Executive Functions and Working Memory Behaviours in Children with a Poor Working Memory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

St. Clair-Thompson, Helen L.

2011-01-01

Previous research has suggested that working memory difficulties play an integral role in children's underachievement at school. However, working memory is just one of several executive functions. The extent to which problems in working memory extend to other executive functions is not well understood. In the current study 38 children with a poor…

Enhancing memory and imagination improves problem solving among individuals with depression.

PubMed

McFarland, Craig P; Primosch, Mark; Maxson, Chelsey M; Stewart, Brandon T

2017-08-01

Recent work has revealed links between memory, imagination, and problem solving, and suggests that increasing access to detailed memories can lead to improved imagination and problem-solving performance. Depression is often associated with overgeneral memory and imagination, along with problem-solving deficits. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that an interview designed to elicit detailed recollections would enhance imagination and problem solving among both depressed and nondepressed participants. In a within-subjects design, participants completed a control interview or an episodic specificity induction prior to completing memory, imagination, and problem-solving tasks. Results revealed that compared to the control interview, the episodic specificity induction fostered increased detail generation in memory and imagination and more relevant steps on the problem-solving task among depressed and nondepressed participants. This study builds on previous work by demonstrating that a brief interview can enhance problem solving among individuals with depression and supports the notion that episodic memory plays a key role in problem solving. It should be noted, however, that the results of the interview are relatively short-lived.

Everyday Experiences of Memory Problems and Control: The Adaptive Role of Selective Optimization with Compensation in the Context of Memory Decline

PubMed Central

Hahn, Elizabeth A.; Lachman, Margie E.

2014-01-01

The present study examined the role of long-term working memory decline in the relationship between everyday experiences of memory problems and perceived control, and we also considered whether the use of accommodative strategies [selective optimization with compensation (SOC)] would be adaptive. The study included Boston-area participants (n=103) from the Midlife in the United States study (MIDUS) who completed two working memory assessments over ten years and weekly diaries following Time 2. In adjusted multi-level analyses, greater memory decline and lower general perceived control were associated with more everyday memory problems. Low perceived control reported in a weekly diary was associated with more everyday memory problems among those with greater memory decline and low SOC strategy use (Est.=−0.28, SE=0.13, p=.036). These results suggest that the use of SOC strategies in the context of declining memory may help to buffer the negative effects of low perceived control on everyday memory. PMID:24597768

Everyday experiences of memory problems and control: the adaptive role of selective optimization with compensation in the context of memory decline.

PubMed

Hahn, Elizabeth A; Lachman, Margie E

2015-01-01

The present study examined the role of long-term working memory decline in the relationship between everyday experiences of memory problems and perceived control, and we also considered whether the use of accommodative strategies [selective optimization with compensation (SOC)] would be adaptive. The study included Boston-area participants (n = 103) from the Midlife in the United States study (MIDUS) who completed two working memory assessments over 10 years and weekly diaries following Time 2. In adjusted multi-level analyses, greater memory decline and lower general perceived control were associated with more everyday memory problems. Low perceived control reported in a weekly diary was associated with more everyday memory problems among those with greater memory decline and low SOC strategy use (Est. = -0.28, SE= 0.13, p = .036). These results suggest that the use of SOC strategies in the context of declining memory may help to buffer the negative effects of low perceived control on everyday memory.

Working Memory Components as Predictors of Children's Mathematical Word Problem Solving

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zheng, Xinhua; Swanson, H. Lee; Marcoulides, George A.

2011-01-01

This study determined the working memory (WM) components (executive, phonological loop, and visual-spatial sketchpad) that best predicted mathematical word problem-solving accuracy of elementary school children in Grades 2, 3, and 4 (N = 310). A battery of tests was administered to assess problem-solving accuracy, problem-solving processes, WM,…

Working Memory Capacity and Fluid Intelligence: Maintenance and Disengagement.

PubMed

Shipstead, Zach; Harrison, Tyler L; Engle, Randall W

2016-11-01

Working memory capacity and fluid intelligence have been demonstrated to be strongly correlated traits. Typically, high working memory capacity is believed to facilitate reasoning through accurate maintenance of relevant information. In this article, we present a proposal reframing this issue, such that tests of working memory capacity and fluid intelligence are seen as measuring complementary processes that facilitate complex cognition. Respectively, these are the ability to maintain access to critical information and the ability to disengage from or block outdated information. In the realm of problem solving, high working memory capacity allows a person to represent and maintain a problem accurately and stably, so that hypothesis testing can be conducted. However, as hypotheses are disproven or become untenable, disengaging from outdated problem solving attempts becomes important so that new hypotheses can be generated and tested. From this perspective, the strong correlation between working memory capacity and fluid intelligence is due not to one ability having a causal influence on the other but to separate attention-demanding mental functions that can be contrary to one another but are organized around top-down processing goals. © The Author(s) 2016.

From Poor Performance to Success under Stress: Working Memory, Strategy Selection, and Mathematical Problem Solving under Pressure

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beilock, Sian L.; DeCaro, Marci S.

2007-01-01

Two experiments demonstrate how individual differences in working memory (WM) impact the strategies used to solve complex math problems and how consequential testing situations alter strategy use. In Experiment 1, individuals performed multistep math problems under low- or high-pressure conditions and reported their problem-solving strategies.…

Interference control in working memory: comparing groups of children with atypical development.

PubMed

Palladino, Paola; Ferrari, Marcella

2013-01-01

The study aimed to test whether working memory deficits in children at risk of Learning Disabilities (LD) and/or attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can be attributed to deficits in interference control, thereby implicating prefrontal systems. Two groups of children known for showing poor working memory (i.e., children with poor comprehension and children with ADHD) were compared to a group of children with specific reading decoding problems (i.e., having severe problems in phonological rather than working memory) and to a control group. All children were tested with a verbal working memory task. Interference control of irrelevant items was examined by a lexical decision task presented immediately after the final recall in about half the trials, selected at random. The interference control measure was therefore directly related to working memory performance. Results confirmed deficient working memory performance in poor comprehenders and children at risk of ADHD + LD. More interestingly, this working memory deficit was associated with greater activation of irrelevant information than in the control group. Poor decoders showed more efficient interference control, in contrast to poor comprehenders and ADHD + LD children. These results indicated that interfering items were still highly accessible to working memory in children who fail the working memory task. In turn, these findings strengthen and clarify the role of interference control, one of the most critical prefrontal functions, in working memory.

What's the Problem? Familiarity Working Memory, and Transfer in a Problem-Solving Task.

PubMed

Kole, James A; Snyder, Hannah R; Brojde, Chandra L; Friend, Angela

2015-01-01

The contributions of familiarity and working memory to transfer were examined in the Tower of Hanoi task. Participants completed 3 different versions of the task: a standard 3-disk version, a clothing exchange task that included familiar semantic content, and a tea ceremony task that included unfamiliar semantic content. The constraints on moves were equivalent across tasks, and each could be solved with the same sequence of movements. Working memory demands were manipulated by the provision of a (static or dynamic) visual representation of the problem. Performance was equivalent for the standard Tower of Hanoi and clothing exchange tasks but worse for the tea ceremony task, and it decreased with increasing working memory demands. Furthermore, the standard Tower of Hanoi task and clothing exchange tasks independently, additively, and equivalently transferred to subsequent tasks, whereas the tea ceremony task did not. The results suggest that both familiarity and working memory demands determine overall level of performance, whereas familiarity influences transfer.

Working Memory Deficits and Social Problems in Children with ADHD

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kofler, Michael J.; Rapport, Mark D.; Bolden, Jennifer; Sarver, Dustin E.; Raiker, Joseph S.; Alderson, R. Matt

2011-01-01

Social problems are a prevalent feature of ADHD and reflect a major source of functional impairment for these children. The current study examined the impact of working memory deficits on parent- and teacher-reported social problems in a sample of children with ADHD and typically developing boys (N = 39). Bootstrapped, bias-corrected mediation…

Working Memory Subsystems and Task Complexity in Young Boys with Fragile X Syndrome

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baker, S.; Hooper, S.; Skinner, M.; Hatton, D.; Schaaf, J.; Ornstein, P.; Bailey, D.

2011-01-01

Background: Working memory problems have been targeted as core deficits in individuals with Fragile X syndrome (FXS); however, there have been few studies that have examined working memory in young boys with FXS, and even fewer studies that have studied the working memory performance of young boys with FXS across different degrees of complexity.…

Working, declarative and procedural memory in specific language impairment

PubMed Central

Lum, Jarrad A.G.; Conti-Ramsden, Gina; Page, Debra; Ullman, Michael T.

2012-01-01

According to the Procedural Deficit Hypothesis (PDH), abnormalities of brain structures underlying procedural memory largely explain the language deficits in children with specific language impairment (SLI). These abnormalities are posited to result in core deficits of procedural memory, which in turn explain the grammar problems in the disorder. The abnormalities are also likely to lead to problems with other, non-procedural functions, such as working memory, that rely at least partly on the affected brain structures. In contrast, declarative memory is expected to remain largely intact, and should play an important compensatory role for grammar. These claims were tested by examining measures of working, declarative and procedural memory in 51 children with SLI and 51 matched typically-developing (TD) children (mean age 10). Working memory was assessed with the Working Memory Test Battery for Children, declarative memory with the Children’s Memory Scale, and procedural memory with a visuo-spatial Serial Reaction Time task. As compared to the TD children, the children with SLI were impaired at procedural memory, even when holding working memory constant. In contrast, they were spared at declarative memory for visual information, and at declarative memory in the verbal domain after controlling for working memory and language. Visuo-spatial short-term memory was intact, whereas verbal working memory was impaired, even when language deficits were held constant. Correlation analyses showed neither visuo-spatial nor verbal working memory was associated with either lexical or grammatical abilities in either the SLI or TD children. Declarative memory correlated with lexical abilities in both groups of children. Finally, grammatical abilities were associated with procedural memory in the TD children, but with declarative memory in the children with SLI. These findings replicate and extend previous studies of working, declarative and procedural memory in SLI. Overall, we suggest that the evidence largely supports the predictions of the PDH. PMID:21774923

Working Memory, Attention, and Mathematical Problem Solving: A Longitudinal Study of Elementary School Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Swanson, H. Lee

2011-01-01

The role of working memory (WM) in children's growth in mathematical problem solving was examined in a longitudinal study of children (N = 127). A battery of tests was administered that assessed problem solving, achievement, WM, and cognitive processing (inhibition, speed, phonological coding) in Grade 1 children, with follow-up testing in Grades…

Working Memory Underpins Cognitive Development, Learning, and Education

PubMed Central

Cowan, Nelson

2014-01-01

Working memory is the retention of a small amount of information in a readily accessible form. It facilitates planning, comprehension, reasoning, and problem-solving. I examine the historical roots and conceptual development of the concept and the theoretical and practical implications of current debates about working memory mechanisms. Then I explore the nature of cognitive developmental improvements in working memory, the role of working memory in learning, and some potential implications of working memory and its development for the education of children and adults. The use of working memory is quite ubiquitous in human thought, but the best way to improve education using what we know about working memory is still controversial. I hope to provide some directions for research and educational practice. PMID:25346585

Visual working memory and number sense: Testing the double deficit hypothesis in mathematics.

PubMed

Toll, Sylke W M; Kroesbergen, Evelyn H; Van Luit, Johannes E H

2016-09-01

Evidence exists that there are two main underlying cognitive factors in mathematical difficulties: working memory and number sense. It is suggested that real math difficulties appear when both working memory and number sense are weak, here referred to as the double deficit (DD) hypothesis. The aim of this study was to test the DD hypothesis within a longitudinal time span of 2 years. A total of 670 children participated. The mean age was 4.96 years at the start of the study and 7.02 years at the end of the study. At the end of the first year of kindergarten, both visual-spatial working memory and number sense were measured by two different tasks. At the end of first grade, mathematical performance was measured with two tasks, one for math facts and one for math problems. Multiple regressions revealed that both visual working memory and symbolic number sense are predictors of mathematical performance in first grade. Symbolic number sense appears to be the strongest predictor for both math areas (math facts and math problems). Non-symbolic number sense only predicts performance in math problems. Multivariate analyses of variance showed that a combination of visual working memory and number sense deficits (NSDs) leads to the lowest performance on mathematics. Our DD hypothesis was confirmed. Both visual working memory and symbolic number sense in kindergarten are related to mathematical performance 2 years later, and a combination of visual working memory and NSDs leads to low performance in mathematical performance. © 2016 The British Psychological Society.

Some Prerequisites in Learning to Solve Figural Analogy Problems.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wagner, James

A series of three experiments was conducted for the purposes of (1) clarifying problems of previous research on the relationship between working memory capacity and performance on figural analogy tasks, and (2) exploring developmental issues concerning executive strategies, working memory capacity, and perceptual processing. Directly manipulating…

The Relationship between Working Memory and Mathematical Problem Solving in Children at Risk and Not at Risk for Serious Math Difficulties

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Swanson, H. Lee; Beebe-Frankenberger, Margaret

2004-01-01

This study identified cognitive processes that underlie individual differences in working memory (WM) and mathematical problem-solution accuracy in elementary school children at risk and not at risk for serious math difficulties (SMD). A battery of tests was administered that assessed problem solving, achievement, and cognitive processing in…

Gesturing during mental problem solving reduces eye movements, especially for individuals with lower visual working memory capacity.

PubMed

Pouw, Wim T J L; Mavilidi, Myrto-Foteini; van Gog, Tamara; Paas, Fred

2016-08-01

Non-communicative hand gestures have been found to benefit problem-solving performance. These gestures seem to compensate for limited internal cognitive capacities, such as visual working memory capacity. Yet, it is not clear how gestures might perform this cognitive function. One hypothesis is that gesturing is a means to spatially index mental simulations, thereby reducing the need for visually projecting the mental simulation onto the visual presentation of the task. If that hypothesis is correct, less eye movements should be made when participants gesture during problem solving than when they do not gesture. We therefore used mobile eye tracking to investigate the effect of co-thought gesturing and visual working memory capacity on eye movements during mental solving of the Tower of Hanoi problem. Results revealed that gesturing indeed reduced the number of eye movements (lower saccade counts), especially for participants with a relatively lower visual working memory capacity. Subsequent problem-solving performance was not affected by having (not) gestured during the mental solving phase. The current findings suggest that our understanding of gestures in problem solving could be improved by taking into account eye movements during gesturing.

Working Memory and Reasoning Benefit from Different Modes of Large-scale Brain Dynamics in Healthy Older Adults.

PubMed

Lebedev, Alexander V; Nilsson, Jonna; Lövdén, Martin

2018-07-01

Researchers have proposed that solving complex reasoning problems, a key indicator of fluid intelligence, involves the same cognitive processes as solving working memory tasks. This proposal is supported by an overlap of the functional brain activations associated with the two types of tasks and by high correlations between interindividual differences in performance. We replicated these findings in 53 older participants but also showed that solving reasoning and working memory problems benefits from different configurations of the functional connectome and that this dissimilarity increases with a higher difficulty load. Specifically, superior performance in a typical working memory paradigm ( n-back) was associated with upregulation of modularity (increased between-network segregation), whereas performance in the reasoning task was associated with effective downregulation of modularity. We also showed that working memory training promotes task-invariant increases in modularity. Because superior reasoning performance is associated with downregulation of modular dynamics, training may thus have fostered an inefficient way of solving the reasoning tasks. This could help explain why working memory training does little to promote complex reasoning performance. The study concludes that complex reasoning abilities cannot be reduced to working memory and suggests the need to reconsider the feasibility of using working memory training interventions to attempt to achieve effects that transfer to broader cognition.

Development of verbal short-term memory and working memory in children with epilepsy: Developmental delay and impact of time-related variables. A cross-sectional study.

PubMed

van Iterson, Loretta; de Jong, Peter F

2018-01-01

While short-term memory (STM) and working memory (WM) are understood as being crucial for learning, and children with epilepsy often experience learning difficulties, little is known about the age-related development of memory span tasks in children with epilepsy. Short-term memory and WM, operationalized as digit span forwards (DSF) or digit span backwards (DSB), respectively, were studied. Participants were 314 children with epilepsy and 327 typically developing children in ages between 5 and 15years and full scale intelligence quotient (FS-IQ)≥75. Cross-sectional analyses of the data were done with analyses of variance and analyses of covariance ((M)ANCOVAs) and generalized linear analyses. The analyses revealed that STM problems in epilepsy were mediated by age-related gains in WM as well as by differences in IQ. Working memory developed at a quick pace in the younger children, the pace slowed down to some extent in the later primary school years and resumed again later on. Working memory problems prevailed in epilepsy, independent of IQ and development of STM. Timing of the epilepsy in terms of age at onset and duration determined memory development. The youngest children with epilepsy showed age-appropriate development in STM but were the most vulnerable in terms of WM development. Later in the course of the epilepsy, the WM problems of the young children attenuated. In later onset epilepsy, WM problems were smaller but persisted over time. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Working Memory Underpins Cognitive Development, Learning, and Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cowan, Nelson

2014-01-01

Working memory is the retention of a small amount of information in a readily accessible form. It facilitates planning, comprehension, reasoning, and problem solving. I examine the historical roots and conceptual development of the concept and the theoretical and practical implications of current debates about working memory mechanisms. Then, I…

Working Memory Capacity and Categorization: Individual Differences and Modeling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lewandowsky, Stephan

2011-01-01

Working memory is crucial for many higher-level cognitive functions, ranging from mental arithmetic to reasoning and problem solving. Likewise, the ability to learn and categorize novel concepts forms an indispensable part of human cognition. However, very little is known about the relationship between working memory and categorization, and…

Spatial Working Memory Is Necessary for Actions to Guide Thought

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thomas, Laura E.

2013-01-01

Directed actions can play a causal role in cognition, shaping thought processes. What drives this cross-talk between action and thought? I investigated the hypothesis that representations in spatial working memory mediate interactions between directed actions and problem solving. Participants attempted to solve an insight problem while…

The Different Role of Working Memory in Open-Ended versus Closed-Ended Creative Problem Solving: A Dual-Process Theory Account

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lin, Wei-Lun; Lien, Yunn-Wen

2013-01-01

This study examined how working memory plays different roles in open-ended versus closed-ended creative problem-solving processes, as represented by divergent thinking tests and insight problem-solving tasks. With respect to the analysis of different task demands and the framework of dual-process theories, the hypothesis was that the idea…

Validity of the MicroDYN Approach: Complex Problem Solving Predicts School Grades beyond Working Memory Capacity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schweizer, Fabian; Wustenberg, Sascha; Greiff, Samuel

2013-01-01

This study examines the validity of the complex problem solving (CPS) test MicroDYN by investigating a) the relation between its dimensions--rule identification (exploration strategy), rule knowledge (acquired knowledge), rule application (control performance)--and working memory capacity (WMC), and b) whether CPS predicts school grades in…

Working memory deficits in children with reading difficulties: memory span and dual task coordination.

PubMed

Wang, Shinmin; Gathercole, Susan E

2013-05-01

The current study investigated the cause of the reported problems in working memory in children with reading difficulties. Verbal and visuospatial simple and complex span tasks, and digit span and reaction times tasks performed singly and in combination, were administered to 46 children with single word reading difficulties and 45 typically developing children matched for age and nonverbal ability. Children with reading difficulties had pervasive deficits in the simple and complex span tasks and had poorer abilities to coordinate two cognitive demanding tasks. These findings indicate that working memory problems in children with reading difficulties may reflect a core deficit in the central executive. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The relationship between sleep problems and working memory in children born very preterm.

PubMed

McCann, Marie; Bayliss, Donna M; Anderson, Mike; Campbell, Catherine; French, Noel; McMichael, Judy; Reid, Corinne; Bucks, Romola S

2018-01-01

In two studies, the relationship between sleep and working memory performance was investigated in children born very preterm (i.e., gestation less than 32 weeks) and the possible mechanisms underlying this relationship. In Study 1, parent-reported measures of snoring, night-time sleep quality, and daytime sleepiness were collected on 89 children born very preterm aged 6 to 7 years. The children completed a verbal working memory task, as well as measures of processing speed and verbal storage capacity. Night-time sleep quality was found to be associated with verbal working memory performance over and above the variance associated with individual differences in processing speed and storage capacity, suggesting that poor sleep may have an impact on the executive component of working memory. Snoring and daytime sleepiness were not found to be associated with working memory performance. Study 2 introduced a direct measure of executive functioning and examined whether sleep problems would differentially impact the executive functioning of children born very preterm relative to children born to term. Parent-reported sleep problems were collected on 43 children born very preterm and 48 children born to term (aged 6 to 9 years). Problematic sleep was found to adversely impact executive functioning in the very preterm group, while no effect of sleep was found in the control group. These findings implicate executive dysfunction as a possible mechanism by which problematic sleep adversely impacts upon cognition in children born very preterm, and suggest that sleep problems can increase the cognitive vulnerability already experienced by many of these children.

Etiological Distinction of Working Memory Components in Relation to Mathematics

PubMed Central

Lukowski, Sarah L.; Soden, Brooke; Hart, Sara A.; Thompson, Lee A.; Kovas, Yulia; Petrill, Stephen A.

2014-01-01

Working memory has been consistently associated with mathematics achievement, although the etiology of these relations remains poorly understood. The present study examined the genetic and environmental underpinnings of math story problem solving, timed calculation, and untimed calculation alongside working memory components in 12-year-old monozygotic (n = 105) and same-sex dizygotic (n = 143) twin pairs. Results indicated significant phenotypic correlation between each working memory component and all mathematics outcomes (r = 0.18 – 0.33). Additive genetic influences shared between the visuo-spatial sketchpad and mathematics achievement was significant, accounting for roughly 89% of the observed correlation. In addition, genetic covariance was found between the phonological loop and math story problem solving. In contrast, despite there being a significant observed relationship between phonological loop and timed and untimed calculation, there was no significant genetic or environmental covariance between the phonological loop and timed or untimed calculation skills. Further analyses indicated that genetic overlap between the visuo-spatial sketchpad and math story problem solving and math fluency was distinct from general genetic factors, whereas g, phonological loop, and mathematics shared generalist genes. Thus, although each working memory component was related to mathematics, the etiology of their relationships may be distinct. PMID:25477699

Transfer after Working Memory Updating Training

PubMed Central

Waris, Otto; Soveri, Anna; Laine, Matti

2015-01-01

During the past decade, working memory training has attracted much interest. However, the training outcomes have varied between studies and methodological problems have hampered the interpretation of results. The current study examined transfer after working memory updating training by employing an extensive battery of pre-post cognitive measures with a focus on near transfer. Thirty-one healthy Finnish young adults were randomized into either a working memory training group or an active control group. The working memory training group practiced with three working memory tasks, while the control group trained with three commercial computer games with a low working memory load. The participants trained thrice a week for five weeks, with one training session lasting about 45 minutes. Compared to the control group, the working memory training group showed strongest transfer to an n-back task, followed by working memory updating, which in turn was followed by active working memory capacity. Our results support the view that working memory training produces near transfer effects, and that the degree of transfer depends on the cognitive overlap between the training and transfer measures. PMID:26406319

Transfer after Working Memory Updating Training.

PubMed

Waris, Otto; Soveri, Anna; Laine, Matti

2015-01-01

During the past decade, working memory training has attracted much interest. However, the training outcomes have varied between studies and methodological problems have hampered the interpretation of results. The current study examined transfer after working memory updating training by employing an extensive battery of pre-post cognitive measures with a focus on near transfer. Thirty-one healthy Finnish young adults were randomized into either a working memory training group or an active control group. The working memory training group practiced with three working memory tasks, while the control group trained with three commercial computer games with a low working memory load. The participants trained thrice a week for five weeks, with one training session lasting about 45 minutes. Compared to the control group, the working memory training group showed strongest transfer to an n-back task, followed by working memory updating, which in turn was followed by active working memory capacity. Our results support the view that working memory training produces near transfer effects, and that the degree of transfer depends on the cognitive overlap between the training and transfer measures.

Applying Catastrophe Theory to an Information-Processing Model of Problem Solving in Science Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stamovlasis, Dimitrios; Tsaparlis, Georgios

2012-01-01

In this study, we test an information-processing model (IPM) of problem solving in science education, namely the working memory overload model, by applying catastrophe theory. Changes in students' achievement were modeled as discontinuities within a cusp catastrophe model, where working memory capacity was implemented as asymmetry and the degree…

Differences in Memory Functioning between Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and/or Focal Epilepsy

PubMed Central

Lee, Sylvia E.; Kibby, Michelle Y.; Cohen, Morris J.; Stanford, Lisa; Park, Yong; Strickland, Suzanne

2016-01-01

Prior research has shown that attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and epilepsy are frequently comorbid and that both disorders are associated with various attention and memory problems. Nonetheless, limited research has been conducted comparing the two disorders in one sample to determine unique versus shared deficits. Hence, we investigated differences in working memory and short-term and delayed recall between children with ADHD, focal epilepsy of mixed foci, comorbid ADHD/epilepsy and controls. Participants were compared on the Core subtests and the Picture Locations subtest of the Children’s Memory Scale (CMS). Results indicated that children with ADHD displayed intact verbal working memory and long-term memory (LTM), as well as intact performance on most aspects of short-term memory (STM). They performed worse than controls on Numbers Forward and Picture Locations, suggesting problems with focused attention and simple span for visual-spatial material. Conversely, children with epilepsy displayed poor focused attention and STM regardless of modality assessed, which affected encoding into LTM. The only loss over time was found for passages (Stories). Working memory was intact. Children with comorbid ADHD/epilepsy displayed focused attention and STM/LTM problems consistent with both disorders, having the lowest scores across the four groups. Hence, focused attention and visual-spatial span appear to be affected in both disorders, whereas additional STM/encoding problems are specific to epilepsy. Children with comorbid ADHD/epilepsy have deficits consistent with both disorders, with slight additive effects. This study suggests that attention and memory testing should be a regular part of the evaluation of children with epilepsy and ADHD. PMID:26156331

Recent life stress exposure is associated with poorer long-term memory, working memory, and self-reported memory.

PubMed

Shields, Grant S; Doty, Dominique; Shields, Rebecca H; Gower, Garrett; Slavich, George M; Yonelinas, Andrew P

2017-11-01

Although substantial research has examined the effects of stress on cognition, much of this research has focused on acute stress (e.g. manipulated in the laboratory) or chronic stress (e.g. persistent interpersonal or financial difficulties). In contrast, the effects of recent life stress on cognition have been relatively understudied. To address this issue, we examined how recent life stress is associated with long-term, working memory, and self-reported memory in a sample of 142 healthy young adults who were assessed at two time points over a two-week period. Recent life stress was measured using the newly-developed Stress and Adversity Inventory for Daily Stress (Daily STRAIN), which assesses the frequency of relatively common stressful life events and difficulties over the preceding two weeks. To assess memory performance, participants completed both long-term and working memory tasks. Participants also provided self-reports of memory problems. As hypothesized, greater recent life stress exposure was associated with worse performance on measures of long-term and working memory, as well as more self-reported memory problems. These associations were largely robust while controlling for possible confounds, including participants' age, sex, and negative affect. The findings indicate that recent life stress exposure is broadly associated with worse memory. Future studies should thus consider assessing recent life stress as a potential predictor, moderator, or covariate of memory performance.

Cognitive and psychomotor effects of risperidone in schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder.

PubMed

Houthoofd, Sofie A M K; Morrens, Manuel; Sabbe, Bernard G C

2008-09-01

The aim of this review was to discuss data from double-blind, randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that have investigated the effects of oral and long-acting injectable risperidone on cognitive and psychomotor functioning in patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder. PubMed/MEDLINE and the Institute of Scientific Information Web of Science database were searched for relevant English-language double-blind RCTs published between March 2000 and July 2008, using the terms schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, cognition, risperidone, psychomotor, processing speed, attention, vigilance, working memory, verbal learning, visual learning, reasoning, problem solving, social cognition, MATRICS, and long-acting. Relevant studies included patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder. Cognitive domains were delineated at the Consensus Conferences of the National Institute of Mental Health-Measurement And Treatment Research to Improve Cognition in Schizophrenia (NIMH-MATRICS). The tests employed to assess each domain and psychomotor functioning, and the within-group and between-group comparisons of risperidone with haloperidol and other atypical antipsychotics, are presented. The results of individual tests were included when they were individually presented and interpretable for either drug; outcomes that were presented as cluster scores or factor structures were excluded. A total of 12 articles were included in this review. Results suggested that the use of oral risperidone appeared to be associated with within-group improvements on the cognitive domains of processing speed, attention/vigilance, verbal and visual learning and memory, and reasoning and problem solving in patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder. Risperidone and haloperidol seemed to generate similar beneficial effects (on the domains of processing speed, attention/vigilance, [verbal and nonverbal] working memory, and visual learning and memory, as well as psychomotor functioning), although the results for verbal fluency, verbal learning and memory, and reasoning and problem solving were not unanimous, and no comparative data on social cognition were available. Similar cognitive effects were found with risperidone, olanzapine, and quetiapine on the domains of verbal working memory and reasoning and problem solving, as well as verbal fluency. More research is needed on the domains in which study results were contradictory. For olanzapine versus risperidone, these were verbal and visual learning and memory and psychomotor functioning. No comparative data for olanzapine and risperidone were available for the social cognition domain. For quetiapine versus risperidone, the domains in which no unanimity was found were processing speed, attention/vigilance, nonverbal working memory, and verbal learning and memory. The limited available reports on risperidone versus clozapine suggest that: risperidone was associated with improved, and clozapine with worsened, performance on the nonverbal working memory domain; risperidone improved and clozapine did not improve reasoning and problem-solving performance; clozapine improved, and risperidone did not improve, social cognition performance. Use of long-acting injectable risperidone seemed to be associated with improved performance in the domains of attention/vigilance, verbal learning and memory, and reasoning and problem solving, as well as psychomotor functioning. The results for the nonverbal working memory domain were indeterminate, and no clear improvement was seen in the social cognition domain. The domains of processing speed, verbal working memory, and visual learning and memory, as well as verbal fluency, were not assessed. The results of this review of within-group comparisons of oral risperidone suggest that the agent appeared to be associated with improved functioning in the cognitive domains of processing speed, attention/vigilance, verbal and visual learning and memory, and reasoning and problem solving in patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder. Long-acting injectable risperidone seemed to be associated with improved functioning in the domains of attention/vigilance, verbal learning and memory, and reasoning and problem solving, as well as psychomotor functioning, in patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder.

Working from Memory: Artists and Actors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hurwitz, Al

2004-01-01

In this article, the author discusses the art of memory-based drawing. Memory-based drawing represents but one part of a broad range of activities used in drawing instruction. Other sources involve the use of fantasy, doodling, problem-solving, and illustrating. Other ways of working from one's personal history involve keeping illustrated…

Inattentive behaviour is associated with poor working memory and slow processing speed in very pre-term children in middle childhood.

PubMed

Mulder, Hanna; Pitchford, Nicola J; Marlow, Neil

2011-03-01

BACKGROUND. Problem behaviour is common following pre-term birth, but the underlying nature of these difficulties is not well known. AIMS. We sought to establish the mechanisms underpinning behavioural difficulties in very pre-term (VPT) children in middle childhood by comparing their performance to that of term born peers on tasks of working memory, inhibition, and processing speed, and relating these to parent and teacher assessments of their behaviour. Particular focus was given to inattention and overactive/impulsive behaviour, as these behaviours have been associated with different neuropsychological problems in term children. SAMPLES. A group of VPT children (gestational age < 31 weeks, N= 56) aged 9-10 years and term controls (N= 22) participated in the study. METHOD. Children were assessed with measures of working memory, inhibition, and processing speed. Parents and teachers reported behavioural problems using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire and two additional scales measuring overactive/impulsive behaviour and inattention. RESULTS. Results revealed increased rates of problem behaviour in VPT compared to term children for parent-rated total difficulties, hyperactivity, emotional problems, peer problems, prosocial behaviour, overactive/impulsive behaviour, and parent- and teacher-rated inattention. Processing speed and working memory, but not inhibition, were significantly related to inattentive and overactive/impulsive behaviour. CONCLUSIONS. The increased rates of inattention and overactive/impulsive behaviour in VPT children may be explained by impairment in processing speed and working memory. Expected links between overactive/impulsive behaviour and inhibitory control were not identified, suggesting the nature of such difficulties may be different in VPT compared to term children. © 2010 The British Psychological Society.

Assessing the Relationship of Working Memory to L2 Reading: Does the Nature of Comprehension Process and Reading Span Task Make a Difference?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alptekin, Cem; Ercetin, Gulcan

2009-01-01

Although an important role has been ascribed to working-memory capacity in reading comprehension, little consensus exists on its conceptualization, operationalization, and measurement except for its recognition as a limited-capacity processing and storage system. One specific problem in the measurement of working memory comes from researchers' use…

Improving problem solving in primary school students: The effect of a training programme focusing on metacognition and working memory.

PubMed

Cornoldi, Cesare; Carretti, Barbara; Drusi, Silvia; Tencati, Chiara

2015-09-01

Despite doubts voiced on their efficacy, a series of studies has been carried out on the capacity of training programmes to improve academic and reasoning skills by focusing on underlying cognitive abilities and working memory in particular. No systematic efforts have been made, however, to test training programmes that involve both general and specific underlying abilities. If effective, these programmes could help to increase students' motivation and competence. This study examined the feasibility of improving problem-solving skills in school children by means of a training programme that addresses general and specific abilities involved in problem solving, focusing on metacognition and working memory. The project involved a sample of 135 primary school children attending eight classes in the third, fourth, and fifth grades (age range 8-10 years). The classes were assigned to two groups, one attending the training programme in the first 3 months of the study (Training Group 1) and the other serving as a waiting-list control group (Training Group 2). In the second phase of the study, the role of the two groups was reversed, with Training Group 2 attending the training instead of Training Group 1. The training programme led to improvements in both metacognitive and working memory tasks, with positive-related effects on the ability to solve problems. The gains seen in Training Group 1 were also maintained at the second post-test (after 3 months). Specific activities focusing on metacognition and working memory may contribute to modifying arithmetical problem-solving performance in primary school children. © 2015 The British Psychological Society.

How Can One Learn Mathematical Word Problems in a Second Language? A Cognitive Load Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moussa-Inaty, Jase; Causapin, Mark; Groombridge, Timothy

2015-01-01

Language may ordinarily account for difficulties in solving word problems and this is particularly true if mathematical word problems are taught in a language other than one's native language. Research into cognitive load may offer a clear theoretical framework when investigating word problems because memory, specifically working memory, plays a…

Does Cognitive Strategy Training on Word Problems Compensate for Working Memory Capacity in Children with Math Difficulties?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Swanson, H. Lee

2014-01-01

Cognitive strategies are important tools for children with math difficulties (MD) in learning to solve word problems. The effectiveness of strategy training, however, depends on working memory capacity (WMC). Thus, children with MD but with relatively higher WMC are more likely to benefit from strategy training, whereas children with lower WMC may…

The importance of working memory for school achievement in primary school children with intellectual or learning disabilities.

PubMed

Maehler, Claudia; Schuchardt, Kirsten

2016-11-01

Given the well-known relation between intelligence and school achievement we expect children with normal intelligence to perform well at school and those with intelligence deficits to meet learning problems. But, contrary to these expectations, some children do not perform according to these predictions: children with normal intelligence but sub-average school achievement and children with lower intelligence but average success at school. Yet, it is an open question how the unexpected failure or success can be explained. This study examined the role of working memory sensu Baddeley (1986) for school achievement, especially for unexpected failure or success. An extensive working memory battery with a total of 14 tasks for the phonological loop, the visual-spatial sketchpad and central executive skills was presented in individual sessions to four groups of children differing in IQ (normal vs. low) and school success (good vs. poor). Results reveal that children with sub-average school achievement showed deficits in working memory functioning, irrespective of intelligence. By contrast, children with regular school achievement did not show deficits in working memory, again irrespective of intelligence. Therefore working memory should be considered an important predictor of academic success that can lead both to unexpected overachievement and failure at school. Individual working memory competencies should be taken into account with regard to diagnosis and intervention for children with learning problems. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Memory rehabilitation for the working memory of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS).

PubMed

Mousavi, Shokoufeh; Zare, Hossein; Etemadifar, Masoud; Taher Neshatdoost, Hamid

2018-05-01

The main cognitive impairments in multiple sclerosis (MS) affect the working memory, processing speed, and performances that are in close interaction with one another. Cognitive problems in MS are influenced to a lesser degree by disease recovery medications or treatments,but cognitive rehabilitation is considered one of the promising methods for cure. There is evidence regarding the effectiveness of cognitive rehabilitation for MS patients in various stages of the disease. Since the impairment in working memory is one of the main MS deficits, a particular training that affects this cognitive domain can be of a great value. This study aims to determine the effectiveness of memory rehabilitation on the working memory performance of MS patients. Sixty MS patients with cognitive impairment and similar in terms of demographic characteristics, duration of disease, neurological problems, and mental health were randomly assigned to three groups: namely, experimental, placebo, and control. Patients' cognitive evaluation incorporated baseline assessments immediately post-intervention and 5 weeks post-intervention. The experimental group received a cognitive rehabilitation program in one-hour sessions on a weekly basis for 8 weeks. The placebo group received relaxation techniques on a weekly basis; the control group received no intervention. The results of this study showed that the cognitive rehabilitation program had a positive effect on the working memory performance of patients with MS in the experimental group. These results were achieved in immediate evaluation (post-test) and follow-up 5 weeks after intervention. There was no significant difference in working memory performance between the placebo group and the control group. According to the study, there is evidence for the effectiveness of a memory rehabilitation program for the working memory of patients with MS. Cognitive rehabilitation can improve working memory disorders and have a positive effect on the working memory performance of these patients.

Compression in Working Memory and Its Relationship With Fluid Intelligence.

PubMed

Chekaf, Mustapha; Gauvrit, Nicolas; Guida, Alessandro; Mathy, Fabien

2018-06-01

Working memory has been shown to be strongly related to fluid intelligence; however, our goal is to shed further light on the process of information compression in working memory as a determining factor of fluid intelligence. Our main hypothesis was that compression in working memory is an excellent indicator for studying the relationship between working-memory capacity and fluid intelligence because both depend on the optimization of storage capacity. Compressibility of memoranda was estimated using an algorithmic complexity metric. The results showed that compressibility can be used to predict working-memory performance and that fluid intelligence is well predicted by the ability to compress information. We conclude that the ability to compress information in working memory is the reason why both manipulation and retention of information are linked to intelligence. This result offers a new concept of intelligence based on the idea that compression and intelligence are equivalent problems. Copyright © 2018 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

Cognitive Control of Eating: the Role of Memory in Appetite and Weight Gain.

PubMed

Higgs, Suzanne; Spetter, Maartje S

2018-03-01

The present review organises the recent literature on the role of memory in eating behaviours and provides an overview of the current evidence relating to the associations between memory and weight gain. Research over the last few years has highlighted working memory as an important cognitive process that underpins many aspects of appetite control. Recent work on episodic memory and appetite has replicated work showing that manipulating memory for recent eating affects later consumption and extended this work to examine associations between individual differences in memory and eating behaviours. Poorer episodic memory ability is related to a reduced sensitivity to internal states of hunger and satiety and a tendency towards uncontrolled eating. There is also recent evidence to suggest that working memory and episodic memory impairments are related to weight gain and high BMI. Working memory and episodic memory are core cognitive processes that are critical for food-related decision-making, and disruption to these processes contributes to problems with appetite control and weight gain, which suggests that weight loss programmes might be improved by the addition of cognitive training.

Selective Spatial Working Memory Impairment in a Group of Children with Mathematics Learning Disabilities and Poor Problem-Solving Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Passolunghi, Maria Chiara; Mammarella, Irene Cristina

2012-01-01

This study examines visual and spatial working memory skills in 35 third to fifth graders with both mathematics learning disabilities (MLD) and poor problem-solving skills and 35 of their peers with typical development (TD) on tasks involving both low and high attentional control. Results revealed that children with MLD, relative to TD children,…

Mathematical outcomes and working memory in children with TBI and orthopedic injury.

PubMed

Raghubar, Kimberly P; Barnes, Marcia A; Prasad, Mary; Johnson, Chad P; Ewing-Cobbs, Linda

2013-03-01

This study compared mathematical outcomes in children with predominantly moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (TBI; n550) or orthopedic injury (OI; n547) at 2 and 24 months post-injury. Working memory and its contribution to math outcomes at 24 months post-injury was also examined. Participants were administered an experimental cognitive addition task and standardized measures of calculation, math fluency, and applied problems; as well as experimental measures of verbal and visual-spatial working memory. Although children with TBI did not have deficits in foundational math fact retrieval, they performed more poorly than OIs on standardized measures of math. In the TBI group, performance on standardized measures was predicted by age at injury, socioeconomic status, and the duration of impaired consciousness. Children with TBI showed impairments on verbal, but not visual working memory relative to children with OI. Verbal working memory mediated group differences on math calculations and applied problems at 24 months post-injury. Children with TBI have difficulties in mathematics, but do not have deficits in math fact retrieval, a signature deficit of math disabilities. Results are discussed with reference to models of mathematical cognition and disability and the role of working memory in math learning and performance for children with TBI.

Mathematical Outcomes and Working Memory in Children With TBI and Orthopedic Injury

PubMed Central

Raghubar, Kimberly P.; Barnes, Marcia A.; Prasad, Mary; Johnson, Chad P.; Ewing-Cobbs, Linda

2013-01-01

This study compared mathematical outcomes in children with predominantly moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (TBI; n =50) or orthopedic injury (OI; n=47) at 2 and 24 months post-injury. Working memory and its contribution to math outcomes at 24 months post-injury was also examined. Participants were administered an experimental cognitive addition task and standardized measures of calculation, math fluency, and applied problems; as well as experimental measures of verbal and visual-spatial working memory. Although children with TBI did not have deficits in foundational math fact retrieval, they performed more poorly than OIs on standardized measures of math. In the TBI group, performance on standardized measures was predicted by age at injury, socioeconomic status, and the duration of impaired consciousness. Children with TBI showed impairments on verbal, but not visual working memory relative to children with OI. Verbal working memory mediated group differences on math calculations and applied problems at 24 months post-injury. Children with TBI have difficulties in mathematics, but do not have deficits in math fact retrieval, a signature deficit of math disabilities. Results are discussed with reference to models of mathematical cognition and disability and the role of working memory in math learning and performance for children with TBI. PMID:23164058

Working Memory Deficits in Children with Reading Difficulties: Memory Span and Dual Task Coordination

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Shinmin; Gathercole, Susan E.

2013-01-01

The current study investigated the cause of the reported problems in working memory in children with reading difficulties. Verbal and visuospatial simple and complex span tasks, and digit span and reaction times tasks performed singly and in combination, were administered to 46 children with single word reading difficulties and 45 typically…

Impaired Verbal Short-Term Memory in down Syndrome Reflects a Capacity Limitation Rather than Atypically Rapid Forgetting

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

M. Purser, H.R.; Jarrold, C.

2005-01-01

Individuals with Down syndrome suffer from relatively poor verbal short-term memory. Recent work has indicated that this deficit is not caused by problems of audition, speech, or articulatory rehearsal within the phonological loop component of Baddeley and Hitch's working memory model. Given this, two experiments were conducted to investigate…

Attention problems of very preterm children compared with age-matched term controls at school-age.

PubMed

de Kieviet, Jorrit F; van Elburg, Ruurd M; Lafeber, Harrie N; Oosterlaan, Jaap

2012-11-01

To clarify the severity, specificity, and neurocognitive underpinnings of attention problems in very preterm children. A sample of 66 preterm (<32 weeks gestation), mean (SD) age 7.5 (0.4) years, and 66 age-matched term controls participated. Symptoms of inattention were assessed using parent and teacher-rated questionnaires, and neurocognitive measures included speed and consistency in speed of information processing, lapses of attention (tau), alerting, orienting, and executive attention, as well as verbal and visuospatial working memory. Group differences were investigated using ANOVA, and Sobel tests were used to clarify the mediating role of neurocognitive impairments on attention problems. There was a large decrease in visuospatial working memory abilities (P < .001, d = .87), and medium increases in tau (P = .002, d = 0.55) as well as parent and teacher ratings of inattention (range d = 0.40-0.56) in very preterm children compared with term peers. Tau and visuospatial working memory were significant predictors of parent (R(2) = .161, P < .001 and R(2) = .071, P = .001; respectively) and teacher (R(2) = .152, P < .001 and R(2) = .064, P = .002; respectively) ratings of inattention, and completely explained the effects of very preterm birth on attention problems. Increased lapses of attention and poorer visuospatial working memory fully account for the attention problems in very premature children at school-age. Copyright © 2012 Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

Impaired verbal short-term memory in Down syndrome reflects a capacity limitation rather than atypically rapid forgetting.

PubMed

M Purser, Harry R; Jarrold, Christopher

2005-05-01

Individuals with Down syndrome suffer from relatively poor verbal short-term memory. Recent work has indicated that this deficit is not caused by problems of audition, speech, or articulatory rehearsal within the phonological loop component of Baddeley and Hitch's working memory model. Given this, two experiments were conducted to investigate whether abnormally rapid decay underlies the deficit. In a first experiment, we attempted to vary the time available for decay using a modified serial recall procedure that had both verbal and visuospatial conditions. No evidence was found to suggest that forgetting is abnormally rapid in phonological memory in Down syndrome, but a selective phonological memory deficit was indicated. A second experiment further investigated possible problems of decay in phonological memory, restricted to item information. The results indicated that individuals with Down syndrome do not show atypically rapid item forgetting from phonological memory but may have a limited-capacity verbal short-term memory system.

Cognitive strategy interventions improve word problem solving and working memory in children with math disabilities.

PubMed

Swanson, H Lee

2015-01-01

This study investigated the role of strategy instruction and working memory capacity (WMC) on problem solving solution accuracy in children with and without math disabilities (MD). Children in grade 3 (N = 204) with and without MD subdivided into high and low WMC were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 conditions: verbal strategies (e.g., underlining question sentence), visual strategies (e.g., correctly placing numbers in diagrams), verbal + visual strategies, and an untreated control. The dependent measures for training were problem solving accuracy and two working memory transfer measures (operation span and visual-spatial span). Three major findings emerged: (1) strategy instruction facilitated solution accuracy but the effects of strategy instruction were moderated by WMC, (2) some strategies yielded higher post-test scores than others, but these findings were qualified as to whether children were at risk for MD, and (3) strategy training on problem solving measures facilitated transfer to working memory measures. The main findings were that children with MD, but high WM spans, were more likely to benefit from strategy conditions on target and transfer measures than children with lower WMC. The results suggest that WMC moderates the influence of cognitive strategies on both the targeted and non-targeted measures.

Cognitive strategy interventions improve word problem solving and working memory in children with math disabilities

PubMed Central

Swanson, H. Lee

2015-01-01

This study investigated the role of strategy instruction and working memory capacity (WMC) on problem solving solution accuracy in children with and without math disabilities (MD). Children in grade 3 (N = 204) with and without MD subdivided into high and low WMC were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 conditions: verbal strategies (e.g., underlining question sentence), visual strategies (e.g., correctly placing numbers in diagrams), verbal + visual strategies, and an untreated control. The dependent measures for training were problem solving accuracy and two working memory transfer measures (operation span and visual-spatial span). Three major findings emerged: (1) strategy instruction facilitated solution accuracy but the effects of strategy instruction were moderated by WMC, (2) some strategies yielded higher post-test scores than others, but these findings were qualified as to whether children were at risk for MD, and (3) strategy training on problem solving measures facilitated transfer to working memory measures. The main findings were that children with MD, but high WM spans, were more likely to benefit from strategy conditions on target and transfer measures than children with lower WMC. The results suggest that WMC moderates the influence of cognitive strategies on both the targeted and non-targeted measures. PMID:26300803

Specific memory impairment following neonatal encephalopathy in term-born children.

PubMed

van Handel, Mariëlle; de Sonneville, Leo; de Vries, Linda S; Jongmans, Marian J; Swaab, Hanna

2012-01-01

This study examines short-term memory, verbal working memory, episodic long-term memory, and intelligence in 32 children with mild neonatal encephalopathy (NE), 39 children with moderate NE, 10 children with NE who developed cerebral palsy (CP), and 53 comparison children, at the age of 9 to 10 years. in addition to a global effect on intelligence, NE had a specific effect on verbal working memory, verbal and visuo-spatial long-term memory, and learning, which was associated with degree of NE. Although these memory problems occurred in children without CP, they were more pronounced when children had also developed CP.

When is working memory important for arithmetic? The impact of strategy and age.

PubMed

Cragg, Lucy; Richardson, Sophie; Hubber, Paula J; Keeble, Sarah; Gilmore, Camilla

2017-01-01

Our ability to perform arithmetic relies heavily on working memory, the manipulation and maintenance of information in mind. Previous research has found that in adults, procedural strategies, particularly counting, rely on working memory to a greater extent than retrieval strategies. During childhood there are changes in the types of strategies employed, as well as an increase in the accuracy and efficiency of strategy execution. As such it seems likely that the role of working memory in arithmetic may also change, however children and adults have never been directly compared. This study used traditional dual-task methodology, with the addition of a control load condition, to investigate the extent to which working memory requirements for different arithmetic strategies change with age between 9-11 years, 12-14 years and young adulthood. We showed that both children and adults employ working memory when solving arithmetic problems, no matter what strategy they choose. This study highlights the importance of considering working memory in understanding the difficulties that some children and adults have with mathematics, as well as the need to include working memory in theoretical models of mathematical cognition.

Neuro-Cognitive Intervention for Working Memory: Preliminary Results and Future Directions.

PubMed

Bree, Kathleen D; Beljan, Paul

2016-01-01

Definitions of working memory identify it as a function of the executive function system in which an individual maintains two or more pieces of information in mind and uses that information simultaneously for some purpose. In academics, working memory is necessary for a variety of functions, including attending to the information one's teacher presents and then using that information simultaneously for problem solving. Research indicates difficulties with working memory are observed in children with mathematics learning disorder (MLD) and reading disorders (RD). To improve working memory and other executive function difficulties, and as an alternative to medication treatments for attention and executive function disorders, the Motor Cognition(2)® (MC(2)®)program was developed. Preliminary research on this program indicates statistically significant improvements in working memory, mathematics, and nonsense word decoding for reading. Further research on the MC(2)® program and its impact on working memory, as well as other areas of executive functioning, is warranted.

Cognitive and Linguistic Predictors of Mathematical Word Problems With and Without Irrelevant Information.

PubMed

Wang, Amber Y; Fuchs, Lynn S; Fuchs, Douglas

2016-12-01

The purpose of this study was to identify cognitive and linguistic predictors of word problems with versus without irrelevant information. The sample was 701 2nd-grade students who received no specialized intervention on word problems. In the fall, they were assessed on initial arithmetic and word-problem skill as well as language ability, working memory capacity, and processing speed; in the spring, they were tested on a word-problem measure that included items with versus without irrelevant information. Significant predictors common to both forms of word problems were initial arithmetic and word problem-solving skill as well as language and working memory. Nonverbal reasoning predicted word problems with irrelevant information, but not word problems without irrelevant information. Findings are discussed in terms of implications for intervention and future research.

Working Memory and Aging: Separating the Effects of Content and Context

PubMed Central

Bopp, Kara L.; Verhaeghen, Paul

2009-01-01

In three experiments, we investigated the hypothesis that age-related differences in working memory might be due to the inability to bind content with context. Participants were required to find a repeating stimulus within a single series (no context memory required) or within multiple series (necessitating memory for context). Response time and accuracy were examined in two task domains: verbal and visuospatial. Binding content with context led to longer processing time and poorer accuracy in both age groups, even when working memory load was held constant. Although older adults were overall slower and less accurate than younger adults, the need for context memory did not differentially affect their performance. It is therefore unlikely that age differences in working memory are due to specific age-related problems with content-with-context binding. PMID:20025410

Working Memory and Neurofeedback.

PubMed

YuLeung To, Eric; Abbott, Kathy; Foster, Dale S; Helmer, D'Arcy

2016-01-01

Impairments in working memory are typically associated with impairments in other cognitive faculties such as attentional processes and short-term memory. This paper briefly introduces neurofeedback as a treatment modality in general, and, more specifically, we review several of the current modalities successfully used in neurofeedback (NF) for the treatment of working memory deficits. Two case studies are presented to illustrate how neurofeedback is applied in treatment. The development of Low Resolution Electromagnetic Tomography (LORETA) and its application in neurofeedback now makes it possible to specifically target deep cortical/subcortical brain structures. Developments in neuroscience concerning neural networks, combined with highly specific yet practical NF technologies, makes neurofeedback of particular interest to neuropsychological practice, including the emergence of specific methodologies for treating very difficult working memory (WM) problems.

Effectiveness of Working Memory Training among Subjects Currently on Sick Leave Due to Complex Symptoms.

PubMed

Aasvik, Julie K; Woodhouse, Astrid; Stiles, Tore C; Jacobsen, Henrik B; Landmark, Tormod; Glette, Mari; Borchgrevink, Petter C; Landrø, Nils I

2016-01-01

Introduction: The current study examined if adaptive working memory training (Cogmed QM) has the potential to improve inhibitory control, working memory capacity, and perceptions of memory functioning in a group of patients currently on sick leave due to symptoms of pain, insomnia, fatigue, depression and anxiety. Participants who were referred to a vocational rehabilitation center volunteered to take part in the study. Methods: Participants were randomly assigned to either a training condition ( N = 25) or a control condition ( N = 29). Participants in the training condition received working memory training in addition to the clinical intervention offered as part of the rehabilitation program, while participants in the control condition received treatment as usual i.e., the rehabilitation program only. Inhibitory control was measured by The Stop Signal Task, working memory was assessed by the Spatial Working Memory Test, while perceptions of memory functioning were assessed by The Everyday Memory Questionnaire-Revised. Results: Participants in the training group showed a significant improvement on the post-tests of inhibitory control when compared with the comparison group ( p = 0.025). The groups did not differ on the post-tests of working memory. Both groups reported less memory problems at post-testing, but there was no sizeable difference between the two groups. Conclusions: Results indicate that working memory training does not improve general working memory capacity per se . Nor does it seem to give any added effects in terms of targeting and improving self-perceived memory functioning. Results do, however, provide evidence to suggest that inhibitory control is accessible and susceptible to modification by adaptive working memory training.

Structure and validity of sluggish cognitive tempo using an expanded item pool in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

PubMed

McBurnett, Keith; Villodas, Miguel; Burns, G Leonard; Hinshaw, Stephen P; Beaulieu, Allyson; Pfiffner, Linda J

2014-01-01

We evaluated the latent structure and validity of an expanded pool of Sluggish Cognitive Tempo (SCT) items. An experimental rating scale with 44 candidate SCT items was administered to parents and teachers of 165 children in grades 2-5 (ages 7-11) recruited for a randomized clinical trial of a psychosocial intervention for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Predominantly Inattentive Type. Exploratory factor analyses (EFA) were used to extract items with high loadings (>0.59) on primary factors of SCT and low cross-loadings (0.30 or lower) on other SCT factors and on the Inattention factor of ADHD. Items were required to meet these criteria for both informants. This procedure reduced the pool to 15 items. Generally, items representing slowness and low initiative failed these criteria. SCT factors (termed Daydreaming, Working Memory Problems, and Sleepy/Tired) showed good convergent and discriminant validity in EFA and in a confirmatory model with ADHD factors. Simultaneous regressions of impairment and comorbidity on SCT and ADHD factors found that Daydreams was associated with global impairment, and Sleepy/Tired was associated with organizational problems and depression ratings, across both informants. For teachers, Daydreams also predicted ODD (inversely); Sleepy/Tired also predicted poor academic behavior, low social skills, and problem social behavior; and Working Memory Problems predicted organizational problems and anxiety. When depression, rather than ADHD, was included among the predictors, the only SCT-related associations rendered insignificant were the teacher-reported associations of Daydreams with ODD; Working Memory Problems with anxiety, and Sleepy/Tired with poor social skills. SCT appears to be meaningfully associated with impairment, even when controlling for depression. Common behaviors resembling Working Memory problems may represent a previously undescribed factor of SCT.

Neural circuits in auditory and audiovisual memory.

PubMed

Plakke, B; Romanski, L M

2016-06-01

Working memory is the ability to employ recently seen or heard stimuli and apply them to changing cognitive context. Although much is known about language processing and visual working memory, the neurobiological basis of auditory working memory is less clear. Historically, part of the problem has been the difficulty in obtaining a robust animal model to study auditory short-term memory. In recent years there has been neurophysiological and lesion studies indicating a cortical network involving both temporal and frontal cortices. Studies specifically targeting the role of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) in auditory working memory have suggested that dorsal and ventral prefrontal regions perform different roles during the processing of auditory mnemonic information, with the dorsolateral PFC performing similar functions for both auditory and visual working memory. In contrast, the ventrolateral PFC (VLPFC), which contains cells that respond robustly to auditory stimuli and that process both face and vocal stimuli may be an essential locus for both auditory and audiovisual working memory. These findings suggest a critical role for the VLPFC in the processing, integrating, and retaining of communication information. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled SI: Auditory working memory. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Declarative and Procedural Memory in Danish Speaking Children with Specific Language Impairment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lum, Jarrad A. G.; Bleses, Dorthe

2012-01-01

It has been proposed that the language problems in specific language impairment (SLI) arise from basal ganglia abnormalities that lead to impairments with procedural and working memory but not declarative memory. In SLI, this profile of memory functioning has been hypothesized to underlie grammatical impairment but leave lexical knowledge…

New Rule Use Drives the Relation between Working Memory Capacity and Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wiley, Jennifer; Jarosz, Andrew F.; Cushen, Patrick J.; Colflesh, Gregory J. H.

2011-01-01

The correlation between individual differences in working memory capacity and performance on the Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices (RAPM) is well documented yet poorly understood. The present work proposes a new explanation: that the need to use a new combination of rules on RAPM problems drives the relation between performance and working…

Brain Training Draws Questions about Benefits

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sparks, Sarah D.

2012-01-01

While programs to improve students' working memory are among the hottest new education interventions, new studies are calling into question whether exercises to improve this foundational skill can actually translate into greater intelligence, problem-solving ability, or academic achievement. Working memory is the system the mind uses to hold…

Cognitive and Linguistic Predictors of Mathematical Word Problems With and Without Irrelevant Information

PubMed Central

Fuchs, Lynn S.; Fuchs, Douglas

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study was to identify cognitive and linguistic predictors of word problems with versus without irrelevant information. The sample was 701 2nd-grade students who received no specialized intervention on word problems. In the fall, they were assessed on initial arithmetic and word-problem skill as well as language ability, working memory capacity, and processing speed; in the spring, they were tested on a word-problem measure that included items with versus without irrelevant information. Significant predictors common to both forms of word problems were initial arithmetic and word problem-solving skill as well as language and working memory. Nonverbal reasoning predicted word problems with irrelevant information, but not word problems without irrelevant information. Findings are discussed in terms of implications for intervention and future research. PMID:28190942

Neural circuits in Auditory and Audiovisual Memory

PubMed Central

Plakke, B.; Romanski, L.M.

2016-01-01

Working memory is the ability to employ recently seen or heard stimuli and apply them to changing cognitive context. Although much is known about language processing and visual working memory, the neurobiological basis of auditory working memory is less clear. Historically, part of the problem has been the difficulty in obtaining a robust animal model to study auditory short-term memory. In recent years there has been neurophysiological and lesion studies indicating a cortical network involving both temporal and frontal cortices. Studies specifically targeting the role of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) in auditory working memory have suggested that dorsal and ventral prefrontal regions perform different roles during the processing of auditory mnemonic information, with the dorsolateral PFC performing similar functions for both auditory and visual working memory. In contrast, the ventrolateral PFC (VLPFC), which contains cells that respond robustly to auditory stimuli and that process both face and vocal stimuli may be an essential locus for both auditory and audiovisual working memory. These findings suggest a critical role for the VLPFC in the processing, integrating, and retaining of communication information. PMID:26656069

When is working memory important for arithmetic? The impact of strategy and age

PubMed Central

Richardson, Sophie; Hubber, Paula J.; Keeble, Sarah; Gilmore, Camilla

2017-01-01

Our ability to perform arithmetic relies heavily on working memory, the manipulation and maintenance of information in mind. Previous research has found that in adults, procedural strategies, particularly counting, rely on working memory to a greater extent than retrieval strategies. During childhood there are changes in the types of strategies employed, as well as an increase in the accuracy and efficiency of strategy execution. As such it seems likely that the role of working memory in arithmetic may also change, however children and adults have never been directly compared. This study used traditional dual-task methodology, with the addition of a control load condition, to investigate the extent to which working memory requirements for different arithmetic strategies change with age between 9–11 years, 12–14 years and young adulthood. We showed that both children and adults employ working memory when solving arithmetic problems, no matter what strategy they choose. This study highlights the importance of considering working memory in understanding the difficulties that some children and adults have with mathematics, as well as the need to include working memory in theoretical models of mathematical cognition. PMID:29228008

Training Working Memory in Adolescents Using Serious Game Elements: Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial

PubMed Central

Gladwin, Thomas E; Peeters, Margot; Prins, Pier J M; Wiers, Reinout W

2018-01-01

Background Working memory capacity has been found to be impaired in adolescents with various psychological problems, such as addictive behaviors. Training of working memory capacity can lead to significant behavioral improvements, but it is usually long and tedious, taxing participants’ motivation to train. Objective This study aimed to evaluate whether adding game elements to the training could help improve adolescents’ motivation to train while improving cognition. Methods A total of 84 high school students were allocated to a working memory capacity training, a gamified working memory capacity training, or a placebo condition. Working memory capacity, motivation to train, and drinking habits were assessed before and after training. Results Self-reported evaluations did not show a self-reported preference for the game, but participants in the gamified working memory capacity training condition did train significantly longer. The game successfully increased motivation to train, but this effect faded over time. Working memory capacity increased equally in all conditions but did not lead to significantly lower drinking, which may be due to low drinking levels at baseline. Conclusions We recommend that future studies attempt to prolong this motivational effect, as it appeared to fade over time. PMID:29792294

The Relationship between Working Memory and Insight Depends on Moderators: Reply to Chuderski and Jastrzêbski (2017)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DeCaro, Marci S.; Van Stockum, Charles A., Jr.; Wieth, Mareike B.

2017-01-01

Chuderski and Jastrzêbski (2017) found a positive relationship between working memory capacity and insight problem solving, and concluded that "people with less effective cognition" are therefore "less creative" (p. 2003). This interpretation discounts substantial evidence that devoting less executive control facilitates…

Self-Reports of Increased Prospective and Retrospective Memory Problems in Adults with Developmental Dyslexia.

PubMed

Smith-Spark, James H; Zięcik, Adam P; Sterling, Christopher

2016-08-01

Short-term and working memory problems in dyslexia are well-documented, but other memory domains have received little empirical scrutiny, despite some evidence to suggest that they might be impaired. Prospective memory is memory for delayed intentions, whilst retrospective memory relates to memory for personally experienced past events. To gain an understanding of subjective everyday memory experience, a self-report measure designed to tap prospective and retrospective memory was administered to 28 adults with dyslexia and 26 IQ-matched adults without dyslexia. Adults with dyslexia reported experiencing significantly more frequent problems with memory than the adults without dyslexia. Group differences were found across seven out of the eight questionnaire scales. Further to these analyses, the participants' own ratings were compared with proxy ratings provided by close associates. The perception of poorer memory abilities in the participants did not differ between respondent types. The self-reported difficulties are, thus, unlikely to be the result of lowered self-esteem or metacognitive awareness. More frequent difficulties with both types of memory would seem, therefore, to be experienced by adults with dyslexia in everyday life. Further laboratory-based research is recommended to explore both memory domains in dyslexia and to identify the cognitive mechanisms by which these problems occur. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Learning, Attention/Hyperactivity, and Conduct Problems as Sequelae of Excessive Daytime Sleepiness in a General Population Study of Young Children

PubMed Central

Calhoun, Susan L.; Fernandez-Mendoza, Julio; Vgontzas, Alexandros N.; Mayes, Susan D.; Tsaoussoglou, Marina; Rodriguez-Muñoz, Alfredo; Bixler, Edward O.

2012-01-01

Study Objectives: Although excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) is a common problem in children, with estimates of 15%; few studies have investigated the sequelae of EDS in young children. We investigated the association of EDS with objective neurocognitive measures and parent reported learning, attention/hyperactivity, and conduct problems in a large general population sample of children. Design: Cross-sectional. Setting: Population based. Participants: 508 children from The Penn State Child Cohort. Interventions: N/A. Measurements and Results: Children underwent a 9-h polysomnogram, comprehensive neurocognitive testing, and parent rating scales. Children were divided into 2 groups: those with and without parent-reported EDS. Structural equation modeling was used to examine whether processing speed and working memory performance would mediate the relationship between EDS and learning, attention/hyperactivity, and conduct problems. Logistic regression models suggest that parent-reported learning, attention/hyperactivity, and conduct problems, as well as objective measurement of processing speed and working memory are significant sequelae of EDS, even when controlling for AHI and objective markers of sleep. Path analysis demonstrates that processing speed and working memory performance are strong mediators of the association of EDS with learning and attention/hyperactivity problems, while to a slightly lesser degree are mediators from EDS to conduct problems. Conclusions: This study suggests that in a large general population sample of young children, parent-reported EDS is associated with neurobehavioral (learning, attention/hyperactivity, conduct) problems and poorer performance in processing speed and working memory. Impairment due to EDS in daytime cognitive and behavioral functioning can have a significant impact on children's development. Citation: Calhoun SL; Fernandez-Mendoza J; Vgontzas AN; Mayes SD; Tsaoussoglou M; Rodriguez-Muñoz A; Bixler EO. Learning, attention/hyperactivity, and conduct problems as sequelae of excessive daytime sleepiness in a general population study of young children. SLEEP 2012;35(5):627-632. PMID:22547888

Progression paths in children's problem solving: The influence of dynamic testing, initial variability, and working memory.

PubMed

Resing, Wilma C M; Bakker, Merel; Pronk, Christine M E; Elliott, Julian G

2017-01-01

The current study investigated developmental trajectories of analogical reasoning performance of 104 7- and 8-year-old children. We employed a microgenetic research method and multilevel analysis to examine the influence of several background variables and experimental treatment on the children's developmental trajectories. Our participants were divided into two treatment groups: repeated practice alone and repeated practice with training. Each child received an initial working memory assessment and was subsequently asked to solve figural analogies on each of several sessions. We examined children's analogical problem-solving behavior and their subsequent verbal accounts of their employed solving processes. We also investigated the influence of verbal and visual-spatial working memory capacity and initial variability in strategy use on analogical reasoning development. Results indicated that children in both treatment groups improved but that gains were greater for those who had received training. Training also reduced the influence of children's initial variability in the use of analogical strategies with the degree of improvement in reasoning largely unrelated to working memory capacity. Findings from this study demonstrate the value of a microgenetic research method and the use of multilevel analysis to examine inter- and intra-individual change in problem-solving processes. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The misnomer of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder.

PubMed

Wasserman, Theodore; Wasserman, Lori Drucker

2015-01-01

We propose that attention-deficit disorder represents an inefficiency of an integrated system designed to allocate working memory to designated tasks rather than the absence or dysfunction of a particular form of attention. A significant portion of this inefficiency in the allocation of working memory represents poor engagement of the reward circuit with distinct circuits of learning and performance that control instrumental conditioning (learning). Efficient attention requires the interaction of these circuits. For a significant percentage of individuals who present with attention-deficit disorder, their problems represent the engagement, or lack thereof, of the motivational and reward circuit as opposed to problems, or disorders of attention traditionally defined as problems with orienting, focusing, and sustaining. We demonstrate that there is an integrated system of working-memory allocation that responds by recruiting relevant aspects of both cortex and subcortex to the demands of the task being encountered. In this model, attention is viewed as a gating function determined by novelty, flight-or-fight response, and reward history/valence affecting motivation. We view the traditional models of attention, rather than describe specific types of attention per se, as representing the description of the behavioral output of this integrated orienting and engagement system designed to allocate working memory to task-specific stimuli.

Subtypes and comorbidity in mathematical learning disabilities: Multidimensional study of verbal and visual memory processes is key to understanding.

PubMed

Szűcs, D

2016-01-01

A large body of research suggests that mathematical learning disability (MLD) is related to working memory impairment. Here, I organize part of this literature through a meta-analysis of 36 studies with 665 MLD and 1049 control participants. I demonstrate that one subtype of MLD is associated with reading problems and weak verbal short-term and working memory. Another subtype of MLD does not have associated reading problems and is linked to weak visuospatial short-term and working memory. In order to better understand MLD we need to precisely define potentially modality-specific memory subprocesses and supporting executive functions, relevant for mathematical learning. This can be achieved by taking a multidimensional parametric approach systematically probing an extended network of cognitive functions. Rather than creating arbitrary subgroups and/or focus on a single factor, highly powered studies need to position individuals in a multidimensional parametric space. This will allow us to understand the multidimensional structure of cognitive functions and their relationship to mathematical performance. © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Generalized Hough Transform for Object Classification in the Maritime Domain

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-12-01

and memory storage problems of the GHT in this work . Neural networks have been used to provide excellent solutions to real-world problems in many...1 A. THESIS OBJECTIVE ...............................................................................1 B. RELATED WORK ...SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTIONS ......................................................47  B.  RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE WORK ................................48

Characteristic of cognitive decline in Parkinson's disease: a 1-year follow-up.

PubMed

McKinlay, Audrey; Grace, Randolph C

2011-10-01

The aim of this study was to track the evolution of cognitive decline in Parkinson's disease (PD) patients 1 year after baseline testing. Thirty-three PD patients, divided according to three previously determined subgroups based on their initial cognitive performance, and a healthy comparison group were reassessed after a 1-year interval. Participants were assessed in the following five domains: Executive Function, Problem Solving, Working Memory/Attention, Memory, and Visuospatial Ability. The PD groups differed on the domains of Executive Function, Problem Solving, and Working Memory, with the most severe deficits being evident for the group that had previously shown the greatest level of impairment. Increased cognitive problems were also associated with decreased functioning in activities of daily living. The most severely impaired group had evidence of global cognitive decline, possibly reflecting a stage of preclinical dementia.

Working memory components that predict word problem solving: Is it merely a function of reading, calculation, and fluid intelligence?

PubMed

Fung, Wenson; Swanson, H Lee

2017-07-01

The purpose of this study was to assess whether the differential effects of working memory (WM) components (the central executive, phonological loop, and visual-spatial sketchpad) on math word problem-solving accuracy in children (N = 413, ages 6-10) are completely mediated by reading, calculation, and fluid intelligence. The results indicated that all three WM components predicted word problem solving in the nonmediated model, but only the storage component of WM yielded a significant direct path to word problem-solving accuracy in the fully mediated model. Fluid intelligence was found to moderate the relationship between WM and word problem solving, whereas reading, calculation, and related skills (naming speed, domain-specific knowledge) completely mediated the influence of the executive system on problem-solving accuracy. Our results are consistent with findings suggesting that storage eliminates the predictive contribution of executive WM to various measures Colom, Rebollo, Abad, & Shih (Memory & Cognition, 34: 158-171, 2006). The findings suggest that the storage component of WM, rather than the executive component, has a direct path to higher-order processing in children.

The role of sleep in cognitive processing: focusing on memory consolidation.

PubMed

Chambers, Alexis M

2017-05-01

Research indicates that sleep promotes various cognitive functions, such as decision-making, language, categorization, and memory. Of these, most work has focused on the influence of sleep on memory, with ample work showing that sleep enhances memory consolidation, a process that stores new memories in the brain over time. Recent psychological and neurophysiological research has vastly increased understanding of this process. Such work not only suggests that consolidation relies on plasticity-related mechanisms that reactivate and stabilize memory representations, but also that this process may be experimentally manipulated by methods that target which memory traces are reactivated during sleep. Furthermore, aside from memory storage capabilities, memory consolidation also appears to reorganize and integrate memories with preexisting knowledge, which may facilitate the discovery of underlying rules and associations that benefit other cognitive functioning, including problem solving and creativity. WIREs Cogn Sci 2017, 8:e1433. doi: 10.1002/wcs.1433 For further resources related to this article, please visit the WIREs website. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

A multilayer perceptron solution to the match phase problem in rule-based artificial intelligence systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sartori, Michael A.; Passino, Kevin M.; Antsaklis, Panos J.

1992-01-01

In rule-based AI planning, expert, and learning systems, it is often the case that the left-hand-sides of the rules must be repeatedly compared to the contents of some 'working memory'. The traditional approach to solve such a 'match phase problem' for production systems is to use the Rete Match Algorithm. Here, a new technique using a multilayer perceptron, a particular artificial neural network model, is presented to solve the match phase problem for rule-based AI systems. A syntax for premise formulas (i.e., the left-hand-sides of the rules) is defined, and working memory is specified. From this, it is shown how to construct a multilayer perceptron that finds all of the rules which can be executed for the current situation in working memory. The complexity of the constructed multilayer perceptron is derived in terms of the maximum number of nodes and the required number of layers. A method for reducing the number of layers to at most three is also presented.

[Executive functions and stressful characteristics of children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: influence on behavioral problems during adolescence].

PubMed

Colomer-Diago, Carla; Miranda-Casas, Ana; Herdoiza-Arroyo, Paulina; Presentación-Herrero, M Jesús

2012-02-29

The identification of possible factors that are influencing the course of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) will allow the development of more effective early intervention strategies. AIMS. This research, which used a longitudinal and correlational design, set out to examine the temporal consistency of the primary symptoms and ADHD associated problems. In addition, the relationships and predictive power of working memory, inhibition and stressful characteristics of children with ADHD on the disorder symptoms and behavioral problems in adolescence was analyzed. This study included 65 families with children diagnosed with ADHD. In phase 1 children performed verbal working memory, visuo-spatial and inhibition tests, and information from parents about stressful characteristics of children was collected. In phase 1 and in the follow-up phase, which took place three years later, parents and teachers reported on the primary symptoms of ADHD and behavioral problems. Inattention symptoms as well as most behavioral problems were stable over time, while hyperactivity/impulsivity symptoms decreased. Moreover, neither working memory nor inhibition showed power to predict the central manifestations of ADHD or behavioral problems, while stressful characteristics of demandingness, low adaptability and negative mood had a moderate predictive capacity. These results confirm the role of stressful child characteristics as a risk factor in the course of ADHD.

The Effect of Visual-Chunking-Representation Accommodation on Geometry Testing for Students with Math Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhang, Dake; Ding, Yi; Stegall, Joanna; Mo, Lei

2012-01-01

Students who struggle with learning mathematics often have difficulties with geometry problem solving, which requires strong visual imagery skills. These difficulties have been correlated with deficiencies in visual working memory. Cognitive psychology has shown that chunking of visual items accommodates students' working memory deficits. This…

Updating Positive and Negative Stimuli in Working Memory in Depression

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Levens, Sara M.; Gotlib, Ian H.

2010-01-01

Difficulties in the ability to update stimuli in working memory (WM) may underlie the problems with regulating emotions that lead to the development and perpetuation of mood disorders such as depression. To examine the ability to update affective material in WM, the authors had diagnosed depressed and never-disordered control participants perform…

Working Memory Facilitates Insight Instead of Hindering It: Comment on Decaro, Van Stockum, and Wieth (2016)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chuderski, Adam; Jastrzebski, Jan

2017-01-01

The "nothing-special" account of insight predicts positive correlations of insight problem solving and working memory capacity (WMC), whereas the "special-process" account expects no, or even negative, correlations. In the latter vein, DeCaro, Van Stockum Jr., and Wieth (2016) have recently reported weak negative WMC…

Theorizing and Measuring Working Memory in First and Second Language Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wen, Zhisheng

2014-01-01

Working memory (WM) generally refers to the human ability to temporarily maintain and manipulate a limited amount of information in immediate consciousness when carrying out complex cognitive tasks such as problem-solving and language comprehension. Though much controversy has surrounded the WM concept since its inception by Baddeley & Hitch…

Neural Basis of Working Memory Enhancement after Acute Aerobic Exercise: fMRI Study of Preadolescent Children.

PubMed

Chen, Ai-Guo; Zhu, Li-Na; Yan, Jun; Yin, Heng-Chan

2016-01-01

Working memory lies at the core of cognitive function and plays a crucial role in children's learning, reasoning, problem solving, and intellectual activity. Behavioral findings have suggested that acute aerobic exercise improves children's working memory; however, there is still very little knowledge about whether a single session of aerobic exercise can alter working memory's brain activation patterns, as assessed by functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Therefore, we investigated the effect of acute moderate-intensity aerobic exercise on working memory and its brain activation patterns in preadolescent children, and further explored the neural basis of acute aerobic exercise on working memory in these children. We used a within-subjects design with a counterbalanced order. Nine healthy, right-handed children were scanned with a Siemens MAGNETOM Trio 3.0 Tesla magnetic resonance imaging scanner while they performed a working memory task (N-back task), following a baseline session and a 30-min, moderate-intensity exercise session. Compared with the baseline session, acute moderate-intensity aerobic exercise benefitted performance in the N-back task, increasing brain activities of bilateral parietal cortices, left hippocampus, and the bilateral cerebellum. These data extend the current knowledge by indicating that acute aerobic exercise enhances children's working memory, and the neural basis may be related to changes in the working memory's brain activation patterns elicited by acute aerobic exercise.

Working Memory Maturation: Can We Get at the Essence of Cognitive Growth?

PubMed

Cowan, Nelson

2016-03-01

The theoretical and practical understanding of cognitive development depends on working memory, the limited information temporarily accessible for such daily activities as language processing and problem solving. In this article, I assess many possible reasons that working memory performance improves with development. A first glance at the literature leads to the weird impression that working memory capacity reaches adult levels during infancy but then regresses during childhood. In place of that unlikely explanation, I consider how infant studies may lead to overestimates of capacity if one neglects supports that the tasks provide, compared with adult-level tasks. Further development of working memory during the school years is also considered. Many investigators have come to suspect that working memory capacity may be constant after infancy because of various factors such as developmental increases in knowledge, filtering out of irrelevant distractions, encoding and rehearsal strategies, and pattern formation. With each of these factors controlled, though, working memory still improves during the school years. Suggestions are made for research to bridge the gap between infant and child developmental research, to understand the focus and control of attention in working memory and how these skills develop, and to pinpoint the nature of capacity and its development from infancy forward. © The Author(s) 2016.

Working Memory Maturation: Can We Get At the Essence of Cognitive Growth?

PubMed Central

Cowan, Nelson

2015-01-01

Our theoretical and practical understanding of cognitive development depends on working memory, the limited information temporarily accessible for such daily activities as language processing and problem-solving. Here I assess many possible reasons why working memory performance improves with development. A first glance at the literature leads to the weird impression that working memory capacity reaches adult-like levels during infancy but then regresses during childhood. In place of that unlikely surmise, I consider how infant studies may lead to overestimates of capacity if one neglects supports that the tasks provide, compared to adult-like tasks. Further development of working memory during the school years is also considered. Various confounding factors have led many investigators to suspect that working memory capacity may be constant after infancy; the factors include developmental increases in knowledge, filtering out of irrelevant distractions, encoding and rehearsal strategies, and pattern formation. With each of these factors controlled, though, working memory still improves during the school years. Suggestions are made for research to bridge the gap between infant and child developmental research, to understand the focus and control of attention in working memory and how they develop, and to pinpoint the nature of capacity and its development from infancy on. PMID:26993277

The cost of misremembering: Inferring the loss function in visual working memory.

PubMed

Sims, Chris R

2015-03-04

Visual working memory (VWM) is a highly limited storage system. A basic consequence of this fact is that visual memories cannot perfectly encode or represent the veridical structure of the world. However, in natural tasks, some memory errors might be more costly than others. This raises the intriguing possibility that the nature of memory error reflects the costs of committing different kinds of errors. Many existing theories assume that visual memories are noise-corrupted versions of afferent perceptual signals. However, this additive noise assumption oversimplifies the problem. Implicit in the behavioral phenomena of visual working memory is the concept of a loss function: a mathematical entity that describes the relative cost to the organism of making different types of memory errors. An optimally efficient memory system is one that minimizes the expected loss according to a particular loss function, while subject to a constraint on memory capacity. This paper describes a novel theoretical framework for characterizing visual working memory in terms of its implicit loss function. Using inverse decision theory, the empirical loss function is estimated from the results of a standard delayed recall visual memory experiment. These results are compared to the predicted behavior of a visual working memory system that is optimally efficient for a previously identified natural task, gaze correction following saccadic error. Finally, the approach is compared to alternative models of visual working memory, and shown to offer a superior account of the empirical data across a range of experimental datasets. © 2015 ARVO.

Concentration, working speed and memory: cognitive problems in young childhood cancer survivors and their siblings.

PubMed

Wengenroth, L; Rueegg, C S; Michel, G; Gianinazzi, M E; Essig, S; von der Weid, N X; Grotzer, M; Kuehni, Claudia E

2015-05-01

Cognitive problems can have a negative effect on a person's education, but little is known about cognitive problems in young childhood cancer survivors (survivors). This study compared cognitive problems between survivors and their siblings, determined if cognitive problems decreased during recent treatment periods and identified characteristics associated with the presence of a cognitive problem in survivors. As part of the Swiss Childhood Cancer Survivor Study, a questionnaire was sent to all survivors, aged 8-20 years, registered in the Swiss Childhood Cancer Registry, diagnosed at age <16 years, who had survived ≥ 5 years. Parent-reported (aged 8-15 years) and self-reported (aged 16-20 years) cognitive problems (concentration, working speed, memory) were compared between survivors and siblings. Multivariable logistic regression was used to identify characteristics associated with cognitive problems in survivors. Data from 840 survivors and 247 siblings were analyzed. More often than their siblings, survivors reported problems with concentration (12% vs. 6%; P = 0.020), slow working speed (20% vs. 8%; P = 0.001) or memory (33% vs. 15%; P < 0.001). Survivors from all treatment periods were more likely to report a cognitive problem than were siblings. Survivors of CNS tumors (OR = 2.82 compared to leukemia survivors, P < 0.001) and those who had received cranial irradiation (OR = 2.10, P = 0.010) were most severely affected. Childhood cancer survivors, even those treated recently (2001-2005), remain at risk to develop cognitive problems, suggesting a need to improve therapies. Survivors with cognitive problems should be given the opportunity to enter special education programs. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Working memory capacity and addiction treatment outcomes in adolescents.

PubMed

Houck, Jon M; Feldstein Ewing, Sarah W

2018-01-01

Brief addiction treatments including motivational interviewing (MI) have shown promise with adolescents, but the factors that influence treatment efficacy in this population remain unknown. One candidate is working memory, the ability to hold a fact or thought in mind. This is relevant, as in therapy, a client must maintain and manipulate ideas while working with a clinician. Working memory depends upon brain structures and functions that change markedly during neurodevelopment and that can be negatively impacted by substance use. In a secondary analysis of data from a clinical trial for adolescent substance use comparing alcohol/marijuana education and MI, we evaluated the relationship between working memory and three-month treatment-outcomes with the hypothesis that the relationship between intervention conditions and outcome would be moderated by working memory. With a diverse sample of adolescents currently using alcohol and/or marijuana (N = 153, 64.7% male, 70.6% Hispanic), we examined the relationship between baseline measures of working memory and alcohol and cannabis-related problem scores measured at the three-month follow-up. The results showed that lower working memory scores were associated with poorer treatment response only for alcohol use, and only within the education group. No relationship was found between working memory and treatment outcomes in the MI group. The results suggest that issues with working memory capacity may interfere with adolescents' ability to process and implement didactic alcohol and marijuana content in standard education interventions. These results also suggest that MI can be implemented equally effectively across the range of working memory functioning in youth.

Assessing the role of memory in preschoolers' performance on episodic foresight tasks.

PubMed

Atance, Cristina M; Sommerville, Jessica A

2014-01-01

A total of 48 preschoolers (ages 3, 4, and 5) received four tasks modelled after prior work designed to assess the development of "episodic foresight". For each task, children encountered a problem in one room and, after a brief delay, were given the opportunity in a second room to select an item to solve the problem. Importantly, after selecting an item, children were queried about their memory for the problem. Age-related changes were found both in children's ability to select the correct item and their ability to remember the problem. However, when we controlled for children's memory for the problem, there were no longer significant age-related changes on the item choice measure. These findings suggest that age-related changes in children's performance on these tasks are driven by improvements in children's memory versus improvements in children's future-oriented thinking or "foresight" per se. Our results have important implications for how best to structure tasks to measure children's episodic foresight, and also for the relative role of memory in this task and in episodic foresight more broadly.

Can Executive Functions Help to Understand Children with Mathematical Learning Disorders and to Improve Instruction?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Desoete, Annemie; De Weerdt, Frauke

2013-01-01

Working memory, inhibition and naming speed was assessed in 22 children with mathematical learning disorders (MD), 17 children with a reading learning disorder (RD), and 45 children without any learning problems between 8 and 12 years old. All subjects with learning disorders performed poorly on working memory tasks, providing evidence that they…

Novices and Experts in Geoinformatics: the Cognitive Gap.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhilin, M.

2012-04-01

Modern geoinformatics is an extremely powerful tool for problem analysis and decision making in various fields. Currently general public uses geoinformatics predominantly for navigating (GPS) and sharing information about particular places (GoogleMaps, Wikimapia). Communities also use geoinformatics for particular purposes: fans of history use it to correspond historical and actual maps (www.retromap.ru), birdwatchers point places where they met birds (geobirds.com/rangemaps) etc. However the majority of stakeholders local authorities are not aware of advantages and possibilities of geoinformatics. The same problem is observed for students. At the same time many professional geoinformatic tools are developed, but sometimes the experts even can't explain their purpose to non-experts. So the question is how to shrink the gap between experts and non-experts in understanding and application of geoinformatics. We think that this gap has a cognitive basis. According to modern cognitive theories (Shiffrin-Atkinson and descending) the information primary has to pass through the perceptual filter that cuts off the information that seems to be irrelevant. The mind estimates the relevance implicitly (unconsciously) basing on previous knowledge and judgments what is important. Then it comes to the working memory which is used (a) for proceeding and (b) for problem solving. The working memory has limited capacity and can operate only with about 7 objects simultaneously. Then information passes to the long-term memory that is of unlimited capacity. There it is stored as more or less complex structures with associative links. When necessary it is extracted into the working memory. If great amount of information is linked ("chunked") the working memory operates with it as one object of seven thus overcoming the limitations of the working memory capacity. To adopt any information it should (a) pass through the perceptual filter, (b) not to overload the working memory and (c) to be structured in the long-term memory. Expert easily adopt domain-specific information because they (a) understand terminology and consider the information to be important thus passing it through the perceptual filter and (b) have a lot of complex domain-specific chunks that are processed by the working memory as a whole thus avoiding to overload it. Novices (students and general public) have neither understanding and feeling importance nor necessary chunks. The following measures should be taken to bridge experts' and novices' understanding of geoinformatics. Expert community should popularize geoscientific problems developing understandable language and available tools for their solving. This requires close collaboration with educational system (especially second education). If students understand a problem, they can find and apply appropriate tool for it. Geoscientific problems and models are extremely complex. In cognitive terms, they require hierarchy of chunks. This hierarchy should coherently develop beginning from simple ones later joining them to complex. It requires an appropriate sequence of learning tasks. There is no necessity in correct solutions - the students should understand how are they solved and realize limitations of models. We think that tasks of weather forecast, global climate modeling etc are suitable. The first step on bridging experts and novices is the elaboration of a set and a sequence of learning tasks and its sequence as well as tools for their solution. The tools should be easy for everybody who understands the task and as versatile as possible - otherwise students will waste a lot of time mastering it. This development requires close collaboration between geoscientists and educators.

The diagnostic utility of behavioral checklists in identifying children with ADHD and children with working memory deficits.

PubMed

Alloway, Tracy Packiam; Gathercole, Susan E; Holmes, Joni; Place, Maurice; Elliott, Julian G; Hilton, Kerry

2009-09-01

The present study investigated whether children with ADHD and those with working memory impairments have a common behavioral profile in the classroom. Three teacher checklists were used: the Conners' teacher rating scale (CTRS), the behavior rating inventory of executive function (BRIEF), and the working memory rating scale. The Conners' continuous performance test (CPT) was also included to determine whether there is a correspondence between performance on this widely used cognitive measure of attention deficits and teacher ratings of classroom behavior. All three behavior scales, but not the CPT, were able to successfully discriminate children with ADHD and those with working memory deficits from typically-developing children. Both the CTRS and the BRIEF discriminated a significant proportion of the children with ADHD from those with working memory deficits, indicating that while both groups exhibit behavioral problems in the classroom, they are characterized by differential attention profiles. The children with ADHD were identified on the basis of oppositional and hyperactive behavior, while those with working memory deficits were more inattentive.

Individual differences in working memory and reasoning-remembering relationships in solving class-inclusion problems.

PubMed

Howe, M L; Rabinowitz, F M; Powell, T L

1998-09-01

In the present experiment, we evaluated the effects of individual differences in reading span and variation in memory demands on class-inclusion performance. One hundred twenty college students whose reading spans ranged from low to medium to high (as indexed by a computerized version of the Daneman and Carpenter [1980] reading-span task) solved 48 class-inclusion problems. Half of the subjects had the solution information available when the problems were presented; the other half performed a detection task between solution information and problem presentation. The results from both standard statistical analyses and from a mathematical model indicated that differences in reading span and memory load had predictable, similar effects. Specifically, the sophistication of reasoning strategies declined when memory demands increased or when reading spans decreased. Surprisingly, these effects were primarily additive. The results were interpreted in terms of global resource models and findings from the developmental literature.

Is Word-Problem Solving a Form of Text Comprehension?

PubMed Central

Fuchs, Lynn S.; Fuchs, Douglas; Compton, Donald L.; Hamlett, Carol L.; Wang, Amber Y.

2015-01-01

This study’s hypotheses were that (a) word-problem (WP) solving is a form of text comprehension that involves language comprehension processes, working memory, and reasoning, but (b) WP solving differs from other forms of text comprehension by requiring WP-specific language comprehension as well as general language comprehension. At the start of the 2nd grade, children (n = 206; on average, 7 years, 6 months) were assessed on general language comprehension, working memory, nonlinguistic reasoning, processing speed (a control variable), and foundational skill (arithmetic for WPs; word reading for text comprehension). In spring, they were assessed on WP-specific language comprehension, WPs, and text comprehension. Path analytic mediation analysis indicated that effects of general language comprehension on text comprehension were entirely direct, whereas effects of general language comprehension on WPs were partially mediated by WP-specific language. By contrast, effects of working memory and reasoning operated in parallel ways for both outcomes. PMID:25866461

The Interplay of Reader Goals, Working Memory, and Text Structure During Reading

PubMed Central

Bohn-Gettler, Catherine M.; Kendeou, Panayiota

2014-01-01

In the current study we examined the complex interactions of instructional context, text properties, and reader characteristics during comprehension. College students were tasked with the goal of reading for study versus entertainment (instructional context) while thinking-aloud about four different expository text structures (text properties). Working memory also was assessed (reader characteristics). Reading goals and working memory interacted to influence paraphrasing and non-coherence processes when thinking aloud. Reading goals, working memory, and text structure all interacted to influence text-based inferences. Text structure also influenced knowledge-based inferences. Post-reading recall was highest for those with the instructional goal of reading for study (compared to entertainment), as well as for problem-response and compare-contrast texts (compared to descriptive and chronological texts). Implications of the findings are discussed. PMID:25018581

Child-Level Predictors of Responsiveness to Evidence-Based Mathematics Intervention.

PubMed

Powell, Sarah R; Cirino, Paul T; Malone, Amelia S

2017-07-01

We identified child-level predictors of responsiveness to 2 types of mathematics (calculation and word-problem) intervention among 2nd-grade children with mathematics difficulty. Participants were 250 children in 107 classrooms in 23 schools pretested on mathematics and general cognitive measures and posttested on mathematics measures. We assigned classrooms randomly assigned to calculation intervention, word-problem intervention, or business-as-usual control. Intervention lasted 17 weeks. Path analyses indicated that scores on working memory and language comprehension assessments moderated responsiveness to calculation intervention. No moderators were identified for responsiveness to word-problem intervention. Across both intervention groups and the control group, attentive behavior predicted both outcomes. Initial calculation skill predicted the calculation outcome, and initial language comprehension predicted word-problem outcomes. These results indicate that screening for calculation intervention should include a focus on working memory, language comprehension, attentive behavior, and calculations. Screening for word-problem intervention should focus on attentive behavior and word problems.

Objective and subjective memory ratings in cannabis-dependent adolescents.

PubMed

McClure, Erin A; Lydiard, Jessica B; Goddard, Scott D; Gray, Kevin M

2015-01-01

Cannabis is the most widely used illicit substance worldwide, with an estimated 160 million users. Among adolescents, rates of cannabis use are increasing, while the perception of detrimental effects of cannabis use is declining. Difficulty with memory is one of the most frequently noted cognitive deficits associated with cannabis use, but little data exist exploring how well users can identify their own memory deficits, if present. The current secondary analysis sought to characterize objective verbal and visual memory performance via a neurocognitive battery in cannabis-dependent adolescents enrolled in a pharmacotherapeutic cannabis cessation clinical trial (N = 112) and compare this to a single self-reported item assessing difficulties with memory loss. Exploratory analyses also assessed dose-dependent effects of cannabis on memory performance. A small portion of the study sample (10%) endorsed a "serious problem" with memory loss. Those participants reporting "no problem" or "serious problem" scored similarly on visual and verbal memory tasks on the neurocognitive battery. Exploratory analyses suggested a potential relationship between days of cannabis use, amount of cannabis used, and gender with memory performance. This preliminary and exploratory analysis suggests that a sub-set of cannabis users may not accurately perceive difficulties with memory. Further work should test this hypothesis with the use of a control group, comprehensive self-reports of memory problems, and adult populations that may have more years of cannabis use and more severe cognitive deficits. © American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry.

Improving Problem Solving in Primary School Students: The Effect of a Training Programme Focusing on Metacognition and Working Memory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cornoldi, Cesare; Carretti, Barbara; Drusi, Silvia; Tencati, Chiara

2015-01-01

Background: Despite doubts voiced on their efficacy, a series of studies has been carried out on the capacity of training programmes to improve academic and reasoning skills by focusing on underlying cognitive abilities and working memory in particular. No systematic efforts have been made, however, to test training programmes that involve both…

Effects of Visual Working Memory Training and Direct Instruction on Geometry Problem Solving in Students with Geometry Difficulties

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhang, Dake

2017-01-01

We examined the effectiveness of (a) a working memory (WM) training program and (b) a combination program involving both WM training and direct instruction for students with geometry difficulties (GD). Four students with GD participated. A multiple-baseline design across participants was employed. During the Phase 1, students received six sessions…

Measuring Load on Working Memory: The Use of Heart Rate as a Means of Measuring Chemistry Students' Cognitive Load

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cranford, Kristen N.; Tiettmeyer, Jessica M.; Chuprinko, Bryan C.; Jordan, Sophia; Grove, Nathaniel P.

2014-01-01

Information processing provides a powerful model for understanding how learning occurs and highlights the important role that cognitive load plays in this process. In instances in which the cognitive load of a problem exceeds the available working memory, learning can be seriously hindered. Previously reported methods for measuring cognitive load…

The Effect of Pressure on High- and Low-Working-Memory Students: An Elaboration of the Choking under Pressure Hypothesis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Zuowei; Shah, Priti

2014-01-01

Sample: Fifty-three third and fourth graders from China participated in this study. Method: Participants' working memory (WM) was assessed by the Automated Operation Span task. Then, they solved mental addition problems of different types under low- and high-pressure conditions. Performance was analysed as a function of pressure condition, working…

Skill Acquisition: Compilation of Weak-Method Problem Solutions.

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-08-12

difference largely disappears by the fourth day when they are still working - with Perverse EMACS. Compared to Day 1 on EMACS. there is large postive ...This reinforces the idea that production representation captures significant features of our procedural knowledge and that differences between...memory load is certainly consistent with the working memory plus production system hypothesis. Immediate Feedback The importance of immediate

Concentration, Working Speed and Memory: Cognitive Problems in Young Childhood Cancer Survivors and Their Siblings

PubMed Central

Wengenroth, L.; Rueegg, C. S.; Michel, G.; Gianinazzi, M. E.; Essig, S.; von der Weid, N. X.; Grotzer, M.; Kuehni, Claudia E.

2018-01-01

Background Cognitive problems can have a negative effect on a person’s education, but little is known about cognitive problems in young childhood cancer survivors (survivors). This study compared cognitive problems between survivors and their siblings, determined if cognitive problems decreased during recent treatment periods and identified characteristics associated with the presence of a cognitive problem in survivors. Methods As part of the Swiss Childhood Cancer Survivor Study, a questionnaire was sent to all survivors, aged 8–20 years, registered in the Swiss Childhood Cancer Registry, diagnosed at age <16 years, who had survived ≥5 years. Parent-reported (aged 8–15 years) and self-reported (aged 16–20 years) cognitive problems (concentration, working speed, memory) were compared between survivors and siblings. Multivariable logistic regression was used to identify characteristics associated with cognitive problems in survivors. Results Data from 840 survivors and 247 siblings were analyzed. More often than their siblings, survivors reported problems with concentration (12% vs. 6%; P = 0.020), slow working speed (20% vs. 8%; P = 0.001) or memory (33% vs. 15%; P < 0.001). Survivors from all treatment periods were more likely to report a cognitive problem than were siblings. Survivors of CNS tumors (OR = 2.82 compared to leukemia survivors, P < 0.001) and those who had received cranial irradiation (OR = 2.10, P = 0.010) were most severely affected. Conclusion Childhood cancer survivors, even those treated recently (2001–2005), remain at risk to develop cognitive problems, suggesting a need to improve therapies. Survivors with cognitive problems should be given the opportunity to enter special education programs. PMID:25645276

Variations in working memory capacity predict individual differences in general learning abilities among genetically diverse mice.

PubMed

Kolata, Stefan; Light, Kenneth; Townsend, David A; Hale, Gregory; Grossman, Henya C; Matzel, Louis D

2005-11-01

Up to 50% of an individuals' performance across a wide variety of distinct cognitive tests can be accounted for by a single factor (i.e., "general intelligence"). Despite its ubiquity, the processes or mechanisms regulating this factor are a matter of considerable debate. Although it has been hypothesized that working memory may impact cognitive performance across various domains, tests have been inconclusive due to the difficulty in isolating working memory from its overlapping operations, such as verbal ability. We address this problem using genetically diverse mice, which exhibit a trait analogous to general intelligence. The general cognitive abilities of CD-1 mice were found to covary with individuals' working memory capacity, but not with variations in long-term retention. These results provide evidence that independent of verbal abilities, variations in working memory are associated with general cognitive abilities, and further, suggest a conservation across species of mechanisms and/or processes that regulate cognitive abilities.

Dissociation of working memory processing associated with native and second languages: PET investigation.

PubMed

Kim, Jae-Jin; Kim, Myung Sun; Lee, Jae Sung; Lee, Dong Soo; Lee, Myung Chul; Kwon, Jun Soo

2002-04-01

Verbal working memory plays a significant role in language comprehension and problem-solving. The prefrontal cortex has been suggested as a critical area in working memory. Given that domain-specific dissociations of working memory may exist within the prefrontal cortex, it is possible that there may also be further functional divisions within the verbal working memory processing. While differences in the areas of the brain engaged in native and second languages have been demonstrated, little is known about the dissociation of verbal working memory associated with native and second languages. We have used H2(15)O positron emission tomography in 14 normal subjects in order to identify the neural correlates selectively involved in working memory of native (Korean) and second (English) languages. All subjects were highly proficient in the native language but poorly proficient in the second language. Cognitive tasks were a two-back task for three kinds of visually presented objects: simple pictures, English words, and Korean words. The anterior portion of the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and the left superior temporal gyrus were activated in working memory for the native language, whereas the posterior portion of the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and the left inferior temporal gyrus were activated in working memory for the second language. The results suggest that the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and left temporal lobe may be organized into two discrete, language-related functional systems. Internal phonological processing seems to play a predominant role in working memory processing for the native language with a high proficiency, whereas visual higher order control does so for the second language with a low proficiency. (C)2002 Elsevier Science (USA).

Memory and attention problems in children with chronic fatigue syndrome or myalgic encephalopathy.

PubMed

Haig-Ferguson, A; Tucker, P; Eaton, N; Hunt, L; Crawley, E

2009-10-01

To understand more about the problems children with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) or myalgic encephalopathy (ME) experience with memory and attention, and to test the feasibility of quantitative measurement of both memory and attention. Four-item semistructured questionnaire and neuropsychological test battery with 10 psychometric subtests. Family home of the child taking part. 20 children with a diagnosis of CFS/ME experiencing memory and/or concentration problems were recruited between April and October 2007 from a regional CFS/ME clinical service (female 13; average age 13.5 years; range 8-16). Each child, parent and teacher was asked to describe the child's memory and attention problems. Responses were subject to thematic analysis by two independent researchers. In addition, each child completed a battery of 10 tests to measure: processing speed; attention; immediate and delayed memory; working memory; executive function. Raw scores were converted into age-scaled scores and the children's psychometric scores on the 10 tests taken were compared with normative data using t tests. Children with CFS/ME, their parents and teachers described problems with focussed attention, sustained attention, recall and stress. Scores for sustained attention (mean 8.1, 95% CI 6.3 to 9.9), switching attention (7.5, 5.5 to 9.4), divided attention (6.9, 5.5 to 8.2), auditory learning (8.2, 6.8 to 9.6) and immediate recall (8.7, 7.3 to 10.0) appeared lower than the normative mean of 10. Children with CFS/ME appear to experience problems with attention, which may have adverse implications for verbal memory. These cognitive problems may explain some of the educational difficulties associated with CFS.

Associations between cognition and internalizing problems in young adults with early-onset schizophrenia: A 13-year follow-up study.

PubMed

Strugstad, Benedicte; Lau, Bjørn; Glenne Øie, Merete

2018-04-12

The present follow-up study examines the associations between cognition and parent-rated internalizing problems among adolescents with early-onset schizophrenia (EOS) at baseline (T1) and self-rated internalizing problems 13 years later (T2). Twelve individuals (8 male/4 female) with EOS and 30 healthy controls (16 male/14 female) were included in the study. All were between 12 and 18 years of age at T1. Internalizing problems were measured with the Achenbach System of Empirically Based Assessment Internalizing Scale. Cognition was examined with a neuropsychological test battery measuring auditory attention/working memory, visuomotor processing, cognitive flexibility and verbal memory. Compared to healthy controls, the EOS group had significant cognitive deficits and more internalizing problems both at T1 and T2. There was no correlation between parent-rated internalizing problems at T1 and self-rated internalizing problems at T2 in the EOS group. However, deficits in auditory attention/working memory at T1 were significantly associated with internalizing problems at T2. A focus on improving the treatment of cognitive impairments may be important in preventing the development of internalizing problems in young patients with schizophrenia. The small sample size of the study is a limitation and further research is recommended. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Living Design Memory: Framework, Implementation, Lessons Learned.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Terveen, Loren G.; And Others

1995-01-01

Discusses large-scale software development and describes the development of the Designer Assistant to improve software development effectiveness. Highlights include the knowledge management problem; related work, including artificial intelligence and expert systems, software process modeling research, and other approaches to organizational memory;…

Increased working memory related fMRI signal in children following Tick Borne Encephalitis.

PubMed

Henrik, Ullman; Åsa, Fowler; Ronny, Wickström

2016-01-01

Tick Borne Encephalitis (TBE) is a viral infection in the central nervous system endemic in Europe and Asia. While pediatric infection may carry a lower risk for serious neurological sequelae compared to adults, a large proportion of children experience long term cognitive problems, most markedly decreased working memory capacity. We explored whether task related functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) could reveal a biological correlate of status-post TBE in children. We examined 11 serologically verified pediatric TBE patients with central nervous system involvement with 55 healthy controls with working memory tests and MRI. The TBE patients showed a prominent deficit in working memory capacity and an increased task related functional MRI signal in working memory related cortical areas during a spatial working memory task performed without sedation. No diffusion differences could be found with DTI, in line with the reported paucity of anatomical abnormalities. This study is the first to demonstrate functional MRI abnormalities in TBE patients that bears similarity to other patient groups with diffuse neuronal damage. Copyright © 2015 European Paediatric Neurology Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Growing Up After Critical Illness: Verbal, Visual-Spatial, and Working Memory Problems in Neonatal Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Survivors.

PubMed

Madderom, Marlous J; Schiller, Raisa M; Gischler, Saskia J; van Heijst, Arno F J; Tibboel, Dick; Aarsen, Femke K; IJsselstijn, Hanneke

2016-06-01

To assess neuropsychologic outcome in 17- and 18-year-old neonatal extracorporeal membrane oxygenation survivors. A prospective longitudinal follow-up study. Follow-up program at the Erasmus MC-Sophia Children's Hospital in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Thirty adolescents 17 or 18 years old, treated between 1991 and 1997, underwent neuropsychologic assessment. None. Attention, memory, executive functioning, visual-spatial functions, social-emotional functioning, and behavior were assessed with validated instruments, and data were compared with reference data. Included predictors for analysis of adverse outcome were diagnosis, age at start extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, convulsions, and use of antiepileptics. Adolescents' performance (expressed as mean [SD] z score) was significantly lower than the norm on short-term and long-term verbal memory (z score = -1.40 [1.58], p = 0.016; z score = -1.54 [1.67], p = 0.010, respectively), visual-spatial memory (z score = -1.65 [1.37], p = 0.008; z score = -1.70 [1.23], p = 0.008, respectively), and working memory (32% vs 9% in the norm population). Parents reported more problems for their children regarding organization of materials (z score = -0.60 [0.90]; p = 0.03) and behavior evaluation (z score = -0.53 [0.88]; p = 0.05) on a questionnaire. Patients reported more withdrawn/depressed behavior (z score = -0.47 [0.54]; p = 0.02), somatic complaints (z score = -0.43 [0.48]; p = 0.03), and social problems (z score = -0.41 [0.46]; p = 0.04). Patients reported more positive feelings of self-esteem and an average health status. Adolescents treated with neonatal extracorporeal membrane oxygenation are at risk of verbal, visual-spatial, and working memory problems. Future research should focus on 1) the longitudinal outcome of specific neuropsychologic skills in adolescence and adulthood; 2) identifying risk factors of neuropsychologic dysfunction; 3) evaluating to what extent "severity of illness" is responsible for acquired brain injury; and 4) effects of timely cognitive rehabilitation.

On the relationship between math anxiety and math achievement in early elementary school: The role of problem solving strategies.

PubMed

Ramirez, Gerardo; Chang, Hyesang; Maloney, Erin A; Levine, Susan C; Beilock, Sian L

2016-01-01

Even at young ages, children self-report experiencing math anxiety, which negatively relates to their math achievement. Leveraging a large dataset of first and second grade students' math achievement scores, math problem solving strategies, and math attitudes, we explored the possibility that children's math anxiety (i.e., a fear or apprehension about math) negatively relates to their use of more advanced problem solving strategies, which in turn relates to their math achievement. Our results confirm our hypothesis and, moreover, demonstrate that the relation between math anxiety and math problem solving strategies is strongest in children with the highest working memory capacity. Ironically, children who have the highest cognitive capacity avoid using advanced problem solving strategies when they are high in math anxiety and, as a result, underperform in math compared with their lower working memory peers. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Cognitive Load Theory: A Broader View on the Role of Memory in Learning and Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Paas, Fred; Ayres, Paul

2014-01-01

According to cognitive load theory (CLT), the limitations of working memory (WM) in the learning of new tasks together with its ability to cooperate with an unlimited long-term memory (LTM) for familiar tasks enable human beings to deal effectively with complex problems and acquire highly complex knowledge and skills. With regard to WM, CLT has…

The influence of activation level on belief bias in relational reasoning.

PubMed

Banks, Adrian P

2013-04-01

A novel explanation of belief bias in relational reasoning is presented based on the role of working memory and retrieval in deductive reasoning, and the influence of prior knowledge on this process. It is proposed that belief bias is caused by the believability of a conclusion in working memory which influences its activation level, determining its likelihood of retrieval and therefore its effect on the reasoning process. This theory explores two main influences of belief on the activation levels of these conclusions. First, believable conclusions have higher activation levels and so are more likely to be recalled during the evaluation of reasoning problems than unbelievable conclusions, and therefore, they have a greater influence on the reasoning process. Secondly, prior beliefs about the conclusion have a base level of activation and may be retrieved when logically irrelevant, influencing the evaluation of the problem. The theory of activation and memory is derived from the Atomic Components of Thought-Rational (ACT-R) cognitive architecture and so this account is formalized in an ACT-R cognitive model. Two experiments were conducted to test predictions of this model. Experiment 1 tested strength of belief and Experiment 2 tested the impact of a concurrent working memory load. Both of these manipulations increased the main effect of belief overall and in particular raised belief-based responding in indeterminately invalid problems. These effects support the idea that the activation level of conclusions formed during reasoning influences belief bias. This theory adds to current explanations of belief bias by providing a detailed specification of the role of working memory and how it is influenced by prior knowledge. Copyright © 2012 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

Working memory facilitates insight instead of hindering it: Comment on DeCaro, Van Stockum, and Wieth (2016).

PubMed

Chuderski, Adam; Jastrzębski, Jan

2017-12-01

The "nothing-special" account of insight predicts positive correlations of insight problem solving and working memory capacity (WMC), whereas the "special-process" account expects no, or even negative, correlations. In the latter vein, DeCaro, Van Stockum Jr., and Wieth (2016) have recently reported weak negative WMC correlations with 2 constraint relaxation matchstick problems and 3 insight problems, and thus they claim that WM hinders insight. Here, we report on 3 studies that investigated WMC and various matchstick and classical problems (including 1 study that precisely replicated DeCaro et al.'s procedure). All 3 studies yielded moderate positive correlations of WMC with both the constraint relaxation and the classical problems. WMC explained 10% variance in problem solving, no matter what problems were used or how they were applied. Thus, DeCaro et al.'s claim that WM hinders insight is unwarranted. The opposite is true: WM facilitates insight. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Working memory subsystems and task complexity in young boys with Fragile X syndrome.

PubMed

Baker, S; Hooper, S; Skinner, M; Hatton, D; Schaaf, J; Ornstein, P; Bailey, D

2011-01-01

Working memory problems have been targeted as core deficits in individuals with Fragile X syndrome (FXS); however, there have been few studies that have examined working memory in young boys with FXS, and even fewer studies that have studied the working memory performance of young boys with FXS across different degrees of complexity. The purpose of this study was to investigate the phonological loop and visual-spatial working memory in young boys with FXS, in comparison to mental age-matched typical boys, and to examine the impact of complexity of the working memory tasks on performance. The performance of young boys (7 to 13-years-old) with FXS (n = 40) was compared with that of mental age and race matched typically developing boys (n = 40) on measures designed to test the phonological loop and the visuospatial sketchpad across low, moderate and high degrees of complexity. Multivariate analyses were used to examine group differences across the specific working memory systems and degrees of complexity. Results suggested that boys with FXS showed deficits in phonological loop and visual-spatial working memory tasks when compared with typically developing mental age-matched boys. For the boys with FXS, the phonological loop was significantly lower than the visual-spatial sketchpad; however, there was no significant difference in performance across the low, moderate and high degrees of complexity in the working memory tasks. Reverse tasks from both the phonological loop and visual-spatial sketchpad appeared to be the most challenging for both groups, but particularly for the boys with FXS. These findings implicate a generalised deficit in working memory in young boys with FXS, with a specific disproportionate impairment in the phonological loop. Given the lack of differentiation on the low versus high complexity tasks, simple span tasks may provide an adequate estimate of working memory until greater involvement of the central executive is achieved. © 2010 The Authors. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research © 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Working memory subsystems and task complexity in young boys with Fragile X syndrome

PubMed Central

Baker, S.; Hooper, S.; Skinner, M.; Hatton, D.; Schaaf, J.; Ornstein, P.; Bailey, D.

2011-01-01

Background Working memory problems have been targeted as core deficits in individuals with Fragile X syndrome (FXS); however, there have been few studies that have examined working memory in young boys with FXS, and even fewer studies that have studied the working memory performance of young boys with FXS across different degrees of complexity. The purpose of this study was to investigate the phonological loop and visual–spatial working memory in young boys with FXS, in comparison to mental age-matched typical boys, and to examine the impact of complexity of the working memory tasks on performance. Methods The performance of young boys (7 to 13-years-old) with FXS (n = 40) was compared with that of mental age and race matched typically developing boys (n = 40) on measures designed to test the phonological loop and the visuospatial sketchpad across low, moderate and high degrees of complexity. Multivariate analyses were used to examine group differences across the specific working memory systems and degrees of complexity. Results Results suggested that boys with FXS showed deficits in phonological loop and visual–spatial working memory tasks when compared with typically developing mental age-matched boys. For the boys with FXS, the phonological loop was significantly lower than the visual–spatial sketchpad; however, there was no significant difference in performance across the low, moderate and high degrees of complexity in the working memory tasks. Reverse tasks from both the phonological loop and visual–spatial sketchpad appeared to be the most challenging for both groups, but particularly for the boys with FXS. Conclusions These findings implicate a generalised deficit in working memory in young boys with FXS, with a specific disproportionate impairment in the phonological loop. Given the lack of differentiation on the low versus high complexity tasks, simple span tasks may provide an adequate estimate of working memory until greater involvement of the central executive is achieved. PMID:21121991

Cognitive processes in children's reading and attention: the role of working memory, divided attention, and response inhibition.

PubMed

Savage, Robert; Cornish, Kim; Manly, Tom; Hollis, Chris

2006-08-01

Children experiencing attention difficulties have documented cognitive deficits in working memory (WM), response inhibition and dual tasks. Recent evidence suggests however that these same cognitive processes are also closely associated with reading acquisition. This paper therefore explores whether these variables predicted attention difficulties or reading among 123 children with and without significant attention problems sampled from the school population. Children were screened using current WM and attention task measures. Three factors explained variance in WM and attention tasks. Response inhibition tasks loaded mainly with central executive measures, but a dual processing task loaded with the visual-spatial WM measures. Phonological loop measures loaded independently of attention measures. After controls for age, IQ and attention-group membership, phonological loop and 'central processing' measures both predicted reading ability. A 'visual memory/dual-task' factor predicted attention group membership after controls for age, IQ and reading ability. Results thus suggest that some of the processes previously assumed to be predictive of attention problems may reflect processes involved in reading acquisition. Visual memory and dual-task functioning are, however, purer indices of cognitive difficulty in children experiencing attention problems.

Computerized working memory training has positive long-term effect in very low birthweight preschool children.

PubMed

Grunewaldt, Kristine Hermansen; Skranes, Jon; Brubakk, Ann-Mari; Lähaugen, Gro C C

2016-02-01

Working memory deficits are frequently found in children born preterm and have been linked to learning disabilities, and cognitive and behavioural problems. Our aim was to evaluate if a computerized working memory training program has long-term positive effects on memory, learning, and behaviour in very-low-birthweight (VLBW) children at age 5 to 6 years. This prospective, intervention study included 20 VLBW preschool children in the intervention group and 17 age-matched, non-training VLBW children in the comparison group. The intervention group trained with the Cogmed JM working memory training program daily for 5 weeks (25 training sessions). Extensive neuropsychological assessment and parental questionnaires were performed 4 weeks after intervention and at follow-up 7 months later. For most of the statistical analyses, general linear models were applied. At follow-up, higher scores and increased or equal performance gain were found in the intervention group than the comparison group on memory for faces (p=0.012), narrative memory (p=0.002), and spatial span (p=0.003). No group differences in performance gain were found for attention and behaviour. Computerized working memory training seems to have positive and persisting effects on working memory, and visual and verbal learning, at 7-month follow-up in VLBW preschool children. We speculate that such training is beneficial by improving the ability to learn from the teaching at school and for further cognitive development. © 2015 Mac Keith Press.

First-Grade Predictors of Mathematical Learning Disability: A Latent Class Trajectory Analysis

PubMed Central

Geary, David C.; Bailey, Drew H.; Littlefield, Andrew; Wood, Phillip; Hoard, Mary K.; Nugent, Lara

2009-01-01

Kindergarten to 3rd grade mathematics achievement scores from a prospective study of mathematical development were subjected to latent growth trajectory analyses (n = 306). The four corresponding classes included children with mathematical learning disability (MLD, 6% of sample), and low (LA, 50%), typically (TA, 39%) and high (HA, 5%) achieving children. The groups were administered a battery of intelligence (IQ), working memory, and mathematical-cognition measures in 1st grade. The children with MLD had general deficits in working memory and IQ, and potentially more specific deficits on measures of number sense. The LA children did not have working memory or IQ deficits, but showed moderate deficits on these number sense measures and for addition fact retrieval. The distinguishing features of the HA children were a strong visuospatial working memory, a strong number sense, and frequent use of memory-based processes to solve addition problems. Implications for the early identification of children at risk for poor mathematics achievement are discussed. PMID:20046817

Impaired Contingent Attentional Capture Predicts Reduced Working Memory Capacity in Schizophrenia

PubMed Central

Mayer, Jutta S.; Fukuda, Keisuke; Vogel, Edward K.; Park, Sohee

2012-01-01

Although impairments in working memory (WM) are well documented in schizophrenia, the specific factors that cause these deficits are poorly understood. In this study, we hypothesized that a heightened susceptibility to attentional capture at an early stage of visual processing would result in working memory encoding problems. 30 patients with schizophrenia and 28 demographically matched healthy participants were presented with a search array and asked to report the orientation of the target stimulus. In some of the trials, a flanker stimulus preceded the search array that either matched the color of the target (relevant-flanker capture) or appeared in a different color (irrelevant-flanker capture). Working memory capacity was determined in each individual using the visual change detection paradigm. Patients needed considerably more time to find the target in the no-flanker condition. After adjusting the individual exposure time, both groups showed equivalent capture costs in the irrelevant-flanker condition. However, in the relevant-flanker condition, capture costs were increased in patients compared to controls when the stimulus onset asynchrony between the flanker and the search array was high. Moreover, the increase in relevant capture costs correlated negatively with working memory capacity. This study demonstrates preserved stimulus-driven attentional capture but impaired contingent attentional capture associated with low working memory capacity in schizophrenia. These findings suggest a selective impairment of top-down attentional control in schizophrenia, which may impair working memory encoding. PMID:23152783

Impaired contingent attentional capture predicts reduced working memory capacity in schizophrenia.

PubMed

Mayer, Jutta S; Fukuda, Keisuke; Vogel, Edward K; Park, Sohee

2012-01-01

Although impairments in working memory (WM) are well documented in schizophrenia, the specific factors that cause these deficits are poorly understood. In this study, we hypothesized that a heightened susceptibility to attentional capture at an early stage of visual processing would result in working memory encoding problems. 30 patients with schizophrenia and 28 demographically matched healthy participants were presented with a search array and asked to report the orientation of the target stimulus. In some of the trials, a flanker stimulus preceded the search array that either matched the color of the target (relevant-flanker capture) or appeared in a different color (irrelevant-flanker capture). Working memory capacity was determined in each individual using the visual change detection paradigm. Patients needed considerably more time to find the target in the no-flanker condition. After adjusting the individual exposure time, both groups showed equivalent capture costs in the irrelevant-flanker condition. However, in the relevant-flanker condition, capture costs were increased in patients compared to controls when the stimulus onset asynchrony between the flanker and the search array was high. Moreover, the increase in relevant capture costs correlated negatively with working memory capacity. This study demonstrates preserved stimulus-driven attentional capture but impaired contingent attentional capture associated with low working memory capacity in schizophrenia. These findings suggest a selective impairment of top-down attentional control in schizophrenia, which may impair working memory encoding.

The Trouble with Levels: A Reexamination of Craik and Lockhart's Framework for Memory Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baddeley, Alan D.

1978-01-01

Begins by discussing a number of problems in applying a levels-of-processing approach to memory as proposed in the late 1960s and then revised in 1972 by Craik and Lockhart, suggests that some of the basic assumptions are false, and argues for information-processing models devised to study working memory and reading, which aim to explore the…

Symptoms of ADHD in children with high-functioning autism are related to impaired verbal working memory and verbal delayed recall.

PubMed

Andersen, Per Normann; Hovik, Kjell Tore; Skogli, Erik Winther; Egeland, Jens; Oie, Merete

2013-01-01

Symptoms similar to those found in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) often occur in children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). The objective of the current study was to compare verbal working memory, acquisition and delayed recall in children with High-Functioning Autism (HFA) to children with ADHD and typically developing children (TDC). Thirty-eight children with HFA, 79 with ADHD and 50 TDC (age 8-17) were assessed with a letter/number sequencing task and a verbal list-learning task. To investigate the possible influence of attention problems in children with HFA, we divided the HFA group into children with (HFA+) or without (HFA-) "attention problems" according to the Child Behaviour Checklist 6-18. The children with HFA+ displayed significant impairment compared to TDC on all three neurocognitive measures, while the children with HFA- were significantly impaired compared to TDC only on the working memory and acquisition measures. In addition, the HFA+ group scored significantly below the HFA- group and the ADHD group on the verbal working memory and delayed recall measures. The results support the proposition that children with HFA+, HFA-, and ADHD differ not only on a clinical level but also on a neurocognitive level which may have implications for treatment.

Hypertext comprehension of deaf and hard-of-hearing students and students with specific language impairment.

PubMed

Blom, Helen; Segers, Eliane; Hermans, Daan; Knoors, Harry; Verhoeven, Ludo

2017-02-01

This paper provides insight into the reading comprehension of hierarchically structured hypertexts within D/HH students and students with SLI. To our knowledge, it is the first study on hypertext comprehension in D/HH students and students with SLI, and it also considers the role of working memory. We compared hypertext versus linear text comprehension in D/HH students and students with SLI versus younger students without language problems who had a similar level of decoding and vocabulary. The results demonstrated no difference in text comprehension between the hierarchically structured hypertext and the linear text. Text comprehension of D/HH students and students with SLI was comparable to that of the students without language problems. In addition, there was a similar positive predictive value of visuospatial and not verbal working memory on hypertext comprehension for all three groups. The findings implicate that educational settings can make use of hierarchically structured hypertexts as well as linear texts and that children can navigate in the digital world from young age on, even if language or working memory problems are present. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Architecture of fluid intelligence and working memory revealed by lesion mapping.

PubMed

Barbey, Aron K; Colom, Roberto; Paul, Erick J; Grafman, Jordan

2014-03-01

Although cognitive neuroscience has made valuable progress in understanding the role of the prefrontal cortex in human intelligence, the functional networks that support adaptive behavior and novel problem solving remain to be well characterized. Here, we studied 158 human brain lesion patients to investigate the cognitive and neural foundations of key competencies for fluid intelligence and working memory. We administered a battery of neuropsychological tests, including the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) and the N-Back task. Latent variable modeling was applied to obtain error-free scores of fluid intelligence and working memory, followed by voxel-based lesion-symptom mapping to elucidate their neural substrates. The observed latent variable modeling and lesion results support an integrative framework for understanding the architecture of fluid intelligence and working memory and make specific recommendations for the interpretation and application of the WAIS and N-Back task to the study of fluid intelligence in health and disease.

Soar: A Unified Theory of Cognition?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Waldrop, M. Mitchell

1988-01-01

Describes an artificial intelligence system known as SOAR that approximates a theory of human cognition. Discusses cognition as problem solving, working memory, long term memory, autonomy and adaptability, and learning from experience as they relate to artificial intelligence generally and to SOAR specifically. Highlights the status of the…

Working memory in Farsi-speaking children with normal development and cochlear implant.

PubMed

Soleymani, Zahra; Amidfar, Meysam; Dadgar, Hooshang; Jalaie, Shohre

2014-04-01

Working memory has an important role in language acquisition and development of cognition skills. The ability of encoding, storage and retrieval of phonological codes, as activities of working memory, acquired by audition sense. Children with cochlear implant experience a period that they are not able to perceive sounds. In order to assess the effect of hearing on working memory, we investigated working memory as a cognition skill in children with normal development and cochlear implant. Fifty students with normal hearing and 50 students with cochlear implant aged 5-7 years participated in this study. Children educated in the preschool, the first and second grades. Children with normal development were matched based on age, gender, and grade of education with cochlear implant. Two components of working memory including phonological loop and central executive were compared between two groups. Phonological loop assessed by nonword repetition task and forward digit span. To assess central executive component backward digit span was used. The developmental trend was studied in children with normal development and cochlear implant as well. The effect of age at implantation in children with cochlear implants on components of working memory was investigated. There are significant differences between children with normal development and cochlear implant in all tasks that assess working memory (p < 0.001). The children's age at implantation was negatively correlated with all tasks (p < 0.001). In contrast, duration of usage of cochlear implant set was positively correlated with all tasks (p < 0.001). The comparison of working memory between different grades showed significant differences both in children with normal development and in children with cochlear implant (p < 0.05). These results implied that children with cochlear implant may experience difficulties in working memory. Therefore, these children have problems in encoding, practicing, and repeating phonological units. The results also suggested working memory develops when the child grows up. In cochlear implant children, with decreasing age at implantation and increasing their experience in perceiving sound, working memory skills improved. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Individual differences in children's memory and reading comprehension: an investigation of semantic and inhibitory deficits.

PubMed

Cain, Kate

2006-07-01

Three experiments compared the verbal memory skills of children with poor reading comprehension with that of same-age good comprehenders. The aims were to determine if semantic and/or inhibitory deficits explained comprehenders' problems on measures of verbal short-term memory and verbal working memory. In Experiment 1 there were no group differences on word- and number-based measures of short-term storage and no evidence that semantic knowledge mediated word recall. In Experiment 2 poor comprehenders were impaired on word- and number-based assessments of working memory, the greatest deficit found on the word-based task. Error analysis of both word-based tasks revealed that poor comprehenders were more likely to recall items that should have been inhibited than were good comprehenders. Experiment 3 extended this finding: Poor comprehenders were less able to inhibit information that was no longer relevant. Together, these findings suggest that individual differences in inhibitory processing influence the ability to regulate the contents of working memory, which may contribute to the differential memory performance of good and poor comprehenders.

Using the memory activation capture (MAC) procedure to investigate the temporal dynamics of hypothesis generation.

PubMed

Lange, Nicholas D; Buttaccio, Daniel R; Davelaar, Eddy J; Thomas, Rick P

2014-02-01

Research investigating top-down capture has demonstrated a coupling of working memory content with attention and eye movements. By capitalizing on this relationship, we have developed a novel methodology, called the memory activation capture (MAC) procedure, for measuring the dynamics of working memory content supporting complex cognitive tasks (e.g., decision making, problem solving). The MAC procedure employs briefly presented visual arrays containing task-relevant information at critical points in a task. By observing which items are preferentially fixated, we gain a measure of working memory content as the task evolves through time. The efficacy of the MAC procedure was demonstrated in a dynamic hypothesis generation task in which some of its advantages over existing methods for measuring changes in the contents of working memory over time are highlighted. In two experiments, the MAC procedure was able to detect the hypothesis that was retrieved and placed into working memory. Moreover, the results from Experiment 2 suggest a two-stage process following hypothesis retrieval, whereby the hypothesis undergoes a brief period of heightened activation before entering a lower activation state in which it is maintained for output. The results of both experiments are of additional general interest, as they represent the first demonstrations of top-down capture driven by participant-established WM content retrieved from long-term memory.

The Development of Comorbid Conduct Problems in Children With ADHD: An Example of an Integrative Developmental Psychopathology Perspective.

PubMed

Danforth, Jeffrey S; Connor, Daniel F; Doerfler, Leonard A

2016-03-01

We describe interactions among factors that contribute to the development of conduct problems among children with ADHD. An integrative developmental psychopathology analysis combines various approaches and posits one model of how diverse risk factors operate together to contribute to the development of conduct problems among children with ADHD. Substantial genetic risk increases covariation between ADHD and conduct problems. Candidate genes are associated with CNS monoaminergic neurotransmission. Subsequent neurodevelopmental impairment interferes with executive function, with impaired verbal working memory playing an important role. Parent/child bi-directional influences exacerbate the risk for conduct problems when ADHD symptoms increase the likelihood of a coercive parenting style. Parent stress in reaction to child comorbid ADHD and conduct problems, and parent attribution for the child's conduct problem behavior, add to the potential for coercion and reduce constructive parent-child interaction that might otherwise enhance the development of verbal working memory. In an integrated manner, these variables increase the risk that a child with ADHD will subsequently develop conduct problems. © The Author(s) 2014.

Revisiting Problems with Foreign Language Aptitude

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Safar, Anna; Kormos, Judit

2008-01-01

This study investigated three of the issues recently raised in connection with the traditional concept of foreign language aptitude: the relationship between foreign language aptitude and working memory and phonological short-term memory capacity, the role of foreign language aptitude in predicting success in the framework of focus-on-form foreign…

Optical memory development. Volume 2: Gain-assisted holographic storage media

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gange, R. A.; Mezrich, R. S.

1972-01-01

Thin deformable films were investigated for use as the storage medium in a holographic optical memory. The research was directed toward solving the problems of material fatigue, selective heat addressing, electrical charging of the film surface and charge patterning by light. A number of solutions to these problems were found but the main conclusion to be drawn from the work is that deformable media which employ heat in the recording process are not satisfactory for use in a high-speed random-access read/write holographic memory. They are, however, a viable approach in applications where either high speed or random-access is not required.

Brain and effort: brain activation and effort-related working memory in healthy participants and patients with working memory deficits.

PubMed

Engström, Maria; Landtblom, Anne-Marie; Karlsson, Thomas

2013-01-01

Despite the interest in the neuroimaging of working memory, little is still known about the neurobiology of complex working memory in tasks that require simultaneous manipulation and storage of information. In addition to the central executive network, we assumed that the recently described salience network [involving the anterior insular cortex (AIC) and the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC)] might be of particular importance to working memory tasks that require complex, effortful processing. Healthy participants (n = 26) and participants suffering from working memory problems related to the Kleine-Levin syndrome (KLS) (a specific form of periodic idiopathic hypersomnia; n = 18) participated in the study. Participants were further divided into a high- and low-capacity group, according to performance on a working memory task (listening span). In a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study, participants were administered the reading span complex working memory task tapping cognitive effort. The fMRI-derived blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) signal was modulated by (1) effort in both the central executive and the salience network and (2) capacity in the salience network in that high performers evidenced a weaker BOLD signal than low performers. In the salience network there was a dichotomy between the left and the right hemisphere; the right hemisphere elicited a steeper increase of the BOLD signal as a function of increasing effort. There was also a stronger functional connectivity within the central executive network because of increased task difficulty. The ability to allocate cognitive effort in complex working memory is contingent upon focused resources in the executive and in particular the salience network. Individual capacity during the complex working memory task is related to activity in the salience (but not the executive) network so that high-capacity participants evidence a lower signal and possibly hence a larger dynamic response.

Brain and effort: brain activation and effort-related working memory in healthy participants and patients with working memory deficits

PubMed Central

Engström, Maria; Landtblom, Anne-Marie; Karlsson, Thomas

2013-01-01

Despite the interest in the neuroimaging of working memory, little is still known about the neurobiology of complex working memory in tasks that require simultaneous manipulation and storage of information. In addition to the central executive network, we assumed that the recently described salience network [involving the anterior insular cortex (AIC) and the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC)] might be of particular importance to working memory tasks that require complex, effortful processing. Method: Healthy participants (n = 26) and participants suffering from working memory problems related to the Kleine–Levin syndrome (KLS) (a specific form of periodic idiopathic hypersomnia; n = 18) participated in the study. Participants were further divided into a high- and low-capacity group, according to performance on a working memory task (listening span). In a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study, participants were administered the reading span complex working memory task tapping cognitive effort. Principal findings: The fMRI-derived blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) signal was modulated by (1) effort in both the central executive and the salience network and (2) capacity in the salience network in that high performers evidenced a weaker BOLD signal than low performers. In the salience network there was a dichotomy between the left and the right hemisphere; the right hemisphere elicited a steeper increase of the BOLD signal as a function of increasing effort. There was also a stronger functional connectivity within the central executive network because of increased task difficulty. Conclusion: The ability to allocate cognitive effort in complex working memory is contingent upon focused resources in the executive and in particular the salience network. Individual capacity during the complex working memory task is related to activity in the salience (but not the executive) network so that high-capacity participants evidence a lower signal and possibly hence a larger dynamic response. PMID:23616756

Non-Algorithmic Quantitative Problem Solving in University Physical Chemistry: A Correlation Study of the Role of Selective Cognitive Factors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tsaparlis, Georgios

2005-01-01

This work provides a correlation study of the role of the following cognitive variables on problem solving in elementary physical chemistry: scientific reasoning (level of intellectual development/developmental level), working-memory capacity, functional mental ("M") capacity, and disembedding ability (i.e., degree of perceptual field…

Numerical methods on some structured matrix algebra problems

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

Jessup, E.R.

1996-06-01

This proposal concerned the design, analysis, and implementation of serial and parallel algorithms for certain structured matrix algebra problems. It emphasized large order problems and so focused on methods that can be implemented efficiently on distributed-memory MIMD multiprocessors. Such machines supply the computing power and extensive memory demanded by the large order problems. We proposed to examine three classes of matrix algebra problems: the symmetric and nonsymmetric eigenvalue problems (especially the tridiagonal cases) and the solution of linear systems with specially structured coefficient matrices. As all of these are of practical interest, a major goal of this work was tomore » translate our research in linear algebra into useful tools for use by the computational scientists interested in these and related applications. Thus, in addition to software specific to the linear algebra problems, we proposed to produce a programming paradigm and library to aid in the design and implementation of programs for distributed-memory MIMD computers. We now report on our progress on each of the problems and on the programming tools.« less

Memory and cognitive control circuits in mathematical cognition and learning.

PubMed

Menon, V

2016-01-01

Numerical cognition relies on interactions within and between multiple functional brain systems, including those subserving quantity processing, working memory, declarative memory, and cognitive control. This chapter describes recent advances in our understanding of memory and control circuits in mathematical cognition and learning. The working memory system involves multiple parietal-frontal circuits which create short-term representations that allow manipulation of discrete quantities over several seconds. In contrast, hippocampal-frontal circuits underlying the declarative memory system play an important role in formation of associative memories and binding of new and old information, leading to the formation of long-term memories that allow generalization beyond individual problem attributes. The flow of information across these systems is regulated by flexible cognitive control systems which facilitate the integration and manipulation of quantity and mnemonic information. The implications of recent research for formulating a more comprehensive systems neuroscience view of the neural basis of mathematical learning and knowledge acquisition in both children and adults are discussed. © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Memory and cognitive control circuits in mathematical cognition and learning

PubMed Central

Menon, V.

2018-01-01

Numerical cognition relies on interactions within and between multiple functional brain systems, including those subserving quantity processing, working memory, declarative memory, and cognitive control. This chapter describes recent advances in our understanding of memory and control circuits in mathematical cognition and learning. The working memory system involves multiple parietal–frontal circuits which create short-term representations that allow manipulation of discrete quantities over several seconds. In contrast, hippocampal–frontal circuits underlying the declarative memory system play an important role in formation of associative memories and binding of new and old information, leading to the formation of long-term memories that allow generalization beyond individual problem attributes. The flow of information across these systems is regulated by flexible cognitive control systems which facilitate the integration and manipulation of quantity and mnemonic information. The implications of recent research for formulating a more comprehensive systems neuroscience view of the neural basis of mathematical learning and knowledge acquisition in both children and adults are discussed. PMID:27339012

Computer technologies and institutional memory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bell, Christopher; Lachman, Roy

1989-01-01

NASA programs for manned space flight are in their 27th year. Scientists and engineers who worked continuously on the development of aerospace technology during that period are approaching retirement. The resulting loss to the organization will be considerable. Although this problem is general to the NASA community, the problem was explored in terms of the institutional memory and technical expertise of a single individual in the Man-Systems division. The main domain of the expert was spacecraft lighting, which became the subject area for analysis in these studies. The report starts with an analysis of the cumulative expertise and institutional memory of technical employees of organizations such as NASA. A set of solutions to this problem are examined and found inadequate. Two solutions were investigated at length: hypertext and expert systems. Illustrative examples were provided of hypertext and expert system representation of spacecraft lighting. These computer technologies can be used to ameliorate the problem of the loss of invaluable personnel.

Tick-borne encephalitis carries a high risk of incomplete recovery in children.

PubMed

Fowler, Åsa; Forsman, Lea; Eriksson, Margareta; Wickström, Ronny

2013-08-01

To examine long-term outcome after tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) in children. In this population-based cohort, 55 children with TBE with central nervous system involvement infected during 2004-2008 were evaluated 2-7 years later using the Rivermead post-concussion symptoms questionnaire (n = 42) and the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Functioning for parents and teachers (n = 32, n = 22, respectively). General cognitive ability was investigated in a subgroup (n = 20) using the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, 4th edition. At long-term follow-up, two-thirds of the children experienced residual problems, the main complaints being cognitive problems, headache, fatigue, and irritability. More than one-third of the children were reported by parents or teachers to have problems with executive functioning on the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Functioning, mainly in areas involving initiating and organizing activities and working memory. Children who underwent Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, 4th edition testing had a significantly lower working memory index compared with reference norms. A large proportion of children experience an incomplete recovery after TBE with central nervous system involvement. Cognitive problems in areas of executive function and working memory are the most prevalent. Even if mortality and severe sequelae are low in children after TBE, all children should be followed after TBE to detect cognitive deficits. Copyright © 2013 Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

Distributed memory compiler methods for irregular problems: Data copy reuse and runtime partitioning

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Das, Raja; Ponnusamy, Ravi; Saltz, Joel; Mavriplis, Dimitri

1991-01-01

Outlined here are two methods which we believe will play an important role in any distributed memory compiler able to handle sparse and unstructured problems. We describe how to link runtime partitioners to distributed memory compilers. In our scheme, programmers can implicitly specify how data and loop iterations are to be distributed between processors. This insulates users from having to deal explicitly with potentially complex algorithms that carry out work and data partitioning. We also describe a viable mechanism for tracking and reusing copies of off-processor data. In many programs, several loops access the same off-processor memory locations. As long as it can be verified that the values assigned to off-processor memory locations remain unmodified, we show that we can effectively reuse stored off-processor data. We present experimental data from a 3-D unstructured Euler solver run on iPSC/860 to demonstrate the usefulness of our methods.

Keeping the Spirits Up: The Effect of Teachers' and Parents' Emotional Support on Children's Working Memory Performance.

PubMed

Vandenbroucke, Loren; Spilt, Jantine; Verschueren, Karine; Baeyens, Dieter

2017-01-01

Working memory, used to temporarily store and mentally manipulate information, is important for children's learning. It is therefore valuable to understand which (contextual) factors promote or hinder working memory performance. Recent research shows positive associations between positive parent-child and teacher-student interactions and working memory performance and development. However, no study has yet experimentally investigated how parents and teachers affect working memory performance. Based on attachment theory, the current study investigated the role of parent and teacher emotional support in promoting working memory performance by buffering the negative effect of social stress. Questionnaires and an experimental session were completed by 170 children from grade 1 to 2 ( M age = 7 years 6 months, SD = 7 months). Questionnaires were used to assess children's perceptions of the teacher-student and parent-child relationship. During an experimental session, working memory was measured with the Corsi task backward (Milner, 1971) in a pre- and post-test design. In-between the tests stress was induced in the children using the Cyberball paradigm (Williams et al., 2000). Emotional support was manipulated (between-subjects) through an audio message (either a weather report, a supportive message of a stranger, a supportive message of a parent, or a supportive message of a teacher). Results of repeated measures ANOVA showed no clear effect of the stress induction. Nevertheless, an effect of parent and teacher support was found and depended on the quality of the parent-child relationship. When children had a positive relationship with their parent, support of parents and teachers had little effect on working memory performance. When children had a negative relationship with their parent, a supportive message of that parent decreased working memory performance, while a supportive message from the teacher increased performance. In sum, the current study suggests that parents and teachers can support working memory performance by being supportive for the child. Teacher support is most effective when the child has a negative relationship with the parent. These insights can give direction to specific measures aimed at preventing and resolving working memory problems and related issues.

Keeping the Spirits Up: The Effect of Teachers’ and Parents’ Emotional Support on Children’s Working Memory Performance

PubMed Central

Vandenbroucke, Loren; Spilt, Jantine; Verschueren, Karine; Baeyens, Dieter

2017-01-01

Working memory, used to temporarily store and mentally manipulate information, is important for children’s learning. It is therefore valuable to understand which (contextual) factors promote or hinder working memory performance. Recent research shows positive associations between positive parent–child and teacher–student interactions and working memory performance and development. However, no study has yet experimentally investigated how parents and teachers affect working memory performance. Based on attachment theory, the current study investigated the role of parent and teacher emotional support in promoting working memory performance by buffering the negative effect of social stress. Questionnaires and an experimental session were completed by 170 children from grade 1 to 2 (Mage = 7 years 6 months, SD = 7 months). Questionnaires were used to assess children’s perceptions of the teacher–student and parent–child relationship. During an experimental session, working memory was measured with the Corsi task backward (Milner, 1971) in a pre- and post-test design. In-between the tests stress was induced in the children using the Cyberball paradigm (Williams et al., 2000). Emotional support was manipulated (between-subjects) through an audio message (either a weather report, a supportive message of a stranger, a supportive message of a parent, or a supportive message of a teacher). Results of repeated measures ANOVA showed no clear effect of the stress induction. Nevertheless, an effect of parent and teacher support was found and depended on the quality of the parent–child relationship. When children had a positive relationship with their parent, support of parents and teachers had little effect on working memory performance. When children had a negative relationship with their parent, a supportive message of that parent decreased working memory performance, while a supportive message from the teacher increased performance. In sum, the current study suggests that parents and teachers can support working memory performance by being supportive for the child. Teacher support is most effective when the child has a negative relationship with the parent. These insights can give direction to specific measures aimed at preventing and resolving working memory problems and related issues. PMID:28421026

Memory functions in chronic pain: examining contributions of attention and age to test performance.

PubMed

Oosterman, Joukje M; Derksen, Laura C; van Wijck, Albert J M; Veldhuijzen, Dieuwke S; Kessels, Roy P C

2011-01-01

Previous studies have revealed that memory performance is diminished in chronic pain patients. Few studies, however, have assessed multiple components of memory in a single sample. It is currently also unknown whether attentional problems, which are commonly observed in chronic pain, mediate the decline in memory. Finally, previous studies have focused on middle-aged adults, and a possible detrimental effect of aging on memory performance in chronic pain patients has been commonly disregarded. This study, therefore, aimed at describing the pattern of semantic, working, and visual and verbal episodic memory performance in participants with chronic pain, while testing for possible contributions of attention and age to task performance. Thirty-four participants with chronic pain and 32 pain-free participants completed tests of episodic, semantic, and working memory to assess memory performance and a test of attention. Participants with chronic pain performed worse on tests of working memory and verbal episodic memory. A decline in attention explained some, but not all, group differences in memory performance. Finally, no additional effect of age on the diminished task performance in participants with chronic pain was observed. Taken together, the results indicate that chronic pain significantly affects memory performance. Part of this effect may be caused by underlying attentional dysfunction, although this could not fully explain the observed memory decline. An increase in age in combination with the presence of chronic pain did not additionally affect memory performance.

Memory for Multiple Visual Ensembles in Infancy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zosh, Jennifer M.; Halberda, Justin; Feigenson, Lisa

2011-01-01

The number of individual items that can be maintained in working memory is limited. One solution to this problem is to store representations of ensembles that contain summary information about large numbers of items (e.g., the approximate number or cumulative area of a group of many items). Here we explored the developmental origins of ensemble…

A Resource Guide to Assistive Technology for Memory and Organization. Second Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McHale, Kathy; McHale, Sara, Ed.

The second edition of this guide to assistive technology for memory and organization is intended for professionals working with people who have learning disabilities, attention deficit disorders, neurological conditions, and psychological problems. It contains expanded and new appendices as well as new information about free Internet resources,…

Marijuana Effects on Human Forgetting Functions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lane, Scott D.; Cherek, Don R.; Lieving, Lori M.; Tcheremissine, Oleg V.

2005-01-01

It has long been known that acute marijuana administration impairs working memory (e.g., the discrimination of stimuli separated by a delay). The determination of which of the individual components of memory are altered by marijuana is an unresolved problem. Previous human studies did not use test protocols that allowed for the determination of…

Memorials: Art for Remembering.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Art to Zoo: Teaching With the Power of Objects, 1995

1995-01-01

Throughout history, in all parts of the world, people have struggled with the problem of loss. Moving words have been written and beautiful objects created to preserve the memory of people and their achievements. This theme issue explores the different ways that people have been praised and remembered in works of art. An introduction suggests a…

Consequence of preterm birth in early adolescence: the role of language on auditory short-term memory.

PubMed

Fraello, David; Maller-Kesselman, Jill; Vohr, Betty; Katz, Karol H; Kesler, Shelli; Schneider, Karen; Reiss, Allan; Ment, Laura; Spann, Marisa N

2011-06-01

This study tested the hypothesis that preterm early adolescents' short-term memory is compromised when presented with increasingly complex verbal information and that associated neuroanatomical volumes would differ between preterm and term groups. Forty-nine preterm and 20 term subjects were evaluated at age 12 years with neuropsychological measures and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). There were no differences between groups in simple short-term and working memory. Preterm subjects performed lower on learning and short-term memory tests that included increased verbal complexity. They had reduced right parietal, left temporal, and right temporal white matter volumes and greater bilateral frontal gray and right frontal white matter volumes. There was a positive association between complex working memory and the left hippocampus and frontal white matter in term subjects. While not correlated, memory scores and volumes of cortical regions known to subserve language and memory were reduced in preterm subjects. This study provides evidence of possible mechanisms for learning problems in former preterm infants.

Implicit and explicit motor sequence learning in children born very preterm.

PubMed

Jongbloed-Pereboom, Marjolein; Janssen, Anjo J W M; Steiner, K; Steenbergen, Bert; Nijhuis-van der Sanden, Maria W G

2017-01-01

Motor skills can be learned explicitly (dependent on working memory (WM)) or implicitly (relatively independent of WM). Children born very preterm (VPT) often have working memory deficits. Explicit learning may be compromised in these children. This study investigated implicit and explicit motor learning and the role of working memory in VPT children and controls. Three groups (6-9 years) participated: 20 VPT children with motor problems, 20 VPT children without motor problems, and 20 controls. A nine button sequence was learned implicitly (pressing the lighted button as quickly as possible) and explicitly (discovering the sequence via trial-and-error). Children learned implicitly and explicitly, evidenced by decreased movement duration of the sequence over time. In the explicit condition, children also reduced the number of errors over time. Controls made more errors than VPT children without motor problems. Visual WM had positive effects on both explicit and implicit performance. VPT birth and low motor proficiency did not negatively affect implicit or explicit learning. Visual WM was positively related to both implicit and explicit performance, but did not influence learning curves. These findings question the theoretical difference between implicit and explicit learning and the proposed role of visual WM therein. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cultural differences in complex addition: efficient Chinese versus adaptive Belgians and Canadians.

PubMed

Imbo, Ineke; LeFevre, Jo-Anne

2009-11-01

In the present study, the authors tested the effects of working-memory load on math problem solving in 3 different cultures: Flemish-speaking Belgians, English-speaking Canadians, and Chinese-speaking Chinese currently living in Canada. Participants solved complex addition problems (e.g., 58 + 76) in no-load and working-memory load conditions, in which either the central executive or the phonological loop was loaded. The authors used the choice/no-choice method to obtain unbiased measures of strategy selection and strategy efficiency. The Chinese participants were faster than the Belgians, who were faster and more accurate than the Canadians. The Chinese also required fewer working-memory resources than did the Belgians and Canadians. However, the Chinese chose less adaptively from the available strategies than did the Belgians and Canadians. These cultural differences in math problem solving are likely the result of different instructional approaches during elementary school (practice and training in Asian countries vs. exploration and flexibility in non-Asian countries), differences in the number language, and informal cultural norms and standards. The relevance of being adaptive is discussed as well as the implications of the results in regards to the strategy choice and discovery simulation model of strategy selection (J. Shrager & R. S. Siegler, 1998).

Impact of memory bottleneck on the performance of graphics processing units

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Son, Dong Oh; Choi, Hong Jun; Kim, Jong Myon; Kim, Cheol Hong

2015-12-01

Recent graphics processing units (GPUs) can process general-purpose applications as well as graphics applications with the help of various user-friendly application programming interfaces (APIs) supported by GPU vendors. Unfortunately, utilizing the hardware resource in the GPU efficiently is a challenging problem, since the GPU architecture is totally different to the traditional CPU architecture. To solve this problem, many studies have focused on the techniques for improving the system performance using GPUs. In this work, we analyze the GPU performance varying GPU parameters such as the number of cores and clock frequency. According to our simulations, the GPU performance can be improved by 125.8% and 16.2% on average as the number of cores and clock frequency increase, respectively. However, the performance is saturated when memory bottleneck problems incur due to huge data requests to the memory. The performance of GPUs can be improved as the memory bottleneck is reduced by changing GPU parameters dynamically.

Visuo–spatial working memory is an important source of domain-general vulnerability in the development of arithmetic cognition

PubMed Central

Ashkenazi, Sarit; Rosenberg-Lee, Miriam; Metcalfe, Arron W.S.; Swigart, Anna G.; Menon, Vinod

2014-01-01

The study of developmental disorders can provide a unique window into the role of domain-general cognitive abilities and neural systems in typical and atypical development. Mathematical disabilities (MD) are characterized by marked difficulty in mathematical cognition in the presence of preserved intelligence and verbal ability. Although studies of MD have most often focused on the role of core deficits in numerical processing, domain-general cognitive abilities, in particular working memory (WM), have also been implicated. Here we identify specific WM components that are impaired in children with MD and then examine their role in arithmetic problem solving. Compared to typically developing (TD) children, the MD group demonstrated lower arithmetic performance and lower visuo-spatial working memory (VSWM) scores with preserved abilities on the phonological and central executive components of WM. Whole brain analysis revealed that, during arithmetic problem solving, left posterior parietal cortex, bilateral dorsolateral and ventrolateral prefrontal cortex, cingulate gyrus and precuneus, and fusiform gyrus responses were positively correlated with VSWM ability in TD children, but not in the MD group. Additional analyses using a priori posterior parietal cortex regions previously implicated in WM tasks, demonstrated a convergent pattern of results during arithmetic problem solving. These results suggest that MD is characterized by a common locus of arithmetic and VSWM deficits at both the cognitive and functional neuroanatomical levels. Unlike TD children, children with MD do not use VSWM resources appropriately during arithmetic problem solving. This work advances our understanding of VSWM as an important domain-general cognitive process in both typical and atypical mathematical skill development. PMID:23896444

Are planning, working memory, and inhibition associated with individual differences in preschool ADHD symptoms?

PubMed

Sonuga-Barke, Edmund J S; Dalen, Lindy; Daley, Dave; Remington, Bob

2002-01-01

The association between executive function (EF; planning, working memory, and inhibition) and individual differences in symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) was explored in a sample of preschool children. One hundred sixty children (between the ages of 3 years, 0 months and 5 years, 6 months), selected so as to oversample high ADHD scorers, performed 3 tasks previously shown to measure planning (Tower of London), working memory (Noisy Book) and inhibition ("Puppet Says..."). EF measures were reliable (kappa > .77) and were correlated with IQ (rs > .38) and age (rs > .59). Once IQ and age were controlled, planning and working memory (r = .41) were correlated. Planning and working memory were not correlated with inhibition (rs < .20). There was no association between ADHD and working memory or planning (rs < .12). There was a significant negative association between ADHD and conduct problems and inhibition (r = -.30 and r = -.25, respectively). Only the link with ADHD persisted after the effects of other factors were controlled for in a multiple regression. Specific deficits in inhibitory control rather than general EF deficits are associated with ADHD in the preschool period. This association is linear in nature, supporting the idea that ADHD is better seen as a continuum rather than a discrete category. This association provides evidence for Barkley's (1997) view that ADHD is underpinned by inhibitory deficits in the preschool period.

Effects of Cognitive Strategy Interventions on Word Problem Solving and Working Memory in Children with Math Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Swanson, H. Lee; Lussier, Catherine; Orosco, Michael

2011-01-01

Although current categories of learning disabilities include as specific disabilities calculation and mathematical problem solving [see IDEA reauthorization, 2004, Sec. 300.8(c)(10)], the majority of research focuses on calculation disabilities. Previous studies have shown, however, that deficits in word problem solving difficulties are persistent…

Emotional working memory capacity in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

PubMed Central

Schweizer, Susanne; Dalgleish, Tim

2011-01-01

Participants with a lifetime history of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and trauma-exposed controls with no PTSD history completed an emotional working memory capacity (eWMC) task. The task required them to remember lists of neutral words over short intervals while simultaneously processing sentences describing dysfunctional trauma-related thoughts (relative to neutral control sentences). The task was designed to operationalise an everyday cognitive challenge for those with mental health problems such as PTSD; namely, the ability to carry out simple, routine tasks with emotionally benign material, while at the same time tackling emotional laden intrusive thoughts and feelings. eWMC performance, indexed as the ability to remember the word lists in the context of trauma sentences, relative to neutral sentences, was poorer overall in the PTSD group compared with controls, suggestive of a particular difficulty employing working memory in emotion-related contexts in those with a history of PTSD. The possible implications for developing affective working memory training as an adjunctive treatment for PTSD are explored. PMID:21684525

Narrative production in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD): Similarities and differences.

PubMed

Kuijper, Sanne J M; Hartman, Catharina A; Bogaerds-Hazenberg, Suzanne T M; Hendriks, Petra

2017-01-01

The present study focuses on the similarities and differences in language production between children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). In addition, we investigated whether Theory of Mind (ToM), working memory, and response inhibition are associated with language production. Narratives, produced by 106 Dutch-speaking children (36 with ASD, 34 with ADHD, and 36 typically developing) aged 6 to 12 during ADOS assessment, were examined on several linguistic measures: verbal productivity, speech fluency, syntactic complexity, lexical semantics, and discourse pragmatics. Children were tested on ToM, working memory, and response inhibition and parents filled in the Children's Communication Checklist (CCC-2). Gold-standard diagnostic measures (Autism Diagnostic Observation Schema [ADOS], Autism Diagnostic Interview Revised [ADI-R], and the Parent Interview for Child Symptoms [PICS]) were administered to all children to confirm diagnosis. Regarding similarities, both clinical groups showed impairments in narrative performance relative to typically developing children. These were confirmed by the CCC-2. These impairments were not only present on pragmatic measures, such as the inability to produce a narrative in a coherent and cohesive way, but also on syntactic complexity and their production of repetitions. As for differences, children with ADHD but not children with ASD showed problems in their choice of referring expressions and speech fluency. ToM and working memory performance but not response inhibition were associated with many narrative skills, suggesting that these cognitive mechanisms explain some of the impairments in language production. We conclude that children with ASD and children with ADHD manifest multiple and diverse language production problems, which may partly relate to their problems in ToM and working memory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Associations between speech understanding and auditory and visual tests of verbal working memory: effects of linguistic complexity, task, age, and hearing loss

PubMed Central

Smith, Sherri L.; Pichora-Fuller, M. Kathleen

2015-01-01

Listeners with hearing loss commonly report having difficulty understanding speech, particularly in noisy environments. Their difficulties could be due to auditory and cognitive processing problems. Performance on speech-in-noise tests has been correlated with reading working memory span (RWMS), a measure often chosen to avoid the effects of hearing loss. If the goal is to assess the cognitive consequences of listeners’ auditory processing abilities, however, then listening working memory span (LWMS) could be a more informative measure. Some studies have examined the effects of different degrees and types of masking on working memory, but less is known about the demands placed on working memory depending on the linguistic complexity of the target speech or the task used to measure speech understanding in listeners with hearing loss. Compared to RWMS, LWMS measures using different speech targets and maskers may provide a more ecologically valid approach. To examine the contributions of RWMS and LWMS to speech understanding, we administered two working memory measures (a traditional RWMS measure and a new LWMS measure), and a battery of tests varying in the linguistic complexity of the speech materials, the presence of babble masking, and the task. Participants were a group of younger listeners with normal hearing and two groups of older listeners with hearing loss (n = 24 per group). There was a significant group difference and a wider range in performance on LWMS than on RWMS. There was a significant correlation between both working memory measures only for the oldest listeners with hearing loss. Notably, there were only few significant correlations among the working memory and speech understanding measures. These findings suggest that working memory measures reflect individual differences that are distinct from those tapped by these measures of speech understanding. PMID:26441769

Accounting for Individual Variability in Inversion Shortcut Use

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dube, Adam K.; Robinson, Katherine M.

2010-01-01

This study investigated whether children's inversion shortcut use (i.e., reasoning that no calculations are required for the problem 4 x 8 divided by 8, as the answer is the first number) is related to their analogical reasoning ability, short-term memory capacity, and working memory capacity. Children from Grades 6 and 8 solved multiplication and…

Sparse distributed memory overview

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Raugh, Mike

1990-01-01

The Sparse Distributed Memory (SDM) project is investigating the theory and applications of massively parallel computing architecture, called sparse distributed memory, that will support the storage and retrieval of sensory and motor patterns characteristic of autonomous systems. The immediate objectives of the project are centered in studies of the memory itself and in the use of the memory to solve problems in speech, vision, and robotics. Investigation of methods for encoding sensory data is an important part of the research. Examples of NASA missions that may benefit from this work are Space Station, planetary rovers, and solar exploration. Sparse distributed memory offers promising technology for systems that must learn through experience and be capable of adapting to new circumstances, and for operating any large complex system requiring automatic monitoring and control. Sparse distributed memory is a massively parallel architecture motivated by efforts to understand how the human brain works. Sparse distributed memory is an associative memory, able to retrieve information from cues that only partially match patterns stored in the memory. It is able to store long temporal sequences derived from the behavior of a complex system, such as progressive records of the system's sensory data and correlated records of the system's motor controls.

Using a Process Dissociation Approach to Assess Verbal Short-Term Memory for Item and Order Information in a Sample of Individuals with a Self-Reported Diagnosis of Dyslexia

PubMed Central

Wang, Xiaoli; Xuan, Yifu; Jarrold, Christopher

2016-01-01

Previous studies have examined whether difficulties in short-term memory for verbal information, that might be associated with dyslexia, are driven by problems in retaining either information about to-be-remembered items or the order in which these items were presented. However, such studies have not used process-pure measures of short-term memory for item or order information. In this work we adapt a process dissociation procedure to properly distinguish the contributions of item and order processes to verbal short-term memory in a group of 28 adults with a self-reported diagnosis of dyslexia and a comparison sample of 29 adults without a dyslexia diagnosis. In contrast to previous work that has suggested that individuals with dyslexia experience item deficits resulting from inefficient phonological representation and language-independent order memory deficits, the results showed no evidence of specific problems in short-term retention of either item or order information among the individuals with a self-reported diagnosis of dyslexia, despite this group showing expected difficulties on separate measures of word and non-word reading. However, there was some suggestive evidence of a link between order memory for verbal material and individual differences in non-word reading, consistent with other claims for a role of order memory in phonologically mediated reading. The data from the current study therefore provide empirical evidence to question the extent to which item and order short-term memory are necessarily impaired in dyslexia. PMID:26941679

Using a Process Dissociation Approach to Assess Verbal Short-Term Memory for Item and Order Information in a Sample of Individuals with a Self-Reported Diagnosis of Dyslexia.

PubMed

Wang, Xiaoli; Xuan, Yifu; Jarrold, Christopher

2016-01-01

Previous studies have examined whether difficulties in short-term memory for verbal information, that might be associated with dyslexia, are driven by problems in retaining either information about to-be-remembered items or the order in which these items were presented. However, such studies have not used process-pure measures of short-term memory for item or order information. In this work we adapt a process dissociation procedure to properly distinguish the contributions of item and order processes to verbal short-term memory in a group of 28 adults with a self-reported diagnosis of dyslexia and a comparison sample of 29 adults without a dyslexia diagnosis. In contrast to previous work that has suggested that individuals with dyslexia experience item deficits resulting from inefficient phonological representation and language-independent order memory deficits, the results showed no evidence of specific problems in short-term retention of either item or order information among the individuals with a self-reported diagnosis of dyslexia, despite this group showing expected difficulties on separate measures of word and non-word reading. However, there was some suggestive evidence of a link between order memory for verbal material and individual differences in non-word reading, consistent with other claims for a role of order memory in phonologically mediated reading. The data from the current study therefore provide empirical evidence to question the extent to which item and order short-term memory are necessarily impaired in dyslexia.

Dynamic programming on a shared-memory multiprocessor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Edmonds, Phil; Chu, Eleanor; George, Alan

1993-01-01

Three new algorithms for solving dynamic programming problems on a shared-memory parallel computer are described. All three algorithms attempt to balance work load, while keeping synchronization cost low. In particular, for a multiprocessor having p processors, an analysis of the best algorithm shows that the arithmetic cost is O(n-cubed/6p) and that the synchronization cost is O(absolute value of log sub C n) if p much less than n, where C = (2p-1)/(2p + 1) and n is the size of the problem. The low synchronization cost is important for machines where synchronization is expensive. Analysis and experiments show that the best algorithm is effective in balancing the work load and producing high efficiency.

Cognitive Risk Factors for Specific Learning Disorder: Processing Speed, Temporal Processing, and Working Memory.

PubMed

Moll, Kristina; Göbel, Silke M; Gooch, Debbie; Landerl, Karin; Snowling, Margaret J

2016-01-01

High comorbidity rates between reading disorder (RD) and mathematics disorder (MD) indicate that, although the cognitive core deficits underlying these disorders are distinct, additional domain-general risk factors might be shared between the disorders. Three domain-general cognitive abilities were investigated in children with RD and MD: processing speed, temporal processing, and working memory. Since attention problems frequently co-occur with learning disorders, the study examined whether these three factors, which are known to be associated with attention problems, account for the comorbidity between these disorders. The sample comprised 99 primary school children in four groups: children with RD, children with MD, children with both disorders (RD+MD), and typically developing children (TD controls). Measures of processing speed, temporal processing, and memory were analyzed in a series of ANCOVAs including attention ratings as covariate. All three risk factors were associated with poor attention. After controlling for attention, associations with RD and MD differed: Although deficits in verbal memory were associated with both RD and MD, reduced processing speed was related to RD, but not MD; and the association with RD was restricted to processing speed for familiar nameable symbols. In contrast, impairments in temporal processing and visuospatial memory were associated with MD, but not RD. © Hammill Institute on Disabilities 2014.

Phonological Coding Abilities: Identification of Impairments Related to Phonologically Based Reading Problems.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Swank, Linda K.

1994-01-01

Relationships between phonological coding abilities and reading outcomes have implications for differential diagnosis of language-based reading problems. The theoretical construct of specific phonological coding ability is explained, including phonological encoding, phonological awareness and metaphonology, lexical access, working memory, and…

Exploration versus exploitation in space, mind, and society

PubMed Central

Hills, Thomas T.; Todd, Peter M.; Lazer, David; Redish, A. David; Couzin, Iain D.

2015-01-01

Search is a ubiquitous property of life. Although diverse domains have worked on search problems largely in isolation, recent trends across disciplines indicate that the formal properties of these problems share similar structures and, often, similar solutions. Moreover, internal search (e.g., memory search) shows similar characteristics to external search (e.g., spatial foraging), including shared neural mechanisms consistent with a common evolutionary origin across species. Search problems and their solutions also scale from individuals to societies, underlying and constraining problem solving, memory, information search, and scientific and cultural innovation. In summary, search represents a core feature of cognition, with a vast influence on its evolution and processes across contexts and requiring input from multiple domains to understand its implications and scope. PMID:25487706

Phonological working memory impairments in children with specific language impairment: where does the problem lie?

PubMed

Alt, Mary

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine which factors contribute to the lexical learning deficits of children with specific language impairment (SLI). Participants included 40 7-8-year old participants, half of whom were diagnosed with SLI and half of whom had normal language skills. We tested hypotheses about the contributions to word learning of the initial encoding of phonological information and the link to long-term memory. Children took part in a computer-based fast-mapping task which manipulated word length and phonotactic probability to address the hypotheses. The task had a recognition and a production component. Data were analyzed using mixed ANOVAs with post-hoc testing. Results indicate that the main problem for children with SLI is with initial encoding, with implications for limited capacity. There was not strong evidence for specific deficits in the link to long-term memory. We were able to ascertain which aspects of lexical learning are most problematic for children with SLI in terms of fast-mapping. These findings may allow clinicians to focus intervention on known areas of weakness. Future directions include extending these findings to slow mapping scenarios. The reader will understand how different components of phonological working memory contribute to the word learning problems of children with specific language impairment. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

CABINS: Case-based interactive scheduler

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miyashita, Kazuo; Sycara, Katia

1992-01-01

In this paper we discuss the need for interactive factory schedule repair and improvement, and we identify case-based reasoning (CBR) as an appropriate methodology. Case-based reasoning is the problem solving paradigm that relies on a memory for past problem solving experiences (cases) to guide current problem solving. Cases similar to the current case are retrieved from the case memory, and similarities and differences of the current case to past cases are identified. Then a best case is selected, and its repair plan is adapted to fit the current problem description. If a repair solution fails, an explanation for the failure is stored along with the case in memory, so that the user can avoid repeating similar failures in the future. So far we have identified a number of repair strategies and tactics for factory scheduling and have implemented a part of our approach in a prototype system, called CABINS. As a future work, we are going to scale up CABINS to evaluate its usefulness in a real manufacturing environment.

Cognitive Predictors of Achievement Growth in Mathematics: A Five Year Longitudinal Study

PubMed Central

Geary, David C.

2011-01-01

The study's goal was to identify the beginning of first grade quantitative competencies that predict mathematics achievement start point and growth through fifth grade. Measures of number, counting, and arithmetic competencies were administered in early first grade and used to predict mathematics achievement through fifth (n = 177), while controlling for intelligence, working memory, and processing speed. Multilevel models revealed intelligence, processing speed, and the central executive component of working memory predicted achievement or achievement growth in mathematics and, as a contrast domain, word reading. The phonological loop was uniquely predictive of word reading and the visuospatial sketch pad of mathematics. Early fluency in processing and manipulating numerical set size and Arabic numerals, accurate use of sophisticated counting procedures for solving addition problems, and accuracy in making placements on a mathematical number line were uniquely predictive of mathematics achievement. Use of memory-based processes to solve addition problems predicted mathematics and reading achievement but in different ways. The results identify the early quantitative competencies that uniquely contribute to mathematics learning. PMID:21942667

[Formula: see text]Differences in memory functioning between children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and/or focal epilepsy.

PubMed

Lee, Sylvia E; Kibby, Michelle Y; Cohen, Morris J; Stanford, Lisa; Park, Yong; Strickland, Suzanne

2016-01-01

Prior research has shown that attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and epilepsy are frequently comorbid and that both disorders are associated with various attention and memory problems. Nonetheless, limited research has been conducted comparing the two disorders in one sample to determine unique versus shared deficits. Hence, we investigated differences in working memory (WM) and short-term and delayed recall between children with ADHD, focal epilepsy of mixed foci, comorbid ADHD/epilepsy and controls. Participants were compared on the Core subtests and the Picture Locations subtest of the Children's Memory Scale (CMS). Results indicated that children with ADHD displayed intact verbal WM and long-term memory (LTM), as well as intact performance on most aspects of short-term memory (STM). They performed worse than controls on Numbers Forward and Picture Locations, suggesting problems with focused attention and simple span for visual-spatial material. Conversely, children with epilepsy displayed poor focused attention and STM regardless of the modality assessed, which affected encoding into LTM. The only loss over time was found for passages (Stories). WM was intact. Children with comorbid ADHD/epilepsy displayed focused attention and STM/LTM problems consistent with both disorders, having the lowest scores across the four groups. Hence, focused attention and visual-spatial span appear to be affected in both disorders, whereas additional STM/encoding problems are specific to epilepsy. Children with comorbid ADHD/epilepsy have deficits consistent with both disorders, with slight additive effects. This study suggests that attention and memory testing should be a regular part of the evaluation of children with epilepsy and ADHD.

Roles of Variables in Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sorva, Juha; Karavirta, Ville; Korhonen, Ari

2007-01-01

Expert programmers possess schemas, abstractions of concrete experiences, which help them solve programming problems and lessen the load on their working memory during problem solving. Possession of schemas is a key difference between novices and experts, which is why instructors need to help students construct them. One recent tool for…

Sentence comprehension following moderate closed head injury in adults.

PubMed

Leikin, Mark; Ibrahim, Raphiq; Aharon-Peretz, Judith

2012-09-01

The current study explores sentence comprehension impairments among adults following moderate closed head injury. It was hypothesized that if the factor of syntactic complexity significantly affects sentence comprehension in these patients, it would testify to the existence of syntactic processing deficit along with working-memory problems. Thirty-six adults (18 closed head injury patients and 18 healthy controls matched in age, gender, and IQ) participated in the study. A picture-sentence matching task together with various tests for memory, language, and reading abilities were used to explore whether sentence comprehension impairments exist as a result of a deficit in syntactic processing or of working-memory dysfunction. Results indicate significant impairment in sentence comprehension among adults with closed head injury compared with their non-head-injured peers. Results also reveal that closed head injury patients demonstrate considerable decline in working memory, short-term memory, and semantic knowledge. Analysis of the results shows that memory impairment and syntactic complexity contribute significantly to sentence comprehension difficulties in closed head injury patients. At the same time, the presentation mode (spoken or written language) was found to have no effect on comprehension among adults with closed head injury, and their reading abilities appear to be relatively intact.

A balanced memory network.

PubMed

Roudi, Yasser; Latham, Peter E

2007-09-01

A fundamental problem in neuroscience is understanding how working memory--the ability to store information at intermediate timescales, like tens of seconds--is implemented in realistic neuronal networks. The most likely candidate mechanism is the attractor network, and a great deal of effort has gone toward investigating it theoretically. Yet, despite almost a quarter century of intense work, attractor networks are not fully understood. In particular, there are still two unanswered questions. First, how is it that attractor networks exhibit irregular firing, as is observed experimentally during working memory tasks? And second, how many memories can be stored under biologically realistic conditions? Here we answer both questions by studying an attractor neural network in which inhibition and excitation balance each other. Using mean-field analysis, we derive a three-variable description of attractor networks. From this description it follows that irregular firing can exist only if the number of neurons involved in a memory is large. The same mean-field analysis also shows that the number of memories that can be stored in a network scales with the number of excitatory connections, a result that has been suggested for simple models but never shown for realistic ones. Both of these predictions are verified using simulations with large networks of spiking neurons.

Executive Functions as Moderators of the Worked Example Effect: When Shifting Is More Important than Working Memory Capacity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schwaighofer, Matthias; Bühner, Markus; Fischer, Frank

2016-01-01

Worked examples have proven to be effective for knowledge acquisition compared with problem solving, particularly when prior knowledge is low (e.g., Kalyuga, 2007). However, in addition to prior knowledge, executive functions and fluid intelligence might be potential moderators of the effectiveness of worked examples. The present study examines…

Working Memory, Reasoning, and Task Switching Training: Transfer Effects, Limitations, and Great Expectations?

PubMed Central

Baniqued, Pauline L.; Ward, Nathan; Geyer, Alexandra; Kramer, Arthur F.

2015-01-01

Although some studies have shown that cognitive training can produce improvements to untrained cognitive domains (far transfer), many others fail to show these effects, especially when it comes to improving fluid intelligence. The current study was designed to overcome several limitations of previous training studies by incorporating training expectancy assessments, an active control group, and “Mind Frontiers,” a video game-based mobile program comprised of six adaptive, cognitively demanding training tasks that have been found to lead to increased scores in fluid intelligence (Gf) tests. We hypothesize that such integrated training may lead to broad improvements in cognitive abilities by targeting aspects of working memory, executive function, reasoning, and problem solving. Ninety participants completed 20 hour-and-a-half long training sessions over four to five weeks, 45 of whom played Mind Frontiers and 45 of whom completed visual search and change detection tasks (active control). After training, the Mind Frontiers group improved in working memory n-back tests, a composite measure of perceptual speed, and a composite measure of reaction time in reasoning tests. No training-related improvements were found in reasoning accuracy or other working memory tests, nor in composite measures of episodic memory, selective attention, divided attention, and multi-tasking. Perceived self-improvement in the tested abilities did not differ between groups. A general expectancy difference in problem-solving was observed between groups, but this perceived benefit did not correlate with training-related improvement. In summary, although these findings provide modest evidence regarding the efficacy of an integrated cognitive training program, more research is needed to determine the utility of Mind Frontiers as a cognitive training tool. PMID:26555341

Mental Objects in Working Memory: Development of Basic Capacity or of Cognitive Completion?

PubMed Central

Cowan, Nelson

2018-01-01

Working memory is the small amount of information that we hold in mind and use to carry out cognitive processes such as language comprehension and production, problem-solving, and decision-making. In order to understand cognitive development, it would be helpful to know whether working memory increases in capacity with development and, if so, how and why. I will focus on two major stumbling blocks toward understanding working memory development, namely that (1) many potentially relevant aspects of the mind change in parallel during development, obscuring the role of any one change; and (2) one cannot use the same test procedure from infancy to adulthood, complicating comparisons across age groups. With regard to the first stumbling block, the parallel development of different aspects of the mind, we discuss research in which attempts were made to hold constant some factors (knowledge, strategies, direction of attention) to investigate whether developmental differences remain. With regard to the second stumbling block, procedural differences in tests at different age groups, I suggest ways in which the results might be reconciled across procedures. I highlight the value of pursuing research that could distinguish between two different key hypotheses that emerge: that there is a developmental increase in the number of working memory slots (or in a basic resource that holds items in working memory), and that there is a developmental increase in the amount of detail that each of these slots can hold. PMID:28215289

Mental Objects in Working Memory: Development of Basic Capacity or of Cognitive Completion?

PubMed

Cowan, N

2017-01-01

Working memory is the small amount of information that we hold in mind and use to carry out cognitive processes such as language comprehension and production, problem solving, and decision making. In order to understand cognitive development, it would be helpful to know whether working memory increases in capacity with development and, if so, how and why. I will focus on two major stumbling blocks toward understanding working memory development, namely that (1) many potentially relevant aspects of the mind change in parallel during development, obscuring the role of any one change; and (2) one cannot use the same test procedure from infancy to adulthood, complicating comparisons across age groups. With regard to the first stumbling block, the parallel development of different aspects of the mind, we discuss research in which attempts were made to hold constant some factors (knowledge, strategies, direction of attention) to investigate whether developmental differences remain. With regard to the second stumbling block, procedural differences in tests for different age groups, I suggest ways in which the results might be reconciled across procedures. I highlight the value of pursuing research that could distinguish between two different key hypotheses that emerge: that there is a developmental increase in the number of working memory slots (or in a basic resource that holds items in working memory), and that there is a developmental increase in the amount of detail that each of these slots can hold. © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Reasoning and dyslexia: is visual memory a compensatory resource?

PubMed

Bacon, Alison M; Handley, Simon J

2014-11-01

Effective reasoning is fundamental to problem solving and achievement in education and employment. Protocol studies have previously suggested that people with dyslexia use reasoning strategies based on visual mental representations, whereas non-dyslexics use abstract verbal strategies. This research presents converging evidence from experimental and individual differences perspectives. In Experiment 1, dyslexic and non-dyslexic participants were similarly accurate on reasoning problems, but scores on a measure of visual memory ability only predicted reasoning accuracy for dyslexics. In Experiment 2, a secondary task loaded visual memory resources during concurrent reasoning. Dyslexics were significantly less accurate when reasoning under conditions of high memory load and showed reduced ability to subsequently recall the visual stimuli, suggesting that the memory and reasoning tasks were competing for the same visual cognitive resource. The results are consistent with an explanation based on limitations in the verbal and executive components of working memory in dyslexia and the use of compensatory visual strategies for reasoning. There are implications for cognitive activities that do not readily support visual thinking, whether in education, employment or less formal everyday settings. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Variation in Parasympathetic Dysregulation Moderates Short-term Memory Problems in Childhood Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.

PubMed

Ward, Anthony R; Alarcón, Gabriela; Nigg, Joel T; Musser, Erica D

2015-11-01

Although attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is associated with impairment in working memory and short-term memory, up to half of individual children with ADHD perform within a normative range. Heterogeneity in other ADHD-related mechanisms, which may compensate for or combine with cognitive weaknesses, is a likely explanation. One candidate is the robustness of parasympathetic regulation (as indexed by respiratory sinus arrhythmia; RSA). Theory and data suggest that a common neural network is likely tied to both heart-rate regulation and certain cognitive functions (including aspects of working and short-term memory). Cardiac-derived indices of parasympathetic reactivity were collected during short-term memory (STM) storage and rehearsal tasks from 243 children (116 ADHD, 127 controls). ADHD was associated with lower STM performance, replicating previous work. In addition, RSA reactivity moderated the association between STM and ADHD - both as a category and a dimension - independent of comorbidity. Specifically, conditional effects revealed that high levels of withdrawal interacted with weakened STM but high levels of augmentation moderated a positive association predicting ADHD. Thus, variations in parasympathetic reactivity may help explain neuropsychological heterogeneity in ADHD.

ConfChem Conference on Flipped Classroom: Time-Saving Resources Aligned with Cognitive Science to Help Instructors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hartman, JudithAnn R.; Dahm, Donald J.; Nelson, Eric A.

2015-01-01

Studies in cognitive science have verified that working memory (where the brain solves problems) can manipulate nearly all elements of knowledge that can be recalled automatically from long-term memory, but only a few elements that have not previously been well memorized. Research in reading comprehension has found that "lecture notes with…

Count on dopamine: influences of COMT polymorphisms on numerical cognition

PubMed Central

Júlio-Costa, Annelise; Antunes, Andressa M.; Lopes-Silva, Júlia B.; Moreira, Bárbara C.; Vianna, Gabrielle S.; Wood, Guilherme; Carvalho, Maria R. S.; Haase, Vitor G.

2013-01-01

Catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) is an enzyme that is particularly important for the metabolism of dopamine. Functional polymorphisms of COMT have been implicated in working memory and numerical cognition. This is an exploratory study that aims at investigating associations between COMT polymorphisms, working memory, and numerical cognition. Elementary school children from 2th to 6th grades were divided into two groups according to their COMT val158met polymorphism [homozygous for valine allele (n = 61) vs. heterozygous plus methionine homozygous children or met+ group (n = 94)]. Both groups were matched for age and intelligence. Working memory was assessed through digit span and Corsi blocks. Symbolic numerical processing was assessed through transcoding and single-digit word problem tasks. Non-symbolic magnitude comparison and estimation tasks were used to assess number sense. Between-group differences were found in symbolic and non-symbolic numerical tasks, but not in working memory tasks. Children in the met+ group showed better performance in all numerical tasks while val homozygous children presented slower development of non-symbolic magnitude representations. These results suggest COMT-related dopaminergic modulation may be related not only to working memory, as found in previous studies, but also to the development of magnitude processing and magnitude representations. PMID:23966969

Post-treatment cognitive dysfunction in women treated with thyroidectomy for papillary thyroid carcinoma.

PubMed

Jung, Mi Sook; Visovatti, Moira

2017-03-01

The purpose of the study is to assess cognitive function in papillary thyroid cancer, one type of differentiated thyroid cancer, and to identify factors associated with cognitive dysfunction. Korean women treated with papillary thyroid cancer post thyroidectomy (n = 90) and healthy women similar in age and educational level (n = 90) performed attention and working memory tests and completed self-report questionnaires on cognitive complaints, psychological distress, symptom distress, and cultural characteristics. Comparative and multivariable regression analyses were performed to determine differences in cognitive function and possible predictors of neurocognitive performance and cognitive complaints. Thyroid cancer survivors performed and perceived their function to be significantly worse on tests of attention and working memory compared to individuals without thyroid cancer. Regression analyses found that having thyroid cancer, older age, and lower educational level were associated with worse neurocognitive performance, while greater fatigue, more sleep problems, and higher levels of childrearing burden but not having thyroid cancer were associated with lower perceived effectiveness in cognitive functioning. Findings suggest that women receiving thyroid hormone replacement therapy after thyroidectomy for papillary thyroid cancer are at risk for attention and working memory problems. Coexisting symptoms and culture-related women's burden affected perceived cognitive dysfunction. Health care providers should assess for cognitive problems in women with thyroid cancer and intervene to reduce distress and improve quality of life.

Solving Large Problems with a Small Working Memory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pizlo, Zygmunt; Stefanov, Emil

2013-01-01

We describe an important elaboration of our multiscale/multiresolution model for solving the Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP). Our previous model emulated the non-uniform distribution of receptors on the human retina and the shifts of visual attention. This model produced near-optimal solutions of TSP in linear time by performing hierarchical…

ADD, LD and Extended Information Processing.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stolzenberg, J. B.; Cherkes-Julkowski, M.

This study examines executive function and its relationship to attention dysfunction and working memory. It attempts to document the manifestations of executive function problems in school-related extended processing tasks, such as verbal problem-solving in math and reading of extended passages. Subjects (in grades 1-12) included 49 children with…

[Executive dysfunctions in adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder].

PubMed

Rodriguez-Jiménez, R; Cubillo, A; Jiménez-Arriero, M A; Ponce, G; Aragüés-Figuero, M; Palomo, T

Several different follow-up studies have shown that attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can persist into adulthood. To review the findings in adults with ADHD related to alterations in the executive functions. Research conducted among children with ADHD has revealed the existence of alterations in different tasks that evaluate the executive functions, such as the planning test, sustained attention tasks, cognitive flexibility, verbal fluency and working memory tasks, as well as several inhibition response tasks. In adults with ADHD, despite the lower number of reports in the literature and the methodological shortcomings that exist in some studies, analogous results have also been described with respect to executive functioning, namely, disorders affecting inhibition response, the capacity for planning, difficulties in cognitive flexibility and verbal fluency, and problems with working memory, which include aspects of spatial working memory, logical or visual memory. The findings we have available at present enable us to confirm the persistence of executive dysfunctions in adult patients with ADHD that are similar to those observed in children with ADHD.

"I Think I Can, but I'm Afraid to Try": The Role of Self-Efficacy Beliefs and Mathematics Anxiety in Mathematics Problem-Solving Efficiency

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hoffman, Bobby

2010-01-01

This study investigated the role of self-efficacy beliefs, mathematics anxiety, and working memory capacity in problem-solving accuracy, response time, and efficiency (the ratio of problem-solving accuracy to response time). Pre-service teachers completed a mathematics anxiety inventory measuring cognitive and affective dispositions for…

The Effect of Agent-Based Lectures on Student Learning and Conceptual Change in an Online Inquiry-Based Learning Environment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chang, Ju-Yu

2013-01-01

Cognitive load theorists claim that problem-centered instruction is not an effective instruction because it is not compatible with human cognitive structure. They argue that the nature of problem-centered instruction tends to over-load learner working memory capacity. That is why many problem-centered practices fail. To better support students and…

A Comparison of Updating Processes in Children Good or Poor in Arithmetic Word Problem-Solving

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Passolunghi, Maria Chiara; Pazzaglia, Francesca

2005-01-01

This study examines the updating ability of poor or good problem solvers. Seventy-eight fourth-graders, 43 good and 35 poor arithmetic word problem-solvers, performed the Updating Test used in Palladino et al. [Palladino, P., Cornoldi, C., De Beni, R., and Pazzaglia F. (2002). Working memory and updating processes in reading comprehension. Memory…

Intensive working memory training: a single case experimental design in a patient following hypoxic brain damage.

PubMed

Hynes, S M; Fish, J; Manly, T

2014-01-01

Recent reports suggest that intensive, progressive training on working memory tasks can lead to generalized cognitive gains. A patient, following hypoxic brain damage, showed significant difficulties in working memory and time-perception. This study examined the impact and specificity of any benefits resulting from automated working memory training (AWMT) in comparison with the effects of an equivalent programme that emphasized automated novel problem-solving (APST) which served as an active control. Following initial assessment, the patient trained for 4 weeks (20 days), 20-30 minutes a day on the APST tasks before repeating key outcome measures. He then trained for an identical period on AWMT. There were no cognitive gains apparent following APST. Furthermore, there were no disproportionate gains on digit span following AWMT. AWMT was, however, associated with improvement in time-perception that had previously been resistant to rehabilitation. In line with previous reports, AWMT was also followed by gains on a measure of planning. The results provide encouraging evidence that AWMT may have generalized benefits in the context of impaired WM capacity following brain injury.

Developmental dyslexia in adults: behavioural manifestations and cognitive correlates.

PubMed

Nergård-Nilssen, Trude; Hulme, Charles

2014-08-01

This paper explores the nature of residual literacy and cognitive deficits in self-reported dyslexic Norwegian adults. The performance of 26 self-reported dyslexic adults was compared with that of a comparison group of 47 adults with no history of reading or spelling difficulties. Participants completed standardized and experimental measures tapping literacy skills, working memory, phonological awareness and rapid naming. Spelling problems were the most prominent marker of dyslexia in adults, followed by text reading fluency and nonword decoding. Working memory and phoneme awareness explained unique variance in spelling, whereas rapid automatized naming explained unique variance in reading fluency and nonword reading. The moderate to strong correlations between self-reported history, self-rating of current literacy skills and outcomes on literacy tests indicate that adults estimated their literacy skills fairly well. Results suggest that spelling impairments, more strongly than reading impairments, make adults perceive themselves as being dyslexic. A combination of three literacy and three cognitive tests predicted group membership with 90.4% accuracy. It appears that weaknesses in phoneme awareness, rapid automatized naming and working memory are strong and persistent correlates of literacy problems even in adults learning a relatively transparent orthography. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Much ado about aha!: Insight problem solving is strongly related to working memory capacity and reasoning ability.

PubMed

Chuderski, Adam; Jastrzębski, Jan

2018-02-01

A battery comprising 4 fluid reasoning tests as well as 13 working memory (WM) tasks that involved storage, recall, updating, binding, and executive control, was applied to 318 adults in order to evaluate the true relationship of reasoning ability and WM capacity (WMC) to insight problem solving, measured using 40 verbal, spatial, math, matchstick, and remote associates problems (insight problems). WMC predicted 51.8% of variance in insight problem solving and virtually explained its almost isomorphic link to reasoning ability (84.6% of shared variance). The strong link between WMC and insight pertained generally to most WM tasks and insight problems, was identical for problems solved with and without reported insight, was linear throughout the ability levels, and was not mediated by age, motivation, anxiety, psychoticism, and openness to experience. In contrast to popular views on the sudden and holistic nature of insight, the solving of insight problems results primarily from typical operations carried out by the basic WM mechanisms that are responsible for the maintenance, retrieval, transformation, and control of information in the broad range of intellectual tasks (including fluid reasoning). Little above and beyond WM is unique about insight. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Consequences of Adolescent Exposure to the Cannabinoid Receptor Agonist WIN55,212-2 on Working Memory in Female Rats.

PubMed

Kirschmann, Erin K; McCalley, Daniel M; Edwards, Caitlyn M; Torregrossa, Mary M

2017-01-01

Marijuana is a prevalent illicit substance used by adolescents, and several studies have indicated that adolescent use can lead to long-term cognitive deficits including problems with attention and memory. However, preclinical animal studies that observe cognitive deficits after cannabinoid exposure during adolescence utilize experimenter administration of doses of cannabinoids that may exceed what an organism would choose to take, suggesting that contingency and dose are critical factors that need to be addressed in translational models of consequences of cannabinoid exposure. Indeed, we recently developed an adolescent cannabinoid self-administration paradigm in male rats, and found that prior adolescent self-administration of the cannabinoid receptor agonist WIN55,212-2 (WIN) resulted in improved working memory performance in adulthood. In addition, the doses self-administered were not as high as those that are found to produce memory deficits. However, given known sex differences in both drug self-administration and learning and memory processes, it is possible that cannabinoid self-administration could have different cognitive consequences in females. Therefore, we aimed to explore the effects of self-administered vs. experimenter-administered WIN in adolescent female rats on adult cognitive function. Female rats were trained to self-administer WIN daily throughout adolescence (postnatal day 34-59). A control group self-administered vehicle solution. The acute effects of adolescent WIN self-administration on memory were determined using a short-term spatial memory test 24 h after final SA session; and the long-term effects on cognitive performance were assessed during protracted abstinence in adulthood using a delayed-match-to-sample working memory task. In a separate experiment, females were given daily intraperitoneal (IP) injections of a low or high dose of WIN, corresponding to self-administered and typical experimenter-administered doses, respectively, or its vehicle during adolescence and working memory was assessed under drug-free conditions in adulthood. While self-administration of WIN in adolescence had no significant effects on short-term spatial memory or adult working memory, experimenter administration of WIN resulted in improved adult working memory performance that was more pronounced in the low dose group. Thus, low-dose adolescent WIN exposure, whether self-administered or experimenter-administered, results in either improvements or no change in adult working memory performance in female rats, similar to previous results found in males.

Aiding the search: Examining individual differences in multiply-constrained problem solving.

PubMed

Ellis, Derek M; Brewer, Gene A

2018-07-01

Understanding and resolving complex problems is of vital importance in daily life. Problems can be defined by the limitations they place on the problem solver. Multiply-constrained problems are traditionally examined with the compound remote associates task (CRAT). Performance on the CRAT is partially dependent on an individual's working memory capacity (WMC). These findings suggest that executive processes are critical for problem solving and that there are reliable individual differences in multiply-constrained problem solving abilities. The goals of the current study are to replicate and further elucidate the relation between WMC and CRAT performance. To achieve these goals, we manipulated preexposure to CRAT solutions and measured WMC with complex-span tasks. In Experiment 1, we report evidence that preexposure to CRAT solutions improved problem solving accuracy, WMC was correlated with problem solving accuracy, and that WMC did not moderate the effect of preexposure on problem solving accuracy. In Experiment 2, we preexposed participants to correct and incorrect solutions. We replicated Experiment 1 and found that WMC moderates the effect of exposure to CRAT solutions such that high WMC participants benefit more from preexposure to correct solutions than low WMC (although low WMC participants have preexposure benefits as well). Broadly, these results are consistent with theories of working memory and problem solving that suggest a mediating role of attention control processes. Published by Elsevier Inc.

A random utility model of delay discounting and its application to people with externalizing psychopathology.

PubMed

Dai, Junyi; Gunn, Rachel L; Gerst, Kyle R; Busemeyer, Jerome R; Finn, Peter R

2016-10-01

Previous studies have demonstrated that working memory capacity plays a central role in delay discounting in people with externalizing psychopathology. These studies used a hyperbolic discounting model, and its single parameter-a measure of delay discounting-was estimated using the standard method of searching for indifference points between intertemporal options. However, there are several problems with this approach. First, the deterministic perspective on delay discounting underlying the indifference point method might be inappropriate. Second, the estimation procedure using the R2 measure often leads to poor model fit. Third, when parameters are estimated using indifference points only, much of the information collected in a delay discounting decision task is wasted. To overcome these problems, this article proposes a random utility model of delay discounting. The proposed model has 2 parameters, 1 for delay discounting and 1 for choice variability. It was fit to choice data obtained from a recently published data set using both maximum-likelihood and Bayesian parameter estimation. As in previous studies, the delay discounting parameter was significantly associated with both externalizing problems and working memory capacity. Furthermore, choice variability was also found to be significantly associated with both variables. This finding suggests that randomness in decisions may be a mechanism by which externalizing problems and low working memory capacity are associated with poor decision making. The random utility model thus has the advantage of disclosing the role of choice variability, which had been masked by the traditional deterministic model. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

The Effects of Stress on Pilot Judgment in a MIDIS Simulator

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-02-01

stress were relatively independent of problem demands for working memory and knowledge. Keywords: Decision making; Stress psychology; Pilot judgment; Divided attention; Cognitive task analysis ; Flight simulators.

Attention and Working Memory in Female Adolescents With Chronic Pain and Pain-free Female Adolescents: A Preliminary Pilot Study.

PubMed

Mifflin, Katherine; Chorney, Jill; Dick, Bruce

2016-07-01

Adolescents with chronic pain often report inattention and poor memory. There has been little research on cognitive function in this population. The goal of this preliminary pilot study was to examine differences in cognitive function between adolescents with chronic pain to pain-free adolescents. All participants completed baseline assessments of pain, school absences, depression, anxiety, and sleep habits. Standardized neurocognitive tests were used to examine cognitive function with a focus on working memory and attention. Recruitment from the chronic pain clinic resulted in a female sample of 13 individuals (largely reflective of the clinical population). Pain-free age-matched and sex-matched individuals (n=12) were therefore also recruited as controls. Individuals with chronic pain had significantly lower working memory scores than controls. Differences were found between groups on the most difficult selective attention task and not on tests of sustained attention, divided attention, or attentional switching. In a stepwise regression with baseline characteristics entered in the first step, pain accounted for approximately 15% of the variance in working memory and medication score counted for 49% of the variance. This pilot study is the first study to examine differences in working memory and attention between participants with chronic pain and pain-free adolescents. Our findings suggest that chronic pain may negatively affect adolescents' working memory function and highlights the risk for cognitive difficulties and problems with educational progression in addition to negative health and social effects associated with chronic pain. The study provides a starting point for more research and has the potential to direct better identification and treatment of these cognitive deficits.

[Effects of marijuana on cognition: a review form the neurobiological perspective].

PubMed

Torres, Gladys; Fiestas, Fabián

2012-03-01

Marijuana is one of the most commonly used psychoactive substances in society, mainly among youths. Its use has been consistently associated with several health problems, many of which have in common an impairment in the cognitive processes of behavior, including the memory, attention, emotion and decision making. There is evidence suggesting that cannabinoids, marijuana's primary psychoactive substance, have a negative effect in short-term memory, working memory, and decision making. It has also been found that cannabinoids affect attention and the interaction between cognitive events and emotion. This information can be used as an argument of biological plausibility to assess clinical and epidemiological research findings that show that marijuana`s use is associated to problems such as traffic accidents, psychosis, depression and poor academic records, among others.

Executive Function, Visual Attention and the Cocktail Party Problem in Musicians and Non-Musicians.

PubMed

Clayton, Kameron K; Swaminathan, Jayaganesh; Yazdanbakhsh, Arash; Zuk, Jennifer; Patel, Aniruddh D; Kidd, Gerald

2016-01-01

The goal of this study was to investigate how cognitive factors influence performance in a multi-talker, "cocktail-party" like environment in musicians and non-musicians. This was achieved by relating performance in a spatial hearing task to cognitive processing abilities assessed using measures of executive function (EF) and visual attention in musicians and non-musicians. For the spatial hearing task, a speech target was presented simultaneously with two intelligible speech maskers that were either colocated with the target (0° azimuth) or were symmetrically separated from the target in azimuth (at ±15°). EF assessment included measures of cognitive flexibility, inhibition control and auditory working memory. Selective attention was assessed in the visual domain using a multiple object tracking task (MOT). For the MOT task, the observers were required to track target dots (n = 1,2,3,4,5) in the presence of interfering distractor dots. Musicians performed significantly better than non-musicians in the spatial hearing task. For the EF measures, musicians showed better performance on measures of auditory working memory compared to non-musicians. Furthermore, across all individuals, a significant correlation was observed between performance on the spatial hearing task and measures of auditory working memory. This result suggests that individual differences in performance in a cocktail party-like environment may depend in part on cognitive factors such as auditory working memory. Performance in the MOT task did not differ between groups. However, across all individuals, a significant correlation was found between performance in the MOT and spatial hearing tasks. A stepwise multiple regression analysis revealed that musicianship and performance on the MOT task significantly predicted performance on the spatial hearing task. Overall, these findings confirm the relationship between musicianship and cognitive factors including domain-general selective attention and working memory in solving the "cocktail party problem".

Building more powerful less expensive supercomputers using Processing-In-Memory (PIM) LDRD final report.

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

Murphy, Richard C.

2009-09-01

This report details the accomplishments of the 'Building More Powerful Less Expensive Supercomputers Using Processing-In-Memory (PIM)' LDRD ('PIM LDRD', number 105809) for FY07-FY09. Latency dominates all levels of supercomputer design. Within a node, increasing memory latency, relative to processor cycle time, limits CPU performance. Between nodes, the same increase in relative latency impacts scalability. Processing-In-Memory (PIM) is an architecture that directly addresses this problem using enhanced chip fabrication technology and machine organization. PIMs combine high-speed logic and dense, low-latency, high-bandwidth DRAM, and lightweight threads that tolerate latency by performing useful work during memory transactions. This work examines the potential ofmore » PIM-based architectures to support mission critical Sandia applications and an emerging class of more data intensive informatics applications. This work has resulted in a stronger architecture/implementation collaboration between 1400 and 1700. Additionally, key technology components have impacted vendor roadmaps, and we are in the process of pursuing these new collaborations. This work has the potential to impact future supercomputer design and construction, reducing power and increasing performance. This final report is organized as follow: this summary chapter discusses the impact of the project (Section 1), provides an enumeration of publications and other public discussion of the work (Section 1), and concludes with a discussion of future work and impact from the project (Section 1). The appendix contains reprints of the refereed publications resulting from this work.« less

Optical RAM-enabled cache memory and optical routing for chip multiprocessors: technologies and architectures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pleros, Nikos; Maniotis, Pavlos; Alexoudi, Theonitsa; Fitsios, Dimitris; Vagionas, Christos; Papaioannou, Sotiris; Vyrsokinos, K.; Kanellos, George T.

2014-03-01

The processor-memory performance gap, commonly referred to as "Memory Wall" problem, owes to the speed mismatch between processor and electronic RAM clock frequencies, forcing current Chip Multiprocessor (CMP) configurations to consume more than 50% of the chip real-estate for caching purposes. In this article, we present our recent work spanning from Si-based integrated optical RAM cell architectures up to complete optical cache memory architectures for Chip Multiprocessor configurations. Moreover, we discuss on e/o router subsystems with up to Tb/s routing capacity for cache interconnection purposes within CMP configurations, currently pursued within the FP7 PhoxTrot project.

Memory ability of children with complex communication needs.

PubMed

Larsson, Maria; Sandberg, Annika Dahlgren

2008-01-01

Phonological memory is central to language and reading and writing skills. Many children with complex communication needs (CCN) experience problems with reading and writing acquisition. The reason could be because of the absence of articulatory ability, which might have a negative affect on phonological memory. Phonological and visuo-spatial short-term memory and working memory were tested in 15 children with CCN, aged 5 - 12 years, and compared to children with natural speech matched for gender, and mental and linguistic age. Results indicated weaker phonological STM and visuo-spatial STM and WM in children with CCN. The lack of articulatory ability could be assumed to affect subvocal rehearsal and, therefore, phonological memory which, in turn, may affect reading and writing acquisition. Weak visuo-spatial memory could also complicate the use of Bliss symbols and other types of augmentative and alternative communication.

Long-term memory: A review and meta-analysis of studies of declarative and procedural memory in specific language impairment

PubMed Central

Lum, Jarrad A. G.; Conti-Ramsden, Gina

2014-01-01

This review examined the status of long-term memory systems in specific language impairment (SLI), in particular declarative memory and aspects of procedural memory. Studies included in the review were identified following a systematic search of the literature and findings combined using meta-analysis. This review showed individuals with SLI are poorer than age matched controls in the learning and retrieval of verbal information from the declarative memory. However, there is evidence to suggest that the problems with declarative learning and memory for verbal information in SLI might be due to difficulties with verbal working memory and language. The learning and retrieval of non-verbal information from declarative memory appears relatively intact. In relation to procedural learning and memory, evidence indicates poor implicit learning of verbal information. Findings pertaining to nonverbal information have been mixed. This review of the literature indicates there are now substantial grounds for suspecting that multiple memory systems may be implicated in the impairment. PMID:24748707

Working memory training in survivors of pediatric cancer: a randomized pilot study.

PubMed

Hardy, Kristina K; Willard, Victoria W; Allen, Taryn M; Bonner, Melanie J

2013-08-01

Survivors of pediatric brain tumors and acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) are at increased risk for neurocognitive deficits, but few empirically supported treatment options exist. We examined the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a home-based, computerized working memory training program, CogmedRM, with survivors of childhood cancer. Survivors of brain tumors or ALL (n = 20) with identified deficits in attention and/or working memory were randomized to either the success-adapted computer intervention or a non-adaptive, active control condition. Specifically, children in the adaptive condition completed exercises that became more challenging with each correct trial, whereas those in the non-adaptive version trained with exercises that never increased in difficulty. All participants were asked to complete 25 training sessions at home, with weekly, phone-based coaching support. Brief assessments were completed pre-intervention and post-intervention; outcome measures included both performance-based and parent-report measures of working memory and attention. Eighty-five percent of survivors were compliant with the intervention, with no adverse events reported. After controlling for baseline intellectual functioning, survivors who completed the intervention program evidenced significant post-training improvements in their visual working memory and in parent-rated learning problems compared with those in the active control group. No differences in verbal working memory functioning were evident between groups, however. Home-based, computerized cognitive training demonstrates good feasibility and acceptability in our sample. Children with higher intellectual functioning at baseline appeared to benefit more from the training, although further study is needed to clarify the strength, scope, and particularly the generalizability of potential treatment effects. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A Naturalistic Study of Executive Function and Mathematical Problem-Solving

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kotsopoulos, Donna; Lee, Joanne

2012-01-01

Our goal in this research was to understand the specific challenges middle-school students face when engaging in mathematical problem-solving by using executive function (i.e., shifting, updating, and inhibiting) of working memory as a functional construct for the analysis. Using modified talk-aloud protocols, real-time naturalistic analysis of…

Gender Differences in Eye Movements in Solving Text-and-Diagram Science Problems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Huang, Po-Sheng; Chen, Hsueh-Chih

2016-01-01

The main purpose of this study was to examine possible gender differences in how junior high school students integrate printed texts and diagrams while solving science problems. We proposed the response style hypothesis and the spatial working memory hypothesis to explain possible gender differences in the integration process. Eye-tracking…

Attention and Multistep Problem Solving in 24-Month-Old Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carrico, Renee L.

2013-01-01

The current study examined the role of increased attentional load in 24 month-old children's multistep problem-solving behavior. Children solved an object-based nonspatial working-memory search task, to which a motor component of varying difficulty was added. Significant disruptions in search performance were observed with the introduction of the…

Is Word-Problem Solving a Form of Text Comprehension?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fuchs, Lynn S.; Fuchs, Douglas; Compton, Donald L.; Hamlett, Carol L.; Wang, Amber Y.

2015-01-01

This study's hypotheses were that (a) word-problem (WP) solving is a form of text comprehension that involves language comprehension processes, working memory, and reasoning, but (b) WP solving differs from other forms of text comprehension by requiring WP-specific language comprehension as well as general language comprehension. At the start of…

Planning abilities and chess: a comparison of chess and non-chess players on the Tower of London task.

PubMed

Unterrainer, J M; Kaller, C P; Halsband, U; Rahm, B

2006-08-01

Playing chess requires problem-solving capacities in order to search through the chess problem space in an effective manner. Chess should thus require planning abilities for calculating many moves ahead. Therefore, we asked whether chess players are better problem solvers than non-chess players in a complex planning task. We compared planning performance between chess ( N=25) and non-chess players ( N=25) using a standard psychometric planning task, the Tower of London (ToL) test. We also assessed fluid intelligence (Raven Test), as well as verbal and visuospatial working memory. As expected, chess players showed better planning performance than non-chess players, an effect most strongly expressed in difficult problems. On the other hand, they showed longer planning and movement execution times, especially for incorrectly solved trials. No differences in fluid intelligence and verbal/visuospatial working memory were found between both groups. These findings indicate that better performance in chess players is associated with disproportionally longer solution times, although it remains to be investigated whether motivational or strategic differences account for this result.

fMRI: blood oxygen level-dependent activation during a working memory-selective attention task in children born extremely preterm.

PubMed

Griffiths, Silja Torvik; Gundersen, Hilde; Neto, Emanuel; Elgen, Irene; Markestad, Trond; Aukland, Stein M; Hugdahl, Kenneth

2013-08-01

Extremely preterm (EPT)/extremely low-birth-weight (ELBW) children attaining school age and adolescence often have problems with executive functions such as working memory and selective attention. Our aim was to investigate a hypothesized difference in blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) activation during a selective attention-working memory task in EPT/ELBW children as compared with term-born controls. A regional cohort of 28 EPT/ELBW children and 28 term-born controls underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanning at 11 y of age while performing a combined Stroop n-back task. Group differences in BOLD activation were analyzed with Statistical Parametric Mapping 8 analysis software package, and reaction times (RTs) and response accuracy (RA) were compared in a multifactorial ANOVA test. The BOLD activation pattern in the preterm group involved the same areas (cingulate, prefrontal, and parietal cortexes), but all areas displayed significantly less activation than those in the control group, particularly when the cognitive load was increased. The RA results corresponded with the activation data in that the preterm group had significantly fewer correct responses. No group difference was found regarding RTs. Children born EPT/ELBW displayed reduced working memory and selective attention capacity as compared with term-born controls. These impairments had neuronal correlates with reduced BOLD activation in areas responsible for online stimulus monitoring, working memory, and cognitive control.

Math anxiety and math performance in children: The mediating roles of working memory and math self-concept.

PubMed

Justicia-Galiano, M José; Martín-Puga, M Eva; Linares, Rocío; Pelegrina, Santiago

2017-12-01

Numerous studies, most of them involving adolescents and adults, have evidenced a moderate negative relationship between math anxiety and math performance. There are, however, a limited number of studies that have addressed the mechanisms underlying this relation. This study aimed to investigate the role of two possible mediational mechanisms between math anxiety and math performance. Specifically, we sought to test the simultaneous mediating role of working memory and math self-concept. A total of 167 children aged 8-12 years participated in this study. Children completed a set of questionnaires used to assess math and trait anxiety, math self-concept as well as measures of math fluency and math problem-solving. Teachers were asked to rate each student's math achievement. As measures of working memory, two backward span tasks were administered to the children. A series of multiple mediation analyses were conducted. Results indicated that both mediators (working memory and math self-concept) contributed to explaining the relationship between math anxiety and math achievement. Results suggest that working memory and self-concept could be worth considering when designing interventions aimed at helping students with math anxiety. Longitudinal designs could also be used to better understand the mediational mechanisms that may explain the relationship between math anxiety and math performance. © 2017 The British Psychological Society.

Accelerated Proficiency and Facilitated Retention: Recommendations Based on an Integration of Research and Findings from a Working Meeting

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-12-01

Psychology– Learning , Memory and Cognition , 13, 344-349. Bahrick, H. P., & Hall, L. K. (1991a). Lifetime maintenance of high school mathematics content...been through an initiation ceremony—a novice who has begun introductory instruction . APPRENTICE Literally, one who is learning —a student undergoing...area of medical education, Problem-Based Learning is an instructional method that has students collaborate in work on challenging practical problems

Some strategies to improve performance in school chemistry, based on two cognitive factors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Danili, Eleni; Reid, Norman

2004-02-01

The background to this study are the difficulties facing the majority of Greek pupils in understanding chemistry concepts and, therefore, performing well in the National Examinations. The aim was to explore the problems and to suggest ways in which the situation might be improved. Working with 105 Greek pupils aged 15 to 16, the first stage of the enquiry confirmed that both working memory space and extent of field dependency were two psychological factors affecting performance. This is at least part of the nature of the problem. In the second stage, an attempt was made to explore how the problems might be reduced. New teaching materials were constructed to minimize any limitations to learning caused by working memory space and problems associated with being field dependent. The use of the new materials was compared to the normal teaching process working with 210 Greek pupils aged 15 to16. It was found that there was a significant difference in the average improvement of the experimental group and the control group, in favour of the experimental group. This result was independent of the effect of the teacher, and of the interaction of teaching method and teacher. It is suggested that approaches to learning must take into account cognitive factors in the learners in the context of information processing understandings of learning. If this is done, learning is much more effective.

Developmental dyscalculia is related to visuo-spatial memory and inhibition impairment☆

PubMed Central

Szucs, Denes; Devine, Amy; Soltesz, Fruzsina; Nobes, Alison; Gabriel, Florence

2013-01-01

Developmental dyscalculia is thought to be a specific impairment of mathematics ability. Currently dominant cognitive neuroscience theories of developmental dyscalculia suggest that it originates from the impairment of the magnitude representation of the human brain, residing in the intraparietal sulcus, or from impaired connections between number symbols and the magnitude representation. However, behavioral research offers several alternative theories for developmental dyscalculia and neuro-imaging also suggests that impairments in developmental dyscalculia may be linked to disruptions of other functions of the intraparietal sulcus than the magnitude representation. Strikingly, the magnitude representation theory has never been explicitly contrasted with a range of alternatives in a systematic fashion. Here we have filled this gap by directly contrasting five alternative theories (magnitude representation, working memory, inhibition, attention and spatial processing) of developmental dyscalculia in 9–10-year-old primary school children. Participants were selected from a pool of 1004 children and took part in 16 tests and nine experiments. The dominant features of developmental dyscalculia are visuo-spatial working memory, visuo-spatial short-term memory and inhibitory function (interference suppression) impairment. We hypothesize that inhibition impairment is related to the disruption of central executive memory function. Potential problems of visuo-spatial processing and attentional function in developmental dyscalculia probably depend on short-term memory/working memory and inhibition impairments. The magnitude representation theory of developmental dyscalculia was not supported. PMID:23890692

A general purpose subroutine for fast fourier transform on a distributed memory parallel machine

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dubey, A.; Zubair, M.; Grosch, C. E.

1992-01-01

One issue which is central in developing a general purpose Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) subroutine on a distributed memory parallel machine is the data distribution. It is possible that different users would like to use the FFT routine with different data distributions. Thus, there is a need to design FFT schemes on distributed memory parallel machines which can support a variety of data distributions. An FFT implementation on a distributed memory parallel machine which works for a number of data distributions commonly encountered in scientific applications is presented. The problem of rearranging the data after computing the FFT is also addressed. The performance of the implementation on a distributed memory parallel machine Intel iPSC/860 is evaluated.

Adult age differences in the storage of information in working memory.

PubMed

Foos, P W; Wright, L

1992-01-01

The performance of 97 young and 91 old persons were compared to determine if a deficiency in working memory resources for processing, storage, or allocation could be detected. Persons simultaneously performed a storage and one of two processing tasks while instructed to allocate resources to processing, storage, or both tasks. The storage task involved remembering the names of one, three, or five persons. Processing tasks involved solving addition problems presented on flashcards or answering common knowledge questions. Results showed increased age differences on the storage task as demands for resources increased but no differences on processing tasks. Individuals seemed unable to allocate resources as instructed. A comparison of young-old and old-old groups showed the same results as those obtained comparing young and old groups and support the hypothesis of a deficiency of storage, but not processing, resources in working memory for old, especially old-old, adults.

Spatial anxiety relates to spatial abilities as a function of working memory in children.

PubMed

Ramirez, Gerardo; Gunderson, Elizabeth A; Levine, Susan C; Beilock, Sian L

2012-01-01

Spatial ability is a strong predictor of students' pursuit of higher education in science and mathematics. However, very little is known about the affective factors that influence individual differences in spatial ability, particularly at a young age. We examine the role of spatial anxiety in young children's performance on a mental rotation task. We show that even at a young age, children report experiencing feelings of nervousness at the prospect of engaging in spatial activities. Moreover, we show that these feelings are associated with reduced mental rotation ability among students with high but not low working memory (WM). Interestingly, this WM × spatial anxiety interaction was only found among girls. We discuss these patterns of results in terms of the problem-solving strategies that boys versus girls use in solving mental rotation problems.

The efficiency of multimedia learning into old age.

PubMed

Van Gerven, Pascal W M; Paas, Fred; Van Merriënboer, Jeroen J G; Hendriks, Maaike; Schmidt, Henk G

2003-12-01

On the basis of a multimodal model of working memory, cognitive load theory predicts that a multimedia-based instructional format leads to a better acquisition of complex subject matter than a purely visual instructional format. This study investigated the extent to which age and instructional format had an impact on training efficiency among both young and old adults. It was hypothesised that studying worked examples that are presented as a narrated animation (multimedia condition) is a more efficient means of complex skill training than studying visually presented worked examples (unimodal condition) and solving conventional problems. Furthermore, it was hypothesised that multimedia-based worked examples are especially helpful for elderly learners, who have to deal with a general decline of working-memory resources, because they address both mode-specific working-memory stores. The sample consisted of 60 young (mean age = 15.98 years) and 60 old adults (mean age = 64.48 years). Participants of both age groups were trained in either a conventional, a unimodal, or a multimedia condition. Subsequently, they had to solve a series of test problems. Dependent variables were perceived cognitive load during the training, performance on the test, and efficiency in terms of the ratio between these two variables. Results showed that for both age groups multimedia-based worked examples were more efficient than the other training formats in that less cognitive load led to at least an equal performance level. Although no difference in the beneficial effect of multimedia learning was found between the age groups, multimedia-based instructions seem promising for the elderly.

Executive Functions and Motivation as Moderators of the Relationship Between Automatic Associations and Alcohol Use in Problem Drinkers Seeking Online Help.

PubMed

van Deursen, Denise S; Salemink, Elske; Boendermaker, Wouter J; Pronk, Thomas; Hofmann, Wilhelm; Wiers, Reinout W

2015-09-01

Dual process models posit that problem drinking is maintained by an imbalance between relatively strong automatic processes and weak controlled processes, a combination of executive functions and motivation. Few studies have examined how the interplay between automatic processes and executive functions is affected by motivation to change. This study examined this relationship in problem drinkers seeking online help to change their alcohol use. It was expected that executive functions (i.e., working memory, response inhibition) would moderate the relationship between automatic (valence and approach) associations and alcohol use and that this effect would be stronger in individuals with strong motivation to change. A sample of 302 problem drinkers (mean age: 51.7 years) participated in this study as part of the baseline assessment before an Internet intervention. Participants completed an online version of the brief Implicit Association Test (valence and approach associations), the self-ordered pointing task (working memory), the Stroop task (response inhibition), the Readiness to Change Questionnaire (motivation to change), and the Timeline Follow-Back Questionnaire (alcohol use). Hierarchical moderated regression analysis was used to test the 4 hypothesized 3-way interactions. As expected, the interaction between valence associations and working memory only predicted alcohol use among individuals with strong motivation. This pattern was neither found for response inhibition nor for approach associations. Results provide partial support for the moderating role of motivation in the interplay between automatic processes and executive functions. Future studies should investigate this relationship in participants with the full range of motivation and alcohol use. Copyright © 2015 by the Research Society on Alcoholism.

Bubble memory module for spacecraft application

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hayes, P. J.; Looney, K. T.; Nichols, C. D.

1985-01-01

Bubble domain technology offers an all-solid-state alternative for data storage in onboard data systems. A versatile modular bubble memory concept was developed. The key module is the bubble memory module which contains all of the storage devices and circuitry for accessing these devices. This report documents the bubble memory module design and preliminary hardware designs aimed at memory module functional demonstration with available commercial bubble devices. The system architecture provides simultaneous operation of bubble devices to attain high data rates. Banks of bubble devices are accessed by a given bubble controller to minimize controller parts. A power strobing technique is discussed which could minimize the average system power dissipation. A fast initialization method using EEPROM (electrically erasable, programmable read-only memory) devices promotes fast access. Noise and crosstalk problems and implementations to minimize these are discussed. Flight memory systems which incorporate the concepts and techniques of this work could now be developed for applications.

The Astrocentric Hypothesis: proposed role of astrocytes in consciousness and memory formation.

PubMed

Robertson, James M

2002-01-01

Consciousness is self-awareness. This process is closely associated with attention and working memory, a special form of short-term memory, which is vital when solving explicit task. Edelman has equated consciousness as the "remembered present" to highlight the importance of this form of memory (G.M. Edelman, Bright Air, Brilliant Fire, Basic Books, New York, 1992). The majority of other memories are recollections of past events that are encoded, stored, and brought back into consciousness if appropriate for solving new problems. Encoding prior experiences into memories is based on the salience of each event (A.R. Damasio, Descartes' Error, G.P. Putnam's Sons, New York, 1994; G.M. Edelman, Bright Air, Brilliant Fire, Basic Books, New York, 1992). It is proposed that protoplasmic astrocytes bind attended sensory information into consciousness and store encoded memories. This conclusion is supported by research conducted by gliobiologist over the past 15 years. Copyright 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd.

Measuring working memory capacity in children using adaptive tasks: Example validation of an adaptive complex span.

PubMed

Gonthier, Corentin; Aubry, Alexandre; Bourdin, Béatrice

2018-06-01

Working memory tasks designed for children usually present trials in order of ascending difficulty, with testing discontinued when the child fails a particular level. Unfortunately, this procedure comes with a number of issues, such as decreased engagement from high-ability children, vulnerability of the scores to temporary mind-wandering, and large between-subjects variations in number of trials, testing time, and proactive interference. To circumvent these problems, the goal of the present study was to demonstrate the feasibility of assessing working memory using an adaptive testing procedure. The principle of adaptive testing is to dynamically adjust the level of difficulty as the task progresses to match the participant's ability. We used this method to develop an adaptive complex span task (the ACCES) comprising verbal and visuo-spatial subtests. The task presents a fixed number of trials to all participants, allows for partial credit scoring, and can be used with children regardless of ability level. The ACCES demonstrated satisfying psychometric properties in a sample of 268 children aged 8-13 years, confirming the feasibility of using adaptive tasks to measure working memory capacity in children. A free-to-use implementation of the ACCES is provided.

Interventions to improve executive functioning and working memory in school-aged children with AD(H)D: a randomised controlled trial and stepped-care approach.

PubMed

van der Donk, Marthe L A; Hiemstra-Beernink, Anne-Claire; Tjeenk-Kalff, Ariane C; van der Leij, Aryan V; Lindauer, Ramón J L

2013-01-11

Deficits in executive functioning are of great significance in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). One of these executive functions, working memory, plays an important role in academic performance and is often seen as the core deficit of this disorder. There are indications that working memory problems and academic performance can be improved by school-oriented interventions but this has not yet been studied systematically. In this study we will determine the short- and long-term effects of a working memory--and an executive function training applied in a school situation for children with AD(H)D, taking individual characteristics, the level of impairment and costs (stepped-care approach) into account. The study consists of two parts: the first part is a randomised controlled trial with school-aged children (8-12 yrs) with AD(H)D. Two groups (each n = 50) will be randomly assigned to a well studied computerized working memory training 'Cogmed', or to the 'Paying attention in class' intervention which is an experimental school-based executive function training. Children will be selected from regular -and special education primary schools in the region of Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The second part of the study will determine which specific characteristics are related to non-response of the 'Paying attention in class' intervention. School-aged children (8-12 yrs) with AD(H)D will follow the experimental school-based executive function training 'Paying attention in class' (n = 175). Academic performance and neurocognitive functioning (primary outcomes) are assessed before, directly after and 6 months after training. Secondary outcome measures are: behaviour in class, behaviour problems and quality of life. So far, there is limited but promising evidence that working memory - and other executive function interventions can improve academic performance. Little is know about the applicability and generalization effects of these interventions in a classroom situation. This study will contribute to this lack of information, especially information related to real classroom and academic situations. By taking into account the costs of both interventions, level of impairment and individual characteristics of the child (stepped-care approach) we will be able to address treatment more adequately for each individual in the future. Nederlands Trial Register NTR3415.

The development of new ferromagnetic shape memory alloys in Ni-Mn-Ga system

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

Chernenko, V.A.; Kokorin, V.V.; Vitenko, I.N.

1995-10-15

The Ferromagnetic Heusler alloy Ni{sub 2}MnGa is known to undergo a structural phase transformation of martensitic type. Thermoelastic nature, shape memory effect (SME) and superelasticity were sound to be intrinsic to this transformation. In this work the authors present the results of the investigation of the following problems: how M{sub s}, the thermal hysteresis, Curie temperature, transformation heat are affected by the composition variation in the Ni-Mn-Ga alloy system in a concentration interval for each component of about 10 at. %. This work was performed to make sure that the new family of Ni-Mn-Ga based shape memory alloys (SMA) withmore » a wide variety of structural and magnetic properties is actually elaborated.« less

The Impact of Inattention and Emotional Problems on Cognitive Control in Primary School Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sorensen, Lin; Plessen, Kerstin J.; Lundervold, Astri J.

2012-01-01

Objective: The present study investigated the predictive value of parent/teacher reports of inattention and emotional problems on cognitive control function in 241 children in primary school. Method: Cognitive control was measured by functions of set-shifting and working memory as assessed by the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function…

Students' Ability to Solve Process-Diagram Problems in Secondary Biology Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kragten, Marco; Admiraal, Wilfried; Rijlaarsdam, Gert

2015-01-01

Process diagrams are important tools in biology for explaining processes such as protein synthesis, compound cycles and the like. The aim of the present study was to measure the ability to solve process-diagram problems in biology and its relationship with prior knowledge, spatial ability and working memory. For this purpose, we developed a test…

Parental Guidance and Children's Executive Function: Working Memory and Planning as Moderators during Joint Problem-Solving

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Eason, Sarah H.; Ramani, Geetha B.

2017-01-01

Cognitive aspects of children's executive function (EF) were examined as moderators of the effectiveness of parental guidance on children's learning. Thirty-two 5-year-old children and their parents were observed during joint problem-solving. Forms of guidance geared towards cognitive assistance were coded as directive or elaborative, and…

What Is Addiction?

MedlinePlus

... brain disorder. Drugs can change how the brain works. These brain changes can last for a long time. They can cause problems with a person’s behavior like being moody, having memory loss, or even having trouble thinking and making ...

The Contributions of Memory and Vocabulary to Non-Verbal Ability Scores in Adolescents with Intellectual Disability

PubMed Central

Mungkhetklang, Chantanee; Bavin, Edith L.; Crewther, Sheila G.; Goharpey, Nahal; Parsons, Carl

2016-01-01

It is usually assumed that performance on non-verbal intelligence tests reflects visual cognitive processing and that aspects of working memory (WM) will be involved. However, the unique contribution of memory to non-verbal scores is not clear, nor is the unique contribution of vocabulary. Thus, we aimed to investigate these contributions. Non-verbal test scores for 17 individuals with intellectual disability (ID) and 39 children with typical development (TD) of similar mental age were compared to determine the unique contribution of visual and verbal short-term memory (STM) and WM and the additional variance contributed by vocabulary scores. No significant group differences were found in the non-verbal test scores or receptive vocabulary scores, but there was a significant difference in expressive vocabulary. Regression analyses indicate that for the TD group STM and WM (both visual and verbal) contributed similar variance to the non-verbal scores. For the ID group, visual STM and verbal WM contributed most of the variance to the non-verbal test scores. The addition of vocabulary scores to the model contributed greater variance for both groups. More unique variance was contributed by vocabulary than memory for the TD group, whereas for the ID group memory contributed more than vocabulary. Visual and auditory memory and vocabulary contributed significantly to solving visual non-verbal problems for both the TD group and the ID group. However, for each group, there were different weightings of these variables. Our findings indicate that for individuals with TD, vocabulary is the major factor in solving non-verbal problems, not memory, whereas for adolescents with ID, visual STM, and verbal WM are more influential than vocabulary, suggesting different pathways to achieve solutions to non-verbal problems. PMID:28082922

Sparse distributed memory: understanding the speed and robustness of expert memory

PubMed Central

Brogliato, Marcelo S.; Chada, Daniel M.; Linhares, Alexandre

2014-01-01

How can experts, sometimes in exacting detail, almost immediately and very precisely recall memory items from a vast repertoire? The problem in which we will be interested concerns models of theoretical neuroscience that could explain the speed and robustness of an expert's recollection. The approach is based on Sparse Distributed Memory, which has been shown to be plausible, both in a neuroscientific and in a psychological manner, in a number of ways. A crucial characteristic concerns the limits of human recollection, the “tip-of-tongue” memory event—which is found at a non-linearity in the model. We expand the theoretical framework, deriving an optimization formula to solve this non-linearity. Numerical results demonstrate how the higher frequency of rehearsal, through work or study, immediately increases the robustness and speed associated with expert memory. PMID:24808842

Cognitive Load Theory and the Acquisition of Complex Cognitive Skills in the Elderly: Towards an Integrative Framework.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Van Gerven, Pascal W. M.; Paas, Fred G. W. C.; Van Merrienboer, Jeroen J. G.; Schmidt, Henk G.

2000-01-01

Cognitive load (CL) theory suggests minimizing extraneous CL and maximizing germane CL in order not to overload working memory. Instructional design for older adults should therefore include goal-free problems, worked examples, and different modalities and avoid splitting attention and including redundant information. (SK)

The role of expressive writing in math anxiety.

PubMed

Park, Daeun; Ramirez, Gerardo; Beilock, Sian L

2014-06-01

Math anxiety is a negative affective reaction to situations involving math. Previous work demonstrates that math anxiety can negatively impact math problem solving by creating performance-related worries that disrupt the working memory needed for the task at hand. By leveraging knowledge about the mechanism underlying the math anxiety-performance relationship, we tested the effectiveness of a short expressive writing intervention that has been shown to reduce intrusive thoughts and improve working memory availability. Students (N = 80) varying in math anxiety were asked to sit quietly (control group) prior to completing difficulty-matched math and word problems or to write about their thoughts and feelings regarding the exam they were about to take (expressive writing group). For the control group, high math-anxious individuals (HMAs) performed significantly worse on the math problems than low math-anxious students (LMAs). In the expressive writing group, however, this difference in math performance across HMAs and LMAs was significantly reduced. Among HMAs, the use of words related to anxiety, cause, and insight in their writing was positively related to math performance. Expressive writing boosts the performance of anxious students in math-testing situations. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved.

Undermining belief in false memories leads to less efficient problem-solving behaviour.

PubMed

Wang, Jianqin; Otgaar, Henry; Howe, Mark L; Smeets, Tom; Merckelbach, Harald; Nahouli, Zacharia

2017-08-01

Memories of events for which the belief in the occurrence of those events is undermined, but recollection is retained, are called nonbelieved memories (NBMs). The present experiments examined the effects of NBMs on subsequent problem-solving behaviour. In Experiment 1, we challenged participants' beliefs in their memories and examined whether NBMs affected subsequent solution rates on insight-based problems. True and false memories were elicited using the Deese/Roediger-McDermott (DRM) paradigm. Then participants' belief in true and false memories was challenged by telling them the item had not been presented. We found that when the challenge led to undermining belief in false memories, fewer problems were solved than when belief was not challenged. In Experiment 2, a similar procedure was used except that some participants solved the problems one week rather than immediately after the feedback. Again, our results showed that undermining belief in false memories resulted in lower problem solution rates. These findings suggest that for false memories, belief is an important agent in whether memories serve as effective primes for immediate and delayed problem-solving.

Influence of shift work on cognitive performance in male business process outsourcing employees

PubMed Central

Shwetha, Bijavara; Sudhakar, Honnamachanahalli

2012-01-01

Background: India is a front runner in IT industry. Business process outsourcing (BPO) sector is a major part of IT industry with around 4.5 million employees. These employees are subjected to high work stress, odd working hours, and frequent shift changes leading to increased physical and mental health problems. Aim: To study the cognitive functions in male BPO employees exposed to regular shifts. Settings and Design: Young BPO employees from various BPO companies of Bangalore were tested for cognitive functions. Materials and Methods: Fifty male BPO employees exposed to regular shifts were assessed for various cognitive functions including tests for speed, attention, learning and memory, and executive function. They were compared with 50 non-BPO employees not working in shifts. Statistical analysis - Data was analysed by t-test and Mann-Whitney test using SPSS V.13.0. Results: BPO employees performed poorly compared to their controls in tests for mental speed, learning and memory, and response inhibition. No changes were seen between groups in tests for attention and working memory. Conclusion: Cognitive functions are impaired in BPO employees exposed to regular shift changes. PMID:23776319

Influence of shift work on cognitive performance in male business process outsourcing employees.

PubMed

Shwetha, Bijavara; Sudhakar, Honnamachanahalli

2012-09-01

India is a front runner in IT industry. Business process outsourcing (BPO) sector is a major part of IT industry with around 4.5 million employees. These employees are subjected to high work stress, odd working hours, and frequent shift changes leading to increased physical and mental health problems. To study the cognitive functions in male BPO employees exposed to regular shifts. Young BPO employees from various BPO companies of Bangalore were tested for cognitive functions. Fifty male BPO employees exposed to regular shifts were assessed for various cognitive functions including tests for speed, attention, learning and memory, and executive function. They were compared with 50 non-BPO employees not working in shifts. Statistical analysis - Data was analysed by t-test and Mann-Whitney test using SPSS V.13.0. BPO employees performed poorly compared to their controls in tests for mental speed, learning and memory, and response inhibition. No changes were seen between groups in tests for attention and working memory. Cognitive functions are impaired in BPO employees exposed to regular shift changes.

Work stealing for GPU-accelerated parallel programs in a global address space framework: WORK STEALING ON GPU-ACCELERATED SYSTEMS

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

Arafat, Humayun; Dinan, James; Krishnamoorthy, Sriram

Task parallelism is an attractive approach to automatically load balance the computation in a parallel system and adapt to dynamism exhibited by parallel systems. Exploiting task parallelism through work stealing has been extensively studied in shared and distributed-memory contexts. In this paper, we study the design of a system that uses work stealing for dynamic load balancing of task-parallel programs executed on hybrid distributed-memory CPU-graphics processing unit (GPU) systems in a global-address space framework. We take into account the unique nature of the accelerator model employed by GPUs, the significant performance difference between GPU and CPU execution as a functionmore » of problem size, and the distinct CPU and GPU memory domains. We consider various alternatives in designing a distributed work stealing algorithm for CPU-GPU systems, while taking into account the impact of task distribution and data movement overheads. These strategies are evaluated using microbenchmarks that capture various execution configurations as well as the state-of-the-art CCSD(T) application module from the computational chemistry domain.« less

A multiprocessor computer simulation model employing a feedback scheduler/allocator for memory space and bandwidth matching and TMR processing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bradley, D. B.; Irwin, J. D.

1974-01-01

A computer simulation model for a multiprocessor computer is developed that is useful for studying the problem of matching multiprocessor's memory space, memory bandwidth and numbers and speeds of processors with aggregate job set characteristics. The model assumes an input work load of a set of recurrent jobs. The model includes a feedback scheduler/allocator which attempts to improve system performance through higher memory bandwidth utilization by matching individual job requirements for space and bandwidth with space availability and estimates of bandwidth availability at the times of memory allocation. The simulation model includes provisions for specifying precedence relations among the jobs in a job set, and provisions for specifying precedence execution of TMR (Triple Modular Redundant and SIMPLEX (non redundant) jobs.

Children with low working memory and children with ADHD: same or different?

PubMed

Holmes, Joni; Hilton, Kerry A; Place, Maurice; Alloway, Tracy P; Elliott, Julian G; Gathercole, Susan E

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study was to compare working memory (WM), executive function, academic ability, and problem classroom behaviors in children aged 8-11 years who were either identified via routine screening as having low WM, or had been diagnosed with ADHD. Standardized assessments of WM, executive function and reading and mathematics were administered to 83 children with ADHD, 50 children with low WM and 50 typically developing children. Teachers rated problem behaviors on checklists measuring attention, hyperactivity/impulsivity, oppositional behavior, and difficulties associated with executive function in the classroom. The ADHD and low WM groups had highly similar WM and executive function profiles, but were distinguished in two key respects: children with ADHD had higher levels of rated and observed impulsive behavior, and children with low WM had slower response times. Possible mechanisms for these common and distinct deficits are discussed.

Children with low working memory and children with ADHD: same or different?

PubMed Central

Holmes, Joni; Hilton, Kerry A.; Place, Maurice; Alloway, Tracy P.; Elliott, Julian G.; Gathercole, Susan E.

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study was to compare working memory (WM), executive function, academic ability, and problem classroom behaviors in children aged 8–11 years who were either identified via routine screening as having low WM, or had been diagnosed with ADHD. Standardized assessments of WM, executive function and reading and mathematics were administered to 83 children with ADHD, 50 children with low WM and 50 typically developing children. Teachers rated problem behaviors on checklists measuring attention, hyperactivity/impulsivity, oppositional behavior, and difficulties associated with executive function in the classroom. The ADHD and low WM groups had highly similar WM and executive function profiles, but were distinguished in two key respects: children with ADHD had higher levels of rated and observed impulsive behavior, and children with low WM had slower response times. Possible mechanisms for these common and distinct deficits are discussed. PMID:25538599

Cognitive profile in Duchenne muscular dystrophy boys without intellectual disability: The role of executive functions.

PubMed

Battini, R; Chieffo, D; Bulgheroni, S; Piccini, G; Pecini, C; Lucibello, S; Lenzi, S; Moriconi, F; Pane, M; Astrea, G; Baranello, G; Alfieri, P; Vicari, S; Riva, D; Cioni, G; Mercuri, E

2018-02-01

The aim of our prospective observational study was to assess profiles of cognitive function and a possible impairment of executive functions in a cohort of boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy without intellectual and behavior disability. Forty Duchenne boys (range of age: 6 years to 11 years and 6 months) were assessed by Wechsler Intelligence scale and battery of tests including tasks assessing working memory and executive functions (inhibition and switching, problem solving and planning). In our cohort some aspects of cognitive function were often impaired. These included multitasking, problem solving, inhibition and working memory necessary to plan and direct goal oriented behavior. Our results support the suggestion that aspects of cognitive function could be impaired even in boys without intellectual disability and support the hypothesis that executive functions may play an important role in specific aspects of cognitive impairment in Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Inferential revision in narrative texts: An ERP study.

PubMed

Pérez, Ana; Cain, Kate; Castellanos, María C; Bajo, Teresa

2015-11-01

We evaluated the process of inferential revision during text comprehension in adults. Participants with high or low working memory read short texts, in which the introduction supported two plausible concepts (e.g., 'guitar/violin'), although one was more probable ('guitar'). There were three possible continuations: a neutral sentence, which did not refer back to either concept; a no-revise sentence, which referred to a general property consistent with either concept (e.g., '…beautiful curved body'); and a revise sentence, which referred to a property that was consistent with only the less likely concept (e.g., '…matching bow'). Readers took longer to read the sentence in the revise condition, indicating that they were able to evaluate their comprehension and detect a mismatch. In a final sentence, a target noun referred to the alternative concept supported in the revise condition (e.g., 'violin'). ERPs indicated that both working memory groups were able to evaluate their comprehension of the text (P3a), but only high working memory readers were able to revise their initial incorrect interpretation (P3b) and integrate the new information (N400) when reading the revise sentence. Low working memory readers had difficulties inhibiting the no-longer-relevant interpretation and thus failed to revise their situation model, and they experienced problems integrating semantically related information into an accurate memory representation.

Disruptions of working memory and inhibition mediate the association between exposure to institutionalization and symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

PubMed

Tibu, F; Sheridan, M A; McLaughlin, K A; Nelson, C A; Fox, N A; Zeanah, C H

2016-02-01

Young children raised in institutions are exposed to extreme psychosocial deprivation that is associated with elevated risk for psychopathology and other adverse developmental outcomes. The prevalence of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is particularly high in previously institutionalized children, yet the mechanisms underlying this association are poorly understood. We investigated whether deficits in executive functioning (EF) explain the link between institutionalization and ADHD. A sample of 136 children (aged 6-30 months) was recruited from institutions in Bucharest, Romania, and 72 never institutionalized community children matched for age and gender were recruited through general practitioners' offices. At 8 years of age, children's performance on a number of EF components (working memory, response inhibition and planning) was evaluated. Teachers completed the Health and Behavior Questionnaire, which assesses two core features of ADHD, inattention and impulsivity. Children with history of institutionalization had higher inattention and impulsivity than community controls, and exhibited worse performance on working memory, response inhibition and planning tasks. Lower performances on working memory and response inhibition, but not planning, partially mediated the association between early institutionalization and inattention and impulsivity symptom scales at age 8 years. Institutionalization was associated with decreased EF performance and increased ADHD symptoms. Deficits in working memory and response inhibition were specific mechanisms leading to ADHD in previously institutionalized children. These findings suggest that interventions that foster the development of EF might reduce risk for psychiatric problems in children exposed to early deprivation.

Changes in brain activity in response to problem solving during the abstinence from online game play.

PubMed

Kim, Sun Mi; Han, Doug Hyun; Lee, Young Sik; Kim, Jieun E; Renshaw, Perry F

2012-06-01

Several studies have suggested that addictive disorders including substance abuse and pathologic gambling might be associated with dysfunction on working memory and prefrontal activity. We hypothesized that excessive online game playing is associated with deficits in prefrontal cortex function and that recovery from excessive online game playing might improve prefrontal cortical activation in response to working memory stimulation. Thirteen adolescents with excessive online game playing (AEOP) and ten healthy adolescents (HC) agreed to participate in this study. The severity of online game play and playing time were evaluated for a baseline measurement and again following four weeks of treatment. Brain activation in response to working memory tasks (simple and complex calculations) at baseline and subsequent measurements was assessed using BOLD functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Compared to the HC subjects, the AEOP participants exhibited significantly greater activity in the right middle occipital gyrus, left cerebellum posterior lobe, left premotor cortex and left middle temporal gyrus in response to working memory tasks during baseline measurements. After four weeks of treatment, the AEOP subjects showed increased activity within the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and left occipital fusiform gyrus. After four weeks of treatment, changes in the severity of online game playing were negatively correlated with changes in the mean β value of the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in response to complex stimulation. We suggest that the effects of online game addiction on working memory may be similar to those observed in patients with substance dependence.

Developmental dyscalculia is related to visuo-spatial memory and inhibition impairment.

PubMed

Szucs, Denes; Devine, Amy; Soltesz, Fruzsina; Nobes, Alison; Gabriel, Florence

2013-01-01

Developmental dyscalculia is thought to be a specific impairment of mathematics ability. Currently dominant cognitive neuroscience theories of developmental dyscalculia suggest that it originates from the impairment of the magnitude representation of the human brain, residing in the intraparietal sulcus, or from impaired connections between number symbols and the magnitude representation. However, behavioral research offers several alternative theories for developmental dyscalculia and neuro-imaging also suggests that impairments in developmental dyscalculia may be linked to disruptions of other functions of the intraparietal sulcus than the magnitude representation. Strikingly, the magnitude representation theory has never been explicitly contrasted with a range of alternatives in a systematic fashion. Here we have filled this gap by directly contrasting five alternative theories (magnitude representation, working memory, inhibition, attention and spatial processing) of developmental dyscalculia in 9-10-year-old primary school children. Participants were selected from a pool of 1004 children and took part in 16 tests and nine experiments. The dominant features of developmental dyscalculia are visuo-spatial working memory, visuo-spatial short-term memory and inhibitory function (interference suppression) impairment. We hypothesize that inhibition impairment is related to the disruption of central executive memory function. Potential problems of visuo-spatial processing and attentional function in developmental dyscalculia probably depend on short-term memory/working memory and inhibition impairments. The magnitude representation theory of developmental dyscalculia was not supported. Copyright © 2013 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Commentary: Working memory training and ADHD - where does its potential lie? Reflections on Chacko et al. (2014).

PubMed

Gathercole, Susan E

2014-03-01

Chacko et al.'s investigation of the clinical utility of WM training to alleviate key symptoms of ADHD is timely and substantial, and marks a significant point in cognitive training research. Cogmed Working Memory Training (CWMT) involves intensive practice on multiple memory span tasks that increase in difficulty as performance improves with practice. Relative to a placebo version in which the span level of the memory tasks are kept at a low fixed level, Chacko et al. () found that CWMT boosted the performance of children with ADHD on short-term memory (STM) tasks similar to trained activities. Complex WM span measures sharing little overlap with the structure of training activities were not enhanced. Neither did active CWMT ameliorate classic symptoms of ADHD such as parent or teacher ratings of attentional problems, or direct measures of motor impulsivity and sustained attention. Reading, spelling, comprehension or mathematics scores similarly showed no response to training. © 2014 The Authors. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. © 2014 Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health.

Benefits of training working memory in amnestic mild cognitive impairment: specific and transfer effects.

PubMed

Carretti, Barbara; Borella, Erika; Fostinelli, Silvia; Zavagnin, Michela

2013-04-01

A growing number of studies are attempting to understand how effective cognitive interventions may be for patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), particularly in relation to their memory problems. The present study aimed to explore the benefits of a working memory (WM) training program in aMCI patients. Patients (N = 20) were randomly assigned to two training programs: the experimental group practiced with a verbal WM task, while the active control group conducted educational activities on memory. Results showed that the aMCI patients completing the WM training obtained specific gains in the task trained with some transfer effects on other WM measures (visuospatial WM) and on processes involved in or related to WM, e.g. fluid intelligence (the Cattell test) and long-term memory. This was not the case for the aMCI control group, who experienced only a very limited improvement. This pilot study suggests that WM training could be a valuable method for improving cognitive performance in aMCI patients, possibly delaying the onset of Alzheimer's disease.

Text Comprehension and Oral Language as Predictors of Word-Problem Solving: Insights into Word-Problem Solving as a Form of Text Comprehension

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fuchs, Lynn S.; Gilbert, Jennifer K.; Fuchs, Douglas; Seethaler, Pamela M.; N. Martin, BrittanyLee

2018-01-01

This study was designed to deepen insights on whether word-problem (WP) solving is a form of text comprehension (TC) and on the role of language in WPs. A sample of 325 second graders, representing high, average, and low reading and math performance, was assessed on (a) start-of-year TC, WP skill, language, nonlinguistic reasoning, working memory,…

Executive Function Computerized Training in Very Preterm-Born Children: A Pilot Study.

PubMed

Aarnoudse-Moens, Cornelieke S H; Twilhaar, E Sabrina; Oosterlaan, Jaap; van Veen, Heske G; Prins, Pier J M; van Kaam, Anton H L C; van Wassenaer-Leemhuis, Aleid G

2018-06-01

Attention problems are one of the most pronounced and documented consequences of very preterm birth (gestational age ≤32 weeks). However, up to now, there is no research published on suitable interventions at school age aimed to overcome these problems. Research in this population did show that executive functions (EFs) are strongly associated with inattention. BrainGame Brian is a newly developed computerized training, in which, in 25 training sessions, the core EFs, including working memory, impulse control, and cognitive flexibility, are trained. This pilot study aimed to examine the feasibility of studying BrainGame Brian in very preterm-born children with attention problems. Pilot feasibility intervention study with one baseline and one follow-up assessment. Feasibility was measured by the participation rate, dropout rate, and user experiences with regard to effort, training characteristics, and recommendation to others. From a larger cohort study, 15 very preterm-born children at age 10 years with parent-reported attention problems on the Child Behavior Checklist/6-18 years were invited to participate in this pilot study. BrainGame Brian was performed for a period of 6 weeks. Training outcome measures included visual working memory, impulse control, cognitive flexibility, speed variability, and parent-rated attention, for which pre- and post-training differences were examined at the group level by the Wilcoxon signed-rank test as well as for each individual child separately by the reliable change index. Twelve of 15 children and their parents agreed to participate and 11 children successfully completed BrainGame Brian in the 6-week period. Parents were positive about training characteristics and lack of interference with schooling, but scored the effort as high. We found clinically significant changes in visual working memory and speed variability in post-training assessments. BrainGame Brian is a feasible intervention for very preterm-born children with attention problems.

Kinetic Inductance Memory Cell and Architecture for Superconducting Computers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, George J.

Josephson memory devices typically use a superconducting loop containing one or more Josephson junctions to store information. The magnetic inductance of the loop in conjunction with the Josephson junctions provides multiple states to store data. This thesis shows that replacing the magnetic inductor in a memory cell with a kinetic inductor can lead to a smaller cell size. However, magnetic control of the cells is lost. Thus, a current-injection based architecture for a memory array has been designed to work around this problem. The isolation between memory cells that magnetic control provides is provided through resistors in this new architecture. However, these resistors allow leakage current to flow which ultimately limits the size of the array due to power considerations. A kinetic inductance memory array will be limited to 4K bits with a read access time of 320 ps for a 1 um linewidth technology. If a power decoder could be developed, the memory architecture could serve as the blueprint for a fast (<1 ns), large scale (>1 Mbit) superconducting memory array.

A Balanced Memory Network

PubMed Central

Roudi, Yasser; Latham, Peter E

2007-01-01

A fundamental problem in neuroscience is understanding how working memory—the ability to store information at intermediate timescales, like tens of seconds—is implemented in realistic neuronal networks. The most likely candidate mechanism is the attractor network, and a great deal of effort has gone toward investigating it theoretically. Yet, despite almost a quarter century of intense work, attractor networks are not fully understood. In particular, there are still two unanswered questions. First, how is it that attractor networks exhibit irregular firing, as is observed experimentally during working memory tasks? And second, how many memories can be stored under biologically realistic conditions? Here we answer both questions by studying an attractor neural network in which inhibition and excitation balance each other. Using mean-field analysis, we derive a three-variable description of attractor networks. From this description it follows that irregular firing can exist only if the number of neurons involved in a memory is large. The same mean-field analysis also shows that the number of memories that can be stored in a network scales with the number of excitatory connections, a result that has been suggested for simple models but never shown for realistic ones. Both of these predictions are verified using simulations with large networks of spiking neurons. PMID:17845070

Social problem solving, autobiographical memory, trauma, and depression in women with borderline personality disorder and a history of suicide attempts.

PubMed

Maurex, Liselotte; Lekander, Mats; Nilsonne, Asa; Andersson, Eva E; Asberg, Marie; Ohman, Arne

2010-09-01

The primary aim of this study was to compare the retrieval of autobiographical memory and the social problem-solving performance of individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD) and a history of suicide attempts, with and without concurrent diagnoses of depression and/or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), to that of controls. Additionally, the relationships between autobiographical memory, social problem-solving skills, and various clinical characteristics were examined in the BPD group. Individuals with BPD who had made at least two suicide attempts were compared to controls with regard to specificity of autobiographical memory and social problem-solving skills. Autobiographical memory specificity and social problem-solving skills were further studied in the BPD group by comparing depressed participants to non-depressed participants; and autobiographical memory specificity was also studied by comparing participants with and without PTSD. A total of 47 women with a diagnosis of BPD and 30 controls completed the Autobiographical Memory Test, assessing memory specificity, and the means-end problem solving-procedure, measuring social problem-solving skills. The prevalence of suicidal/self-injurious behaviour, and the exposure to violence, was also assessed in the BPD group. Compared to controls, participants with BPD showed reduced specificity of autobiographical memory, irrespective of either concurrent depression, previous depression, or concurrent PTSD. The depressed BPD group displayed poor problem-solving skills. Further, an association between unspecific memory and poor problem-solving was displayed in the BPD group. Our results confirmed that reduced specificity of autobiographical memory is an important characteristic of BPD individuals with a history of suicide attempt, independent of depression, or PTSD. Reduced specificity of autobiographical memory was further related to poor social problem-solving capacity in the BPD group.

Working memory, worry, and algebraic ability.

PubMed

Trezise, Kelly; Reeve, Robert A

2014-05-01

Math anxiety (MA)-working memory (WM) relationships have typically been examined in the context of arithmetic problem solving, and little research has examined the relationship in other math domains (e.g., algebra). Moreover, researchers have tended to examine MA/worry separate from math problem solving activities and have used general WM tasks rather than domain-relevant WM measures. Furthermore, it seems to have been assumed that MA affects all areas of math. It is possible, however, that MA is restricted to particular math domains. To examine these issues, the current research assessed claims about the impact on algebraic problem solving of differences in WM and algebraic worry. A sample of 80 14-year-old female students completed algebraic worry, algebraic WM, algebraic problem solving, nonverbal IQ, and general math ability tasks. Latent profile analysis of worry and WM measures identified four performance profiles (subgroups) that differed in worry level and WM capacity. Consistent with expectations, subgroup membership was associated with algebraic problem solving performance: high WM/low worry>moderate WM/low worry=moderate WM/high worry>low WM/high worry. Findings are discussed in terms of the conceptual relationship between emotion and cognition in mathematics and implications for the MA-WM-performance relationship. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About the Distinction between Working Memory and Short-Term Memory.

PubMed

Aben, Bart; Stapert, Sven; Blokland, Arjan

2012-01-01

The theoretical concepts short-term memory (STM) and working memory (WM) have been used to refer to the maintenance and the maintenance plus manipulation of information, respectively. Although they are conceptually different, the use of the terms STM and WM in literature is not always strict. STM and WM are different theoretical concepts that are assumed to reflect different cognitive functions. However, correlational studies have not been able to separate both constructs consistently and there is evidence for a large or even complete overlap. The emerging view from neurobiological studies is partly different, although there are conceptual problems troubling the interpretation of findings. In this regard, there is a crucial role for the tasks that are used to measure STM or WM (simple and complex span tasks, respectively) and for the cognitive load reflected by factors like attention and processing speed that may covary between and within these tasks. These conceptual issues are discussed based on several abstract models for the relation between STM and WM.

Catching a glimpse of working memory: top-down capture as a tool for measuring the content of the mind.

PubMed

Lange, Nicholas D; Thomas, Rick P; Buttaccio, Daniel R; Davelaar, Eddy J

2012-11-01

This article outlines a methodology for probing working memory (WM) content in high-level cognitive tasks (e.g., decision making, problem solving, and memory retrieval) by capitalizing on attentional and oculomotor biases evidenced in top-down capture paradigms. This method would be of great use, as it could measure the information resident in WM at any point in a task and, hence, track information use over time as tasks dynamically evolve. Above and beyond providing a measure of information occupancy in WM, such a method would benefit from sensitivity to the specific activation levels of individual items in WM. This article additionally forwards a novel fusion of standard free recall and visual search paradigms in an effort to assess the sensitivity of eye movements in top-down capture, on which this new measurement technique relies, to item-specific memory activation (ISMA). The results demonstrate eye movement sensitivity to ISMA in some, but not all, cases.

Characteristics of a lithium-thionyl chloride battery as a memory back-up power source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Iwamaru, T.; Uetani, Y.

An Li/SOCl 2 battery of R6 size (ER6C) has been evaluated as a memory back-up power source for CMOS RAM. The working voltage is 3.6 V and the discharge capacity is 1900 mA h on a 1OK-ohm load. The cell exhibits satisfactory working voltage and discharge capacity over the temperature range -40 °C to 85 °C. The discharge reaction mechanism has been elucidated. Cumulative self discharge during 10 years discharge at 20 μA is estimated to be 3.5%. No serious problems have been observed during abuse tests.

Attentional Imbalances Following Head Injury

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-05-30

on recent memory , the patient’s basic fund of knowledge ( semantic memory ) and remote memory for events ( episodic memory ) were both impaired. For e...are notable for problems caused by poor memory , inflexibility, and concreteness. These problems are most severe when they interact with linguistic...demands. It is worth noting that memory problems were accompanied by confabulation (hen the patient first entered the program. In addition to the effects

Global Existence of Classical Solutions to the Equations of Motion for Materials with Fading Memory.

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-02-01

influence function , history value problems, classical solutions, global existence, decay. Work Unit Number 1 - Applied Analysis Sponsored by the United...introduce an " influence function " h, intended to JIN. characterize the rate at which memory fades, and construct an LP-type space of admissible...histories using the influence function as a weight. Here we use the term influence function to mean a positive, nonincreasing, real-valued function h e L (0

Are subjective memory problems related to suggestibility, compliance, false memories, and objective memory performance?

PubMed

Van Bergen, Saskia; Jelicic, Marko; Merckelbach, Harald

2009-01-01

The relationship between subjective memory beliefs and suggestibility, compliance, false memories, and objective memory performance was studied in a community sample of young and middle-aged people (N = 142). We hypothesized that people with subjective memory problems would exhibit higher suggestibility and compliance levels and would be more susceptible to false recollections than those who are optimistic about their memory. In addition, we expected a discrepancy between subjective memory judgments and objective memory performance. We found that subjective memory judgments correlated significantly with compliance, with more negative memory judgments accompanying higher levels of compliance. Contrary to our expectation, subjective memory problems did not correlate with suggestibility or false recollections. Furthermore, participants were accurate in estimating their objective memory performance.

Memory function in opioid-dependent patients treated with methadone or buprenorphine along with benzodiazepine: longitudinal change in comparison to healthy individuals.

PubMed

Rapeli, Pekka; Fabritius, Carola; Kalska, Hely; Alho, Hannu

2009-04-17

Opioid-substitution treatment (OST) for opioid dependence (OD) has proven effective in retaining patients in treatment and reducing illegal opiate abuse and crime. Consequently, the World Health Organization (WHO) has listed the opioid agonists methadone and buprenorphine as essential drugs for OD that should be available worldwide. In many areas of the world, OD is often associated with concomitant benzodiazepine (BZD) dependence and abuse, which complicates treatment. However, possible changes in the cognitive functioning of these patients are not well-known. The present study is the first to examine longitudinal stability of memory function in OST patients with BZD use, thus providing a new tool for health policy authorities in evaluating the usefulness of OST. Within the first two months (T1) and between 6-9 months (T2) after OST admission, we followed the working memory, immediate verbal memory, and memory consolidation of 13 methadone- and 15 buprenorphine- or buprenorphine/naloxone-treated patients with BZD dependence or abuse disorder. The results were compared to those of fifteen normal comparison participants. All participants also completed a self-reported memory complaint questionnaire on both occasions. Both patient groups performed statistically significantly worse than normal comparison participants in working memory at time points T1 and T2. In immediate verbal memory, as measured by list learning at T1, patients scored lower than normal comparison participants. Both patient groups reported significantly more subjective memory problems than normal comparison participants. Patients with more memory complaints recalled fewer items at T2 from the verbal list they had learned at T1 than those patients with fewer memory complaints. The significance of the main analyses remained nearly the same when the statistical tests were performed without buprenorphine-only patients leaving 12 patients to buprenorphine/naloxone group. Working memory may be persistently affected in OST patients with BZD use. A high number of memory complaints among OST patients with BZD use may indicate memory consolidation impairment. These findings show that recovery of memory function in OD patients treated along with BZDs takes time, and their memory complaints may have practical relevance.

ADHD and math - The differential effect on calculation and estimation.

PubMed

Ganor-Stern, Dana; Steinhorn, Ofir

2018-05-31

Adults with ADHD were compared to controls when solving multiplication problems exactly and when estimating the results of multidigit multiplication problems relative to reference numbers. The ADHD participants were slower than controls in the exact calculation and in the estimation tasks, but not less accurate. The ADHD participants were similar to controls in showing enhanced accuracy and speed for smaller problem sizes, for trials in which the reference numbers were smaller (vs. larger) than the exact answers and for reference numbers that were far (vs. close) from the exact answer. The two groups similarly used the approximated calculation and the sense of magnitude strategies. They differed however in strategy execution, mainly of the approximated calculation strategy, which requires working memory resources. The increase in reaction time associated with using the approximated calculation strategy was larger for the ADHD compared to the control participants. Thus, ADHD seems to selectively impair calculation processes in estimation tasks that rely on working memory, but it does not hamper estimation skills that are based on sense of magnitude. The educational implications of these findings are discussed. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Understanding planning ability measured by the Tower of London: an evaluation of its internal structure by latent variable modeling.

PubMed

Koppenol-Gonzalez, Gabriela V; Bouwmeester, Samantha; Boonstra, A Marije

2010-12-01

The Tower of London (TOL) is a widely used instrument for assessing planning ability. Inhibition and (spatial) working memory are assumed to contribute to performance on the TOL, but findings about the relationship between these cognitive processes are often inconsistent. Moreover, the influence of specific properties of TOL problems on cognitive processes and difficulty level is often not taken into account. Furthermore, it may be expected that several planning strategies can be distinguished that cannot be extracted from the total score. In this study, a factor analysis and a latent class regression analysis were performed to address these issues. The results showed that 4 strategy groups that differed with respect to preplanning time could be distinguished. The effect of problem properties also differed for the 4 groups. Additional analyses showed that the groups differed on average planning performance but that there were no significant differences between inhibition and spatial working memory performance. Finally, it seemed that multiple factors influence performance on the TOL, the most important ones being the score measurements, the problem properties, and strategy use.

The relation between receptive grammar and procedural, declarative, and working memory in specific language impairment.

PubMed

Conti-Ramsden, Gina; Ullman, Michael T; Lum, Jarrad A G

2015-01-01

What memory systems underlie grammar in children, and do these differ between typically developing (TD) children and children with specific language impairment (SLI)? Whilst there is substantial evidence linking certain memory deficits to the language problems in children with SLI, few studies have investigated multiple memory systems simultaneously, examining not only possible memory deficits but also memory abilities that may play a compensatory role. This study examined the extent to which procedural, declarative, and working memory abilities predict receptive grammar in 45 primary school aged children with SLI (30 males, 15 females) and 46 TD children (30 males, 16 females), both on average 9;10 years of age. Regression analyses probed measures of all three memory systems simultaneously as potential predictors of receptive grammar. The model was significant, explaining 51.6% of the variance. There was a significant main effect of learning in procedural memory and a significant group × procedural learning interaction. Further investigation of the interaction revealed that procedural learning predicted grammar in TD but not in children with SLI. Indeed, procedural learning was the only predictor of grammar in TD. In contrast, only learning in declarative memory significantly predicted grammar in SLI. Thus, different memory systems are associated with receptive grammar abilities in children with SLI and their TD peers. This study is, to our knowledge, the first to demonstrate a significant group by memory system interaction in predicting grammar in children with SLI and their TD peers. In line with Ullman's Declarative/Procedural model of language and procedural deficit hypothesis of SLI, variability in understanding sentences of varying grammatical complexity appears to be associated with variability in procedural memory abilities in TD children, but with declarative memory, as an apparent compensatory mechanism, in children with SLI.

Regulation of Cognitive Resources During an N-Back Task in Youth-Onset Psychosis and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

PubMed Central

Karatekin, Canan; Bingham, Christopher; White, Tonya

2009-01-01

The goals of the current study were to use behavioral and pupillary measures to examine working memory on a spatial n-back task in 8-20-year-olds with youth-onset psychosis or ADHD (Combined subtype) and healthy controls to determine the contribution of different attentional factors to spatial working memory impairments, and to examine if age-related changes in performance differed across groups. Although both clinical groups had lower perceptual sensitivity on both 0- and 1-back, there was no evidence of an impairment in spatial working memory or differential order effects on the 0-back. Instead, results suggest that both clinical groups had difficulty encoding the stimuli. They also appeared to have difficulty maintaining attention and/or readiness to respond, and, to a lesser extent, recruiting resources on a trial-to-trial basis. It is likely that these attentional problems prevented the clinical groups from encoding the stimuli effectively and contributed to their general performance deficits. PMID:19427339

Nonvolatile memory behavior of nanocrystalline cellulose/graphene oxide composite films

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Valentini, L.; Cardinali, M.; Fortunati, E.; Kenny, J. M.

2014-10-01

With the continuous advance of modern electronics, the demand for nonvolatile memory cells rapidly grows. In order to develop post-silicon electronic devices, it is necessary to find innovative solutions to the eco-sustainability problem of materials for nonvolatile memory cells. In this work, we realized a resistive memory device based on graphene oxide (GO) and GO/cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) thin films. Aqueous solutions of GO and GO with CNC have been prepared and drop cast between two metal electrodes. Such thin-film based devices showed a transition between low and high conductivity states upon the forward and backward sweeping of an external electric field. This reversible current density transition behavior demonstrates a typical memory characteristic. The obtained results open an easy route for electronic information storage based on the integration of nanocrystalline cellulose onto graphene based devices.

Nature and origins of mathematics difficulties in very preterm children: a different etiology than developmental dyscalculia.

PubMed

Simms, Victoria; Gilmore, Camilla; Cragg, Lucy; Clayton, Sarah; Marlow, Neil; Johnson, Samantha

2015-02-01

Children born very preterm (<32 wk) are at high risk for mathematics learning difficulties that are out of proportion to other academic and cognitive deficits. However, the etiology of mathematics difficulties in very preterm children is unknown. We sought to identify the nature and origins of preterm children's mathematics difficulties. One hundred and fifteen very preterm children aged 8-10 y were assessed in school with a control group of 77 term-born classmates. Achievement in mathematics, working memory, visuospatial processing, inhibition, and processing speed were assessed using standardized tests. Numerical representations and specific mathematics skills were assessed using experimental tests. Very preterm children had significantly poorer mathematics achievement, working memory, and visuospatial skills than term-born controls. Although preterm children had poorer performance in specific mathematics skills, there was no evidence of imprecise numerical representations. Difficulties in mathematics were associated with deficits in visuospatial processing and working memory. Mathematics difficulties in very preterm children are associated with deficits in working memory and visuospatial processing not numerical representations. Thus, very preterm children's mathematics difficulties are different in nature from those of children with developmental dyscalculia. Interventions targeting general cognitive problems, rather than numerical representations, may improve very preterm children's mathematics achievement.

Memory-dependent derivatives for photothermal semiconducting medium in generalized thermoelasticity with two-temperature

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lotfy, K.; Sarkar, N.

2017-11-01

In this work, a novel generalized model of photothermal theory with two-temperature thermoelasticity theory based on memory-dependent derivative (MDD) theory is performed. A one-dimensional problem for an elastic semiconductor material with isotropic and homogeneous properties has been considered. The problem is solved with a new model (MDD) under the influence of a mechanical force with a photothermal excitation. The Laplace transform technique is used to remove the time-dependent terms in the governing equations. Moreover, the general solutions of some physical fields are obtained. The surface taken into consideration is free of traction and subjected to a time-dependent thermal shock. The numerical Laplace inversion is used to obtain the numerical results of the physical quantities of the problem. Finally, the obtained results are presented and discussed graphically.

Work stealing for GPU-accelerated parallel programs in a global address space framework

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

Arafat, Humayun; Dinan, James; Krishnamoorthy, Sriram

Task parallelism is an attractive approach to automatically load balance the computation in a parallel system and adapt to dynamism exhibited by parallel systems. Exploiting task parallelism through work stealing has been extensively studied in shared and distributed-memory contexts. In this paper, we study the design of a system that uses work stealing for dynamic load balancing of task-parallel programs executed on hybrid distributed-memory CPU-graphics processing unit (GPU) systems in a global-address space framework. We take into account the unique nature of the accelerator model employed by GPUs, the significant performance difference between GPU and CPU execution as a functionmore » of problem size, and the distinct CPU and GPU memory domains. We consider various alternatives in designing a distributed work stealing algorithm for CPU-GPU systems, while taking into account the impact of task distribution and data movement overheads. These strategies are evaluated using microbenchmarks that capture various execution configurations as well as the state-of-the-art CCSD(T) application module from the computational chemistry domain« less

Preliminary assessment of cognitive impairments in canine idiopathic epilepsy.

PubMed

Winter, Joshua; Packer, Rowena Mary Anne; Volk, Holger Andreas

2018-06-02

In humans, epilepsy can induce or accelerate cognitive impairment (CI). There is emerging evidence of CI in dogs with idiopathic epilepsy (IE) from recent epidemiological studies. The aim of our study was to assess CI in dogs with IE using two tests of cognitive dysfunction designed for use in a clinical setting. Dogs with IE (n=17) were compared against controls (n=18) in their performance in two tasks; a spatial working memory task and a problem-solving task. In addition, owners completed the Canine Cognitive Dysfunction Rating (CCDR) scale for their dog. The groups did not differ statistically with respect to age and breed. Dogs with IE performed significantly worse than controls on the spatial working memory task (P = 0.016), but not on the problem solving task (P=0.683). CCDR scores were significantly higher in the IE group (P=0.016); however, no dogs reach the recommended threshold score for CCD diagnosis. Our preliminary data suggest that dogs with IE exhibit impairments in a spatial working memory task. Further research is required to explore the effect of IE on other cognitive abilities in dogs with a larger sample, characterising the age of onset, nature and progression of any impairments and the impact of anti-epileptic drugs. © British Veterinary Association (unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Interactions between working memory and language in young children with specific language impairment (SLI).

PubMed

Vugs, Brigitte; Knoors, Harry; Cuperus, Juliane; Hendriks, Marc; Verhoeven, Ludo

2016-01-01

The underlying structure of working memory (WM) in young children with and without specific language impairment (SLI) was examined. The associations between the components of WM and the language abilities of young children with SLI were then analyzed. The Automated Working Memory Assessment and four linguistic tasks were administered to 58 children with SLI and 58 children without SLI, aged 4-5 years. The WM of the children was best represented by a model with four separate but interacting components of verbal storage, visuospatial storage, verbal central executive (CE), and visuospatial CE. The associations between the four components of WM did not differ significantly for the two groups of children. However, the individual components of WM showed varying associations with the language abilities of the children with SLI. The verbal CE component of WM was moderately to strongly associated with all the language abilities in children with SLI: receptive vocabulary, expressive vocabulary, verbal comprehension, and syntactic development. These results show verbal CE to be involved in a wide range of linguistic skills; the limited ability of young children with SLI to simultaneously store and process verbal information may constrain their acquisition of linguistic skills. Attention should thus be paid to the language problems of children with SLI, but also to the WM impairments that can contribute to their language problems.

Constitutive modeling of glassy shape memory polymers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khanolkar, Mahesh

The aim of this research is to develop constitutive models for non-linear materials. Here, issues related for developing constitutive model for glassy shape memory polymers are addressed in detail. Shape memory polymers are novel material that can be easily formed into complex shapes, retaining memory of their original shape even after undergoing large deformations. The temporary shape is stable and return to the original shape is triggered by a suitable mechanism such heating the polymer above a transition temperature. Glassy shape memory polymers are called glassy because the temporary shape is fixed by the formation of a glassy solid, while return to the original shape is due to the melting of this glassy phase. The constitutive model has been developed to capture the thermo-mechanical behavior of glassy shape memory polymers using elements of nonlinear mechanics and polymer physics. The key feature of this framework is that a body can exist stress free in numerous natural configurations, the underlying natural configuration of the body changing during the process, with the response of the body being elastic from these evolving natural configurations. The aim of this research is to formulate a constitutive model for glassy shape memory polymers (GSMP) which takes in to account the fact that the stress-strain response depends on thermal expansion of polymers. The model developed is for the original amorphous phase, the temporary glassy phase and transition between these phases. The glass transition process has been modeled using a framework that was developed recently for studying crystallization in polymers and is based on the theory of multiple natural configurations. Using the same frame work, the melting of the glassy phase to capture the return of the polymer to its original shape is also modeled. The effect of nanoreinforcement on the response of shape memory polymers (GSMP) is studied and a model is developed. In addition to modeling and solving boundary value problems for GSMP's, problems of importance for CSMP, specifically a shape memory cycle (Torsion of a Cylinder) is solved using the developed crystallizable shape memory polymer model. To solve complex boundary value problems in realistic geometries a user material subroutine (UMAT) for GSMP model has been developed for use in conjunction with the commercial finite element software ABAQUS. The accuracy of the UMAT has been verified by testing it against problems for which the results are known.

The Role of Executive Function in Arithmetic Problem-Solving Processes: A Study of Third Graders

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Viterbori, Paola; Traverso, Laura; Usai, M. Carmen

2017-01-01

This study investigated the roles of different executive function (EF) components (inhibition, shifting, and working memory) in 2-step arithmetic word problem solving. A sample of 139 children aged 8 years old and regularly attending the 3rd grade of primary school were tested on 6 EF tasks measuring different EF components, a reading task and a…

Information processing efficiency in patients with multiple sclerosis.

PubMed

Archibald, C J; Fisk, J D

2000-10-01

Reduced information processing efficiency, consequent to impaired neural transmission, has been proposed as underlying various cognitive problems in patients with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). This study employed two measures developed from experimental psychology that control for the potential confound of perceptual-motor abnormalities (Salthouse, Babcock, & Shaw, 1991; Sternberg, 1966, 1969) to assess the speed of information processing and working memory capacity in patients with mild to moderate MS. Although patients had significantly more cognitive complaints than neurologically intact matched controls, their performance on standard tests of immediate memory span did not differ from control participants and their word list learning was within normal limits. On the experimental measures, both relapsing-remitting and secondary-progressive patients exhibited significantly slowed information processing speed relative to controls. However, only the secondary-progressive patients had an additional decrement in working memory capacity. Depression, fatigue, or neurologic disability did not account for performance differences on these measures. While speed of information processing may be slowed early in the disease process, deficits in working memory capacity may appear only as there is progression of MS. It is these latter deficits, however, that may underlie the impairment of new learning that patients with MS demonstrate.

Attention and material-specific memory in children with lateralized epilepsy.

PubMed

Engle, Jennifer A; Smith, Mary Lou

2010-01-01

Epilepsy is frequently associated with attention and memory problems. In adults, lateralization of seizure focus impacts the type of memory affected (left-sided lesions primarily impact verbal memory, while right-sided lesions primarily impact visual memory), but the relationship between seizure focus and the nature of the memory impairment is less clear in children. The current study examines the correlation between parent-reported attention problems and material-specific memory (verbal or visual-spatial) in 65 children (ages 6-16) with medically intractable lateralized epilepsy. There were no significant differences in attention and memory between those with left-lateralized epilepsy (n=25) and those with right-lateralized epilepsy (n=40). However, in the left-lateralized group attention problems were significantly negatively correlated only with delayed visual memory (r=-.450, p<.05), while the right-lateralized group demonstrated the opposite pattern (attention problems significantly negatively correlated with delayed verbal memory; r=-.331, p<.05). These findings suggest that lateralization of seizure focus may in fact impact children's memory in a material-specific manner, while problems with attention may impact memory more globally. Therefore, interventions designed to improve attention in children with epilepsy may have utility in improving certain aspects of memory, but further suggest that in children with lateralized epilepsy, material-specific memory deficits may not resolve with such interventions.

Narrative abilities, memory and attention in children with a specific language impairment.

PubMed

Duinmeijer, Iris; de Jong, Jan; Scheper, Annette

2012-01-01

While narrative tasks have proven to be valid measures for detecting language disorders, measuring communicative skills and predicting future academic performance, research into the comparability of different narrative tasks has shown that outcomes are dependent on the type of task used. Although many of the studies detecting task differences touch upon the fact that tasks place differential demands on cognitive abilities like auditory attention and memory, few studies have related specific narrative tasks to these cognitive abilities. Examining this relation is especially warranted for children with specific language impairment (SLI), who are characterized by language problems, but often have problems in other cognitive domains as well. In the current research, a comparison was made between a story retelling task (The Bus Story) and a story generation task (The Frog Story) in a group of children with SLI (n= 34) and a typically developing group (n= 38) from the same age range. In addition to the two narrative tasks, sustained auditory attention (TEA-Ch) and verbal working memory (WISC digit span and the Dutch version of the CVLT-C word list recall) were measured. Correlations were computed between the narrative, the memory and the attention scores. A group comparison showed that the children with SLI scored significantly worse than the typically developing children on several narrative measures as well as on sustained auditory attention and verbal working memory. A within-subjects comparison of the scores on the two narrative tasks showed a contrast between the tasks on several narrative measures. Furthermore, correlational analyses showed that, on the level of plot structure, the story generation task correlated with sustained auditory attention, while the story retelling task correlated with word list recall. Mean length of utterance (MLU) on the other hand correlated with digit span but not with sustained auditory attention. While children with SLI have problems with narratives in general, their performance is also dependent on the specific elicitation task used for research or diagnostics. Various narrative tasks generate different scores and are differentially correlated to cognitive skills like attention and memory, making the selection of a given task crucial in the clinical setting. © 2012 Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists.

The Predictive Ability of IQ and Working Memory Scores in Literacy in an Adult Population

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alloway, Tracy Packiam; Gregory, David

2013-01-01

Literacy problems are highly prevalent and can persist into adulthood. Yet, the majority of research on the predictive nature of cognitive skills to literacy has primarily focused on development and adolescent populations. The aim of the present study was to extend existing research to investigate the roles of IQ scores and Working Memory…

The contribution of acetylcholine and dopamine to subprocesses of visual working memory--what patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment and Parkinson׳s disease can tell us.

PubMed

Blatt, Joana; Vellage, Anne; Baier, Bernhard; Müller, Notger G

2014-08-01

Attentional selection, i.e. filtering out of irrelevant sensory input and information storage are two crucial components of working memory (WM). It has been proposed that the two processes are mediated by different neurotransmitters, namely acetylcholine for attentional selection and dopamine for memory storage. However, this hypothesis has been challenged by others, who for example linked a lack in dopamine levels in the brain to filtering deficits. Here we tested the above mentioned hypothesis in two patient cohorts which either served as a proxy for a cholinergic or a dopaminergic deficit. The first group comprised 18 patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), the second 22 patients with Parkinson׳s disease (PD). The two groups did not differ regarding their overall cognitive abilities. Both patient groups as well as a control group without neurological deficits (n=25) performed a visuo-spatial working memory task in which both the necessity to filter out irrelevant information and memory load, i.e. the number of items to be held in memory, were manipulated. In accordance with the primary hypothesis, aMCI patients displayed problems with filtering, i.e., were especially impaired when the task required ignoring distracting stimuli. PD patients on the other hand showed difficulties when memory load was increased suggesting that they mainly suffered from a storage deficit. In sum, this study underlines how the investigation of neurologic patients with a presumed neurotransmitter deficit can aid to clarify these neurotransmitters׳ contribution to specific cognitive functions. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Predictors of change in life skills in schizophrenia after cognitive remediation.

PubMed

Kurtz, Matthew M; Seltzer, James C; Fujimoto, Marco; Shagan, Dana S; Wexler, Bruce E

2009-02-01

Few studies have investigated predictors of response to cognitive remediation interventions in patients with schizophrenia. Predictor studies to date have selected treatment outcome measures that were either part of the remediation intervention itself or closely linked to the intervention with few studies investigating factors that predict generalization to measures of everyday life-skills as an index of treatment-related improvement. In the current study we investigated the relationship between four measures of neurocognitive function, crystallized verbal ability, auditory sustained attention and working memory, verbal learning and memory, and problem-solving, two measures of symptoms, total positive and negative symptoms, and the process variables of treatment intensity and duration, to change on a performance-based measure of everyday life-skills after a year of computer-assisted cognitive remediation offered as part of intensive outpatient rehabilitation treatment. Thirty-six patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder were studied. Results of a linear regression model revealed that auditory attention and working memory predicted a significant amount of the variance in change in performance-based measures of everyday life skills after cognitive remediation, even when variance for all other neurocognitive variables in the model was controlled. Stepwise regression revealed that auditory attention and working memory predicted change in everyday life-skills across the trial even when baseline life-skill scores, symptoms and treatment process variables were controlled. These findings emphasize the importance of sustained auditory attention and working memory for benefiting from extended programs of cognitive remediation.

Nigella sativa Oil Enhances the Spatial Working Memory Performance of Rats on a Radial Arm Maze

PubMed Central

Sahak, Mohamad Khairul Azali; Mohamed, Abdul Majid; Hashim, Noor Hashida; Hasan Adli, Durriyyah Sharifah

2013-01-01

Nigella sativa, an established historical and religion-based remedy for a wide range of health problems, is a herbal medicine known to have antioxidant and neuroprotective effects. This present study investigated the effect of Nigella sativa oil (NSO) administration on the spatial memory performance (SMP) of male adult rats using eight-arm radial arm maze (RAM). Twelve Sprague Dawley rats (7–9 weeks old) were force-fed daily with 6.0 μL/100 g body weight of Nigella sativa oil (NSO group; n = 6) or 0.1 mL/100 g body weight of corn oil (control) (CO group; n = 6) for a period of 20 consecutive weeks. For each weekly evaluation of SMP, one day food-deprived rats were tested by allowing each of them 3 minutes to explore the RAM for food as their rewards. Similar to the control group, the SMP of the treated group was not hindered, as indicated by the establishment of the reference and working memory components of the spatial memory. The results demonstrated that lesser mean numbers of error were observed for the NSO-treated group in both parameters as compared to the CO-treated group. NSO could therefore enhance the learning and memory abilities of the rats; there was a significant decrease in the overall mean number of working memory error (WME) in the NSO-treated group. PMID:24454487

Clinical utility of the Wechsler Memory Scale - Fourth Edition (WMS-IV) in patients with intractable temporal lobe epilepsy.

PubMed

Bouman, Zita; Elhorst, Didi; Hendriks, Marc P H; Kessels, Roy P C; Aldenkamp, Albert P

2016-02-01

The Wechsler Memory Scale (WMS) is one of the most widely used test batteries to assess memory functions in patients with brain dysfunctions of different etiologies. This study examined the clinical validation of the Dutch Wechsler Memory Scale - Fourth Edition (WMS-IV-NL) in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). The sample consisted of 75 patients with intractable TLE, who were eligible for epilepsy surgery, and 77 demographically matched healthy controls. All participants were examined with the WMS-IV-NL. Patients with TLE performed significantly worse than healthy controls on all WMS-IV-NL indices and subtests (p<.01), with the exception of the Visual Working Memory Index including its contributing subtests, as well as the subtests Logical Memory I, Verbal Paired Associates I, and Designs II. In addition, patients with mesiotemporal abnormalities performed significantly worse than patients with lateral temporal abnormalities on the subtests Logical Memory I and Designs II and all the indices (p<.05), with the exception of the Auditory Memory Index and Visual Working Memory Index. Patients with either a left or a right temporal focus performed equally on all WMS-IV-NL indices and subtests (F(15, 50)=.70, p=.78), as well as the Auditory-Visual discrepancy score (t(64)=-1.40, p=.17). The WMS-IV-NL is capable of detecting memory problems in patients with TLE, indicating that it is a sufficiently valid memory battery. Furthermore, the findings support previous research showing that the WMS-IV has limited value in identifying material-specific memory deficits in presurgical patients with TLE. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Microcomputers and Preschoolers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Evans, Dina

Preschool children can benefit by working with microcomputers. Thinking skills are enhanced by software games that focus on logic, memory, problem solving, and pattern recognition. Counting, sequencing, and matching games develop mathematics skills, and word games focusing on basic letter symbol and word recognition develop language skills.…

Efficient and flexible memory architecture to alleviate data and context bandwidth bottlenecks of coarse-grained reconfigurable arrays

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Chen; Liu, LeiBo; Yin, ShouYi; Wei, ShaoJun

2014-12-01

The computational capability of a coarse-grained reconfigurable array (CGRA) can be significantly restrained due to data and context memory bandwidth bottlenecks. Traditionally, two methods have been used to resolve this problem. One method loads the context into the CGRA at run time. This method occupies very small on-chip memory but induces very large latency, which leads to low computational efficiency. The other method adopts a multi-context structure. This method loads the context into the on-chip context memory at the boot phase. Broadcasting the pointer of a set of contexts changes the hardware configuration on a cycle-by-cycle basis. The size of the context memory induces a large area overhead in multi-context structures, which results in major restrictions on application complexity. This paper proposes a Predictable Context Cache (PCC) architecture to address the above context issues by buffering the context inside a CGRA. In this architecture, context is dynamically transferred into the CGRA. Utilizing a PCC significantly reduces the on-chip context memory and the complexity of the applications running on the CGRA is no longer restricted by the size of the on-chip context memory. Data preloading is the most frequently used approach to hide input data latency and speed up the data transmission process for the data bandwidth issue. Rather than fundamentally reducing the amount of input data, the transferred data and computations are processed in parallel. However, the data preloading method cannot work efficiently because data transmission becomes the critical path as the reconfigurable array scale increases. This paper also presents a Hierarchical Data Memory (HDM) architecture as a solution to the efficiency problem. In this architecture, high internal bandwidth is provided to buffer both reused input data and intermediate data. The HDM architecture relieves the external memory from the data transfer burden so that the performance is significantly improved. As a result of using PCC and HDM, experiments running mainstream video decoding programs achieved performance improvements of 13.57%-19.48% when there was a reasonable memory size. Therefore, 1080p@35.7fps for H.264 high profile video decoding can be achieved on PCC and HDM architecture when utilizing a 200 MHz working frequency. Further, the size of the on-chip context memory no longer restricted complex applications, which were efficiently executed on the PCC and HDM architecture.

Evaluating spatial memory function in mice: a within-subjects comparison between the water maze test and its adaptation to dry land.

PubMed

Llano Lopez, L; Hauser, J; Feldon, J; Gargiulo, P A; Yee, B K

2010-05-01

The Morris water maze (WM) is a common spatial memory test in rats. It has been adapted for evaluating genetic manipulations in mice. One major acknowledged problem of this cross-species translation is floating. We investigated here in mice the feasibility and practicality of an alternative paradigm-the cheeseboard (CB), which is a dry version of the WM, in a within-subject design allowing direct comparison with the conventional WM. Under identical task demands (reference or working memory), mice learned in the CB as efficiently as in the WM. Furthermore, individual differences in learning rate correlated between the two reference memory tests conducted separately in the two mazes. However, no such correlation was found with respect to reference memory retention or working memory performance. This study demonstrated that the CB is an effective alternative to the WM as spatial cognition test. Additional tests in the CB confirmed that the mice relied on extra maze cues in their spatial search. We would recommend the CB as a valuable addition to, rather than a replacement of the WM in phenotyping transgenic mice, because the two apparatus might diverge in the ability to detect individual differences in various domains of mnemonic functions.

Functional Impairments in Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: The Mediating Role of Neuropsychological Functioning

PubMed Central

Sjöwall, Douglas; Thorell, Lisa B.

2014-01-01

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is associated with multiple neuropsychological deficits and the present study aimed to investigate to what extent these deficits are related to the functional impairments associated with the disorder. The results showed that all executive functioning deficits and reaction time variability acted as mediators in the relation between ADHD and academic achievement. However, only the effect of working memory for language skills, and the effects of reaction time variability and working memory for mathematics, remained significant when studying independent effects. Regulation of anger was a significant mediator for peer problems. Gender or symptoms of oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) or conduct disorder (CD) did not moderate these findings. PMID:24742310

Experiences modeling ocean circulation problems on a 30 node commodity cluster with 3840 GPU processor cores.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hill, C.

2008-12-01

Low cost graphic cards today use many, relatively simple, compute cores to deliver support for memory bandwidth of more than 100GB/s and theoretical floating point performance of more than 500 GFlop/s. Right now this performance is, however, only accessible to highly parallel algorithm implementations that, (i) can use a hundred or more, 32-bit floating point, concurrently executing cores, (ii) can work with graphics memory that resides on the graphics card side of the graphics bus and (iii) can be partially expressed in a language that can be compiled by a graphics programming tool. In this talk we describe our experiences implementing a complete, but relatively simple, time dependent shallow-water equations simulation targeting a cluster of 30 computers each hosting one graphics card. The implementation takes into account the considerations (i), (ii) and (iii) listed previously. We code our algorithm as a series of numerical kernels. Each kernel is designed to be executed by multiple threads of a single process. Kernels are passed memory blocks to compute over which can be persistent blocks of memory on a graphics card. Each kernel is individually implemented using the NVidia CUDA language but driven from a higher level supervisory code that is almost identical to a standard model driver. The supervisory code controls the overall simulation timestepping, but is written to minimize data transfer between main memory and graphics memory (a massive performance bottle-neck on current systems). Using the recipe outlined we can boost the performance of our cluster by nearly an order of magnitude, relative to the same algorithm executing only on the cluster CPU's. Achieving this performance boost requires that many threads are available to each graphics processor for execution within each numerical kernel and that the simulations working set of data can fit into the graphics card memory. As we describe, this puts interesting upper and lower bounds on the problem sizes for which this technology is currently most useful. However, many interesting problems fit within this envelope. Looking forward, we extrapolate our experience to estimate full-scale ocean model performance and applicability. Finally we describe preliminary hybrid mixed 32-bit and 64-bit experiments with graphics cards that support 64-bit arithmetic, albeit at a lower performance.

Cognitive dysfunction in adolescents with chronic fatigue: a cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Sulheim, Dag; Fagermoen, Even; Sivertsen, Øyvind Stople; Winger, Anette; Wyller, Vegard Bruun; Øie, Merete Glenne

2015-09-01

To compare cognitive function in adolescents with chronic fatigue with cognitive function in healthy controls (HC). Cross-sectional study. Paediatric department at Oslo University Hospital, Norway. 120 adolescents with chronic fatigue (average age 15.4 years; range 12-18) and 39 HC (average age 15.2 years; range 12-18). The adolescents completed a neurocognitive test battery measuring processing speed, working memory, cognitive inhibition, cognitive flexibility, verbal learning and verbal memory, and questionnaires addressing demographic data, depression symptoms, anxiety traits, fatigue and sleep problems. Parents completed the Behaviour Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF), which measures the everyday executive functions of children. Adolescents with chronic fatigue had impaired cognitive function compared to HC regarding processing speed (mean difference 3.3, 95% CI 1.1 to 5.5, p=0.003), working memory (-2.4, -3.7 to -1.1, p<0.001), cognitive inhibition response time (6.2, 0.8 to 11.7, p=0.025) and verbal learning (-1.7, -3.2 to -0.3, p=0.022). The BRIEF results indicated that everyday executive functions were significantly worse in the chronic fatigue group compared to the HC (11.2, 8.2 to 14.3, p<0.001). Group differences remained largely unaffected when adjusted for symptoms of depression, anxiety traits and sleep problems. Adolescents with chronic fatigue had impaired cognitive function of clinical relevance, measured by objective cognitive tests, in comparison to HC. Working memory and processing speed may represent core difficulties. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

Efficient checkpointing schemes for depletion perturbation solutions on memory-limited architectures

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

Stripling, H. F.; Adams, M. L.; Hawkins, W. D.

2013-07-01

We describe a methodology for decreasing the memory footprint and machine I/O load associated with the need to access a forward solution during an adjoint solve. Specifically, we are interested in the depletion perturbation equations, where terms in the adjoint Bateman and transport equations depend on the forward flux solution. Checkpointing is the procedure of storing snapshots of the forward solution to disk and using these snapshots to recompute the parts of the forward solution that are necessary for the adjoint solve. For large problems, however, the storage cost of just a few copies of an angular flux vector canmore » exceed the available RAM on the host machine. We propose a methodology that does not checkpoint the angular flux vector; instead, we write and store converged source moments, which are typically of a much lower dimension than the angular flux solution. This reduces the memory footprint and I/O load of the problem, but requires that we perform single sweeps to reconstruct flux vectors on demand. We argue that this trade-off is exactly the kind of algorithm that will scale on advanced, memory-limited architectures. We analyze the cost, in terms of FLOPS and memory footprint, of five checkpointing schemes. We also provide computational results that support the analysis and show that the memory-for-work trade off does improve time to solution. (authors)« less

Optimal Recall from Bounded Metaplastic Synapses: Predicting Functional Adaptations in Hippocampal Area CA3

PubMed Central

Savin, Cristina; Dayan, Peter; Lengyel, Máté

2014-01-01

A venerable history of classical work on autoassociative memory has significantly shaped our understanding of several features of the hippocampus, and most prominently of its CA3 area, in relation to memory storage and retrieval. However, existing theories of hippocampal memory processing ignore a key biological constraint affecting memory storage in neural circuits: the bounded dynamical range of synapses. Recent treatments based on the notion of metaplasticity provide a powerful model for individual bounded synapses; however, their implications for the ability of the hippocampus to retrieve memories well and the dynamics of neurons associated with that retrieval are both unknown. Here, we develop a theoretical framework for memory storage and recall with bounded synapses. We formulate the recall of a previously stored pattern from a noisy recall cue and limited-capacity (and therefore lossy) synapses as a probabilistic inference problem, and derive neural dynamics that implement approximate inference algorithms to solve this problem efficiently. In particular, for binary synapses with metaplastic states, we demonstrate for the first time that memories can be efficiently read out with biologically plausible network dynamics that are completely constrained by the synaptic plasticity rule, and the statistics of the stored patterns and of the recall cue. Our theory organises into a coherent framework a wide range of existing data about the regulation of excitability, feedback inhibition, and network oscillations in area CA3, and makes novel and directly testable predictions that can guide future experiments. PMID:24586137

Nonvolatile memory behavior of nanocrystalline cellulose/graphene oxide composite films

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

Valentini, L., E-mail: luca.valentini@unipg.it; Cardinali, M.; Fortunati, E.

2014-10-13

With the continuous advance of modern electronics, the demand for nonvolatile memory cells rapidly grows. In order to develop post-silicon electronic devices, it is necessary to find innovative solutions to the eco-sustainability problem of materials for nonvolatile memory cells. In this work, we realized a resistive memory device based on graphene oxide (GO) and GO/cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) thin films. Aqueous solutions of GO and GO with CNC have been prepared and drop cast between two metal electrodes. Such thin-film based devices showed a transition between low and high conductivity states upon the forward and backward sweeping of an external electricmore » field. This reversible current density transition behavior demonstrates a typical memory characteristic. The obtained results open an easy route for electronic information storage based on the integration of nanocrystalline cellulose onto graphene based devices.« less

Effects of age on a real-world What-Where-When memory task

PubMed Central

Mazurek, Adèle; Bhoopathy, Raja Meenakshi; Read, Jenny C. A.; Gallagher, Peter; Smulders, Tom V.

2015-01-01

Many cognitive abilities decline with aging, making it difficult to detect pathological changes against a background of natural changes in cognition. Most of the tests to assess cognitive decline are artificial tasks that have little resemblance to the problems faced by people in everyday life. This means both that people may have little practice doing such tasks (potentially contributing to the decline in performance) and that the tasks may not be good predictors of real-world cognitive problems. In this study, we test the performance of young people (18–25 years) and older people (60+-year-olds) on a novel, more ecologically valid test of episodic memory: the real-world What-Where-When (WWW) memory test. We also compare them on a battery of other cognitive tests, including working memory, psychomotor speed, executive function, and episodic memory. Older people show the expected age-related declines on the test battery. In the WWW memory task, older people were more likely to fail to remember any WWW combination than younger people were, although they did not significantly differ in their overall WWW score due to some older people performing as well as or better than most younger people. WWW memory performance was significantly predicted by other measures of episodic memory, such as the single-trial learning and long-term retention in the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning task and Combined Object Location Memory in the Object Relocation task. Self-reported memory complaints also predicted performance on the WWW task. These findings confirm that our real-world WWW memory task is a valid measure of episodic memory, with high ecological validity, which may be useful as a predictor of everyday memory abilities. The task will require a bit more development to improve its sensitivity to cognitive declines in aging and to potentially distinguish between mentally healthy older adults and those with early signs of cognitive pathologies. PMID:26042030

Improving Memory Error Handling Using Linux

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

Carlton, Michael Andrew; Blanchard, Sean P.; Debardeleben, Nathan A.

As supercomputers continue to get faster and more powerful in the future, they will also have more nodes. If nothing is done, then the amount of memory in supercomputer clusters will soon grow large enough that memory failures will be unmanageable to deal with by manually replacing memory DIMMs. "Improving Memory Error Handling Using Linux" is a process oriented method to solve this problem by using the Linux kernel to disable (offline) faulty memory pages containing bad addresses, preventing them from being used again by a process. The process of offlining memory pages simplifies error handling and results in reducingmore » both hardware and manpower costs required to run Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) clusters. This process will be necessary for the future of supercomputing to allow the development of exascale computers. It will not be feasible without memory error handling to manually replace the number of DIMMs that will fail daily on a machine consisting of 32-128 petabytes of memory. Testing reveals the process of offlining memory pages works and is relatively simple to use. As more and more testing is conducted, the entire process will be automated within the high-performance computing (HPC) monitoring software, Zenoss, at LANL.« less

Multigrid contact detection method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

He, Kejing; Dong, Shoubin; Zhou, Zhaoyao

2007-03-01

Contact detection is a general problem of many physical simulations. This work presents a O(N) multigrid method for general contact detection problems (MGCD). The multigrid idea is integrated with contact detection problems. Both the time complexity and memory consumption of the MGCD are O(N) . Unlike other methods, whose efficiencies are influenced strongly by the object size distribution, the performance of MGCD is insensitive to the object size distribution. We compare the MGCD with the no binary search (NBS) method and the multilevel boxing method in three dimensions for both time complexity and memory consumption. For objects with similar size, the MGCD is as good as the NBS method, both of which outperform the multilevel boxing method regarding memory consumption. For objects with diverse size, the MGCD outperform both the NBS method and the multilevel boxing method. We use the MGCD to solve the contact detection problem for a granular simulation system based on the discrete element method. From this granular simulation, we get the density property of monosize packing and binary packing with size ratio equal to 10. The packing density for monosize particles is 0.636. For binary packing with size ratio equal to 10, when the number of small particles is 300 times as the number of big particles, the maximal packing density 0.824 is achieved.

Work Strategies: The Development and Testing of a Model.

DTIC Science & Technology

1986-03-01

strategies (e.g., Craik & Lockhart , 1972); hemispheric process - -7 ing differences (e.g., Seamon & Gazzaniga, 1973); problem-solving strategies (e.g...Charness, N. (1931). Aging and skilled problem solving. 3ournal of Experimental Psychology: General, 110, 21-38. Craik , F. I. \\., & Lockhart , R. S...1972). Levels of processing : A framework for memory research. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, L1, 671-684. 3ansereau, D. F., McDonald

Profile of cognitive problems in schizophrenia and implications for vocational functioning.

PubMed

Tan, Bhing-Leet

2009-08-01

This literature review attempts to profile specific areas of cognition that have shown unique and consistent evidence of dysfunction among people with schizophrenia. In addition, their impact on vocational functioning is illustrated, so as to highlight the importance of managing these cognitive difficulties in vocational rehabilitation. Literature search was carried out on seven key cognitive domains identified by the National Institute of Mental Health in the USA. Their impact on vocational function was also reviewed. It is found that attention, declarative and working memory, reasoning, problem-solving and social cognition are areas of impairment that have great impact on vocational functioning. Attention and memory problems affect learning of new work tasks. Executive function is particularly crucial in determining supported and open employment outcomes, as executive dysfunction cannot be easily compensated. Lastly, social cognition plays a major role in determining the success of workplace social exchanges. Occupational therapists need to have a good understanding of the profile of cognitive problems among people with schizophrenia, in order to tailor our intervention according to their cognitive strengths and difficulties. Several cognitive remediation strategies and programs have been designed specifically for people with mental illness. Equipping ourselves with skills in conducting such programs will augment our expertise in vocational rehabilitation.

Fractionating the neural correlates of individual working memory components underlying arithmetic problem solving skills in children

PubMed Central

Metcalfe, Arron W. S.; Ashkenazi, Sarit; Rosenberg-Lee, Miriam; Menon, Vinod

2013-01-01

Baddeley and Hitch’s multi-component working memory (WM) model has played an enduring and influential role in our understanding of cognitive abilities. Very little is known, however, about the neural basis of this multi-component WM model and the differential role each component plays in mediating arithmetic problem solving abilities in children. Here, we investigate the neural basis of the central executive (CE), phonological (PL) and visuo-spatial (VS) components of WM during a demanding mental arithmetic task in 7–9 year old children (N=74). The VS component was the strongest predictor of math ability in children and was associated with increased arithmetic complexity-related responses in left dorsolateral and right ventrolateral prefrontal cortices as well as bilateral intra-parietal sulcus and supramarginal gyrus in posterior parietal cortex. Critically, VS, CE and PL abilities were associated with largely distinct patterns of brain response. Overlap between VS and CE components was observed in left supramarginal gyrus and no overlap was observed between VS and PL components. Our findings point to a central role of visuo-spatial WM during arithmetic problem-solving in young grade-school children and highlight the usefulness of the multi-component Baddeley and Hitch WM model in fractionating the neural correlates of arithmetic problem solving during development. PMID:24212504

A Self-Regulatory Model of Behavioral Disinhibition in Late Adolescence: Integrating Personality Traits, Externalizing Psychopathology, and Cognitive Capacity

PubMed Central

Bogg, Tim; Finn, Peter R.

2011-01-01

Two samples with heterogeneous prevalence of externalizing psychopathology were used to investigate the structure of self-regulatory models of behavioral disinhibition and cognitive capacity. Consistent with expectations, structural equation modeling in the first sample (N = 541) showed a hierarchical model with three lower-order factors of impulsive sensation-seeking, anti-sociality/unconventionality, and lifetime externalizing problem counts, with a behavioral disinhibition superfactor best accounted for the pattern of covariation among six disinhibited personality trait indicators and four externalizing problem indicators. The structure was replicated in a second sample (N = 463) and showed that the behavioral disinhibition superfactor, and not the lower-order impulsive sensation-seeking, anti-sociality/unconventionality, and externalizing problem factors, was associated with lower IQ, reduced short-term memory capacity, and reduced working memory capacity. The results provide a systemic and meaningful integration of major self-regulatory influences during a developmentally important stage of life. PMID:20433626

Solution of large nonlinear quasistatic structural mechanics problems on distributed-memory multiprocessor computers

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

Blanford, M.

1997-12-31

Most commercially-available quasistatic finite element programs assemble element stiffnesses into a global stiffness matrix, then use a direct linear equation solver to obtain nodal displacements. However, for large problems (greater than a few hundred thousand degrees of freedom), the memory size and computation time required for this approach becomes prohibitive. Moreover, direct solution does not lend itself to the parallel processing needed for today`s multiprocessor systems. This talk gives an overview of the iterative solution strategy of JAS3D, the nonlinear large-deformation quasistatic finite element program. Because its architecture is derived from an explicit transient-dynamics code, it does not ever assemblemore » a global stiffness matrix. The author describes the approach he used to implement the solver on multiprocessor computers, and shows examples of problems run on hundreds of processors and more than a million degrees of freedom. Finally, he describes some of the work he is presently doing to address the challenges of iterative convergence for ill-conditioned problems.« less

Crystallized verbal skills in schizophrenia: relationship to neurocognition, symptoms, and functional status.

PubMed

Kurtz, Matthew M; Donato, Jad; Rose, Jennifer

2011-11-01

To study the relationship of superior (i.e., ≥ 90th percentile), average (11th-89th percentile) or extremely low (i.e., ≤ 10th percentile) crystallized verbal skills to neurocognitive profiles, symptoms and everyday life function in schizophrenia. Crystallized verbal skill was derived from Vocabulary subtest scores from the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS). Out of a sample of 165 stable outpatients with schizophrenia we identified 25 participants with superior crystallized verbal skill, 104 participants with average verbal skill, and 36 participants with extremely low crystallized verbal skill. Each participant was administered measures of attention, working memory, verbal learning and memory, problem-solving and processing speed, as well as symptom and performance-based adaptive life skill assessments. The magnitude of neuropsychological impairment across the three groups was different, after adjusting for group differences in education and duration of illness. Working memory, and verbal learning and memory skills were different across all three groups, while processing speed differentiated the extremely low verbal skill group from the other two groups and problem-solving differentiated the very low verbal skill group from the superior verbal skill group. There were no group differences in sustained attention. Capacity measures of everyday life skills were different across each of the three groups. Crystallized verbal skill in schizophrenia is related to the magnitude of impairment in neurocognitive function and performance-based skills in everyday life function. Patterns of neuropsychological impairment were similar across different levels of crystallized verbal skill.

On the Evolutionary Origins of Executive Functions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ardila, Alfredo

2008-01-01

In this paper it is proposed that the prefrontal lobe participates in two closely related but different executive function abilities: (1) "metacognitive executive functions": problem solving, planning, concept formation, strategy development and implementation, controlling attention, working memory, and the like; that is, executive functions as…

Executive Functions Contribute Uniquely to Reading Competence in Minority Youth

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jacobson, Lisa A.; Koriakin, Taylor; Lipkin, Paul; Boada, Richard; Frijters, Jan C.; Lovett, Maureen W.; Hill, Dina; Willcutt, Erik; Gottwald, Stephanie; Wolf, Maryanne; Bosson-Heenan, Joan; Gruen, Jeffrey R.; Mahone, E. Mark

2017-01-01

Competent reading requires various skills beyond those for basic word reading (i.e., core language skills, rapid naming, phonological processing). Contributing "higher-level" or domain-general processes include information processing speed and executive functions (working memory, strategic problem solving, attentional switching).…

Organic Ferroelectric-Based 1T1T Random Access Memory Cell Employing a Common Dielectric Layer Overcoming the Half-Selection Problem.

PubMed

Zhao, Qiang; Wang, Hanlin; Ni, Zhenjie; Liu, Jie; Zhen, Yonggang; Zhang, Xiaotao; Jiang, Lang; Li, Rongjin; Dong, Huanli; Hu, Wenping

2017-09-01

Organic electronics based on poly(vinylidenefluoride/trifluoroethylene) (P(VDF-TrFE)) dielectric is facing great challenges in flexible circuits. As one indispensable part of integrated circuits, there is an urgent demand for low-cost and easy-fabrication nonvolatile memory devices. A breakthrough is made on a novel ferroelectric random access memory cell (1T1T FeRAM cell) consisting of one selection transistor and one ferroelectric memory transistor in order to overcome the half-selection problem. Unlike complicated manufacturing using multiple dielectrics, this system simplifies 1T1T FeRAM cell fabrication using one common dielectric. To achieve this goal, a strategy for semiconductor/insulator (S/I) interface modulation is put forward and applied to nonhysteretic selection transistors with high performances for driving or addressing purposes. As a result, high hole mobility of 3.81 cm 2 V -1 s -1 (average) for 2,6-diphenylanthracene (DPA) and electron mobility of 0.124 cm 2 V -1 s -1 (average) for N,N'-1H,1H-perfluorobutyl dicyanoperylenecarboxydiimide (PDI-FCN 2 ) are obtained in selection transistors. In this work, we demonstrate this technology's potential for organic ferroelectric-based pixelated memory module fabrication. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Cognitive Strategies, Working Memory, and Growth in Word Problem Solving in Children With Math Difficulties.

PubMed

Swanson, H Lee; Lussier, Catherine M; Orosco, Michael J

2015-01-01

This study investigated the role of strategy instruction and working memory capacity (WMC) on word problem solving accuracy in children with (n = 100) and without (n = 92) math difficulties (MD). Within classrooms, children in Grades 2 and 3 were randomly assigned to one of four treatment conditions: verbal-only strategies (e.g., underlining question sentence), verbal + visual strategies, visual-only strategies (e.g., correctly placing numbers in diagrams), or untreated control. Strategy interventions included 20 sessions in both Year 1 and Year 2. The intent-to-treat as well as the "as-treated" analyses showed that treatment effects were significantly moderated by WMC. In general, treatment outcomes were higher when WMC was set to a high rather than low level. When set to a relatively high WMC level, children with MD performed significantly better under visual-only strategy conditions and children without MD performed better under verbal + visual conditions when compared to control conditions. © Hammill Institute on Disabilities 2013.

Is the Link from Working Memory to Analogy Causal? No Analogy Improvements following Working Memory Training Gains

PubMed Central

Richey, J. Elizabeth; Phillips, Jeffrey S.; Schunn, Christian D.; Schneider, Walter

2014-01-01

Analogical reasoning has been hypothesized to critically depend upon working memory through correlational data [1], but less work has tested this relationship through experimental manipulation [2]. An opportunity for examining the connection between working memory and analogical reasoning has emerged from the growing, although somewhat controversial, body of literature suggests complex working memory training can sometimes lead to working memory improvements that transfer to novel working memory tasks. This study investigated whether working memory improvements, if replicated, would increase analogical reasoning ability. We assessed participants’ performance on verbal and visual analogy tasks after a complex working memory training program incorporating verbal and spatial tasks [3], [4]. Participants’ improvements on the working memory training tasks transferred to other short-term and working memory tasks, supporting the possibility of broad effects of working memory training. However, we found no effects on analogical reasoning. We propose several possible explanations for the lack of an impact of working memory improvements on analogical reasoning. PMID:25188356

Happiness increases verbal and spatial working memory capacity where sadness does not: Emotion, working memory and executive control.

PubMed

Storbeck, Justin; Maswood, Raeya

2016-08-01

The effects of emotion on working memory and executive control are often studied in isolation. Positive mood enhances verbal and impairs spatial working memory, whereas negative mood enhances spatial and impairs verbal working memory. Moreover, positive mood enhances executive control, whereas negative mood has little influence. We examined how emotion influences verbal and spatial working memory capacity, which requires executive control to coordinate between holding information in working memory and completing a secondary task. We predicted that positive mood would improve both verbal and spatial working memory capacity because of its influence on executive control. Positive, negative and neutral moods were induced followed by completing a verbal (Experiment 1) or spatial (Experiment 2) working memory operation span task to assess working memory capacity. Positive mood enhanced working memory capacity irrespective of the working memory domain, whereas negative mood had no influence on performance. Thus, positive mood was more successful holding information in working memory while processing task-irrelevant information, suggesting that the influence mood has on executive control supersedes the independent effects mood has on domain-specific working memory.

Changes in cognitive functions of students in the transitional period from elementary school to junior high school.

PubMed

Mizuno, Kei; Tanaka, Masaaki; Fukuda, Sanae; Sasabe, Tetsuya; Imai-Matsumura, Kyoko; Watanabe, Yasuyoshi

2011-05-01

When students proceed to junior high school from elementary school, rapid changes in the environment occur, which may cause various behavioral and emotional problems. However, the changes in cognitive functions during this transitional period have rarely been studied. In 158 elementary school students from 4th- to 6th-grades and 159 junior high school students from 7th- to 9th-grades, we assessed various cognitive functions, including motor processing, spatial construction ability, semantic fluency, immediate memory, delayed memory, spatial and non-spatial working memory, and selective, alternative, and divided attention. Our findings showed that performance on spatial and non-spatial working memory, alternative attention, divided attention, and semantic fluency tasks improved from elementary to junior high school. In particular, performance on alternative and divided attention tasks improved during the transitional period from elementary to junior high school. Our finding suggests that development of alternative and divided attention is of crucial importance in the transitional period from elementary to junior high school. Copyright © 2010 The Japanese Society of Child Neurology. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A case-based assistant for clinical psychiatry expertise.

PubMed

Bichindaritz, I

1994-01-01

Case-based reasoning is an artificial intelligence methodology for the processing of empirical knowledge. Recent case-based reasoning systems also use theoretic knowledge about the domain to constrain the case-based reasoning. The organization of the memory is the key issue in case-based reasoning. The case-based assistant presented here has two structures in memory: cases and concepts. These memory structures permit it to be as skilled in problem-solving tasks, such as diagnosis and treatment planning, as in interpretive tasks, such as clinical research. A prototype applied to clinical work about eating disorders in psychiatry, reasoning from the alimentary questionnaires of these patients, is presented as an example of the system abilities.

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

Li, Lingda; Hayes, Ari; Song, Shuaiwen

Modern GPUs employ cache to improve memory system efficiency. However, large amount of cache space is underutilized due to irregular memory accesses and poor spatial locality which exhibited commonly in GPU applications. Our experiments show that using smaller cache lines could improve cache space utilization, but it also frequently suffers from significant performance loss by introducing large amount of extra cache requests. In this work, we propose a novel cache design named tag-split cache (TSC) that enables fine-grained cache storage to address the problem of cache space underutilization while keeping memory request number unchanged. TSC divides tag into two partsmore » to reduce storage overhead, and it supports multiple cache line replacement in one cycle.« less

Low rank approximation methods for MR fingerprinting with large scale dictionaries.

PubMed

Yang, Mingrui; Ma, Dan; Jiang, Yun; Hamilton, Jesse; Seiberlich, Nicole; Griswold, Mark A; McGivney, Debra

2018-04-01

This work proposes new low rank approximation approaches with significant memory savings for large scale MR fingerprinting (MRF) problems. We introduce a compressed MRF with randomized singular value decomposition method to significantly reduce the memory requirement for calculating a low rank approximation of large sized MRF dictionaries. We further relax this requirement by exploiting the structures of MRF dictionaries in the randomized singular value decomposition space and fitting them to low-degree polynomials to generate high resolution MRF parameter maps. In vivo 1.5T and 3T brain scan data are used to validate the approaches. T 1 , T 2 , and off-resonance maps are in good agreement with that of the standard MRF approach. Moreover, the memory savings is up to 1000 times for the MRF-fast imaging with steady-state precession sequence and more than 15 times for the MRF-balanced, steady-state free precession sequence. The proposed compressed MRF with randomized singular value decomposition and dictionary fitting methods are memory efficient low rank approximation methods, which can benefit the usage of MRF in clinical settings. They also have great potentials in large scale MRF problems, such as problems considering multi-component MRF parameters or high resolution in the parameter space. Magn Reson Med 79:2392-2400, 2018. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.

Executive Functioning Skills in Preschool-Age Children With Cochlear Implants

PubMed Central

Beer, Jessica; Kronenberger, William G.; Castellanos, Irina; Colson, Bethany G.; Henning, Shirley C.; Pisoni, David B.

2014-01-01

Purpose The purpose of this study was to determine whether deficits in executive functioning (EF) in children with cochlear implants (CIs) emerge as early as the preschool years. Method Two groups of children ages 3 to 6 years participated in this cross-sectional study: 24 preschoolers who had CIs prior to 36 months of age and 21 preschoolers with normal hearing (NH). All were tested on normed measures of working memory, inhibition-concentration, and organization-integration. Parents completed a normed rating scale of problem behaviors related to EF. Comparisons of EF skills of children with CIs were made to peers with NH and to published nationally representative norms. Results Preschoolers with CIs showed significantly poorer performance on inhibition-concentration and working memory compared with peers with NH and with national norms. No group differences were found in visual memory or organization-integration. When data were controlled for language, differences in performance measures of EF remained, whereas differences in parent-reported problems with EF were no longer significant. Hearing history was generally unrelated to EF. Conclusions This is the first study to demonstrate that EF deficits found in older children with CIs begin to emerge as early as preschool years. The ability to detect these deficits early has important implications for early intervention and habilitation after cochlear implantation. PMID:24686747

Reading comprehension and working memory in learning-disabled readers: Is the phonological loop more important than the executive system?

PubMed

Swanson, H L

1999-01-01

This investigation explores the contribution of two working memory systems (the articulatory loop and the central executive) to the performance differences between learning-disabled (LD) and skilled readers. Performances of LD, chronological age (CA) matched, and reading level-matched children were compared on measures of phonological processing accuracy and speed (articulatory system), long-term memory (LTM) accuracy and speed, and executive processing. The results indicated that (a) LD readers were inferior on measures of articulatory, LTM, and executive processing; (b) LD readers were superior to RL readers on measures of executive processing, but were comparable to RL readers on measures of the articulatory and LTM system; (c) executive processing differences remained significant between LD and CA-matched children when measures of reading comprehension, articulatory processes, and LTM processes were partialed from the analysis; and (d) executive processing contributed significant variance to reading comprehension when measures of the articulatory and LTM systems were entered into a hierarchical regression model. In summary, LD readers experience constraints in the articulatory and LTM system, but constraints mediate only some of the influence of executive processing on reading comprehension. Further, LD readers suffer executive processing problems nonspecific to their reading comprehension problems. Copyright 1999 Academic Press.

Harsh discipline relates to internalizing problems and cognitive functioning: findings from a cross-sectional study with school children in Tanzania.

PubMed

Hecker, Tobias; Hermenau, Katharin; Salmen, Charlotte; Teicher, Martin; Elbert, Thomas

2016-04-29

Child maltreatment poses a risk to children and adolescents' mental health and may also affect cognitive functioning. Also harsh discipline has been frequently associated with mental health problems. However, within societies in which harsh disciplinary methods are culturally normed and highly prevalent less is known about the association between harsh punishment, mental health problems, and cognitive functioning. In a cross-sectional study, we conducted structured clinical interviews with a sample of Tanzanian primary school students assessing exposure to harsh discipline (Maltreatment and Abuse Chronology of Exposure), internalizing problems (Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire, Children's Depression Inventory), and working memory (Corsi Blocktapping Task). School performance was measured by using the exam grades in 4 core subjects. The 409 children (52% boys) had a mean age of 10.5 years (range: 6 - 15). Using structural equation modeling, a strong relationship was found between harsh discipline and internalizing problems (β = .47), which were related to lower working memory capacity (β = -.17) and school performance (β = -.17). The present study suggests that harsh discipline is closely linked to children's internalizing mental health problems, which are in turn associated with lower cognitive functioning and school performance. Given the high rates of harsh discipline experienced by children in East African homes and elsewhere, the findings of the present study emphasize the need to inform the population at large about the potentially adverse consequences associated with harsh discipline.

Think globally and solve locally: secondary memory-based network learning for automated multi-species function prediction

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background Network-based learning algorithms for automated function prediction (AFP) are negatively affected by the limited coverage of experimental data and limited a priori known functional annotations. As a consequence their application to model organisms is often restricted to well characterized biological processes and pathways, and their effectiveness with poorly annotated species is relatively limited. A possible solution to this problem might consist in the construction of big networks including multiple species, but this in turn poses challenging computational problems, due to the scalability limitations of existing algorithms and the main memory requirements induced by the construction of big networks. Distributed computation or the usage of big computers could in principle respond to these issues, but raises further algorithmic problems and require resources not satisfiable with simple off-the-shelf computers. Results We propose a novel framework for scalable network-based learning of multi-species protein functions based on both a local implementation of existing algorithms and the adoption of innovative technologies: we solve “locally” the AFP problem, by designing “vertex-centric” implementations of network-based algorithms, but we do not give up thinking “globally” by exploiting the overall topology of the network. This is made possible by the adoption of secondary memory-based technologies that allow the efficient use of the large memory available on disks, thus overcoming the main memory limitations of modern off-the-shelf computers. This approach has been applied to the analysis of a large multi-species network including more than 300 species of bacteria and to a network with more than 200,000 proteins belonging to 13 Eukaryotic species. To our knowledge this is the first work where secondary-memory based network analysis has been applied to multi-species function prediction using biological networks with hundreds of thousands of proteins. Conclusions The combination of these algorithmic and technological approaches makes feasible the analysis of large multi-species networks using ordinary computers with limited speed and primary memory, and in perspective could enable the analysis of huge networks (e.g. the whole proteomes available in SwissProt), using well-equipped stand-alone machines. PMID:24843788

Executive Functions Contribute Uniquely to Reading Competence in Minority Youth.

PubMed

Jacobson, Lisa A; Koriakin, Taylor; Lipkin, Paul; Boada, Richard; Frijters, Jan C; Lovett, Maureen W; Hill, Dina; Willcutt, Erik; Gottwald, Stephanie; Wolf, Maryanne; Bosson-Heenan, Joan; Gruen, Jeffrey R; Mahone, E Mark

Competent reading requires various skills beyond those for basic word reading (i.e., core language skills, rapid naming, phonological processing). Contributing "higher-level" or domain-general processes include information processing speed and executive functions (working memory, strategic problem solving, attentional switching). Research in this area has relied on largely Caucasian samples, with limited representation of children from racial or ethnic minority groups. This study examined contributions of executive skills to reading competence in 761 children of minority backgrounds. Hierarchical linear regressions examined unique contributions of executive functions (EF) to word reading, fluency, and comprehension. EF contributed uniquely to reading performance, over and above reading-related language skills; working memory contributed uniquely to all components of reading; while attentional switching, but not problem solving, contributed to isolated and contextual word reading and reading fluency. Problem solving uniquely predicted comprehension, suggesting that this skill may be especially important for reading comprehension in minority youth. Attentional switching may play a unique role in development of reading fluency in minority youth, perhaps as a result of the increased demand for switching between spoken versus written dialects. Findings have implications for educational and clinical practice with regard to reading instruction, remedial reading intervention, and assessment of individuals with reading difficulty.

Working Memory Influences Processing Speed and Reading Fluency in ADHD

PubMed Central

Jacobson, Lisa A.; Ryan, Matthew; Martin, Rebecca B.; Ewen, Joshua; Mostofsky, Stewart H.; Denckla, Martha B.; Mahone, E. Mark

2012-01-01

Processing speed deficits affect reading efficiency, even among individuals who recognize and decode words accurately. Children with ADHD who decode words accurately can still have inefficient reading fluency, leading to a bottleneck in other cognitive processes. This “slowing” in ADHD is associated with deficits in fundamental components of executive function underlying processing speed, including response selection. The purpose of the present study was to deconstruct processing speed in order to determine which components of executive control best explain the “processing” speed deficits related to reading fluency in ADHD. Participants (41 ADHD, 21 controls), ages 9-14, screened for language disorders, word reading deficits, and psychiatric disorders, were administered measures of copying speed, processing speed, reading fluency, working memory, reaction time, inhibition, and auditory attention span. Compared to controls, children with ADHD showed reduced oral and silent reading fluency, and reduced processing speed—driven primarily by deficits on WISC-IV Coding. In contrast, groups did not differ on copying speed. After controlling for copying speed, sex, severity of ADHD-related symptomatology, and GAI, slowed “processing” speed (i.e., Coding) was significantly associated with verbal span and measures of working memory, but not with measures of response control/inhibition, lexical retrieval speed, reaction time, or intra-subject variability. Further, “processing” speed (i.e., Coding, residualized for copying speed) and working memory were significant predictors of oral reading fluency. Abnormalities in working memory and response selection (which are frontally-mediated and enter into the output side of processing speed) may play an important role in deficits in reading fluency in ADHD, potentially more than posteriorally-mediated problems with orienting of attention or perceiving the stimulus. PMID:21287422

Working memory influences processing speed and reading fluency in ADHD.

PubMed

Jacobson, Lisa A; Ryan, Matthew; Martin, Rebecca B; Ewen, Joshua; Mostofsky, Stewart H; Denckla, Martha B; Mahone, E Mark

2011-01-01

Processing-speed deficits affect reading efficiency, even among individuals who recognize and decode words accurately. Children with ADHD who decode words accurately can still have inefficient reading fluency, leading to a bottleneck in other cognitive processes. This "slowing" in ADHD is associated with deficits in fundamental components of executive function underlying processing speed, including response selection. The purpose of the present study was to deconstruct processing speed in order to determine which components of executive control best explain the "processing" speed deficits related to reading fluency in ADHD. Participants (41 ADHD, 21 controls), ages 9-14 years, screened for language disorders, word reading deficits, and psychiatric disorders, were administered measures of copying speed, processing speed, reading fluency, working memory, reaction time, inhibition, and auditory attention span. Compared to controls, children with ADHD showed reduced oral and silent reading fluency and reduced processing speed-driven primarily by deficits on WISC-IV Coding. In contrast, groups did not differ on copying speed. After controlling for copying speed, sex, severity of ADHD-related symptomatology, and GAI, slowed "processing" speed (i.e., Coding) was significantly associated with verbal span and measures of working memory but not with measures of response control/inhibition, lexical retrieval speed, reaction time, or intrasubject variability. Further, "processing" speed (i.e., Coding, residualized for copying speed) and working memory were significant predictors of oral reading fluency. Abnormalities in working memory and response selection (which are frontally mediated and enter into the output side of processing speed) may play an important role in deficits in reading fluency in ADHD, potentially more than posteriorally mediated problems with orienting of attention or perceiving the stimulus.

Exploring Individual Differences in Preschoolers' Causal Stance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alvarez, Aubry; Booth, Amy E.

2016-01-01

Preschoolers, as a group, are highly attuned to causality, and this attunement is known to facilitate memory, learning, and problem solving. However, recent work reveals substantial individual variability in the strength of children's "causal stance," as demonstrated by their curiosity about and preference for new causal information. In…

A Brighter Side to Memory Illusions: False Memories Prime Children's and Adults' Insight-Based Problem Solving

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Howe, Mark L.; Garner, Sarah R.; Charlesworth, Monica; Knott, Lauren

2011-01-01

Can false memories have a positive consequence on human cognition? In two experiments, we investigated whether false memories could prime insight problem-solving tasks. Children and adults were asked to solve compound remote associate task (CRAT) problems, half of which had been primed by the presentation of Deese/Roediger-McDermott (DRM) lists…

Effects of electromagnetic fields emitted by GSM phones on working memory: a meta-analysis.

PubMed

Zubko, O; Gould, R L; Gay, H C; Cox, H J; Coulson, M C; Howard, R J

2017-02-01

Current treatments for Alzheimer's Disease (AD) do not affect the course of the illness and brain stimulation techniques are increasingly promoted as potential therapeutic interventions for AD. This study reviews the effects of electromagnetic field (EMF) exposure versus sham exposure on working memory (WM) performance of healthy human participants. Online literature databases and previous systematic reviews were searched for studies of EMF and WM in participants without reported memory problems. Two thousand eight hundred and fifty seven studies were identified, and 10 studies met the inclusion criteria. An assessment of study quality was completed, and separate, random effects meta-analyses were conducted for each of the three WM tasks included: n-back, substitution and digit span forward. No differences were found between participants exposed to active EMF versus sham conditions in any of the three working memory tasks examined. Results indicate that EMF does not affect WM during the n-back, substitution and digit-span tasks. Future studies should focus on the possible effects of chronic exposure to EMF in older adults with AD using a battery of comparable WM and attention tasks, before EMF can be seriously considered as a potential modulator of WM in AD. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Altered Brain Dynamics in Patients With Type 1 Diabetes During Working Memory Processing.

PubMed

Embury, Christine M; Wiesman, Alex I; Proskovec, Amy L; Heinrichs-Graham, Elizabeth; McDermott, Timothy J; Lord, Grace H; Brau, Kaitlin L; Drincic, Andjela T; Desouza, Cyrus V; Wilson, Tony W

2018-06-01

It is now generally accepted that diabetes increases the risk for cognitive impairment, but the precise mechanisms are poorly understood. A critical problem in linking diabetes to cognitive impairment is that patients often have multiple comorbidities (e.g., obesity, hypertension) that have been independently linked to cognitive deficits. In the study reported here we focused on young adults with and without type 1 diabetes who were virtually free of such comorbidities. The two groups were matched on major health and demographic factors, and all participants completed a verbal working memory task during magnetoencephalographic brain imaging. We hypothesized that patients would have altered neural dynamics in verbal working memory processing and that these differences would directly relate to clinical disease measures. Accordingly, we found that patients had significantly stronger neural responses in the superior parietal cortices during memory encoding and significantly weaker activity in parietal-occipital regions during maintenance compared with control subjects. Moreover, disease duration and glycemic control were both significantly correlated with neural responses in various brain regions. In conclusion, young healthy adults with type 1 diabetes already have aberrant neural processing relative to their peers without diabetes, using compensatory responses to perform the task, and glucose management and duration may play a central role. © 2018 by the American Diabetes Association.

Cognitive Predictors of Verbal Memory in a Mixed Clinical Pediatric Sample

PubMed Central

Jordan, Lizabeth L.; Tyner, Callie E.; Heaton, Shelley C.

2013-01-01

Verbal memory problems, along with other cognitive difficulties, are common in children diagnosed with neurological and/or psychological disorders. Historically, these “memory problems” have been poorly characterized and often present with a heterogeneous pattern of performance across memory processes, even within a specific diagnostic group. The current study examined archival neuropsychological data from a large mixed clinical pediatric sample in order to understand whether functioning in other cognitive areas (i.e., verbal knowledge, attention, working memory, executive functioning) may explain some of the performance variability seen across verbal memory tasks of the Children’s Memory Scale (CMS). Multivariate analyses revealed that among the cognitive functions examined, only verbal knowledge explained a significant amount of variance in overall verbal memory performance. Further univariate analyses examining the component processes of verbal memory indicated that verbal knowledge is specifically related to encoding, but not the retention or retrieval stages. Future research is needed to replicate these findings in other clinical samples, to examine whether verbal knowledge predicts performance on other verbal memory tasks and to explore whether these findings also hold true for visual memory tasks. Successful replication of the current study findings would indicate that interventions targeting verbal encoding deficits should include efforts to improve verbal knowledge. PMID:25379253

Remembering: forget about forgetting and train your brain instead.

PubMed

Sorrell, Jeanne M

2008-09-01

As people age, they often become increasingly concerned about their inability to remember names and faces or recall specific words. As their memory seems to decline, they worry about developing Alzheimer's disease. Yet, new research suggests that for most aging adults, failing to remember is because of an overload of information and difficulty in trying to sort through a cluttered "database." Brain-training programs based on evolving research, as well as increased opportunities to reflect on healthy aging experiences, offer important possibilities for working with clients concerned about memory problems.

The Social Life of a Data Base

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Linde, Charlotte; Wales, Roxana; Clancy, Dan (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

This paper presents the complex social life of a large data base. The topics include: 1) Social Construction of Mechanisms of Memory; 2) Data Bases: The Invisible Memory Mechanism; 3) The Human in the Machine; 4) Data of the Study: A Large-Scale Problem Reporting Data Base; 5) The PRACA Study; 6) Description of PRACA; 7) PRACA and Paper; 8) Multiple Uses of PRACA; 9) The Work of PRACA; 10) Multiple Forms of Invisibility; 11) Such Systems are Everywhere; and 12) Two Morals to the Story. This paper is in viewgraph form.

Independent Contributions of the Central Executive, Intelligence, and In-Class Attentive Behavior to Developmental Change in the Strategies Used to Solve Addition Problems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Geary, David C.; Hoard, Mary K.; Nugent, Lara

2012-01-01

Children's (N = 275) use of retrieval, decomposition (e.g., 7 = 4+3 and thus 6+7 = 6+4+3), and counting to solve additional problems was longitudinally assessed from first grade to fourth grade, and intelligence, working memory, and in-class attentive behavior was assessed in one or several grades. The goal was to assess the relation between…

Consciousness and working memory: Current trends and research perspectives.

PubMed

Velichkovsky, Boris B

2017-10-01

Working memory has long been thought to be closely related to consciousness. However, recent empirical studies show that unconscious content may be maintained within working memory and that complex cognitive computations may be performed on-line. This promotes research on the exact relationships between consciousness and working memory. Current evidence for working memory being a conscious as well as an unconscious process is reviewed. Consciousness is shown to be considered a subset of working memory by major current theories of working memory. Evidence for unconscious elements in working memory is shown to come from visual masking and attentional blink paradigms, and from the studies of implicit working memory. It is concluded that more research is needed to explicate the relationship between consciousness and working memory. Future research directions regarding the relationship between consciousness and working memory are discussed. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The Relationships of Working Memory, Secondary Memory, and General Fluid Intelligence: Working Memory is Special

PubMed Central

Shelton, Jill Talley; Elliott, Emily M.; Matthews, Russell A.; Hill, B. D.; Gouvier, Wm. Drew

2010-01-01

Recent efforts have been made to elucidate the commonly observed link between working memory and reasoning ability. The results have been inconsistent, with some work suggesting the emphasis placed on retrieval from secondary memory by working memory tests is the driving force behind this association (Mogle, Lovett, Stawski, & Sliwinski, 2008), while other research suggests retrieval from secondary memory is only partly responsible for the observed link between working memory and reasoning (Unsworth & Engle, 2006, 2007b). The present study investigates the relationship between processing speed, working memory, secondary memory, primary memory, and fluid intelligence. Although our findings show all constructs are significantly correlated with fluid intelligence, working memory, but not secondary memory, accounts for significant unique variance in fluid intelligence. Our data support predictions made by Unsworth and Engle, and suggest that the combined need for maintenance and retrieval processes present in working memory tests makes them “special” in their prediction of higher-order cognition. PMID:20438278

Working Memory From the Psychological and Neurosciences Perspectives: A Review.

PubMed

Chai, Wen Jia; Abd Hamid, Aini Ismafairus; Abdullah, Jafri Malin

2018-01-01

Since the concept of working memory was introduced over 50 years ago, different schools of thought have offered different definitions for working memory based on the various cognitive domains that it encompasses. The general consensus regarding working memory supports the idea that working memory is extensively involved in goal-directed behaviors in which information must be retained and manipulated to ensure successful task execution. Before the emergence of other competing models, the concept of working memory was described by the multicomponent working memory model proposed by Baddeley and Hitch. In the present article, the authors provide an overview of several working memory-relevant studies in order to harmonize the findings of working memory from the neurosciences and psychological standpoints, especially after citing evidence from past studies of healthy, aging, diseased, and/or lesioned brains. In particular, the theoretical framework behind working memory, in which the related domains that are considered to play a part in different frameworks (such as memory's capacity limit and temporary storage) are presented and discussed. From the neuroscience perspective, it has been established that working memory activates the fronto-parietal brain regions, including the prefrontal, cingulate, and parietal cortices. Recent studies have subsequently implicated the roles of subcortical regions (such as the midbrain and cerebellum) in working memory. Aging also appears to have modulatory effects on working memory; age interactions with emotion, caffeine and hormones appear to affect working memory performances at the neurobiological level. Moreover, working memory deficits are apparent in older individuals, who are susceptible to cognitive deterioration. Another younger population with working memory impairment consists of those with mental, developmental, and/or neurological disorders such as major depressive disorder and others. A less coherent and organized neural pattern has been consistently reported in these disadvantaged groups. Working memory of patients with traumatic brain injury was similarly affected and shown to have unusual neural activity (hyper- or hypoactivation) as a general observation. Decoding the underlying neural mechanisms of working memory helps support the current theoretical understandings concerning working memory, and at the same time provides insights into rehabilitation programs that target working memory impairments from neurophysiological or psychological aspects.

Modified stretched exponential model of computer system resources management limitations-The case of cache memory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Strzałka, Dominik; Dymora, Paweł; Mazurek, Mirosław

2018-02-01

In this paper we present some preliminary results in the field of computer systems management with relation to Tsallis thermostatistics and the ubiquitous problem of hardware limited resources. In the case of systems with non-deterministic behaviour, management of their resources is a key point that guarantees theirs acceptable performance and proper working. This is very wide problem that stands for many challenges in financial, transport, water and food, health, etc. areas. We focus on computer systems with attention paid to cache memory and propose to use an analytical model that is able to connect non-extensive entropy formalism, long-range dependencies, management of system resources and queuing theory. Obtained analytical results are related to the practical experiment showing interesting and valuable results.

Computerized cognitive training in survivors of childhood cancer: a pilot study.

PubMed

Hardy, Kristina K; Willard, Victoria W; Bonner, Melanie J

2011-01-01

The objective of the current study was to pilot a computerized cognitive training program, Captain's Log, in a small sample of survivors of childhood cancer. A total of 9 survivors of acute lymphoblastic leukemia and brain tumors with attention and working memory deficits were enrolled in a home-based 12-week cognitive training program. Survivors returned for follow-up assessments postintervention and 3 months later. The intervention was associated with good feasibility and acceptability. Participants exhibited significant increases in working memory and decreases in parent-rated attention problems following the intervention. Findings indicate that home-based, computerized cognitive intervention is a promising intervention for survivors with cognitive late effects; however, further study is warranted with a larger sample.

The Nature of Individual Differences in Working Memory Capacity: Active Maintenance in Primary Memory and Controlled Search from Secondary Memory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Unsworth, Nash; Engle, Randall W.

2007-01-01

Studies examining individual differences in working memory capacity have suggested that individuals with low working memory capacities demonstrate impaired performance on a variety of attention and memory tasks compared with individuals with high working memory capacities. This working memory limitation can be conceived of as arising from 2…

Executive Function and Mathematics Achievement: Are Effects Construct- and Time-General or Specific?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Duncan, Robert; Nguyen, Tutrang; Miao, Alicia; McClelland, Megan; Bailey, Drew

2016-01-01

Executive function (EF) is considered a set of interrelated cognitive processes, including inhibitory control, working memory, and attentional shifting, that are connected to the development of the prefrontal cortex and contribute to children's problem solving skills and self regulatory behavior (Best & Miller, 2010; Garon, Bryson, &…

Toward High-Performance Communications Interfaces for Science Problem Solving

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oviatt, Sharon L.; Cohen, Adrienne O.

2010-01-01

From a theoretical viewpoint, educational interfaces that facilitate communicative actions involving representations central to a domain can maximize students' effort associated with constructing new schemas. In addition, interfaces that minimize working memory demands due to the interface per se, for example by mimicking existing non-digital work…

Enclothed Cognition and Controlled Attention during Insight Problem-Solving

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Van Stockum, Charles A., Jr.; DeCaro, Marci S.

2014-01-01

Individual differences in working memory capacity (WMC) increase the ability and tendency to devote greater attentional control to a task--improving performance on a wide range of skills. In addition, recent research on enclothed cognition demonstrates that the situational influence of wearing a white lab coat increases controlled attention, due…

Some Problems in Psycholinguistics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hadding-Koch, Kerstin

1968-01-01

Among the most important questions in psycholinguistics today are the following: By which processes does man organize and understand speech? Which are the smallest linguistic units and rules stored in the memory and used in the production and perception of speech? Are the same mechanisms at work in both cases? Discussed in this paper are…

DESCRIPTION OF THE ENIAC CONVERTER CODE

DTIC Science & Technology

The report is intended as a working manual for personnel preparing problems for the ENIAC . It should also serve as a guide to those groups who have...computing problems that could be solved on the ENIAC . The report discusses the ENIAC from the point of view of the coder, describing its memory as well...accomplishes as well as how to use each instruction. A few remarks are made on the more general subject of problem preparation for large scale computers in general based on the experience of operating the ENIAC . (Author)

Evidence for proactive interference in the focus of attention of working memory.

PubMed

Carroll, Lauren M; Jalbert, Annie; Penney, Alexander M; Neath, Ian; Surprenant, Aimée M; Tehan, Gerald

2010-09-01

Proactive interference (PI) occurs when an earlier item interferes with memory for a newer item. Whereas some researchers (e.g., Surprenant & Neath, 2009a) argue that PI can be observed in all memory systems, some multiple systems theorists (e.g., Cowan, 1999) propose that items in the focus of attention of working memory are immune to PI. Two experiments tested whether PI occurs when the to-be-remembered items are assumed, by multiple-systems theorists, to be held in the focus of attention. In each experiment, subjects saw four trials in a row with the same type of to-be-remembered items, followed by four trials in a row with a different type of material. On each trial, only 3 stimuli were shown, which is below the capacity limit of the focus of attention, and subjects were asked if a probe item was one of those 3 items seen. In both experiments, response time increased from Trial 1 to Trial 4, suggesting that items from the earlier trials interfered with memory on the later trials. In addition, release from PI was shown in that response times decreased with a change of materials. The results replicate those first reported by Hanley and Scheirer (1975), and pose a problem for theorists who argue that parts of short-term memory are immune to PI. Copyright 2010 APA, all rights reserved.

[Language and executive functioning skills of students with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and in reading comprehension difficulties (RCD)].

PubMed

Miranda Casas, Ana; Fernández Andrés, María Inmaculada; García Castellar, Rosa; Roselló Miranda, Belén; Colomer Diago, Carla

2011-11-01

The aim of this work was to study the specificity of deficits in linguistic and executive functioning of students with ADHD and with RCD and to determine the profile of deficits in the comorbid group (ADHD+RCD). Participants in the study were 84 students, ages 12-16 years divided into four groups with an equal number of subjects (N= 21): ADHD, RCD, ADHD+RCD and comparison group (without ADHD and without RCD). We measured vocabulary, oral comprehension, lexical access, verbal and visual working memory, inhibition and attention. The results show that the ADHD+RCD group presents the most important linguistic deficits, followed by the RCD group. On the other hand, the three clinical groups (ADHD, RCD and ADHD+RCD) display greater performance problems in working memory than the comparison group, whereas the two groups with ADHD had more problems in attention and inhibition. These results suggest the dissociation of linguistic and executive deficits that affect the RCD group and ADHD group to a greater extent, respectively. Lastly, the comorbid group showed deficits both in language and in executive skills. We discuss the implications of these findings for designing interventions.

Contrasting single and multi-component working-memory systems in dual tasking.

PubMed

Nijboer, Menno; Borst, Jelmer; van Rijn, Hedderik; Taatgen, Niels

2016-05-01

Working memory can be a major source of interference in dual tasking. However, there is no consensus on whether this interference is the result of a single working memory bottleneck, or of interactions between different working memory components that together form a complete working-memory system. We report a behavioral and an fMRI dataset in which working memory requirements are manipulated during multitasking. We show that a computational cognitive model that assumes a distributed version of working memory accounts for both behavioral and neuroimaging data better than a model that takes a more centralized approach. The model's working memory consists of an attentional focus, declarative memory, and a subvocalized rehearsal mechanism. Thus, the data and model favor an account where working memory interference in dual tasking is the result of interactions between different resources that together form a working-memory system. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The contributions of handedness and working memory to episodic memory.

PubMed

Sahu, Aparna; Christman, Stephen D; Propper, Ruth E

2016-11-01

Past studies have independently shown associations of working memory and degree of handedness with episodic memory retrieval. The current study takes a step ahead by examining whether handedness and working memory independently predict episodic memory. In agreement with past studies, there was an inconsistent-handed advantage for episodic memory; however, this advantage was absent for working memory tasks. Furthermore, regression analyses showed handedness, and complex working memory predicted episodic memory performance at different times. Results are discussed in light of theories of episodic memory and hemispheric interaction.

Working Memory From the Psychological and Neurosciences Perspectives: A Review

PubMed Central

Chai, Wen Jia; Abd Hamid, Aini Ismafairus; Abdullah, Jafri Malin

2018-01-01

Since the concept of working memory was introduced over 50 years ago, different schools of thought have offered different definitions for working memory based on the various cognitive domains that it encompasses. The general consensus regarding working memory supports the idea that working memory is extensively involved in goal-directed behaviors in which information must be retained and manipulated to ensure successful task execution. Before the emergence of other competing models, the concept of working memory was described by the multicomponent working memory model proposed by Baddeley and Hitch. In the present article, the authors provide an overview of several working memory-relevant studies in order to harmonize the findings of working memory from the neurosciences and psychological standpoints, especially after citing evidence from past studies of healthy, aging, diseased, and/or lesioned brains. In particular, the theoretical framework behind working memory, in which the related domains that are considered to play a part in different frameworks (such as memory’s capacity limit and temporary storage) are presented and discussed. From the neuroscience perspective, it has been established that working memory activates the fronto-parietal brain regions, including the prefrontal, cingulate, and parietal cortices. Recent studies have subsequently implicated the roles of subcortical regions (such as the midbrain and cerebellum) in working memory. Aging also appears to have modulatory effects on working memory; age interactions with emotion, caffeine and hormones appear to affect working memory performances at the neurobiological level. Moreover, working memory deficits are apparent in older individuals, who are susceptible to cognitive deterioration. Another younger population with working memory impairment consists of those with mental, developmental, and/or neurological disorders such as major depressive disorder and others. A less coherent and organized neural pattern has been consistently reported in these disadvantaged groups. Working memory of patients with traumatic brain injury was similarly affected and shown to have unusual neural activity (hyper- or hypoactivation) as a general observation. Decoding the underlying neural mechanisms of working memory helps support the current theoretical understandings concerning working memory, and at the same time provides insights into rehabilitation programs that target working memory impairments from neurophysiological or psychological aspects. PMID:29636715

Planning paths to multiple targets: memory involvement and planning heuristics in spatial problem solving.

PubMed

Wiener, J M; Ehbauer, N N; Mallot, H A

2009-09-01

For large numbers of targets, path planning is a complex and computationally expensive task. Humans, however, usually solve such tasks quickly and efficiently. We present experiments studying human path planning performance and the cognitive processes and heuristics involved. Twenty-five places were arranged on a regular grid in a large room. Participants were repeatedly asked to solve traveling salesman problems (TSP), i.e., to find the shortest closed loop connecting a start location with multiple target locations. In Experiment 1, we tested whether humans employed the nearest neighbor (NN) strategy when solving the TSP. Results showed that subjects outperform the NN-strategy, suggesting that it is not sufficient to explain human route planning behavior. As a second possible strategy we tested a hierarchical planning heuristic in Experiment 2, demonstrating that participants first plan a coarse route on the region level that is refined during navigation. To test for the relevance of spatial working memory (SWM) and spatial long-term memory (LTM) for planning performance and the planning heuristics applied, we varied the memory demands between conditions in Experiment 2. In one condition the target locations were directly marked, such that no memory was required; a second condition required participants to memorize the target locations during path planning (SWM); in a third condition, additionally, the locations of targets had to retrieved from LTM (SWM and LTM). Results showed that navigation performance decreased with increasing memory demands while the dependence on the hierarchical planning heuristic increased.

Coaching positively influences the effects of working memory training on visual working memory as well as mathematical ability.

PubMed

Nelwan, Michel; Vissers, Constance; Kroesbergen, Evelyn H

2018-05-01

The goal of the present study was to test whether the amount of coaching influenced the results of working memory training on both visual and verbal working memory. Additionally, the effects of the working memory training on the amount of progress after specific training in mathematics were evaluated. In this study, 23 children between 9 and 12 years of age with both attentional and mathematical difficulties participated in a working memory training program with a high amount of coaching, while another 25 children received no working memory training. Results of these groups were compared to 21 children who completed the training with a lower amount of coaching. The quality of working memory, as well as mathematic skills, were measured three times using untrained transfer tasks. Bayesian statistics were used to test informative hypotheses. After receiving working memory training, the highly coached group performed better than the group that received less coaching on visual working memory and mathematics, but not on verbal working memory. The highly coached group retained their advantage in mathematics, even though the effect on visual working memory decreased. However, no added effect of working memory training was found on the learning curve during mathematical training. Moreover, the less-coached group was outperformed by the group that did not receive working memory training, both in visual working memory and mathematics. These results suggest that motivation and proper coaching might be crucial for ensuring compliance and effects of working memory training, and that far transfer might be possible. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[P. K. Anokhin--creator of the theory of the functional system].

PubMed

Golubeva, E L

1997-01-01

Memories about scientific activities of P. K. Anokhin cover "Gorbi" period of his work, pre-war work in VIEM in (All-Union Institute of Experimental Medicine) Moscow, renew of researches the war (1944-1952), stress the losses, caused by scientific session, devoted to problems of I. P. Pavlov physiological doctrine in 1950. Indicated roots and ways of forming of functional system theory and system genesis conception. Overview of scientific works, belong to academics, headed by P. K. Anokhin.

Cognitive rehabilitation for memory deficits following stroke.

PubMed

Majid, M J; Lincoln, N B; Weyman, N

2000-01-01

Memory problems occur following stroke. Cognitive rehabilitation programmes are provided to retrain memory function or to teach patients strategies to cope despite memory impairment. To determine the effects of cognitive rehabilitation for memory problems following stroke. We searched the Cochrane Stroke Group Trials Register, Medline, EMBASE, CINHAL and CLIN PSYCH databases and reference lists from relevant articles. Date of most recent searches: December 1998. Controlled trials of memory retraining in stroke. Studies with mixed aetiology groups were excluded unless they had more than 75% of stroke patients or separate data were available for the stroke patients. Two reviewers extracted trial data and assessed trial quality. Reviewers contacted investigators for further details of trials. One trial was identified with 12 participants. This showed memory strategy training had no significant effect on memory impairment or subjective memory complaints. There is insufficient evidence to support or refute the effectiveness of cognitive rehabilitation for memory problems after stroke.

Facing the Language-Memory Problem in the Study of Autobiographical Memory.

PubMed

Bartoli, Eleonora; Smorti, Andrea

2018-05-16

This paper discusses the problem of the role of language in autobiographical memory, that is barely considered in studies on autobiographical memories and narratives. As a matter of fact, most of the current studies on autobiographical memory confounded memory and narrative together. The present paper focuses on two main issues. Firstly, it debates how narratives contribute to the construction of autobiographical memories through self-other communication. Secondly, it reflects on how language and communication should be manipulated in studies about autobiographical memory. This paper is made of three sections: the first section discusses the role of language, particularly in the form of narrative, as a social tool by which autobiographical memories can be organised in a life story; the second section examines previous methods of investigation used in the study of autobiographical memories; finally, the third section proposes different methodological alternatives to overcome the problems emerging from our analysis of literature.

Can verbal working memory training improve reading?

PubMed

Banales, Erin; Kohnen, Saskia; McArthur, Genevieve

2015-01-01

The aim of the current study was to determine whether poor verbal working memory is associated with poor word reading accuracy because the former causes the latter, or the latter causes the former. To this end, we tested whether (a) verbal working memory training improves poor verbal working memory or poor word reading accuracy, and whether (b) reading training improves poor reading accuracy or verbal working memory in a case series of four children with poor word reading accuracy and verbal working memory. Each child completed 8 weeks of verbal working memory training and 8 weeks of reading training. Verbal working memory training improved verbal working memory in two of the four children, but did not improve their reading accuracy. Similarly, reading training improved word reading accuracy in all children, but did not improve their verbal working memory. These results suggest that the causal links between verbal working memory and reading accuracy may not be as direct as has been assumed.

[Learning difficulties in mathematics in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder].

PubMed

Miranda-Casas, A; Meliá-de Alba, A; Marco-Taverner, R; Roselló, B; Mulas, F

2006-02-13

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and learning difficulties are two diagnostic categories of great social importance and impact, and which are associated in around 25-35% of cases. One explanation offered by researchers to account for this overlap is a deficit in executive functioning (EF). 1) To compare EF and applied mathematical knowledge in children with ADHD, difficulties in learning mathematics (DLM) or ADHD + DLM, and to identify the deficiencies they experience. 2) To verify whether the phenotype hypothesis is fulfilled in the case of the ADHD + DLM condition. The study involved a quasi-experimental 2 x 2 design, with a sample made up of 78 participants (6-13 years old) who were divided into four groups: ADHD (n = 33), DLM (n = 15), ADHD + DLM (n = 15) and a control group (n = 15). Tests aimed at evaluating different cognitive processes as well as applied mathematical knowledge were administered: inhibitory control (go/no go); verbal working (backward digit-recall and counting memory task) and temporal-visual-spatial memory; short-term memory (direct digit-recall); attention (CPT); calculation speed (Canals) and real-life problems. Taking the variables age, gender and intelligence quotient as covariables, results showed that the three groups with problems displayed a deficit of attention and in working memory; the DLM group stood out from the other owing to the presence of a specific deficiency affecting the ability to recall temporal-visual-spatial information. In contrast, deficits in inhibitory control were seen to be specific to ADHD. Finally, findings did not support the phenotype hypothesis, and it was therefore an accumulative profile.

Obese adolescents with type 2 diabetes perform worse than controls on cognitive and behavioral assessments.

PubMed

Brady, Cassandra C; Vannest, Jennifer J; Dolan, Lawrence M; Kadis, Darren S; Lee, Gregory R; Holland, Scott K; Khoury, Jane C; Shah, Amy S

2017-06-01

Children with type 1 diabetes demonstrate worse cognitive performance compared with their peers. Little is known regarding the cognitive and behavioral performance in obese adolescents with type 2 diabetes. Cross sectional evaluation of 20 obese adolescents with type 2 diabetes and 20 healthy adolescents was performed in Cincinnati, Ohio. Cognitive tests that included measures of processing speed, working memory, verbal and semantic fluency and parent reports of executive function and problem behavior were compared. Academic achievement and the relationship between cognitive/behavioral scores and diabetes duration and diabetes control (hemoglobin A1c) were assessed in the type 2 diabetes group only. The type 2 diabetes group had mean duration of diabetes of 2.8 ± 2.2 yr and hemoglobin A1c of 7.9 ± 2.2%. Adolescents with type 2 diabetes scored lower than controls on tests of working and verbal memory and processing speed (all p < 0.05) and worse for Internalizing, Externalizing, and Total Problems behaviors on the Child Behavior Checklist (all p < 0.05). Adolescents with type 2 diabetes scored below the population mean in academic achievement, most notably calculation. Working memory and processing speed were negatively correlated with duration of diabetes (r = -0.50 and -0.47, respectively, p < 0.05). Obese youth with type 2 diabetes score poorly compared with controls on multiple assessments of cognitive function and adaptive behavior. Further work is needed to determine if these effects are driven by obesity, diabetes or other demographic and socioeconomic risk factors. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Visual working memory buffers information retrieved from visual long-term memory.

PubMed

Fukuda, Keisuke; Woodman, Geoffrey F

2017-05-16

Human memory is thought to consist of long-term storage and short-term storage mechanisms, the latter known as working memory. Although it has long been assumed that information retrieved from long-term memory is represented in working memory, we lack neural evidence for this and need neural measures that allow us to watch this retrieval into working memory unfold with high temporal resolution. Here, we show that human electrophysiology can be used to track information as it is brought back into working memory during retrieval from long-term memory. Specifically, we found that the retrieval of information from long-term memory was limited to just a few simple objects' worth of information at once, and elicited a pattern of neurophysiological activity similar to that observed when people encode new information into working memory. Our findings suggest that working memory is where information is buffered when being retrieved from long-term memory and reconcile current theories of memory retrieval with classic notions about the memory mechanisms involved.

Visual working memory buffers information retrieved from visual long-term memory

PubMed Central

Fukuda, Keisuke; Woodman, Geoffrey F.

2017-01-01

Human memory is thought to consist of long-term storage and short-term storage mechanisms, the latter known as working memory. Although it has long been assumed that information retrieved from long-term memory is represented in working memory, we lack neural evidence for this and need neural measures that allow us to watch this retrieval into working memory unfold with high temporal resolution. Here, we show that human electrophysiology can be used to track information as it is brought back into working memory during retrieval from long-term memory. Specifically, we found that the retrieval of information from long-term memory was limited to just a few simple objects’ worth of information at once, and elicited a pattern of neurophysiological activity similar to that observed when people encode new information into working memory. Our findings suggest that working memory is where information is buffered when being retrieved from long-term memory and reconcile current theories of memory retrieval with classic notions about the memory mechanisms involved. PMID:28461479

Working and strategic memory deficits in schizophrenia

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stone, M.; Gabrieli, J. D.; Stebbins, G. T.; Sullivan, E. V.

1998-01-01

Working memory and its contribution to performance on strategic memory tests in schizophrenia were studied. Patients (n = 18) and control participants (n = 15), all men, received tests of immediate memory (forward digit span), working memory (listening, computation, and backward digit span), and long-term strategic (free recall, temporal order, and self-ordered pointing) and nonstrategic (recognition) memory. Schizophrenia patients performed worse on all tests. Education, verbal intelligence, and immediate memory capacity did not account for deficits in working memory in schizophrenia patients. Reduced working memory capacity accounted for group differences in strategic memory but not in recognition memory. Working memory impairment may be central to the profile of impaired cognitive performance in schizophrenia and is consistent with hypothesized frontal lobe dysfunction associated with this disease. Additional medial-temporal dysfunction may account for the recognition memory deficit.

Memory systems interaction in the pigeon: working and reference memory.

PubMed

Roberts, William A; Strang, Caroline; Macpherson, Krista

2015-04-01

Pigeons' performance on a working memory task, symbolic delayed matching-to-sample, was used to examine the interaction between working memory and reference memory. Reference memory was established by training pigeons to discriminate between the comparison cues used in delayed matching as S+ and S- stimuli. Delayed matching retention tests then measured accuracy when working and reference memory were congruent and incongruent. In 4 experiments, it was shown that the interaction between working and reference memory is reciprocal: Strengthening either type of memory leads to a decrease in the influence of the other type of memory. A process dissociation procedure analysis of the data from Experiment 4 showed independence of working and reference memory, and a model of working memory and reference memory interaction was shown to predict the findings reported in the 4 experiments. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Fractionating the neural correlates of individual working memory components underlying arithmetic problem solving skills in children.

PubMed

Metcalfe, Arron W S; Ashkenazi, Sarit; Rosenberg-Lee, Miriam; Menon, Vinod

2013-10-01

Baddeley and Hitch's multi-component working memory (WM) model has played an enduring and influential role in our understanding of cognitive abilities. Very little is known, however, about the neural basis of this multi-component WM model and the differential role each component plays in mediating arithmetic problem solving abilities in children. Here, we investigate the neural basis of the central executive (CE), phonological (PL) and visuo-spatial (VS) components of WM during a demanding mental arithmetic task in 7-9 year old children (N=74). The VS component was the strongest predictor of math ability in children and was associated with increased arithmetic complexity-related responses in left dorsolateral and right ventrolateral prefrontal cortices as well as bilateral intra-parietal sulcus and supramarginal gyrus in posterior parietal cortex. Critically, VS, CE and PL abilities were associated with largely distinct patterns of brain response. Overlap between VS and CE components was observed in left supramarginal gyrus and no overlap was observed between VS and PL components. Our findings point to a central role of visuo-spatial WM during arithmetic problem-solving in young grade-school children and highlight the usefulness of the multi-component Baddeley and Hitch WM model in fractionating the neural correlates of arithmetic problem solving during development. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Interactions Between Modality of Working Memory Load and Perceptual Load in Distractor Processing.

PubMed

Koshino, Hideya; Olid, Pilar

2015-01-01

The present study investigated interactions between working memory load and perceptual load. The load theory (Lavie, Hirst, de Fockert, & Viding, 2004 ) claims that perceptual load decreases distractor interference, whereas working memory load increases interference. However, recent studies showed that effects of working memory might depend on the relationship between modalities of working memory and task stimuli. Here, we examined whether the relationship between working memory load and perceptual load would remain the same across modalities. The results of Experiment 1 showed that verbal working memory load did not affect a compatibility effect for low perceptual load, whereas it increased the compatibility effect for high perceptual load. In Experiment 2, the compatibility effect remained the same regardless of visual working memory load. These results suggest that the effects of working memory load and perceptual load depend on the relationship between the modalities of working memory and stimuli.

Working-memory performance is related to spatial breadth of attention.

PubMed

Kreitz, Carina; Furley, Philip; Memmert, Daniel; Simons, Daniel J

2015-11-01

Working memory and attention are closely related constructs. Models of working memory often incorporate an attention component, and some even equate working memory and attentional control. Although some attention-related processes, including inhibitory control of response conflict and interference resolution, are strongly associated with working memory, for other aspects of attention the link is less clear. We examined the association between working-memory performance and attentional breadth, the ability to spread attention spatially. If the link between attention and working memory is broader than inhibitory and interference resolution processes, then working-memory performance might also be associated with other attentional abilities, including attentional breadth. We tested 123 participants on a variety of working-memory and attentional-breadth measures, finding a strong correlation between performances on these two types of tasks. This finding demonstrates that the link between working memory and attention extends beyond inhibitory processes.

Components of executive functioning in metamemory.

PubMed

Mäntylä, Timo; Rönnlund, Michael; Kliegel, Matthias

2010-10-01

This study examined metamemory in relation to three basic executive functions (set shifting, working memory updating, and response inhibition) measured as latent variables. Young adults (Experiment 1) and middle-aged adults (Experiment 2) completed a set of executive functioning tasks and the Prospective and Retrospective Memory Questionnaire (PRMQ). In Experiment 1, source recall and face recognition tasks were included as indicators of objective memory performance. In both experiments, analyses of the executive functioning data yielded a two-factor solution, with the updating and inhibition tasks constituting a common factor and the shifting tasks a separate factor. Self-reported memory problems showed low predictive validity, but subjective and objective memory performance were related to different components of executive functioning. In both experiments, set shifting, but not updating and inhibition, was related to PRMQ, whereas source recall showed the opposite pattern of correlations in Experiment 1. These findings suggest that metamemorial judgments reflect selective effects of executive functioning and that individual differences in mental flexibility contribute to self-beliefs of efficacy.

Identifying employed multiple sclerosis patients at-risk for job loss: When do negative work events pose a threat?

PubMed

Kordovski, Victoria M; Frndak, Seth E; Fisher, Carrie S; Rodgers, Jonathan; Weinstock-Guttman, Bianca; Benedict, Ralph H B

2015-09-01

Physical disability and cognitive impairment are significant predictors of unemployment in multiple sclerosis (MS). However, little is known about the frequency of work problems in employed patients, in comparison to employed healthy persons. Use an online monitoring tool to compare the frequency of negative work events in MS patients and healthy controls, and determine a threshold at which the frequency of work problems is clinically meaningful. The sample comprised 138 MS patients and 62 healthy controls. All reported on recent negative work events and accommodations using an online survey. The clinical test battery measured depression, motor and cognitive function. Statistical tests compared the frequency of work problems in MS patients and healthy controls. Clinical neuro-performance scales were then assessed in at-risk patients with many work problems, versus those with no work problems. As a group, employed MS patients exhibited deficits in motor ability, verbal memory, and processing speed and were more likely than controls to report negative work events and accommodations. At-risk patients, that is, those reporting more than one negative work event, had more pronounced motor and cognitive deficits than their relatively stable counterparts. The data show that employed MS patients report more negative work events and accommodations than employed healthy persons. Those patients deemed at risk for job loss have more cognitive and motor impairment, suggesting the need for cognitive training and specific accommodation strategies in the work place. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Working memory functioning in children with learning disabilities: does intelligence make a difference?

PubMed

Maehler, C; Schuchardt, K

2009-01-01

Children with learning disabilities are identified by their severe learning problems and their deficient school achievement. On the other hand, children with sub-average school achievement and sub-average intellectual development are thought to suffer from a general intellectual delay rather than from specific learning disabilities. The open question is whether these two groups are characterised by differences in their cognitive functioning. The present study explored several functions of working memory. A working memory battery with tasks for the phonological loop, the visual-spatial sketchpad and central executive skills was presented in individual sessions to 27 children with learning disabilities and normal IQ (ICD-10: mixed disorders of scholastic skills), 27 children with learning disabilities and low IQ (intellectual disabilities), and a control group of 27 typically developing children with regular school achievement levels and normal IQ. The results reveal an overall deficit in working memory of the two groups with learning disabilities compared with the control group. However, unexpectedly, there were no differences between the two groups of children with disabilities (normal vs. low IQ). These findings do not support the notion of different cognitive functioning because of differences in intelligence of these two groups. In the ongoing discussion about the role of intelligence (especially as to the postulated discrepancy between intelligence and school achievement in diagnosis and special education), our findings might lead to rethinking the current practice of treating these two groups as fundamentally different.

A longitudinal study of neuropsychological functioning and academic achievement in children with and without signs of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

PubMed

Rennie, Brandon; Beebe-Frankenberger, Margaret; Swanson, H Lee

2014-01-01

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in childhood is associated with poor academic functioning. Deficits in academic functioning have proven to be less responsive to intervention than behavioral deficits in this population, yet the causes of this academic underperformance are not well understood. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between ADHD and academic performance in elementary-aged children in a developmental context. To do this, we study important cognitive variables and academic achievement over a three-year timeframe. Based on teacher ratings of ADHD, children were divided into a high symptom group (n = 17) and a low symptom group (n = 34). A thorough battery of cognitive and academic tests was administered at Time 1 and again 2 years later. Cognitive measures focused specifically on working memory and response inhibition. RESULTS indicate that children who have high levels of ADHD signs differ from their low-sign peers in academic achievement and in several cognitive domains. Differences in cognitive functioning show a developmental trend consistent with earlier developmental delays in response inhibition and later delays in working memory. Working memory appears to be particularly important in several academic domains. Importantly, in a longitudinal model, working memory was more predictive of math achievement for students demonstrating signs of ADHD than for those who did not. The relationship between these cognitive variables and academic functioning are explicated in the domains of reading, math, and problem solving.

Daily Stress Magnifies the Association between Cognitive Decline and Everyday Memory Problems: An Integration of Longitudinal and Diary Methods

PubMed Central

Rickenbach, Elizabeth H.; Almeida, David M.; Seeman, Teresa E.; Lachman, Margie E.

2014-01-01

We examined whether long-term fluid cognitive decline was associated with memory problems in everyday life, and whether stress plays a moderating role. We expected that the association between cognitive decline and everyday memory problems would be magnified in the context of self-reported and physiological stress. Data are from the Boston Longitudinal Study, a subsample of the Midlife in the United States study. Participants in the current study (n=112) completed a battery of tests measuring fluid cognitive functioning at Time 1 (T1) and 2 (T2) over ten years. At T2, participants completed weekly diaries of self-reported daily stressors and everyday memory problems for twelve consecutive weeks. Also at T2, participants provided four saliva samples over the course of one day to assess physiological stress using diurnal cortisol profiles [cortisol awakening response (CAR) and diurnal cortisol slope (DCS)]. Self-reported daily stressors and a less healthy DCS were associated with more everyday memory problems, and participants with greater cognitive decline reported more memory problems compared to those with less or no decline. Self-reported daily stressors and CAR moderated the relationship of cognitive decline and memory problems. As expected, more cognitive decline was associated with greater increases in memory problems on weeks when individuals reported more daily stressors and for individuals with a less healthy CAR. The current findings can inform interventions aimed to identify factors, such as daily stress, that contribute to daily functioning in the context of cognitive decline. PMID:25365691

Working Memory in the Classroom: An Inside Look at the Central Executive.

PubMed

Barker, Lauren A

2016-01-01

This article provides a review of working memory and its application to educational settings. A discussion of the varying definitions of working memory is presented. Special attention is given to the various multidisciplinary professionals who work with students with working memory deficits, and their unique understanding of the construct. Definitions and theories of working memory are briefly summarized and provide the foundation for understanding practical applications of working memory to assessment and intervention. Although definitions and models of working memory abound, there is limited consensus regarding universally accepted definitions and models. Current research indicates that developing new models of working memory may be an appropriate paradigm shift at this time. The integration of individual practitioner's knowledge regarding academic achievement, working memory and processing speed could provide a foundation for the future development of new working memory models. Future directions for research should aim to explain how tasks and behaviors are supported by the substrates of the cortico-striatal and the cerebro-cerebellar systems. Translation of neurobiological information into educational contexts will be helpful to inform all practitioners' knowledge of working memory constructs. It will also allow for universally accepted definitions and models of working memory to arise and facilitate more effective collaboration between disciplines working in educational setting.

Can False Memories Prime Problem Solutions?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Howe, Mark L.; Garner, Sarah R.; Dewhurst, Stephen A.; Ball, Linden J.

2010-01-01

Previous research has suggested that false memories can prime performance on related implicit and explicit memory tasks. The present research examined whether false memories can also be used to prime higher order cognitive processes, namely, insight-based problem solving. Participants were asked to solve a number of compound remote associate task…

Examining factors involved in stress-related working memory impairments: Independent or conditional effects?

PubMed

Banks, Jonathan B; Tartar, Jaime L; Tamayo, Brittney A

2015-12-01

A large and growing body of research demonstrates the impact of psychological stress on working memory. However, the typical study approach tests the effects of a single biological or psychological factor on changes in working memory. The current study attempted to move beyond the standard single-factor assessment by examining the impact of 2 possible factors in stress-related working memory impairments. To this end, 60 participants completed a working memory task before and after either a psychological stressor writing task or a control writing task and completed measures of both cortisol and mind wandering. We also included a measure of state anxiety to examine the direct and indirect effect on working memory. We found that mind wandering mediated the relationship between state anxiety and working memory at the baseline measurement. This indirect relationship was moderated by cortisol, such that the impact of mind wandering on working memory increased as cortisol levels increased. No overall working memory impairment was observed following the stress manipulation, but increases in state anxiety and mind wandering were observed. State anxiety and mind wandering independently mediated the relationship between change in working memory and threat perception. The indirect paths resulted in opposing effects on working memory. Combined, the findings from this study suggest that cortisol enhances the impact of mind wandering on working memory, that state anxiety may not always result in stress-related working memory impairments, and that high working memory performance can protect against mind wandering. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

A New Conceptualization of Human Visual Sensory-Memory

PubMed Central

Öğmen, Haluk; Herzog, Michael H.

2016-01-01

Memory is an essential component of cognition and disorders of memory have significant individual and societal costs. The Atkinson–Shiffrin “modal model” forms the foundation of our understanding of human memory. It consists of three stores: Sensory Memory (SM), whose visual component is called iconic memory, Short-Term Memory (STM; also called working memory, WM), and Long-Term Memory (LTM). Since its inception, shortcomings of all three components of the modal model have been identified. While the theories of STM and LTM underwent significant modifications to address these shortcomings, models of the iconic memory remained largely unchanged: A high capacity but rapidly decaying store whose contents are encoded in retinotopic coordinates, i.e., according to how the stimulus is projected on the retina. The fundamental shortcoming of iconic memory models is that, because contents are encoded in retinotopic coordinates, the iconic memory cannot hold any useful information under normal viewing conditions when objects or the subject are in motion. Hence, half-century after its formulation, it remains an unresolved problem whether and how the first stage of the modal model serves any useful function and how subsequent stages of the modal model receive inputs from the environment. Here, we propose a new conceptualization of human visual sensory memory by introducing an additional component whose reference-frame consists of motion-grouping based coordinates rather than retinotopic coordinates. We review data supporting this new model and discuss how it offers solutions to the paradoxes of the traditional model of sensory memory. PMID:27375519

A New Conceptualization of Human Visual Sensory-Memory.

PubMed

Öğmen, Haluk; Herzog, Michael H

2016-01-01

Memory is an essential component of cognition and disorders of memory have significant individual and societal costs. The Atkinson-Shiffrin "modal model" forms the foundation of our understanding of human memory. It consists of three stores: Sensory Memory (SM), whose visual component is called iconic memory, Short-Term Memory (STM; also called working memory, WM), and Long-Term Memory (LTM). Since its inception, shortcomings of all three components of the modal model have been identified. While the theories of STM and LTM underwent significant modifications to address these shortcomings, models of the iconic memory remained largely unchanged: A high capacity but rapidly decaying store whose contents are encoded in retinotopic coordinates, i.e., according to how the stimulus is projected on the retina. The fundamental shortcoming of iconic memory models is that, because contents are encoded in retinotopic coordinates, the iconic memory cannot hold any useful information under normal viewing conditions when objects or the subject are in motion. Hence, half-century after its formulation, it remains an unresolved problem whether and how the first stage of the modal model serves any useful function and how subsequent stages of the modal model receive inputs from the environment. Here, we propose a new conceptualization of human visual sensory memory by introducing an additional component whose reference-frame consists of motion-grouping based coordinates rather than retinotopic coordinates. We review data supporting this new model and discuss how it offers solutions to the paradoxes of the traditional model of sensory memory.

Inhibition, flexibility, working memory and planning in autism spectrum disorders with and without comorbid ADHD-symptoms

PubMed Central

Sinzig, Judith; Morsch, Dagmar; Bruning, Nicole; Schmidt, Martin H; Lehmkuhl, Gerd

2008-01-01

Background Recent studies have not paid a great deal of attention to comorbid attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in autistic children even though it is well known that almost half of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) suffer from hyperactivity, inattention and impulsivity. The goal of this study was to evaluate and compare executive functioning (EF) profiles in children with ADHD and in children with ASD with and without comorbid ADHD. Methods Children aged 6 to 18 years old with ADHD (n = 20) or ASD (High-Functioning autism or Asperger syndrome) with (n = 20) and without (n = 20) comorbid ADHD and a typically developing group (n = 20) were compared on a battery of EF tasks comprising inhibition, flexibility, working memory and planning tasks. A MANOVA, effect sizes as well as correlations between ADHD-symptomatology and EF performance were calculated. Age- and IQ-corrected z scores were used. Results There was a significant effect for the factor group (F = 1.55; dF = 42; p = .02). Post-hoc analysis revealed significant differences between the ADHD and the TD group on the inhibition task for false alarms (p = .01) and between the ADHD group, the ASD+ group (p = .03), the ASD- group (p = .02) and the TD group (p = .01) for omissions. Effect sizes showed clear deficits of ADHD children in inhibition and working memory tasks. Participants with ASD were impaired in planning and flexibility abilities. The ASD+ group showed compared to the ASD- group more problems in inhibitory performance but not in the working memory task. Conclusion Our findings replicate previous results reporting impairment of ADHD children in inhibition and working memory tasks and of ASD children in planning and flexibility abilities. The ASD + group showed similarities to the ADHD group with regard to inhibitory but not to working memory deficits. Nevertheless the heterogeneity of these and previous results shows that EF assessment is not useful for differential diagnosis between ADHD and ASD. It might be useful for evaluating strengths and weaknesses in individual children. PMID:18237439

Memory and selective attention in multiple sclerosis: cross-sectional computer-based assessment in a large outpatient sample.

PubMed

Adler, Georg; Lembach, Yvonne

2015-08-01

Cognitive impairments may have a severe impact on everyday functioning and quality of life of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). However, there are some methodological problems in the assessment and only a few studies allow a representative estimate of the prevalence and severity of cognitive impairments in MS patients. We applied a computer-based method, the memory and attention test (MAT), in 531 outpatients with MS, who were assessed at nine neurological practices or specialized outpatient clinics. The findings were compared with those obtained in an age-, sex- and education-matched control group of 84 healthy subjects. Episodic short-term memory was substantially decreased in the MS patients. About 20% of them reached a score of only less than two standard deviations below the mean of the control group. The episodic short-term memory score was negatively correlated with the EDSS score. Minor but also significant impairments in the MS patients were found for verbal short-term memory, episodic working memory and selective attention. The computer-based MAT was found to be useful for a routine assessment of cognition in MS outpatients.

Attention to memory: orienting attention to sound object representations.

PubMed

Backer, Kristina C; Alain, Claude

2014-01-01

Despite a growing acceptance that attention and memory interact, and that attention can be focused on an active internal mental representation (i.e., reflective attention), there has been a paucity of work focusing on reflective attention to 'sound objects' (i.e., mental representations of actual sound sources in the environment). Further research on the dynamic interactions between auditory attention and memory, as well as its degree of neuroplasticity, is important for understanding how sound objects are represented, maintained, and accessed in the brain. This knowledge can then guide the development of training programs to help individuals with attention and memory problems. This review article focuses on attention to memory with an emphasis on behavioral and neuroimaging studies that have begun to explore the mechanisms that mediate reflective attentional orienting in vision and more recently, in audition. Reflective attention refers to situations in which attention is oriented toward internal representations rather than focused on external stimuli. We propose four general principles underlying attention to short-term memory. Furthermore, we suggest that mechanisms involved in orienting attention to visual object representations may also apply for orienting attention to sound object representations.

Visuospatial and verbal memory in mental arithmetic.

PubMed

Clearman, Jack; Klinger, Vojtěch; Szűcs, Dénes

2017-09-01

Working memory allows complex information to be remembered and manipulated over short periods of time. Correlations between working memory and mathematics achievement have been shown across the lifespan. However, only a few studies have examined the potentially distinct contributions of domain-specific visuospatial and verbal working memory resources in mental arithmetic computation. Here we aimed to fill this gap in a series of six experiments pairing addition and subtraction tasks with verbal and visuospatial working memory and interference tasks. In general, we found higher levels of interference between mental arithmetic and visuospatial working memory tasks than between mental arithmetic and verbal working memory tasks. Additionally, we found that interference that matched the working memory domain of the task (e.g., verbal task with verbal interference) lowered working memory performance more than mismatched interference (verbal task with visuospatial interference). Findings suggest that mental arithmetic relies on domain-specific working memory resources.

Individual differences in working memory capacity determine the effects of oculomotor task load on concurrent word recall performance.

PubMed

Lee, Eun-Ju; Kwon, Gusang; Lee, Aekyoung; Ghajar, Jamshid; Suh, Minah

2011-07-05

In this study, the interaction between individual differences in working memory capacity, which were assessed by the Korean version of the California Verbal Learning Test (K-CVLT), and the effects of oculomotor task load on word recall performance are examined in a dual-task experiment. We hypothesized that varying levels of oculomotor task load should result in different demands on cognitive resources. The verbal working memory task used in this study involved a brief exposure to seven words to be remembered, followed by a 30-second delay during which the subject carried out an oculomotor task. Then, memory performance was assessed by having the subjects recall as many words as possible. Forty healthy normal subjects with no vision-related problems carried out four separate dual-tasks over four consecutive days of participation, wherein word recall performances were tested under unpredictable random SPEM (smooth pursuit eye movement), predictive SPEM, fixation, and eyes-closed conditions. The word recall performance of subjects with low K-CVLT scores was significantly enhanced under predictive SPEM conditions as opposed to the fixation and eyes-closed conditions, but performance was reduced under the random SPEM condition, thus reflecting an inverted-U relationship between the oculomotor task load and word recall performance. Subjects with high K-CVLT scores evidenced steady word recall performances, regardless of the type of oculomotor task performed. The concurrent oculomotor performance measured by velocity error did not differ significantly among the K-CVLT groups. However, the high-scoring subjects evidenced smaller phase errors under predictive SPEM conditions than did the low-scoring subjects; this suggests that different resource allocation strategies may be adopted, depending on individuals' working memory capacity. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Iterative free-energy optimization for recurrent neural networks (INFERNO).

PubMed

Pitti, Alexandre; Gaussier, Philippe; Quoy, Mathias

2017-01-01

The intra-parietal lobe coupled with the Basal Ganglia forms a working memory that demonstrates strong planning capabilities for generating robust yet flexible neuronal sequences. Neurocomputational models however, often fails to control long range neural synchrony in recurrent spiking networks due to spontaneous activity. As a novel framework based on the free-energy principle, we propose to see the problem of spikes' synchrony as an optimization problem of the neurons sub-threshold activity for the generation of long neuronal chains. Using a stochastic gradient descent, a reinforcement signal (presumably dopaminergic) evaluates the quality of one input vector to move the recurrent neural network to a desired activity; depending on the error made, this input vector is strengthened to hill-climb the gradient or elicited to search for another solution. This vector can be learned then by one associative memory as a model of the basal-ganglia to control the recurrent neural network. Experiments on habit learning and on sequence retrieving demonstrate the capabilities of the dual system to generate very long and precise spatio-temporal sequences, above two hundred iterations. Its features are applied then to the sequential planning of arm movements. In line with neurobiological theories, we discuss its relevance for modeling the cortico-basal working memory to initiate flexible goal-directed neuronal chains of causation and its relation to novel architectures such as Deep Networks, Neural Turing Machines and the Free-Energy Principle.

Evidenced-Based Cognitive Rehabilitation for Persons With Multiple Sclerosis: An Updated Review of the Literature From 2007 to 2016.

PubMed

Goverover, Yael; Chiaravalloti, Nancy D; O'Brien, Amanda R; DeLuca, John

2018-02-01

To update the clinical recommendations for cognitive rehabilitation of people with multiple sclerosis (MS), based on a systematic review of the literature from 2007 through 2016. Searches of MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and CINAHL were conducted with a combination of the following terms: attention, awareness, cognition, cognitive, communication, executive, executive function, language, learning, memory, perception, problem solving, reasoning, rehabilitation, remediation, training, processing speed, and working memory. One hundred twenty-nine articles were identified and underwent initial screening. Fifty-nine articles were selected for inclusion after initial screening. Nineteen studies were excluded after further detailed review. Forty studies were fully reviewed and evaluated. Articles were assigned to 1 of 6 categories: attention, learning and memory, processing speed and working memory, executive functioning, metacognition, or nonspecified/combined cognitive domains. Articles were abstracted and levels of evidence were decided using specific criteria. The current review yielded 6 class I studies, 10 class II studies, and 24 class III studies. One intervention in the area of verbal learning and memory received support for a practice standard, 2 computer programs received support as practice guidelines (in the area of attention and multicognitive domains), and several studies provided support for 5 practice options in the domains of attention and learning and memory. Substantial progress has been made since our previous review regarding the identification of effective treatments for cognitive impairments in persons with MS. However, much work remains to be done to optimize rehabilitation potential by applying the most methodologically rigorous research designs to provide class I evidence in support of a given treatment strategy. Copyright © 2017 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Dispositional Mindfulness and Memory Problems: The Role of Perceived Stress and Sleep Quality

PubMed Central

Brisbon, Nicholas M.; Lachman, Margie E.

2016-01-01

There is a growing body of evidence exploring the beneficial effects of mindfulness on stress, sleep quality, and memory, though the mechanisms involved are less certain. The present study explored the roles of perceived stress and sleep quality as potential mediators between dispositional mindfulness and subjective memory problems. Data were from a Boston area subsample of the Midlife in the United States study (MIDUS-II) assessed in 2004–2006, and again approximately one year later (N=299). As expected, higher dispositional mindfulness was associated with lower perceived stress and better sleep quality. There was no direct association found between mindfulness and subjective memory problems, however, there was a significant indirect effect through perceived stress, although not with sleep quality. The present findings suggest that perceived stress may play a mediating role between dispositional mindfulness and subjective memory problems, in that those with higher mindfulness generally report experiencing less stress than those with lower mindfulness, which may be protective of memory problems in everyday life. PMID:28344682

Dispositional Mindfulness and Memory Problems: The Role of Perceived Stress and Sleep Quality.

PubMed

Brisbon, Nicholas M; Lachman, Margie E

2017-04-01

There is a growing body of evidence exploring the beneficial effects of mindfulness on stress, sleep quality, and memory, though the mechanisms involved are less certain. The present study explored the roles of perceived stress and sleep quality as potential mediators between dispositional mindfulness and subjective memory problems. Data were from a Boston area subsample of the Midlife in the United States study (MIDUS-II) assessed in 2004-2006, and again approximately one year later (N=299). As expected, higher dispositional mindfulness was associated with lower perceived stress and better sleep quality. There was no direct association found between mindfulness and subjective memory problems, however, there was a significant indirect effect through perceived stress, although not with sleep quality. The present findings suggest that perceived stress may play a mediating role between dispositional mindfulness and subjective memory problems, in that those with higher mindfulness generally report experiencing less stress than those with lower mindfulness, which may be protective of memory problems in everyday life.

The Relationships of Working Memory, Secondary Memory, and General Fluid Intelligence: Working Memory Is Special

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shelton, Jill Talley; Elliott, Emily M.; Matthews, Russell A.; Hill, B. D.; Gouvier, Wm. Drew

2010-01-01

Recent efforts have been made to elucidate the commonly observed link between working memory and reasoning ability. The results have been inconsistent, with some work suggesting that the emphasis placed on retrieval from secondary memory by working memory tests is the driving force behind this association (Mogle, Lovett, Stawski, & Sliwinski,…

The Link between Logic, Mathematics and Imagination: Evidence from Children with Developmental Dyscalculia and Mathematically Gifted Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morsanyi, Kinga; Devine, Amy; Nobes, Alison; Szucs, Denes

2013-01-01

This study examined performance on transitive inference problems in children with developmental dyscalculia (DD), typically developing controls matched on IQ, working memory and reading skills, and in children with outstanding mathematical abilities. Whereas mainstream approaches currently consider DD as a domain-specific deficit, we hypothesized…

Understanding Mathematics: Some Key Factors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ali, Asma Amanat; Reid, Norman

2012-01-01

Mathematics is well known as a subject area where there can be problems in terms of understanding as well as retaining positive attitudes. In a large study involving 813 school students (ages approximately 10-12) drawn from two different school systems in Pakistan, the effect of limited working memory capacity on performance in mathematics was…

Frontal Deficits in Alcoholism: An ERP Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

George, Mary Reeni M.; Potts, Geoffrey; Kothman, Delia; Martin, Laura; Mukundan, C. R.

2004-01-01

Alcoholism is a major health problem afflicting people all over the world. Understanding the neural substrates of this addictive disorder may provide the basis for effective interventions. So-called ''executive processes'' play a role in cognitive functions like attention and working memory, and appear to be disrupted in alcoholism (Noel et al.,…

A Framework for Addressing the Needs of Students Prenatally Exposed to Alcohol and Other Drugs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Watson, Silvana M. R.; Westby, Carol E.; Gable, Robert A.

2007-01-01

In this article, the authors review learning and behavioral problems of children exposed prenatally to alcohol and other drugs, focusing on executive-function deficits such as difficulty shifting tasks, maintaining attention, and manipulating information in working memory. They discuss various risk factors associated with prenatal drug exposure so…

Strategies for Addressing the Executive Function Impairments of Students Prenatally Exposed to Alcohol and Other Drugs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Watson, Silvana M. R.; Westby, Carol E.

2003-01-01

This article reviews critical learning and behavioral problems of children exposed prenatally to alcohol and other drugs, especially executive function deficits. It considers risk factors associated with prenatal drug exposure and effective classroom interventions for executive function deficits in nonverbal working memory, internalization of…

Studies in the History of Astronomy. Issue 32 %t Istoriko-Astronomicheskie Issledovaniya. Vypusk XXXII

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Idlis, G. M.

This collection contains papers covering a wide scope of problems in the history of astronomy. Its basic headlines are: Cosmology and cosmogony of the 20th century; History of observations and astronomical organizations; Scientists and their works; Astronomy and society; Publications and memoirs; Astronomy and astrology; Memory of scientists

Pragmatic Abilities in Adults with and without Dyslexia: A Pilot Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Griffiths, Catherine C. B.

2007-01-01

This study examines well-compensated adults with dyslexia to see if they experience more problems with pragmatic awareness than the normal population. Social interaction requires an individual to process language at speed by using working memory efficiently, in order to understand the intended, rather than literal, meaning between speaker and…

The Importance of Additive Reasoning in Children's Mathematical Achievement: A Longitudinal Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ching, Boby Ho-Hong; Nunes, Terezinha

2017-01-01

This longitudinal study examines the relative importance of counting ability, additive reasoning, and working memory in children's mathematical achievement (calculation and story problem solving). In Hong Kong, 115 Chinese children aged 6 years old participated in 2 waves of assessments (T1 = first grade and T2 = second grade). Multiple regression…

Neuropsychology of traumatic brain injury: An expert overview.

PubMed

Azouvi, P; Arnould, A; Dromer, E; Vallat-Azouvi, C

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a serious healthcare problem, and this report is a selective review of recent findings on the epidemiology, pathophysiology and neuropsychological impairments following TBI. Patients who survive moderate-to-severe TBI frequently suffer from a wide range of cognitive deficits and behavioral changes due to diffuse axonal injury. These deficits include slowed information-processing and impaired long-term memory, attention, working memory, executive function, social cognition and self-awareness. Mental fatigue is frequently also associated and can exacerbate the consequences of neuropsychological deficits. Personality and behavioral changes can include combinations of impulsivity and apathy. Even mild TBI raises specific problems: while most patients recover within a few weeks or months, a minority of patients may suffer from long-lasting symptoms (post-concussion syndrome). The pathophysiology of such persistent problems remains a subject of debate, but seems to be due to both injury-related and non-injury-related factors. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Design knowledge capture for a corporate memory facility

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Boose, John H.; Shema, David B.; Bradshaw, Jeffrey M.

1990-01-01

Currently, much of the information regarding decision alternatives and trade-offs made in the course of a major program development effort is not represented or retained in a way that permits computer-based reasoning over the life cycle of the program. The loss of this information results in problems in tracing design alternatives to requirements, in assessing the impact of change in requirements, and in configuration management. To address these problems, the problem was studied of building an intelligent, active corporate memory facility which would provide for the capture of the requirements and standards of a program, analyze the design alternatives and trade-offs made over the program's lifetime, and examine relationships between requirements and design trade-offs. Early phases of the work have concentrated on design knowledge capture for the Space Station Freedom. Tools are demonstrated and extended which helps automate and document engineering trade studies, and another tool is being developed to help designers interactively explore design alternatives and constraints.

Adolescents’ Functional Numeracy Is Predicted by Their School Entry Number System Knowledge

PubMed Central

Geary, David C.; Hoard, Mary K.; Nugent, Lara; Bailey, Drew H.

2013-01-01

One in five adults in the United States is functionally innumerate; they do not possess the mathematical competencies needed for many modern jobs. We administered functional numeracy measures used in studies of young adults’ employability and wages to 180 thirteen-year-olds. The adolescents began the study in kindergarten and participated in multiple assessments of intelligence, working memory, mathematical cognition, achievement, and in-class attentive behavior. Their number system knowledge at the beginning of first grade was defined by measures that assessed knowledge of the systematic relations among Arabic numerals and skill at using this knowledge to solve arithmetic problems. Early number system knowledge predicted functional numeracy more than six years later (ß = 0.195, p = .0014) controlling for intelligence, working memory, in-class attentive behavior, mathematical achievement, demographic and other factors, but skill at using counting procedures to solve arithmetic problems did not. In all, we identified specific beginning of schooling numerical knowledge that contributes to individual differences in adolescents’ functional numeracy and demonstrated that performance on mathematical achievement tests underestimates the importance of this early knowledge. PMID:23382934

Effects of dopamine D2/D3 receptor antagonism on human planning and spatial working memory.

PubMed

Naef, M; Müller, U; Linssen, A; Clark, L; Robbins, T W; Eisenegger, C

2017-04-25

Psychopharmacological studies in humans suggest important roles for dopamine (DA) D2 receptors in human executive functions, such as cognitive planning and spatial working memory (SWM). However, studies that investigate an impairment of such functions using the selective DA D2/3 receptor antagonist sulpiride have yielded inconsistent results, perhaps because relatively low doses were used. We believe we report for the first time, the effects of a higher (800 mg p.o.) single dose of sulpiride as well as of genetic variation in the DA receptor D2 gene (DA receptor D2 Taq1A polymorphism), on planning and working memory. With 78 healthy male volunteers, we apply a between-groups, placebo-controlled design. We measure outcomes in the difficult versions of the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery One-Touch Stockings of Cambridge and the self-ordered SWM task. Volunteers in the sulpiride group showed significant impairments in planning accuracy and, for the more difficult problems, in SWM. Sulpiride administration speeded response latencies in the planning task on the most difficult problems. Volunteers with at least one copy of the minor allele (A1+) of the DA receptor D2 Taq1A polymorphism showed better SWM capacity, regardless of whether they received sulpiride or placebo. There were no effects on blood pressure, heart rate or subjective sedation. In sum, a higher single dose of sulpiride impairs SWM and executive planning functions, in a manner independent of the DA receptor D2 Taq1A polymorphism.

The effects of refreshing and elaboration on working memory performance, and their contributions to long-term memory formation.

PubMed

Bartsch, Lea M; Singmann, Henrik; Oberauer, Klaus

2018-03-19

Refreshing and elaboration are cognitive processes assumed to underlie verbal working-memory maintenance and assumed to support long-term memory formation. Whereas refreshing refers to the attentional focussing on representations, elaboration refers to linking representations in working memory into existing semantic networks. We measured the impact of instructed refreshing and elaboration on working and long-term memory separately, and investigated to what extent both processes are distinct in their contributions to working as well as long-term memory. Compared with a no-processing baseline, immediate memory was improved by repeating the items, but not by refreshing them. There was no credible effect of elaboration on working memory, except when items were repeated at the same time. Long-term memory benefited from elaboration, but not from refreshing the words. The results replicate the long-term memory benefit for elaboration, but do not support its beneficial role for working memory. Further, refreshing preserves immediate memory, but does not improve it beyond the level achieved without any processing.

Working memory and arithmetic calculation in children: the contributory roles of processing speed, short-term memory, and reading.

PubMed

Berg, Derek H

2008-04-01

The cognitive underpinnings of arithmetic calculation in children are noted to involve working memory; however, cognitive processes related to arithmetic calculation and working memory suggest that this relationship is more complex than stated previously. The purpose of this investigation was to examine the relative contributions of processing speed, short-term memory, working memory, and reading to arithmetic calculation in children. Results suggested four important findings. First, processing speed emerged as a significant contributor of arithmetic calculation only in relation to age-related differences in the general sample. Second, processing speed and short-term memory did not eliminate the contribution of working memory to arithmetic calculation. Third, individual working memory components--verbal working memory and visual-spatial working memory--each contributed unique variance to arithmetic calculation in the presence of all other variables. Fourth, a full model indicated that chronological age remained a significant contributor to arithmetic calculation in the presence of significant contributions from all other variables. Results are discussed in terms of directions for future research on working memory in arithmetic calculation.

Role of autobiographical memory in social problem solving and depression.

PubMed

Goddard, L; Dritschel, B; Burton, A

1996-11-01

Depressed patients frequently exhibit deficiencies in social problem solving (SPS). A possible cause of this deficit is an impairment in patients' ability to retrieve specific autobiographical memories. A clinically depressed group and a hospital control group performed the Means-End Problem-Solving (MEPS; J. J. Platt & G. Spivack, 1975a) task, during which they were required to attend to the memories retrieved during solution generation. Memories were categorized according to whether they were specific, categoric, or extended and whether the valence of the memories was positive or negative. Results support the general hypothesis that SPS skill is a function of autobiographical memory retrieval as measured by a cuing task and by the types of memories retrieved during the MEPS. However, the dysfunctional nature of categoric memories in SPS, rather than the importance of specific memories, was highlighted in the depressed group. Valence proved to be an unimportant variable in SPS ability. The cyclical links among autobiographical memory retrieval, SPS skills, and depression are discussed.

Content addressable memory project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hall, J. Storrs; Levy, Saul; Smith, Donald E.; Miyake, Keith M.

1992-01-01

A parameterized version of the tree processor was designed and tested (by simulation). The leaf processor design is 90 percent complete. We expect to complete and test a combination of tree and leaf cell designs in the next period. Work is proceeding on algorithms for the computer aided manufacturing (CAM), and once the design is complete we will begin simulating algorithms for large problems. The following topics are covered: (1) the practical implementation of content addressable memory; (2) design of a LEAF cell for the Rutgers CAM architecture; (3) a circuit design tool user's manual; and (4) design and analysis of efficient hierarchical interconnection networks.

Cognitive Remediation Strategies

PubMed Central

WEINSTEIN, CHERYL S.

1994-01-01

Evidence continues to emerge that childhood symptoms of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) persist into adulthood. These symptoms include motoric hyperactivity, restlessness, attention deficits, poor organizational skills, impulsivity, and memory impairment. Poor academic and work performance, frustration, humiliation, and shame are also components of adult ADHD. Psychotherapists are challenged to understand the meaning of the disorder and its ramifications in all aspects of life. An active multimodal approach, including somatic treatment and psychotherapy, is needed. In addition, cognitive remediation strategies to enhance attention, organization, memory, and problem-solving skills are an important adjunct to treatment. These strategies serve as psychological tools to circumvent deficits. PMID:22700173

Visual Working Memory Capacity and Proactive Interference

PubMed Central

Hartshorne, Joshua K.

2008-01-01

Background Visual working memory capacity is extremely limited and appears to be relatively immune to practice effects or the use of explicit strategies. The recent discovery that visual working memory tasks, like verbal working memory tasks, are subject to proactive interference, coupled with the fact that typical visual working memory tasks are particularly conducive to proactive interference, suggests that visual working memory capacity may be systematically under-estimated. Methodology/Principal Findings Working memory capacity was probed behaviorally in adult humans both in laboratory settings and via the Internet. Several experiments show that although the effect of proactive interference on visual working memory is significant and can last over several trials, it only changes the capacity estimate by about 15%. Conclusions/Significance This study further confirms the sharp limitations on visual working memory capacity, both in absolute terms and relative to verbal working memory. It is suggested that future research take these limitations into account in understanding differences across a variety of tasks between human adults, prelinguistic infants and nonlinguistic animals. PMID:18648493

Visual working memory capacity and proactive interference.

PubMed

Hartshorne, Joshua K

2008-07-23

Visual working memory capacity is extremely limited and appears to be relatively immune to practice effects or the use of explicit strategies. The recent discovery that visual working memory tasks, like verbal working memory tasks, are subject to proactive interference, coupled with the fact that typical visual working memory tasks are particularly conducive to proactive interference, suggests that visual working memory capacity may be systematically under-estimated. Working memory capacity was probed behaviorally in adult humans both in laboratory settings and via the Internet. Several experiments show that although the effect of proactive interference on visual working memory is significant and can last over several trials, it only changes the capacity estimate by about 15%. This study further confirms the sharp limitations on visual working memory capacity, both in absolute terms and relative to verbal working memory. It is suggested that future research take these limitations into account in understanding differences across a variety of tasks between human adults, prelinguistic infants and nonlinguistic animals.

Error control techniques for satellite and space communications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Costello, Daniel J., Jr.

1992-01-01

Worked performed during the reporting period is summarized. Construction of robustly good trellis codes for use with sequential decoding was developed. The robustly good trellis codes provide a much better trade off between free distance and distance profile. The unequal error protection capabilities of convolutional codes was studied. The problem of finding good large constraint length, low rate convolutional codes for deep space applications is investigated. A formula for computing the free distance of 1/n convolutional codes was discovered. Double memory (DM) codes, codes with two memory units per unit bit position, were studied; a search for optimal DM codes is being conducted. An algorithm for constructing convolutional codes from a given quasi-cyclic code was developed. Papers based on the above work are included in the appendix.

Factor structure of the Norwegian version of the WAIS-III in a clinical sample: the arithmetic problem.

PubMed

Egeland, Jens; Bosnes, Ole; Johansen, Hans

2009-09-01

Confirmatory Factor Analyses (CFA) of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-III (WAIS-III) lend partial support to the four-factor model proposed in the test manual. However, the Arithmetic subtest has been especially difficult to allocate to one factor. Using the new Norwegian WAIS-III version, we tested factor models differing in the number of factors and in the placement of the Arithmetic subtest in a mixed clinical sample (n = 272). Only the four-factor solutions had adequate goodness-of-fit values. Allowing Arithmetic to load on both the Verbal Comprehension and Working Memory factors provided a more parsimonious solution compared to considering the subtest only as a measure of Working Memory. Effects of education were particularly high for both the Verbal Comprehension tests and Arithmetic.

[Executive dysfunction in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in childhood].

PubMed

Romero-Ayuso, D M; Maestú, F; González-Marqués, J; Romo-Barrientos, C; Andrade, J M

The principal problem of ADHD is the difficulty to execute inhibitory control. The inhibition is an executive function that is develop during childhood. To know if other executive functions shower a lower performance in ADHD versus control group and these were different between ADHD-I and ADHD-C. Fifty three children, between 7 to 10 years old, participated and were assess with EMIC and Simon task. The results showed similar profile in working memory and verbal span. In contrast, ADHD-C showed lower performance in Simon task and more impulsively. On an other hand, ADHD-I showed lower performance in memory working tasks and planning. These results suggest differences in the executive profile between ADHD-I and ADHD-C and these support the hypothesis of Barkley about the necessity to differ both clinical subtypes.

Longitudinal Mediators of Achievement in Mathematics and Reading in Typical and Atypical Development

PubMed Central

Barnes, Marcia A.; Raghubar, Kimberly P.; English, Lianne; Williams, Jeffrey M.; Taylor, Heather; Landry, Susan

2014-01-01

Longitudinal studies of neurodevelopmental disorders that are diagnosed at or before birth and which are associated with specific learning difficulties at school-age provide one method for investigating developmental precursors of later-emerging academic disabilities. Spina bifida myelomeningocele (SBM) is a neurodevelopmental disorder associated with particular problems in mathematics, in contrast to well-developed word reading. Children with SBM (n = 30) and typically developing children (n = 35) were used to determine whether cognitive abilities measured at 36 and 60 months of age mediated the effect of group on mathematical and reading achievement outcomes at 8.5 and 9.5 years of age. A series of multiple mediator models showed that: visual-spatial working memory at 36 months and phonological awareness at 60 months partially mediated the effect of group on math calculations; phonological awareness partially mediated the effect of group on small addition and subtraction problems on a test of math fluency; and visual-spatial working memory mediated the effect of group on a test of math problem solving. Groups did not differ on word reading, and phonological awareness was the only mediator for reading fluency and reading comprehension. The findings are discussed with reference to theories of mathematical development and disability and with respect to both common and differing cognitive correlates of math and reading. PMID:24269579

Executive Functions Contribute Uniquely to Reading Competence in Minority Youth

PubMed Central

Jacobson, Lisa A.; Koriakin, Taylor; Lipkin, Paul; Boada, Richard; Frijters, Jan; Lovett, Maureen; Hill, Dina; Willcutt, Erik; Gottwald, Stephanie; Wolf, Maryanne; Bosson-Heenan, Joan; Gruen, Jeffrey R.; Mahone, E. Mark

2018-01-01

Competent reading requires various skills beyond those for basic word reading (i.e., core language skills, rapid naming, phonological processing). Contributing “higher-level” or domain-general processes include information processing speed and executive functions (working memory, strategic problem solving, attentional switching). Research in this area has relied on largely Caucasian samples, with limited representation of children from racial or ethnic minority groups. This study examined contributions of executive skills to reading competence in 761 children of minority backgrounds. Hierarchical linear regressions examined unique contributions of executive functions (EF) to word reading, fluency, and comprehension. EF contributed uniquely to reading performance, over and above reading-related language skills; working memory contributed uniquely to all components of reading; while attentional switching, but not problem solving, contributed to isolated and contextual word reading and reading fluency. Problem solving uniquely predicted comprehension, suggesting that this skill may be especially important for reading comprehension in minority youth. Attentional switching may play a unique role in development of reading fluency in minority youth, perhaps as a result of the increased demand for switching between spoken versus written dialects. Findings have implications for educational and clinical practice with regard to reading instruction, remedial reading intervention, and assessment of individuals with reading difficulty. PMID:26755569

Assessment of executive functioning in binge-eating disorder independent of weight status.

PubMed

Eneva, Kalina T; Arlt, Jean M; Yiu, Angelina; Murray, Susan M; Chen, Eunice Y

2017-08-01

Executive functioning (EF) problems may serve as vulnerability or maintenance factors for Binge-Eating Disorder (BED). However, it is unclear if EF problems observed in BED are related to overweight status or BED status. The current study extends this literature by examining EF in overweight and normal-weight BED compared to weight-matched controls. Participants were normal-weight women with BED (n = 23), overweight BED (n = 32), overweight healthy controls (n = 48), and normal-weight healthy controls (n = 29). The EF battery utilized tests from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Toolbox and Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System (D-KEFS). After controlling for years of education and minority status, overweight individuals performed more poorly than normal-weight individuals on a task of cognitive flexibility requiring generativity (p < .01), and speed on psychomotor performance tasks (p = .01). Normal-weight and overweight BED performed worse on working memory tasks compared to controls (p = .04). Unexpectedly, normal-weight BED individuals out-performed all other groups on an inhibitory control task (p < .01). No significant differences were found between the four groups on tasks of planning. Regardless of weight status, BED is associated with working memory problems. Replication of the finding that normal-weight BED is associated with enhanced inhibitory control is needed. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Mathematical inference in one point microrheology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hohenegger, Christel; McKinley, Scott

2016-11-01

Pioneered by the work of Mason and Weitz, one point passive microrheology has been successfully applied to obtaining estimates of the loss and storage modulus of viscoelastic fluids when the mean-square displacement obeys a local power law. Using numerical simulations of a fluctuating viscoelastic fluid model, we study the problem of recovering the mechanical parameters of the fluid's memory kernel using statistical inference like mean-square displacements and increment auto-correlation functions. Seeking a better understanding of the influence of the assumptions made in the inversion process, we mathematically quantify the uncertainty in traditional one point microrheology for simulated data and demonstrate that a large family of memory kernels yields the same statistical signature. We consider both simulated data obtained from a full viscoelastic fluid simulation of the unsteady Stokes equations with fluctuations and from a Generalized Langevin Equation of the particle's motion described by the same memory kernel. From the theory of inverse problems, we propose an alternative method that can be used to recover information about the loss and storage modulus and discuss its limitations and uncertainties. NSF-DMS 1412998.

3-D parallel program for numerical calculation of gas dynamics problems with heat conductivity on distributed memory computational systems (CS)

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

Sofronov, I.D.; Voronin, B.L.; Butnev, O.I.

1997-12-31

The aim of the work performed is to develop a 3D parallel program for numerical calculation of gas dynamics problem with heat conductivity on distributed memory computational systems (CS), satisfying the condition of numerical result independence from the number of processors involved. Two basically different approaches to the structure of massive parallel computations have been developed. The first approach uses the 3D data matrix decomposition reconstructed at temporal cycle and is a development of parallelization algorithms for multiprocessor CS with shareable memory. The second approach is based on using a 3D data matrix decomposition not reconstructed during a temporal cycle.more » The program was developed on 8-processor CS MP-3 made in VNIIEF and was adapted to a massive parallel CS Meiko-2 in LLNL by joint efforts of VNIIEF and LLNL staffs. A large number of numerical experiments has been carried out with different number of processors up to 256 and the efficiency of parallelization has been evaluated in dependence on processor number and their parameters.« less

Aging, neurogenesis, and caloric restriction in different model organisms.

PubMed

Arslan-Ergul, Ayca; Ozdemir, A Tugrul; Adams, Michelle M

2013-08-01

Brain aging is a multifactorial process that is occurring across multiple cognitive domains. A significant complaint that occurs in the elderly is a decrement in learning and memory ability. Both rodents and zebrafish exhibit a similar problem with memory during aging. The neurobiological changes that underlie this cognitive decline are complex and undoubtedly influenced by many factors. Alterations in the birth of new neurons and neuron turnover may contribute to age-related cognitive problems. Caloric restriction is the only non-genetic intervention that reliably increases life span and healthspan across multiple organisms although the molecular mechanisms are not well-understood. Recently the zebrafish has become a popular model organism for understanding the neurobiological consequences but to date very little work has been performed. Similarly, few studies have examined the effects of dietary restriction in zebrafish. Here we review the literature related to memory decline, neurogenesis, and caloric restriction across model organisms and suggest that zebrafish has the potential to be an important animal model for understanding the complex interactions between age, neurobiological changes in the brain, and dietary regimens or their mimetics as interventions.

Dissociation of working memory impairments and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in the brain.

PubMed

Mattfeld, Aaron T; Whitfield-Gabrieli, Susan; Biederman, Joseph; Spencer, Thomas; Brown, Ariel; Fried, Ronna; Gabrieli, John D E

2016-01-01

Prevailing neuropsychological models of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) propose that ADHD arises from deficits in executive functions such as working memory, but accumulating clinical evidence suggests a dissociation between ADHD and executive dysfunctions. This study examined whether ADHD and working memory capacity are behaviorally and neurobiologically separable using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Participants diagnosed with ADHD in childhood who subsequently remitted or persisted in their diagnosis as adults were characterized at follow-up in adulthood as either impaired or unimpaired in spatial working memory relative to controls who never had ADHD. ADHD participants with impaired spatial working memory performed worse than controls and ADHD participants with unimpaired working memory during an n-back working memory task while being scanned. Both controls and ADHD participants with unimpaired working memory exhibited significant linearly increasing activation in the inferior frontal junction, precuneus, lingual gyrus, and cerebellum as a function of working-memory load, and these activations did not differ significantly between these groups. ADHD participants with impaired working memory exhibited significant hypoactivation in the same regions, which was significantly different than both control participants and ADHD participants with unimpaired working memory. These findings support both a behavioral and neurobiological dissociation between ADHD and working memory capacity.

Dissociation of working memory impairments and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in the brain

PubMed Central

Mattfeld, Aaron T.; Whitfield-Gabrieli, Susan; Biederman, Joseph; Spencer, Thomas; Brown, Ariel; Fried, Ronna; Gabrieli, John D.E.

2015-01-01

Prevailing neuropsychological models of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) propose that ADHD arises from deficits in executive functions such as working memory, but accumulating clinical evidence suggests a dissociation between ADHD and executive dysfunctions. This study examined whether ADHD and working memory capacity are behaviorally and neurobiologically separable using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Participants diagnosed with ADHD in childhood who subsequently remitted or persisted in their diagnosis as adults were characterized at follow-up in adulthood as either impaired or unimpaired in spatial working memory relative to controls who never had ADHD. ADHD participants with impaired spatial working memory performed worse than controls and ADHD participants with unimpaired working memory during an n-back working memory task while being scanned. Both controls and ADHD participants with unimpaired working memory exhibited significant linearly increasing activation in the inferior frontal junction, precuneus, lingual gyrus, and cerebellum as a function of working-memory load, and these activations did not differ significantly between these groups. ADHD participants with impaired working memory exhibited significant hypoactivation in the same regions, which was significantly different than both control participants and ADHD participants with unimpaired working memory. These findings support both a behavioral and neurobiological dissociation between ADHD and working memory capacity. PMID:26900567

Effects of mindfulness and psychoeducation on working memory in adult ADHD: A randomised, controlled fMRI study.

PubMed

Bachmann, Katharina; Lam, Alexandra P; Sörös, Peter; Kanat, Manuela; Hoxhaj, Eliza; Matthies, Swantje; Feige, Bernd; Müller, Helge; Özyurt, Jale; Thiel, Christiane M; Philipsen, Alexandra

2018-07-01

Adult attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a serious mental disorder associated with impaired neurocognitive performance related to working memory function. Recent clinical trials have suggested that mindfulness is a promising intervention in adults with ADHD. We performed a randomised controlled clinical trial to investigate working memory (WM) with an n-back task in adults with ADHD during fMRI before and after an 8-week mindfulness intervention (MAP) compared with psychoeducation (PE). ADHD symptoms were assessed using the self- and observer-rated Conners Adult ADHD Rating Scales (CAARS). The complete pre-post data of 21 MAP and 19 PE participants were analysed. We found no group difference in ADHD symptoms or task performance at the pre-measurement, but there was a significant decrease in ADHD symptoms and significant improvement in task performance in both groups at the post-measurement. Furthermore, we found a significant increase in task-related activation in the right parietal lobe, with no difference between groups. Exploratory two-sample paired t-tests revealed significant increased brain activation after MAP in the bilateral inferior parietal lobule, right posterior insula and right precuneus. A decrease in self-rated 'Inattention/Memory Problems' after MAP compared to baseline was associated with stronger activation in parts of the left putamen, globus pallidus and thalamus. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Spatial working memory load affects counting but not subitizing in enumeration.

PubMed

Shimomura, Tomonari; Kumada, Takatsune

2011-08-01

The present study investigated whether subitizing reflects capacity limitations associated with two types of working memory tasks. Under a dual-task situation, participants performed an enumeration task in conjunction with either a spatial (Experiment 1) or a nonspatial visual (Experiment 2) working memory task. Experiment 1 showed that spatial working memory load affected the slope of a counting function but did not affect subitizing performance or subitizing range. Experiment 2 showed that nonspatial visual working memory load affected neither enumeration efficiency nor subitizing range. Furthermore, in both spatial and nonspatial memory tasks, neither subitizing efficiency nor subitizing range was affected by amount of imposed memory load. In all the experiments, working memory load failed to influence slope, subitizing range, or overall reaction time. These findings suggest that subitizing is performed without either spatial or nonspatial working memory. A possible mechanism of subitizing with independent capacity of working memory is discussed.

Working memory involvement in stuttering: exploring the evidence and research implications.

PubMed

Bajaj, Amit

2007-01-01

Several studies of utterance planning and attention processes in stuttering have raised the prospect of working memory involvement in the disorder. In this paper, potential connections between stuttering and two elements of Baddeley's [Baddeley, A. D. (2003). Working memory: Looking back and looking forward. Neuroscience, 4, 829-839] working memory model, phonological memory and central executive, are posited. Empirical evidence is drawn from studies on phonological memory and dual-task performance among children and adults who stutter to examine support for the posited connections. Implications for research to examine working memory as one of the psycholinguistic bases of stuttering are presented. The reader will learn about and be able to: (1) appraise potential relationships between working memory and stuttering; (2) evaluate empirical evidence that suggests the possibility of working memory involvement in stuttering; and (3) identify research directions to explore the role of working memory in stuttering.

Changes in verbal and visuospatial working memory from Grade 1 to Grade 3 of primary school: Population longitudinal study.

PubMed

Nicolaou, E; Quach, J; Lum, J; Roberts, G; Spencer-Smith, M; Gathercole, S; Anderson, P J; Mensah, F K; Wake, M

2018-05-01

Adaptive working memory training is being implemented without an adequate understanding of developmental trajectories of working memory. We aimed to quantify from Grade 1 to Grade 3 of primary school (1) changes in verbal and visuospatial working memory and (2) whether low verbal and visuospatial working memory in Grade 1 predicts low working memory in Grade 3. The study design includes a population-based longitudinal study of 1,802 children (66% uptake from all 2,747 Grade 1 students) at 44 randomly selected primary schools in Melbourne, Australia. Backwards Digit Recall (verbal working memory) and Mister X (visuospatial working memory) screening measures from the Automated Working Memory Assessment (M = 100; SD = 15) were used to assess Grades 1 and 3 (ages 6-7 and 8-9 years) students. Low working memory was defined as ≥1 standard deviation below the standard score mean. Descriptive statistics addressed Aim 1, and predictive parameters addressed Aim 2. One thousand seventy (59%) of 1802 Grade 1 participants were reassessed in Grade 3. As expected for typically developing children, group mean standard scores were similar in Grades 1 and 3 for verbal, visuospatial, and overall working memory, but group mean raw scores increased markedly. Compared to "not low" children, those classified as having low working memory in Grade 1 showed much larger increases in both standard and raw scores across verbal, visuospatial, and overall working memory. Sensitivity was very low for Grade 1 low working memory predicting Grade 3 low classifications. Although mean changes in working memory standard scores between Grades 1 and 3 were minimal, we found that individual development varied widely, with marked natural resolution by Grade 3 in children who initially had low working memory. This may render brain-training interventions ineffective in the early school year ages, particularly if (as population-based programmes usually mandate) selection occurs within a screening paradigm. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Contribution of auditory working memory to speech understanding in mandarin-speaking cochlear implant users.

PubMed

Tao, Duoduo; Deng, Rui; Jiang, Ye; Galvin, John J; Fu, Qian-Jie; Chen, Bing

2014-01-01

To investigate how auditory working memory relates to speech perception performance by Mandarin-speaking cochlear implant (CI) users. Auditory working memory and speech perception was measured in Mandarin-speaking CI and normal-hearing (NH) participants. Working memory capacity was measured using forward digit span and backward digit span; working memory efficiency was measured using articulation rate. Speech perception was assessed with: (a) word-in-sentence recognition in quiet, (b) word-in-sentence recognition in speech-shaped steady noise at +5 dB signal-to-noise ratio, (c) Chinese disyllable recognition in quiet, (d) Chinese lexical tone recognition in quiet. Self-reported school rank was also collected regarding performance in schoolwork. There was large inter-subject variability in auditory working memory and speech performance for CI participants. Working memory and speech performance were significantly poorer for CI than for NH participants. All three working memory measures were strongly correlated with each other for both CI and NH participants. Partial correlation analyses were performed on the CI data while controlling for demographic variables. Working memory efficiency was significantly correlated only with sentence recognition in quiet when working memory capacity was partialled out. Working memory capacity was correlated with disyllable recognition and school rank when efficiency was partialled out. There was no correlation between working memory and lexical tone recognition in the present CI participants. Mandarin-speaking CI users experience significant deficits in auditory working memory and speech performance compared with NH listeners. The present data suggest that auditory working memory may contribute to CI users' difficulties in speech understanding. The present pattern of results with Mandarin-speaking CI users is consistent with previous auditory working memory studies with English-speaking CI users, suggesting that the lexical importance of voice pitch cues (albeit poorly coded by the CI) did not influence the relationship between working memory and speech perception.

Does Working Memory Training Lead to Generalized Improvements in Children with Low Working Memory? A Randomized Controlled Trial

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dunning, Darren L.; Holmes, Joni; Gathercole, Susan E.

2013-01-01

Children with low working memory typically make poor educational progress, and it has been speculated that difficulties in meeting the heavy working memory demands of the classroom may be a contributory factor. Intensive working memory training has been shown to boost performance on untrained memory tasks in a variety of populations. This first…

Working-memory training improves developmental dyslexia in Chinese children.

PubMed

Luo, Yan; Wang, Jing; Wu, Hanrong; Zhu, Dongmei; Zhang, Yu

2013-02-15

Although plasticity in the neural system underlies working memory, and working memory can be improved by training, there is thus far no evidence that children with developmental dyslexia can benefit from working-memory training. In the present study, thirty dyslexic children aged 8-11 years were recruited from an elementary school in Wuhan, China. They received working-memory training, including training in visuospatial memory, verbal memory, and central executive tasks. The difficulty of the tasks was adjusted based on the performance of each subject, and the training sessions lasted 40 minutes per day, for 5 weeks. The results showed that working-memory training significantly enhanced performance on the nontrained working memory tasks such as the visuospatial, the verbal domains, and central executive tasks in children with developmental dyslexia. More importantly, the visual rhyming task and reading fluency task were also significantly improved by training. Progress on working memory measures was related to changes in reading skills. These experimental findings indicate that working memory is a pivotal factor in reading development among children with developmental dyslexia, and interventions to improve working memory may help dyslexic children to become more proficient in reading.

Pattern of executive functioning in adolescents with epilepsy: A multimethod measurement approach.

PubMed

Modi, Avani C; Vannest, Jennifer; Combs, Angela; Turnier, Luke; Wade, Shari L

2018-03-01

Youth with epilepsy demonstrate deficits in executive functioning (EF), the skills necessary for goal-directed behavior (e.g., problem-solving, initiating, monitoring, organization, planning, and working memory). Despite 30-50% of youth with epilepsy demonstrating EF deficits, no extant studies have utilized both performance and questionnaire-based measures to examine the pattern of EF deficits in adolescents with epilepsy. Study aims were to 1) identify the pattern of EF deficits in adolescents with epilepsy and 2) identify which assessment tools are most sensitive to EF deficits in this population (adolescents, ages 13-17, with epilepsy). An exploratory aim was to examine group differences on measures of EF by epilepsy type. Standard performance-based neuropsychological measures (Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children - Version V or Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale Working Memory Index-Version IV, Delis Kaplan Executive Functioning System, NIH Toolbox, Test of Everyday Attention for Children) and the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Functioning (BRIEF) comprised the multimethod assessment battery. Depending on the measure, 30% of adolescents with epilepsy had deficits in working memory, 17% in cognitive flexibility/problem solving, 6% in inhibition, and 18% in planning/organization. Attention was a significant problem for 15% of adolescents with epilepsy. Correlations among the various EF measures were quite poor. Across various EF domains, results indicated that adolescents with localization-related epilepsy demonstrated better EF skills compared to adolescents with unclassified epilepsy. Overall, our findings suggest that executive functioning deficits are selective and different from those observed in other neurological populations (e.g., attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), traumatic brain injury) where problems with self-regulation (i.e., inhibition, planning/organization) are more pronounced. These findings support utilizing multiple measures, including both performance-based neuropsychological tests and parent- and self-reports, to assess executive functioning difficulties in adolescents with epilepsy as they are uniquely sensitive to executive functioning domains. Adolescents with unclassified epilepsy also appear to be at higher risk for EF deficits and thus represent an important group to target for intervention. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Attention Problems, Phonological Short-Term Memory, and Visuospatial Short-Term Memory: Differential Effects on Near- and Long-Term Scholastic Achievement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sarver, Dustin E.; Rapport, Mark D.; Kofler, Michael J.; Scanlan, Sean W.; Raiker, Joseph S.; Altro, Thomas A.; Bolden, Jennifer

2012-01-01

The current study examined individual differences in children's phonological and visuospatial short-term memory as potential mediators of the relationship among attention problems and near- and long-term scholastic achievement. Nested structural equation models revealed that teacher-reported attention problems were associated negatively with…

Pharmacological Interventions for the MATRICS Cognitive Domains in Schizophrenia: What’s the Evidence?

PubMed Central

Vingerhoets, Wilhelmina A. M.; Bloemen, Oswald J. N.; Bakker, Geor; van Amelsvoort, Therese A. M. J.

2013-01-01

Schizophrenia is a disabling, chronic psychiatric disorder with a prevalence rate of 0.5–1% in the general population. Symptoms include positive (e.g., delusions, hallucinations), negative (e.g., blunted affect, social withdrawal), as well as cognitive symptoms (e.g., memory and attention problems). Although 75–85% of patients with schizophrenia report cognitive impairments, the underlying neuropharmacological mechanisms are not well understood and currently no effective treatment is available for these impairments. This has led to the Measurement and Treatment Research to Improve Cognition in Schizophrenia (MATRICS) initiative, which established seven cognitive domains that are fundamentally impaired in schizophrenia. These domains include verbal learning and memory, visual learning and memory, working memory, attention and vigilance, processing speed, reasoning and problem solving, and social cognition. Recently, a growing number of studies have been conducted trying to identify the underlying neuropharmacological mechanisms of cognitive impairments in schizophrenia patients. Specific cognitive impairments seem to arise from different underlying neuropharmacological mechanisms. However, most review articles describe cognition in general and an overview of the mechanisms involved in these seven separate cognitive domains is currently lacking. Therefore, we reviewed the underlying neuropharmacological mechanisms focusing on the domains as established by the MATRICS initiative which are considered most crucial in schizophrenia. PMID:24363646

Statistical modelling of networked human-automation performance using working memory capacity.

PubMed

Ahmed, Nisar; de Visser, Ewart; Shaw, Tyler; Mohamed-Ameen, Amira; Campbell, Mark; Parasuraman, Raja

2014-01-01

This study examines the challenging problem of modelling the interaction between individual attentional limitations and decision-making performance in networked human-automation system tasks. Analysis of real experimental data from a task involving networked supervision of multiple unmanned aerial vehicles by human participants shows that both task load and network message quality affect performance, but that these effects are modulated by individual differences in working memory (WM) capacity. These insights were used to assess three statistical approaches for modelling and making predictions with real experimental networked supervisory performance data: classical linear regression, non-parametric Gaussian processes and probabilistic Bayesian networks. It is shown that each of these approaches can help designers of networked human-automated systems cope with various uncertainties in order to accommodate future users by linking expected operating conditions and performance from real experimental data to observable cognitive traits like WM capacity. Practitioner Summary: Working memory (WM) capacity helps account for inter-individual variability in operator performance in networked unmanned aerial vehicle supervisory tasks. This is useful for reliable performance prediction near experimental conditions via linear models; robust statistical prediction beyond experimental conditions via Gaussian process models and probabilistic inference about unknown task conditions/WM capacities via Bayesian network models.

False memories from survival processing make better primes for problem-solving.

PubMed

Garner, Sarah R; Howe, Mark L

2014-01-01

Previous research has demonstrated that participants remember significantly more survival-related information and more information that is processed for its survival relevance. Recent research has also shown that survival materials and processing result in more false memories, ones that are adaptive inasmuch as they prime solutions to insight-based problems. Importantly, false memories for survival-related information facilitate problem solving more than false memories for other types of information. The present study explores this survival advantage using an incidental rather than intentional memory task. Here participants rated information either in the context of its importance to a survival-processing scenario or to moving to a new house. Following this, participants solved a number of compound remote associate tasks (CRATs), half of which had the solution primed by false memories that were generated during the processing task. Results showed that (a) CRATs were primed by false memories in this incidental task, with participants solving significantly more CRATs when primed than when unprimed, (b) this effect was greatest when participants rated items for survival than moving, and (c) processing items for a survival scenario improved overall problem-solving performance even when specific problems themselves were not primed. Results are discussed with regard to adaptive theories of memory.

Can Interactive Working Memory Training Improve Learning?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alloway, Tracy

2012-01-01

Background: Working memory is linked to learning outcomes and there is emerging evidence that training working memory can yield gains in working memory and fluid intelligence. Aims: The aim of the present study was to investigate whether interactive working memory training would transfer to acquired cognitive skills, such as vocabulary and…

Working memory training may increase working memory capacity but not fluid intelligence.

PubMed

Harrison, Tyler L; Shipstead, Zach; Hicks, Kenny L; Hambrick, David Z; Redick, Thomas S; Engle, Randall W

2013-12-01

Working memory is a critical element of complex cognition, particularly under conditions of distraction and interference. Measures of working memory capacity correlate positively with many measures of real-world cognition, including fluid intelligence. There have been numerous attempts to use training procedures to increase working memory capacity and thereby performance on the real-world tasks that rely on working memory capacity. In the study reported here, we demonstrated that training on complex working memory span tasks leads to improvement on similar tasks with different materials but that such training does not generalize to measures of fluid intelligence.

Spatial attention interacts with serial-order retrieval from verbal working memory.

PubMed

van Dijck, Jean-Philippe; Abrahamse, Elger L; Majerus, Steve; Fias, Wim

2013-09-01

The ability to maintain the serial order of events is recognized as a major function of working memory. Although general models of working memory postulate a close link between working memory and attention, such a link has so far not been proposed specifically for serial-order working memory. The present study provided the first empirical demonstration of a direct link between serial order in verbal working memory and spatial selective attention. We show that the retrieval of later items of a sequence stored in working memory-compared with that of earlier items-produces covert attentional shifts toward the right. This observation suggests the conceptually surprising notion that serial-order working memory, even for nonspatially defined verbal items, draws on spatial attention.

Working Memory Differences Between Children Living in Rural and Urban Poverty

PubMed Central

Tine, Michele

2014-01-01

This study was designed to investigate if the working memory profiles of children living in rural poverty are distinct from the working memory profiles of children living in urban poverty. Verbal and visuospatial working memory tasks were administered to sixth-grade students living in low-income rural, low-income urban, high-income rural, and high-income urban developmental contexts. Both low-income rural and low-income urban children showed working memory deficits compared with their high-income counterparts, but their deficits were distinct. Low-income urban children exhibited symmetrical verbal and visuospatial working memory deficits compared with their high-income urban counterparts. Meanwhile, low-income rural children exhibited asymmetrical deficits when compared with their high-income rural counterparts, with more extreme visuospatial working memory deficits than verbal working memory deficits. These results suggest that different types of poverty are associated with different working memory abilities. PMID:25554726

Working Memory Differences Between Children Living in Rural and Urban Poverty.

PubMed

Tine, Michele

2014-10-02

This study was designed to investigate if the working memory profiles of children living in rural poverty are distinct from the working memory profiles of children living in urban poverty. Verbal and visuospatial working memory tasks were administered to sixth-grade students living in low-income rural, low-income urban, high-income rural, and high-income urban developmental contexts. Both low-income rural and low-income urban children showed working memory deficits compared with their high-income counterparts, but their deficits were distinct. Low-income urban children exhibited symmetrical verbal and visuospatial working memory deficits compared with their high-income urban counterparts. Meanwhile, low-income rural children exhibited asymmetrical deficits when compared with their high-income rural counterparts, with more extreme visuospatial working memory deficits than verbal working memory deficits. These results suggest that different types of poverty are associated with different working memory abilities.

Do TRPC channels support working memory? Comparing modulations of TRPC channels and working memory through G-protein coupled receptors and neuromodulators.

PubMed

Reboreda, Antonio; Theissen, Frederik M; Valero-Aracama, Maria J; Arboit, Alberto; Corbu, Mihaela A; Yoshida, Motoharu

2018-03-01

Working memory is a crucial ability we use in daily life. However, the cellular mechanisms supporting working memory still remain largely unclear. A key component of working memory is persistent neural firing which is believed to serve short-term (hundreds of milliseconds up to tens of seconds) maintenance of necessary information. In this review, we will focus on the role of transient receptor potential canonical (TRPC) channels as a mechanism underlying persistent firing. Many years of in vitro work have been suggesting a crucial role of TRPC channels in working memory and temporal association tasks. If TRPC channels are indeed a central mechanism for working memory, manipulations which impair or facilitate working memory should have a similar effect on TRPC channel modulation. However, modulations of working memory and TRPC channels were never systematically compared, and it remains unanswered whether TRPC channels indeed contribute to working memory in vivo or not. In this article, we review the effects of G-protein coupled receptors (GPCR) and neuromodulators, including acetylcholine, noradrenalin, serotonin and dopamine, on working memory and TRPC channels. Based on comparisons, we argue that GPCR and downstream signaling pathways that activate TRPC, generally support working memory, while those that suppress TRPC channels impair it. However, depending on the channel types, areas, and systems tested, this is not the case in all studies. Further work to clarify involvement of specific TRPC channels in working memory tasks and how they are affected by neuromodulators is still necessary in the future. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

EMAS recommendations for conditions in the workplace for menopausal women.

PubMed

Griffiths, Amanda; Ceausu, Iuliana; Depypere, Herman; Lambrinoudaki, Irene; Mueck, Alfred; Pérez-López, Faustino R; van der Schouw, Yvonne T; Senturk, Levent M; Simoncini, Tommaso; Stevenson, John C; Stute, Petra; Rees, Margaret

2016-03-01

Women form a large part of many workforces throughout Europe. Many will be working throughout their menopausal years. Whilst the menopause may cause no significant problems for some, for others it is known to present considerable difficulties in both their personal and working lives. During the menopausal transition women report that fatigue and difficulties with memory and concentration can have a negative impact on their working lives. Furthermore, hot flushes can be a source of embarrassment and distress. Some consider that these symptoms can impact on their performance. Greater awareness among employers, together with sensitive and flexible management can be helpful for women at this time. Particular strategies might include: fostering a culture whereby employees feel comfortable disclosing health problems, allowing flexible working, reducing sources of work-related stress, providing easy access to cold drinking water and toilets, and reviewing workplace temperature and ventilation. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

How Common are WM Deficits in Children with Difficulties in Reading and Mathematics?

PubMed

Gathercole, Susan E; Woolgar, Francesca; Kievit, Rogier A; Astle, Duncan; Manly, Tom; Holmes, Joni

2016-12-01

The extent to which deficits in working memory (WM) are characteristic of children with reading and mathematics difficulties was investigated in a large sample aged 5-15 years reported to have problems in attention, learning and memory. WM performance was highly correlated with reading and mathematics scores. Although deficits in individual tests of short-term memory (STM) and WM occurred in less than half of the children with detected learning difficulties, three-quarters of the children with low reading and mathematics scores obtained one or more WM scores in the deficit range. These findings are consistent with proposals that WM or the broader cognitive dimensions it taps impede school-based learning, and point to the importance of managing WM loads in the classroom.

Effect of quantum learning model in improving creativity and memory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sujatmika, S.; Hasanah, D.; Hakim, L. L.

2018-04-01

Quantum learning is a combination of many interactions that exist during learning. This model can be applied by current interesting topic, contextual, repetitive, and give opportunities to students to demonstrate their abilities. The basis of the quantum learning model are left brain theory, right brain theory, triune, visual, auditorial, kinesthetic, game, symbol, holistic, and experiential learning theory. Creativity plays an important role to be success in the working world. Creativity shows alternatives way to problem-solving or creates something. Good memory plays a role in the success of learning. Through quantum learning, students will use all of their abilities, interested in learning and create their own ways of memorizing concepts of the material being studied. From this idea, researchers assume that quantum learning models can improve creativity and memory of the students.

Conceptualizing and Measuring Working Memory and its Relationship to Aphasia

PubMed Central

Wright, Heather Harris; Fergadiotis, Gerasimos

2011-01-01

Background General agreement exists in the literature that individuals with aphasia can exhibit a working memory deficit that contributes to their language processing impairments. Though conceptualized within different working memory frameworks, researchers have suggested that individuals with aphasia have limited working memory capacity, impaired attention-control processes as well as impaired inhibitory mechanisms. However, across studies investigating working memory ability in individuals with aphasia, different measures have been used to quantify their working memory ability and identify the relationship between working memory and language performance. Aims The primary objectives of this article are to (1) review current working memory theoretical frameworks, (2) review tasks used to measure working memory, and (3) discuss findings from studies that have investigated working memory as they relate to language processing in aphasia. Main Contribution Though findings have been consistent across studies investigating working memory ability in individuals with aphasia, discussion of how working memory is conceptualized and defined is often missing, as is discussion of results within a theoretical framework. This is critical, as working memory is conceptualized differently across the different theoretical frameworks. They differ in explaining what limits capacity and the source of individual differences as well as how information is encoded, maintained, and retrieved. When test methods are considered within a theoretical framework, specific hypotheses can be tested and stronger conclusions that are less susceptible to different interpretations can be made. Conclusions Working memory ability has been investigated in numerous studies with individuals with aphasia. To better understand the underlying cognitive constructs that contribute to the language deficits exhibited by individuals with aphasia, future investigations should operationally define the cognitive constructs of interest and discuss findings within theoretical frameworks. PMID:22639480

Training on Movement Figure-Ground Discrimination Remediates Low-Level Visual Timing Deficits in the Dorsal Stream, Improving High-Level Cognitive Functioning, Including Attention, Reading Fluency, and Working Memory.

PubMed

Lawton, Teri; Shelley-Tremblay, John

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine whether neurotraining to discriminate a moving test pattern relative to a stationary background, figure-ground discrimination, improves vision and cognitive functioning in dyslexics, as well as typically-developing normal students. We predict that improving the speed and sensitivity of figure-ground movement discrimination ( PATH to Reading neurotraining) acts to remediate visual timing deficits in the dorsal stream, thereby improving processing speed, reading fluency, and the executive control functions of attention and working memory in both dyslexic and normal students who had PATH neurotraining more than in those students who had no neurotraining. This prediction was evaluated by measuring whether dyslexic and normal students improved on standardized tests of cognitive skills following neurotraining exercises, more than following computer-based guided reading ( Raz-Kids ( RK )). The neurotraining used in this study was visually-based training designed to improve magnocellular function at both low and high levels in the dorsal stream: the input to the executive control networks coding working memory and attention. This approach represents a paradigm shift from the phonologically-based treatment for dyslexia, which concentrates on high-level speech and reading areas. This randomized controlled-validation study was conducted by training the entire second and third grade classrooms (42 students) for 30 min twice a week before guided reading. Standardized tests were administered at the beginning and end of 12-weeks of intervention training to evaluate improvements in academic skills. Only movement-discrimination training remediated both low-level visual timing deficits and high-level cognitive functioning, including selective and sustained attention, reading fluency and working memory for both dyslexic and normal students. Remediating visual timing deficits in the dorsal stream revealed the causal role of visual movement discrimination training in improving high-level cognitive functions such as attention, reading acquisition and working memory. This study supports the hypothesis that faulty timing in synchronizing the activity of magnocellular with parvocellular visual pathways in the dorsal stream is a fundamental cause of dyslexia and being at-risk for reading problems in normal students, and argues against the assumption that reading deficiencies in dyslexia are caused by phonological or language deficits, requiring a paradigm shift from phonologically-based treatment of dyslexia to a visually-based treatment. This study shows that visual movement-discrimination can be used not only to diagnose dyslexia early, but also for its successful treatment, so that reading problems do not prevent children from readily learning.

Training on Movement Figure-Ground Discrimination Remediates Low-Level Visual Timing Deficits in the Dorsal Stream, Improving High-Level Cognitive Functioning, Including Attention, Reading Fluency, and Working Memory

PubMed Central

Lawton, Teri; Shelley-Tremblay, John

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine whether neurotraining to discriminate a moving test pattern relative to a stationary background, figure-ground discrimination, improves vision and cognitive functioning in dyslexics, as well as typically-developing normal students. We predict that improving the speed and sensitivity of figure-ground movement discrimination (PATH to Reading neurotraining) acts to remediate visual timing deficits in the dorsal stream, thereby improving processing speed, reading fluency, and the executive control functions of attention and working memory in both dyslexic and normal students who had PATH neurotraining more than in those students who had no neurotraining. This prediction was evaluated by measuring whether dyslexic and normal students improved on standardized tests of cognitive skills following neurotraining exercises, more than following computer-based guided reading (Raz-Kids (RK)). The neurotraining used in this study was visually-based training designed to improve magnocellular function at both low and high levels in the dorsal stream: the input to the executive control networks coding working memory and attention. This approach represents a paradigm shift from the phonologically-based treatment for dyslexia, which concentrates on high-level speech and reading areas. This randomized controlled-validation study was conducted by training the entire second and third grade classrooms (42 students) for 30 min twice a week before guided reading. Standardized tests were administered at the beginning and end of 12-weeks of intervention training to evaluate improvements in academic skills. Only movement-discrimination training remediated both low-level visual timing deficits and high-level cognitive functioning, including selective and sustained attention, reading fluency and working memory for both dyslexic and normal students. Remediating visual timing deficits in the dorsal stream revealed the causal role of visual movement discrimination training in improving high-level cognitive functions such as attention, reading acquisition and working memory. This study supports the hypothesis that faulty timing in synchronizing the activity of magnocellular with parvocellular visual pathways in the dorsal stream is a fundamental cause of dyslexia and being at-risk for reading problems in normal students, and argues against the assumption that reading deficiencies in dyslexia are caused by phonological or language deficits, requiring a paradigm shift from phonologically-based treatment of dyslexia to a visually-based treatment. This study shows that visual movement-discrimination can be used not only to diagnose dyslexia early, but also for its successful treatment, so that reading problems do not prevent children from readily learning. PMID:28555097

Changes in Brain Network Efficiency and Working Memory Performance in Aging

PubMed Central

Stanley, Matthew L.; Simpson, Sean L.; Dagenbach, Dale; Lyday, Robert G.; Burdette, Jonathan H.; Laurienti, Paul J.

2015-01-01

Working memory is a complex psychological construct referring to the temporary storage and active processing of information. We used functional connectivity brain network metrics quantifying local and global efficiency of information transfer for predicting individual variability in working memory performance on an n-back task in both young (n = 14) and older (n = 15) adults. Individual differences in both local and global efficiency during the working memory task were significant predictors of working memory performance in addition to age (and an interaction between age and global efficiency). Decreases in local efficiency during the working memory task were associated with better working memory performance in both age cohorts. In contrast, increases in global efficiency were associated with much better working performance for young participants; however, increases in global efficiency were associated with a slight decrease in working memory performance for older participants. Individual differences in local and global efficiency during resting-state sessions were not significant predictors of working memory performance. Significant group whole-brain functional network decreases in local efficiency also were observed during the working memory task compared to rest, whereas no significant differences were observed in network global efficiency. These results are discussed in relation to recently developed models of age-related differences in working memory. PMID:25875001

Changes in brain network efficiency and working memory performance in aging.

PubMed

Stanley, Matthew L; Simpson, Sean L; Dagenbach, Dale; Lyday, Robert G; Burdette, Jonathan H; Laurienti, Paul J

2015-01-01

Working memory is a complex psychological construct referring to the temporary storage and active processing of information. We used functional connectivity brain network metrics quantifying local and global efficiency of information transfer for predicting individual variability in working memory performance on an n-back task in both young (n = 14) and older (n = 15) adults. Individual differences in both local and global efficiency during the working memory task were significant predictors of working memory performance in addition to age (and an interaction between age and global efficiency). Decreases in local efficiency during the working memory task were associated with better working memory performance in both age cohorts. In contrast, increases in global efficiency were associated with much better working performance for young participants; however, increases in global efficiency were associated with a slight decrease in working memory performance for older participants. Individual differences in local and global efficiency during resting-state sessions were not significant predictors of working memory performance. Significant group whole-brain functional network decreases in local efficiency also were observed during the working memory task compared to rest, whereas no significant differences were observed in network global efficiency. These results are discussed in relation to recently developed models of age-related differences in working memory.

Working Memory Systems in the Rat.

PubMed

Bratch, Alexander; Kann, Spencer; Cain, Joshua A; Wu, Jie-En; Rivera-Reyes, Nilda; Dalecki, Stefan; Arman, Diana; Dunn, Austin; Cooper, Shiloh; Corbin, Hannah E; Doyle, Amanda R; Pizzo, Matthew J; Smith, Alexandra E; Crystal, Jonathon D

2016-02-08

A fundamental feature of memory in humans is the ability to simultaneously work with multiple types of information using independent memory systems. Working memory is conceptualized as two independent memory systems under executive control [1, 2]. Although there is a long history of using the term "working memory" to describe short-term memory in animals, it is not known whether multiple, independent memory systems exist in nonhumans. Here, we used two established short-term memory approaches to test the hypothesis that spatial and olfactory memory operate as independent working memory resources in the rat. In the olfactory memory task, rats chose a novel odor from a gradually incrementing set of old odors [3]. In the spatial memory task, rats searched for a depleting food source at multiple locations [4]. We presented rats with information to hold in memory in one domain (e.g., olfactory) while adding a memory load in the other domain (e.g., spatial). Control conditions equated the retention interval delay without adding a second memory load. In a further experiment, we used proactive interference [5-7] in the spatial domain to compromise spatial memory and evaluated the impact of adding an olfactory memory load. Olfactory and spatial memory are resistant to interference from the addition of a memory load in the other domain. Our data suggest that olfactory and spatial memory draw on independent working memory systems in the rat. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effects of working memory contents and perceptual load on distractor processing: When a response-related distractor is held in working memory.

PubMed

Koshino, Hideya

2017-01-01

Working memory and attention are closely related. Recent research has shown that working memory can be viewed as internally directed attention. Working memory can affect attention in at least two ways. One is the effect of working memory load on attention, and the other is the effect of working memory contents on attention. In the present study, an interaction between working memory contents and perceptual load in distractor processing was investigated. Participants performed a perceptual load task in a standard form in one condition (Single task). In the other condition, a response-related distractor was maintained in working memory, rather than presented in the same stimulus display as a target (Dual task). For the Dual task condition, a significant compatibility effect was found under high perceptual load; however, there was no compatibility effect under low perceptual load. These results suggest that the way the contents of working memory affect visual search depends on perceptual load. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Manipulations of attention dissociate fragile visual short-term memory from visual working memory.

PubMed

Vandenbroucke, Annelinde R E; Sligte, Ilja G; Lamme, Victor A F

2011-05-01

People often rely on information that is no longer in view, but maintained in visual short-term memory (VSTM). Traditionally, VSTM is thought to operate on either a short time-scale with high capacity - iconic memory - or a long time scale with small capacity - visual working memory. Recent research suggests that in addition, an intermediate stage of memory in between iconic memory and visual working memory exists. This intermediate stage has a large capacity and a lifetime of several seconds, but is easily overwritten by new stimulation. We therefore termed it fragile VSTM. In previous studies, fragile VSTM has been dissociated from iconic memory by the characteristics of the memory trace. In the present study, we dissociated fragile VSTM from visual working memory by showing a differentiation in their dependency on attention. A decrease in attention during presentation of the stimulus array greatly reduced the capacity of visual working memory, while this had only a small effect on the capacity of fragile VSTM. We conclude that fragile VSTM is a separate memory store from visual working memory. Thus, a tripartite division of VSTM appears to be in place, comprising iconic memory, fragile VSTM and visual working memory. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Autobiographical memory, interpersonal problem solving, and suicidal behavior in adolescent inpatients.

PubMed

Arie, Miri; Apter, Alan; Orbach, Israel; Yefet, Yael; Zalsman, Gil; Zalzman, Gil

2008-01-01

The aim of the study was to test Williams' (Williams JMG. Depression and the specificity of autobiographical memory. In: Rubin D, ed. Remembering Our Past: Studies in Autobiographical Memory. London: Cambridge University Press; 1996:244-267.) theory of suicidal behavior in adolescents and young adults by examining the relationship among suicidal behaviors, defective ability to retrieve specific autobiographical memories, impaired interpersonal problem solving, negative life events, repression, and hopelessness. Twenty-five suicidal adolescent and young adult inpatients (16.5 y +/- 2.5) were compared with 25 nonsuicidal adolescent and young adult inpatients (16.5 y +/- 2.5) and 25 healthy controls. Autobiographical memory was tested by a word association test; problem solving by the means-ends problem solving technique; negative life events by the Coddington scale; repression by the Life Style Index; hopelessness by the Beck scale; suicidal risk by the Plutchik scale, and suicide attempt by clinical history. Impairment in the ability to produce specific autobiographical memories, difficulties with interpersonal problem solving, negative life events, and repression were all associated with hopelessness and suicidal behavior. There were significant correlations among all the variables except for repression and negative life events. These findings support Williams' notion that generalized autobiographical memory is associated with deficits in interpersonal problem solving, negative life events, hopelessness, and suicidal behavior. The finding that defects in autobiographical memory are associated with suicidal behavior in adolescents and young adults may lead to improvements in the techniques of cognitive behavioral therapy in this age group.

Working memory consolidation: insights from studies on attention and working memory.

PubMed

Ricker, Timothy J; Nieuwenstein, Mark R; Bayliss, Donna M; Barrouillet, Pierre

2018-04-10

Working memory, the system that maintains a limited set of representations for immediate use in cognition, is a central part of human cognition. Three processes have recently been proposed to govern information storage in working memory: consolidation, refreshing, and removal. Here, we discuss in detail the theoretical construct of working memory consolidation, a process critical to the creation of a stable working memory representation. We present a brief overview of the research that indicated the need for a construct such as working memory consolidation and the subsequent research that has helped to define the parameters of the construct. We then move on to explicitly state the points of agreement as to what processes are involved in working memory consolidation. © 2018 New York Academy of Sciences.

Visuospatial Working Memory Capacity Predicts Physiological Arousal in a Narrative Task.

PubMed

Smithson, Lisa; Nicoladis, Elena

2016-06-01

Physiological arousal that occurs during narrative production is thought to reflect emotional processing and cognitive effort (Bar-Haim et al. in Dev Psychobiol 44:238-249, 2004). The purpose of this study was to determine whether individual differences in visuospatial working memory and/or verbal working memory capacity predict physiological arousal in a narrative task. Visuospatial working memory was a significant predictor of skin conductance level (SCL); verbal working memory was not. When visuospatial working memory interference was imposed, visuospatial working memory was no longer a significant predictor of SCL. Visuospatial interference also resulted in a significant reduction in SCL. Furthermore, listener ratings of narrative quality were contingent upon the visuospatial working memory resources of the narrator. Potential implications for educators and clinical practitioners are discussed.

Cognitive and sexual functions in patients with traumatic brain injury

PubMed Central

War, Firdous A.; Jamuna, R.; Arivazhagan, A.

2014-01-01

Background: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) has an immense psychosocial impact on an individual as well as on the close relatives. Sexuality is one among the functions which are usually found compromised post injury. The aim of present study was to examine cognitive and sexual functions post TBI. The objective of the study was to explore these domains and their relationship with each other. Tools: The tools used were sociodemographics record sheet, Edinburg handedness inventory, brief sexual function inventory, depression anxiety stress scales-21 and NIMHANS head injury battery. The sample consisted of 30 patients with mild-to-moderate TBI. All the subjects were tested individually in their regional language. Results: On cognitive domain, patients performed inadequately on all the tests; however, the percentage was higher in mental speed (43.3%), sustained attention (26.7%), verbal working memory (30%), response inhibition (36.7%), verbal memory (immediate and delayed) (43%) and visual (immediate, 23.3% and delayed, 26.7%). On the domain of sexual functions, all the four domains (sexual drive, erection, ejaculation and problem assessment) were affected however overall satisfaction (93.3%) was adequate. Among the four domains higher percentage of involvement was noted on problem assessment (70%), ejaculation (56.7%), and erection (46.7%). Significant correlation was found between mental speed, verbal working memory, planning, and visual memory with sexual drive, erection, ejaculation and overall satisfaction domains of sexual functioning. Negative correlation was found between motor speed and sustained attention with sexual drive, erection and ejaculation. Conclusion: Both cognitive and sexual functioning were found effected post TBI. However less emphasis is given to sexual functioning by the professionals. Educational intervention is needed to sensitize professional about this area and to include this area for better management. PMID:24891887

Executive Function, Visual Attention and the Cocktail Party Problem in Musicians and Non-Musicians

PubMed Central

Clayton, Kameron K.; Swaminathan, Jayaganesh; Yazdanbakhsh, Arash; Zuk, Jennifer; Patel, Aniruddh D.; Kidd, Gerald

2016-01-01

The goal of this study was to investigate how cognitive factors influence performance in a multi-talker, “cocktail-party” like environment in musicians and non-musicians. This was achieved by relating performance in a spatial hearing task to cognitive processing abilities assessed using measures of executive function (EF) and visual attention in musicians and non-musicians. For the spatial hearing task, a speech target was presented simultaneously with two intelligible speech maskers that were either colocated with the target (0° azimuth) or were symmetrically separated from the target in azimuth (at ±15°). EF assessment included measures of cognitive flexibility, inhibition control and auditory working memory. Selective attention was assessed in the visual domain using a multiple object tracking task (MOT). For the MOT task, the observers were required to track target dots (n = 1,2,3,4,5) in the presence of interfering distractor dots. Musicians performed significantly better than non-musicians in the spatial hearing task. For the EF measures, musicians showed better performance on measures of auditory working memory compared to non-musicians. Furthermore, across all individuals, a significant correlation was observed between performance on the spatial hearing task and measures of auditory working memory. This result suggests that individual differences in performance in a cocktail party-like environment may depend in part on cognitive factors such as auditory working memory. Performance in the MOT task did not differ between groups. However, across all individuals, a significant correlation was found between performance in the MOT and spatial hearing tasks. A stepwise multiple regression analysis revealed that musicianship and performance on the MOT task significantly predicted performance on the spatial hearing task. Overall, these findings confirm the relationship between musicianship and cognitive factors including domain-general selective attention and working memory in solving the “cocktail party problem”. PMID:27384330

The Body Fat-Cognition Relationship in Healthy Older Individuals: Does Gynoid vs Android Distribution Matter?

PubMed

Forte, R; Pesce, C; De Vito, G; Boreham, C A G

2017-01-01

To examine the relationship between regional and whole body fat accumulation and core cognitive executive functions. Cross-sectional study. 78 healthy men and women aged between 65 and 75 years recruited through consumer's database. DXA measured percentage total body fat, android, gynoid distribution and android/gynoid ratio; inhibition and working memory updating through Random Number Generation test and cognitive flexibility by Trail Making test. First-order partial correlations between regional body fat and cognitive executive function were computed partialling out the effects of whole body fat. Moderation analysis was performed to verify the effect of gender on the body fat-cognition relationship. Results showed a differentiated pattern of fat-cognition relationship depending on fat localization and type of cognitive function. Statistically significant relationships were observed between working memory updating and: android fat (r = -0.232; p = 0.042), gynoid fat (r = 0.333; p = 0.003) and android/gynoid ratio (r = -0.272; p = 0.017). Separating genders, the only significant relationship was observed in females between working memory updating and gynoid fat (r = 0.280; p = 0.045). In spite of gender differences in both working memory updating and gynoid body fat levels, moderation analysis did not show an effect of gender on the relationship between gynoid fat and working memory updating. Results suggest a protective effect of gynoid body fat and a deleterious effect of android body fat. Although excessive body fat increases the risk of developing CDV, metabolic and cognitive problems, maintaining a certain proportion of gynoid fat may help prevent cognitive decline, particularly in older women. Guidelines for optimal body composition maintenance for the elderly should not target indiscriminate weight loss, but weight maintenance through body fat/lean mass control based on non-pharmacological tools such as physical exercise, known to have protective effects against CVD risk factors and age-related cognitive deterioration.

The contribution of visual processing to academic achievement in adolescents born extremely preterm or extremely low birth weight.

PubMed

Molloy, Carly S; Di Battista, Ashley M; Anderson, Vicki A; Burnett, Alice; Lee, Katherine J; Roberts, Gehan; Cheong, Jeanie Ly; Anderson, Peter J; Doyle, Lex W

2017-04-01

Children born extremely preterm (EP, <28 weeks) and/or extremely low birth weight (ELBW, <1000 g) have more academic deficiencies than their term-born peers, which may be due to problems with visual processing. The aim of this study is to determine (1) if visual processing is related to poor academic outcomes in EP/ELBW adolescents, and (2) how much of the variance in academic achievement in EP/ELBW adolescents is explained by visual processing ability after controlling for perinatal risk factors and other known contributors to academic performance, particularly attention and working memory. A geographically determined cohort of 228 surviving EP/ELBW adolescents (mean age 17 years) was studied. The relationships between measures of visual processing (visual acuity, binocular stereopsis, eye convergence, and visual perception) and academic achievement were explored within the EP/ELBW group. Analyses were repeated controlling for perinatal and social risk, and measures of attention and working memory. It was found that visual acuity, convergence and visual perception are related to scores for academic achievement on univariable regression analyses. After controlling for potential confounds (perinatal and social risk, working memory and attention), visual acuity, convergence and visual perception remained associated with reading and math computation, but only convergence and visual perception are related to spelling. The additional variance explained by visual processing is up to 6.6% for reading, 2.7% for spelling, and 2.2% for math computation. None of the visual processing variables or visual motor integration are associated with handwriting on multivariable analysis. Working memory is generally a stronger predictor of reading, spelling, and math computation than visual processing. It was concluded that visual processing difficulties are significantly related to academic outcomes in EP/ELBW adolescents; therefore, specific attention should be paid to academic remediation strategies incorporating the management of working memory and visual processing in EP/ELBW children.

Effective visual working memory capacity: an emergent effect from the neural dynamics in an attractor network.

PubMed

Dempere-Marco, Laura; Melcher, David P; Deco, Gustavo

2012-01-01

The study of working memory capacity is of outmost importance in cognitive psychology as working memory is at the basis of general cognitive function. Although the working memory capacity limit has been thoroughly studied, its origin still remains a matter of strong debate. Only recently has the role of visual saliency in modulating working memory storage capacity been assessed experimentally and proved to provide valuable insights into working memory function. In the computational arena, attractor networks have successfully accounted for psychophysical and neurophysiological data in numerous working memory tasks given their ability to produce a sustained elevated firing rate during a delay period. Here we investigate the mechanisms underlying working memory capacity by means of a biophysically-realistic attractor network with spiking neurons while accounting for two recent experimental observations: 1) the presence of a visually salient item reduces the number of items that can be held in working memory, and 2) visually salient items are commonly kept in memory at the cost of not keeping as many non-salient items. Our model suggests that working memory capacity is determined by two fundamental processes: encoding of visual items into working memory and maintenance of the encoded items upon their removal from the visual display. While maintenance critically depends on the constraints that lateral inhibition imposes to the mnemonic activity, encoding is limited by the ability of the stimulated neural assemblies to reach a sufficiently high level of excitation, a process governed by the dynamics of competition and cooperation among neuronal pools. Encoding is therefore contingent upon the visual working memory task and has led us to introduce the concept of effective working memory capacity (eWMC) in contrast to the maximal upper capacity limit only reached under ideal conditions.

Effective Visual Working Memory Capacity: An Emergent Effect from the Neural Dynamics in an Attractor Network

PubMed Central

Dempere-Marco, Laura; Melcher, David P.; Deco, Gustavo

2012-01-01

The study of working memory capacity is of outmost importance in cognitive psychology as working memory is at the basis of general cognitive function. Although the working memory capacity limit has been thoroughly studied, its origin still remains a matter of strong debate. Only recently has the role of visual saliency in modulating working memory storage capacity been assessed experimentally and proved to provide valuable insights into working memory function. In the computational arena, attractor networks have successfully accounted for psychophysical and neurophysiological data in numerous working memory tasks given their ability to produce a sustained elevated firing rate during a delay period. Here we investigate the mechanisms underlying working memory capacity by means of a biophysically-realistic attractor network with spiking neurons while accounting for two recent experimental observations: 1) the presence of a visually salient item reduces the number of items that can be held in working memory, and 2) visually salient items are commonly kept in memory at the cost of not keeping as many non-salient items. Our model suggests that working memory capacity is determined by two fundamental processes: encoding of visual items into working memory and maintenance of the encoded items upon their removal from the visual display. While maintenance critically depends on the constraints that lateral inhibition imposes to the mnemonic activity, encoding is limited by the ability of the stimulated neural assemblies to reach a sufficiently high level of excitation, a process governed by the dynamics of competition and cooperation among neuronal pools. Encoding is therefore contingent upon the visual working memory task and has led us to introduce the concept of effective working memory capacity (eWMC) in contrast to the maximal upper capacity limit only reached under ideal conditions. PMID:22952608

Working memory, short-term memory and reading proficiency in school-age children with cochlear implants.

PubMed

Bharadwaj, Sneha V; Maricle, Denise; Green, Laura; Allman, Tamby

2015-10-01

The objective of the study was to examine short-term memory and working memory through both visual and auditory tasks in school-age children with cochlear implants. The relationship between the performance on these cognitive skills and reading as well as language outcomes were examined in these children. Ten children between the ages of 7 and 11 years with early-onset bilateral severe-profound hearing loss participated in the study. Auditory and visual short-term memory, auditory and visual working memory subtests and verbal knowledge measures were assessed using the Woodcock Johnson III Tests of Cognitive Abilities, the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-IV Integrated and the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children II. Reading outcomes were assessed using the Woodcock Reading Mastery Test III. Performance on visual short-term memory and visual working memory measures in children with cochlear implants was within the average range when compared to the normative mean. However, auditory short-term memory and auditory working memory measures were below average when compared to the normative mean. Performance was also below average on all verbal knowledge measures. Regarding reading outcomes, children with cochlear implants scored below average for listening and passage comprehension tasks and these measures were positively correlated to visual short-term memory, visual working memory and auditory short-term memory. Performance on auditory working memory subtests was not related to reading or language outcomes. The children with cochlear implants in this study demonstrated better performance in visual (spatial) working memory and short-term memory skills than in auditory working memory and auditory short-term memory skills. Significant positive relationships were found between visual working memory and reading outcomes. The results of the study provide support for the idea that WM capacity is modality specific in children with hearing loss. Based on these findings, reading instruction that capitalizes on the strengths in visual short-term memory and working memory is suggested for young children with early-onset hearing loss. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Examining procedural working memory processing in obsessive-compulsive disorder.

PubMed

Shahar, Nitzan; Teodorescu, Andrei R; Anholt, Gideon E; Karmon-Presser, Anat; Meiran, Nachshon

2017-07-01

Previous research has suggested that a deficit in working memory might underlie the difficulty of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) patients to control their thoughts and actions. However, a recent meta-analyses found only small effect sizes for working memory deficits in OCD. Recently, a distinction has been made between declarative and procedural working memory. Working memory in OCD was tested mostly using declarative measurements. However, OCD symptoms typically concerns actions, making procedural working-memory more relevant. Here, we tested the operation of procedural working memory in OCD. Participants with OCD and healthy controls performed a battery of choice reaction tasks under high and low procedural working memory demands. Reaction-times (RT) were estimated using ex-Gaussian distribution fitting, revealing no group differences in the size of the RT distribution tail (i.e., τ parameter), known to be sensitive to procedural working memory manipulations. Group differences, unrelated to working memory manipulations, were found in the leading-edge of the RT distribution and analyzed using a two-stage evidence accumulation model. Modeling results suggested that perceptual difficulties might underlie the current group differences. In conclusion, our results suggest that procedural working-memory processing is most likely intact in OCD, and raise a novel, yet untested assumption regarding perceptual deficits in OCD. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Components of working memory and visual selective attention.

PubMed

Burnham, Bryan R; Sabia, Matthew; Langan, Catherine

2014-02-01

Load theory (Lavie, N., Hirst, A., De Fockert, J. W., & Viding, E. [2004]. Load theory of selective attention and cognitive control. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 133, 339-354.) proposes that control of attention depends on the amount and type of load that is imposed by current processing. Specifically, perceptual load should lead to efficient distractor rejection, whereas working memory load (dual-task coordination) should hinder distractor rejection. Studies support load theory's prediction that working memory load will lead to larger distractor effects; however, these studies used secondary tasks that required only verbal working memory and the central executive. The present study examined which other working memory components (visual, spatial, and phonological) influence visual selective attention. Subjects completed an attentional capture task alone (single-task) or while engaged in a working memory task (dual-task). Results showed that along with the central executive, visual and spatial working memory influenced selective attention, but phonological working memory did not. Specifically, attentional capture was larger when visual or spatial working memory was loaded, but phonological working memory load did not affect attentional capture. The results are consistent with load theory and suggest specific components of working memory influence visual selective attention. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved.

Disk-based k-mer counting on a PC

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background The k-mer counting problem, which is to build the histogram of occurrences of every k-symbol long substring in a given text, is important for many bioinformatics applications. They include developing de Bruijn graph genome assemblers, fast multiple sequence alignment and repeat detection. Results We propose a simple, yet efficient, parallel disk-based algorithm for counting k-mers. Experiments show that it usually offers the fastest solution to the considered problem, while demanding a relatively small amount of memory. In particular, it is capable of counting the statistics for short-read human genome data, in input gzipped FASTQ file, in less than 40 minutes on a PC with 16 GB of RAM and 6 CPU cores, and for long-read human genome data in less than 70 minutes. On a more powerful machine, using 32 GB of RAM and 32 CPU cores, the tasks are accomplished in less than half the time. No other algorithm for most tested settings of this problem and mammalian-size data can accomplish this task in comparable time. Our solution also belongs to memory-frugal ones; most competitive algorithms cannot efficiently work on a PC with 16 GB of memory for such massive data. Conclusions By making use of cheap disk space and exploiting CPU and I/O parallelism we propose a very competitive k-mer counting procedure, called KMC. Our results suggest that judicious resource management may allow to solve at least some bioinformatics problems with massive data on a commodity personal computer. PMID:23679007

Perceptions of self-defined memory problems vary in south Asian minority older people who consult a GP and those who do not: a mixed-method pilot study.

PubMed

Giebel, Clarissa; Challis, David; Worden, Angela; Jolley, David; Bhui, Kamaldeep Singh; Lambat, Ahmed; Purandare, Nitin

2016-04-01

South Asian older adults access services for mental health problems and dementia less than other older people in the UK, unlike for physical health problems. This pilot study investigated how South Asians with self-defined memory problems, with and without GP consultation, construe the symptoms, causes, consequences and treatment of the condition. Participants were recruited through community centres, their networks and memory clinics in Greater Manchester. The newly developed Barts Explanatory Model Inventory for Dementia (BEMI-D) was administered to 33 (18 M, 15 F) older South Asians aged 65 or above with memory problems in English, Gujarati or Urdu. Furthermore, cognition, executive function and depression were assessed. Perceptions of dementia varied by GP consultation for memory problems. A greater proportion of older adults without a consultation considered memory problems to be given by God, saw acceptance of fate as an alternative treatment and did not identify medical support as appropriate. Forgetfulness and loss of social meaning were identified as symptoms of dementia more by those with a consultation. Higher levels of diabetes, heart disease and depression were found in those without a consultation. Differences in perceptions may influence the decision about consulting a GP. Similarly, consultation for memory problems appears linked to extent physical health problems and mental health consultation (depression). These variations reported on a small scale in this pilot study suggest the need to explore the impact of perceptions on rates of GP consultation, so as to improve timely diagnosis and access to appropriate services. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Ill-defined problem solving in amnestic mild cognitive impairment: linking episodic memory to effective solution generation.

PubMed

Sheldon, S; Vandermorris, S; Al-Haj, M; Cohen, S; Winocur, G; Moscovitch, M

2015-02-01

It is well accepted that the medial temporal lobes (MTL), and the hippocampus specifically, support episodic memory processes. Emerging evidence suggests that these processes also support the ability to effectively solve ill-defined problems which are those that do not have a set routine or solution. To test the relation between episodic memory and problem solving, we examined the ability of individuals with single domain amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), a condition characterized by episodic memory impairment, to solve ill-defined social problems. Participants with aMCI and age and education matched controls were given a battery of tests that included standardized neuropsychological measures, the Autobiographical Interview (Levine et al., 2002) that scored for episodic content in descriptions of past personal events, and a measure of ill-defined social problem solving. Corroborating previous findings, the aMCI group generated less episodically rich narratives when describing past events. Individuals with aMCI also generated less effective solutions when solving ill-defined problems compared to the control participants. Correlation analyses demonstrated that the ability to recall episodic elements from autobiographical memories was positively related to the ability to effectively solve ill-defined problems. The ability to solve these ill-defined problems was related to measures of activities of daily living. In conjunction with previous reports, the results of the present study point to a new functional role of episodic memory in ill-defined goal-directed behavior and other non-memory tasks that require flexible thinking. Our findings also have implications for the cognitive and behavioural profile of aMCI by suggesting that the ability to effectively solve ill-defined problems is related to sustained functional independence. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Working Memory and Reasoning: The Processing Loads Imposed by Analogies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Halford, Graeme S.

The proposals concerning working memory outlined in this paper involve the architecture of working memory, the reasoning mechanisms that draw on it, and the ways in which working memory may develop with age. Ways of assessing task demands and children's working memory capacities are also considered. It is noted that there is long-standing evidence…

The Ability of Conceptual Monitoring and the Quality of Working Memory at Children With Calculation Difficulties

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arsic, Sladjana; Eminovic, Fadilj; Stankovic, Ivona

2011-01-01

Calculia is considered to be the ability of performing arithmetic operations, the preconditions for the development of mathematical skills in the complex functioning of psychological functions represented in neuro-anatomical systems, as well in the interaction with the environment. Problems in acquiring arithmetic skills can be described as…

An Interdisciplinary Evaluation of Transactive Memory in Distributed Cyber Teams

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mancuso, Vincent Francis

2012-01-01

In the modern workplace, collaboration is no longer only a face-to-face process. When working together, it is common for teams to rely on technology and operate across geographic, temporal and cultural boundaries. Most research, when looking at distributed teams, takes a uni-disciplinary perspective and fails to address the entire problem space.…

Project Golden Gate: towards real-time Java in space missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dvorak, Daniel; Bollella, Greg; Canham, Tim; Carson, Vanessa; Champlin, Virgil; Giovannoni, Brian; Indictor, Mark; Meyer, Kenny; Murray, Alex; Reinholtz, Kirk

2004-01-01

This paper describes the problem domain and our experimentation with the first commercial implementation of the Real Time Specification for Java. The two main issues explored in this report are: (1) the effect of RTSJ's non-heap memory on the programming model, and (2) performance benchmarking of RTSJ/Linux relative to C++/VxWorks.

The Effect of Combat Traumatic Brain Injury on Executive Function

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-03-01

attention deficit / hyperactivity disorder ( ADHD ) as these are similar to problems of executive functioning...affect working memory. Also the neurotransmitters active in attention deficit / hyperactivity disorder ( ADHD ), which displays symptoms similar to those of... disorders such as autism and attention - deficit / hyperactivity disorder (Zelazo, P.D., 2005). As children grow they learn to chose and select,

Alzheimer's Disease under Scrutiny: Short Newspaper Articles as a Case Study Tool.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hudecki, Michael S.

2001-01-01

After reading a newspaper article on Alzheimer disease, an incurable medical problem involving gradual and debilitating loss of memory, students examine the key elements of the scientific method as conveyed in the story. During their analysis students explore the workings of the nervous system and consider the role of animal model systems in…

Understanding Writing Problems in Young Children: Contributions of Cognitive Skills to the Development of Written Expression

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Childress, Amy

2011-01-01

While several models of adult writing have been proposed and studied, the development of writing skills in young children has only recently garnered attention. Using measures of fine-motor, language, working memory, and attention/executive functions, the current study explored motor and cognitive skills that may contribute to writing skill in…

Initial Feasibility and Validity of a Prospective Memory Training Program in a Substance Use Treatment Population

PubMed Central

Sweeney, Mary M.; Rass, Olga; Johnson, Patrick S.; Strain, Eric C.; Berry, Meredith S.; Vo, Hoa T.; Fishman, Marc J.; Munro, Cynthia A.; Rebok, George W.; Mintzer, Miriam Z.; Johnson, Matthew W.

2016-01-01

Individuals with substance use disorders have shown deficits in the ability to implement future intentions, called prospective memory. Deficits in prospective memory and working memory, a critical underlying component of prospective memory, likely contribute to substance use treatment failures. Thus, improvement of prospective memory and working memory in substance use patients is an innovative target for intervention. We sought to develop a feasible and valid prospective memory training program that incorporates working memory training and may serve as a useful adjunct to substance use disorder treatment. We administered a single session of the novel prospective memory and working memory training program to participants (n = 22; 13 male; 9 female) enrolled in outpatient substance use disorder treatment and correlated performance to existing measures of prospective memory and working memory. Generally accurate prospective memory performance in a single session suggests feasibility in a substance use treatment population. However, training difficulty should be increased to avoid ceiling effects across repeated sessions. Consistent with existing literature, we observed superior performance on event-based relative to time-based prospective memory tasks. Performance on the prospective memory and working memory training components correlated with validated assessments of prospective memory and working memory, respectively. Correlations between novel memory training program performance and established measures suggest that our training engages appropriate cognitive processes. Further, differential event- and time-based prospective memory task performance suggests internal validity of our training. These data support development of this intervention as an adjunctive therapy for substance use disorders. PMID:27690506

Initial feasibility and validity of a prospective memory training program in a substance use treatment population.

PubMed

Sweeney, Mary M; Rass, Olga; Johnson, Patrick S; Strain, Eric C; Berry, Meredith S; Vo, Hoa T; Fishman, Marc J; Munro, Cynthia A; Rebok, George W; Mintzer, Miriam Z; Johnson, Matthew W

2016-10-01

Individuals with substance use disorders have shown deficits in the ability to implement future intentions, called prospective memory. Deficits in prospective memory and working memory, a critical underlying component of prospective memory, likely contribute to substance use treatment failures. Thus, improvement of prospective memory and working memory in substance use patients is an innovative target for intervention. We sought to develop a feasible and valid prospective memory training program that incorporates working memory training and may serve as a useful adjunct to substance use disorder treatment. We administered a single session of the novel prospective memory and working memory training program to participants (n = 22; 13 men, 9 women) enrolled in outpatient substance use disorder treatment and correlated performance to existing measures of prospective memory and working memory. Generally accurate prospective memory performance in a single session suggests feasibility in a substance use treatment population. However, training difficulty should be increased to avoid ceiling effects across repeated sessions. Consistent with existing literature, we observed superior performance on event-based relative to time-based prospective memory tasks. Performance on the prospective memory and working memory training components correlated with validated assessments of prospective memory and working memory, respectively. Correlations between novel memory training program performance and established measures suggest that our training engages appropriate cognitive processes. Further, differential event- and time-based prospective memory task performance suggests internal validity of our training. These data support the development of this intervention as an adjunctive therapy for substance use disorders. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

A Simple and Practical Index to Measure Dementia-Related Quality of Life.

PubMed

Arons, Alexander M M; Schölzel-Dorenbos, Carla J M; Olde Rikkert, Marcel G M; Krabbe, Paul F M

2016-01-01

Research on new treatments for dementia is gaining pace worldwide in an effort to alleviate this growing health care problem. The optimal evaluation of such interventions, however, calls for a practical and credible patient-reported outcome measure. To describe the refinement of the Dementia Quality-of-life Instrument (DQI) and present its revised version. A prototype of the DQI was adapted to cover a broader range of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and to improve consistency in the descriptions of its domains. A valuation study was then conducted to assign meaningful numbers to all DQI health states. Pairs of DQI states were presented to a sample of professionals working with people with dementia and a representative sample of the Dutch population. They had to repeatedly select the best DQI state, and their responses were statistically modeled to obtain values for each health state. In total, 207 professionals working with people with dementia and 631 members of the general population completed the paired comparison tasks. Statistically significant differences between the two samples were found for the domains of social functioning, mood, and memory. Severe problems with physical health and severe memory problems were deemed most important by the general population. In contrast, severe mood problems were considered most important by professionals working with people with dementia. The DQI is a simple and feasible measurement instrument that expresses the overall HRQOL of people suffering from dementia in a single meaningful number. Current results suggest that revisiting the discussion of using values from the general population might be warranted in the dementia context. Copyright © 2016 International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effect of virtual memory on efficient solution of two model problems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lambiotte, J. J., Jr.

1977-01-01

Computers with virtual memory architecture allow programs to be written as if they were small enough to be contained in memory. Two types of problems are investigated to show that this luxury can lead to quite an inefficient performance if the programmer does not interact strongly with the characteristics of the operating system when developing the program. The two problems considered are the simultaneous solutions of a large linear system of equations by Gaussian elimination and a model three-dimensional finite-difference problem. The Control Data STAR-100 computer runs are made to demonstrate the inefficiencies of programming the problems in the manner one would naturally do if the problems were indeed, small enough to be contained in memory. Program redesigns are presented which achieve large improvements in performance through changes in the computational procedure and the data base arrangement.

Memory accuracy predicts hippocampal mTOR pathway activation following retrieval of contextual fear memory.

PubMed

Gafford, Georgette M; Parsons, Ryan G; Helmstetter, Fred J

2013-09-01

Prior work suggests that hippocampus-dependent memory undergoes a systems consolidation process such that recent memories are stored in the hippocampus, while older memories are independent of the hippocampus and instead dependent on cortical areas. One problem with interpreting these studies is that memory for the contextual stimuli weakens as time passes between the training event and testing and older memories are often less detailed, making it difficult to determine if memory storage in the hippocampus is related to the age or to the accuracy of the memory. Activity of the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway is known to be important for controlling protein translation necessary for both memory consolidation after initial learning and for the reconsolidation of memory after retrieval. We tested whether p70s6 kinase (p70s6K), a key component of the mTOR signaling pathway, is activated following retrieval of context fear memory in the dorsal hippocampus (DH) and anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) at 1, 10, or 36 days after context fear conditioning. We also tested whether strengthening memory for the contextual stimuli changed p70s6K phosphorylation in these structures 36 days after training. We show that under standard training conditions retrieval of a recently formed memory is initially precise and involves the DH. Over time it loses detail, becomes independent of the DH and depends on the ACC. In a subsequent experiment, we preserved the accuracy of older memories through pre-exposure to the training context. We show that remote memory still involved the DH in animals given pre-exposure. These data support the notion that detailed memories depend on the DH regardless of their age. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Mental Imagery and Visual Working Memory

PubMed Central

Keogh, Rebecca; Pearson, Joel

2011-01-01

Visual working memory provides an essential link between past and future events. Despite recent efforts, capacity limits, their genesis and the underlying neural structures of visual working memory remain unclear. Here we show that performance in visual working memory - but not iconic visual memory - can be predicted by the strength of mental imagery as assessed with binocular rivalry in a given individual. In addition, for individuals with strong imagery, modulating the background luminance diminished performance on visual working memory and imagery tasks, but not working memory for number strings. This suggests that luminance signals were disrupting sensory-based imagery mechanisms and not a general working memory system. Individuals with poor imagery still performed above chance in the visual working memory task, but their performance was not affected by the background luminance, suggesting a dichotomy in strategies for visual working memory: individuals with strong mental imagery rely on sensory-based imagery to support mnemonic performance, while those with poor imagery rely on different strategies. These findings could help reconcile current controversy regarding the mechanism and location of visual mnemonic storage. PMID:22195024

Mental imagery and visual working memory.

PubMed

Keogh, Rebecca; Pearson, Joel

2011-01-01

Visual working memory provides an essential link between past and future events. Despite recent efforts, capacity limits, their genesis and the underlying neural structures of visual working memory remain unclear. Here we show that performance in visual working memory--but not iconic visual memory--can be predicted by the strength of mental imagery as assessed with binocular rivalry in a given individual. In addition, for individuals with strong imagery, modulating the background luminance diminished performance on visual working memory and imagery tasks, but not working memory for number strings. This suggests that luminance signals were disrupting sensory-based imagery mechanisms and not a general working memory system. Individuals with poor imagery still performed above chance in the visual working memory task, but their performance was not affected by the background luminance, suggesting a dichotomy in strategies for visual working memory: individuals with strong mental imagery rely on sensory-based imagery to support mnemonic performance, while those with poor imagery rely on different strategies. These findings could help reconcile current controversy regarding the mechanism and location of visual mnemonic storage.

Exploring the Effects of Working Memory on Time Perception in Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

PubMed

Lee, Hom-Yi; Yang, En-Lin

2018-01-01

Children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are often reported to have deficits of time perception. However, there is a strong relation between performance on tasks of working memory and time perception. Thus, it is possible that the poor performance of children with ADHD on time perception results from their deficit of working memory. In this study, the working memory of participants was separately assessed; therefore, we could explore the relationship between working memory and time perception of children with ADHD. Fifty-six children with ADHD and those of healthy controls completed tasks measuring working memory and time perception. The results showed that the time discrimination ability of children with ADHD was poorer than that of controls. However, there was a strong association between time perception and working memory. After controlling working memory and intelligence, the time discrimination ability of children with ADHD was not significantly poorer than that of controls. We suggest that there is an interdependent relationship between time perception and working memory for children with ADHD.

Working memory, control of interference and everyday experience of thought interference: when age makes the difference.

PubMed

Borella, Erika; Carretti, Barbara; Cornoldi, Cesare; De Beni, Rossana

2007-06-01

A number of studies suggest that age differences in working memory may be attributed to age-related differences in inhibitory efficacy. Nevertheless, little is known about the impact of intrusive thoughts, which occurs in everyday situations on working memory performance. This study investigates the role of cognitive and everyday inhibition mechanisms in working memory performance. Young, young-old and old-old adults performed a working memory task and the White Bear Suppression Inventory (WBSI). Results showed a decrease in working memory, and in inhibitory efficacy with age. In addition, old-old adults obtained higher scores in the three factors of the WBSI. Working memory performance was related to working memory control of interfering information in all age groups, and also to the tendency to suppress thoughts in old-old adults. The latter result was in the opposite direction with respect to observations collected with younger adults. Taken together, our results suggest the crucial role of intrusive thoughts in the functional capacity of working memory in late adulthood.

Working memory is not fixed-capacity: More active storage capacity for real-world objects than for simple stimuli

PubMed Central

Brady, Timothy F.; Störmer, Viola S.; Alvarez, George A.

2016-01-01

Visual working memory is the cognitive system that holds visual information active to make it resistant to interference from new perceptual input. Information about simple stimuli—colors and orientations—is encoded into working memory rapidly: In under 100 ms, working memory ‟fills up,” revealing a stark capacity limit. However, for real-world objects, the same behavioral limits do not hold: With increasing encoding time, people store more real-world objects and do so with more detail. This boost in performance for real-world objects is generally assumed to reflect the use of a separate episodic long-term memory system, rather than working memory. Here we show that this behavioral increase in capacity with real-world objects is not solely due to the use of separate episodic long-term memory systems. In particular, we show that this increase is a result of active storage in working memory, as shown by directly measuring neural activity during the delay period of a working memory task using EEG. These data challenge fixed-capacity working memory models and demonstrate that working memory and its capacity limitations are dependent upon our existing knowledge. PMID:27325767

Working memory is not fixed-capacity: More active storage capacity for real-world objects than for simple stimuli.

PubMed

Brady, Timothy F; Störmer, Viola S; Alvarez, George A

2016-07-05

Visual working memory is the cognitive system that holds visual information active to make it resistant to interference from new perceptual input. Information about simple stimuli-colors and orientations-is encoded into working memory rapidly: In under 100 ms, working memory ‟fills up," revealing a stark capacity limit. However, for real-world objects, the same behavioral limits do not hold: With increasing encoding time, people store more real-world objects and do so with more detail. This boost in performance for real-world objects is generally assumed to reflect the use of a separate episodic long-term memory system, rather than working memory. Here we show that this behavioral increase in capacity with real-world objects is not solely due to the use of separate episodic long-term memory systems. In particular, we show that this increase is a result of active storage in working memory, as shown by directly measuring neural activity during the delay period of a working memory task using EEG. These data challenge fixed-capacity working memory models and demonstrate that working memory and its capacity limitations are dependent upon our existing knowledge.

Context controls access to working and reference memory in the pigeon (Columba livia).

PubMed

Roberts, William A; Macpherson, Krista; Strang, Caroline

2016-01-01

The interaction between working and reference memory systems was examined under conditions in which salient contextual cues were presented during memory retrieval. Ambient colored lights (red or green) bathed the operant chamber during the presentation of comparison stimuli in delayed matching-to-sample training (working memory) and during the presentation of the comparison stimuli as S+ and S- cues in discrimination training (reference memory). Strong competition between memory systems appeared when the same contextual cue appeared during working and reference memory training. When different contextual cues were used, however, working memory was completely protected from reference memory interference. © 2016 Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior.

An investigation of successful and unsuccessful students' problem solving in stoichiometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gulacar, Ozcan

In this study, I investigated how successful and unsuccessful students solve stoichiometry problems. I focus on three research questions: (1) To what extent do the difficulties in solving stoichiometry problems stem from poor understanding of pieces (domain-specific knowledge) versus students' inability to link those pieces together (conceptual knowledge)? (2) What are the differences between successful and unsuccessful students in knowledge, ability, and practice? (3) Is there a connection between students' (a) cognitive development levels, (b) formal (proportional) reasoning abilities, (c) working memory capacities, (d) conceptual understanding of particle nature of matter, (e) understanding of the mole concept, and their problem-solving achievement in stoichiometry? In this study, nine successful students and eight unsuccessful students participated. Both successful and unsuccessful students were selected among the students taking a general chemistry course at a mid-western university. The students taking this class were all science, non-chemistry majors. Characteristics of successful and unsuccessful students were determined through tests, audio and videotapes analyses, and subjects' written works. The Berlin Particle Concept Inventory, the Mole Concept Achievement Test, the Test of Logical Thinking, the Digits Backward Test, and the Longeot Test were used to measure students' conceptual understanding of particle nature of matter and mole concept, formal (proportional) reasoning ability, working memory capacity, and cognitive development, respectively. Think-aloud problem-solving protocols were also used to better explore the differences between successful and unsuccessful students' knowledge structures and behaviors during problem solving. Although successful students did not show significantly better performance on doing pieces (domain-specific knowledge) and solving exercises than unsuccessful counterparts did, they appeared to be more successful in linking the pieces (conceptual knowledge) and solving complex problems than the unsuccessful student did. Successful students also appeared to be different in how they approach problems, what strategies they use, and in making fewer algorithmic mistakes when compared to unsuccessful students. Successful students, however, did not seem to be statistically significantly different from the unsuccessful students in terms of quantitatively tested cognitive abilities except formal (proportional) reasoning ability and in the understanding of mole concept.

The effects of autobiographical memory and visual perspective on working memory.

PubMed

Cheng, Zenghu; She, Yugui

2018-08-01

The present research aims to explore whether recalling and writing about autobiographical memory from different perspectives (first-person perspective vs. third-person perspective) could affect cognitive function. The participants first performed a working memory task to evaluate their working memory capacity as a baseline and then were instructed to recall (Study 1) or write about (Study 2) personal events (failures vs. successes) from the first-person perspective or the third-person perspective. Finally, they performed the working memory task again. The results suggested that autobiographical memory and perspective influence working memory interactively. When recalling a success, the participants who recalled from the third-person perspective performed better than those who recalled from the first-person perspective on the working memory capacity task; when recalling a failure, the opposite was true.

Working memory dependence of spatial contextual cueing for visual search.

PubMed

Pollmann, Stefan

2018-05-10

When spatial stimulus configurations repeat in visual search, a search facilitation, resulting in shorter search times, can be observed that is due to incidental learning. This contextual cueing effect appears to be rather implicit, uncorrelated with observers' explicit memory of display configurations. Nevertheless, as I review here, this search facilitation due to contextual cueing depends on visuospatial working memory resources, and it disappears when visuospatial working memory is loaded by a concurrent delayed match to sample task. However, the search facilitation immediately recovers for displays learnt under visuospatial working memory load when this load is removed in a subsequent test phase. Thus, latent learning of visuospatial configurations does not depend on visuospatial working memory, but the expression of learning, as memory-guided search in repeated displays, does. This working memory dependence has also consequences for visual search with foveal vision loss, where top-down controlled visual exploration strategies pose high demands on visuospatial working memory, in this way interfering with memory-guided search in repeated displays. Converging evidence for the contribution of working memory to contextual cueing comes from neuroimaging data demonstrating that distinct cortical areas along the intraparietal sulcus as well as more ventral parieto-occipital cortex are jointly activated by visual working memory and contextual cueing. © 2018 The British Psychological Society.

Verbal working memory performance correlates with regional white matter structures in the frontoparietal regions.

PubMed

Takeuchi, Hikaru; Taki, Yasuyuki; Sassa, Yuko; Hashizume, Hiroshi; Sekiguchi, Atsushi; Fukushima, Ai; Kawashima, Ryuta

2011-10-01

Working memory is the limited capacity storage system involved in the maintenance and manipulation of information over short periods of time. Previous imaging studies have suggested that the frontoparietal regions are activated during working memory tasks; a putative association between the structure of the frontoparietal regions and working memory performance has been suggested based on the analysis of individuals with varying pathologies. This study aimed to identify correlations between white matter and individual differences in verbal working memory performance in normal young subjects. We performed voxel-based morphometry (VBM) analyses using T1-weighted structural images as well as voxel-based analyses of fractional anisotropy (FA) using diffusion tensor imaging. Using the letter span task, we measured verbal working memory performance in normal young adult men and women (mean age, 21.7 years, SD=1.44; 42 men and 13 women). We observed positive correlations between working memory performance and regional white matter volume (rWMV) in the frontoparietal regions. In addition, FA was found to be positively correlated with verbal working memory performance in a white matter region adjacent to the right precuneus. These regions are consistently recruited by working memory. Our findings suggest that, among normal young subjects, verbal working memory performance is associated with various regions that are recruited during working memory tasks, and this association is not limited to specific parts of the working memory network. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Subjective memory complaints, perceived stress and coping strategies in young adults].

PubMed

Molina-Rodriguez, Sergio; Pellicer-Porcar, Olga; Mirete-Fructuoso, Marcos; Martinez-Amoros, Estefanía

2016-04-16

Subjective memory complaints are becoming more and more frequent among young adults. There are currently no studies in the literature that analyse the relation among memory complaints, perceived stress and coping strategies as a whole in young adults. To determine the contribution made by perceived stress and different coping strategies on subjective memory complaints in healthy young adults. The sample consisted of 299 university students, of whom 71.6% were women, with a mean age of 22.54 ± 4.73 years. The variable 'memory complaints' was measured with the memory failures questionnaire; the variable 'perceived stress' was measured with the perceived stress scale, and the variables referring to coping strategies were measured using the coping strategies inventory. The variables that made a higher contribution to the variance of the memory complaints are, first, perceived stress and positive problem-focused coping strategies, and, second, negative coping strategies focused on the emotion and on the problem. The positive emotion-focused coping strategies do not make any contribution. Again we find evidence of the influence of stress on memory processes. The use of positive problem-focused coping strategies, such as cognitive restructuring and problem-solving, can be beneficial to lessen the presence of memory complaints. Further research on this matter is warranted.

Toward High-Performance Communications Interfaces for Science Problem Solving

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oviatt, Sharon L.; Cohen, Adrienne O.

2010-12-01

From a theoretical viewpoint, educational interfaces that facilitate communicative actions involving representations central to a domain can maximize students' effort associated with constructing new schemas. In addition, interfaces that minimize working memory demands due to the interface per se, for example by mimicking existing non-digital work practice, can preserve students' attentional focus on their learning task. In this research, we asked the question: What type of interface input capabilities provide best support for science problem solving in both low- and high- performing students? High school students' ability to solve a diverse range of biology problems was compared over longitudinal sessions while they used: (1) hardcopy paper and pencil (2) a digital paper and pen interface (3) pen tablet interface, and (4) graphical tablet interface. Post-test evaluations revealed that time to solve problems, meta-cognitive control, solution correctness, and memory all were significantly enhanced when using the digital pen and paper interface, compared with tablet interfaces. The tangible pen and paper interface also was the only alternative that significantly facilitated skill acquisition in low-performing students. Paradoxically, all students nonetheless believed that the tablet interfaces provided best support for their performance, revealing a lack of self-awareness about how to use computational tools to best advantage. Implications are discussed for how pen interfaces can be optimized for future educational purposes, and for establishing technology fluency curricula to improve students' awareness of the impact of digital tools on their performance.

Memory Retrieval and Interference: Working Memory Issues

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Radvansky, Gabriel A.; Copeland, David E.

2006-01-01

Working memory capacity has been suggested as a factor that is involved in long-term memory retrieval, particularly when that retrieval involves a need to overcome some sort of interference (Bunting, Conway, & Heitz, 2004; Cantor & Engle, 1993). Previous work has suggested that working memory is related to the acquisition of information during…

Processing speed and working memory span: their differential role in superficial and deep memory processes in schizophrenia.

PubMed

Brébion, Gildas; Bressan, Rodrigo A; Pilowsky, Lyn S; David, Anthony S

2011-05-01

Previous work has suggested that decrement in both processing speed and working memory span plays a role in the memory impairment observed in patients with schizophrenia. We undertook a study to examine simultaneously the effect of these two factors. A sample of 49 patients with schizophrenia and 43 healthy controls underwent a battery of verbal and visual memory tasks. Superficial and deep encoding memory measures were tallied. We conducted regression analyses on the various memory measures, using processing speed and working memory span as independent variables. In the patient group, processing speed was a significant predictor of superficial and deep memory measures in verbal and visual memory. Working memory span was an additional significant predictor of the deep memory measures only. Regression analyses involving all participants revealed that the effect of diagnosis on all the deep encoding memory measures was reduced to non-significance when processing speed was entered in the regression. Decreased processing speed is involved in verbal and visual memory deficit in patients, whether the task require superficial or deep encoding. Working memory is involved only insofar as the task requires a certain amount of effort.

Short-term and working memory impairments in aphasia.

PubMed

Potagas, Constantin; Kasselimis, Dimitrios; Evdokimidis, Ioannis

2011-08-01

The aim of the present study is to investigate short-term memory and working memory deficits in aphasics in relation to the severity of their language impairment. Fifty-eight aphasic patients participated in this study. Based on language assessment, an aphasia score was calculated for each patient. Memory was assessed in two modalities, verbal and spatial. Mean scores for all memory tasks were lower than normal. Aphasia score was significantly correlated with performance on all memory tasks. Correlation coefficients for short-term memory and working memory were approximately of the same magnitude. According to our findings, severity of aphasia is related with both verbal and spatial memory deficits. Moreover, while aphasia score correlated with lower scores in both short-term memory and working memory tasks, the lack of substantial difference between corresponding correlation coefficients suggests a possible primary deficit in information retention rather than impairment in working memory. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Working Memory in Children With Neurocognitive Effects From Sickle Cell Disease: Contributions of the Central Executive and Processing Speed

PubMed Central

Smith, Kelsey E.; Schatz, Jeffrey

2017-01-01

Children with sickle cell disease (SCD) are at risk for working memory deficits due to multiple disease processes. We assessed working memory abilities and related functions in 32 school-age children with SCD and 85 matched comparison children using Baddeley’s working memory model as a framework. Children with SCD performed worse than controls for working memory, central executive function, and processing/rehearsal speed. Central executive function was found to mediate the relationship between SCD status and working memory, but processing speed did not. Cognitive remediation strategies that focus on central executive processes may be important for remediating working memory deficits in SCD. PMID:27759435

Enhanced dimension-specific visual working memory in grapheme–color synesthesia☆

PubMed Central

Terhune, Devin Blair; Wudarczyk, Olga Anna; Kochuparampil, Priya; Cohen Kadosh, Roi

2013-01-01

There is emerging evidence that the encoding of visual information and the maintenance of this information in a temporarily accessible state in working memory rely on the same neural mechanisms. A consequence of this overlap is that atypical forms of perception should influence working memory. We examined this by investigating whether having grapheme–color synesthesia, a condition characterized by the involuntary experience of color photisms when reading or representing graphemes, would confer benefits on working memory. Two competing hypotheses propose that superior memory in synesthesia results from information being coded in two information channels (dual-coding) or from superior dimension-specific visual processing (enhanced processing). We discriminated between these hypotheses in three n-back experiments in which controls and synesthetes viewed inducer and non-inducer graphemes and maintained color or grapheme information in working memory. Synesthetes displayed superior color working memory than controls for both grapheme types, whereas the two groups did not differ in grapheme working memory. Further analyses excluded the possibilities of enhanced working memory among synesthetes being due to greater color discrimination, stimulus color familiarity, or bidirectionality. These results reveal enhanced dimension-specific visual working memory in this population and supply further evidence for a close relationship between sensory processing and the maintenance of sensory information in working memory. PMID:23892185

Analysis, tuning and comparison of two general sparse solvers for distributed memory computers

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

Amestoy, P.R.; Duff, I.S.; L'Excellent, J.-Y.

2000-06-30

We describe the work performed in the context of a Franco-Berkeley funded project between NERSC-LBNL located in Berkeley (USA) and CERFACS-ENSEEIHT located in Toulouse (France). We discuss both the tuning and performance analysis of two distributed memory sparse solvers (superlu from Berkeley and mumps from Toulouse) on the 512 processor Cray T3E from NERSC (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory). This project gave us the opportunity to improve the algorithms and add new features to the codes. We then quite extensively analyze and compare the two approaches on a set of large problems from real applications. We further explain the main differencesmore » in the behavior of the approaches on artificial regular grid problems. As a conclusion to this activity report, we mention a set of parallel sparse solvers on which this type of study should be extended.« less