remains and living relatives of Richard III. We find a perfect mitochondrial DNA match between the sequence obtained from the remains and one living relative, and a single-base substitution when compared with a second relative. Y-chromosome haplotypes from male-line relatives and the remains do not match, which could be attributed to a false-paternity event occurring in any of the intervening generations. DNA-predicted hair and eye colour are consistent with Richard’s appearance in an early portrait. We calculate likelihood ratios for the non-genetic and genetic data separately, and combined, and conclude that the evidence for the remains being those of Richard III is overwhelming. PMID:25463651

  4. Anxiolytic action of pterostilbene: involvement of hippocampal ERK phosphorylation

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Pterostilbene, a natural analog of resveratrol, has diverse health-beneficial properties. However, the neurological activities of this compound are largely unexplored. Here we report that pterostilbene shows anxiolytic action by downregulating phosphorylated levels of ERKs in the hippocampus of mice...

  5. Where is the action? Action sentence processing in Parkinson's disease

    PubMed Central

    Fernandino, Leonardo; Conant, Lisa L.; Binder, Jeffrey R.; Blindauer, Karen; Hiner, Bradley; Spangler, Katie; Desai, Rutvik H.

    2013-01-01

    According to an influential view of conceptual representation, action concepts are understood through motoric simulations, involving motor networks of the brain. A stronger version of this embodied account suggests that even figurative uses of action words (e.g., grasping the concept) are understood through motoric simulations. We investigated these claims by assessing whether Parkinson's disease (PD), a disorder affecting the motor system, is associated with selective deficits in comprehending action-related sentences. Twenty PD patients and 21 age-matched controls performed a sentence comprehension task, where sentences belonged to one of four conditions: literal action, non-idiomatic metaphoric action, idiomatic action, and abstract. The same verbs (referring to hand/arm actions) were used in the three action-related conditions. Patients, but not controls, were slower to respond to literal and idiomatic action than to abstract sentences. These results indicate that sensory-motor systems play a functional role in semantic processing, including processing of figurative action language. PMID:23624313

  6. ParticipACTION: Baseline assessment of the capacity available to the 'New ParticipACTION': A qualitative study of Canadian organizations.

    PubMed

    Faulkner, Guy; McCloy, Cora; Plotnikoff, Ronald C; Bauman, Adrian; Brawley, Larry R; Chad, Karen; Gauvin, Lise; Spence, John C; Tremblay, Mark S

    2009-12-09

    Evaluation of the original ParticipACTION campaign effects focused on individual awareness, recall, and understanding. Less studied has been the impact such campaigns have had on the broader organizational capacity to mobilize and advocate for physical activity. With the relaunch of ParticipACTION, the purpose of this study was to qualitatively explore baseline organizational capacity to promote physical activity messages, programs, and services within the Canadian context. Using a purposeful sampling strategy, we conducted semi-structured telephone interviews with 49 key informants representing a range of national, provincial, and local organizations with a mandate to promote physical activity. Interview data were analysed using a thematic analytic approach. Key informants painted a generally positive picture of current organizational capacity to promote physical activity messages, programs, and services in Canada. Will and leadership were clear strengths while infrastructure limitations remained the greatest concern. Some specific challenges included: 1) funding issues: the absence of core funding in a climate of shifting funding priorities; 2) the difficulty of working without a national physical activity policy (lack of leadership); 3) inconsistent provincial and educational sector level policies; and 4) a persistent focus on obesity rather than physical inactivity. The data generated here can be utilized to monitor the future impact of ParticipACTION on enhancing and utilizing this organizational capacity. A range of indicators are suggested that could be used to illustrate ParticipACTION's impact on the broad field of physical activity promotion in the future.

  7. A non-destructive method for dating human remains

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Lail, Warren K.; Sammeth, David; Mahan, Shannon; Nevins, Jason

    2013-01-01

    The skeletal remains of several Native Americans were recovered in an eroded state from a creek bank in northeastern New Mexico. Subsequently stored in a nearby museum, the remains became lost for almost 36 years. In a recent effort to repatriate the remains, it was necessary to fit them into a cultural chronology in order to determine the appropriate tribe(s) for consultation pursuant to the Native American Grave Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). Because the remains were found in an eroded context with no artifacts or funerary objects, their age was unknown. Having been asked to avoid destructive dating methods such as radiocarbon dating, the authors used Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) to date the sediments embedded in the cranium. The OSL analyses yielded reliable dates between A.D. 1415 and A.D. 1495. Accordingly, we conclude that the remains were interred somewhat earlier than A.D. 1415, but no later than A.D. 1495. We believe the remains are from individuals ancestral to the Ute Mouache Band, which is now being contacted for repatriation efforts. Not only do our methods contribute to the immediate repatriation efforts, they provide archaeologists with a versatile, non-destructive, numerical dating method that can be used in many burial contexts.

  8. Applying Organization Development to Coast Guard Affirmative Action for Black Officers.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1979-12-01

    systems approach in the HRM area which includes significant attention to equal opportunity and affirmative action issues. Its present affirmative action...systems approach to the most funda- mental objective of managers - the acquisition and development of people - is needed, not only to meet soci.i and legal...strategy will not produce change, it will largely maintain the status quo. A total systems approach offers the hope of changing the present pattern

  9. Corrective Action Decision Document for Corrective Action Unit 562: Waste Systems Nevada Test Site, Nevada, Revision 0

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Mark Krause

    2010-08-01

    corrective action is required. Assessment of the data generated from investigation activities conducted at CAU 562 is shown in Table ES-1. Based on the evaluation of analytical data from the CAI, review of future and current operations at the 13 CASs, and the detailed and comparative analysis of the potential CAAs, the following corrective actions are recommended for CAU 562. • No further action is the preferred corrective action for CASs 02-60-01, 02-60-06, and 02-60-07. • Clean closure is the preferred corrective action for CASs 02-26-11, 02-44-02, 02-59-01, 02-60-02, 02-60-03, 02-60-04, 02-60-05, 23-60-01, 23-99-06, and 25-60-04. The preferred CAAs were evaluated on technical merit focusing on performance, reliability, feasibility, safety, and cost. The alternatives were judged to meet all requirements for the technical components evaluated. The alternatives meet all applicable federal and state regulations for closure of the site and will reduce potential exposures to contaminated media to acceptable levels. The DOE, National Nuclear Security Administration Nevada Site Office provides the following recommendations: • No further corrective action is required at CASs 02-60-01, 02-60-06, and 02-60-07. • Clean closure is recommended for the remaining 10 CASs in CAU 562. • A Corrective Action Plan will be submitted to the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection that contains a detailed description of the proposed actions that will be taken to implement the selected corrective actions.« less

  10. Odor analysis of decomposing buried human remains

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Vass, Arpad Alexander; Smith, Rob R; Thompson, Cyril V

    2008-01-01

    This study, conducted at the University of Tennessee's Anthropological Research Facility (ARF), lists and ranks the primary chemical constituents which define the odor of decomposition of human remains as detected at the soil surface of shallow burial sites. Triple sorbent traps were used to collect air samples in the field and revealed eight major classes of chemicals which now contain 478 specific volatile compounds associated with burial decomposition. Samples were analyzed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and were collected below and above the body, and at the soil surface of 1.5-3.5 ft. (0.46-1.07 m) deep burial sites of four individualsmore » over a 4-year time span. New data were incorporated into the previously established Decompositional Odor Analysis (DOA) Database providing identification, chemical trends, and semi-quantitation of chemicals for evaluation. This research identifies the 'odor signatures' unique to the decomposition of buried human remains with projected ramifications on human remains detection canine training procedures and in the development of field portable analytical instruments which can be used to locate human remains in shallow burial sites.« less

  11. Improving our legacy: Incorporation of adaptive management into state wildlife action plans

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Fontaine, J.J.

    2011-01-01

    The loss of biodiversity is a mounting concern, but despite numerous attempts there are few large scale conservation efforts that have proven successful in reversing current declines. Given the challenge of biodiversity conservation, there is a need to develop strategic conservation plans that address species declines even with the inherent uncertainty in managing multiple species in complex environments. In 2002, the State Wildlife Grant program was initiated to fulfill this need, and while not explicitly outlined by Congress follows the fundamental premise of adaptive management, 'Learning by doing'. When action is necessary, but basic biological information and an understanding of appropriate management strategies are lacking, adaptive management enables managers to be proactive in spite of uncertainty. However, regardless of the strengths of adaptive management, the development of an effective adaptive management framework is challenging. In a review of 53 State Wildlife Action Plans, I found a keen awareness by planners that adaptive management was an effective method for addressing biodiversity conservation, but the development and incorporation of explicit adaptive management approaches within each plan remained elusive. Only ???25% of the plans included a framework for how adaptive management would be implemented at the project level within their state. There was, however, considerable support across plans for further development and implementation of adaptive management. By furthering the incorporation of adaptive management principles in conservation plans and explicitly outlining the decision making process, states will be poised to meet the pending challenges to biodiversity conservation. ?? 2010 .

  12. Improving our legacy: incorporation of adaptive management into state wildlife action plans.

    PubMed

    Fontaine, Joseph J

    2011-05-01

    The loss of biodiversity is a mounting concern, but despite numerous attempts there are few large scale conservation efforts that have proven successful in reversing current declines. Given the challenge of biodiversity conservation, there is a need to develop strategic conservation plans that address species declines even with the inherent uncertainty in managing multiple species in complex environments. In 2002, the State Wildlife Grant program was initiated to fulfill this need, and while not explicitly outlined by Congress follows the fundamental premise of adaptive management, 'Learning by doing'. When action is necessary, but basic biological information and an understanding of appropriate management strategies are lacking, adaptive management enables managers to be proactive in spite of uncertainty. However, regardless of the strengths of adaptive management, the development of an effective adaptive management framework is challenging. In a review of 53 State Wildlife Action Plans, I found a keen awareness by planners that adaptive management was an effective method for addressing biodiversity conservation, but the development and incorporation of explicit adaptive management approaches within each plan remained elusive. Only ~25% of the plans included a framework for how adaptive management would be implemented at the project level within their state. There was, however, considerable support across plans for further development and implementation of adaptive management. By furthering the incorporation of adaptive management principles in conservation plans and explicitly outlining the decision making process, states will be poised to meet the pending challenges to biodiversity conservation. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  13. Sustained Large-Scale Collective Climate Action Supported by Effective Climate Change Education Practice

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Niepold, F., III; Crim, H.; Fiorile, G.; Eldadah, S.

    2017-12-01

    Since 2012, the Climate and Energy Literacy community have realized that as cities, nations and the international community seek solutions to global climate change over the coming decades, a more comprehensive, interdisciplinary approach to climate literacy—one that includes economic and social considerations—will play a vital role in knowledgeable planning, decision-making, and governance. City, county and state leaders are now leading the American response to a changing climate by incubating social innovation to prevail in the face of unprecedented change. Cities are beginning to realize the importance of critical investments to support the policies and strategies that will foster the climate literacy necessary for citizens to understand the urgency of climate actions and to succeed in a resilient post-carbon economy and develop the related workforce. Over decade of federal and non-profit Climate Change Education effective methods have been developed that can support municipality's significant educational capabilities for the purpose of strengthening and scaling city, state, business, and education actions designed to sustain and effectively address this significant social change. Looking to foster the effective and innovative strategies that will enable their communities several networks have collaborated to identify recommendations for effective education and communication practices when working with different types of audiences. U.S. National Science Foundation funded Climate Change Education Partnership (CCEP) Alliance, the National Wildlife Federation, NOAA Climate Program Office, Tri-Agency Climate Change Education Collaborative and the Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network (CLEAN) are working to develop a new web portal that will highlight "effective" practices that includes the acquisition and use of climate change knowledge to inform decision-making. The purpose of the web portal is to transfer effective practice to support communities to be

  14. Facility's employment practices reflect affirmative action commitment.

    PubMed

    Glaser, J W; Madden, M J

    1984-04-01

    The U.S. bishops' statements on racism over the last 40 years have addressed the structural as well as the personal aspects of racial discrimination. They have noted its persistence, described it as a moral and religious problem, and called for aggressive action among Catholics to combat it. "Meaningful equality" for blacks, however, remains a distant dream, the U.S. Supreme Court noted in a recent case involving institutional discrimination, because of the basically disadvantaged position into which blacks are born. As statistics on health, education, work, and standard of living illustrate, the socioeconomic opportunities available to blacks are markedly lower than those available to white Americans. Despite these odds, efforts to improve blacks' chances of contributing to society--through affirmative action programs--have achieved striking results in industry. Hospitals, as major workplaces, likewise should focus greater attention on developing and extending minority employment and advancement programs. Catholic health care facilities especially should evaluate their commitments to affirmative action. Increased efforts to eliminate discrimination in all aspects of a hospital's relationships with the business community as well as with its own employees will cause them to be recognized as symbols of justice not only in the workplace but also in society.

  15. The Effects of Soil Texture on the Ability of Human Remains Detection Dogs to Detect Buried Human Remains.

    PubMed

    Alexander, Michael B; Hodges, Theresa K; Wescott, Daniel J; Aitkenhead-Peterson, Jacqueline A

    2016-05-01

    Despite technological advances, human remains detection (HRD) dogs still remain one of the best tools for locating clandestine graves. However, soil texture may affect the escape of decomposition gases and therefore the effectiveness of HDR dogs. Six nationally credentialed HRD dogs (three HRD only and three cross-trained) were evaluated on novel buried human remains in contrasting soils, a clayey and a sandy soil. Search time and accuracy were compared for the clayey soil and sandy soil to assess odor location difficulty. Sandy soil (p < 0.001) yielded significantly faster trained response times, but no significant differences were found in performance accuracy between soil textures or training method. Results indicate soil texture may be significant factor in odor detection difficulty. Prior knowledge of soil texture and moisture may be useful for search management and planning. Appropriate adjustments to search segment sizes, sweep widths and search time allotment depending on soil texture may optimize successful detection. © 2016 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

  16. Factors shaping intersectoral action in primary health care services.

    PubMed

    Anaf, Julia; Baum, Fran; Freeman, Toby; Labonte, Ron; Javanparast, Sara; Jolley, Gwyn; Lawless, Angela; Bentley, Michael

    2014-12-01

    To examine case studies of good practice in intersectoral action for health as one part of evaluating comprehensive primary health care in six sites in South Australia and the Northern Territory. Interviews with primary health care workers, collaborating agency staff and service users (Total N=33); augmented by relevant documents from the services and collaborating partners. The value of intersectoral action for health and the importance of partner relationships to primary health care services were both strongly endorsed. Factors facilitating intersectoral action included sufficient human and financial resources, diverse backgrounds and skills and the personal rewards that sustain commitment. Key constraining factors were financial and time limitations, and a political and policy context which has become less supportive of intersectoral action; including changes to primary health care. While intersectoral action is an effective way for primary health care services to address social determinants of health, commitment to social justice and to adopting a social view of health are constrained by a broader health service now largely reinforcing a biomedical model. Effective organisational practices and policies are needed to address social determinants of health in primary health care and to provide a supportive context for workers engaging in intersectoral action. © 2014 Public Health Association of Australia.

  17. The Impact of a Dual-Project Action Learning Program: A Case of a Large IT Manufacturing Company in South Korea

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Yoon, Hyung Joon; Cho, Yonjoo; Bong, Hyeon-Cheol

    2012-01-01

    The primary purpose of this article is to evaluate the impact of a dual-project action learning program (DPALP) conducted in South Korea. A dual-project program requires each participant to carry out both team and individual projects. Cho and Egan's [2009. Action learning research: A systematic review and conceptual framework. "Human Resource…

  18. The role of right prefrontal and medial cortex in response inhibition: interfering with action restraint and action cancellation using transcranial magnetic brain stimulation.

    PubMed

    Dambacher, Franziska; Sack, Alexander T; Lobbestael, Jill; Arntz, Arnoud; Brugmann, Suzanne; Schuhmann, Teresa

    2014-08-01

    The ability of inhibiting impulsive urges is paramount for human behavior. Such successful response inhibition has consistently been associated with activity in pFC. The current study aims to unravel the differential involvement of different areas within right pFC for successful action restraint versus action cancellation. These two conceptually different aspects of action inhibition were measured with a go/no-go task (action restraint) and a stop signal task (action cancellation). Localization of relevant prefrontal activation was based on fMRI data. Significant task-related activation during successful action restraint was localized for each participant individually in right anterior insula (rAI), right superior frontal gyrus, and pre-SMA. Activation during successful action cancellation was localized in rAI, right middle frontal gyrus, and pre-SMA. Subsequently, fMRI-guided continuous thetaburst stimulation was applied to these regions. Results showed that the disruption of neural activity in rAI reduced both the ability to restrain (go/no-go) and cancel (stop signal) responses. In contrast, continuous thetaburst stimulation-induced disruption of the right superior frontal gyrus specifically impaired the ability to restrain from responding (go/no-go), while leaving the ability for action cancellation largely intact. Stimulation applied to right middle frontal gyrus and pre-SMA did not affect inhibitory processing in neither of the two tasks. These findings provide a more comprehensive perspective on the role of pFC in inhibition and cognitive control. The results emphasize the role of inferior frontal regions for global inhibition, whereas superior frontal regions seem to be specifically relevant for successful action restraint.

  19. Action potentials drive body wall muscle contractions in Caenorhabditis elegans

    PubMed Central

    Gao, Shangbang; Zhen, Mei

    2011-01-01

    The sinusoidal locomotion exhibited by Caenorhabditis elegans predicts a tight regulation of contractions and relaxations of its body wall muscles. Vertebrate skeletal muscle contractions are driven by voltage-gated sodium channel–dependent action potentials. How coordinated motor outputs are regulated in C. elegans, which does not have voltage-gated sodium channels, remains unknown. Here, we show that C. elegans body wall muscles fire all-or-none, calcium-dependent action potentials that are driven by the L-type voltage-gated calcium and Kv1 voltage-dependent potassium channels. We further demonstrate that the excitatory and inhibitory motoneuron activities regulate the frequency of action potentials to coordinate muscle contraction and relaxation, respectively. This study provides direct evidence for the dual-modulatory model of the C. elegans motor circuit; moreover, it reveals a mode of motor control in which muscle cells integrate graded inputs of the nervous system and respond with all-or-none electrical signals. PMID:21248227

  20. A Systems Biology Approach to Understanding the Mechanisms of Action of an Alternative Anticancer Compound in Comparison to Cisplatin

    PubMed Central

    Wright, Elise P.; Padula, Matthew P.; Higgins, Vincent J.; Aldrich-Wright, Janice R.; Coorssen, Jens R.

    2014-01-01

    Many clinically available anticancer compounds are designed to target DNA. This commonality of action often yields overlapping cellular response mechanisms and can thus detract from drug efficacy. New compounds are required to overcome resistance mechanisms that effectively neutralise compounds like cisplatin and those with similar chemical structures. Studies have shown that 56MESS is a novel compound which, unlike cisplatin, does not covalently bind to DNA, but is more toxic to many cell lines and active against cisplatin-resistant cells. Furthermore, a transcriptional study of 56MESS in yeast has implicated iron and copper metabolism as well as the general yeast stress response following challenge with 56MESS. Beyond this, the cytotoxicity of 56MESS remains largely uncharacterised. Here, yeast was used as a model system to facilitate a systems-level comparison between 56MESS and cisplatin. Preliminary experiments indicated that higher concentrations than seen in similar studies be used. Although a DNA interaction with 56MESS had been theorized, this work indicated that an effect on protein synthesis/ degradation was also implicated in the mechanism(s) of action of this novel anticancer compound. In contrast to cisplatin, the different mechanisms of action that are indicated for 56MESS suggest that this compound could overcome cisplatin resistance either as a stand-alone treatment or a synergistic component of therapeutics. PMID:28250393

  1. “Why We Stay”: Immigrants’ motivations for remaining in communities impacted by anti-immigration policy

    PubMed Central

    Valdez, Carmen R.; Valentine, Jessa L.; Padilla, Brian

    2013-01-01

    Although restrictive immigration policy reduces incentives for unauthorized immigrants to remain in the United States, many immigrants remain in their U.S. community in spite of the anti-immigration climate surrounding them. This study explores motivations shaping immigrants’ intentions to stay in Arizona after passage of Senate Bill 1070 in 2010, one of the most restrictive immigration policies in recent decades. We conducted three focus groups in a large metropolitan city in Arizona with Mexican immigrant parents (N = 25). Themes emerging from the focus groups described multiple and interlocking personal, family and community, and contemporary sociopolitical motivations to stay in their community, and suggest that some important motivating factors have evolved as a result of immigrants’ changing environment. Implications for research and social policy reform are discussed. PMID:23875853

  2. Magnetic dynamo action at low magnetic Prandtl numbers.

    PubMed

    Malyshkin, Leonid M; Boldyrev, Stanislav

    2010-11-19

    Amplification of magnetic field due to kinematic turbulent dynamo action is studied in the regime of small magnetic Prandtl numbers. Such a regime is relevant for planets and stars interiors, as well as for liquid-metal laboratory experiments. A comprehensive analysis based on the Kazantsev-Kraichnan model is reported, which establishes the dynamo threshold and the dynamo growth rates for varying kinetic helicity of turbulent fluctuations. It is proposed that in contrast with the case of large magnetic Prandtl numbers, the kinematic dynamo action at small magnetic Prandtl numbers is significantly affected by kinetic helicity, and it can be made quite efficient with an appropriate choice of the helicity spectrum.

  3. Dissociable intrinsic functional networks support noun-object and verb-action processing.

    PubMed

    Yang, Huichao; Lin, Qixiang; Han, Zaizhu; Li, Hongyu; Song, Luping; Chen, Lingjuan; He, Yong; Bi, Yanchao

    2017-12-01

    The processing mechanism of verbs-actions and nouns-objects is a central topic of language research, with robust evidence for behavioral dissociation. The neural basis for these two major word and/or conceptual classes, however, remains controversial. Two experiments were conducted to study this question from the network perspective. Experiment 1 found that nodes of the same class, obtained through task-evoked brain imaging meta-analyses, were more strongly connected with each other than nodes of different classes during resting-state, forming segregated network modules. Experiment 2 examined the behavioral relevance of these intrinsic networks using data from 88 brain-damaged patients, finding that across patients the relative strength of functional connectivity of the two networks significantly correlated with the noun-object vs. verb-action relative behavioral performances. In summary, we found that verbs-actions and nouns-objects are supported by separable intrinsic functional networks and that the integrity of such networks accounts for the relative noun-object- and verb-action-selective deficits. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  4. "Wuwei" (Non-Action) Philosophy and Actions: Rethinking "Actions" in School Reform

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Moon, Seungho

    2015-01-01

    This inquiry aims to enrich conversation regarding school reform. The author asks about what other discourses are possible when the action-oriented question of how to "act" is a major approach to "fix" current educational problems. Drawing from Taoist philosophy of "wuwei" (non-action), the author provides a frame to…

  5. Temporal and Fine-Grained Pedestrian Action Recognition on Driving Recorder Database

    PubMed Central

    Satoh, Yutaka; Aoki, Yoshimitsu; Oikawa, Shoko; Matsui, Yasuhiro

    2018-01-01

    The paper presents an emerging issue of fine-grained pedestrian action recognition that induces an advanced pre-crush safety to estimate a pedestrian intention in advance. The fine-grained pedestrian actions include visually slight differences (e.g., walking straight and crossing), which are difficult to distinguish from each other. It is believed that the fine-grained action recognition induces a pedestrian intention estimation for a helpful advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS). The following difficulties have been studied to achieve a fine-grained and accurate pedestrian action recognition: (i) In order to analyze the fine-grained motion of a pedestrian appearance in the vehicle-mounted drive recorder, a method to describe subtle change of motion characteristics occurring in a short time is necessary; (ii) even when the background moves greatly due to the driving of the vehicle, it is necessary to detect changes in subtle motion of the pedestrian; (iii) the collection of large-scale fine-grained actions is very difficult, and therefore a relatively small database should be focused. We find out how to learn an effective recognition model with only a small-scale database. Here, we have thoroughly evaluated several types of configurations to explore an effective approach in fine-grained pedestrian action recognition without a large-scale database. Moreover, two different datasets have been collected in order to raise the issue. Finally, our proposal attained 91.01% on National Traffic Science and Environment Laboratory database (NTSEL) and 53.23% on the near-miss driving recorder database (NDRDB). The paper has improved +8.28% and +6.53% from baseline two-stream fusion convnets. PMID:29461473

  6. Tip60 HAT Action Mediates Environmental Enrichment Induced Cognitive Restoration

    PubMed Central

    Xu, Songjun; Panikker, Priyalakshmi; Iqbal, Sahira; Elefant, Felice

    2016-01-01

    Environmental enrichment (EE) conditions have beneficial effects for reinstating cognitive ability in neuropathological disorders like Alzheimer’s disease (AD). While EE benefits involve epigenetic gene control mechanisms that comprise histone acetylation, the histone acetyltransferases (HATs) involved remain largely unknown. Here, we examine a role for Tip60 HAT action in mediating activity- dependent beneficial neuroadaptations to EE using the Drosophila CNS mushroom body (MB) as a well-characterized cognition model. We show that flies raised under EE conditions display enhanced MB axonal outgrowth, synaptic marker protein production, histone acetylation induction and transcriptional activation of cognition linked genes when compared to their genotypically identical siblings raised under isolated conditions. Further, these beneficial changes are impaired in both Tip60 HAT mutant flies and APP neurodegenerative flies. While EE conditions provide some beneficial neuroadaptive changes in the APP neurodegenerative fly MB, such positive changes are significantly enhanced by increasing MB Tip60 HAT levels. Our results implicate Tip60 as a critical mediator of EE-induced benefits, and provide broad insights into synergistic behavioral and epigenetic based therapeutic approaches for treatment of cognitive disorder. PMID:27454757

  7. Probability based remaining capacity estimation using data-driven and neural network model

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Yujie; Yang, Duo; Zhang, Xu; Chen, Zonghai

    2016-05-01

    Since large numbers of lithium-ion batteries are composed in pack and the batteries are complex electrochemical devices, their monitoring and safety concerns are key issues for the applications of battery technology. An accurate estimation of battery remaining capacity is crucial for optimization of the vehicle control, preventing battery from over-charging and over-discharging and ensuring the safety during its service life. The remaining capacity estimation of a battery includes the estimation of state-of-charge (SOC) and state-of-energy (SOE). In this work, a probability based adaptive estimator is presented to obtain accurate and reliable estimation results for both SOC and SOE. For the SOC estimation, an n ordered RC equivalent circuit model is employed by combining an electrochemical model to obtain more accurate voltage prediction results. For the SOE estimation, a sliding window neural network model is proposed to investigate the relationship between the terminal voltage and the model inputs. To verify the accuracy and robustness of the proposed model and estimation algorithm, experiments under different dynamic operation current profiles are performed on the commercial 1665130-type lithium-ion batteries. The results illustrate that accurate and robust estimation can be obtained by the proposed method.

  8. "Recent" macrofossil remains from the Lomonosov Ridge, central Arctic Ocean

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Le Duc, Cynthia; de Vernal, Anne; Archambault, Philippe; Brice, Camille; Roberge, Philippe

    2016-04-01

    The examination of surface sediment samples collected from 17 sites along the Lomonosov Ridge at water depths ranging from 737 to 3339 meters during Polarstern Expedition PS87 in 2014 (Stein, 2015), indicates a rich biogenic content almost exclusively dominated by calcareous remains. Amongst biogenic remains, microfossils (planktic and benthic foraminifers, pteropods, ostracods, etc.) dominate but millimetric to centrimetric macrofossils occurred frequently at the surface of the sediment. The macrofossil remains consist of a large variety of taxa, including gastropods, bivalvia, polychaete tubes, scaphopods, echinoderm plates and spines, and fish otoliths. Among the Bivalvia, the most abundant taxa are Portlandia arctica, Hyalopecten frigidus, Cuspidaria glacilis, Policordia densicostata, Bathyarca spp., and Yoldiella spp. Whereas a few specimens are well preserved and apparently pristine, most mollusk shells displayed extensive alteration features. Moreover, most shells were covered by millimeter scale tubes of the serpulid polychaete Spirorbis sp. suggesting transport from low intertidal or subtidal zone. Both the ecological affinity and known geographic distribution of identified bivalvia as named above support the hypothesis of transportation rather than local development. In addition to mollusk shells, more than a hundred fish otoliths were recovered in surface sediments. The otoliths mostly belong to the Gadidae family. Most of them are well preserved and without serpulid tubes attached to their surface, suggesting a local/regional origin, unlike the shell remains. Although recovered at the surface, the macrofaunal assemblages of the Lomonosov Ridge do not necessarily represent the "modern" environments as they may result from reworking and because their occurrence at the surface of the sediment may also be due to winnowing of finer particles. Although the shells were not dated, we suspect that their actual ages may range from modern to several thousands of

  9. Components of action potential repolarization in cerebellar parallel fibres.

    PubMed

    Pekala, Dobromila; Baginskas, Armantas; Szkudlarek, Hanna J; Raastad, Morten

    2014-11-15

    Repolarization of the presynaptic action potential is essential for transmitter release, excitability and energy expenditure. Little is known about repolarization in thin, unmyelinated axons forming en passant synapses, which represent the most common type of axons in the mammalian brain's grey matter.We used rat cerebellar parallel fibres, an example of typical grey matter axons, to investigate the effects of K(+) channel blockers on repolarization. We show that repolarization is composed of a fast tetraethylammonium (TEA)-sensitive component, determining the width and amplitude of the spike, and a slow margatoxin (MgTX)-sensitive depolarized after-potential (DAP). These two components could be recorded at the granule cell soma as antidromic action potentials and from the axons with a newly developed miniaturized grease-gap method. A considerable proportion of fast repolarization remained in the presence of TEA, MgTX, or both. This residual was abolished by the addition of quinine. The importance of proper control of fast repolarization was demonstrated by somatic recordings of antidromic action potentials. In these experiments, the relatively broad K(+) channel blocker 4-aminopyridine reduced the fast repolarization, resulting in bursts of action potentials forming on top of the DAP. We conclude that repolarization of the action potential in parallel fibres is supported by at least three groups of K(+) channels. Differences in their temporal profiles allow relatively independent control of the spike and the DAP, whereas overlap of their temporal profiles provides robust control of axonal bursting properties.

  10. Remaining Sites Verification Package for the 1607-F7, 141-M Building Septic Tank, Waste Site Reclassification Form 2006-040

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    L. M. Dittmer

    2006-10-19

    The 1607-F7, 141-M Building Septic Tank waste site was a septic tank and drain field that received sanitary sewage from the former 141-M Building. Remedial action was performed in August and November 2005. The results of verification sampling demonstrate that residual contaminant concentrations support future unrestricted land uses that can be represented by a rural-residential scenario. These results also show that residual concentrations support unrestricted future use of shallow zone soil and that contaminant levels remaining in the soil are protective of groundwater and the Columbia River.

  11. Neural evidence for the intrinsic value of action as motivation for behavior.

    PubMed

    Miura, Naoki; Tanabe, Hiroki C; Sasaki, Akihiro T; Harada, Tokiko; Sadato, Norihiro

    2017-06-03

    The intrinsic value of an action refers to the inherent sense that experiencing a behavior is enjoyable even if it has no explicit outcome. Previous research has suggested that a common valuation mechanism within the reward network may be responsible for processing the intrinsic value of achieving both the outcome and external rewards. However, how the intrinsic value of action is neurally represented remains unknown. We hypothesized that the intrinsic value of action is determined by an action-outcome contingency indicating the behavior is controllable and that the outcome of the action can be evaluated by this feedback. Consequently, the reward network should be activated, reflecting the generation of the intrinsic value of action. To test this hypothesis, we conducted a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) investigation of a stopwatch game in which the action-outcome contingency was manipulated. This experiment involved 36 healthy volunteers and four versions of a stopwatch game that manipulated controllability (the feeling that participants were controlling the stopwatch themselves) and outcome (a signal allowing participants to see the result of their action). A free-choice experiment was administered after the fMRI to explore preference levels for each game. The results showed that the stopwatch game with the action-outcome contingency evoked a greater degree of enjoyment because the participants chose this condition over those that lacked such a contingency. The ventral striatum and midbrain were activated only when action-outcome contingency was present. Thus, the intrinsic value of action was represented by an increase in ventral striatal and midbrain activation. Copyright © 2017 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. Disentangling representations of shape and action components in the tool network.

    PubMed

    Wang, Xiaoying; Zhuang, Tonghe; Shen, Jiasi; Bi, Yanchao

    2018-05-30

    Shape and how they should be used are two key components of our knowledge about tools. Viewing tools preferentially activated a frontoparietal and occipitotemporal network, with dorsal regions implicated in computation of tool-related actions and ventral areas in shape representation. As shape and manners of manipulation are highly correlated for daily tools, whether they are independently represented in different regions remains inconclusive. In the current study, we collected fMRI data when participants viewed blocks of pictures of four daily tools (i.e., paintbrush, corkscrew, screwdriver, razor) where shape and action (manner of manipulation for functional use) were orthogonally manipulated, to tease apart these two dimensions. Behavioral similarity judgments tapping on object shape and finer aspects of actions (i.e., manners of motion, magnitude of arm movement, configuration of hand) were also collected to further disentangle the representation of object shape and different action components. Information analysis and representational similarity analysis were conducted on regional neural activation patterns of the tool-preferring network. In both analyses, the bilateral lateral occipitotemporal cortex showed robust shape representations but could not effectively distinguish between tool-use actions. The frontal and precentral regions represented kinematic action components, whereas the left parietal region (in information analyses) exhibited coding of both shape and tool-use action. By teasing apart shape and action components, we found both dissociation and association of them within the tool network. Taken together, our study disentangles representations for object shape from finer tool-use action components in the tool network, revealing the potential dissociable roles different tool-preferring regions play in tool processing. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. Two Equals One: Two Human Actions During Social Interaction Are Grouped as One Unit in Working Memory.

    PubMed

    Ding, Xiaowei; Gao, Zaifeng; Shen, Mowei

    2017-09-01

    Every day, people perceive other people performing interactive actions. Retaining these actions of human agents in working memory (WM) plays a pivotal role in a normal social life. However, whether the semantic knowledge embedded in the interactive actions has a pervasive impact on the storage of the actions in WM remains unknown. In the current study, we investigated two opposing hypotheses: (a) that WM stores the interactions individually (the individual-storage hypothesis) and (b) that WM stores the interactions as chunks (the chunk-storage hypothesis). We required participants to memorize a set of individual actions while ignoring the underlying social interactions. We found that although the social-interaction aspect was task irrelevant, the interactive actions were stored in WM as chunks that were not affected by memory load (Experiments 1 and 2); however, inverting the human actions vertically abolished this chunking effect (Experiment 3). These results suggest that WM automatically and efficiently used semantic knowledge about interactive actions to store them and support the chunk-storage hypothesis.

  14. Determining the mode of action of anti-mycobacterial C17 diyne natural products using expression profiling: evidence for fatty acid biosynthesis inhibition.

    PubMed

    Li, Haoxin; Cowie, Andrew; Johnson, John A; Webster, Duncan; Martyniuk, Christopher J; Gray, Christopher A

    2016-08-11

    The treatment of microbial infections is becoming increasingly challenging because of limited therapeutic options and the growing number of pathogenic strains that are resistant to current antibiotics. There is an urgent need to identify molecules with novel modes of action to facilitate the development of new and more effective therapeutic agents. The anti-mycobacterial activity of the C17 diyne natural products falcarinol and panaxydol has been described previously; however, their mode of action remains largely undetermined in microbes. Gene expression profiling was therefore used to determine the transcriptomic response of Mycobacterium smegmatis upon treatment with falcarinol and panaxydol to better characterize the mode of action of these C17 diynes. Our analyses identified 704 and 907 transcripts that were differentially expressed in M. smegmatis after treatment with falcarinol and panaxydol respectively. Principal component analysis suggested that the C17 diynes exhibit a mode of action that is distinct to commonly used antimycobacterial drugs. Functional enrichment analysis and pathway enrichment analysis revealed that cell processes such as ectoine biosynthesis and cyclopropane-fatty-acyl-phospholipid synthesis were responsive to falcarinol and panaxydol treatment at the transcriptome level in M. smegmatis. The modes of action of the two C17 diynes were also predicted through Prediction of Activity Spectra of Substances (PASS). Based upon convergence of these three independent analyses, we hypothesize that the C17 diynes inhibit fatty acid biosynthesis, specifically phospholipid synthesis, in mycobacteria. Based on transcriptomic responses, it is suggested that the C17 diynes act differently than other anti-mycobacterial compounds in M. smegmatis, and do so by inhibiting phospholipid biosynthesis.

  15. Influence of finger and mouth action observation on random number generation: an instance of embodied cognition for abstract concepts.

    PubMed

    Grade, Stéphane; Badets, Arnaud; Pesenti, Mauro

    2017-05-01

    Numerical magnitude and specific grasping action processing have been shown to interfere with each other because some aspects of numerical meaning may be grounded in sensorimotor transformation mechanisms linked to finger grip control. However, how specific these interactions are to grasping actions is still unknown. The present study tested the specificity of the number-grip relationship by investigating how the observation of different closing-opening stimuli that might or not refer to prehension-releasing actions was able to influence a random number generation task. Participants had to randomly produce numbers after they observed action stimuli representing either closure or aperture of the fingers, the hand or the mouth, or a colour change used as a control condition. Random number generation was influenced by the prior presentation of finger grip actions, whereby observing a closing finger grip led participants to produce small rather than large numbers, whereas observing an opening finger grip led them to produce large rather than small numbers. Hand actions had reduced or no influence on number production; mouth action influence was restricted to opening, with an overproduction of large numbers. Finally, colour changes did not influence number generation. These results show that some characteristics of observed finger, hand and mouth grip actions automatically prime number magnitude, with the strongest effect for finger grasping. The findings are discussed in terms of the functional and neural mechanisms shared between hand actions and number processing, but also between hand and mouth actions. The present study provides converging evidence that part of number semantics is grounded in sensory-motor mechanisms.

  16. A Common Force-Sharing Pattern in Joint Action That Consists of Four People.

    PubMed

    Masumoto, Junya; Inui, Nobuyuki

    2017-12-20

    The authors examined the force-sharing patterns in a joint action performed by a group of two, three, or four people compared with a solo action. In the joint actions, 28 participants produced periodic isometric forces such that the sum of forces they produced cycled between 5% and 10% maximum voluntary contraction with the right hand at 1 Hz. In both the three- and four-person tasks, the correlation between forces produced by two of the three or four participants was negative, and the remaining one or two participants produced intermediate forces. The errors of force and interval and force variabilities were smaller in four- and three-people groups than individuals. Four- and three-people groups thus performed better than individuals.

  17. Action Monitoring Cortical Activity Coupled to Submovements

    PubMed Central

    Sobolewski, Aleksander

    2017-01-01

    Numerous studies have examined neural correlates of the human brain’s action-monitoring system during experimentally segmented tasks. However, it remains unknown how such a system operates during continuous motor output when no experimental time marker is available (such as button presses or stimulus onset). We set out to investigate the electrophysiological correlates of action monitoring when hand position has to be repeatedly monitored and corrected. For this, we recorded high-density electroencephalography (EEG) during a visuomotor tracking task during which participants had to follow a target with the mouse cursor along a visible trajectory. By decomposing hand kinematics into naturally occurring periodic submovements, we found an event-related potential (ERP) time-locked to these submovements and localized in a sensorimotor cortical network comprising the supplementary motor area (SMA) and the precentral gyrus. Critically, the amplitude of the ERP correlated with the deviation of the cursor, 110 ms before the submovement. Control analyses showed that this correlation was truly due to the cursor deviation and not to differences in submovement kinematics or to the visual content of the task. The ERP closely resembled those found in response to mismatch events in typical cognitive neuroscience experiments. Our results demonstrate the existence of a cortical process in the SMA, evaluating hand position in synchrony with submovements. These findings suggest a functional role of submovements in a sensorimotor loop of periodic monitoring and correction and generalize previous results from the field of action monitoring to cases where action has to be repeatedly monitored. PMID:29071301

  18. Inferences about Action Engage Action Systems

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Taylor, Lawrence J.; Lev-Ari, Shiri; Zwaan, Rolf A.

    2008-01-01

    Verbal descriptions of actions activate compatible motor responses [Glenberg, A. M., & Kaschak, M. P. (2002). Grounding language in action. "Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 9", 558-565]. Previous studies have found that the motor processes for manual rotation are engaged in a direction-specific manner when a verb disambiguates the direction of…

  19. As the pendulum swings--medical products class actions litigation in Canada: recent developments.

    PubMed

    Pliszka, Peter J; Armstrong, Sarah J

    2013-03-01

    During the relatively short history of class proceedings in Canada, developers and manufacturers of medical devices and pharmaceuticals ("medical products"), including medical products designed for patients with diabetes, have found themselves at the receiving end of a significant number of class action claims. As a result, medical products litigation has become the battleground for some of the most significant developments in Canadian class actions law. This article provides a broad overview of some of the most significant developments. The authors pay particular attention to developments regarding the test for class action certification and consider whether high-profile dismissals of certification motions represent a trend toward raising the threshold for plaintiffs seeking to obtain certification of a proposed class action. The authors also consider a decision arising out of a lengthy class action common issues trial in which the medical device company was victorious. In the authors' view, the class action pendulum in Canada, particularly as it relates to medical products claims, remains in motion. It behooves all affected players to keep their eye on this ball with rapt attention to see where it may move next. © 2013 Diabetes Technology Society.

  20. Recognizing human actions by learning and matching shape-motion prototype trees.

    PubMed

    Jiang, Zhuolin; Lin, Zhe; Davis, Larry S

    2012-03-01

    A shape-motion prototype-based approach is introduced for action recognition. The approach represents an action as a sequence of prototypes for efficient and flexible action matching in long video sequences. During training, an action prototype tree is learned in a joint shape and motion space via hierarchical K-means clustering and each training sequence is represented as a labeled prototype sequence; then a look-up table of prototype-to-prototype distances is generated. During testing, based on a joint probability model of the actor location and action prototype, the actor is tracked while a frame-to-prototype correspondence is established by maximizing the joint probability, which is efficiently performed by searching the learned prototype tree; then actions are recognized using dynamic prototype sequence matching. Distance measures used for sequence matching are rapidly obtained by look-up table indexing, which is an order of magnitude faster than brute-force computation of frame-to-frame distances. Our approach enables robust action matching in challenging situations (such as moving cameras, dynamic backgrounds) and allows automatic alignment of action sequences. Experimental results demonstrate that our approach achieves recognition rates of 92.86 percent on a large gesture data set (with dynamic backgrounds), 100 percent on the Weizmann action data set, 95.77 percent on the KTH action data set, 88 percent on the UCF sports data set, and 87.27 percent on the CMU action data set.

  1. Action, outcome, and value: a dual-system framework for morality.

    PubMed

    Cushman, Fiery

    2013-08-01

    Dual-system approaches to psychology explain the fundamental properties of human judgment, decision making, and behavior across diverse domains. Yet, the appropriate characterization of each system is a source of debate. For instance, a large body of research on moral psychology makes use of the contrast between "emotional" and "rational/cognitive" processes, yet even the chief proponents of this division recognize its shortcomings. Largely independently, research in the computational neurosciences has identified a broad division between two algorithms for learning and choice derived from formal models of reinforcement learning. One assigns value to actions intrinsically based on past experience, while another derives representations of value from an internally represented causal model of the world. This division between action- and outcome-based value representation provides an ideal framework for a dual-system theory in the moral domain.

  2. Taking Action on Air Pollution Control in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (BTH) Region: Progress, Challenges and Opportunities

    PubMed Central

    Wang, Li; Zhang, Fengying; Pilot, Eva; Yu, Jie; Holdaway, Jennifer; Yang, Linsheng; Li, Yonghua; Wang, Wuyi; Vardoulakis, Sotiris; Krafft, Thomas

    2018-01-01

    Due to rapid urbanization, industrialization and motorization, a large number of Chinese cities are affected by heavy air pollution. In order to explore progress, remaining challenges, and sustainability of air pollution control in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (BTH) region after 2013, a mixed method analysis was undertaken. The quantitative analysis comprised an overview of air quality management in the BTH region. Semi-structured expert interviews were conducted with 12 stakeholders from various levels of government and research institutions who played substantial roles either in decision-making or in research and advising on air pollution control in the BTH region. The results indicated that with the stringent air pollution control policies, the air quality in BTH meets the targets of the Air Pollution Prevention and Control Action Plan. However, improvements vary across the region and for different pollutants. Although implementation has been decisive and was at least in parts effectively enforced, significant challenges remained with regard to industrial and traffic emission control, and national air quality limits continued to be significantly exceeded and competing development interests remained mainly unsolved. There were also concerns about the sustainability of the current air pollution control measures especially for industries due to the top-down enforcement, and the associated large burden of social cost including unemployment and social inequity resulting industrial restructuring. Better mechanisms for ensuring cross-sectoral coordination and for improved central-local government communication were suggested. Further suggestions were provided to improve the conceptual design and effective implementation of respective air pollution control strategies in BTH. Our study highlights some of the major hurdles that need to be addressed to succeed with a comprehensive air pollution control management for the Chinese mega-urban agglomerations. PMID:29425189

  3. Taking Action on Air Pollution Control in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (BTH) Region: Progress, Challenges and Opportunities.

    PubMed

    Wang, Li; Zhang, Fengying; Pilot, Eva; Yu, Jie; Nie, Chengjing; Holdaway, Jennifer; Yang, Linsheng; Li, Yonghua; Wang, Wuyi; Vardoulakis, Sotiris; Krafft, Thomas

    2018-02-09

    Due to rapid urbanization, industrialization and motorization, a large number of Chinese cities are affected by heavy air pollution. In order to explore progress, remaining challenges, and sustainability of air pollution control in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (BTH) region after 2013, a mixed method analysis was undertaken. The quantitative analysis comprised an overview of air quality management in the BTH region. Semi-structured expert interviews were conducted with 12 stakeholders from various levels of government and research institutions who played substantial roles either in decision-making or in research and advising on air pollution control in the BTH region. The results indicated that with the stringent air pollution control policies, the air quality in BTH meets the targets of the Air Pollution Prevention and Control Action Plan. However, improvements vary across the region and for different pollutants. Although implementation has been decisive and was at least in parts effectively enforced, significant challenges remained with regard to industrial and traffic emission control, and national air quality limits continued to be significantly exceeded and competing development interests remained mainly unsolved. There were also concerns about the sustainability of the current air pollution control measures especially for industries due to the top-down enforcement, and the associated large burden of social cost including unemployment and social inequity resulting industrial restructuring. Better mechanisms for ensuring cross-sectoral coordination and for improved central-local government communication were suggested. Further suggestions were provided to improve the conceptual design and effective implementation of respective air pollution control strategies in BTH. Our study highlights some of the major hurdles that need to be addressed to succeed with a comprehensive air pollution control management for the Chinese mega-urban agglomerations.

  4. Actions, Objectives & Concerns. Human Parameters for Architectural Design.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lasswell, Thomas E.; And Others

    An experiment conducted at California State College, Los Angeles, to test the value of social-psychological research in defining building needs is described. The problems of how to identify and synthesize the disparate objectives, concerns and actions of the groups who use or otherwise have an interest in large and complex buildings is discussed.…

  5. Does the intention to communicate affect action kinematics?

    PubMed

    Sartori, Luisa; Becchio, Cristina; Bara, Bruno G; Castiello, Umberto

    2009-09-01

    The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of communicative intention on action. In Experiment 1 participants were requested to reach towards an object, grasp it, and either simply lift it (individual condition) or lift it with the intent to communicate a meaning to a partner (communicative condition). Movement kinematics were recorded using a three-dimensional motion analysis system. The results indicate that kinematics was sensitive to communicative intention. Although the to-be-grasped object remained the same, movements performed for the 'communicative' condition were characterized by a kinematic pattern which differed from those obtained for the 'individual' condition. These findings were confirmed in a subsequent experiment in which the communicative condition was compared to a control condition, in which the communicative exchange was prevented. Results are discussed in terms of cognitive pragmatics and current knowledge on how social behavior shapes action kinematics.

  6. Power and action in critical theory across disciplines: implications for critical community psychology.

    PubMed

    Davidson, Heather; Evans, Scot; Ganote, Cynthia; Henrickson, Jorie; Jacobs-Priebe, Lynette; Jones, Diana L; Prilleltensky, Isaac; Riemer, Manuel

    2006-09-01

    Although critical scholarship and community psychology share similar aspirations, the links between them remain unexplored and under-theorized. In this article we explore the implications of critical scholarship in various specialties for the field of community psychology. To understand the contributions of critical scholarship to a theory of power and action for social change, we conducted a systematic analysis of a ten-year period of publications in seven journals associated with the critical scholarship tradition. We created precise criteria for the concepts of power and action and applied them to the publications. Results indicate an interesting paradox at play. Whereas community psychology is more action oriented than critical scholarship, its actions fall short of challenging institutionalized power structures and the status quo; and whereas critical scholarship is more challenging of the status quo than community psychology in theory, it has failed to produce viable actions that challenge the status quo. We discuss the implications of this state of affairs for the development of a more critical community psychology.

  7. Upper Palaeolithic ritualistic cannibalism at Gough's Cave (Somerset, UK): The human remains from head to toe.

    PubMed

    Bello, Silvia M; Saladié, Palmira; Cáceres, Isabel; Rodríguez-Hidalgo, Antonio; Parfitt, Simon A

    2015-05-01

    A recurring theme of late Upper Palaeolithic Magdalenian human bone assemblages is the remarkable rarity of primary burials and the common occurrence of highly-fragmentary human remains mixed with occupation waste at many sites. One of the most extensive Magdalenian human bone assemblages comes from Gough's Cave, a sizeable limestone cave set in Cheddar Gorge (Somerset), UK. After its discovery in the 1880s, the site was developed as a show cave and largely emptied of sediment, at times with minimal archaeological supervision. Some of the last surviving remnants of sediment within the cave were excavated between 1986 and 1992. The excavations uncovered intensively-processed human bones intermingled with abundant butchered large mammal remains and a diverse range of flint, bone, antler, and ivory artefacts. New ultrafiltrated radiocarbon determinations demonstrate that the Upper Palaeolithic human remains were deposited over a very short period of time, possibly during a series of seasonal occupations, about 14,700 years BP (before present). The human remains have been the subject of several taphonomic studies, culminating in a detailed reanalysis of the cranial remains that showed they had been carefully modified to make skull-cups. Our present analysis of the postcrania has identified a far greater degree of human modification than recorded in earlier studies. We identify extensive evidence for defleshing, disarticulation, chewing, crushing of spongy bone, and the cracking of bones to extract marrow. The presence of human tooth marks on many of the postcranial bones provides incontrovertible evidence for cannibalism. In a wider context, the treatment of the human corpses and the manufacture and use of skull-cups at Gough Cave have parallels with other Magdalenian sites in central and western Europe. This suggests that cannibalism during the Magdalenian was part of a customary mortuary practice that combined intensive processing and consumption of the bodies with

  8. The action of 5-hydroxytryptamine and some of its antagonists on the umbilical vessels of the human placenta

    PubMed Central

    Åström, A.; Samelius, U.

    1957-01-01

    The vasoconstrictor action of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) in the human placental preparation is about 10 times stronger than that of adrenaline and is antagonized by anti-adrenaline compounds like phentolamine. Both 5-HT and adrenaline are antagonized by yohimbine and chlorpromazine. Specific and strong anti-5-HT action is demonstrated for lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) and tryptamine. Both LSD and tryptamine in larger doses have a vasoconstrictor action. Mescaline has no certain modifying effect on the action of 5-HT, but itself causes vasoconstriction in large doses. The antihistamine drug phenbenzamine in histamine blocking doses abolishes the action of 5-HT in half the preparations tested. The ganglionic blocking agent trimetaphan in large doses antagonizes the action of 5-HT added subsequently, and also, to a lesser degree, the effect of adrenaline. Hexamethonium and tetraethylammonium bromides are ineffective in this preparation. No certain modifying action of reserpine on subsequently added 5-HT could be demonstrated, and the same was true for heparin even in very high concentrations. PMID:13489166

  9. Corrective Action Investigation Plan for Corrective Action Unit 224: Decon Pad and Septic Systems Nevada Test Site, Nevada, Rev. No.: 0, with ROTC 1 and 2

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    David A. Strand

    This Corrective Action Investigation Plan (CAIP) contains project-specific information including facility descriptions, environmental sample collection objectives, and criteria for conducting site investigation activities at Corrective Action Unit (CAU) 224: Decon Pad and Septic Systems, Nevada Test Site (NTS), Nevada. This CAIP has been developed in accordance with the ''Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order'' (FFACO) (1996) that was agreed to by the State of Nevada, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). The NTS is approximately 65 miles (mi) northwest of Las Vegas, Nevada (Figure 1-1). Corrective Action Unit 224 is comprised of themore » nine Corrective Action Sites (CASs) listed below: 02-04-01, Septic Tank (Buried); 03-05-01, Leachfield; 05-04-01, Septic Tanks (4)/Discharge Area; 06-03-01, Sewage Lagoons (3); 06-05-01, Leachfield; 06-17-04, Decon Pad and Wastewater Catch; 06-23-01, Decon Pad Discharge Piping; 11-04-01, Sewage Lagoon; and 23-05-02, Leachfield. Corrective Action Sites 06-05-01, 06-23-01, and 23-05-02 were identified in the 1991 Reynolds Electrical & Engineering Co., Inc. (REECo) inventory (1991). The remaining sites were identified during review of various historical documents. Additional information will be obtained by conducting a corrective action investigation (CAI) prior to evaluating and selecting a corrective action alternative for each CAS. The CAI will include field inspections, radiological and geological surveys, and sample collection. Data will also be obtained to support investigation-derived waste (IDW) disposal and potential future waste management decisions.« less

  10. Ultrasonic Measurements of Bore Temperature in Large Caliber Guns

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yuhas, Donald E.; Mutton, Mark J.; Remiasz, Jack R.; Vorres, Carol L.

    2009-03-01

    The Navy has a need to measure temperatures at critical areas on large caliber gun inner bore surfaces to insure appropriate action is taken in case of a misfire. Inappropriate actions could result in the loss of life and the disabling of a naval warship. In this report we describe the development of an ultrasonic-based sensor capable of non-intrusively measuring internal bore temperature. The results obtained during live fire field trials will be presented.

  11. Do good actions inspire good actions in others?

    PubMed

    Capraro, Valerio; Marcelletti, Alessandra

    2014-12-12

    Actions such as sharing food and cooperating to reach a common goal have played a fundamental role in the evolution of human societies. Despite the importance of such good actions, little is known about if and how they can spread from person to person to person. For instance, does being recipient of an altruistic act increase your probability of being cooperative with a third party? We have conducted an experiment on Amazon Mechanical Turk to test this mechanism using economic games. We have measured willingness to be cooperative through a standard Prisoner's dilemma and willingness to act altruistically using a binary Dictator game. In the baseline treatments, the endowments needed to play were given by the experimenters, as usual; in the control treatments, they came from a good action made by someone else. Across four different comparisons and a total of 572 subjects, we have never found a significant increase of cooperation or altruism when the endowment came from a good action. We conclude that good actions do not necessarily inspire good actions in others. While this is consistent with the theoretical prediction, it challenges the majority of other experimental studies.

  12. State and location dependence of action potential metabolic cost in cortical pyramidal neurons.

    PubMed

    Hallermann, Stefan; de Kock, Christiaan P J; Stuart, Greg J; Kole, Maarten H P

    2012-06-03

    Action potential generation and conduction requires large quantities of energy to restore Na(+) and K(+) ion gradients. We investigated the subcellular location and voltage dependence of this metabolic cost in rat neocortical pyramidal neurons. Using Na(+)/K(+) charge overlap as a measure of action potential energy efficiency, we found that action potential initiation in the axon initial segment (AIS) and forward propagation into the axon were energetically inefficient, depending on the resting membrane potential. In contrast, action potential backpropagation into dendrites was efficient. Computer simulations predicted that, although the AIS and nodes of Ranvier had the highest metabolic cost per membrane area, action potential backpropagation into the dendrites and forward propagation into axon collaterals dominated energy consumption in cortical pyramidal neurons. Finally, we found that the high metabolic cost of action potential initiation and propagation down the axon is a trade-off between energy minimization and maximization of the conduction reliability of high-frequency action potentials.

  13. All That Remains of Exploded Star

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2011-10-24

    Infrared images from NASA Spitzer Space Telescope and Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer are combined in this image of RCW 86, the dusty remains of the oldest documented example of an exploding star, or supernova.

  14. Climate Action Team

    Science.gov Websites

    Science Partnerships Contact Us Climate Action Team & Climate Action Initiative The Climate Action . See CAT reports Climate Action Team Pages CAT Home Members Working Groups Reports Back to Top

  15. Update on the mechanism of action of antiepileptic drugs.

    PubMed

    Meldrum, B S

    1996-01-01

    Novel antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) are thought to act on voltage-sensitive ion channels, on inhibitory neurotransmission or on excitatory neurotransmission. Two successful examples of rational AED design that potentiate GABA-mediated inhibition are vigabatrin (VGB) by irreversible inhibition of GABA-transaminase, and tiagabine (TGB) by blocking GABA uptake. Lamotrigine (LTG) prolongs inactivation of voltage-dependent sodium channels. The anticonvulsant action of remacemide (RCM) is probably largely due to blockade of NMDA receptors and prolonged inactivation of sodium channels induced by its desglycinated metabolite. Felbamate (FBM) apparently blocks NMDA receptors, potentiates GABA-mediated responses, blocks L-type calcium channels, and possibly also prolongs sodium channel inactivation. Similarly, topiramate (TPM) has multiple probable sites of action, including sodium channels, GABA receptors, and glutamate (AMPA) receptors. Gabapentin (GBP) apparently has a completely novel type of action, probably involving potentiation of GABA-mediated inhibition and possibly also inactivation of sodium channels. The therapeutic advantages of the novel AEDs are as yet only partially explained by our present understanding of their mechanisms of action.

  16. Corrective Action Decision Document/Closure Report for Corrective Action Unit 561: Waste Disposal Areas, Nevada National Security Site, Nevada, Revision 0

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Mark Krauss

    2011-08-01

    CAU 561 comprises 10 CASs: (1) 01-19-01, Waste Dump; (2) 02-08-02, Waste Dump and Burn Area; (3) 03-19-02, Debris Pile; (4) 05-62-01, Radioactive Gravel Pile; (5) 12-23-09, Radioactive Waste Dump; (6) 22-19-06, Buried Waste Disposal Site; (7) 23-21-04, Waste Disposal Trenches ; (8) 25-08-02, Waste Dump; (9) 25-23-21, Radioactive Waste Dump; and (10) 25-25-19, Hydrocarbon Stains and Trench. The purpose of this CADD/CR is to provide justification and documentation supporting the recommendation for closure of CAU 561 with no further corrective action. The purpose of the CAI was to fulfill the following data needs as defined during the DQO process:more » (1) Determine whether COCs are present; (2) If COCs are present, determine their nature and extent; and (3) Provide sufficient information and data to complete appropriate corrective actions. The following contaminants were determined to be present at concentrations exceeding their corresponding FALs: (1) No contamination exceeding FALs was identified at CASs 01-19-01, 03-19-02, 05-62-01, 12-23-09, and 22-19-06. (2) The surface and subsurface soil within the burn area at CAS 02-08-02 contains arsenic and lead above the FALs of 23 milligrams per kilogram (mg/kg) and 800 mg/kg, respectively. The surface and subsurface soil within the burn area also contains melted lead slag (potential source material [PSM]). The soil within the waste piles contains polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) above the FALs. The contamination within the burn area is spread throughout the area, as it was not feasible to remove all the PSM (melted lead), while at the waste piles, the contamination is confined to the piles. (3) The surface and subsurface soils within Trenches 3 and 5 at CAS 23-21-04 contain arsenic and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) above the FALs of 23 mg/kg and 0.74 mg/kg, respectively. The soil was removed from both trenches, and the soil that remains at this CAS does not contain contamination exceeding the FALs. Lead bricks and

  17. Neural and Computational Mechanisms of Action Processing: Interaction between Visual and Motor Representations.

    PubMed

    Giese, Martin A; Rizzolatti, Giacomo

    2015-10-07

    Action recognition has received enormous interest in the field of neuroscience over the last two decades. In spite of this interest, the knowledge in terms of fundamental neural mechanisms that provide constraints for underlying computations remains rather limited. This fact stands in contrast with a wide variety of speculative theories about how action recognition might work. This review focuses on new fundamental electrophysiological results in monkeys, which provide constraints for the detailed underlying computations. In addition, we review models for action recognition and processing that have concrete mathematical implementations, as opposed to conceptual models. We think that only such implemented models can be meaningfully linked quantitatively to physiological data and have a potential to narrow down the many possible computational explanations for action recognition. In addition, only concrete implementations allow judging whether postulated computational concepts have a feasible implementation in terms of realistic neural circuits. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  18. Dapagliflozin: glucuretic action and beyond.

    PubMed

    Balakumar, Pitchai; Sundram, Karupiah; Dhanaraj, Sokkalingam A

    2014-04-01

    Diabetes mellitus is a greatly challenging disease of the 21 century, and the mortality rate due to this insidious disease is increasing worldwide in spite of availability of effective oral hypoglycemic agents. Satisfactory management of glycemic control in patients afflicted with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) remains a major clinical challenge. Identification of potential pharmacological target sites is therefore continuing as an integral part of the diabetic research. The sodium-glucose co-transporter type 2 (SGLT2) expressed in the renal proximal tubule plays an essential role in glucose reabsorption. Pharmacological blockade of SGLT2 prevents glucose reabsorption and subsequently induces the elimination of filtered glucose via urine, the process is known as 'glucuresis'. Dapagliflozin is a selective inhibitor of SGLT2. The US FDA approved dapagliflozin in January 2014 to improve glycemic control along with diet and exercise in adult patients afflicted with T2DM. It has a potential to decrease glycated hemoglobin and to promote weight loss. Although the mechanism of action of dapagliflozin is not directly linked with insulin or insulin sensitivity, reduction of plasma glucose by dapagliflozin via induction of glucosuria could improve muscle insulin sensitivity. Moreover, dapagliflozin could cause diuresis and subsequently fall in blood pressure. In addition to general discussion on the pharmacology of dapagliflozin, we propose in this review the possibilities of dual antidiabetic effect of dapagliflozin and its possible additional beneficial actions in hypertensive-obese-T2DM patients through its indirect blood pressure-lowering action and reduction of body calories and weight. Long-term clinical studies are however needed to clarify this contention. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Predicting the remaining service life of concrete

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Clifton, J.F.

    1991-11-01

    Nuclear power plants are providing, currently, about 17 percent of the U.S. electricity and many of these plants are approaching their licensed life of 40 years. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Department of Energy`s Oak Ridge National Laboratory are carrying out a program to develop a methodology for assessing the remaining safe-life of the concrete components and structures in nuclear power plants. This program has the overall objective of identifying potential structural safety issues, as well as acceptance criteria, for use in evaluations of nuclear power plants for continued service. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)more » is contributing to this program by identifying and analyzing methods for predicting the remaining life of in-service concrete materials. This report examines the basis for predicting the remaining service lives of concrete materials of nuclear power facilities. Methods for predicting the service life of new and in-service concrete materials are analyzed. These methods include (1) estimates based on experience, (2) comparison of performance, (3) accelerated testing, (4) stochastic methods, and (5) mathematical modeling. New approaches for predicting the remaining service lives of concrete materials are proposed and recommendations for their further development given. Degradation processes are discussed based on considerations of their mechanisms, likelihood of occurrence, manifestations, and detection. They include corrosion, sulfate attack, alkali-aggregate reactions, frost attack, leaching, radiation, salt crystallization, and microbiological attack.« less

  20. Large shift in source of fine sediment in the upper Mississippi River

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Belmont, P.; Gran, K.B.; Schottler, S.P.; Wilcock, P.R.; Day, S.S.; Jennings, C.; Lauer, J.W.; Viparelli, E.; Willenbring, J.K.; Engstrom, D.R.; Parker, G.

    2011-01-01

    Although sediment is a natural constituent of rivers, excess loading to rivers and streams is a leading cause of impairment and biodiversity loss. Remedial actions require identification of the sources and mechanisms of sediment supply. This task is complicated by the scale and complexity of large watersheds as well as changes in climate and land use that alter the drivers of sediment supply. Previous studies in Lake Pepin, a natural lake on the Mississippi River, indicate that sediment supply to the lake has increased 10-fold over the past 150 years. Herein we combine geochemical fingerprinting and a suite of geomorphic change detection techniques with a sediment mass balance for a tributary watershed to demonstrate that, although the sediment loading remains very large, the dominant source of sediment has shifted from agricultural soil erosion to accelerated erosion of stream banks and bluffs, driven by increased river discharge. Such hydrologic amplification of natural erosion processes calls for a new approach to watershed sediment modeling that explicitly accounts for channel and floodplain dynamics that amplify or dampen landscape processes. Further, this finding illustrates a new challenge in remediating nonpoint sediment pollution and indicates that management efforts must expand from soil erosion to factors contributing to increased water runoff. ?? 2011 American Chemical Society.

  1. Skeletal Remains from Punic Carthage Do Not Support Systematic Sacrifice of Infants

    PubMed Central

    Schwartz, Jeffrey H.; Houghton, Frank; Macchiarelli, Roberto; Bondioli, Luca

    2010-01-01

    Two types of cemeteries occur at Punic Carthage and other Carthaginian settlements: one centrally situated housing the remains of older children through adults, and another at the periphery of the settlement (the “Tophet”) yielding small urns containing the cremated skeletal remains of very young animals and humans, sometimes comingled. Although the absence of the youngest humans at the primary cemeteries is unusual and worthy of discussion, debate has focused on the significance of Tophets, especially at Carthage, as burial grounds for the young. One interpretation, based on two supposed eye-witness reports of large-scale Carthaginian infant sacrifice [Kleitarchos (3rd c. BCE) and Diodorus Siculus (1st c. BCE)], a particular translation of inscriptions on some burial monuments, and the argument that if the animals had been sacrificed so too were the humans, is that Tophets represent burial grounds reserved for sacrificial victims. An alternative hypothesis acknowledges that while the Carthaginians may have occasionally sacrificed humans, as did their contemporaries, the extreme youth of Tophet individuals suggests these cemeteries were not only for the sacrificed, but also for the very young, however they died. Here we present the first rigorous analysis of the largest sample of cremated human skeletal remains (348 burial urns, N = 540 individuals) from the Carthaginian Tophet based on tooth formation, enamel histology, cranial and postcranial metrics, and the potential effects of heat-induced bone shrinkage. Most of the sample fell within the period prenatal to 5-to-6 postnatal months, with a significant presence of prenates. Rather than indicating sacrifice as the agent of death, this age distribution is consistent with modern-day data on perinatal mortality, which at Carthage would also have been exacerbated by numerous diseases common in other major cities, such as Rome and Pompeii. Our diverse approaches to analyzing the cremated human remains from

  2. 49 CFR 845.51 - Investigation to remain open.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 7 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Investigation to remain open. 845.51 Section 845... § 845.51 Investigation to remain open. Accident investigations are never officially closed but are kept open for the submission of new and pertinent evidence by any interested person. If the Board finds that...

  3. 49 CFR 845.51 - Investigation to remain open.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 7 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Investigation to remain open. 845.51 Section 845... § 845.51 Investigation to remain open. Accident investigations are never officially closed but are kept open for the submission of new and pertinent evidence by any interested person. If the Board finds that...

  4. 49 CFR 845.51 - Investigation to remain open.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 7 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Investigation to remain open. 845.51 Section 845... § 845.51 Investigation to remain open. Accident investigations are never officially closed but are kept open for the submission of new and pertinent evidence by any interested person. If the Board finds that...

  5. 49 CFR 845.51 - Investigation to remain open.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 7 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Investigation to remain open. 845.51 Section 845... § 845.51 Investigation to remain open. Accident investigations are never officially closed but are kept open for the submission of new and pertinent evidence by any interested person. If the Board finds that...

  6. 49 CFR 845.51 - Investigation to remain open.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 7 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Investigation to remain open. 845.51 Section 845... § 845.51 Investigation to remain open. Accident investigations are never officially closed but are kept open for the submission of new and pertinent evidence by any interested person. If the Board finds that...

  7. Numbers in Action.

    PubMed

    Rugani, Rosa; Sartori, Luisa

    2016-01-01

    Humans show a remarkable tendency to describe and think of numbers as being placed on a mental number line (MNL), with smaller numbers located on the left and larger ones on the right. Faster responses to small numbers are indeed performed on the left side of space, while responses to large numbers are facilitated on the right side of space (spatial-numerical association of response codes, SNARC effect). This phenomenon is considered the experimental demonstration of the MNL and has been extensively replicated throughout a variety of paradigms. Nevertheless, the majority of previous literature has mainly investigated this effect by means of response times and accuracy, whereas studies considering more subtle and automatic measures such as kinematic parameters are rare (e.g., in a reaching-to-grasp movement, the grip aperture is enlarged in responding to larger numbers than in responding to small numbers). In this brief review we suggest that numerical magnitude can also affect the what and how of action execution (i.e., temporal and spatial components of movement). This evidence could have large implications in the strongly debated issue concerning the effect of experience and culture on the orientation of MNL.

  8. Interplay Between Conceptual Expectations and Movement Predictions Underlies Action Understanding.

    PubMed

    Ondobaka, Sasha; de Lange, Floris P; Wittmann, Marco; Frith, Chris D; Bekkering, Harold

    2015-09-01

    Recent accounts of understanding goal-directed action underline the importance of a hierarchical predictive architecture. However, the neural implementation of such an architecture remains elusive. In the present study, we used functional neuroimaging to quantify brain activity associated with predicting physical movements, as they were modulated by conceptual-expectations regarding the purpose of the object involved in the action. Participants observed object-related actions preceded by a cue that generated both conceptual goal expectations and movement goal predictions. In 2 tasks, observers judged whether conceptual or movement goals matched or mismatched the cue. At the conceptual level, expected goals specifically recruited the posterior cingulate cortex, irrespectively of the task and the perceived movement goal. At the movement level, neural activation of the parieto-frontal circuit, including inferior frontal gyrus and the inferior parietal lobe, reflected unpredicted movement goals. Crucially, this movement prediction error was only present when the purpose of the involved object was expected. These findings provide neural evidence that prior conceptual expectations influence processing of physical movement goals and thereby support the hierarchical predictive account of action processing. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  9. Impulsive action and motivation.

    PubMed

    Frijda, Nico H

    2010-07-01

    This paper explores the way in which emotions are causal determinants of action. It argues that emotional events, as appraised by the individual, elicit changes in motive states (called states of action readiness), which in turn may (or may not) cause action. Actions can be elicited automatically, without prior intention (called impulsive actions), or intentionally. Impulsive actions reflect the simplest and biologically most general form in which emotions can cause action, since they require no reflection, no foresight, and no planning. Impulsive actions are determined conjointly by the nature of action readiness, the affordances perceived in the eliciting event as appraised, and the individual's action repertoire. Those actions from one's repertoire are performed that both match the perceived affordances and the aim of the state of action readiness. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  10. Medial prefrontal cortex as an action-outcome predictor.

    PubMed

    Alexander, William H; Brown, Joshua W

    2011-09-18

    The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and especially anterior cingulate cortex is central to higher cognitive function and many clinical disorders, yet its basic function remains in dispute. Various competing theories of mPFC have treated effects of errors, conflict, error likelihood, volatility and reward, using findings from neuroimaging and neurophysiology in humans and monkeys. No single theory has been able to reconcile and account for the variety of findings. Here we show that a simple model based on standard learning rules can simulate and unify an unprecedented range of known effects in mPFC. The model reinterprets many known effects and suggests a new view of mPFC, as a region concerned with learning and predicting the likely outcomes of actions, whether good or bad. Cognitive control at the neural level is then seen as a result of evaluating the probable and actual outcomes of one's actions. © 2011 Nature America, Inc. All rights reserved.

  11. Medial prefrontal cortex as an action-outcome predictor

    PubMed Central

    Alexander, William H.; Brown, Joshua W.

    2011-01-01

    The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and especially anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) is central to higher cognitive function and numerous clinical disorders, yet its basic function remains in dispute. Various competing theories of mPFC have treated effects of errors, conflict, error likelihood, volatility, and reward, based on findings from neuroimaging and neurophysiology in humans and monkeys. To date, no single theory has been able to reconcile and account for the variety of findings. Here we show that a simple model based on standard learning rules can simulate and unify an unprecedented range of known effects in mPFC. The model reinterprets many known effects and suggests a new view of mPFC, as a region concerned with learning and predicting the likely outcomes of actions, whether good or bad. Cognitive control at the neural level is then seen as a result of evaluating the probable and actual outcomes of one's actions. PMID:21926982

  12. The role of Na-Ca exchange current in the cardiac action potential.

    PubMed

    Janvier, N C; Boyett, M R

    1996-07-01

    Since 1981, when Mullins published his provocative book proposing that the Na-Ca exchanger is electrogenic, it has been shown, first by computer simulation by Noble and later by experiment by various investigators, that inward iNaCa triggered by the Ca2+ transient is responsible for the low plateau of the atrial action potential and contributes to the high plateau of the ventricular action potential. Reduction or complete block of inward iNaCa by buffering intracellular Ca2+ with EGTA or BAPTA, by blocking SR Ca2+ release or by substituting extracellular Na+ with Li+ can result in a shortening of the action potential. The effect of block of outward iNaCa or complete block of both inward and outward iNaCa on the action potential has not been investigated experimentally, because of the lack of a suitable blocker, and remains a goal for the future. An increase in the intracellular Na+ concentration (after the application of cardiac glycoside or an increase in heart rate) or an increase in extracellular Ca2+ are believed to lead to an outward shift in iNaCa at plateau potentials and a shortening of the action potential. Changes in the Ca2+ transient are expected to result in changes in inward iNaCa and thus the action potential. This may explain the shortening of the premature action potential as well as the prolongation of the action potential when a muscle is allowed to shorten during the action potential. Inward iNaCa may play an important role in both normal and abnormal pacemaker activity in the heart.

  13. SenseCam reminiscence and action recall in memory-unimpaired people.

    PubMed

    Seamon, John G; Moskowitz, Tacie N; Swan, Ashley E; Zhong, Boyuan; Golembeski, Amy; Liong, Christopher; Narzikul, Alexa C; Sosan, Olumide A

    2014-01-01

    Case studies of memory-impaired individuals consistently show that reminiscing with SenseCam images enhances event recall. This exploratory study examined whether a similar benefit would occur for the consolidation of memories in memory-unimpaired people. We tested delayed recall for atypical actions observed on a lengthy walk. Participants used SenseCam, a diary, or no external memory aid while walking, followed by reminiscence with SenseCam images, diary entries, or no aid, either alone (self-reminiscence) or with the experimenter (social reminiscence). One week later, when tested without SenseCam images or diary entries, prior social reminiscence produced greater recall than self-reminiscence, but there were no differences between memory aid conditions for action free recall or action order recall. When methodological variables were controlled, there was no recall advantage for SenseCam reminiscence with memory-unimpaired participants. The case studies and present study differ in multiple ways, making direct comparisons problematic. SenseCam is a valuable aid to the memory impaired, but its mnemonic value for non-clinical populations remains to be determined.

  14. Multistationarity in mass action networks with applications to ERK activation.

    PubMed

    Conradi, Carsten; Flockerzi, Dietrich

    2012-07-01

    Ordinary Differential Equations (ODEs) are an important tool in many areas of Quantitative Biology. For many ODE systems multistationarity (i.e. the existence of at least two positive steady states) is a desired feature. In general establishing multistationarity is a difficult task as realistic biological models are large in terms of states and (unknown) parameters and in most cases poorly parameterized (because of noisy measurement data of few components, a very small number of data points and only a limited number of repetitions). For mass action networks establishing multistationarity hence is equivalent to establishing the existence of at least two positive solutions of a large polynomial system with unknown coefficients. For mass action networks with certain structural properties, expressed in terms of the stoichiometric matrix and the reaction rate-exponent matrix, we present necessary and sufficient conditions for multistationarity that take the form of linear inequality systems. Solutions of these inequality systems define pairs of steady states and parameter values. We also present a sufficient condition to identify networks where the aforementioned conditions hold. To show the applicability of our results we analyse an ODE system that is defined by the mass action network describing the extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) cascade (i.e. ERK-activation).

  15. Paws without claws? Ecological effects of large carnivores in anthropogenic landscapes

    PubMed Central

    Sahlén, E.; Elmhagen, B.; Chamaillé-Jammes, S.; Sand, H.; Lone, K.; Cromsigt, J. P. G. M.

    2016-01-01

    Large carnivores are frequently presented as saviours of biodiversity and ecosystem functioning through their creation of trophic cascades, an idea largely based on studies coming primarily out of relatively natural landscapes. However, in large parts of the world, particularly in Europe, large carnivores live in and are returning to strongly human-modified ecosystems. At present, we lack a coherent framework to predict the effects of large carnivores in these anthropogenic landscapes. We review how human actions influence the ecological roles of large carnivores by affecting their density or behaviour or those of mesopredators or prey species. We argue that the potential for density-mediated trophic cascades in anthropogenic landscapes is limited to unproductive areas where even low carnivore numbers may impact prey densities or to the limited parts of the landscape where carnivores are allowed to reach ecologically functional densities. The potential for behaviourally mediated trophic cascades may be larger and more widespread, because even low carnivore densities affect prey behaviour. We conclude that predator–prey interactions in anthropogenic landscapes will be highly context-dependent and human actions will often attenuate the ecological effects of large carnivores. We highlight the knowledge gaps and outline a new research avenue to study the role of carnivores in anthropogenic landscapes. PMID:27798302

  16. A National Perspective: An Analysis of Factors That Influence Special Educators to Remain in the Field of Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nickson, Lautrice M.; Kritsonis, William Allan

    2006-01-01

    The purpose of this article is to analyze factors that influence special educators to remain in the field of education. School administrators are perplexed by the large number of teachers who decide to leave the field of education after three years. The retention rates of special educators' require school administrators to focus on developing a…

  17. Repatriation of human remains following death in international travellers.

    PubMed

    Connolly, Ruairi; Prendiville, Richard; Cusack, Denis; Flaherty, Gerard

    2017-03-01

    Death during international travel and the repatriation of human remains to one's home country is a distressing and expensive process. Much organization is required involving close liaison between various agencies. A review of the literature was conducted using the PubMed database. Search terms included: 'repatriation of remains', 'death', 'abroad', 'tourism', 'travel', 'travellers', 'travelling' and 'repatriation'. Additional articles were obtained from grey literature sources and reference lists. The local national embassy, travel insurance broker and tour operator are important sources of information to facilitate the repatriation of the deceased traveller. Formal identification of the deceased's remains is required and a funeral director must be appointed. Following this, the coroner in the country or jurisdiction receiving the repatriated remains will require a number of documents prior to providing clearance for burial. Costs involved in repatriating remains must be borne by the family of the deceased although travel insurance may help defray some of the costs. If the death is secondary to an infectious disease, cremation at the site of death is preferred. No standardized procedure is in place to deal with the remains of a migrant's body at present and these remains are often not repatriated to their country of origin. Repatriation of human remains is a difficult task which is emotionally challenging for the bereaving family and friends. As a travel medicine practitioner, it is prudent to discuss all eventualities, including the risk of death, during the pre-travel consultation. Awareness of the procedures involved in this process may ease the burden on the grieving family at a difficult time. © International Society of Travel Medicine, 2017. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com

  18. Authenticated DNA from Ancient Wood Remains

    PubMed Central

    LIEPELT, SASCHA; SPERISEN, CHRISTOPH; DEGUILLOUX, MARIE-FRANCE; PETIT, REMY J.; KISSLING, ROY; SPENCER, MATTHEW; DE BEAULIEU, JACQUES-LOUIS; TABERLET, PIERRE; GIELLY, LUDOVIC; ZIEGENHAGEN, BIRGIT

    2006-01-01

    • Background The reconstruction of biological processes and human activities during the last glacial cycle relies mainly on data from biological remains. Highly abundant tissues, such as wood, are candidates for a genetic analysis of past populations. While well-authenticated DNA has now been recovered from various fossil remains, the final ‘proof’ is still missing for wood, despite some promising studies. • Scope The goal of this study was to determine if ancient wood can be analysed routinely in studies of archaeology and palaeogenetics. An experiment was designed which included blind testing, independent replicates, extensive contamination controls and rigorous statistical tests. Ten samples of ancient wood from major European forest tree genera were analysed with plastid DNA markers. • Conclusions Authentic DNA was retrieved from wood samples up to 1000 years of age. A new tool for real-time vegetation history and archaeology is ready to use. PMID:16987920

  19. Remaining questions about clinical variola major.

    PubMed

    Lane, J Michael

    2011-04-01

    After the recent summary of World Health Organization-authorized research on smallpox, several clinical issues remain. This policy review addresses whether early hemorrhagic smallpox is disseminated intravascular coagulation and speculates about the cause of the high mortality rate among pregnant women and whether ocular smallpox is partly the result of trachoma or vitamin A deficiency. The joint destruction common in children with smallpox might be prevented by antiviral drugs, but intraarticular infusion of antiviral drugs is unprecedented. Development of highly effective antiviral drugs against smallpox raises the issue of whether postexposure vaccination can be performed without interference by an antiviral drug. Clinicians should consider whether patients with smallpox should be admitted to general hospitals. Although an adequate supply of second-generation smallpox vaccine exists in the United States, its use is unclear. Finally, political and ethical forces suggest that destruction of the remaining stocks of live smallpox virus is now appropriate.

  20. BRCA-Monet: a breast cancer specific drug treatment mode-of-action network for treatment effective prediction using large scale microarray database.

    PubMed

    Ma, Chifeng; Chen, Hung-I; Flores, Mario; Huang, Yufei; Chen, Yidong

    2013-01-01

    Connectivity map (cMap) is a recent developed dataset and algorithm for uncovering and understanding the treatment effect of small molecules on different cancer cell lines. It is widely used but there are still remaining challenges for accurate predictions. Here, we propose BRCA-MoNet, a network of drug mode of action (MoA) specific to breast cancer, which is constructed based on the cMap dataset. A drug signature selection algorithm fitting the characteristic of cMap data, a quality control scheme as well as a novel query algorithm based on BRCA-MoNet are developed for more effective prediction of drug effects. BRCA-MoNet was applied to three independent data sets obtained from the GEO database: Estrodial treated MCF7 cell line, BMS-754807 treated MCF7 cell line, and a breast cancer patient microarray dataset. In the first case, BRCA-MoNet could identify drug MoAs likely to share same and reverse treatment effect. In the second case, the result demonstrated the potential of BRCA-MoNet to reposition drugs and predict treatment effects for drugs not in cMap data. In the third case, a possible procedure of personalized drug selection is showcased. The results clearly demonstrated that the proposed BRCA-MoNet approach can provide increased prediction power to cMap and thus will be useful for identification of new therapeutic candidates.

  1. Why Japanese workers remain in the labor force so long: lessons for the United States?

    PubMed

    Williamson, John B; Higo, Masa

    2009-12-01

    As part of the search for ways to increase labor force participation rates among older workers in the United States, it makes sense to take a close look at evidence from Japan, one of the few industrial countries with a substantially higher labor force participation rate among older workers, particularly men, than the United States. Based mainly on prior studies and original interview data, we first discuss five potential factors which help explain why Japanese workers remain in the labor force as long as they do: (1) perceived economic necessity; (2) the large fraction of workers who are self-employed; (3) a culture that puts a high value on remaining in the labor force throughout the life course; (4) the long healthy life expectancy; and (5) the government's role in facilitating the labor force participation of older workers. We suggest that the Japanese national cultural value on remaining economically productive well into old age clearly underlies the development of the government's legislative initiatives aiming to extend the working lives of older workers. We then outline three policy suggestions for those seeking to increase labor force participation rates among older U.S. workers: (1) increase the financial incentive to workers who remain in the labor force; (2) improve public programs designed to foster efforts by older workers to become self-employed; and (3) increase the extent of government efforts to link older workers to prospective employers.

  2. Motivation for entry, occupational commitment and intent to remain: a survey regarding Registered Nurse retention.

    PubMed

    Gambino, Kathleen M

    2010-11-01

    This paper is a report of a study of the relationships between Registered Nurses' motivation for entering the profession, occupational commitment and intent to remain with an employer until retirement. Identifying and supporting nurses who are strongly committed to their profession may be the single most influential intervention in combating the nursing shortage. An understanding of the characteristics these individuals possess could lead to a decline in the high attrition rates plaguing the profession. Using a survey design, Registered Nurses enrolled at the school of nursing and/or employed at the associated university medical centre of a large, not-for-profit state university were polled in 2008. Logistic regression analysis was used to determine how the variables of motivation for entry and occupational commitment could indicate intent to remain. The strongest indicators of intent to remain were normative commitment and age, with a 70% average rate of correctly estimating retention. Exp(B) values for normative commitment (1·09) and age (1·07) indicated that for each one-point increase on the normative commitment scale or one-point increase in age, the odds of remaining with an employer until retirement increased by 1·1%. Transformational changes in healthcare environments and nursing schools must be made to encourage loyalty and obligation, the hallmarks of normative commitment. Retention strategies should accommodate mature nurses as well as promote normative commitment in younger nurses. © 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

  3. Remaining Useful Life Estimation in Prognosis: An Uncertainty Propagation Problem

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Sankararaman, Shankar; Goebel, Kai

    2013-01-01

    The estimation of remaining useful life is significant in the context of prognostics and health monitoring, and the prediction of remaining useful life is essential for online operations and decision-making. However, it is challenging to accurately predict the remaining useful life in practical aerospace applications due to the presence of various uncertainties that affect prognostic calculations, and in turn, render the remaining useful life prediction uncertain. It is challenging to identify and characterize the various sources of uncertainty in prognosis, understand how each of these sources of uncertainty affect the uncertainty in the remaining useful life prediction, and thereby compute the overall uncertainty in the remaining useful life prediction. In order to achieve these goals, this paper proposes that the task of estimating the remaining useful life must be approached as an uncertainty propagation problem. In this context, uncertainty propagation methods which are available in the literature are reviewed, and their applicability to prognostics and health monitoring are discussed.

  4. Sowing the Seeds of Change: Action Learning in Merseytravel

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Thornton, Andy

    2010-01-01

    Merseytravel is a large and diverse public sector organisation facing significant changes, but faced with a cultural inertia which is a legacy inherited from historical management styles. Action learning is now being used with great success as part of their change programme, to promote empowerment of the staff, challenge historical ways of working…

  5. Corrective Action Investigation Plan for Corrective Action Unit 106: Areas 5, 11 Frenchman Flat Atmospheric Sites, Nevada National Security Site, Nevada

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Patrick Matthews

    2011-07-01

    Corrective Action Unit 106 comprises the four corrective action sites (CASs) listed below: • 05-20-02, Evaporation Pond • 05-23-05, Atmospheric Test Site - Able • 05-45-04, 306 GZ Rad Contaminated Area • 05-45-05, 307 GZ Rad Contaminated Area These sites are being investigated because existing information on the nature and extent of potential contamination is insufficient to evaluate and recommend corrective action alternatives (CAAs). Additional information will be obtained by conducting a corrective action investigation before evaluating CAAs and selecting the appropriate corrective action for each CAS. The results of the field investigation will support a defensible evaluation of viablemore » CAAs that will be presented in the Corrective Action Decision Document. The sites will be investigated based on the data quality objectives (DQOs) developed on January 19, 2010, by representatives of the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), National Nuclear Security Administration Nevada Site Office. The DQO process was used to identify and define the type, amount, and quality of data needed to develop and evaluate appropriate corrective actions for CAU 106. The presence and nature of contamination at CAU 106 will be evaluated based on information collected from a field investigation. The CAU includes land areas impacted by the release of radionuclides from groundwater pumping during the Radionuclide Migration study program (CAS 05-20-02), a weapons-related airdrop test (CAS 05-23-05), and unknown support activities at two sites (CAS 05-45-04 and CAS 05-45-05). The presence and nature of contamination from surface-deposited radiological contamination from CAS 05-23-05, Atmospheric Test Site - Able, and other types of releases (such as migration and excavation as well as any potential releases discovered during the investigation) from the remaining three CASs will be evaluated using soil samples collected from the

  6. Patients' experiences and actions when describing pain after surgery--a critical incident technique analysis.

    PubMed

    Eriksson, Kerstin; Wikström, Lotta; Fridlund, Bengt; Årestedt, Kristofer; Broström, Anders

    2016-04-01

    Postoperative pain assessment remains a significant problem in clinical care despite patients wanting to describe their pain and be treated as unique individuals. Deeper knowledge about variations in patients' experiences and actions could help healthcare professionals to improve pain management and could increase patients' participation in pain assessments. The aim of this study was, through an examination of critical incidents, to describe patients' experiences and actions when needing to describe pain after surgery. An explorative design involving the critical incident technique was used. Patients from one university and three county hospitals in both urban and rural areas were included. To ensure variation of patients a strategic sampling was made according to age, gender, education and surgery. A total of 25 patients who had undergone orthopaedic or general surgery was asked to participate in an interview, of whom three declined. Pain experiences were described according to two main areas: "Patients' resources when in need of pain assessment" and "Ward resources for performing pain assessments". Patients were affected by their expectations and tolerance for pain. Ability to describe pain could be limited by a fear of coming into conflict with healthcare professionals or being perceived as whining. Furthermore, attitudes from healthcare professionals and their lack of adherence to procedures affected patients' ability to describe pain. Two main areas regarding actions emerged: "Patients used active strategies when needing to describe pain" and "Patients used passive strategies when needing to describe pain". Patients informed healthcare professionals about their pain and asked questions in order to make decisions about their pain situation. Selfcare was performed by distraction and avoiding pain or treating pain by themselves, while others were passive and endured pain or refrained from contact with healthcare professionals due to healthcare professionals

  7. 38 CFR 18.406 - Remedial action, voluntary action and self-evaluation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ..., voluntary action and self-evaluation. 18.406 Section 18.406 Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans' Relief... Basis of Handicap General Provisions § 18.406 Remedial action, voluntary action and self-evaluation. (a... treatment within the program or activity. (b) Voluntary action. A recipient may take steps, in addition to...

  8. 38 CFR 18.406 - Remedial action, voluntary action and self-evaluation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ..., voluntary action and self-evaluation. 18.406 Section 18.406 Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans' Relief... Basis of Handicap General Provisions § 18.406 Remedial action, voluntary action and self-evaluation. (a... treatment within the program or activity. (b) Voluntary action. A recipient may take steps, in addition to...

  9. 38 CFR 18.406 - Remedial action, voluntary action and self-evaluation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ..., voluntary action and self-evaluation. 18.406 Section 18.406 Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans' Relief... Basis of Handicap General Provisions § 18.406 Remedial action, voluntary action and self-evaluation. (a... treatment within the program or activity. (b) Voluntary action. A recipient may take steps, in addition to...

  10. 38 CFR 18.406 - Remedial action, voluntary action and self-evaluation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ..., voluntary action and self-evaluation. 18.406 Section 18.406 Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans' Relief... Basis of Handicap General Provisions § 18.406 Remedial action, voluntary action and self-evaluation. (a... treatment within the program or activity. (b) Voluntary action. A recipient may take steps, in addition to...

  11. Goal Reconstruction: How Teton Blends Situated Action and Planned Action

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1989-11-03

    DTIC FILE COPY CV), Goal reconstruction: How Teton blends N situated action and planned action N Tec~jcal Report PCG- 16 Kurt VanLehn I William Bali...situated action and planned action Technical Report PCG- 16 Kurt VanLehn William Bail Departments of Psychology and Computer Science Carnegie-Mellon...Research, under contract N00014-88-K-0086 and by the Information Sciences Division, Office of Naval Research, under contract N00014-K-0678

  12. Goal Reconstruction: How Teton Blends Situated Action and Planned Action

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1989-11-03

    DTIC FILE COPy 00 P 1n GOAL RECONSTRUCTION: HOW TETON BLENDS N SITUATED ACTION AND PLANNED ACTION Technical Report AIP 125 Kurt VanLehn William Ball...distribiikn unlimited. so 08 21 2 GOAL RECONSTRUCTION: HOW TETON BLENDS SITUATED ACTION AND PLANNED ACTION Technical Report AlP 125 Kurt VanLehn William Ball...Architectures for Intelligence. This is the final report on the research supported by the Computer Science Division, Office of Naval Research, under

  13. Bringing Action Reflection Learning into Action Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rimanoczy, Isabel; Brown, Carole

    2008-01-01

    This paper introduces Action Reflection Learning (ARL) as a learning methodology that can contribute to, and enrich, the practice of action learning programs. It describes the Swedish constructivist origins of the model, its evolution and the coded responses that resulted from researching the practice. The paper presents the resulting sixteen ARL…

  14. Nonlocal quantum effective actions in Weyl-Flat spacetimes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bautista, Teresa; Benevides, André; Dabholkar, Atish

    2018-06-01

    Virtual massless particles in quantum loops lead to nonlocal effects which can have interesting consequences, for example, for primordial magnetogenesis in cosmology or for computing finite N corrections in holography. We describe how the quantum effective actions summarizing these effects can be computed efficiently for Weyl-flat metrics by integrating the Weyl anomaly or, equivalently, the local renormalization group equation. This method relies only on the local Schwinger-DeWitt expansion of the heat kernel and allows for a re-summation of the anomalous leading large logarithms of the scale factor, log a( x), in situations where the Weyl factor changes by several e-foldings. As an illustration, we obtain the quantum effective action for the Yang-Mills field coupled to massless matter, and the self-interacting massless scalar field. Our action reduces to the nonlocal action obtained using the Barvinsky-Vilkovisky covariant perturbation theory in the regime R 2 ≪ ∇2 R for a typical curvature scale R, but has a greater range of validity effectively re-summing the covariant perturbation theory to all orders in curvatures. In particular, it is applicable also in the opposite regime R 2 ≫ ∇2 R, which is often of interest in cosmology.

  15. Actions taken to cope with depressed mood: the role of personality traits.

    PubMed

    Cuijpers, Pim; Steunenberg, Bas; Van Straten, Annemieke

    2007-07-01

    It is still largely unknown which actions people take to improve their mood when they feel they are getting depressed. Using the five-factor model of personality, we explore coping actions in a population of older adults in residential homes in relation to personality traits. A total of 350 non-cognitively impaired inhabitants of residential homes in the Netherlands participated in this study (mean age 85 years). They indicated which of 22 actions to cope with depression they had used in the past three months, and which of these they considered to be helpful in reducing depression. Other measures included the NEO-FFI, CES-D and MINI. Almost 60% of all subjects had used one or more actions to reduce depression in the past three months, and almost 90% considered one or more actions to be helpful in reducing depression. People scoring high on neuroticism had used more coping actions, including relaxing, eating chocolate, praying, seeking professional help, engaging in more pleasant activities, and talking to friends and relatives. People scoring high on openness considered many of the actions to be helpful. We conclude that actions taken to cope with depression and their helpfulness differ considerably for subjects with differing personality traits.

  16. Sustaining Community Participation: What Remains After the Money Ends?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nkansa, Grace Akukwe; Chapman, David W.

    2006-12-01

    SUSTAINING COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION: WHAT REMAINS AFTER THE MONEY ENDS? - A major concern confronting development specialists in the education sector is the sustainability of project activities and outcomes, that is, their ability to persist once external funding ends. The increased attention of international development-assistance organizations to sustainability reflects the greater recent focus on outcome-based funding. The present study investigates differences between six communities in Ghana that varied in their ability to sustain externally initiated community-participation activities beyond the life of the external development-assistance project that promoted those activities. It was hypothesized that high- and low-sustaining communities differ in eight managerial and socio-cultural dimensions suggested by earlier research to be important for sustainability of community-level activities: planning, transparency, leadership, and participation, on one hand, and, on the other, social cohesion, resources, community skills, and valuing of education. Findings indicate that leadership and social cohesion are the two most vital elements in the sustainability of organizational structures intended to promote community participation in the oversight of local schools. Other factors suggested by the model are largely subsumed under leadership, so that the model can be simplified.

  17. TMS-induced modulation of action sentence priming in the ventral premotor cortex.

    PubMed

    Tremblay, Pascale; Sato, Marc; Small, Steven L

    2012-01-01

    Despite accumulating evidence that cortical motor areas, particularly the lateral premotor cortex, are activated during language comprehension, the question of whether motor processes help mediate the semantic encoding of language remains controversial. To address this issue, we examined whether low frequency (1 Hz) repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) of the left ventral premotor cortex (PMv) can interfere with the comprehension of sentences describing manual actions, visual properties of manipulable and non-manipulable objects, and actions of the lips and mouth. Using a primed semantic decision task, sixteen participants were asked to determine for a given sentence whether or not an auditorily presented target word was congruent with the sentence. We hypothesized that if the left PMv is contributing semantic information that is used to comprehend action and object related sentences, then TMS applied over PMv should result in a disruption of semantic priming. Our results show that TMS reduces semantic priming, induces a shift in response bias, and increases response sensitivity, but does so only during the processing of manual action sentences. This suggests a preferential contribution of PMv to the processing of sentences describing manual actions compared to other types of sentences. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  18. Antibacterial Compounds of Canadian Honeys Target Bacterial Cell Wall Inducing Phenotype Changes, Growth Inhibition and Cell Lysis That Resemble Action of β-Lactam Antibiotics

    PubMed Central

    Brudzynski, Katrina; Sjaarda, Calvin

    2014-01-01

    Honeys show a desirable broad spectrum activity against Gram-positive and negative bacteria making antibacterial activity an intrinsic property of honey and a desirable source for new drug development. The cellular targets and underlying mechanism of action of honey antibacterial compounds remain largely unknown. To facilitate the target discovery, we employed a method of phenotypic profiling by directly comparing morphological changes in Escherichia coli induced by honeys to that of ampicillin, the cell wall-active β-lactam of known mechanism of action. Firstly, we demonstrated the purity of tested honeys from potential β-lactam contaminations using quantitative LC-ESI-MS. Exposure of log-phase E. coli to honey or ampicillin resulted in time- and concentration-dependent changes in bacterial cell shape with the appearance of filamentous phenotypes at sub-inhibitory concentrations and spheroplasts at the MBC. Cell wall destruction by both agents, clearly visible on microscopic micrographs, was accompanied by increased permeability of the lipopolysaccharide outer membrane as indicated by fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS). More than 90% E. coli exposed to honey or ampicillin became permeable to propidium iodide. Consistently with the FACS results, both honey-treated and ampicillin-treated E. coli cells released lipopolysaccharide endotoxins at comparable levels, which were significantly higher than controls (p<0.0001). E. coli cells transformed with the ampicillin-resistance gene (β–lactamase) remained sensitive to honey, displayed the same level of cytotoxicity, cell shape changes and endotoxin release as ampicillin-sensitive cells. As expected, β–lactamase protected the host cell from antibacterial action of ampicillin. Thus, both honey and ampicillin induced similar structural changes to the cell wall and LPS and that this ability underlies antibacterial activities of both agents. Since the cell wall is critical for cell growth and survival, honey

  19. Inferences about action engage action systems.

    PubMed

    Taylor, Lawrence J; Lev-Ari, Shiri; Zwaan, Rolf A

    2008-10-01

    Verbal descriptions of actions activate compatible motor responses [Glenberg, A. M., & Kaschak, M. P. (2002). Grounding language in action. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 9, 558-565]. Previous studies have found that the motor processes for manual rotation are engaged in a direction-specific manner when a verb disambiguates the direction of rotation [e.g. "unscrewed;" Zwaan, R. A., & Taylor, L. (2006). Seeing, acting, understanding: Motor resonance in language comprehension. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 135, 1-11]. The present experiment contributes to this body of work by showing that verbs that leave direction ambiguous (e.g. "turned") do not necessarily yield such effects. Rather, motor resonance is associated with a word that disambiguates some element of an action, as meaning is being integrated across sentences. The findings are discussed within the context of discourse processes, inference generation, motor activation, and mental simulation.

  20. Action Recognition Using Nonnegative Action Component Representation and Sparse Basis Selection.

    PubMed

    Wang, Haoran; Yuan, Chunfeng; Hu, Weiming; Ling, Haibin; Yang, Wankou; Sun, Changyin

    2014-02-01

    In this paper, we propose using high-level action units to represent human actions in videos and, based on such units, a novel sparse model is developed for human action recognition. There are three interconnected components in our approach. First, we propose a new context-aware spatial-temporal descriptor, named locally weighted word context, to improve the discriminability of the traditionally used local spatial-temporal descriptors. Second, from the statistics of the context-aware descriptors, we learn action units using the graph regularized nonnegative matrix factorization, which leads to a part-based representation and encodes the geometrical information. These units effectively bridge the semantic gap in action recognition. Third, we propose a sparse model based on a joint l2,1-norm to preserve the representative items and suppress noise in the action units. Intuitively, when learning the dictionary for action representation, the sparse model captures the fact that actions from the same class share similar units. The proposed approach is evaluated on several publicly available data sets. The experimental results and analysis clearly demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.

  1. 7 CFR 12.11 - Action based upon advice or action of USDA.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 1 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Action based upon advice or action of USDA. 12.11... CONSERVATION General Provisions § 12.11 Action based upon advice or action of USDA. The provisions of part 718... it is determined by the appropriate USDA agency that the action of a person which would form the...

  2. 7 CFR 12.11 - Action based upon advice or action of USDA.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 1 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Action based upon advice or action of USDA. 12.11... CONSERVATION General Provisions § 12.11 Action based upon advice or action of USDA. The provisions of part 718... it is determined by the appropriate USDA agency that the action of a person which would form the...

  3. 7 CFR 12.11 - Action based upon advice or action of USDA.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 1 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Action based upon advice or action of USDA. 12.11... CONSERVATION General Provisions § 12.11 Action based upon advice or action of USDA. The provisions of part 718... it is determined by the appropriate USDA agency that the action of a person which would form the...

  4. 7 CFR 12.11 - Action based upon advice or action of USDA.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Action based upon advice or action of USDA. 12.11... CONSERVATION General Provisions § 12.11 Action based upon advice or action of USDA. The provisions of part 718... it is determined by the appropriate USDA agency that the action of a person which would form the...

  5. 7 CFR 12.11 - Action based upon advice or action of USDA.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 1 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Action based upon advice or action of USDA. 12.11... CONSERVATION General Provisions § 12.11 Action based upon advice or action of USDA. The provisions of part 718... it is determined by the appropriate USDA agency that the action of a person which would form the...

  6. Juveniles' Motivations for Remaining in Prostitution

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hwang, Shu-Ling; Bedford, Olwen

    2004-01-01

    Qualitative data from in-depth interviews were collected in 1990-1991, 1992, and 2000 with 49 prostituted juveniles remanded to two rehabilitation centers in Taiwan. These data are analyzed to explore Taiwanese prostituted juveniles' feelings about themselves and their work, their motivations for remaining in prostitution, and their difficulties…

  7. A Reasoned Action Model of Male Client Involvement in Commercial Sex Work in Kibera, A Large Informal Settlement in Nairobi, Kenya.

    PubMed

    Roth, Eric Abella; Ngugi, Elizabeth; Benoit, Cecilia; Jansson, Mikael; Hallgrimsdottir, Helga

    2014-01-01

    Male clients of female sex workers (FSWs) are epidemiologically important because they can form bridge groups linking high- and low-risk subpopulations. However, because male clients are hard to locate, they are not frequently studied. Recent research emphasizes searching for high-risk behavior groups in locales where new sexual partnerships form and the threat of HIV transmission is high. Sub-Saharan Africa public drinking venues satisfy these criteria. Accordingly, this study developed and implemented a rapid assessment methodology to survey men in bars throughout the large informal settlement of Kibera, Nairobi, Kenya, with the goal of delineating cultural and economic rationales associated with male participation in commercial sex. The study sample consisted of 220 male patrons of 110 bars located throughout Kibera's 11 communities. Logistic regression analysis incorporating a modified Reasoned Action Model indicated that a social norm condoning commercial sex among male peers and the cultural belief that men should practice sex before marriage support commercial sex involvement. Conversely, lacking money to drink and/or pay for sexual services were barriers to male commercial sex involvement. Results are interpreted in light of possible harm reduction programs focusing on FSWs' male clients.

  8. A Reasoned Action Model of Male Client Involvement in Commercial Sex Work in Kibera, A Large Informal Settlement in Nairobi, Kenya

    PubMed Central

    Roth, Eric Abella; Ngugi, Elizabeth; Benoit, Cecilia; Jansson, Mikael; Hallgrimsdottir, Helga

    2015-01-01

    Male clients of female sex workers (FSWs) are epidemiologically important because they can form bridge groups linking high- and low-risk subpopulations. However, because male clients are hard to locate, they are not frequently studied. Recent research emphasizes searching for high-risk behavior groups in locales where new sexual partnerships form and the threat of HIV transmission is high. Sub-Saharan Africa public drinking venues satisfy these criteria. Accordingly, this study developed and implemented a rapid assessment methodology to survey men in bars throughout the large informal settlement of Kibera, Nairobi, Kenya, with the goal of delineating cultural and economic rationales associated with male participation in commercial sex. The study sample consisted of 220 male patrons of 110 bars located throughout Kibera’s 11 communities. Logistic regression analysis incorporating a modified Reasoned Action Model indicated that a social norm condoning commercial sex among male peers and the cultural belief that men should practice sex before marriage support commercial sex involvement. Conversely, lacking money to drink and/or pay for sexual services were barriers to male commercial sex involvement. Results are interpreted in light of possible harm reduction programs focusing on FSWs’ male clients. PMID:26778847

  9. Individual differences in action co-representation: not personal distress or subclinical psychotic experiences but sex composition modulates joint action performance.

    PubMed

    van der Weiden, Anouk; Aarts, Henk; Prikken, Merel; van Haren, Neeltje E M

    2016-02-01

    Successful social interaction requires the ability to integrate as well as distinguish own and others' actions. Normally, the integration and distinction of self and other are a well-balanced process, occurring without much effort or conscious attention. However, not everyone is blessed with the ability to balance self-other distinction and integration, resulting in personal distress in reaction to other people's emotions or even a loss of self [e.g., in (subclinical) psychosis]. Previous research has demonstrated that the integration and distinction of others' actions cause interference with one's own action performance (commonly assessed with a social Simon task). The present study had two goals. First, as previous studies on the social Simon effect employed relatively small samples (N < 50 per test), we aimed for a sample size that allowed us to test the robustness of the action interference effect. Second, we tested to what extent action interference reflects individual differences in traits related to self-other distinction (i.e., personal distress in reaction to other people's emotions and subclinical psychotic symptoms). Based on a questionnaire study among a large sample (N = 745), we selected a subsample (N = 130) of participants scoring low, average, or high on subclinical psychotic symptoms, or on personal distress. The selected participants performed a social Simon task. Results showed a robust social Simon effect, regardless of individual differences in personal distress or subclinical psychotic symptoms. However, exploratory analyses revealed that the sex composition of interaction pairs modulated social Simon effects. Possible explanations for these findings are discussed.

  10. [Large vessel vasculitides].

    PubMed

    Morović-Vergles, Jadranka; Puksić, Silva; Gracanin, Ana Gudelj

    2013-01-01

    Large vessel vasculitis includes Giant cell arteritis and Takayasu arteritis. Giant cell arteritis is the most common form of vasculitis affect patients aged 50 years or over. The diagnosis should be considered in older patients who present with new onset of headache, visual disturbance, polymyalgia rheumatica and/or fever unknown cause. Glucocorticoides remain the cornerstone of therapy. Takayasu arteritis is a chronic panarteritis of the aorta ant its major branches presenting commonly in young ages. Although all large arteries can be affected, the aorta, subclavian and carotid arteries are most commonly involved. The most common symptoms included upper extremity claudication, hypertension, pain over the carotid arteries (carotidynia), dizziness and visual disturbances. Early diagnosis and treatment has improved the outcome in patients with TA.

  11. Preserved Tool Knowledge in the Context of Impaired Action Knowledge: Implications for Models of Semantic Memory

    PubMed Central

    Garcea, Frank E.; Dombovy, Mary; Mahon, Bradford Z.

    2013-01-01

    A number of studies have observed that the motor system is activated when processing the semantics of manipulable objects. Such phenomena have been taken as evidence that simulation over motor representations is a necessary and intermediary step in the process of conceptual understanding. Cognitive neuropsychological evaluations of patients with impairments for action knowledge permit a direct test of the necessity of motor simulation in conceptual processing. Here, we report the performance of a 47-year-old male individual (Case AA) and six age-matched control participants on a number of tests probing action and object knowledge. Case AA had a large left-hemisphere frontal-parietal lesion and hemiplegia affecting his right arm and leg. Case AA presented with impairments for object-associated action production, and his conceptual knowledge of actions was severely impaired. In contrast, his knowledge of objects such as tools and other manipulable objects was largely preserved. The dissociation between action and object knowledge is difficult to reconcile with strong forms of the embodied cognition hypothesis. We suggest that these, and other similar findings, point to the need to develop tractable hypotheses about the dynamics of information exchange among sensory, motor and conceptual processes. PMID:23641205

  12. Contextual control of instrumental actions and habits

    PubMed Central

    Thrailkill, Eric A.; Bouton, Mark E.

    2014-01-01

    After a relatively small amount of training, instrumental behavior is thought to be an action under the control of the motivational status of its goal or reinforcer. After more extended training, behavior can become habitual and insensitive to changes in reinforcer value. Recently, instrumental responding has been shown to weaken when tested outside of the training context. The present experiments compared the sensitivity of instrumental responding in rats to a context switch after training procedures that might differentially generate actions or habits. In Experiment 1, lever pressing was decremented in a new context after either short, medium, or long periods of training on either random-ratio or yoked random-interval reinforcement schedules. Experiment 2 found that more minimally-trained responding was also sensitive to a context switch. Moreover, Experiment 3 showed that when the goal-directed component of responding was removed by devaluing the reinforcer, the residual responding that remained was still sensitive to the change of context. Goal-directed responding, in contrast, transferred across contexts. Experiment 4 then found that after extensive training, a habit that was insensitive to reinforcer devaluation was still decremented by a context switch. Overall, the results suggest that a context switch primarily influences instrumental habit rather than action. In addition, even a response that has received relatively minimal training may have a habit component that is insensitive to reinforcer devaluation but sensitive to the effects of a context switch. PMID:25706547

  13. Agency alters perceptual decisions about action-outcomes.

    PubMed

    Desantis, Andrea; Waszak, Florian; Gorea, Andrei

    2016-10-01

    Humans experience themselves as agents, capable of controlling their actions and the outcomes they generate (i.e., the sense of agency). Inferences of agency are not infallible. Research shows that we often attribute outcomes to our agency even though they are caused by another agent. Moreover, agents report the sensory events they generate to be less intense compared to the events that are generated externally. These effects have been assessed using highly suprathreshold stimuli and subjective measurements. Consequently, it remains unclear whether experiencing oneself as an agent lead to a decision criterion change and/or a sensitivity change. Here, we investigate this issue. Participants were told that their key presses generated an upward dot motion but that on 30 % of the trials the computer would take over and display a downward motion. The upward/downward dot motion was presented at participant's discrimination threshold. Participants were asked to indicate whether they (upward motion) or the computer (downward motion) generated the motion. This group of participants was compared with a 'no-agency' group who performed the same task except that subjects did not execute any actions to generate the dot motion. We observed that the agency group reported seeing more frequently the motion they expected to generate (i.e., upward motion) than the no-agency group. This suggests that agency distorts our experience of (allegedly) caused events by altering perceptual decision processes, so that, in ambiguous contexts, externally generated events are experienced as the outcomes of one's actions.

  14. On the Inclusion of Externally Controlled Actions in Action Planning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tsai, Jessica Chia-Chin; Knoblich, Gunther; Sebanz, Natalie

    2011-01-01

    According to ideomotor theories, perceiving action effects produced by others triggers corresponding action representations in the observer. We tested whether this principle extends to actions performed by externally controlled limbs and tools. Participants performed a go-no-go version of a spatial compatibility task in which their own actions…

  15. Experiencing Action Evaluation's Cyclic Process: Partnering Conflict, Reflection, and Action

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Burrows, Andrea C.; Harkness, Shelly Sheats

    2016-01-01

    In this article, the authors describe experiences in and offer suggestions from a course entitled "Educational Innovation for Excellence Through Action Research, Conflict Resolution, and Organizational Learning"--an action evaluation (AE). The class was taught using the principles of action research and AE. The authors explore the impact…

  16. Root-Shoot Signaling crosstalk involved in the shoot growth promoting action of rhizospheric humic acids.

    PubMed

    Olaetxea, Maite; Mora, Verónica; García, Andrés Calderin; Santos, Leandro Azevedo; Baigorri, Roberto; Fuentes, Marta; Garnica, María; Berbara, Ricardo Luis Louro; Zamarreño, Angel Maria; Garcia-Mina, Jose M

    2016-01-01

    Numerous studies have shown the ability of humic substances to improve plant development. This action is normally reflected in an enhancement of crop yields and quality. However, the mechanisms responsible for this action of humic substances remain rather unknown. Our studies have shown that the shoot promoting action of sedimentary humic acids is dependent of its ability to increase root hydraulic conductivity through signaling pathways related to ABA, which in turn is affected in roots by humic acids in an IAA-NO dependent way. Furthermore, these studies also indicate that the primary action of humic acids in roots might also be physical, resulting from a transient mild stress caused by humic acids associated with a fouling-cleaning cycle of wall cell pores. Finally the role of alternative signal molecules, such as ROS, and corresponding signaling pathways are also discussed and modeled in the context of the above-mentioned framework.

  17. Habits as action sequences: hierarchical action control and changes in outcome value

    PubMed Central

    Dezfouli, Amir; Lingawi, Nura W.; Balleine, Bernard W.

    2014-01-01

    Goal-directed action involves making high-level choices that are implemented using previously acquired action sequences to attain desired goals. Such a hierarchical schema is necessary for goal-directed actions to be scalable to real-life situations, but results in decision-making that is less flexible than when action sequences are unfolded and the decision-maker deliberates step-by-step over the outcome of each individual action. In particular, from this perspective, the offline revaluation of any outcomes that fall within action sequence boundaries will be invisible to the high-level planner resulting in decisions that are insensitive to such changes. Here, within the context of a two-stage decision-making task, we demonstrate that this property can explain the emergence of habits. Next, we show how this hierarchical account explains the insensitivity of over-trained actions to changes in outcome value. Finally, we provide new data that show that, under extended extinction conditions, habitual behaviour can revert to goal-directed control, presumably as a consequence of decomposing action sequences into single actions. This hierarchical view suggests that the development of action sequences and the insensitivity of actions to changes in outcome value are essentially two sides of the same coin, explaining why these two aspects of automatic behaviour involve a shared neural structure. PMID:25267824

  18. Computational Simulation of Large Droplet Icing

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1996-01-01

    Certification for flight into known icing remains one of the more challenging goals for aircraft manufacturers. This activity has been further complicated by the current interest in large droplet icing. Due to the lack of data available on the meteor...

  19. 43 CFR 10.11 - Disposition of culturally unidentifiable human remains.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... human remains. 10.11 Section 10.11 Public Lands: Interior Office of the Secretary of the Interior NATIVE AMERICAN GRAVES PROTECTION AND REPATRIATION REGULATIONS Human Remains, Funerary Objects, Sacred Objects, or... unidentifiable human remains. (a) General. This section implements section 8(c)(5) of the Act and applies to...

  20. 43 CFR 10.11 - Disposition of culturally unidentifiable human remains.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... human remains. 10.11 Section 10.11 Public Lands: Interior Office of the Secretary of the Interior NATIVE AMERICAN GRAVES PROTECTION AND REPATRIATION REGULATIONS Human Remains, Funerary Objects, Sacred Objects, or... unidentifiable human remains. (a) General. This section implements section 8(c)(5) of the Act and applies to...

  1. 43 CFR 10.11 - Disposition of culturally unidentifiable human remains.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... human remains. 10.11 Section 10.11 Public Lands: Interior Office of the Secretary of the Interior NATIVE AMERICAN GRAVES PROTECTION AND REPATRIATION REGULATIONS Human Remains, Funerary Objects, Sacred Objects, or... unidentifiable human remains. (a) General. This section implements section 8(c)(5) of the Act and applies to...

  2. Leaf δ18O of remaining trees is affected by thinning intensity in a semiarid pine forest.

    PubMed

    Moreno-Gutiérrez, Cristina; Barberá, Gonzalo G; Nicolás, Emilio; DE Luis, Martín; Castillo, Víctor M; Martínez-Fernández, Faustino; Querejeta, José I

    2011-06-01

    Silvicultural thinning usually improves the water status of remaining trees in water-limited forests. We evaluated the usefulness of a dual stable isotope approach (δ¹³C, δ¹⁸O) for comparing the physiological performance of remaining trees between forest stands subjected to two different thinning intensities (moderate versus heavy) in a 60-year-old Pinus halepensis Mill. plantation in semiarid southeastern Spain. We measured bulk leaf δ¹³C and δ¹⁸O, foliar elemental concentrations, stem water content, stem water δ¹⁸O (δ¹⁸O(stem water)), tree ring widths and leaf gas exchange rates to assess the influence of forest stand density on tree performance. Remaining trees in low-density stands (heavily thinned) showed lower leaf δ¹⁸O, and higher stomatal conductance (g(s)), photosynthetic rate and radial growth than those in moderate-density stands (moderately thinned). By contrast, leaf δ¹³C, intrinsic water-use efficiency, foliar elemental concentrations and δ¹⁸O(stem water) were unaffected by stand density. Lower foliar δ¹⁸O in heavily thinned stands reflected higher g(s) of remaining trees due to decreased inter-tree competition for water, whereas higher photosynthetic rate was largely attributable to reduced stomatal limitation to CO₂ uptake. The dual isotope approach provided insight into the early (12 months) effects of stand density manipulation on the physiological performance of remaining trees. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

  3. From conscious thought to automatic action: A simulation account of action planning.

    PubMed

    Martiny-Huenger, Torsten; Martiny, Sarah E; Parks-Stamm, Elizabeth J; Pfeiffer, Elisa; Gollwitzer, Peter M

    2017-10-01

    We provide a theoretical framework and empirical evidence for how verbally planning an action creates direct perception-action links and behavioral automaticity. We argue that planning actions in an if (situation)-then (action) format induces sensorimotor simulations (i.e., activity patterns reenacting the event in the sensory and motor brain areas) of the anticipated situation and the intended action. Due to their temporal overlap, these activity patterns become linked. Whenever the previously simulated situation is encountered, the previously simulated action is partially reactivated through spreading activation and thus more likely to be executed. In 4 experiments (N = 363), we investigated the relation between specific if-then action plans worded to activate simulations of elbow flexion versus extension movements and actual elbow flexion versus extension movements in a subsequent, ostensibly unrelated categorization task. As expected, linking a critical stimulus to intended actions that implied elbow flexion movements (e.g., grabbing it for consumption) subsequently facilitated elbow flexion movements upon encountering the critical stimulus. However, linking a critical stimulus to actions that implied elbow extension movements (e.g., pointing at it) subsequently facilitated elbow extension movements upon encountering the critical stimulus. Thus, minor differences (i.e., exchanging the words "point at" with "grab") in verbally formulated action plans (i.e., conscious thought) had systematic consequences on subsequent actions. The question of how conscious thought can induce stimulus-triggered action is illuminated by the provided theoretical framework and the respective empirical evidence, facilitating the understanding of behavioral automaticity and human agency. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

  4. Mechanism of action of hypotensive prostaglandins in patients with essential hypertension.

    PubMed

    Michibayashi, Tsutomu

    2002-06-01

    Despite extensive investigation, the biological mechanisms causing essential hypertension (EHT) remain unclear. To clarify the means by which hypotensive prostaglandins (Hypo-PGs, mainly PGE1 and PGE2) act in patients with EHT, the interaction between intravenously infused Hypo-PGs and pressor substances such as an adrenergic neurotransmitter, noradrenaline (NA) and angiotensin II (AII) was examined both in patients with EHT and in perfused isolated rabbit ear artery preparations. In patients with EHT, Hypo-PGs were shown to reduce the pressor responses to intravenously infused NA or AII, although no significant difference was found between the pressor responses to NA under basal conditions and the responses during intravenous infusion of Hypo-PGs. Animal studies were undertaken to investigate the inhibitory action of Hypo-PGs on the vasoconstrictive responses to electrical stimulation of the perivascular sympathetic nerves (VSNS) and to exogenous NA at pre- and postjunctional sites in blood vessel walls. The suppressive action of Hypo-PGs on the response to VSNS was shown to be more potent than that to their action on the response to exogenous NA. Thus, it was concluded that the hypotensive action of intravenously infused Hypo-PGs in patients with EHT may be more dependent on prejunctional sites than on the postjunctional sites in the walls of blood vessels.

  5. Why Do Some Cores Remain Starless?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Anathpindika, S.

    2016-08-01

    Prestellar cores, by definition, are gravitationally bound but starless pockets of dense gas. Physical conditions that could render a core starless (in the local Universe) is the subject of investigation in this work. To this end, we studied the evolution of four starless cores, B68, L694-2, L1517B, L1689, and L1521F, a VeLLO. We demonstrate: (i) cores contracted in quasistatic manner over a timescale on the order of ~ 105 yr. Those that remained starless briefly acquired a centrally concentrated density configuration that mimicked the profile of a unstable BonnorEbert sphere before rebounding, (ii) three cores viz. L694-2, L1689-SMM16, and L1521F remained starless despite becoming thermally super-critical. By contrast, B68 and L1517B remained sub-critical; L1521F collapsed to become a VeLLO only when gas-cooling was enhanced by increasing the size of dust-grains. This result is robust, for other starless cores viz. B68, L694-2, L1517B, and L1689 could also be similarly induced to collapse. The temperature-profile of starless cores and those that collapsed was found to be radically different. While in the former type, only very close to the centre of a core was there any evidence of decline in gas temperature, by contrast, a core of the latter type developed a more uniformly cold interior. Our principle conclusions are: (a) thermal super-criticality of a core is insufficient to ensure it will become protostellar, (b) potential star-forming cores (the VeLLO L1521F here), could be experiencing dust-coagulation that must enhance gasdust coupling and in turn lower gas temperature, thereby assisting collapse. This also suggests, mere gravitational/virial boundedness of a core is insufficient to ensure it will form stars.

  6. Social Mimicry Enhances Mu-Suppression During Action Observation.

    PubMed

    Hogeveen, Jeremy; Chartrand, Tanya L; Obhi, Sukhvinder S

    2015-08-01

    During social interactions, there is a tendency for people to mimic the gestures and mannerisms of others, which increases liking and rapport. Psychologists have extensively studied the antecedents and consequences of mimicry at the social level, but the neural basis of this behavior remains unclear. Many researchers have speculated that mimicry is related to activity in the human mirror system (HMS), a network of parietofrontal regions that are involved in both action execution and observation. However, activity of the HMS during reciprocal social interactions involving mimicry has not been demonstrated. Here, we took an electroencephalographic (EEG) index of mirror activity-mu-suppression during action observation-in a pretest/post-test design with 1 of 3 intervening treatments: 1) social interaction in which the participant was mimicked, 2) social interaction without mimicry, or 3) an innocuous computer task, not involving another human agent. The change in mu-suppression from pre- to post-test varied as a function of the intervening treatment, with participants who had been mimicked showing an increase in mu-suppression during the post-treatment action observation session. We propose that this specific modulation of HMS activity as a function of mimicry constitutes the first direct evidence for mirror system involvement in real social mimicry. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  7. 77 FR 35357 - Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Commercial Atlantic Region Non-Sandbar Large Coastal Shark...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-06-13

    ... Highly Migratory Species; Commercial Atlantic Region Non-Sandbar Large Coastal Shark Fishery Opening Date... commercial Atlantic region non-sandbar large coastal shark fishery. This action is necessary to inform... large coastal shark fishery will open on July 15, 2012. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Karyl Brewster...

  8. Corrective Action Decision Document/Closure Report for Corrective Action Unit 106: Area 5, 11 Frenchman Flat Atmospheric Sites, Nevada National Security Site, Nevada, Revision 0

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Patrick Matthews and Dawn Peterson

    2011-09-01

    verification samples. Results of verification samples show that remaining soil does not contain contamination exceeding the FALs. Therefore, the U.S. Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration Nevada Site Office (NNSA/NSO) provides the following recommendations: (1) No further corrective actions are necessary for CAU 106. (2) A Notice of Completion to NNSA/NSO is requested from the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection for closure of CAU 106. (3) Corrective Action Unit 106 should be moved from Appendix III to Appendix IV of the FFACO.« less

  9. Determination of cable parameters in skeletal muscle fibres during repetitive firing of action potentials

    PubMed Central

    Riisager, Anders; Duehmke, Rudy; Nielsen, Ole Bækgaard; Huang, Christopher L; Pedersen, Thomas Holm

    2014-01-01

    Recent studies in rat muscle fibres show that repetitive firing of action potentials causes changes in fibre resting membrane conductance (Gm) that reflect regulation of ClC-1 Cl− and KATP K+ ion channels. Methodologically, these findings were obtained by inserting two microelectrodes at close proximity in the same fibres enabling measurements of fibre input resistance (Rin) in between action potential trains. Since the fibre length constant (λ) could not be determined, however, the calculation of Gm relied on the assumptions that the specific cytosolic resistivity (Ri) and muscle fibre volume remained constant during the repeated action potential firing. Here we present a three-microelectrode technique that enables determinations of multiple cable parameters in action potential-firing fibres including Rin and λ as well as waveform and conduction velocities of fully propagating action potentials. It is shown that in both rat and mouse extensor digitorum longus (EDL) fibres, action potential firing leads to substantial changes in both muscle fibre volume and Ri. The analysis also showed, however, that regardless of these changes, rat and mouse EDL fibres both exhibited initial decreases in Gm that were eventually followed by a ∼3-fold, fully reversible increase in Gm after the firing of 1450–1800 action potentials. Using this three-electrode method we further show that the latter rise in Gm was closely associated with excitation failures and loss of action potential signal above −20 mV. PMID:25128573

  10. The identification of submerged skeletonized remains.

    PubMed

    Byard, Roger W; Both, Katrin; Simpson, Ellie

    2008-03-01

    Examination was undertaken of skeletonized remains contained within 2 rubber boots dredged by a fishing boat from a depth of 145 m, approximately 185 km off the southern Australian coast in the Great Australian Bight. The boots had been manufactured in Australia in July 1993 and were of a type commonly used by local fishermen. Examination of the lower legs and feet revealed well-preserved bones with arthritic changes in keeping with an older male. DNA analyses using reference samples taken from relatives of fishermen who had disappeared in the area resulted in the identification of the victim as a 52-year-old prawn fisherman who had been swept off a boat over a decade earlier. DNA stability had been maintained by the low light, cold temperatures, and alkaline pH of the ocean floor. Integration of pathologic, anthropologic, and biologic analyses with police investigations enabled a positive identification to be made despite the unusual nature of the location of the remains and the time lapse since the disappearance of the victim.

  11. Prospective treatment plan-specific action limits for real-time intrafractional monitoring in surface image guided radiosurgery.

    PubMed

    Yock, Adam D; Pawlicki, Todd; Kim, Gwe-Ya

    2016-07-01

    In surface image guided radiosurgery, action limits are created to determine at what point intrafractional motion exhibited by the patient is large enough to warrant intervention. Action limit values remain constant across patients despite the fact that patient motion affects the target coverage of brain metastases differently depending on the planning technique and other treatment plan-specific factors. The purpose of this work was twofold. The first purpose was to characterize the sensitivity of single-met per iso and multimet per iso treatment plans to uncorrected patient motion. The second purpose was to describe a method to prospectively determine treatment plan-specific action limits considering this sensitivity. In their surface image guided radiosurgery technique, patient positioning is achieved with a thermoplastic mask that does not cover the patient's face. The patient's exposed face is imaged by a stereoscopic photogrammetry system. It is then compared to a reference surface and monitored throughout treatment. Seventy-two brain metastases (representing 29 patients) were used for this study. Twenty-five mets were treated individually ("single-met per iso plans"), and 47 were treated in a plan simultaneously with at least one other met ("multimet per iso plans"). For each met, the proportion of the gross tumor volume that remained within the 100% prescription isodose line was estimated under the influence of combinations of translations and rotations (0.0-3.0 mm and 0.0°-3.0°, respectively). The target volume and the prescription dose-volume were considered concentric spheres that each encompassed a volume determined from the treatment plan. Plan-specific contour plots and DVHs were created to illustrate the sensitivity of a specific lesion to uncorrected patient motion. Both single-met per iso and multimet per iso plans exhibited compromised target coverage under translations and rotations, though multimet per iso plans were considerably more sensitive

  12. Increasing Speed of Processing With Action Video Games

    PubMed Central

    Dye, Matthew W.G.; Green, C. Shawn; Bavelier, Daphne

    2010-01-01

    In many everyday situations, speed is of the essence. However, fast decisions typically mean more mistakes. To this day, it remains unknown whether reaction times can be reduced with appropriate training, within one individual, across a range of tasks, and without compromising accuracy. Here we review evidence that the very act of playing action video games significantly reduces reaction times without sacrificing accuracy. Critically, this increase in speed is observed across various tasks beyond game situations. Video gaming may therefore provide an efficient training regimen to induce a general speeding of perceptual reaction times without decreases in accuracy of performance. PMID:20485453

  13. Conservation Action Handbook.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    National Rifle Association, Washington, DC.

    Conservation problems are identified, with some suggestions for action. General areas covered are: Wildlife Conservation, Soil Conservation, Clean Water, Air Pollution Action, and Outdoor Recreation Action. Appendices list private organizations or agencies concerned with natural resource use and/or management, congressional committees considering…

  14. Egocentric Temporal Action Proposals.

    PubMed

    Shao Huang; Weiqiang Wang; Shengfeng He; Lau, Rynson W H

    2018-02-01

    We present an approach to localize generic actions in egocentric videos, called temporal action proposals (TAPs), for accelerating the action recognition step. An egocentric TAP refers to a sequence of frames that may contain a generic action performed by the wearer of a head-mounted camera, e.g., taking a knife, spreading jam, pouring milk, or cutting carrots. Inspired by object proposals, this paper aims at generating a small number of TAPs, thereby replacing the popular sliding window strategy, for localizing all action events in the input video. To this end, we first propose to temporally segment the input video into action atoms, which are the smallest units that may contain an action. We then apply a hierarchical clustering algorithm with several egocentric cues to generate TAPs. Finally, we propose two actionness networks to score the likelihood of each TAP containing an action. The top ranked candidates are returned as output TAPs. Experimental results show that the proposed TAP detection framework performs significantly better than relevant approaches for egocentric action detection.

  15. Proposed actions are no actions: re-modeling an ontology design pattern with a realist top-level ontology.

    PubMed

    Seddig-Raufie, Djamila; Jansen, Ludger; Schober, Daniel; Boeker, Martin; Grewe, Niels; Schulz, Stefan

    2012-09-21

    Ontology Design Patterns (ODPs) are representational artifacts devised to offer solutions for recurring ontology design problems. They promise to enhance the ontology building process in terms of flexibility, re-usability and expansion, and to make the result of ontology engineering more predictable. In this paper, we analyze ODP repositories and investigate their relation with upper-level ontologies. In particular, we compare the BioTop upper ontology to the Action ODP from the NeOn an ODP repository. In view of the differences in the respective approaches, we investigate whether the Action ODP can be embedded into BioTop. We demonstrate that this requires re-interpreting the meaning of classes of the NeOn Action ODP in the light of the precepts of realist ontologies. As a result, the re-design required clarifying the ontological commitment of the ODP classes by assigning them to top-level categories. Thus, ambiguous definitions are avoided. Classes of real entities are clearly distinguished from classes of information artifacts. The proposed approach avoids the commitment to the existence of unclear future entities which underlies the NeOn Action ODP. Our re-design is parsimonious in the sense that existing BioTop content proved to be largely sufficient to define the different types of actions and plans. The proposed model demonstrates that an expressive upper-level ontology provides enough resources and expressivity to represent even complex ODPs, here shown with the different flavors of Action as proposed in the NeOn ODP. The advantage of ODP inclusion into a top-level ontology is the given predetermined dependency of each class, an existing backbone structure and well-defined relations. Our comparison shows that the use of some ODPs is more likely to cause problems for ontology developers, rather than to guide them. Besides the structural properties, the explanation of classification results were particularly hard to grasp for 'self-sufficient' ODPs as

  16. Modularity and hierarchical organization of action programs in children's acquisition of graphic skills.

    PubMed

    Manoel, Edison de J; Dantas, Luiz; Gimenez, Roberto; de Oliveira, Dalton Lustosa

    2011-10-01

    The organization of actions is based on modules in memory as a result of practice, easing the demand of performing more complex actions. If this modularization occurs, the elements of the module must remain invariant in new tasks. To test this hypothesis, 35 children, age 10 yr., practiced a graphic criterion task on a digital tablet and completed a complex graphic task enclosing the previous one. Total movement and pause times to draw the figure indicated skill acquisition. A module was identified by the variability of relative timing, pause time, and sequencing. Total movement to perform the criterion task did not increase significantly when it was embedded in the more complex task. Modularity was evidenced by the stability of relative timing and pause time and sequencing. The spatial position of new elements did not perturb the module, so the grammar of action may still have been forming.

  17. The importance of sensory integration processes for action cascading

    PubMed Central

    Gohil, Krutika; Stock, Ann-Kathrin; Beste, Christian

    2015-01-01

    Dual tasking or action cascading is essential in everyday life and often investigated using tasks presenting stimuli in different sensory modalities. Findings obtained with multimodal tasks are often broadly generalized, but until today, it has remained unclear whether multimodal integration affects performance in action cascading or the underlying neurophysiology. To bridge this gap, we asked healthy young adults to complete a stop-change paradigm which presented different stimuli in either one or two modalities while recording behavioral and neurophysiological data. Bimodal stimulus presentation prolonged response times and affected bottom-up and top-down guided attentional processes as reflected by the P1 and N1, respectively. However, the most important effect was the modulation of response selection processes reflected by the P3 suggesting that a potentially different way of forming task goals operates during action cascading in bimodal vs. unimodal tasks. When two modalities are involved, separate task goals need to be formed while a conjoint task goal may be generated when all stimuli are presented in the same modality. On a systems level, these processes seem to be related to the modulation of activity in fronto-polar regions (BA10) as well as Broca's area (BA44). PMID:25820681

  18. A large-scale analysis of sex differences in facial expressions

    PubMed Central

    Kodra, Evan; el Kaliouby, Rana; LaFrance, Marianne

    2017-01-01

    There exists a stereotype that women are more expressive than men; however, research has almost exclusively focused on a single facial behavior, smiling. A large-scale study examines whether women are consistently more expressive than men or whether the effects are dependent on the emotion expressed. Studies of gender differences in expressivity have been somewhat restricted to data collected in lab settings or which required labor-intensive manual coding. In the present study, we analyze gender differences in facial behaviors as over 2,000 viewers watch a set of video advertisements in their home environments. The facial responses were recorded using participants’ own webcams. Using a new automated facial coding technology we coded facial activity. We find that women are not universally more expressive across all facial actions. Nor are they more expressive in all positive valence actions and less expressive in all negative valence actions. It appears that generally women express actions more frequently than men, and in particular express more positive valence actions. However, expressiveness is not greater in women for all negative valence actions and is dependent on the discrete emotional state. PMID:28422963

  19. Corrective Action Decision Document/Closure Report for Corrective Action Unit 375: Area 30 Buggy Unit Craters, Nevada National Security Site, Nevada, Revision 0

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Patrick Matthews

    2011-08-01

    undertaken that consisted of removing the PSM. Use restrictions and warning signs were implemented for the remaining radiological contamination at CASs 25-23-22 and 30-45-01. These use restrictions were recorded in the FFACO database; the U.S. Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration Nevada Site Office (NNSA/NSO) Facility Information Management System; and the NNSA/NSO CAU/CAS files. Therefore, NNSA/NSO provides the following recommendations: (1) No further corrective actions are necessary for CAU 375; (2) A Notice of Completion to NNSA/NSO is requested from the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection for closure of CAU 375; and (3) Move CAU 375 from Appendix III to Appendix IV of the FFACO.« less

  20. A Call to Action to Address Gender Equity Within Our Specialty: Time's Up on Waiting for Change.

    PubMed

    Baecher-Lind, Laura; Abbott, Jodi; Atkins, Katharyn Meredith; Nijjar, J Biba; Royce, Celeste; Schiff, Lauren; Ricciotti, Hope A

    2018-06-01

    Although national attention has been focused on sexual harassment and gender inequity in the United States, leaders within the obstetrics and gynecology community have remained relatively silent. Sexual harassment and gender inequity remain pervasive in our specialty. This article serves as a call to action for leadership as well as physicians within obstetrics and gynecology to implement ethical and evidence-based approaches to reduce gender inequity and improve workplace culture within our specialty.

  1. Detachable glass microelectrodes for recording action potentials in active moving organs.

    PubMed

    Barbic, Mladen; Moreno, Angel; Harris, Tim D; Kay, Matthew W

    2017-06-01

    Here, we describe new detachable floating glass micropipette electrode devices that provide targeted action potential recordings in active moving organs without requiring constant mechanical constraint or pharmacological inhibition of tissue motion. The technology is based on the concept of a glass micropipette electrode that is held firmly during cell targeting and intracellular insertion, after which a 100-µg glass microelectrode, a "microdevice," is gently released to remain within the moving organ. The microdevices provide long-term recordings of action potentials, even during millimeter-scale movement of tissue in which the device is embedded. We demonstrate two different glass micropipette electrode holding and detachment designs appropriate for the heart (sharp glass microdevices for cardiac myocytes in rats, guinea pigs, and humans) and the brain (patch glass microdevices for neurons in rats). We explain how microdevices enable measurements of multiple cells within a moving organ that are typically difficult with other technologies. Using sharp microdevices, action potential duration was monitored continuously for 15 min in unconstrained perfused hearts during global ischemia-reperfusion, providing beat-to-beat measurements of changes in action potential duration. Action potentials from neurons in the hippocampus of anesthetized rats were measured with patch microdevices, which provided stable base potentials during long-term recordings. Our results demonstrate that detachable microdevices are an elegant and robust tool to record electrical activity with high temporal resolution and cellular level localization without disturbing the physiological working conditions of the organ. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Cellular action potential measurements within tissue using glass micropipette electrodes usually require tissue immobilization, potentially influencing the physiological relevance of the measurement. Here, we addressed this limitation with novel 100-µg detachable

  2. Effect of large wood retention at check dams on sediment continuity

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schmocker, Lukas; Schalko, Isabella; Weitbrecht, Volker

    2017-04-01

    Large wood transport during flood events may seriously increase the damage potential due to accumulations at river infrastructures. The large wood is therefore mostly retained upstream of populated areas using retention structures that often combine a check dam with a debris rack. One disadvantages of this structures is, that the bed-load gets retained along with the wood. Especially if large wood blocks the rack early during a flood event, sediment continuity is completely interrupted. This may lead to severe bed erosion downstream of the check dam. So far, no common design to retain large wood but maintain sediment continuity is available. One attempt to separate the large wood from the bed-load was made with the large wood retention structure at River Sihl in Zürich, Switzerland. The retention of the large wood occurs in a bypass channel located along the main river. The bypass is located at an outer river bend, where a separation of bed-load and large wood results due to the secondary currents induced by the river curvature. Large wood floats towards the outer bend due to inertia and the secondary currents whereas bed-load remains at the inner bend. The bypass is separated by a side weir from the main river to ensure that the bed-load remains in the river during bed forming discharges and flood events. New model test are currently carried out at the Laboratory of Hydraulics, Hydrology, and Glaciology (VAW) of ETH Zurich, where sediment continuity should be achieved using an inclined rack. The rack is inclined in flow direction with a degree of 45° to 20°. First results show that the large wood deposits at the upper part of the rack whereas the lower part of the rack remains free for bed-load transport. Furthermore, the backwater rise for the inclined rack due to the accumulated wood is considerably reduced compared to a vertical rack, as a large part of the rack remains clear for the flow to pass. The findings of this studies help to understand the complex

  3. Promoting Children's and Adolescents' Social and Emotional Development: District Adaptations of a Theory of Action.

    PubMed

    Kendziora, Kimberly; Osher, David

    2016-01-01

    This article contributes to the broader discussion of promotion, prevention, and intervention in child and adolescent mental health by describing implementation and early outcomes of an 8-school district demonstration project aimed at making the promotion of social and emotional learning a systemic part of school districts' practice. Eight districts are 2-3 years in to their participation in the 6-year project. The districts are large, are predominantly urban, and serve many students who are at disadvantage. The evaluation involved collection of qualitative data to measure the degree to which the districts realized the goals established in the initiative's theory of action, as well as school climate data, extant student records, and surveys of students' social and emotional competence. To date, results show that districts have followed highly individual pathways toward integrating social and emotional learning systemically, and all have made progress over time. Although school-level implementation remains at moderate levels, 2 districts in which we could examine school climate showed gains from preinitiative years. Four of 6 measured districts showed improvement in social and emotional competence for students in Grade 3, and achievement and discipline showed overall improvements across all districts. Overall findings show that implementation of the initiative's theory of action by school districts is feasible, even in times of budgetary stress and leadership turnover. This establishes the potential for school districts to serve as a lever of change in the promotion of students' social and emotional development and mental wellness.

  4. Autocrine action of BDNF on dendrite development of adult-born hippocampal neurons.

    PubMed

    Wang, Liang; Chang, Xingya; She, Liang; Xu, Duo; Huang, Wei; Poo, Mu-ming

    2015-06-03

    Dendrite development of newborn granule cells (GCs) in the dentate gyrus of adult hippocampus is critical for their incorporation into existing hippocampal circuits, but the cellular mechanisms regulating their dendrite development remains largely unclear. In this study, we examined the function of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which is expressed in adult-born GCs, in regulating their dendrite morphogenesis. Using retrovirus-mediated gene transfection, we found that deletion and overexpression of BDNF in adult-born GCs resulted in the reduction and elevation of dendrite growth, respectively. This effect was mainly due to the autocrine rather than paracrine action of BDNF, because deletion of BDNF only in the newborn GCs resulted in dendrite abnormality of these neurons to a similar extent as that observed in conditional knockout (cKO) mice with BDNF deleted in the entire forebrain. Furthermore, selective expression of BDNF in adult-born GCs in BDNF cKO mice fully restored normal dendrite development. The BDNF autocrine action was also required for the development of normal density of spines and normal percentage of spines containing the postsynaptic marker PSD-95, suggesting autocrine BDNF regulation of synaptogenesis. Furthermore, increased dendrite growth of adult-born GCs caused by voluntary exercise was abolished by BDNF deletion specifically in these neurons and elevated dendrite growth due to BDNF overexpression in these neurons was prevented by reducing neuronal activity with coexpression of inward rectifier potassium channels, consistent with activity-dependent autocrine BDNF secretion. Therefore, BDNF expressed in adult-born GCs plays a critical role in dendrite development by acting as an autocrine factor. Copyright © 2015 the authors 0270-6474/15/358384-10$15.00/0.

  5. On the BV formalism of open superstring field theory in the large Hilbert space

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Matsunaga, Hiroaki; Nomura, Mitsuru

    2018-05-01

    We construct several BV master actions for open superstring field theory in the large Hilbert space. First, we show that a naive use of the conventional BV approach breaks down at the third order of the antifield number expansion, although it enables us to define a simple "string antibracket" taking the Darboux form as spacetime antibrackets. This fact implies that in the large Hilbert space, "string fields-antifields" should be reassembled to obtain master actions in a simple manner. We determine the assembly of the string anti-fields on the basis of Berkovits' constrained BV approach, and give solutions to the master equation defined by Dirac antibrackets on the constrained string field-antifield space. It is expected that partial gauge-fixing enables us to relate superstring field theories based on the large and small Hilbert spaces directly: reassembling string fields-antifields is rather natural from this point of view. Finally, inspired by these results, we revisit the conventional BV approach and construct a BV master action based on the minimal set of string fields-antifields.

  6. Metastability and emergent performance of dynamic interceptive actions.

    PubMed

    Pinder, Ross A; Davids, Keith; Renshaw, Ian

    2012-09-01

    Adaptive patterning of human movement is context specific and dependent on interacting constraints of the performer-environment relationship. Flexibility of skilled behaviour is predicated on the capacity of performers to move between different states of movement organisation to satisfy dynamic task constraints, previously demonstrated in studies of visual perception, bimanual coordination, and an interceptive combat task. Metastability is a movement system property that helps performers to remain in a state of relative coordination with their performance environments, poised between multiple co-existing states (stable and distinct movement patterns or responses). The aim of this study was to examine whether metastability could be exploited in externally paced interceptive actions in fast ball sports, such as cricket. Here we report data on metastability in performance of multi-articular hitting actions by skilled junior cricket batters (n=5). Participants' batting actions (key movement timings and performance outcomes) were analysed in four distinct performance regions varied by ball pitching (bounce) location. Results demonstrated that, at a pre-determined distance to the ball, participants were forced into a meta-stable region of performance where rich and varied patterns of functional movement behaviours emerged. Participants adapted the organisation of responses, resulting in higher levels of variability in movement timing in this performance region, without detrimental effects on the quality of interceptive performance outcomes. Findings provide evidence for the emergence of metastability in a dynamic interceptive action in cricket batting. Flexibility and diversity of movement responses were optimised using experiential knowledge and careful manipulation of key task constraints of the specific sport context. Copyright © 2012 Sports Medicine Australia. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. An Analysis of “Natural” Food Litigation to Build a Sesame Allergy Consumer Class Action.

    PubMed

    Shaker, Dana

    In a world where food allergy is still an incurable disease, law and regulation stand as necessary mechanisms to provide food-allergic consumers with the information they need to protect their health. The Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of 2004 provided specific labeling requirements for the “Top Eight” allergens in the U.S.: milk, soy, gluten, egg, tree nut, peanut, fish, and Crustacean shellfish. Since then, sesame has become more prevalent as an allergen and remains just as dangerous, inducing anaphylactic shock in some sesame-allergic individuals. Yet sesame remains unregulated, despite advocates and congressional members arguing for its inclusion. This note entertains one solution to this problem by exploring the most strategic way to bring a sesame allergy class action against a private food company under California’s consumer protection statutes. Because this kind of class action does not have much, if any, precedent, this note analyzes the basic, preliminary issues that any litigant would have to navigate around to certify a class, including preemption, standing, and the claim itself, by focusing on how courts have examined these issues in the recent “natural” class action litigation. It also analyzes the legal, moral, and practical aspects of choosing a type of relief, as well as whom to include in the class. Finally, this note briefly considers how FDA itself can ensure sesame is regulated on the labels of food products, given that some of the legal issues may well be insurmountable for this particular class action. This note explores the potential solutions to difficult legal hurdles in constructing a sesame allergy class action, arguing that litigating a sesame allergy class action—even if it is not ultimately successful—could start a productive conversation that might lead Congress or FDA to provide greater public health and consumer protection for those with sesame allergy.

  8. Towards an understanding of the adjuvant action of aluminium

    PubMed Central

    Marrack, Philippa; McKee, Amy S.; Munks, Michael W.

    2011-01-01

    The efficacy of vaccines depends on the presence of an adjuvant in conjunction with the antigen. Of these adjuvants, the ones that contain aluminium, which were first discovered empirically in 1926, are currently the most widely used. However, a detailed understanding of their mechanism of action has only started to be revealed. In this Timeline article, we briefly describe the initial discovery of aluminium adjuvants and discuss historically important advances. We also summarize recent progress in the field and discuss their implications and the remaining questions on how these adjuvants work. PMID:19247370

  9. Participatory Action Research.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Walker, Martha Lentz

    1993-01-01

    Describes aspects of participatory action research and considers advantages of using participatory action research in research by disabilities and rehabilitation researchers. Notes that participatory action research can be built into any rehabilitation research design but that it rests upon the recognition of persons with disabilities as integral…

  10. Evaluating Action Learning: A Critical Realist Complex Network Theory Approach

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Burgoyne, John G.

    2010-01-01

    This largely theoretical paper will argue the case for the usefulness of applying network and complex adaptive systems theory to an understanding of action learning and the challenge it is evaluating. This approach, it will be argued, is particularly helpful in the context of improving capability in dealing with wicked problems spread around…

  11. Objects tell us what action we can expect: dissociating brain areas for retrieval and exploitation of action knowledge during action observation in fMRI

    PubMed Central

    Schubotz, Ricarda I.; Wurm, Moritz F.; Wittmann, Marco K.; von Cramon, D. Yves

    2014-01-01

    Objects are reminiscent of actions often performed with them: knife and apple remind us on peeling the apple or cutting it. Mnemonic representations of object-related actions (action codes) evoked by the sight of an object may constrain and hence facilitate recognition of unrolling actions. The present fMRI study investigated if and how action codes influence brain activation during action observation. The average number of action codes (NAC) of 51 sets of objects was rated by a group of n = 24 participants. In an fMRI study, different volunteers were asked to recognize actions performed with the same objects presented in short videos. To disentangle areas reflecting the storage of action codes from those exploiting them, we showed object-compatible and object-incompatible (pantomime) actions. Areas storing action codes were considered to positively co-vary with NAC in both object-compatible and object-incompatible action; due to its role in tool-related tasks, we here hypothesized left anterior inferior parietal cortex (aIPL). In contrast, areas exploiting action codes were expected to show this correlation only in object-compatible but not incompatible action, as only object-compatible actions match one of the active action codes. For this interaction, we hypothesized ventrolateral premotor cortex (PMv) to join aIPL due to its role in biasing competition in IPL. We found left anterior intraparietal sulcus (IPS) and left posterior middle temporal gyrus (pMTG) to co-vary with NAC. In addition to these areas, action codes increased activity in object-compatible action in bilateral PMv, right IPS, and lateral occipital cortex (LO). Findings suggest that during action observation, the brain derives possible actions from perceived objects, and uses this information to shape action recognition. In particular, the number of expectable actions quantifies the activity level at PMv, IPL, and pMTG, but only PMv reflects their biased competition while observed action unfolds

  12. Ghost Remains After Black Hole Eruption

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    2009-05-01

    it has died," said co-author Scott Chapman, also of Cambridge University. "This means we don't have to catch the black holes in the act to witness the big impact they have." This is the first X-ray ghost ever seen after the demise of radio-bright jets. Astronomers have observed extensive X-ray emission with a similar origin, but only from galaxies with radio emission on large scales, signifying continued eruptions. In HDF 130, only a point source is detected in radio images, coinciding with the massive elliptical galaxy seen in its optical image. This radio source indicates the presence of a growing supermassive black hole. People Who Read This Also Read... Milky Way's Super-efficient Particle Accelerators Caught in The Act NASA Joins "Around the World in 80 Telescopes" Celebrate the International Year of Astronomy Galaxies Coming of Age in Cosmic Blobs "This result hints that the X-ray sky should be littered with such ghosts," said co-author Caitlin Casey, also of Cambridge, "especially if black hole eruptions are as common as we think they are in the early Universe." The power contained in the black hole eruption was likely to be considerable, equivalent to about a billion supernovas. The energy is dumped into the surroundings and transports and heats the gas. "Even after the ghost disappears, most of the energy from the black hole's eruption remains", said Fabian. "Because they're so powerful, these eruptions can have profound effects lasting for billions of years." The details of Chandra's data of HDF 130 helped secure its true nature. For example, in X-rays, HDF 130 has a cigar-like shape that extends for some 2.2 million light years. The linear shape of the X-ray source is consistent with the shape of radio jets and not with that of a galaxy cluster, which is expected to be circular. The energy distribution of the X-rays is also consistent with the interpretation of an X-ray ghost. NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., manages the Chandra

  13. Year 2000 Computing Challenge: Education Taking Needed Actions but Work Remains. Testimony before the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, Committee on Education and the Workforce, House of Representatives.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Willemssen, Joel C.

    This document provides testimony on the U.S. Department of Education's efforts to ensure that its computer systems supporting critical student financial aid activities will be able to process information reliably through the turn of the century. After providing some background information, the statement recaps prior findings and the actions that…

  14. Distinct Sources of Deterministic and Stochastic Components of Action Timing Decisions in Rodent Frontal Cortex.

    PubMed

    Murakami, Masayoshi; Shteingart, Hanan; Loewenstein, Yonatan; Mainen, Zachary F

    2017-05-17

    The selection and timing of actions are subject to determinate influences such as sensory cues and internal state as well as to effectively stochastic variability. Although stochastic choice mechanisms are assumed by many theoretical models, their origin and mechanisms remain poorly understood. Here we investigated this issue by studying how neural circuits in the frontal cortex determine action timing in rats performing a waiting task. Electrophysiological recordings from two regions necessary for this behavior, medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and secondary motor cortex (M2), revealed an unexpected functional dissociation. Both areas encoded deterministic biases in action timing, but only M2 neurons reflected stochastic trial-by-trial fluctuations. This differential coding was reflected in distinct timescales of neural dynamics in the two frontal cortical areas. These results suggest a two-stage model in which stochastic components of action timing decisions are injected by circuits downstream of those carrying deterministic bias signals. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  15. Root-Shoot Signaling crosstalk involved in the shoot growth promoting action of rhizospheric humic acids

    PubMed Central

    Olaetxea, Maite; Mora, Verónica; García, Andrés Calderin; Santos, Leandro Azevedo; Baigorri, Roberto; Fuentes, Marta; Garnica, María; Berbara, Ricardo Luis Louro; Zamarreño, Angel Maria; Garcia-Mina, Jose M.

    2016-01-01

    ABSTRACT Numerous studies have shown the ability of humic substances to improve plant development. This action is normally reflected in an enhancement of crop yields and quality. However, the mechanisms responsible for this action of humic substances remain rather unknown. Our studies have shown that the shoot promoting action of sedimentary humic acids is dependent of its ability to increase root hydraulic conductivity through signaling pathways related to ABA, which in turn is affected in roots by humic acids in an IAA-NO dependent way. Furthermore, these studies also indicate that the primary action of humic acids in roots might also be physical, resulting from a transient mild stress caused by humic acids associated with a fouling-cleaning cycle of wall cell pores. Finally the role of alternative signal molecules, such as ROS, and corresponding signaling pathways are also discussed and modeled in the context of the above-mentioned framework. PMID:26966789

  16. Differentiation between decomposed remains of human origin and bigger mammals.

    PubMed

    Rosier, E; Loix, S; Develter, W; Van de Voorde, W; Cuypers, E; Tytgat, J

    2017-08-01

    This study is a follow-up study in the search for a human specific marker in the decomposition where the VOC-profile of decomposing human, pig, lamb and roe remains were analyzed using a thermal desorber combined with a gas chromatograph coupled to a mass spectrometer in a laboratory environment during 6 months. The combination of 8 previously identified human and pig specific compounds (ethyl propionate, propyl propionate, propyl butyrate, ethyl pentanoate, 3-methylthio-1-propanol, methyl(methylthio)ethyl disulfide, diethyl disulfide and pyridine) was also seen in these analyzed mammals. However, combined with 5 additional compounds (hexane, heptane, octane, N-(3-methylbutyl)- and N-(2-methylpropyl)acetamide) human remains could be separated from pig, lamb and roe remains. Based on a higher number of remains analyzed, as compared with the pilot study, it was no longer possible to rely on the 5 previously proposed esters to separate pig from human remains. From this follow-up study reported, it was found that pyridine is an interesting compound specific to human remains. Such a human specific marker can help in the training of cadaver dogs or in the development of devices to search for human remains. However, further investigations have to verify these results. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd and Faculty of Forensic and Legal Medicine. All rights reserved.

  17. Healthcare stocks expected to remain strong.

    PubMed

    Pallarito, K

    1991-05-27

    While healthcare stocks are likely to remain at the top of Wall Street's list of favorites, healthcare analysts and money managers say they don't expect to see the same quality of healthcare companies issuing stock the rest of the year. They say that in the coming months, more companies of lesser quality will sell stock at inflated prices, compared with their earnings.

  18. Broca's area processes the hierarchical organization of observed action

    PubMed Central

    Wakita, Masumi

    2014-01-01

    Broca's area has been suggested as the area responsible for the domain-general hierarchical processing of language and music. Although meaningful action shares a common hierarchical structure with language and music, the role of Broca's area in this domain remains controversial. To address the involvement of Broca's area in the processing action hierarchy, the activation of Broca's area was measured using near-infrared spectroscopy. Measurements were taken while participants watched silent movies that featured hand movements playing familiar and unfamiliar melodies. The unfamiliar melodies were reversed versions of the familiar melodies. Additionally, to investigate the effect of a motor experience on the activation of Broca's area, the participants were divided into well-trained and less-trained groups. The results showed that Broca's area in the well-trained participants demonstrated a significantly larger activation in response to the hand motion when an unfamiliar melody was played than when a familiar melody was played. However, Broca's area in the less-trained participants did not show a contrast between conditions despite identical abilities of the two participant groups to identify the melodies by watching key pressing actions. These results are consistent with previous findings that Broca's area exhibits increased activation in response to grammatically violated sentences and musically deviated chord progressions as well as the finding that this region does not represent the processing of grammatical structure in less-proficient foreign language speakers. Thus, the current study suggests that Broca's area represents action hierarchy and that sufficiently long motor training is necessary for it to become sensitive to motor syntax. Therefore, the notion that hierarchical processing in Broca's area is a common function shared between language and music may help to explain the role of Broca's area in action perception. PMID:24478668

  19. Spinal Cord Stimulation in Chronic Pain: Mode of Action.

    PubMed

    Vallejo, Ricardo; Bradley, Kerry; Kapural, Leonardo

    2017-07-15

    Literature review. A review of the literature that presents a perspective on mechanisms of actions behind spinal cord stimulation (SCS) therapy for chronic pain. SCS is an effective therapeutic alternative for the treatment of intractable chronic pain. Its application has been mostly based on the gate control theory of pain. Computational models have been fundamental on the understanding of clinical observations and the design of therapies that provide optimal neuromodulation. Research has provided insight into the involvement of specific neurotransmitters that support segmental and supraspinal mechanisms of action. A literature review was performed with emphasis on mechanisms of action for SCS including the effects of electrical fields on spinal cord structures based on computational models and preclinical and clinical explorations. This review provides background on the development of SCS, which has been driven around a paresthesia-based paradigm as a result of the gate control theory. A review of computational models emphasizes their importance on our current understanding of the mechanism of action and clinical optimization of therapy. Electrophysiology and molecular biology have provided a closer, yet narrow, view of the effect of SCS on neurotransmitters and their receptors, which have led to the formulation of segmental and supraspinal mechanisms. Literature supporting the involvement of glial cells in chronic pain and their characteristic response to electrical fields should motivate further investigation of mechanisms involving neuroglia. Finally, a review of recent results paresthesia-free strategies should encourage research on mechanisms of action. The mechanisms of SCS have been extensively studied and several consistent phenomena have emerged. The activation of A-beta fibers to induce paresthesia also involve neurotransmitter release via segmental and supraspinal pathways. Despite advancements, much remains to be understood, particularly as new

  20. Supporting clinical leadership through action: The nurse consultant role.

    PubMed

    Rosser, Elizabeth; Grey, Rachael; Neal, Deborah; Reeve, Julie; Smith, Caroline; Valentine, Janine

    2017-12-01

    To evaluate the effectiveness of an action learning set to enhance clinical leadership and extend their scope and confidence more strategically. As the most senior clinical role in most healthcare systems, the consultant nurse role is a solitary one. They are required to develop personal resilience, commitment and a belief in their ability to lead, with new consultants needing a strong support network to succeed. Following a 2-year action learning set, four nurse consultants, one therapy consultant, and a university educationalist engaged in a cooperative inquiry approach using four cycles of discussion, reflection, analysis and action over an 18-month period from March 2015-July 2016, to learn how to change and enhance their working practices. Data were analysed thematically. Four themes emerged where the action learning set (i) offered structure and support, (ii) enabled a wider influence and (iii) empowered them to lead. The cooperative inquiry helped them realise how much they had gained from their collective learning and they felt empowered to lead. Their motivation to "make a difference" remains palpable. The outcomes of the cooperative inquiry included an enhanced understanding of the importance of openness and trust and a willingness to share and learn from each other in a respectful and confidential environment with a receptiveness to change. Self-leadership has clearly been accepted and embraced, and their collaboration has improved communication across the organisation, enhanced their strategic leadership capability and given confidence to disseminate externally. The action learning set offered structure to support these clinical leaders to keep them focused across the breadth of their role. Additionally, peer review with external facilitation has enabled these clinical leaders to gain a wider influence and empowered them to lead. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  1. The costs of changing an intended action: movement planning, but not execution, interferes with verbal working memory.

    PubMed

    Spiegel, M A; Koester, D; Weigelt, M; Schack, T

    2012-02-16

    How much cognitive effort does it take to change a movement plan? In previous studies, it has been shown that humans plan and represent actions in advance, but it remains unclear whether or not action planning and verbal working memory share cognitive resources. Using a novel experimental paradigm, we combined in two experiments a grasp-to-place task with a verbal working memory task. Participants planned a placing movement toward one of two target positions and subsequently encoded and maintained visually presented letters. Both experiments revealed that re-planning the intended action reduced letter recall performance; execution time, however, was not influenced by action modifications. The results of Experiment 2 suggest that the action's interference with verbal working memory arose during the planning rather than the execution phase of the movement. Together, our results strongly suggest that movement planning and verbal working memory share common cognitive resources. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Derivation of large-scale cellular regulatory networks from biological time series data.

    PubMed

    de Bivort, Benjamin L

    2010-01-01

    Pharmacological agents and other perturbants of cellular homeostasis appear to nearly universally affect the activity of many genes, proteins, and signaling pathways. While this is due in part to nonspecificity of action of the drug or cellular stress, the large-scale self-regulatory behavior of the cell may also be responsible, as this typically means that when a cell switches states, dozens or hundreds of genes will respond in concert. If many genes act collectively in the cell during state transitions, rather than every gene acting independently, models of the cell can be created that are comprehensive of the action of all genes, using existing data, provided that the functional units in the model are collections of genes. Techniques to develop these large-scale cellular-level models are provided in detail, along with methods of analyzing them, and a brief summary of major conclusions about large-scale cellular networks to date.

  3. Somatic spikes regulate dendritic signaling in small neurons in the absence of backpropagating action potentials.

    PubMed

    Myoga, Michael H; Beierlein, Michael; Regehr, Wade G

    2009-06-17

    Somatic spiking is known to regulate dendritic signaling and associative synaptic plasticity in many types of large neurons, but it is unclear whether somatic action potentials play similar roles in small neurons. Here we ask whether somatic action potentials can also influence dendritic signaling in an electrically compact neuron, the cerebellar stellate cell (SC). Experiments were conducted in rat brain slices using a combination of imaging and electrophysiology. We find that somatic action potentials elevate dendritic calcium levels in SCs. There was little attenuation of calcium signals with distance from the soma in SCs from postnatal day 17 (P17)-P19 rats, which had dendrites that averaged 60 microm in length, and in short SC dendrites from P30-P33 rats. Somatic action potentials evoke dendritic calcium increases that are not affected by blocking dendritic sodium channels. This indicates that dendritic signals in SCs do not rely on dendritic sodium channels, which differs from many types of large neurons, in which dendritic sodium channels and backpropagating action potentials allow somatic spikes to control dendritic calcium signaling. Despite the lack of active backpropagating action potentials, we find that trains of somatic action potentials elevate dendritic calcium sufficiently to release endocannabinoids and retrogradely suppress parallel fiber to SC synapses in P17-P19 rats. Prolonged SC firing at physiologically realistic frequencies produces retrograde suppression when combined with low-level group I metabotropic glutamate receptor activation. Somatic spiking also interacts with synaptic stimulation to promote associative plasticity. These findings indicate that in small neurons the passive spread of potential within dendrites can allow somatic spiking to regulate dendritic calcium signaling and synaptic plasticity.

  4. Yersinia pestis Orientalis in Remains of Ancient Plague Patients

    PubMed Central

    Drancourt, Michel; Signoli, Michel; Dang, La Vu; Bizot, Bruno; Roux, Véronique; Tzortzis, Stéfan

    2007-01-01

    Yersinia pestis DNA was recently detected in human remains from 2 ancient plague pandemics in France and Germany. We have now sequenced Y. pestis glpD gene in such remains, showing a 93-bp deletion specific for biotype Orientalis. These data show that only Orientalis type caused the 3 plague pandemics. PMID:17479906

  5. The Action Event (Notes on the Development of Object-Oriented Actions II)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Elkonin, B. D.

    2015-01-01

    The article critically rethinks and refashions conceptions of object-oriented actions. The author introduces the concept of an action event, which relies on the work of D. B. Elkonin. The essence of an action event lies in its transition to a new form of activity, that is, an action mediated by a pattern that is given to a child by an adult. An…

  6. Effects of Ventral Striatum Lesions on Stimulus-Based versus Action-Based Reinforcement Learning.

    PubMed

    Rothenhoefer, Kathryn M; Costa, Vincent D; Bartolo, Ramón; Vicario-Feliciano, Raquel; Murray, Elisabeth A; Averbeck, Bruno B

    2017-07-19

    Learning the values of actions versus stimuli may depend on separable neural circuits. In the current study, we evaluated the performance of rhesus macaques with ventral striatum (VS) lesions on a two-arm bandit task that had randomly interleaved blocks of stimulus-based and action-based reinforcement learning (RL). Compared with controls, monkeys with VS lesions had deficits in learning to select rewarding images but not rewarding actions. We used a RL model to quantify learning and choice consistency and found that, in stimulus-based RL, the VS lesion monkeys were more influenced by negative feedback and had lower choice consistency than controls. Using a Bayesian model to parse the groups' learning strategies, we also found that VS lesion monkeys defaulted to an action-based choice strategy. Therefore, the VS is involved specifically in learning the value of stimuli, not actions. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Reinforcement learning models of the ventral striatum (VS) often assume that it maintains an estimate of state value. This suggests that it plays a general role in learning whether rewards are assigned based on a chosen action or stimulus. In the present experiment, we examined the effects of VS lesions on monkeys' ability to learn that choosing a particular action or stimulus was more likely to lead to reward. We found that VS lesions caused a specific deficit in the monkeys' ability to discriminate between images with different values, whereas their ability to discriminate between actions with different values remained intact. Our results therefore suggest that the VS plays a specific role in learning to select rewarded stimuli. Copyright © 2017 the authors 0270-6474/17/376902-13$15.00/0.

  7. A Mirror in Which to Practice--Using Action Learning to Change End-of-Life Care

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Winterburn, Kathryn; Hicks, Fiona

    2012-01-01

    While action learning is a familiar tenet of much management and leadership development activity within the NHS it is not commonly utilised within the education and development of doctors where didactic methods remain the preferred mechanism to impart factual knowledge necessary to fulfil the autonomous practitioner role. Within the specialism of…

  8. Review of toluene action: clinical evidence, animal studies and molecular targets

    PubMed Central

    Cruz, Silvia L.; Rivera-García, María Teresa; Woodward, John J.

    2014-01-01

    It has long been known that individuals will engage in voluntary inhalation of volatile solvents for their rewarding effects. However, research into the neurobiology of these agents has lagged behind that of more commonly used drugs of abuse such as psychostimulants, alcohol and nicotine. This imbalance has begun to shift in recent years as the serious effects of abused inhalants, especially among children and adolescents, on brain function and behavior have become appreciated and scientifically documented. In this review, we discuss the physicochemical and pharmacological properties of toluene, a representative member of a large class of organic solvents commonly used as inhalants. This is followed by a brief summary of the clinical and pre-clinical evidence showing that toluene and related solvents produce significant effects on brain structures and processes involved in the rewarding aspects of drugs. This is highlighted by tables highlighting toluene’s effect on behaviors (reward, motor effects, learning, etc.) and cellular proteins (e.g. voltage and ligand-gated ion channels) closely associated the actions of abused substances. These sections demonstrate not only the significant progress that has been made in understanding the neurobiological basis for solvent abuse but also reveal the challenges that remain in developing a coherent understanding of this often overlooked class of drugs of abuse. PMID:25360325

  9. An expert panel process to evaluate habitat restoration actions in the Columbia River estuary.

    PubMed

    Krueger, Kirk L; Bottom, Daniel L; Hood, W Gregory; Johnson, Gary E; Jones, Kim K; Thom, Ronald M

    2017-03-01

    We describe a process for evaluating proposed ecosystem restoration projects intended to improve survival of juvenile salmon in the Columbia River estuary (CRE). Changes in the Columbia River basin (northwestern USA), including hydropower development, have contributed to the listing of 13 salmon stocks as endangered or threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. Habitat restoration in the CRE, from Bonneville Dam to the ocean, is part of a basin-wide, legally mandated effort to mitigate federal hydropower impacts on salmon survival. An Expert Regional Technical Group (ERTG) was established in 2009 to improve and implement a process for assessing and assigning "survival benefit units" (SBUs) to restoration actions. The SBU concept assumes site-specific restoration projects will increase juvenile salmon survival during migration through the 234 km CRE. Assigned SBUs are used to inform selection of restoration projects and gauge mitigation progress. The ERTG standardized the SBU assessment process to improve its scientific integrity, repeatability, and transparency. In lieu of experimental data to quantify the survival benefits of individual restoration actions, the ERTG adopted a conceptual model composed of three assessment criteria-certainty of success, fish opportunity improvements, and habitat capacity improvements-to evaluate restoration projects. Based on these criteria, an algorithm assigned SBUs by integrating potential fish density as an indicator of salmon performance. Between 2009 and 2014, the ERTG assessed SBUs for 55 proposed projects involving a total of 181 restoration actions located across 8 of 9 reaches of the CRE, largely relying on information provided in a project template based on the conceptual model, presentations, discussions with project sponsors, and site visits. Most projects restored tidal inundation to emergent wetlands, improved riparian function, and removed invasive vegetation. The scientific relationship of geomorphic and

  10. Cleanups In My Community (CIMC) - Hazardous Waste Corrective Actions, National Layer

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    This data layer provides access to Hazardous Waste Corrective Action sites as part of the CIMC web service. Hazardous waste is waste that is dangerous or potentially harmful to our health or the environment. Hazardous wastes can be liquids, solids, gases, or sludges. They can be discarded commercial products, like cleaning fluids or pesticides, or the by-products of manufacturing processes. The RCRA Corrective Action Program, run by EPA and 43 authorized states and territories, works with facilities that have treated, stored, or disposed of hazardous wastes (TSDs) to protect public health and the environment by investigating and cleaning up hazardous releases to soil, ground water, surface water, and air at their facilities.RCRA Corrective Action sites in all 50 states and four U.S. territories cover 18 million acres of land.EPA estimates that more than 35 million people, roughly 12 percent of the U.S. population, live within one mile of a RCRA Corrective Action site (based on the 2000 U.S. Census).RCRA Corrective Action facilities include many current and former chemical manufacturing plants, oil refineries, lead smelters, wood preservers, steel mills, commercial landfills, and a variety of other types of entities. Due to poor practices prior to environmental regulations, Corrective Action facilities have left large stretches of river sediments laden with PCBs; deposited lead in residential yards and parks beyond site boundaries; polluted drinking water wells

  11. 38 CFR 18.406 - Remedial action, voluntary action and self-evaluation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ..., voluntary action and self-evaluation. 18.406 Section 18.406 Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans' Relief... Basis of Handicap General Provisions § 18.406 Remedial action, voluntary action and self-evaluation. (a...-evaluation. (1) A recipient shall, within one year of the effective date of this part: (i) Evaluate with the...

  12. "Don׳t" versus "won׳t": principles, mechanisms, and intention in action inhibition.

    PubMed

    Ridderinkhof, K Richard; van den Wildenberg, Wery P M; Brass, Marcel

    2014-12-01

    The aim of the present review is to provide a theoretical analysis of the role of intentions in inhibition. We will first outline four dimensions along which inhibition can be categorized: intentionality, timing, specificity, and the nature of the to-be-inhibited action. Next, we relate the concept of inhibition to theories of intentional action. In particular, we integrate ideomotor theory with motor control theories that involve predictive forward modeling of the consequences of one׳s action, and evaluate how the dimensional classification of inhibition fits into such an integrative approach. Furthermore, we will outline testable predictions that derive from this novel hypothesis of ideomotor inhibition. We then discuss the viability of the ideomotor inhibition hypothesis and our classification in view of the available evidence on the neural mechanisms of action inhibition, indicating that sensorimotor and ideomotor inhibition engages largely overlapping networks with additional recruitment of dFMC for ideomotor inhibition. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. Distinct spatio-temporal profiles of beta-oscillations within visual and sensorimotor areas during action recognition as revealed by MEG.

    PubMed

    Pavlidou, Anastasia; Schnitzler, Alfons; Lange, Joachim

    2014-05-01

    The neural correlates of action recognition have been widely studied in visual and sensorimotor areas of the human brain. However, the role of neuronal oscillations involved during the process of action recognition remains unclear. Here, we were interested in how the plausibility of an action modulates neuronal oscillations in visual and sensorimotor areas. Subjects viewed point-light displays (PLDs) of biomechanically plausible and implausible versions of the same actions. Using magnetoencephalography (MEG), we examined dynamic changes of oscillatory activity during these action recognition processes. While both actions elicited oscillatory activity in visual and sensorimotor areas in several frequency bands, a significant difference was confined to the beta-band (∼20 Hz). An increase of power for plausible actions was observed in left temporal, parieto-occipital and sensorimotor areas of the brain, in the beta-band in successive order between 1650 and 2650 msec. These distinct spatio-temporal beta-band profiles suggest that the action recognition process is modulated by the degree of biomechanical plausibility of the action, and that spectral power in the beta-band may provide a functional interaction between visual and sensorimotor areas in humans. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Determination of cable parameters in skeletal muscle fibres during repetitive firing of action potentials.

    PubMed

    Riisager, Anders; Duehmke, Rudy; Nielsen, Ole Bækgaard; Huang, Christopher L; Pedersen, Thomas Holm

    2014-10-15

    Recent studies in rat muscle fibres show that repetitive firing of action potentials causes changes in fibre resting membrane conductance (Gm) that reflect regulation of ClC-1 Cl(-) and KATP K(+) ion channels. Methodologically, these findings were obtained by inserting two microelectrodes at close proximity in the same fibres enabling measurements of fibre input resistance (Rin) in between action potential trains. Since the fibre length constant (λ) could not be determined, however, the calculation of Gm relied on the assumptions that the specific cytosolic resistivity (Ri) and muscle fibre volume remained constant during the repeated action potential firing. Here we present a three-microelectrode technique that enables determinations of multiple cable parameters in action potential-firing fibres including Rin and λ as well as waveform and conduction velocities of fully propagating action potentials. It is shown that in both rat and mouse extensor digitorum longus (EDL) fibres, action potential firing leads to substantial changes in both muscle fibre volume and Ri. The analysis also showed, however, that regardless of these changes, rat and mouse EDL fibres both exhibited initial decreases in Gm that were eventually followed by a ∼3-fold, fully reversible increase in Gm after the firing of 1450-1800 action potentials. Using this three-electrode method we further show that the latter rise in Gm was closely associated with excitation failures and loss of action potential signal above -20 mV. © 2014 The Authors. The Journal of Physiology © 2014 The Physiological Society.

  15. Position-dependent patterning of spontaneous action potentials in immature cochlear inner hair cells

    PubMed Central

    Johnson, Stuart L.; Eckrich, Tobias; Kuhn, Stephanie; Zampini, Valeria; Franz, Christoph; Ranatunga, Kishani M.; Roberts, Terri P.; Masetto, Sergio; Knipper, Marlies; Kros, Corné J.; Marcotti, Walter

    2011-01-01

    Spontaneous action potential activity is crucial for mammalian sensory system development. In the auditory system, patterned firing activity has been observed in immature spiral ganglion cells and brain-stem neurons and is likely to depend on cochlear inner hair cell (IHC) action potentials. It remains uncertain whether spiking activity is intrinsic to developing IHCs and whether it shows patterning. We found that action potentials are intrinsically generated by immature IHCs of altricial rodents and that apical IHCs exhibit bursting activity as opposed to more sustained firing in basal cells. We show that the efferent neurotransmitter ACh, by fine-tuning the IHC’s resting membrane potential (Vm), is crucial for the bursting pattern in apical cells. Endogenous extracellular ATP also contributes to the Vm of apical and basal IHCs by activating SK2 channels. We hypothesize that the difference in firing pattern along the cochlea instructs the tonotopic differentiation of IHCs and auditory pathway. PMID:21572434

  16. Position-dependent patterning of spontaneous action potentials in immature cochlear inner hair cells.

    PubMed

    Johnson, Stuart L; Eckrich, Tobias; Kuhn, Stephanie; Zampini, Valeria; Franz, Christoph; Ranatunga, Kishani M; Roberts, Terri P; Masetto, Sergio; Knipper, Marlies; Kros, Corné J; Marcotti, Walter

    2011-06-01

    Spontaneous action potential activity is crucial for mammalian sensory system development. In the auditory system, patterned firing activity has been observed in immature spiral ganglion and brain-stem neurons and is likely to depend on cochlear inner hair cell (IHC) action potentials. It remains uncertain whether spiking activity is intrinsic to developing IHCs and whether it shows patterning. We found that action potentials were intrinsically generated by immature IHCs of altricial rodents and that apical IHCs showed bursting activity as opposed to more sustained firing in basal cells. We show that the efferent neurotransmitter acetylcholine fine-tunes the IHC's resting membrane potential (V(m)), and as such is crucial for the bursting pattern in apical cells. Endogenous extracellular ATP also contributes to the V(m) of apical and basal IHCs by triggering small-conductance Ca(2+)-activated K(+) (SK2) channels. We propose that the difference in firing pattern along the cochlea instructs the tonotopic differentiation of IHCs and auditory pathway.

  17. From action intentions to action effects: how does the sense of agency come about?

    PubMed Central

    Chambon, Valérian; Sidarus, Nura; Haggard, Patrick

    2014-01-01

    Sense of agency refers to the feeling of controlling an external event through one’s own action. On one influential view, agency depends on how predictable the consequences of one’s action are, getting stronger as the match between predicted and actual effect of an action gets closer. Thus, sense of agency arises when external events that follow our action are consistent with predictions of action effects made by the motor system while we perform or simply intend to perform an action. According to this view, agency is inferred retrospectively, after an action has been performed and its consequences are known. In contrast, little is known about whether and how internal processes involved in the selection of actions may influence subjective sense of control, in advance of the action itself, and irrespective of effect predictability. In this article, we review several classes of behavioral and neuroimaging data suggesting that earlier processes, linked to fluency of action selection, prospectively contribute to sense of agency. These findings have important implications for better understanding human volition and abnormalities of action experience. PMID:24860486

  18. The role of action control and action planning on fruit and vegetable consumption.

    PubMed

    Zhou, Guangyu; Gan, Yiqun; Miao, Miao; Hamilton, Kyra; Knoll, Nina; Schwarzer, Ralf

    2015-08-01

    Globally, fruit and vegetable intake is lower than recommended despite being an important component to a healthy diet. Adopting or maintaining a sufficient amount of fruit and vegetables in one's diet may require not only motivation but also self-regulatory processes. Action control and action planning are two key volitional determinants that have been identified in the literature; however, it is not fully understood how these two factors operate between intention and behavior. Thus, the aim of the current study was to explore the roles of action control and action planning as mediators between intentions and dietary behavior. A longitudinal study with three points in time was conducted. Participants (N = 286) were undergraduate students and invited to participate in a health behavior survey. At baseline (Time 1), measures of intention and fruit and vegetable intake were assessed. Two weeks later (Time 2), action control and action planning were assessed as putative sequential mediators. At Time 3 (two weeks after Time 2), fruit and vegetable consumption was measured as the outcome. The results revealed action control and action planning to sequentially mediate between intention and subsequent fruit and vegetable intake, controlling for baseline behavior. Both self-regulatory constructs, action control and action planning, make a difference when moving from motivation to action. Our preliminary evidence, therefore, suggests that planning may be more proximal to fruit and vegetable intake than action control. Further research, however, needs to be undertaken to substantiate this conclusion. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Stereoscopically Observing Manipulative Actions

    PubMed Central

    Ferri, S.; Pauwels, K.; Rizzolatti, G.; Orban, G. A.

    2016-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate the contribution of stereopsis to the processing of observed manipulative actions. To this end, we first combined the factors “stimulus type” (action, static control, and dynamic control), “stereopsis” (present, absent) and “viewpoint” (frontal, lateral) into a single design. Four sites in premotor, retro-insular (2) and parietal cortex operated specifically when actions were viewed stereoscopically and frontally. A second experiment clarified that the stereo-action-specific regions were driven by actions moving out of the frontoparallel plane, an effect amplified by frontal viewing in premotor cortex. Analysis of single voxels and their discriminatory power showed that the representation of action in the stereo-action-specific areas was more accurate when stereopsis was active. Further analyses showed that the 4 stereo-action-specific sites form a closed network converging onto the premotor node, which connects to parietal and occipitotemporal regions outside the network. Several of the specific sites are known to process vestibular signals, suggesting that the network combines observed actions in peripersonal space with gravitational signals. These findings have wider implications for the function of premotor cortex and the role of stereopsis in human behavior. PMID:27252350

  20. Experiences in Conducting Participatory Communication Research for HIV Prevention Globally: Translating Critical Dialog into Action through Action Media.

    PubMed

    Parker, Warren Martin; Becker-Benton, Antje

    2016-01-01

    developed through expert-led didactic approaches that, at best, engage audiences at the end of the development cycle through pretesting of communication concepts. Action Media provides an alternative approach that can be utilized to inform communication by integrating community perspectives at the outset. Notwithstanding the focused engagement with small group representative of health-vulnerable subpopulations, Action Media findings have informed large-scale communication interventions. The approach is directly linked to enabling ownership, critical thinking, and mobilization of knowledge for change.

  1. Willingness to Remain Friends and Attend School with Lesbian and Gay Peers: Relational Expressions of Prejudice among Heterosexual Youth

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Poteat, V. Paul; Espelage, Dorothy L.; Koenig, Brian K.

    2009-01-01

    In this study, heterosexual students' willingness to remain friends with peers who disclose that they are gay or lesbian and their willingness to attend schools that include gay and lesbian students were examined among two large middle school and high school samples (Sample 1: n = 20,509; 50.7% girls; Sample 2: n = 16,917; 50.2% girls). Boys were…

  2. Negotiating action

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    2017-12-01

    After years of working towards a climate accord, the Paris Agreement of 2015 marked the shift from negotiating to reach consensus on climate action to implementation of such action. The challenge now is to ensure transparency in the processes and identify the details of what is required.

  3. Decadal climate prediction in the large ensemble limit

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yeager, S. G.; Rosenbloom, N. A.; Strand, G.; Lindsay, K. T.; Danabasoglu, G.; Karspeck, A. R.; Bates, S. C.; Meehl, G. A.

    2017-12-01

    In order to quantify the benefits of initialization for climate prediction on decadal timescales, two parallel sets of historical simulations are required: one "initialized" ensemble that incorporates observations of past climate states and one "uninitialized" ensemble whose internal climate variations evolve freely and without synchronicity. In the large ensemble limit, ensemble averaging isolates potentially predictable forced and internal variance components in the "initialized" set, but only the forced variance remains after averaging the "uninitialized" set. The ensemble size needed to achieve this variance decomposition, and to robustly distinguish initialized from uninitialized decadal predictions, remains poorly constrained. We examine a large ensemble (LE) of initialized decadal prediction (DP) experiments carried out using the Community Earth System Model (CESM). This 40-member CESM-DP-LE set of experiments represents the "initialized" complement to the CESM large ensemble of 20th century runs (CESM-LE) documented in Kay et al. (2015). Both simulation sets share the same model configuration, historical radiative forcings, and large ensemble sizes. The twin experiments afford an unprecedented opportunity to explore the sensitivity of DP skill assessment, and in particular the skill enhancement associated with initialization, to ensemble size. This talk will highlight the benefits of a large ensemble size for initialized predictions of seasonal climate over land in the Atlantic sector as well as predictions of shifts in the likelihood of climate extremes that have large societal impact.

  4. Mechanism of action of recombinant Acc-royalisin from royal jelly of Chinese honeybee against gram-positive bacteria

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    The antibacterial activity of royalisin, an antimicrobial peptide from the royal jelly produced by honeybees has been addressed extensively. However, its mechanism of action remains unclear. In this study, a recombinant royalisin, RAcc-royalisin from the royal jelly of Chinese honeybee Apis cerana...

  5. Heavy-quark meson spectrum tests of the Oktay–Kronfeld action

    DOE PAGES

    Bailey, Jon A.; DeTar, Carleton; Jang, Yong -Chull; ...

    2017-11-15

    The Oktay-Kronfeld (OK) action extends the Fermilab improvement program for massive Wilson fermions to higher order in suitable power-counting schemes. It includes dimension-six and -seven operators necessary for matching to QCD through ordermore » $${\\mathrm{O}}(\\Lambda^3/m_Q^3)$$ in HQET power counting, for applications to heavy-light systems, and $${\\mathrm{O}}(v^6)$$ in NRQCD power counting, for applications to quarkonia. In the Symanzik power counting of lattice gauge theory near the continuum limit, the OK action includes all $${\\mathrm{O}}(a^2)$$ and some $${\\mathrm{O}}(a^3)$$ terms. To assess whether the theoretical improvement is realized in practice, we study combinations of heavy-strange and quarkonia masses and mass splittings, designed to isolate heavy-quark discretization effects. We find that, with one exception, the results obtained with the tree-level-matched OK action are significantly closer to the continuum limit than the results obtained with the Fermilab action. The exception is the hyperfine splitting of the bottom-strange system, for which our statistical errors are too large to draw a firm conclusion. Lastly, these studies are carried out with data generated with the tadpole-improved Fermilab and OK actions on 500 gauge configurations from one of MILC's $$a\\approx0.12$$~fm, $$N_f=2+1$$-flavor, asqtad-staggered ensembles.« less

  6. Heavy-quark meson spectrum tests of the Oktay–Kronfeld action

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Bailey, Jon A.; DeTar, Carleton; Jang, Yong -Chull

    The Oktay-Kronfeld (OK) action extends the Fermilab improvement program for massive Wilson fermions to higher order in suitable power-counting schemes. It includes dimension-six and -seven operators necessary for matching to QCD through ordermore » $${\\mathrm{O}}(\\Lambda^3/m_Q^3)$$ in HQET power counting, for applications to heavy-light systems, and $${\\mathrm{O}}(v^6)$$ in NRQCD power counting, for applications to quarkonia. In the Symanzik power counting of lattice gauge theory near the continuum limit, the OK action includes all $${\\mathrm{O}}(a^2)$$ and some $${\\mathrm{O}}(a^3)$$ terms. To assess whether the theoretical improvement is realized in practice, we study combinations of heavy-strange and quarkonia masses and mass splittings, designed to isolate heavy-quark discretization effects. We find that, with one exception, the results obtained with the tree-level-matched OK action are significantly closer to the continuum limit than the results obtained with the Fermilab action. The exception is the hyperfine splitting of the bottom-strange system, for which our statistical errors are too large to draw a firm conclusion. Lastly, these studies are carried out with data generated with the tadpole-improved Fermilab and OK actions on 500 gauge configurations from one of MILC's $$a\\approx0.12$$~fm, $$N_f=2+1$$-flavor, asqtad-staggered ensembles.« less

  7. Forensic considerations when dealing with incinerated human dental remains.

    PubMed

    Reesu, Gowri Vijay; Augustine, Jeyaseelan; Urs, Aadithya B

    2015-01-01

    Establishing the human dental identification process relies upon sufficient post-mortem data being recovered to allow for a meaningful comparison with ante-mortem records of the deceased person. Teeth are the most indestructible components of the human body and are structurally unique in their composition. They possess the highest resistance to most environmental effects like fire, desiccation, decomposition and prolonged immersion. In most natural as well as man-made disasters, teeth may provide the only means of positive identification of an otherwise unrecognizable body. It is imperative that dental evidence should not be destroyed through erroneous handling until appropriate radiographs, photographs, or impressions can be fabricated. Proper methods of physical stabilization of incinerated human dental remains should be followed. The maintenance of integrity of extremely fragile structures is crucial to the successful confirmation of identity. In such situations, the forensic dentist must stabilise these teeth before the fragile remains are transported to the mortuary to ensure preservation of possibly vital identification evidence. Thus, while dealing with any incinerated dental remains, a systematic approach must be followed through each stage of evaluation of incinerated dental remains to prevent the loss of potential dental evidence. This paper presents a composite review of various studies on incinerated human dental remains and discusses their impact on the process of human identification and suggests a step by step approach. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd and Faculty of Forensic and Legal Medicine. All rights reserved.

  8. 47 CFR 11.13 - Emergency Action Notification (EAN) and Emergency Action Termination (EAT).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... Emergency Action Termination (EAT). 11.13 Section 11.13 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION... Action Termination (EAT). (a) The Emergency Action Notification (EAN) is the notice to all EAS... Emergency Action Termination (EAT) is the notice to all EAS Participants and to the general public that the...

  9. Reading about the actions of others: biological motion imagery and action congruency influence brain activity.

    PubMed

    Deen, Ben; McCarthy, Gregory

    2010-05-01

    Prior neuroimaging research has implicated regions within and near the posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTS) in the visual processing of biological motion and of the intentions implied by specific movements. However, it is unknown whether this region is engaged during the processing of human motion at a conceptual level, such as during story comprehension. Here, we obtained functional magnetic resonance images from subjects reading brief stories that described a human character's background and then concluded with an action or decision made by the character. Half of the stories contained incidental descriptions of biological motion (such as the character's walking or grasping) while the remaining half did not. As a second factor, the final action of the story was either congruent or incongruent with the character's background and implied goals and intentions. Stories that contained biological motion strongly activated the pSTS bilaterally, along with ventral temporal areas, premotor cortex, left motor cortex, and the precuneus. Active regions of pSTS in individual subjects closely overlapped with regions identified with a separate biological motion localizer (point-light display) task. Reading incongruent versus congruent stories activated dorsal anterior cingulate cortex and bilateral anterior insula. These results support the hypothesis that reading can engage higher visual cortex in a content-specific manner, and suggest that the presence of biological motion should be controlled as a potential confound in fMRI studies using story comprehension tasks. 2010. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  10. Cortical Action Potential Backpropagation Explains Spike Threshold Variability and Rapid-Onset Kinetics

    PubMed Central

    Yu, Yuguo; Shu, Yousheng; McCormick, David A.

    2008-01-01

    Neocortical action potential responses in vivo are characterized by considerable threshold variability, and thus timing and rate variability, even under seemingly identical conditions. This finding suggests that cortical ensembles are required for accurate sensorimotor integration and processing. Intracellularly, trial-to-trial variability results not only from variation in synaptic activities, but also in the transformation of these into patterns of action potentials. Through simultaneous axonal and somatic recordings and computational simulations, we demonstrate that the initiation of action potentials in the axon initial segment followed by backpropagation of these spikes throughout the neuron results in a distortion of the relationship between the timing of synaptic and action potential events. In addition, this backpropagation also results in an unusually high rate of rise of membrane potential at the foot of the action potential. The distortion of the relationship between the amplitude time course of synaptic inputs and action potential output caused by spike back-propagation results in the appearance of high spike threshold variability at the level of the soma. At the point of spike initiation, the axon initial segment, threshold variability is considerably less. Our results indicate that spike generation in cortical neurons is largely as expected by Hodgkin—Huxley theory and is more precise than previously thought. PMID:18632930

  11. Bt: mode of action and use.

    PubMed

    Whalon, Mark E; Wingerd, Byron A

    2003-12-01

    The insecticidal toxins from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) represent a class of biopesticides that are attractive alternatives to broad-spectrum "hard" chemistries. The U.S. Food Quality Protection Act and the European Economic Council directives aimed at reducing the use of carbamate and organophosphate insecticides were expected to increase the use of narrowly targeted, "soft" compounds like Bt. Here we summarize the unique mode of action of Bt, which contributes to pest selectivity. We also review the patterns of Bt use in general agriculture and in specific niche markets. Despite continued predictions of dramatic growth for biopesticides due to US Food Quality Protection Act-induced cancellations of older insecticides, Bt use has remained relatively constant, even in niche markets where Bt has traditionally been relatively high. Copyright 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

  12. The Action Observation System when Observing Hand Actions in Autism and Typical Development.

    PubMed

    Pokorny, Jennifer J; Hatt, Naomi V; Colombi, Costanza; Vivanti, Giacomo; Rogers, Sally J; Rivera, Susan M

    2015-06-01

    Social impairments in individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) may be in part due to difficulty perceiving and recognizing the actions of others. Evidence from imitation studies, which involves both observation and execution of an action, suggests differences, in individuals with ASD, between the ability to imitate goal-directed actions involving objects (transitive actions) and the ability to imitate actions that do not involve objects (intransitive actions). In the present study, we examined whether there were differences in how ASD adolescents encoded transitive and intransitive actions compared to typically developing (TD) adolescents, by having participants view videos of a hand reaching across a screen toward an object or to where an object would be while functional magnetic resonance images were collected. Analyses focused on areas within the action observation network (AON), which is activated during the observation of actions performed by others. We hypothesized that the AON would differentiate transitive from intransitive actions only in the ASD group. However, results revealed that object presence modulated activity in the right inferior frontal gyrus and supramarginal gyrus of the TD group, a differentiation that was not seen in the ASD group. Furthermore, there were no significant group differences between the TD and ASD groups in any of the conditions. This suggests that there is not a global deficit of the AON in individuals with ASD while observing transitive and intransitive actions. © 2015 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  13. Who needs a referee? How incorrect basketball actions are automatically detected by basketball players' brain

    PubMed Central

    Proverbio, Alice Mado; Crotti, Nicola; Manfredi, Mirella; Adorni, Roberta; Zani, Alberto

    2012-01-01

    While the existence of a mirror neuron system (MNS) representing and mirroring simple purposeful actions (such as reaching) is known, neural mechanisms underlying the representation of complex actions (such as ballet, fencing, etc.) that are learned by imitation and exercise are not well understood. In this study, correct and incorrect basketball actions were visually presented to professional basketball players and naïve viewers while their EEG was recorded. The participants had to respond to rare targets (unanimated scenes). No category or group differences were found at perceptual level, ruling out the possibility that correct actions might be more visually familiar. Large, anterior N400 responses of event-related brain potentials to incorrectly performed basketball actions were recorded in skilled brains only. The swLORETA inverse solution for incorrect–correct contrast showed that the automatic detection of action ineffectiveness/incorrectness involved the fronto/parietal MNS, the cerebellum, the extra-striate body area, and the superior temporal sulcus. PMID:23181191

  14. Enforcement actions: Significant actions resolved individuals actions. Semiannual progress report, July--December 1996

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    NONE

    This compilation summarizes significant enforcement actions that have been resolved during the period (July - December 1996) and includes copies of Orders and Notices of Violation sent by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to individuals with respect to-these enforcement actions. It is anticipated that the information in this publication will be widely disseminated to managers and employees engaged in activities licensed by the NRC. The Commission believes this information may be useful to licensees in making employment decisions.

  15. Action Learning.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    1996

    These four papers were presented at a symposium on action learning moderated by Lex Dilworth at the 1996 conference of the Academy of Human Resource Development. "Developing an Infrastructure for Individual and Organizational Change: Transfer of Learning from an Action Reflection Learning (ARL) Program" (ARL Inquiry) reports findings…

  16. Body posture modulates action perception.

    PubMed

    Zimmermann, Marius; Toni, Ivan; de Lange, Floris P

    2013-04-03

    Recent studies have highlighted cognitive and neural similarities between planning and perceiving actions. Given that action planning involves a simulation of potential action plans that depends on the actor's body posture, we reasoned that perceiving actions may also be influenced by one's body posture. Here, we test whether and how this influence occurs by measuring behavioral and cerebral (fMRI) responses in human participants predicting goals of observed actions, while manipulating postural congruency between their own body posture and postures of the observed agents. Behaviorally, predicting action goals is facilitated when the body posture of the observer matches the posture achieved by the observed agent at the end of his action (action's goal posture). Cerebrally, this perceptual postural congruency effect modulates activity in a portion of the left intraparietal sulcus that has previously been shown to be involved in updating neural representations of one's own limb posture during action planning. This intraparietal area showed stronger responses when the goal posture of the observed action did not match the current body posture of the observer. These results add two novel elements to the notion that perceiving actions relies on the same predictive mechanism as planning actions. First, the predictions implemented by this mechanism are based on the current physical configuration of the body. Second, during both action planning and action observation, these predictions pertain to the goal state of the action.

  17. Noise Enhances Action Potential Generation in Mouse Sensory Neurons via Stochastic Resonance

    PubMed Central

    Onorato, Irene; D'Alessandro, Giuseppina; Di Castro, Maria Amalia; Renzi, Massimiliano; Dobrowolny, Gabriella; Musarò, Antonio; Salvetti, Marco; Limatola, Cristina; Crisanti, Andrea; Grassi, Francesca

    2016-01-01

    Noise can enhance perception of tactile and proprioceptive stimuli by stochastic resonance processes. However, the mechanisms underlying this general phenomenon remain to be characterized. Here we studied how externally applied noise influences action potential firing in mouse primary sensory neurons of dorsal root ganglia, modelling a basic process in sensory perception. Since noisy mechanical stimuli may cause stochastic fluctuations in receptor potential, we examined the effects of sub-threshold depolarizing current steps with superimposed random fluctuations. We performed whole cell patch clamp recordings in cultured neurons of mouse dorsal root ganglia. Noise was added either before and during the step, or during the depolarizing step only, to focus onto the specific effects of external noise on action potential generation. In both cases, step + noise stimuli triggered significantly more action potentials than steps alone. The normalized power norm had a clear peak at intermediate noise levels, demonstrating that the phenomenon is driven by stochastic resonance. Spikes evoked in step + noise trials occur earlier and show faster rise time as compared to the occasional ones elicited by steps alone. These data suggest that external noise enhances, via stochastic resonance, the recruitment of transient voltage-gated Na channels, responsible for action potential firing in response to rapid step-wise depolarizing currents. PMID:27525414

  18. Noise Enhances Action Potential Generation in Mouse Sensory Neurons via Stochastic Resonance.

    PubMed

    Onorato, Irene; D'Alessandro, Giuseppina; Di Castro, Maria Amalia; Renzi, Massimiliano; Dobrowolny, Gabriella; Musarò, Antonio; Salvetti, Marco; Limatola, Cristina; Crisanti, Andrea; Grassi, Francesca

    2016-01-01

    Noise can enhance perception of tactile and proprioceptive stimuli by stochastic resonance processes. However, the mechanisms underlying this general phenomenon remain to be characterized. Here we studied how externally applied noise influences action potential firing in mouse primary sensory neurons of dorsal root ganglia, modelling a basic process in sensory perception. Since noisy mechanical stimuli may cause stochastic fluctuations in receptor potential, we examined the effects of sub-threshold depolarizing current steps with superimposed random fluctuations. We performed whole cell patch clamp recordings in cultured neurons of mouse dorsal root ganglia. Noise was added either before and during the step, or during the depolarizing step only, to focus onto the specific effects of external noise on action potential generation. In both cases, step + noise stimuli triggered significantly more action potentials than steps alone. The normalized power norm had a clear peak at intermediate noise levels, demonstrating that the phenomenon is driven by stochastic resonance. Spikes evoked in step + noise trials occur earlier and show faster rise time as compared to the occasional ones elicited by steps alone. These data suggest that external noise enhances, via stochastic resonance, the recruitment of transient voltage-gated Na channels, responsible for action potential firing in response to rapid step-wise depolarizing currents.

  19. Patterns of hand preference for pairs of actions and the classification of handedness.

    PubMed

    Annett, Marian

    2009-08-01

    Pairs of actions such as write x throw and throw x racquet were examined for items of the Annett hand preference questionnaire (AHPQ). Right (R) and left (L) responses were described for frequencies of RR, RL, LR, and LL pairings (write x throw etc.) in a large representative combined sample with the aim of discovering the distribution over the population as a whole. The frequencies of RL pairings varied significantly over the different item pairs but the frequencies of LR pairings were fairly constant. An important difference was found between primary actions (originally write, throw, racquet, match, toothbrush, hammer with the later addition of scissors for right-handers) and non-primary actions (needle and thread, broom, spade, dealing playing cards, and unscrewing the lid of a jar). For primary actions, there were similar numbers of right and left writers using the 'other' hand. For non-primary actions more right-handers used the left hand than for primary actions but more left-handers did not use the right hand. That is, different frequencies of response to primary versus non-primary actions were found for right-handers but not for left-handers. The pattern of findings was repeated for a corresponding analysis of left-handed throwing x AHPQ actions. The findings have implications for the classification of hand preferences and for analyses of the nature of hand skill.

  20. [Effects of sustained and stopped hand actions on sensible/nonsensible judgments of verbal phrase of action: comparison between actual action and viewing a movie].

    PubMed

    Yamamoto, Yukiko; Hakoda, Yuji

    2002-04-01

    The present study investigated how an actual action or viewing a movie of an action influences the subsequent semantic processing of a verbal phrase concerning the action (e.g., holding a bag with a hand). Forty participants made sensible/nonsensible judgments about the target phrase which were preceded by one of the four prime conditions: sustained action, stopped action, sustained viewing movie, and stopped viewing movie. A facilitatory priming effect was observed in the sustained action condition. Whereas an inhibitory effect was observed in the stopped action condition. These results suggest that the kinetic information affects on the semantic processing of a verbal phrase of action.

  1. Specializing network analysis to detect anomalous insider actions

    PubMed Central

    Chen, You; Nyemba, Steve; Zhang, Wen; Malin, Bradley

    2012-01-01

    Collaborative information systems (CIS) enable users to coordinate efficiently over shared tasks in complex distributed environments. For flexibility, they provide users with broad access privileges, which, as a side-effect, leave such systems vulnerable to various attacks. Some of the more damaging malicious activities stem from internal misuse, where users are authorized to access system resources. A promising class of insider threat detection models for CIS focuses on mining access patterns from audit logs, however, current models are limited in that they assume organizations have significant resources to generate label cases for training classifiers or assume the user has committed a large number of actions that deviate from “normal” behavior. In lieu of the previous assumptions, we introduce an approach that detects when specific actions of an insider deviate from expectation in the context of collaborative behavior. Specifically, in this paper, we introduce a specialized network anomaly detection model, or SNAD, to detect such events. This approach assesses the extent to which a user influences the similarity of the group of users that access a particular record in the CIS. From a theoretical perspective, we show that the proposed model is appropriate for detecting insider actions in dynamic collaborative systems. From an empirical perspective, we perform an extensive evaluation of SNAD with the access logs of two distinct environments: the patient record access logs a large electronic health record system (6,015 users, 130,457 patients and 1,327,500 accesses) and the editing logs of Wikipedia (2,394,385 revisors, 55,200 articles and 6,482,780 revisions). We compare our model with several competing methods and demonstrate SNAD is significantly more effective: on average it achieves 20–30% greater area under an ROC curve. PMID:23399988

  2. Stereoscopically Observing Manipulative Actions.

    PubMed

    Ferri, S; Pauwels, K; Rizzolatti, G; Orban, G A

    2016-08-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate the contribution of stereopsis to the processing of observed manipulative actions. To this end, we first combined the factors "stimulus type" (action, static control, and dynamic control), "stereopsis" (present, absent) and "viewpoint" (frontal, lateral) into a single design. Four sites in premotor, retro-insular (2) and parietal cortex operated specifically when actions were viewed stereoscopically and frontally. A second experiment clarified that the stereo-action-specific regions were driven by actions moving out of the frontoparallel plane, an effect amplified by frontal viewing in premotor cortex. Analysis of single voxels and their discriminatory power showed that the representation of action in the stereo-action-specific areas was more accurate when stereopsis was active. Further analyses showed that the 4 stereo-action-specific sites form a closed network converging onto the premotor node, which connects to parietal and occipitotemporal regions outside the network. Several of the specific sites are known to process vestibular signals, suggesting that the network combines observed actions in peripersonal space with gravitational signals. These findings have wider implications for the function of premotor cortex and the role of stereopsis in human behavior. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press.

  3. Planning for Action: The Impact of an Asthma Action Plan Decision Support Tool Integrated into an Electronic Health Record (EHR) at a Large Health Care System.

    PubMed

    Kuhn, Lindsay; Reeves, Kelly; Taylor, Yhenneko; Tapp, Hazel; McWilliams, Andrew; Gunter, Andrew; Cleveland, Jeffrey; Dulin, Michael

    2015-01-01

    Asthma is a chronic airway disease that can be difficult to manage, resulting in poor outcomes and high costs. Asthma action plans assist patients with self-management, but provider compliance with this recommendation is limited in part because of guideline complexity. This project aimed to embed an electronic asthma action plan decision support tool (eAAP) into the medical record to streamline evidence-based guidelines for providers at the point of care, create individualized patient handouts, and evaluate effects on disease outcomes. eAAP development occurred in 4 phases: web-based prototype creation, multidisciplinary team engagement, pilot, and system-wide dissemination. Medical record and hospital billing data compared frequencies of asthma exacerbations before and after eAAP receipt with matched controls. Between December 2012 and September 2014, 5174 patients with asthma (∼10%) received eAAPs. Results showed an association between eAAP receipt and significant reductions in pediatric asthma exacerbations, including 33% lower odds of requiring oral steroids (P < .001), compared with controls. Equivalent adult measures were not statistically significant. This study supports existing evidence that patient self-management plays an important role in reducing asthma exacerbations. We show the feasibility of leveraging technology to provide guideline-based decision support through an eAAP, addressing known challenges of implementation into routine practice. © Copyright 2015 by the American Board of Family Medicine.

  4. Central leptin action on euglycemia restoration in type 1 diabetes: Restraining responses normally induced by fasting?

    PubMed

    Xu, Yuanzhong; Tong, Qingchun

    2017-07-01

    Leptin monotherapy is sufficient to restore euglycemia in insulinopenic type 1 diabetes (T1D), yet the underlying mechanism remains poorly understood. Accumulating evidence demonstrates that the brain mediates the leptin action on euglycemia restoration. Here, we first review evidence supporting that symptoms in T1D resemble an uncontrolled response to fasting. Then, we discuss recent research progress on brain neurons and their neurotransmitters that potentially mediate the leptin action. Finally, peripheral effective pathways, which are normally involved in fasting responses and associated with leptin action on euglycemia restoration in T1D, will also be discussed. This summary complements several previous excellent reviews on this topic (Meek and Morton, 2016; Perry et al., 2016; Fujikawa and Coppari, 2015). A deep understanding of neurocircuitry and the peripheral effective pathways that mediate the leptin action on euglycemia restoration will likely lead to novel targets for an insulin-independent therapeutics against T1D. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. BRCA-Monet: a breast cancer specific drug treatment mode-of-action network for treatment effective prediction using large scale microarray database

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Background Connectivity map (cMap) is a recent developed dataset and algorithm for uncovering and understanding the treatment effect of small molecules on different cancer cell lines. It is widely used but there are still remaining challenges for accurate predictions. Method Here, we propose BRCA-MoNet, a network of drug mode of action (MoA) specific to breast cancer, which is constructed based on the cMap dataset. A drug signature selection algorithm fitting the characteristic of cMap data, a quality control scheme as well as a novel query algorithm based on BRCA-MoNet are developed for more effective prediction of drug effects. Result BRCA-MoNet was applied to three independent data sets obtained from the GEO database: Estrodial treated MCF7 cell line, BMS-754807 treated MCF7 cell line, and a breast cancer patient microarray dataset. In the first case, BRCA-MoNet could identify drug MoAs likely to share same and reverse treatment effect. In the second case, the result demonstrated the potential of BRCA-MoNet to reposition drugs and predict treatment effects for drugs not in cMap data. In the third case, a possible procedure of personalized drug selection is showcased. Conclusions The results clearly demonstrated that the proposed BRCA-MoNet approach can provide increased prediction power to cMap and thus will be useful for identification of new therapeutic candidates. Website: The web based application is developed and can be access through the following link http://compgenomics.utsa.edu/BRCAMoNet/ PMID:24564956

  6. Conscious Action/Zombie Action

    PubMed Central

    Shepherd, Joshua

    2015-01-01

    Abstract I argue that the neural realizers of experiences of trying (that is, experiences of directing effort towards the satisfaction of an intention) are not distinct from the neural realizers of actual trying (that is, actual effort directed towards the satisfaction of an intention). I then ask how experiences of trying might relate to the perceptual experiences one has while acting. First, I assess recent zombie action arguments regarding conscious visual experience, and I argue that contrary to what some have claimed, conscious visual experience plays a causal role for action control in some circumstances. Second, I propose a multimodal account of the experience of acting. According to this account, the experience of acting is (at the very least) a temporally extended, co‐conscious collection of agentive and perceptual experiences, functionally integrated and structured both by multimodal perceptual processing as well as by what an agent is, at the time, trying to do. PMID:27667859

  7. Distribution of deuterium and hydrogen in Zr and Ti foil assemblies under the action of a pulsed deuterium high-temperature plasma

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bondarenko, G. G.; Volobuev, I. V.; Eriskin, A. A.; Kobzev, A. P.; Nikulin, V. Ya.; Peregudova, E. N.; Silin, P. V.; Borovitskaya, I. V.

    2017-09-01

    Deuteron and proton elastic recoil detection analysis is used to study the accumulation and redistribution of deuterium and hydrogen in assemblies of two high-pure zirconium or titanium foils upon pulsed action of high-temperature deuterium plasma (PHTDP) in a plasma-focus installation PF-4. It is noted that, under the action of PHTDP, an implanted deuterium and hydrogen gas impurity are redistributed in the irradiated foils in large depths, which are significantly larger than the deuterium ion free paths (at their maximum velocity to 108 cm/s). The observed phenomenon is attributed to the carrying out of implanted deuterium and hydrogen under the action of powerful shock waves formed in the metallic foils under the action of PHTDP and/or the acceleration of diffusion of deuterium and hydrogen atoms under the action of a compression-rarefaction shock wave at the shock wave front with the redistribution of deuterium and hydrogen to large depths.

  8. The broad spectrum revisited: Evidence from plant remains

    PubMed Central

    Weiss, Ehud; Wetterstrom, Wilma; Nadel, Dani; Bar-Yosef, Ofer

    2004-01-01

    The beginning of agriculture is one of the most important developments in human history, with enormous consequences that paved the way for settled life and complex society. Much of the research on the origins of agriculture over the last 40 years has been guided by Flannery's [Flannery, K. V. (1969) in The Domestication and Exploitation of Plants and Animals, eds. Ucko, P. J. & Dimbleby, G. W. (Duckworth, London), pp. 73–100] “broad spectrum revolution” (BSR) hypothesis, which posits that the transition to farming in southwest Asia entailed a period during which foragers broadened their resource base to encompass a wide array of foods that were previously ignored in an attempt to overcome food shortages. Although these resources undoubtedly included plants, nearly all BSR hypothesis-inspired research has focused on animals because of a dearth of Upper Paleolithic archaeobotanical assemblages. Now, however, a collection of >90,000 plant remains, recently recovered from the Stone Age site Ohalo II (23,000 B.P.), Israel, offers insights into the plant foods of the late Upper Paleolithic. The staple foods of this assemblage were wild grasses, pushing back the dietary shift to grains some 10,000 years earlier than previously recognized. Besides the cereals (wild wheat and barley), small-grained grasses made up a large component of the assemblage, indicating that the BSR in the Levant was even broader than originally conceived, encompassing what would have been low-ranked plant foods. Over the next 15,000 years small-grained grasses were gradually replaced by the cereals and ultimately disappeared from the Levantine diet. PMID:15210984

  9. The broad spectrum revisited: evidence from plant remains.

    PubMed

    Weiss, Ehud; Wetterstrom, Wilma; Nadel, Dani; Bar-Yosef, Ofer

    2004-06-29

    The beginning of agriculture is one of the most important developments in human history, with enormous consequences that paved the way for settled life and complex society. Much of the research on the origins of agriculture over the last 40 years has been guided by Flannery's [Flannery, K. V. (1969) in The Domestication and Exploitation of Plants and Animals, eds. Ucko, P. J. & Dimbleby, G. W. (Duckworth, London), pp. 73-100] "broad spectrum revolution" (BSR) hypothesis, which posits that the transition to farming in southwest Asia entailed a period during which foragers broadened their resource base to encompass a wide array of foods that were previously ignored in an attempt to overcome food shortages. Although these resources undoubtedly included plants, nearly all BSR hypothesis-inspired research has focused on animals because of a dearth of Upper Paleolithic archaeobotanical assemblages. Now, however, a collection of >90,000 plant remains, recently recovered from the Stone Age site Ohalo II (23,000 B.P.), Israel, offers insights into the plant foods of the late Upper Paleolithic. The staple foods of this assemblage were wild grasses, pushing back the dietary shift to grains some 10,000 years earlier than previously recognized. Besides the cereals (wild wheat and barley), small-grained grasses made up a large component of the assemblage, indicating that the BSR in the Levant was even broader than originally conceived, encompassing what would have been low-ranked plant foods. Over the next 15,000 years small-grained grasses were gradually replaced by the cereals and ultimately disappeared from the Levantine diet.

  10. An analysis of a large dataset on immigrant integration in Spain. The Statistical Mechanics perspective on Social Action

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Barra, Adriano; Contucci, Pierluigi; Sandell, Rickard; Vernia, Cecilia

    2014-02-01

    How does immigrant integration in a country change with immigration density? Guided by a statistical mechanics perspective we propose a novel approach to this problem. The analysis focuses on classical integration quantifiers such as the percentage of jobs (temporary and permanent) given to immigrants, mixed marriages, and newborns with parents of mixed origin. We find that the average values of different quantifiers may exhibit either linear or non-linear growth on immigrant density and we suggest that social action, a concept identified by Max Weber, causes the observed non-linearity. Using the statistical mechanics notion of interaction to quantitatively emulate social action, a unified mathematical model for integration is proposed and it is shown to explain both growth behaviors observed. The linear theory instead, ignoring the possibility of interaction effects would underestimate the quantifiers up to 30% when immigrant densities are low, and overestimate them as much when densities are high. The capacity to quantitatively isolate different types of integration mechanisms makes our framework a suitable tool in the quest for more efficient integration policies.

  11. Occlusion of LTP-Like Plasticity in Human Primary Motor Cortex by Action Observation

    PubMed Central

    Lepage, Jean-François; Morin-Moncet, Olivier; Beaulé, Vincent; de Beaumont, Louis; Champoux, Francois; Théoret, Hugo

    2012-01-01

    Passive observation of motor actions induces cortical activity in the primary motor cortex (M1) of the onlooker, which could potentially contribute to motor learning. While recent studies report modulation of motor performance following action observation, the neurophysiological mechanism supporting these behavioral changes remains to be specifically defined. Here, we assessed whether the observation of a repetitive thumb movement – similarly to active motor practice – would inhibit subsequent long-term potentiation-like (LTP) plasticity induced by paired-associative stimulation (PAS). Before undergoing PAS, participants were asked to either 1) perform abductions of the right thumb as fast as possible; 2) passively observe someone else perform thumb abductions; or 3) passively observe a moving dot mimicking thumb movements. Motor evoked potentials (MEP) were used to assess cortical excitability before and after motor practice (or observation) and at two time points following PAS. Results show that, similarly to participants in the motor practice group, individuals observing repeated motor actions showed marked inhibition of PAS-induced LTP, while the “moving dot” group displayed the expected increase in MEP amplitude, despite differences in baseline excitability. Interestingly, LTP occlusion in the action-observation group was present even if no increase in cortical excitability or movement speed was observed following observation. These results suggest that mere observation of repeated hand actions is sufficient to induce LTP, despite the absence of motor learning. PMID:22701704

  12. Evidence for fast dynamo action in a chaotic web

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Gilbert, A. D.; Childress, S.

    1990-01-01

    The evolution of a magnetic field in a chaotic web is studied. The model flow possessing the web is closely related to the nearly integrable ABC flow with A = B and C much less than 1. The magnetic diffusivity is taken to be zero and the field is followed using the Cauchy solution. It is found that the flow folds the magnetic field constructively, in the sense that the average magnetic field in a chaotic region grows exponentially in time. This is suggestive of fast dynamo action, although the effect of diffusion of the strong streamwise magnetic field remains to be assessed.

  13. Carnivoran Remains from the Malapa Hominin Site, South Africa

    PubMed Central

    Kuhn, Brian F.; Werdelin, Lars; Hartstone-Rose, Adam; Lacruz, Rodrigo S.; Berger, Lee R.

    2011-01-01

    Recent discoveries at the new hominin-bearing deposits of Malapa, South Africa, have yielded a rich faunal assemblage associated with the newly described hominin taxon Australopithecus sediba. Dating of this deposit using U-Pb and palaeomagnetic methods has provided an age of 1.977 Ma, being one of the most accurately dated, time constrained deposits in the Plio-Pleistocene of southern Africa. To date, 81 carnivoran specimens have been identified at this site including members of the families Canidae, Viverridae, Herpestidae, Hyaenidae and Felidae. Of note is the presence of the extinct taxon Dinofelis cf. D. barlowi that may represent the last appearance date for this species. Extant large carnivores are represented by specimens of leopard (Panthera pardus) and brown hyaena (Parahyaena brunnea). Smaller carnivores are also represented, and include the genera Atilax and Genetta, as well as Vulpes cf. V. chama. Malapa may also represent the first appearance date for Felis nigripes (Black-footed cat). The geochronological age of Malapa and the associated hominin taxa and carnivoran remains provide a window of research into mammalian evolution during a relatively unknown period in South Africa and elsewhere. In particular, the fauna represented at Malapa has the potential to elucidate aspects of the evolution of Dinofelis and may help resolve competing hypotheses about faunal exchange between East and Southern Africa during the late Pliocene or early Pleistocene. PMID:22073222

  14. Carnivoran remains from the Malapa hominin site, South Africa.

    PubMed

    Kuhn, Brian F; Werdelin, Lars; Hartstone-Rose, Adam; Lacruz, Rodrigo S; Berger, Lee R

    2011-01-01

    Recent discoveries at the new hominin-bearing deposits of Malapa, South Africa, have yielded a rich faunal assemblage associated with the newly described hominin taxon Australopithecus sediba. Dating of this deposit using U-Pb and palaeomagnetic methods has provided an age of 1.977 Ma, being one of the most accurately dated, time constrained deposits in the Plio-Pleistocene of southern Africa. To date, 81 carnivoran specimens have been identified at this site including members of the families Canidae, Viverridae, Herpestidae, Hyaenidae and Felidae. Of note is the presence of the extinct taxon Dinofelis cf. D. barlowi that may represent the last appearance date for this species. Extant large carnivores are represented by specimens of leopard (Panthera pardus) and brown hyaena (Parahyaena brunnea). Smaller carnivores are also represented, and include the genera Atilax and Genetta, as well as Vulpes cf. V. chama. Malapa may also represent the first appearance date for Felis nigripes (Black-footed cat). The geochronological age of Malapa and the associated hominin taxa and carnivoran remains provide a window of research into mammalian evolution during a relatively unknown period in South Africa and elsewhere. In particular, the fauna represented at Malapa has the potential to elucidate aspects of the evolution of Dinofelis and may help resolve competing hypotheses about faunal exchange between East and Southern Africa during the late Pliocene or early Pleistocene.

  15. Human Medial Frontal Cortex Mediates Unconscious Inhibition of Voluntary Action

    PubMed Central

    Sumner, Petroc; Nachev, Parashkev; Morris, Peter; Peters, Andrew M.; Jackson, Stephen R.; Kennard, Christopher; Husain, Masud

    2007-01-01

    Summary Within the medial frontal cortex, the supplementary eye field (SEF), supplementary motor area (SMA), and pre-SMA have been implicated in the control of voluntary action, especially during motor sequences or tasks involving rapid choices between competing response plans. However, the precise roles of these areas remain controversial. Here, we study two extremely rare patients with microlesions of the SEF and SMA to demonstrate that these areas are critically involved in unconscious and involuntary motor control. We employed masked-prime stimuli that evoked automatic inhibition in healthy people and control patients with lateral premotor or pre-SMA damage. In contrast, our SEF/SMA patients showed a complete reversal of the normal inhibitory effect—ocular or manual—corresponding to the functional subregion lesioned. These findings imply that the SEF and SMA mediate automatic effector-specific suppression of motor plans. This automatic mechanism may contribute to the participation of these areas in the voluntary control of action. PMID:17553420

  16. Climate change and mental health: risks, impacts and priority actions.

    PubMed

    Hayes, Katie; Blashki, G; Wiseman, J; Burke, S; Reifels, L

    2018-01-01

    This article provides an overview of the current and projected climate change risks and impacts to mental health and provides recommendations for priority actions to address the mental health consequences of climate change. The authors argue the following three points: firstly, while attribution of mental health outcomes to specific climate change risks remains challenging, there are a number of opportunities available to advance the field of mental health and climate change with more empirical research in this domain; secondly, the risks and impacts of climate change on mental health are already rapidly accelerating, resulting in a number of direct, indirect, and overarching effects that disproportionally affect those who are most marginalized; and, thirdly, interventions to address climate change and mental health need to be coordinated and rooted in active hope in order to tackle the problem in a holistic manner. This discussion paper concludes with recommendations for priority actions to address the mental health consequences of climate change.

  17. Subliminal action priming modulates the perceived intensity of sensory action consequences☆

    PubMed Central

    Stenner, Max-Philipp; Bauer, Markus; Sidarus, Nura; Heinze, Hans-Jochen; Haggard, Patrick; Dolan, Raymond J.

    2014-01-01

    The sense of control over the consequences of one’s actions depends on predictions about these consequences. According to an influential computational model, consistency between predicted and observed action consequences attenuates perceived stimulus intensity, which might provide a marker of agentic control. An important assumption of this model is that these predictions are generated within the motor system. However, previous studies of sensory attenuation have typically confounded motor-specific perceptual modulation with perceptual effects of stimulus predictability that are not specific to motor action. As a result, these studies cannot unambiguously attribute sensory attenuation to a motor locus. We present a psychophysical experiment on auditory attenuation that avoids this pitfall. Subliminal masked priming of motor actions with compatible prime–target pairs has previously been shown to modulate both reaction times and the explicit feeling of control over action consequences. Here, we demonstrate reduced perceived loudness of tones caused by compatibly primed actions. Importantly, this modulation results from a manipulation of motor processing and is not confounded by stimulus predictability. We discuss our results with respect to theoretical models of the mechanisms underlying sensory attenuation and subliminal motor priming. PMID:24333539

  18. Application and Validation of Remaining Service Interval Framework for Pavements

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2016-10-01

    The pavement remaining service interval (RSI) terminology was developed to remove confusion caused by the multitude of meanings assigned to the various forms of pavement remaining service life (RSL). The RSI concept considers the complete maintenance...

  19. Corrective Action Decision Document for Corrective Action Unit 340: Pesticide Release sites, Nevada Test Site, Nevada

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    DOE /NV

    This Corrective Action Decision Document has been prepared for Corrective Action Unit 340, the NTS Pesticide Release Sites, in accordance with the Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order of 1996 (FFACO, 1996). Corrective Action Unit 340 is located at the Nevada Test Site, Nevada, and is comprised of the following Corrective Action Sites: 23-21-01, Area 23 Quonset Hut 800 Pesticide Release Ditch; 23-18-03, Area 23 Skid Huts Pesticide Storage; and 15-18-02, Area 15 Quonset Hut 15-11 Pesticide Storage. The purpose of this Corrective Action Decision Document is to identify and provide a rationale for the selection of a recommended correctivemore » action alternative for each Corrective Action Site. The scope of this Corrective Action Decision Document consists of the following tasks: Develop corrective action objectives; Identify corrective action alternative screening criteria; Develop corrective action alternatives; Perform detailed and comparative evaluations of the corrective action alternatives in relation to the corrective action objectives and screening criteria; and Recommend and justify a preferred corrective action alternative for each Corrective Action Site.« less

  20. On the origins of human handedness and language: a comparative review of hand preferences for bimanual coordinated actions and gestural communication in nonhuman primates.

    PubMed

    Meguerditchian, Adrien; Vauclair, Jacques; Hopkins, William D

    2013-09-01

    Within the evolutionary framework about the origin of human handedness and hemispheric specialization for language, the question of expression of population-level manual biases in nonhuman primates and their potential continuities with humans remains controversial. Nevertheless, there is a growing body of evidence showing consistent population-level handedness particularly for complex manual behaviors in both monkeys and apes. In the present article, within a large comparative approach among primates, we will review our contribution to the field and the handedness literature related to two particular sophisticated manual behaviors regarding their potential and specific implications for the origins of hemispheric specialization in humans: bimanual coordinated actions and gestural communication. Whereas bimanual coordinated actions seem to elicit predominance of left-handedness in arboreal primates and of right-handedness in terrestrial primates, all handedness studies that have investigated gestural communication in several primate species have reported stronger degree of population-level right-handedness compared to noncommunicative actions. Communicative gestures and bimanual actions seem to affect differently manual asymmetries in both human and nonhuman primates and to be related to different lateralized brain substrates. We will discuss (1) how the data of hand preferences for bimanual coordinated actions highlight the role of ecological factors in the evolution of handedness and provide additional support the postural origin theory of handedness proposed by MacNeilage [MacNeilage [2007]. Present status of the postural origins theory. In W. D. Hopkins (Ed.), The evolution of hemispheric specialization in primates (pp. 59-91). London: Elsevier/Academic Press] and (2) the hypothesis that the emergence of gestural communication might have affected lateralization in our ancestor and may constitute the precursors of the hemispheric specialization for language.

  1. 77 FR 17325 - Special Conditions: Airbus, A350-900 Series Airplane; Passenger Seats With Non-Traditional, Large...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-03-26

    ...-traditional, large, non-metallic panels. In order to provide a level of safety that is equivalent to that... Non-Traditional, Large, Non-Metallic Panels AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT. ACTION...) associated with seats that include non-traditional, large, non-metallic panels that would affect...

  2. An action video game for the treatment of amblyopia in children: A feasibility study.

    PubMed

    Gambacorta, Christina; Nahum, Mor; Vedamurthy, Indu; Bayliss, Jessica; Jordan, Josh; Bavelier, Daphne; Levi, Dennis M

    2018-05-12

    The gold-standard treatment for childhood amblyopia remains patching or penalizing the fellow eye, resulting in an average of about a one line (0.1 logMAR) improvement in visual acuity following ≈120 h of patching in children 3-8 years old. However, compliance with patching and other treatment options is often poor. In contrast, fast-paced action video games can be highly engaging, and have been shown to yield broad-based improvements in vision and attention in adult amblyopia. Here, we pilot-tested a custom-made action video game to treat children with amblyopia. Twenty-one (n = 21) children (mean age 9.95 ± 3.14 [se]) with unilateral amblyopia (n = 12 anisometropic and n = 9 strabismic) completed 20 h of game play either monocularly, with the fellow eye patched (n = 11), or dichoptically, with reduced contrast to the fellow eye (n = 10). Participants were assessed for visual acuity (VA), stereo acuity and reading speed at baseline, and following 10 and 20 h of play. Additional exploratory analyses examined improvements after 6-10 weeks of completion of training (follow-up). Following 20 h of training, VA improved, on average, by 0.14 logMAR (≈38%) for the dichoptic group and by 0.06 logMAR (≈15%) for the monocular group. Similarly, stereoacuity improved by 0.07 log arcsec (≈17%) following dichoptic training, and by 0.06 log arcsec (≈15%) following monocular training. Across both treatment groups, 7 of the 12 individuals with anisometropic amblyopia showed improvement in stereoacuity, whereas only 1 of the 9 strabismic individuals improved. Most improvements were largely retained at follow-up. Our feasibility study therefore suggests that the action video game approach may be used as an effective adjunct treatment for amblyopia in children, achieving results similar to those of the gold-standard treatment in shorter duration. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. The Sense of Agency during Continuous Action: Performance Is More Important than Action-Feedback Association

    PubMed Central

    Wen, Wen; Yamashita, Atsushi; Asama, Hajime

    2015-01-01

    The sense of agency refers to the feeling that one is controlling events through one’s own behavior. This study examined how task performance and the delay of events influence one’s sense of agency during continuous action accompanied by a goal. The participants were instructed to direct a moving dot into a square as quickly as possible by pressing the left and right keys on a keyboard to control the direction in which the dot traveled. The interval between the key press and response of the dot (i.e., direction change) was manipulated to vary task difficulty. Moreover, in the assisted condition, the computer ignored participants’ erroneous commands, resulting in improved task performance but a weaker association between the participants’ commands and actual movements of the dot relative to the condition in which all of the participants’ commands were executed (i.e., self-control condition). The results showed that participants’ sense of agency increased with better performance in the assisted condition relative to the self-control condition, even though a large proportion of their commands were not executed. We concluded that, when the action-feedback association was uncertain, cognitive inference was more dominant relative to the process of comparing predicted and perceived information in the judgment of agency. PMID:25893992

  4. Decomposition Technique for Remaining Useful Life Prediction

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Saha, Bhaskar (Inventor); Goebel, Kai F. (Inventor); Saxena, Abhinav (Inventor); Celaya, Jose R. (Inventor)

    2014-01-01

    The prognostic tool disclosed here decomposes the problem of estimating the remaining useful life (RUL) of a component or sub-system into two separate regression problems: the feature-to-damage mapping and the operational conditions-to-damage-rate mapping. These maps are initially generated in off-line mode. One or more regression algorithms are used to generate each of these maps from measurements (and features derived from these), operational conditions, and ground truth information. This decomposition technique allows for the explicit quantification and management of different sources of uncertainty present in the process. Next, the maps are used in an on-line mode where run-time data (sensor measurements and operational conditions) are used in conjunction with the maps generated in off-line mode to estimate both current damage state as well as future damage accumulation. Remaining life is computed by subtracting the instance when the extrapolated damage reaches the failure threshold from the instance when the prediction is made.

  5. Explosives remain preferred methods for platform abandonment

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Pulsipher, A.; Daniel, W. IV; Kiesler, J.E.

    1996-05-06

    Economics and safety concerns indicate that methods involving explosives remain the most practical and cost-effective means for abandoning oil and gas structures in the Gulf of Mexico. A decade has passed since 51 dead sea turtles, many endangered Kemp`s Ridleys, washed ashore on the Texas coast shortly after explosives helped remove several offshore platforms. Although no relationship between the explosions and the dead turtles was ever established, in response to widespread public concern, the US Minerals Management Service (MMS) and National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) implemented regulations limiting the size and timing of explosive charges. Also, more importantly, they requiredmore » that operators pay for observers to survey waters surrounding platforms scheduled for removal for 48 hr before any detonations. If observers spot sea turtles or marine mammals within the danger zone, the platform abandonment is delayed until the turtles leave or are removed. However, concern about the effects of explosives on marine life remains.« less

  6. Building words on actions: verb enactment and verb recognition in children with specific language impairment.

    PubMed

    Levi, Gabriel; Colonnello, Valentina; Giacchè, Roberta; Piredda, Maria Letizia; Sogos, Carla

    2014-05-01

    Recent studies have shown that language processing is grounded in actions. Multiple independent research findings indicate that children with specific language impairment (SLI) show subtle difficulties beyond the language domain. Uncertainties remain on possible association between body-mediated, non-linguistic expression of verbs and early manifestation of SLI during verb acquisition. The present study was conducted to determine whether verb production through non-linguistic modalities is impaired in children with SLI. Children with SLI (mean age 41 months) and typically developing children (mean age 40 months) were asked to recognize target verbs while viewing video clips showing the action associated with the verb (verb-recognition task) and to enact the action corresponding to the verb (verb-enacting task). Children with SLI performed more poorly than control children in both tasks. The present study demonstrates that early language impairment emerges at the bodily level. These findings are consistent with the embodied theories of cognition and underscore the role of action-based representations during language development. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. Temporary hearing loss influences post-stimulus time histogram and single neuron action potential estimates from human compound action potentials

    PubMed Central

    Lichtenhan, Jeffery T.; Chertoff, Mark E.

    2008-01-01

    An analytic compound action potential (CAP) obtained by convolving functional representations of the post-stimulus time histogram summed across auditory nerve neurons [P(t)] and a single neuron action potential [U(t)] was fit to human CAPs. The analytic CAP fit to pre- and postnoise-induced temporary hearing threshold shift (TTS) estimated in vivoP(t) and U(t) and the number of neurons contributing to the CAPs (N). The width of P(t) decreased with increasing signal level and was wider at the lowest signal level following noise exposure. P(t) latency decreased with increasing signal level and was shorter at all signal levels following noise exposure. The damping and oscillatory frequency of U(t) increased with signal level. For subjects with large amounts of TTS, U(t) had greater damping than before noise exposure particularly at low signal levels. Additionally, U(t) oscillation was lower in frequency at all click intensities following noise exposure. N increased with signal level and was smaller after noise exposure at the lowest signal level. Collectively these findings indicate that neurons contributing to the CAP during TTS are fewer in number, shorter in latency, and poorer in synchrony than before noise exposure. Moreover, estimates of single neuron action potentials may decay more rapidly and have a lower oscillatory frequency during TTS. PMID:18397026

  8. Disentangling self-management goal setting and action planning: A scoping review

    PubMed Central

    Daniëls, Ramon; van Bokhoven, Marloes Amantia; van der Weijden, Trudy; Beurskens, Anna

    2017-01-01

    Introduction The ongoing rise in the numbers of chronically ill people necessitates efforts for effective self-management. Goal setting and action planning are frequently used, as they are thought to support patients in changing their behavior. However, it remains unclear how goal setting and action planning in the context of self-management are defined in the scientific literature. This study aimed to achieve a better understanding of the various definitions used. Methods A scoping review was conducted, searching PubMed, Cinahl, PsychINFO and Cochrane. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were formulated to ensure the focus on goal setting/action planning and self-management. The literature was updated to December 2015; data selection and charting was done by two reviewers. A qualitative content analysis approach was used. Results Out of 9115 retrieved articles, 58 met the inclusion criteria. We created an overview of goal setting phases that were applied (preparation, formulation of goals, formulation of action plan, coping planning and follow-up). Although the phases we found are in accordance with commonly known frameworks for goal setting, it was striking that the majority of studies (n = 39, 67%) did not include all phases. We also prepared an overview of components and strategies for each goal setting phase. Interestingly, few strategies were found for the communication between patients and professionals about goals/action plans. Most studies (n = 35, 60%) focused goal setting on one single disease and on a predefined lifestyle behavior; nearly half of the articles (n = 27, 47%) reported a theoretical framework. Discussion The results might provide practical support for developers of interventions. Moreover, our results might encourage professionals to become more aware of the phases of the goal setting process and of strategies emphasizing on patient reflection. However, more research might be useful to examine strategies to facilitate communication about goals/action

  9. CLOSURE REPORT FOR CORRECTIVE ACTION UNIT 204: STORAGE BUNKERS, NEVADA TEST SITE, NEVADA

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    NONE

    Corrective Action Unit (CAU) 330 consists of four Corrective Action Sites (CASs) located in Areas 6, 22, and 23 of the Nevada Test Site (NTS). The unit is listed in the Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order (FFACO, 1996) as CAU 330: Areas 6, 22, and 23 Tanks and Spill Sites. CAU 330 consists of the following CASs: CAS 06-02-04, Underground Storage Tank (UST) and Piping CAS 22-99-06, Fuel Spill CAS 23-01-02, Large Aboveground Storage Tank (AST) Farm CAS 23-25-05, Asphalt Oil Spill/Tar Release

  10. 76 FR 44501 - Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Inseason Action To Close the Commercial Non-Sandbar Large...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-07-26

    ... Non-Sandbar Large Coastal Shark Research Fishery AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS.... SUMMARY: NMFS is closing the commercial shark research fishery for non- sandbar large coastal sharks (LCS... of the available quota. DATES: The commercial shark research fishery for non-sandbar LCS is closed...

  11. 43 CFR 4730.2 - Disposal of remains.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Disposal of remains. 4730.2 Section 4730.2 Public Lands: Interior Regulations Relating to Public Lands (Continued) BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR RANGE MANAGEMENT (4000) PROTECTION, MANAGEMENT, AND CONTROL OF WILD FREE-ROAMING...

  12. 43 CFR 4730.2 - Disposal of remains.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Disposal of remains. 4730.2 Section 4730.2 Public Lands: Interior Regulations Relating to Public Lands (Continued) BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR RANGE MANAGEMENT (4000) PROTECTION, MANAGEMENT, AND CONTROL OF WILD FREE-ROAMING...

  13. 43 CFR 4730.2 - Disposal of remains.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Disposal of remains. 4730.2 Section 4730.2 Public Lands: Interior Regulations Relating to Public Lands (Continued) BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR RANGE MANAGEMENT (4000) PROTECTION, MANAGEMENT, AND CONTROL OF WILD FREE-ROAMING...

  14. 43 CFR 4730.2 - Disposal of remains.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Disposal of remains. 4730.2 Section 4730.2 Public Lands: Interior Regulations Relating to Public Lands (Continued) BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR RANGE MANAGEMENT (4000) PROTECTION, MANAGEMENT, AND CONTROL OF WILD FREE-ROAMING...

  15. An Action Research Study in an Icelandic Preschool: Developing Consensus about Values and Values Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sigurdardottir, Ingibjorg; Einarsdottir, Johanna

    2016-01-01

    Values education is embedded in the curricula of all the Nordic countries. However, values education remains a neglected area for research and practice in early childhood education and care. This article reports on the aspects of an action research project conducted in a preschool in Iceland, across a period of 18 months. The study focused on the…

  16. The minimalist grammar of action

    PubMed Central

    Pastra, Katerina; Aloimonos, Yiannis

    2012-01-01

    Language and action have been found to share a common neural basis and in particular a common ‘syntax’, an analogous hierarchical and compositional organization. While language structure analysis has led to the formulation of different grammatical formalisms and associated discriminative or generative computational models, the structure of action is still elusive and so are the related computational models. However, structuring action has important implications on action learning and generalization, in both human cognition research and computation. In this study, we present a biologically inspired generative grammar of action, which employs the structure-building operations and principles of Chomsky's Minimalist Programme as a reference model. In this grammar, action terminals combine hierarchically into temporal sequences of actions of increasing complexity; the actions are bound with the involved tools and affected objects and are governed by certain goals. We show, how the tool role and the affected-object role of an entity within an action drives the derivation of the action syntax in this grammar and controls recursion, merge and move, the latter being mechanisms that manifest themselves not only in human language, but in human action too. PMID:22106430

  17. Subliminal Priming of Actions Influences Sense of Control over Effects of Action

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wenke, Dorit; Fleming, Stephen M.; Haggard, Patrick

    2010-01-01

    The experience of controlling one's own actions, and through them events in the outside world, is a pervasive feature of human mental life. Two experiments investigated the relation between this sense of control and the internal processes involved in action selection and cognitive control. Action selection was manipulated by subliminally priming…

  18. Virtual action and real action have different impacts on comprehension of concrete verbs

    PubMed Central

    Repetto, Claudia; Cipresso, Pietro; Riva, Giuseppe

    2015-01-01

    In the last decade, many results have been reported supporting the hypothesis that language has an embodied nature. According to this theory, the sensorimotor system is involved in linguistic processes such as semantic comprehension. One of the cognitive processes emerging from the interplay between action and language is motor simulation. The aim of the present study is to deepen the knowledge about the simulation of action verbs during comprehension in a virtual reality setting. We compared two experimental conditions with different motor tasks: one in which the participants ran in a virtual world by moving the joypad knob with their left hand (virtual action performed with their feet plus real action performed with the hand) and one in which they only watched a video of runners and executed an attentional task by moving the joypad knob with their left hand (no virtual action plus real action performed with the hand). In both conditions, participants had to perform a concomitant go/no-go semantic task, in which they were asked to press a button (with their right hand) when presented with a sentence containing a concrete verb, and to refrain from providing a response when the verb was abstract. Action verbs described actions performed with hand, foot, or mouth. We recorded electromyography (EMG) latencies to measure reaction times of the linguistic task. We wanted to test if the simulation occurs, whether it is triggered by the virtual or the real action, and which effect it produces (facilitation or interference). Results underlined that those who virtually ran in the environment were faster in understanding foot-action verbs; no simulation effect was found for the real action. The present findings are discussed in the light of the embodied language framework, and a hypothesis is provided that integrates our results with those in literature. PMID:25759678

  19. Enforcement actions: Significant actions resolved individual actions. Semiannual progress report, January 1997--June 1997

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    NONE

    This compilation summarizes significant enforcement actions that have been resolved during the period (January - June 1997) and includes copies of Orders and Notices of Violation sent by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to individuals with respect to these enforcement actions. It is anticipated that the information in this publication will be widely disseminated to managers and employees engaged in activities licensed by the NRC. The Commission believes this information may be useful to licensees in making employment decisions.

  20. Student-Centered Empowerment of Teacher-Centered Practices: An Action Research Project

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Clegorne, Nicolas; Mitchell, Roland

    2013-01-01

    This action research reflects a narrative inquiry into the age-old debate concerning the relationship between theory and practice in educational settings. The unique perspective we add to this discussion is our distinct vantages. One researcher is a faculty member and the other is a student-affairs practitioner both working in a large public…

  1. NRG1-Fc improves metabolic health via dual hepatic and central action.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Peng; Kuang, Henry; He, Yanlin; Idiga, Sharon O; Li, Siming; Chen, Zhimin; Yang, Zhao; Cai, Xing; Zhang, Kezhong; Potthoff, Matthew J; Xu, Yong; Lin, Jiandie D

    2018-03-08

    Neuregulins (NRGs) are emerging as an important family of signaling ligands that regulate glucose and lipid homeostasis. NRG1 lowers blood glucose levels in obese mice, whereas the brown fat-enriched secreted factor NRG4 protects mice from high-fat diet-induced insulin resistance and hepatic steatosis. However, the therapeutic potential of NRGs remains elusive, given the poor plasma half-life of the native ligands. Here, we engineered a fusion protein using human NRG1 and the Fc domain of human IgG1 (NRG1-Fc) that exhibited extended half-life in circulation and improved potency in receptor signaling. We evaluated its efficacy in improving metabolic parameters and dissected the mechanisms of action. NRG1-Fc treatment triggered potent AKT activation in the liver, lowered blood glucose, improved insulin sensitivity, and suppressed food intake in obese mice. NRG1-Fc acted as a potent secretagogue for the metabolic hormone FGF21; however, the latter was largely dispensable for its metabolic effects. NRG1-Fc directly targeted the hypothalamic POMC neurons to promote membrane depolarization and increase firing rate. Together, NRG1-Fc exhibits improved pharmacokinetic properties and exerts metabolic benefits through dual inhibition of hepatic gluconeogenesis and caloric intake.

  2. NRG1-Fc improves metabolic health via dual hepatic and central action

    PubMed Central

    Kuang, Henry; Idiga, Sharon O.; Li, Siming; Chen, Zhimin; Cai, Xing; Zhang, Kezhong; Potthoff, Matthew J.; Xu, Yong; Lin, Jiandie D.

    2018-01-01

    Neuregulins (NRGs) are emerging as an important family of signaling ligands that regulate glucose and lipid homeostasis. NRG1 lowers blood glucose levels in obese mice, whereas the brown fat–enriched secreted factor NRG4 protects mice from high-fat diet–induced insulin resistance and hepatic steatosis. However, the therapeutic potential of NRGs remains elusive, given the poor plasma half-life of the native ligands. Here, we engineered a fusion protein using human NRG1 and the Fc domain of human IgG1 (NRG1-Fc) that exhibited extended half-life in circulation and improved potency in receptor signaling. We evaluated its efficacy in improving metabolic parameters and dissected the mechanisms of action. NRG1-Fc treatment triggered potent AKT activation in the liver, lowered blood glucose, improved insulin sensitivity, and suppressed food intake in obese mice. NRG1-Fc acted as a potent secretagogue for the metabolic hormone FGF21; however, the latter was largely dispensable for its metabolic effects. NRG1-Fc directly targeted the hypothalamic POMC neurons to promote membrane depolarization and increase firing rate. Together, NRG1-Fc exhibits improved pharmacokinetic properties and exerts metabolic benefits through dual inhibition of hepatic gluconeogenesis and caloric intake. PMID:29515030

  3. Prevention of mental disorders requires action on adverse childhood experiences.

    PubMed

    Jorm, Anthony F; Mulder, Roger T

    2018-04-01

    The increased availability of treatment has not reduced the prevalence of mental disorders, suggesting a need for a greater emphasis on prevention. With chronic physical diseases, successful prevention efforts have focused on reducing the big risk factors. If this approach is applied to mental disorders, the big risk factors are adverse childhood experiences, which have major effects on most classes of mental disorder across the lifespan. While the evidence base is limited, there is support for a number of interventions to reduce adverse childhood experiences, including an important role for mental health professionals. Taking action on adverse childhood experiences may be our best chance of emulating the success of public health action to prevent chronic physical diseases and thereby reduce the large global burden of mental disorders.

  4. Language and vertical space: on the automaticity of language action interconnections.

    PubMed

    Dudschig, Carolin; de la Vega, Irmgard; De Filippis, Monica; Kaup, Barbara

    2014-09-01

    Grounded models of language processing propose a strong connection between language and sensorimotor processes (Barsalou, 1999, 2008; Glenberg & Kaschak, 2002). However, it remains unclear how functional and automatic these connections are for understanding diverse sets of words (Ansorge, Kiefer, Khalid, Grassl, & König, 2010). Here, we investigate whether words referring to entities with a typical location in the upper or lower visual field (e.g., sun, ground) automatically influence subsequent motor responses even when language-processing levels are kept minimal. The results show that even subliminally presented words influence subsequent actions, as can be seen in a reversed compatibility effect. These finding have several implications for grounded language processing models. Specifically, these results suggest that language-action interconnections are not only the result of strategic language processes, but already play an important role during pre-attentional language processing stages. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Action growth for black holes in modified gravity

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sebastiani, Lorenzo; Vanzo, Luciano; Zerbini, Sergio

    2018-02-01

    The general form of the action growth for a large class of static black hole solutions in modified gravity which includes F (R ) -gravity models is computed. The cases of black hole solutions with nonconstant Ricci scalar are also considered, generalizing the results previously found and valid only for black holes with constant Ricci scalar. An argument is put forward to provide a physical interpretation of the results, which seem tightly connected with the generalized second law of black hole thermodynamics.

  6. Subliminal action priming modulates the perceived intensity of sensory action consequences.

    PubMed

    Stenner, Max-Philipp; Bauer, Markus; Sidarus, Nura; Heinze, Hans-Jochen; Haggard, Patrick; Dolan, Raymond J

    2014-02-01

    The sense of control over the consequences of one's actions depends on predictions about these consequences. According to an influential computational model, consistency between predicted and observed action consequences attenuates perceived stimulus intensity, which might provide a marker of agentic control. An important assumption of this model is that these predictions are generated within the motor system. However, previous studies of sensory attenuation have typically confounded motor-specific perceptual modulation with perceptual effects of stimulus predictability that are not specific to motor action. As a result, these studies cannot unambiguously attribute sensory attenuation to a motor locus. We present a psychophysical experiment on auditory attenuation that avoids this pitfall. Subliminal masked priming of motor actions with compatible prime-target pairs has previously been shown to modulate both reaction times and the explicit feeling of control over action consequences. Here, we demonstrate reduced perceived loudness of tones caused by compatibly primed actions. Importantly, this modulation results from a manipulation of motor processing and is not confounded by stimulus predictability. We discuss our results with respect to theoretical models of the mechanisms underlying sensory attenuation and subliminal motor priming. Copyright © 2013 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  7. Mirroring "meaningful" actions: sensorimotor learning modulates imitation of goal-directed actions.

    PubMed

    Catmur, Caroline; Heyes, Cecilia

    2017-06-19

    Imitation is important in the development of social and technological skills throughout the lifespan. Experiments investigating the acquisition and modulation of imitation (and of its proposed neural substrate, the mirror neuron system) have produced evidence that the capacity for imitation depends on associative learning in which connections are formed between sensory and motor representations of actions. However, evidence that the development of imitation depends on associative learning has been found only for non-goal-directed actions. One reason for the lack of research on goal-directed actions is that imitation of such actions is commonly confounded with the tendency to respond in a spatially compatible manner. However, since the most prominent account of mirror neuron function, and hence of imitation, suggests that these cells encode goal-directed actions, it is important to establish whether sensorimotor learning can also modulate imitation of goal-directed actions. Experiment 1 demonstrated that imitation of goal-directed grasping can be measured while controlling for spatial compatibility, and Experiment 2 showed that this imitation effect can be modulated by sensorimotor training. Together these data support the hypothesis that the capacity for behavioural imitation, and the properties of the mirror neuron system, are constructed in the course of development through associative learning.

  8. Children perseverate to a human's actions but not to a robot's actions.

    PubMed

    Moriguchi, Yusuke; Kanda, Takayuki; Ishiguro, Hiroshi; Itakura, Shoji

    2010-01-01

    Previous research has shown that young children commit perseverative errors from their observation of another person's actions. The present study examined how social observation would lead children to perseverative tendencies, using a robot. In Experiment 1, preschoolers watched either a human model or a robot sorting cards according to one dimension (e.g. shape), after which they were asked to sort according to a different dimension (e.g. colour). The results showed that children's behaviours in the task were significantly influenced by the human model's actions but not by the robot's actions. Experiment 2 excluded the possibility that children's behaviours were not affected by the robot's actions because they did not observe its actions. We concluded that children's perseverative errors from social observation resulted, in part, from their socio-cognitive ability.

  9. Classifying Facial Actions

    PubMed Central

    Donato, Gianluca; Bartlett, Marian Stewart; Hager, Joseph C.; Ekman, Paul; Sejnowski, Terrence J.

    2010-01-01

    The Facial Action Coding System (FACS) [23] is an objective method for quantifying facial movement in terms of component actions. This system is widely used in behavioral investigations of emotion, cognitive processes, and social interaction. The coding is presently performed by highly trained human experts. This paper explores and compares techniques for automatically recognizing facial actions in sequences of images. These techniques include analysis of facial motion through estimation of optical flow; holistic spatial analysis, such as principal component analysis, independent component analysis, local feature analysis, and linear discriminant analysis; and methods based on the outputs of local filters, such as Gabor wavelet representations and local principal components. Performance of these systems is compared to naive and expert human subjects. Best performances were obtained using the Gabor wavelet representation and the independent component representation, both of which achieved 96 percent accuracy for classifying 12 facial actions of the upper and lower face. The results provide converging evidence for the importance of using local filters, high spatial frequencies, and statistical independence for classifying facial actions. PMID:21188284

  10. From Movements to Actions: Two Mechanisms for Learning Action Sequences

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Endress, Ansgar D.; Wood, Justin N.

    2011-01-01

    When other individuals move, we interpret their movements as discrete, hierarchically-organized, goal-directed actions. However, the mechanisms that integrate visible movement features into actions are poorly understood. Here, we consider two sequence learning mechanisms--transitional probability-based (TP) and position-based encoding…

  11. Proactive action preparation: seeing action preparation as a continuous and proactive process.

    PubMed

    Pezzulo, Giovanni; Ognibene, Dimitri

    2012-07-01

    In this paper, we aim to elucidate the processes that occur during action preparation from both a conceptual and a computational point of view. We first introduce the traditional, serial model of goal-directed action and discuss from a computational viewpoint its subprocesses occurring during the two phases of covert action preparation and overt motor control. Then, we discuss recent evidence indicating that these subprocesses are highly intertwined at representational and neural levels, which undermines the validity of the serial model and points instead to a parallel model of action specification and selection. Within the parallel view, we analyze the case of delayed choice, arguing that action preparation can be proactive, and preparatory processes can take place even before decisions are made. Specifically, we discuss how prior knowledge and prospective abilities can be used to maximize utility even before deciding what to do. To support our view, we present a computational implementation of (an approximated version of) proactive action preparation, showing its advantages in a simulated tennis-like scenario.

  12. 75 FR 32841 - Continuation of the National Emergency With Respect to the Actions and Policies of Certain...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-06-10

    ... or institutions, to commit human rights abuses related to political repression, including detentions... political prisoners in the fall of 2008 and our continuing efforts to press for further reforms related to democracy, human rights, and the rule of law in Belarus, serious challenges remain. The actions and policies...

  13. Improving emergency care pathways: an action research approach.

    PubMed

    Endacott, Ruth; Cooper, Simon; Sheaff, Rod; Padmore, Jacqueline; Blakely, Gillian

    2011-03-01

    Clinicians and managers across specialities are under pressure to review treatment and referral pathways to enable evidence-based practice, improve patient flow and provide a seamless service. This study outlines the processes and outcomes of an action research study conducted to reduce inappropriate attendances and unplanned pressures on Emergency Department (ED) staff in an English hospital during 2006-2008. Action research, comprising three action/reflection cycles conducted with participants, was used. Data were collected using retrospective patient record review (n=35,200) interviews with staff members (n=28), observation of patient pathways (n=38 patients) and measurement of team climate (n=31) with literature reviews also informing each cycle of data collection. ED attendance and hospital emergency admission data were largely similar to the national picture with regards to time/day of attendance and seasonal variation. However, in the 'adult majors' subgroup, mean attendance on a Monday was significantly higher than the rest of the week (p<0.001) and 36% were self-referrals. Observation data revealed that patients were informally assessed by reception staff and directed to majors or minors; this practice was replaced by reinstatement of triage. Patients identified as 'inappropriate' were managed inconsistently, irrespective of department workload. ED attendance decreased as the project progressed and the number of attendees resulting in hospital admission rose slightly. Study data suggest that inappropriate attendances decreased; however, data collection exposed gaps in the existing management information systems and inconsistencies in working practices in the ED. Action research can have a practical value besides contributing to knowledge.

  14. Large system change challenges: addressing complex critical issues in linked physical and social domains

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Waddell, Steve; Cornell, Sarah; Hsueh, Joe; Ozer, Ceren; McLachlan, Milla; Birney, Anna

    2015-04-01

    Most action to address contemporary complex challenges, including the urgent issues of global sustainability, occurs piecemeal and without meaningful guidance from leading complex change knowledge and methods. The potential benefit of using such knowledge is greater efficacy of effort and investment. However, this knowledge and its associated tools and methods are under-utilized because understanding about them is low, fragmented between diverse knowledge traditions, and often requires shifts in mindsets and skills from expert-led to participant-based action. We have been engaged in diverse action-oriented research efforts in Large System Change for sustainability. For us, "large" systems can be characterized as large-scale systems - up to global - with many components, of many kinds (physical, biological, institutional, cultural/conceptual), operating at multiple levels, driven by multiple forces, and presenting major challenges for people involved. We see change of such systems as complex challenges, in contrast with simple or complicated problems, or chaotic situations. In other words, issues and sub-systems have unclear boundaries, interact with each other, and are often contradictory; dynamics are non-linear; issues are not "controllable", and "solutions" are "emergent" and often paradoxical. Since choices are opportunity-, power- and value-driven, these social, institutional and cultural factors need to be made explicit in any actionable theory of change. Our emerging network is sharing and building a knowledge base of experience, heuristics, and theories of change from multiple disciplines and practice domains. We will present our views on focal issues for the development of the field of large system change, which include processes of goal-setting and alignment; leverage of systemic transitions and transformation; and the role of choice in influencing critical change processes, when only some sub-systems or levels of the system behave in purposeful ways

  15. 76 FR 69139 - Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Inseason Action To Close the Commercial Non-Sandbar Large...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-11-08

    ... report to NMFS every two weeks all sharks landed. Dealer reports for fish received between the 1st and... Commercial Non-Sandbar Large Coastal Shark Fishery in the Atlantic Region AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries.... SUMMARY: NMFS is closing the commercial fishery for non-sandbar large coastal sharks (LCS) in the Atlantic...

  16. 75 FR 75416 - Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Inseason Action To Close the Commercial Non-Sandbar Large...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-12-03

    ... vessel that fishes only in state waters and had not been issued an Atlantic Shark LAP, HMS Angling permit... Commercial Non-Sandbar Large Coastal Shark Fishery in the Atlantic Region AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries.... SUMMARY: NMFS is closing the commercial fishery for non-sandbar large coastal sharks (LCS) in the Atlantic...

  17. Why Agricultural Educators Remain in the Classroom

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Crutchfield, Nina; Ritz, Rudy; Burris, Scott

    2013-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to identify and describe factors that are related to agricultural educator career retention and to explore the relationships between work engagement, work-life balance, occupational commitment, and personal and career factors as related to the decision to remain in the teaching profession. The target population for…

  18. 75 FR 12700 - Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Inseason Action to Close the Commercial Gulf of Mexico Non...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-03-17

    ...-Sandbar Large Coastal Shark Fishery AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and... fishery for non-sandbar large coastal sharks (LCS) in the Gulf of Mexico region. This action is necessary... Gu DuBeck, 301-713-2347; fax 301-713-1917. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Atlantic shark fisheries...

  19. Prolonged action potential duration in cardiac ablation of PDK1 mice.

    PubMed

    Han, Zhonglin; Jiang, Yu; Yang, Zhongzhou; Cao, Kejiang; Wang, Dao W

    2015-01-01

    The involvement of the AGC protein kinase family in regulating arrhythmia has drawn considerable attention, but the underlying mechanisms are still not clear. The aim of this study is to explore the role of 3-phosphoinositide-dependent protein kinase-1 (PDK1), one of upstream protein kinases of the AGC protein kinase family, in the pathogenesis of dysregulated electrophysiological basis. PDK1(F/F) αMHC-Cre mice and PDK1(F/F) mice were divided into experiment group and control group. Using patch clamping technology, we explored action potential duration in both groups, and investigated the functions of transient outward potassium channel and L-type Ca(2+) channel to explain the abnormal action potential duration. Significant prolongation action potential duration was found in mice with PDK1 deletion. Further, the peak current of transient outward potassium current and L-type Ca(2+) current were decreased by 84% and 49% respectively. In addition, dysregulation of channel kinetics lead to action potential duration prolongation further. In conclusion, we have demonstrated that PDK1 participates in action potential prolongation in cardiac ablation of PDK1 mice. This effect is likely to be mediated largely through downregulation of transient outward potassium current. These findings indicate the modulation of the PDK1 pathway could provide a new mechanism for abnormal electrophysiological basis.

  20. An evaluated community action project on alcohol.

    PubMed

    Casswell, S; Gilmore, L

    1989-07-01

    This article reports outcomes of an evaluated community action program directed toward alcohol problem prevention. In a quasi-experimental design, change was monitored in six cities--two cities with an alcohol-focused community organizer and media campaign, two cities with the media campaign only and two reference cities. The community organizers worked with a local alcohol coordinating committee and other local organizations. They focused on alcohol availability (including the promotion of nonalcoholic beverages), advertising and, to a lesser extent, pricing policies. The media campaign focused on reducing the large-quantity drinking of young men, and generated considerable controversy. Before and after surveys of the general population were carried out to evaluate the outcome of the project. Support for control policies on advertising, availability and price held steady in the treatment communities but dropped in the reference communities. The perception of alcohol being essential to entertaining and as being relatively innocuous decreased significantly in the community-action cities. The project thus appears to have met its objectives in these areas, although primarily by stemming the national trend toward greater support for liberalization.

  1. Action of certain tropine esters on voltage-clamped lobster axon.

    PubMed

    Blaustein, M P

    1968-03-01

    Tropine p-tolylacetate (TPTA) and its quaternary analogue, tropine p-tolylacetate methiodide (TPTA MeI) decrease the early transient (Na) and late (K) currents in the voltage-clamped lobster giant axon. These agents, which block the nerve action potential, reduce the maximum Na and K conductance increases associated with membrane depolarization. They also slow the rate at which the sodium conductance is increased and shift the (normalized) membrane conductance vs. voltage curves in the direction of depolarization along the voltage axis. All these effects are qualitatively similar to those resulting from the action of procaine on the voltage-clamped axon. One unusual effect of the tropine esters, noticeable particularly at large depolarization steps, is that they cause the late, K current to reach a peak and then fall off with increasing pulse duration. This effect has not been reported to occur as a result of procaine action. Tropine p-chlorophenyl acetate (TPClphiA), which differs from TPTA only by the substitution of a p-Cl for a p-CH(3) group on the benzene ring, had a negligible effect on axonal excitability.

  2. 46 CFR 12.40-7 - Employer requirements.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... is employed. The report and information must remain on the last U.S. flag large passenger vessel on...) Submit an annual material disciplinary actions report to update whether there have been any material disciplinary actions related to the applicant since the last material disciplinary actions report was submitted...

  3. 46 CFR 12.40-7 - Employer requirements.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... is employed. The report and information must remain on the last U.S. flag large passenger vessel on...) Submit an annual material disciplinary actions report to update whether there have been any material disciplinary actions related to the applicant since the last material disciplinary actions report was submitted...

  4. 46 CFR 12.40-7 - Employer requirements.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... is employed. The report and information must remain on the last U.S. flag large passenger vessel on...) Submit an annual material disciplinary actions report to update whether there have been any material disciplinary actions related to the applicant since the last material disciplinary actions report was submitted...

  5. Action Learning at Work.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mumford, Alan, Ed.

    This book contains 34 papers examining the theory, process, and outcomes of action learning at work. The following papers are included: "An Introduction to the Text" (Alan Mumford); "The Learning Equation" (Reg Revans); "Action Learning as a Vehicle for Learning" (Alan Mumford); "Placing Action Learning and…

  6. Reported Influence of Evaluation Data on Decision Makers' Actions: An Empirical Examination

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Christie, Christina A.

    2007-01-01

    Using a set of scenarios derived from actual evaluation studies, this simulation study examines the reported influence of evaluation information on decision makers' potential actions. Each scenario described a context where one of three types of evaluation information (large-scale study data, case study data, or anecdotal accounts) is presented…

  7. Herbivory drives large-scale spatial variation in reef fish trophic interactions

    PubMed Central

    Longo, Guilherme O; Ferreira, Carlos Eduardo L; Floeter, Sergio R

    2014-01-01

    Trophic interactions play a critical role in the structure and function of ecosystems. Given the widespread loss of biodiversity due to anthropogenic activities, understanding how trophic interactions respond to natural gradients (e.g., abiotic conditions, species richness) through large-scale comparisons can provide a broader understanding of their importance in changing ecosystems and support informed conservation actions. We explored large-scale variation in reef fish trophic interactions, encompassing tropical and subtropical reefs with different abiotic conditions and trophic structure of reef fish community. Reef fish feeding pressure on the benthos was determined combining bite rates on the substrate and the individual biomass per unit of time and area, using video recordings in three sites between latitudes 17°S and 27°S on the Brazilian Coast. Total feeding pressure decreased 10-fold and the composition of functional groups and species shifted from the northern to the southernmost sites. Both patterns were driven by the decline in the feeding pressure of roving herbivores, particularly scrapers, while the feeding pressure of invertebrate feeders and omnivores remained similar. The differential contribution to the feeding pressure across trophic categories, with roving herbivores being more important in the northernmost and southeastern reefs, determined changes in the intensity and composition of fish feeding pressure on the benthos among sites. It also determined the distribution of trophic interactions across different trophic categories, altering the evenness of interactions. Feeding pressure was more evenly distributed at the southernmost than in the southeastern and northernmost sites, where it was dominated by few herbivores. Species and functional groups that performed higher feeding pressure than predicted by their biomass were identified as critical for their potential to remove benthic biomass. Fishing pressure unlikely drove the large

  8. Microsatellites identify depredated waterfowl remains from glaucous gull stomachs

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Scribner, K.T.; Bowman, Timothy D.

    1998-01-01

    Prey remains can provide valuable sources of information regarding causes of predation and the species composition of a predator's diet. Unfortunately, the highly degraded state of many prey samples from gastrointestinal tracts often precludes unambiguous identification. We describe a procedure by which PCR amplification of taxonomically informative microsatellite loci were used to identify species of waterfowl predated by glaucous gulls (Larus hyperboreus). We found that one microsatellite locus unambiguously distinguished between species of the subfamily Anserinae (whistling ducks, geese and swans) and those of the subfamily Anatidae (all other ducks). An additional locus distinguished the remains of all geese and swan species known to nest on the Yukon-Kuskokwim delta in western Alaska. The study focused on two waterfowl species which have experienced precipitous declines in population numbers: emperor geese (Chen canagica) and spectacled eiders (Somateria fischeri). No evidence of predation on spectacled eiders was observed. Twenty-six percent of all glaucous gull stomachs examined contained the remains of juvenile emperor geese.

  9. Learning to reach by reinforcement learning using a receptive field based function approximation approach with continuous actions.

    PubMed

    Tamosiunaite, Minija; Asfour, Tamim; Wörgötter, Florentin

    2009-03-01

    Reinforcement learning methods can be used in robotics applications especially for specific target-oriented problems, for example the reward-based recalibration of goal directed actions. To this end still relatively large and continuous state-action spaces need to be efficiently handled. The goal of this paper is, thus, to develop a novel, rather simple method which uses reinforcement learning with function approximation in conjunction with different reward-strategies for solving such problems. For the testing of our method, we use a four degree-of-freedom reaching problem in 3D-space simulated by a two-joint robot arm system with two DOF each. Function approximation is based on 4D, overlapping kernels (receptive fields) and the state-action space contains about 10,000 of these. Different types of reward structures are being compared, for example, reward-on- touching-only against reward-on-approach. Furthermore, forbidden joint configurations are punished. A continuous action space is used. In spite of a rather large number of states and the continuous action space these reward/punishment strategies allow the system to find a good solution usually within about 20 trials. The efficiency of our method demonstrated in this test scenario suggests that it might be possible to use it on a real robot for problems where mixed rewards can be defined in situations where other types of learning might be difficult.

  10. Perovskite Technology is Scalable, But Questions Remain about the Best

    Science.gov Websites

    Methods | News | NREL Perovskite Technology is Scalable, But Questions Remain about the Best Methods News Release: Perovskite Technology is Scalable, But Questions Remain about the Best Methods NREL be used on a larger surface. The NREL researchers examined potential scalable deposition methods

  11. Human remains sold to the highest bidder! A snapshot of the buying and selling of human skeletal remains on eBay, an Internet auction site.

    PubMed

    Huxley, Angie K; Finnegan, Michael

    2004-01-01

    Internet auction sites have become increasingly popular, with diverse items up for sale to the public worldwide. The purposes of this paper are to inform the forensic community that human skeletal remains, old and new, are for sale on the eBay internet auction site, and to advise forensic scientists that eBay does not use a forensic anthropologist to assess photographs of these materials. Over the last few years, this website was "surfed," with numerous auctions during this period. After contacting eBay by email, representatives responded that they adhere to Native American Grave Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) and that their website indicates that auctions must state that sale of human remains is for instructional purposes only. Based on the photographs, the remains appear to be of prehistoric and modern origin. An unfortunate consequence of such sale may generate interest in stealing remains from graves, mortuaries, hospitals, or county morgues worldwide.

  12. Your own actions influence how you perceive other people: A misattribution of action appraisals

    PubMed Central

    Tipper, Steven P.; Bach, Patric

    2008-01-01

    The attribution of personal traits to other persons depends on the actions the observer performs at the same time (Bach & Tipper, 2007). Here, we show that the effect reflects a misattribution of appraisals of the observers’ own actions to the actions of others. We exploited spatial compatibility effects to manipulate how fluently—how fast and how accurately—participants identified two individuals performing sporty or academic actions. The traits attributed to each person in a subsequent rating task depended on the fluency of participants’ responses in a specific manner. An individual more fluently identified while performing the academic action appeared more academic and less sporty. An individual more fluently identified while performing the sporty action appeared sportier. Thus, social perception is—at least partially—embodied. The ease of our own responses can be misattributed to the actions of others, affecting which personal traits are attributed to them. PMID:21633518

  13. 47 CFR 1.103 - Effective dates of Commission actions; finality of Commission actions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 1 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Effective dates of Commission actions; finality of Commission actions. 1.103 Section 1.103 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION... Actions Taken by the Commission and Pursuant to Delegated Authority; Effective Dates and Finality Dates of...

  14. 47 CFR 1.103 - Effective dates of Commission actions; finality of Commission actions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Effective dates of Commission actions; finality of Commission actions. 1.103 Section 1.103 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION... Actions Taken by the Commission and Pursuant to Delegated Authority; Effective Dates and Finality Dates of...

  15. The influence of action observation on action execution: Dissociating the contribution of action on perception, perception on action, and resolving conflict.

    PubMed

    Deschrijver, Eliane; Wiersema, Jan R; Brass, Marcel

    2017-04-01

    For more than 15 years, motor interference paradigms have been used to investigate the influence of action observation on action execution. Most research on so-called automatic imitation has focused on variables that play a modulating role or investigated potential confounding factors. Interestingly, furthermore, a number of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies have tried to shed light on the functional mechanisms and neural correlates involved in imitation inhibition. However, these fMRI studies, presumably due to poor temporal resolution, have primarily focused on high-level processes and have neglected the potential role of low-level motor and perceptual processes. In the current EEG study, we therefore aimed to disentangle the influence of low-level perceptual and motoric mechanisms from high-level cognitive mechanisms. We focused on potential congruency differences in the visual N190 - a component related to the processing of biological motion, the Readiness Potential - a component related to motor preparation, and the high-level P3 component. Interestingly, we detected congruency effects in each of these components, suggesting that the interference effect in an automatic imitation paradigm is not only related to high-level processes such as self-other distinction but also to more low-level influences of perception on action and action on perception. Moreover, we documented relationships of the neural effects with (autistic) behavior.

  16. Group augmentation, collective action, and territorial boundary patrols by male chimpanzees

    PubMed Central

    Langergraber, Kevin E.; Watts, David P.; Mitani, John C.

    2017-01-01

    How can collective action evolve when individuals benefit from cooperation regardless of whether they pay its participation costs? According to one influential perspective, collective action problems are common, especially when groups are large, but may be solved when individuals who have more to gain from the collective good or can produce it at low costs provide it to others as a byproduct. Several results from a 20-y study of one of the most striking examples of collective action in nonhuman animals, territorial boundary patrolling by male chimpanzees, are consistent with these ideas. Individuals were more likely to patrol when (i) they had more to gain because they had many offspring in the group; (ii) they incurred relatively low costs because of their high dominance rank and superior physical condition; and (iii) the group size was relatively small. However, several other findings were better explained by group augmentation theory, which proposes that individuals should bear the short-term costs of collective action even when they have little to gain immediately if such action leads to increases in group size and long-term increases in reproductive success. In support of this theory, (i) individual patrolling effort was higher and less variable than participation in intergroup aggression in other primate species; (ii) males often patrolled when they had no offspring or maternal relatives in the group; and (iii) the aggregate patrolling effort of the group did not decrease with group size. We propose that group augmentation theory deserves more consideration in research on collective action. PMID:28630310

  17. Lipid-induced mitochondrial stress and insulin action in muscle

    PubMed Central

    Muoio, Deborah M.; Neufer, P. Darrell

    2012-01-01

    Summary The interplay between mitochondrial energetics, lipid balance and muscle insulin sensitivity has remained a topic of intense interest and debate for decades. One popular view suggests that increased oxidative capacity benefits metabolic wellness; based on the premise that it is healthier to burn fat than glucose. Attempts to test this hypothesis using genetically-modified mouse models have produced contradictory results; and instead link muscle insulin resistance to excessive fat oxidation, acylcarnitine production and increased mitochondrial H2O2 emitting potential. Here, we consider emerging evidence that insulin action in muscle is driven principally by mitochondrial load and redox signaling rather than oxidative capacity. PMID:22560212

  18. Corrective Action Decision Document/Corrective Action Plan for Corrective Action Unit 97: Yucca Flat/Climax Mine Nevada National Security Site, Nevada, Revision 1

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Farnham, Irene

    This corrective action decision document (CADD)/corrective action plan (CAP) has been prepared for Corrective Action Unit (CAU) 97, Yucca Flat/Climax Mine, Nevada National Security Site (NNSS), Nevada. The Yucca Flat/Climax Mine CAU is located in the northeastern portion of the NNSS and comprises 720 corrective action sites. A total of 747 underground nuclear detonations took place within this CAU between 1957 and 1992 and resulted in the release of radionuclides (RNs) in the subsurface in the vicinity of the test cavities. The CADD portion describes the Yucca Flat/Climax Mine CAU data-collection and modeling activities completed during the corrective action investigationmore » (CAI) stage, presents the corrective action objectives, and describes the actions recommended to meet the objectives. The CAP portion describes the corrective action implementation plan. The CAP presents CAU regulatory boundary objectives and initial use-restriction boundaries identified and negotiated by DOE and the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP). The CAP also presents the model evaluation process designed to build confidence that the groundwater flow and contaminant transport modeling results can be used for the regulatory decisions required for CAU closure. The UGTA strategy assumes that active remediation of subsurface RN contamination is not feasible with current technology. As a result, the corrective action is based on a combination of characterization and modeling studies, monitoring, and institutional controls. The strategy is implemented through a four-stage approach that comprises the following: (1) corrective action investigation plan (CAIP), (2) CAI, (3) CADD/CAP, and (4) closure report (CR) stages.« less

  19. 76 FR 80847 - Enforcement Actions

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-12-27

    ... Enforcement Actions AGENCY: National Indian Gaming Commission, Interior. ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking. SUMMARY: This action proposes to amend NIGC regulations to include a graduated pre-enforcement process through which a tribe may come into compliance before an enforcement action is taken by the Chair...

  20. Common decisions made and actions taken during small-animal consultations at eight first-opinion practices in the United Kingdom.

    PubMed

    Robinson, N J; Brennan, M L; Cobb, M; Dean, R S

    2017-04-01

    In order for veterinary surgeons to undertake an evidence-based approach to making decisions about their patients, it is important that new evidence is generated to support the clinical decision-making process. Many of the decisions are likely to be around the actions taken to treat or manage health problems discussed during the consultation, and little is currently known about the factors which affect the type of action taken. The aim of this study was to determine the decisions made and actions taken for health problems discussed during first-opinion small-animal consultations, as well as identifying factors which may affect the decision-making process. Data were gathered during direct observation of small-animal consultations conducted by 62 veterinary surgeons in eight first-opinion practices in the United Kingdom. For each patient presented, data were gathered on all health problems discussed during the consultation. The decision made (whether an action was taken or not) and the action taken where applicable (e.g. therapeutic treatment with antibiotics) was also recorded. A three-level multivariable logistic-regression model was developed, with problem (Level 1) nested within patient (Level 2) nested within consulting veterinary surgeon (Level 3), and a binary outcome variable of action versus no action. At least one action was taken for 69% (n=2203/3192) of all problems discussed. Therapeutic treatment was the most common action taken (n=1286/3192 problems; 40.3%), followed by management advice (n=1040/3192; 32.6%) and diagnostic work-up (n=323/3192; 10.1%). The most common therapeutic treatment was antibiotics (n=386/1286; 30%), while the most common management advice given was dietary advice (n=509/1040; 48.9%). The three explanatory variables remaining in the final model were whether the problem was a presenting or non-presenting problem, the type of diagnosis made, and the body system affected. Explanatory variables which did not remain in the final model