Cognitive Science

In 1967 Acta Politica was launched by the Dutch Political Science Association (NKWP) as a journal by, and mainly for, Dutch political scientists. Although it regularly contained articles in English, it remained primarily oriented toward academics in political science in the Netherlands. It gained recognition abroad as a journal to refer to for Dutch politics. In 1997, the Dutch Political Science Association made the decision to publish the journal entirely in the English language, vastly increasing its visibility and accessibility outside the Netherlands and Belgium. This decision did not go uncontested and met considerable scepticism. Admittedly, at first this change of policy rather signified that mainly Dutch authors published their research in English. Manuscripts were more often than not reviewed by their colleagues at another Dutch university, and merely read by a Dutch audience. Since 2003, the international publishing house, Palgrave Macmillan, has published the journal. This step not only marked a continuation of the internationally oriented policy, but also has had a substantial effect on improving the overall quality of Acta Politica's appearance and circulation. Finally, in 2003 the editorship was extended with a Belgian colleague -Marc Hooghe -and the double-blind reviewing process was intensified. At the same time, an international advisory board was recruited, consisting of respected academics from various European and North American universities and all fields of political science. The editors, the publisher and the editorial board are proud to announce that the policy to internationalize the journal has actually paid off: as this 2006 volume, Acta Politica will be indexed by the Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI). As is well known, the Institute for Scientific Information is quite selective in its decision-making process with respect to the inclusion of journals. In fact, worldwide only 79 political science journals are presently included in the SSCI. We therefore feel particularly honoured to be included in this index, and we see it as a sign of appreciation, not only of the editors, but in particular for the quality of the work of our authors, and of our predecessors as editors of this journal. The inclusion of Acta Politica in the SSCI signifies therefore not only the apparent quality per se, but is also -in our view -a recognition of the policy of internationalization pursued by the Dutch Political Science Association. It

The struggle to become lucid is at the heart of The Myth of Sisyphus. To understand the absurd is to understand that the fit between our conception of the world and the world itself is fraught with uncertainty; lucidity is the elucidation of the absurd. To be lucid is to revolt against the type of certainty that leads to suffering; to revolt against philosophical suicide. Camus teaches us the intellectual humility that stays hands; there is no reasoning that justifies suffering. If it is granted that the ability to recognise and respond to our own and others suffering is an important part of being human, and the task of education is to develop humans, then lucidity, in so far as it holds promise for the development of such an ability, has the potential to contribute positively to education. The one major objective of education will no longer be to produce primarily a rational man or social animal; it will no longer be, as the Educational Policies Commission would have it, to discover the values inherent in rationality; rather, if we take our cue from Camus, education will have a new primary objective: to produce the moral individual-moral because, in the face of the absurd, he lucidly lives the philosophy of limits. (p. 127)

Hormonal contraceptives (HC) are widely used among women in reproductive ages. In this review, the effects of HCs on 91 routine chemistry tests, metabolic tests, and tests for liver function, hemostatic system, renal function, hormones, vitamins and minerals were evaluated. Test parameters were differently affected by the dosage, duration, composition of HCs and route of administration. Most studies concerned the effects of combined oral contraceptives (COC) on the metabolic, hemostatic and (sex) steroids test results. Although the majority of the effects were minor, a major increase was seen in angiotensinogen levels (90-375 %) and the concentrations of the binding proteins (SHBG [∼200 %], CBG [∼100 %], TBG [∼90 %], VDBP [∼30 %], and IGFBPs [∼40 %]). Also, there were significant changes in levels of their bound molecules (testosterone, T3, T4, cortisol, vitamin D, IGF1 and GH). Data about the effects of all kinds of HCs on all test results are limited and sometimes inconclusive due to the large variety in HC, administration routes and dosages. Still, it can be concluded that HC use in women mainly stimulates the liver production of binding proteins. All biochemical test results of women using HC should be assessed carefully and unexpected test results should be further evaluated for both methodological and pre-analytical reasons. As HCs change over time, future studies are needed to learn more about the effects of other types, routes and combinations of HCs on clinical chemistry tests.

We have identified a set of retinal basal glia, designated RBC cells, in the axon layer of thedeveloping Drosophila eye disc. In vivo pulse labeling with bromodeoxyuridine shows that these cells originate in the optic stalk and migrate into the disc. In mutants lacking photoreceptor axons, RBC cells accumulate in the optic stalk, but do not invade the disc. The association of RBG cells with photoreceptor axons, their origin in the optic stalk, and their migration into the retina are in common with the behavior of astrocytes in the developing mammalian retina.

ObjectivesConsidering the adverse outcomes of COVID‐19, it is essential to provide adequate support and care for people with dementia and informal carers. Technology can reduce the distress associated with social distancing rules and the decreased access to in‐person services. This study aimed to explore the use of technology and its perceived effects across different settings and countries.MethodsThe sample was composed of 127 informal carers and 15 people with dementia from the UK, Italy, Australia and Poland. Semi‐structured interviews explored participants' experiences of using technology and their perceived effects. Transcripts were analysed by researchers in each country using an inductive approach.ResultsThree overarching themes were developed: (1) Technology kept us alive during COVID‐19; (2) Remote care was anything but easy; (3) Perceived technology limitations. Many similarities emerged between countries supporting the role of technology for being socially engaged, ha...

In this paper, we propose a robust speaker recognition method based on position-dependent Cepstral Mean Normalization (CMN) to compensate for the channel distortion depending on the speaker position. In the training stage, the system measures the transmission characteristics according to the speaker positions from some grid points to the microphone in the room and estimates the compensation parameters a priori. In the recognition stage, the system estimates the speaker position and adopts the estimated compensation parameters corresponding to the estimated position, and then the system applies the CMN to the speech and performs speaker recognition. In our past study, we proposed a new text-independent speaker recognition method by combining speaker-specific Gaussian mixture models (GMMs) with syllable-based HMMs adapted to the speakers by MAP [Nakagawa, S., Zhang, W., Takahashi, M., 2004. Text-independent speaker recognition by combining speaker-specific GMM with speaker-adapted syllable-based HMM. Proc. ICASSP-2004 1, 81-84]. The robustness of this speaker recognition method for the change of the speaking style in close-talking environment was evaluated in . In this paper, we extend this combination method to distant speaker recognition and integrate this method with the proposed position-dependent CMN. Our experiments showed that the proposed method improved the speaker recognition performance remarkably in a distant environment.

In this paper we study the problems of sorting and selection on the Distributed Memory Bus Computer (DMBC) recently introduced by Sahni. In particular we present: 1) An efficient algorithm for computing the sum of n bits; 2) An optimal O(1) time sorting algorithm; 3) An optimal randomized logarithmic time integer sorting algorithm; and 4) An optimal randomized constant time selection algorithm. Our algorithms will run without change in performance on many related models as well. For example, these algorithms apply to the RMBM model of Vaidyanathan et al.

We develop reconfigurable mesh (RMESH) algorithms for window broadcasting, data shifts, and consecutive sum. These are then used to develop efficient algorithms to compute the histogram of an image and to perform histogram modification. The histogram of an N×N image is computed by an N×N RMESH in O (√ ¡ B log √ ¢ ¢ B (N/√ £ B ) for B < N, Ο(√ ¤ N ) for B = N, and Ο(√ £ B ) for B > N. B is the number of gray scale values. Histogram modification is done in O (√ ¤ N ) time by an N×N RMESH.

The objective of this study was to explore dimensions of oral language and reading and their influence on reading comprehension in a relatively understudied population-adolescent readers in 4th through 10th grades. The current study employed latent variable modeling of decoding fluency, vocabulary, syntax, and reading comprehension so as to represent these constructs with minimal error and to examine whether residual variance unaccounted for by oral language can be captured by specific factors of syntax and vocabulary. A 1-, 3-, 4-, and bifactor model were tested with 1,792 students in 18 schools in 2 large urban districts in the Southeast. Students were individually administered measures of expressive and receptive vocabulary, syntax, and decoding fluency in mid-year. At the end of the year students took the state reading test as well as a groupadministered, norm-referenced test of reading comprehension. The bifactor model fit the data best in all 7 grades and explained 72% to 99% of the variance in reading comprehension. The specific factors of syntax and vocabulary explained significant unique variance in reading comprehension in 1 grade each. The decoding fluency factor was significantly correlated with the reading comprehension and oral language factors in all grades, but, in the presence of the oral language factor, was not significantly associated with the reading comprehension factor. Results support a bifactor model of lexical knowledge rather than the 3-factor model of the Simple View of Reading, with the vast amount of variance in reading comprehension explained by a general oral language factor.

First and 2nd graders (N = 28?) receiving Title I services received 1 of 3 kinds of classroom reading programs: direct instruction in letter-sound correspondences practiced in decodable text (direct code); less direct instruction in systematic sound-spelling patterns embedded in connected text (embedded code); and implicit instruction in the alphabetic code while reading connected text (implicit code). Children receiving direct code instruction improved in word reading at a faster rate and had higher word-recognition skills than those receiving implicit code instruction. Effects of instructional group on word recognition were moderated by initial levels of phonological processing and were most apparent in children with poorer initial phonological processing skills. Group differences in reading comprehension paralleled those for word recognition but were less robust. Groups did not differ in spelling achievement or in vocabulary growth. Results show advantages for reading instructional programs that emphasize explicit instruction in the alphabetic principle for at-risk children. Learning to speak one's native language is a natural process in that explicit teaching is not required. Reading, in contrast, has been called an "unnatural act" (Gough & Hillinger, 1980) to emphasize the fact that one's writing system relates to speech in an arbitrary way and, therefore, has to be taught . What needs to be taught is the alphabetic principle: that letters in a word relate to speech in a conventional and intentional way. For many children, insight into this principle will develop through informal instruction at home and nondirective activities at school. However, as many as one in five children have difficulty learning to read Shaywitz, Fletcher, & Shaywitz, 1994). There may always be a small

Responding by rats was reinforced by intravenous infusions of 0.5 mg/kg methamphetamine hydrochloride. The effects of intraperitoneal injections of various doses of methamphetamine, alpha-methyl-para-tyrosine (AMPT) and 3, 4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (1-DOPA) were determined on this baseline. Intraperitoneally-administered methamphetamine produced a dose-related pause in responding, apparently indicating drug satiation. Injections of AMPT caused responding either to increase at low doses, or, at intermediate and high doses, to increase, then cease altogether, and finally return at a high rate which decreases to baseline. Injections of 1-DOPA had no noticeable effect on drug responding. Some biochemical implications of these data were discussed.

Recent research showed the potential benefits of robot-assisted therapy in treating children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. These children often have some form of Intellectual Disability (ID) too, but this has mainly been neglected by previous robotics research. This article presents an empirical evaluation of robot-assisted imitation training, where the child imitated the robot, integrated into the Treatment and Education of Autistic and related Communication handicapped Children (TEACCH) program. The sample included six hospitalized children with different levels of ID, from mild to profound. We applied mixed methods to assess their progress, during treatment and three months later. Results show increased Gross Motor Imitation skills in the children, except for those with profound ID and the therapists’ positive attitude towards the humanoid robot. Furthermore, the therapists suggest how a robot could be used to autonomously collect and analyze the information obtained in the reha...

The purpose of this study is to assess the clinical value of spatiotemporal source analysis for analyzing ictal magnetoencephalography (MEG). Ictal MEG and simultaneous scalp EEG was recorded in five patients with medically intractable frontal lobe epilepsy. Dynamic statistical parametric maps (dSPMs) were calculated at the peak of early ictal spikes for the purpose of estimating the spatiotemporal cortical source distribution. DSPM solutions were mapped onto a cortical surface, which was derived from each patient's MRI. Equivalent current dipoles (ECDs) were calculated using a single-dipole model for comparison with dSPMs. In all patients, dSPMs tended to have a localized activation, consistent with the clinically determined ictal onset zone, whereas most ECDs were considered to be inappropriate sources according to their goodness-of-fit values. Analyzing ictal MEG spikes by using dSPMs may provide useful information in presurgical evaluation of epilepsy.

This study examined whether physical activity improves spatial perception and attention in early childhood. A pre-post intervention trials design with intervention and control groups was implemented. Participants were 123 kindergarten children, divided into three groups: experimental-orienteering, experimental-dance, and control-no intervention. Instrumentations: attention measured by the MOXO-CPT, a computerized test, and The Cognitive Modifiability Battery Reproduction of Patterns measured spatial abilities. Measurements were conducted pre-and post-interventions. Results showed fast improvement from pre-to post-intervention, achieved simultaneously in both EFs for the experimental groups only. No differences were found between boys and girls. It was concluded that in order to successfully achieve the required tasks, an integration of physical and cognitive skills is needed.

Linguistic structures can contribute different types of meaning alongside standard assertions, such as conventional implicatures and presuppositions, which have long been described as being non-at-issue meaning contributions. Although information status has long been handled as a binary opposition between non-at-issue and at-issue content, recent research suggests that a gradient approach may be more appropriate. Building on new – and in the formal linguistic framework so far mostly neglected – data targeting spoken and gestural iconicity, specifically iconic gestures and ideophones, this paper investigates the information status of such iconic contributions in spoken language and suggests a new theoretical concept of at-issueness by spelling it out as a gradient category. The paper highlights a range of factors which can affect the information status of iconic contributions, proposing a scale for iconic phenomena based on these factors. To formally model this scale, we propose an a...

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To be a genuinely useful methodology for cognitive psychology, situated action must be extended to explain higher-level human cognition. Yet there is a tension between the requirements for cognitive explanations and the kind of explanations situated action supplies. It is just not clear how to use embodied interaction with an external environment to explain processes that are so internal and that seem to crucially involve representatious and concepts. In short, there is nothing for concepts to interact with. Perhaps they interact with each other. This is the idea we explore here. We give a situated action style explanation for conceptual change in the context of analogical reminding. We have two central results: 1) analogical reminding changes concepts in long-term memory, and 2) concepts have implicit as well as explicit structure.

Backgound: Limited data suggest that crime may have a devastating impact on older people. Although identification and treatment may be beneficial, no well-designed studies have investigated the prevalence of mental disorder and the potential benefits of individual manualized CBT in older victims of crime. Aims: To identify mental health problems in older victims of common crime, provide preliminary data on its prevalence, and conduct a feasibility randomized controlled trial (RCT) using mixed methods. Method: Older victims, identified through police teams, were screened for symptoms of anxiety, depression or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) one (n = 581) and 3 months (n = 486) after experiencing a crime. Screen positive participants were offered diagnostic interviews. Of these, 26 participants with DSM-IV diagnoses agreed to be randomized to Treatment As Usual (TAU) or TAU plus our manualized CBT informed Victim Improvement Package (VIP). The latter provided feedback on the VIP...

Disinformation is a growing epistemic threat, yet its connection to understanding remains underexplored. In this paper, I argue that understanding-specifically, understanding how things work and why they work the way they do-can, all else being equal, shield individuals from disinformation campaigns. Conversely, a lack of such understanding makes one particularly vulnerable. Drawing on Simion's (2023) characterization of disinformation as content that has a disposition to generate or increase ignorance, I propose that disinformation frequently exploits a pre-existing lack of understanding. I consider an important objection-that since understanding is typically difficult to acquire, we might rely on deferring to experts. However, I argue that in epistemically polluted environments, where expertise is systematically mimicked, deference alone provides no reliable safeguard. I conclude by briefly reflecting on strategies for addressing these challenges, emphasizing both the need for promoting understanding and for cleaning up the epistemic environment.

Objective We measured how long distraction by a smartphone affects simulated driving behaviors after the tasks are completed (i.e., the distraction hangover). Background Most drivers know that smartphones distract. Trying to limit distraction, drivers can use hands-free devices, where they only briefly glance at the smartphone. However, the cognitive cost of switching tasks from driving to communicating and back to driving adds an underappreciated, potentially long period to the total distraction time. Method Ninety-seven 21- to 78-year-old individuals who self-identified as active drivers and smartphone users engaged in a simulated driving scenario that included smartphone distractions. Peripheral-cue and car-following tasks were used to assess driving behavior, along with synchronized eye tracking. Results The participants’ lateral speed was larger than baseline for 15 s after the end of a voice distraction and for up to 25 s after a text distraction. Correct identification of per...

The US older adult population is projected to considerably increase in the future, and continued driving mobility is important for health aspects in populations with fewer transportation alternatives. This study evaluated whether frailty is associated with low-mileage driving (&lt;1865 miles per year) and driving cessation among older adults. Baseline demographics and health data were collected for 2990 older drivers via in-person assessments and questionnaires, with 2964 reporting baseline frailty data. Multivariable log-binomial regression models were used to evaluate the association between baseline frailty status and low-mileage driving. Multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression were used to evaluate the association between baseline frailty status and driving cessation. For every unit increase in frailty, the estimated adjusted risk of driving fewer than 1865 miles/year increased by 138% (adjusted risk ratio: 2.38, 95% CI: 1.63–3.46). Relative to older drivers who were n...

This paper describes the development of the Integrated Online-Team-Based Learning (IO-TBL) model and details students' perceptions of IO-TBL using the Community of Inquiry framework. IO-TBL is an online team-based learning course design that combines the flexibility of asynchronous engagement with the connectedness offered through synchronous meetings. Student comments from small group instructional feedback sessions and end-of-course teaching evaluations were grouped into clusters of similar statements about what was going well and suggestions for improvement, which were then assigned to one of the three presences of the Community of Inquiry framework. While students most commonly identified increased learning, synchronous meetings, teamwork, and the instructor as going well in the course, students found IO-TBL to impose a heavy workload and require a significant amount of time. Clusters were most often related to teaching presence, followed by social presence, and then cognitive presence.

Recent research on sociolinguistics has shown that while the Internet is potentially a multilingual environment where users from different parts of the world can communicate and share information, the way that the Internet is structured makes access more difficult for users who are unfamiliar with the Roman alphabet. To promote language equality within Cyberspace and to encourage such people to use the Internet, a proposal for internationalised domain names (IDN) has been developed. We examine how far this and other proposals meet the needs of all types of Internet users. In the light of our findings, we describe an alternative approach which uses an intelligent URL search engine to enable users to access the Internet using their own language. We have tested our implemented prototype on a small sample of data. The results suggest that our approach provides a viable means of encouraging language diversity on the Internet by overcoming the language barrier posed by conventional Intern...

In supervised learning the inductive algorithm seeks to develop a conceptual description, or prescriptive model, from examples or objects that have been pre-classified. On the other hand, in unsupervised learning, or clustering, the task of the algorithm is to group non-classified examples into clusters of examples, building a descriptive model. Central to all of the goals of clustering is the notion of similarity (or dissimilarity) between the individual objects being clustering. The key distinction between prediction and description is that prediction has as its objective a unique variable, known as the class attribute in supervised learning, while in descriptive problems no single variable is central to the problem. In this work we propose an approach, as well as a particular implementation of this approach, were a combination of traditional clustering and inductive learning are used to find and interpret special patterns from a database in order to extract useful knowledge to re...

The role of attention and the resolution of coding conflicts in hand-hemispace spatial-compatibility effects was examined in a precueing experiment in which visual and vibrotactile precues, with various stimulus-onset asynchronies (SOAs), were presented in blocked and random order. It was expected that precues at the shorter SOAs would fail to facilitate the shifting of attention, as they occur too close to the imperative stimulus to be informative. The task would therefore approximate one of choice reaction time (RT), resulting in a hand-hemispace spatial-compatibility effect. Conversely, the longer SOAs would provide the subject with sufficient time in which to shift attention fully, and would therefore result in a task more like that of simple reaction time (SRT). It was expected that the hand-hemispace spatial-compatibility effect would then be absent. As was expected, this effect was present at the shorter SOAs, and absent at the longer SOAs. In Experiments 2 and 3, provision of a visual precue further facilitated attentional deployment, as did blocking the presentation of various SOAs in Experiment 3. Vibrotactile and visual precues did not differ in their ability to direct attention, implying that these modalities orient attention and precue location in essentially similar ways. These findings are discussed within the context of the mechanisms thought to underlie the time course of spatial compatibility and the dissipation of a fading trace of interfering spatial codes.

We describe CHAMP (CHurn Analysis, Modeling, andPrediction), an automated system for modeling cellularsubscriber churn that is predicting which customerswill discontinue cellular phone service. We describevarious issues related to developing and deployingthis system including automating data access from aremote data warehouse, preprocessing, featureselection, model validation, and optimization toreflect business tradeoffs. Using data from GTE&#39;sdata warehouse for cellular phone customers, CHAMP iscapable of developing churn models customized byregion for over one hundred GTE cellular phone marketstotaling over 5 million customers. Every month churnfactors are identified for each geographic region andmodels are updated to generate churn scores predictingwho is likely to churn in the short term. Learningmethods such as decision trees and genetic algorithmsare used for feature selection and a cascade neuralnetwork is used for predicting churn scores. Inaddition to producing churn sc...

The present study aims to investigate the attrition of English in English language teachers whose native language is Polish. It focuses on the attrition of more advanced vocabulary and structures which are taught in English Philology departments at universities, but which may not be necessary for teachers who teach at the lower levels of education and, as a consequence, they may be especially prone to attrition. At the same time, the study includes a questionnaire aiming to reveal the participants’ attitudes towards linguistic correctness and their strategies of language maintenance. As the results show, some attrition can indeed be observed, yet it must also be remarked that the teachers do try to maintain their proficiency levels in English by using the language in various ways, such as reading books and articles in English, watching films in English, talking to native speakers, etc.

Embodied cognition is a research program comprising an array of methods from diverse theoretical fields (e.g., philosophy, neuroscience, psychology, etc.) held together by the key assumption that the body functions as a constituent of the mind rather than a passive perceiver and actor serving the mind. With a longstanding tradition in continental and pragmatic philosophy and a recent explosion in theoretical and empirical research in psychology and cognitive science, the embodied cognition research program is now ready to be formally translated into an applied approach for clinical, sport, education, social, media and health settings. This brief review sets the scene for this special edition by outlining philosophies and theory underpinning the embodied cognition research program and briefly reviewing accounts of embodied cognition that form themes running through the articles included in this special edition. Finally, we provide some examples of existing interventions, therapies and practices that utilise bodymind principles common to embodied cognition, though under other descriptive methodological titles. We suggest that embracing and integrating these interventions, therapies and practices under "applied embodied cognition" will encourage interdisciplinary discussion, thereby helping to move the field forward.

Background: People over 50 are increasing their alcohol intake, potentially increasing their risk of dementia. Objective: This study investigates whether people would be willing to adhere to current United Kingdom (UK, "low-risk") alcohol guidelines to reduce dementia risk. Methods: A national cross-sectional online survey recruited a non-probabilistic sample of 3,948 individuals aged 50 and over without dementia in the UK. Self-reported willingness to comply with low-risk guidelines was predicted using multivariate logistic regression. Other relevant self-reported variables included physical health, lifestyle, and current alcohol intake. Results: Majority of the sample (90%, n=3,527) reported drinking alcohol at least once a month with 23% (n=795) exceeding the low-risk guidelines (>14 units per week). A larger proportion of men, those who were overweight, and people without a partner reported drinking above the recommended level. Most people who consumed alcohol (n=2,934; 74.3%) appeared willing to adhere to low-risk guidelines if they were told that their risk of having dementia could be reduced. Increased willingness was found in women (OR 1.81; CI 1.47-2.23), in people who had at least one child (OR 1.36; CI 1.09-1.70) and those who slept well (OR 1.45; CI 1.06-2.00). People who were obese (OR 0.72; CI 0.54-0.95), those who drank alcohol above limits (OR 0.13; CI 0.11-0.16), and those who were smokers (OR 0.56; CI 0.36-0.88) were less willing to adhere to current guidelines. Men and people with more lifestyle risk factors for common chronic diseases (e.g., smoking, obesity and excess alcohol consumption) are less willing to adhere to current alcohol low-risk guidelines to reduce dementia risk.

Background: People over 50 are increasing their alcohol intake, potentially increasing their risk of dementia. Objective: This study investigates whether people would be willing to adhere to current United Kingdom (UK, "low-risk") alcohol guidelines to reduce dementia risk. Methods: A national cross-sectional online survey recruited a non-probabilistic sample of 3,948 individuals aged 50 and over without dementia in the UK. Self-reported willingness to comply with low-risk guidelines was predicted using multivariate logistic regression. Other relevant self-reported variables included physical health, lifestyle, and current alcohol intake. Results: Majority of the sample (90%, n=3,527) reported drinking alcohol at least once a month with 23% (n=795) exceeding the low-risk guidelines (>14 units per week). A larger proportion of men, those who were overweight, and people without a partner reported drinking above the recommended level. Most people who consumed alcohol (n=2,934; 74.3%) appeared willing to adhere to low-risk guidelines if they were told that their risk of having dementia could be reduced. Increased willingness was found in women (OR 1.81; CI 1.47-2.23), in people who had at least one child (OR 1.36; CI 1.09-1.70) and those who slept well (OR 1.45; CI 1.06-2.00). People who were obese (OR 0.72; CI 0.54-0.95), those who drank alcohol above limits (OR 0.13; CI 0.11-0.16), and those who were smokers (OR 0.56; CI 0.36-0.88) were less willing to adhere to current guidelines. Men and people with more lifestyle risk factors for common chronic diseases (e.g., smoking, obesity and excess alcohol consumption) are less willing to adhere to current alcohol low-risk guidelines to reduce dementia risk.

Background: Acute post-anoxic myoclonus (PAM) can be divided into an unfavorable (generalized/subcortical) and more favorable ((multi)focal/cortical) outcome group that could support prognostication in post-anoxic encephalopathy; however, the inter-rater variability of clinically assessing these PAM subtypes is unknown. Methods: We prospectively examined PAM patients using a standardized video protocol. Videos were rated by three neurologists who classified PAM phenotype (generalized/(multi)focal), stimulus sensitivity, localization (proximal/distal/both), and severity (Clinical Global Impression-Severity Scale (CGI-S) and Unified Myoclonus Rating Scale (UMRS)). Results: Poor inter-rater agreement was found for phenotype and stimulus sensitivity (k5-0.05), moderate agreement for localization (k50.46). Substantial agreement was obtained for the CGI-S (intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC)50.64) and almost perfect agreement for the UMRS (ICC50.82). Discussion: Clinical assessment of PAM is not reproducible between physicians, and should therefore not be used for prognostication. PAM severity measured by the UMRS appears to be reliable; however, the relation between PAM severity and outcome is unknown.

Objective: Cognitive reserve (CR) is the capacity to adapt to (future) brain damage without any or only minimal clinical symptoms. The underlying neuroplastic mechanisms remain unclear. Electrocorticography (ECOG), electroencephalography (EEG), and magnetoencephalography (MEG) may help elucidate the brain mechanisms underlying CR, as CR is thought to be related to efficient utilization of remaining brain resources. The purpose of this systematic review is to collect, evaluate, and synthesize the findings on neural correlates of CR estimates using ECOG, EEG, and MEG. Method: We examined articles that were published from the first standardized definition of CR. Eleven EEG and five MEG crosssectional studies met the inclusion criteria: They concerned original research, analyzed (M)EEG in humans, used a validated CR estimate, and related (M)EEG to CR. Quality assessment was conducted using an adapted form of the Newcastle-Ottawa scale. No ECOG study met the inclusion criteria. Results: A total of 1383 participants from heterogeneous patient, young and older healthy groups were divided into three categories by (M)EEG methodology: Eight (M)EEG studies employed event-related fields or potentials, six studies analyzed brain oscillations at rest (of which one also analyzed a cognitive task), and three studies analyzed brain connectivity. Various CR estimates were employed and all studies compared different (M)EEG measures and CR estimates. Several associations between (M)EEG measures and CR estimates were observed. Conclusion: Our findings support that (M)EEG measures are related to CR estimates, particularly in healthy individuals. However, the character of this relationship is dependent on the population and task studied, warranting further studies.

The aim of the present study is to investigate the effect of the intervention based on the increasing awareness of psychosocial pathologies due to premature marriages on the mothers and daughters’ attitude in Roshtkhar. The study was conducted in the framework of a Quasi-experimental design of two-group type with pretest-posttest and a one-month follow-up. The population of the study consists of all mothers and daughters of Roshtkhar; and the sampling was done through a cluster-random method. The subjects were divided into two groups of experimental and control. The subjects in the experimental group received the educational interventions for mothers and daughters, but the control group did not receive any intervention. The instrument for the study was a researcher-made questionnaire named “attitude towards premature marriage”. This questionnaire consisted of 3 components of social, mental-emotional injuries and family harms, and 8 scales of attitudes towards addiction, sexual issue...

Neurovascular uncoupling after rapid glycemic control as a trigger of the diabetic-uremic striatopallidal syndrome Patients with chronic diabetes-uremia can develop abnormal movements and bilateral striatopallidal MRI abnormalities, which are mostly reversible with delayed clinical improvement [1e3]. The pathophysiology of the diabetic-uremic striatopallidal syndrome (DUSPS) is poorly understood. We report the clinicoradiological correlate of a case triggered by rapid glycemic control and propose neurovascular uncoupling as a unifying mechanism. A 47 year-old Mexican man of Asian descent with 15 years of diabetes, including 2 years of severe proliferative retinopathy and end-stage renal disease requiring hemodialysis, had a baseline glycemia of 150e220 mg/dL on metformin. When switched to glargine insulin (15 units/night subcutaneously), his glycemia dropped to 75e90 mg/dL for the next 2 weeks and he developed mild-tomoderate chorea (Video 1, segment 1). Ophthalmologic examination, blood pressure, electrolytes and renal function remained stable (BUN 30e45 mg/dL, creatinine 5.1e7.5 mg/dL). Non-contrast CT and MRI brain showed striatal vasogenic edema surrounding areas of central cytotoxicity, blood extravasation and hyperdense lenticulostriatal arteries (LSAs) in the striatopallidal junctions (SPJs). After decreasing the insulin dose, glycemia increased to 125e215 mg/ dL and chorea markedly improved. Two weeks later, glargine was restarted and chorea became severe (glycemia 75e95 mg/dL). Glargine was stopped and metformin restarted. Glycemia increased to 135e210 mg/dL and chorea improved again.

Dysphoria and impulsivity are states that are described across a range of psychiatric disorders. However, current diagnostic systems like the DSM and ICD, along with traditional psychiatric literature, often overlook the subtle, embodied nuances of these phenomena. The reliance on standardized psychometric scales and efficacy-based guidelines in choosing medication circumvents a more personalized approach within a phenomenological framework that integrates clinical judgment with a deep understanding of patients' embodied experiences. This paper proposes a phenomenologically informed approach in relation to understanding and targeting dysphoria and impulsivity in pharmacological interventions. While one may be inclined to use a specific medication based on label information, the effect on a person's embodied experience can vary significantly. Additionally, the same medication may change the experience of impulsivity or dysphoria in one person in a completely different manner than in another person, which raises the possibility that medications may have their own "phenomenological profiles". Another important aspect is the role of intersubjectivity in the clinician-patient relationship. By modulating the patient's affective responses and facilitating a more balanced sense of self, medication might allow for a deeper, clearer articulation of their lived experience during clinical encounters. Ultimately, I argue for a more nuanced, phenomenologically informed approach to pharmacological intervention. Integrating the patient's lived, embodied experience with an understanding of the subtle effects of medication can enhance clinical judgment and potentially lead to more effective, personalized treatments.

KABYSH A.S., GOLOVKO V.A. Agent collective behavior by using reinforcement learningВ данной работе рассмотрен подход к обучению в многоагентных системах на основе подкрепляющего обучения. Подкрепляющее обучение позволяет агенту обучаться только через взаимодействие с внешней средой. В многоагентных системах группа агентов стремится достигнуть общей цели. Поэтому требуется модификация стандартного алгоритма подкрепляющего обучения в случае многоагентной системы. В данной работе был предложен такой алгоритм и показано его применение на случай целенаправленного передвижения группы агентов. Преимуществом такого алгоритма является его способность работать с нейронными сетями. В результате моделирования в поведении группы агентов наблюдались повторяющиеся паттерны поведения – «лидер», «группирование» и «последовательность действий»

This paper presents and explains an implementation of Learning Vector Quantization neural network for tennis activity detection and recognition using PIQ ROBOT device. The gesture recognition market is estimated to grow from 2013 till 2018 and is expected to cross $15.02 billion by the end of these five years. Analysts forecast the Global Gesture Recognition market to grow of 29.2 percent over the period 2013-2018. In terms of industry it means that currently consumer electronics application contributes to more than 99 percents of the global gesture recognition market. This paper starts our ambitious research in the area of artificial neural networks for activity recognition.

The NeuroDev study will deeply phenotype cognition, behavior, dysmorphias, and neuromedical traits on an expected cohort of 5,600 Africans (1,800 child cases, 1,800 child controls, and 1,900 parents) and will collect whole blood for exome sequencing and biobanking.

This study aimed to ascertain students' mental models while learning about salt hydrolysis through augmented reality (AR). The study comprised 36 participants from Public High School 51 in Jakarta. A descriptive qualitative approach was adopted for this research, employing various data collection methods such as written drawings, interviews, classroom observations, teacher notes, student worksheets, and final tests. In categorizing students' mental models, three main types emerged: scientific, synthetic, and initial mental models. The findings revealed that 7.20% of students fell into the initial mental model category, 53.90% exhibited synthetic mental models, and 38.90% demonstrated scientific mental models. Notably, incorporating AR into salt hydrolysis learning predominantly influenced the development of synthetic mental models. The study's results also indicated that the utilization of AR positively enhanced students' spatial abilities in understanding submicroscopic representations.

One hallmark of human morality is a deep sense of fairness. People are motivated by both selfinterest and a concern for the welfare of others. However, it remains unclear whether these motivations rely on similar neural computations, and the extent to which such computations influence social decision-making when self-fairness and other-fairness motivations compete. In this study, two groups of participants engaged in the role of responder in a three-party Ultimatum Game while being scanned with functional MRI (N=32) or while undergoing high-density electroencephalography (N=40). In both studies, participants accepted more OtherFair offers when they themselves received fair offers. Though SelfFairness was reliably decoded from scalp voltages by 170 ms, and from hemodynamic responses in right insula and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, there was no overlap between neural representations of fairness for self and for other. Distinct neural computations and mechanisms seem to be involved when making decisions about fairness in three-party contexts, which are anchored in an egocentric, self-serving bias.

There are many different ways that people can express their support for the animals that exist in factory farms. This study draws on insights from the social identity approach, and adopts novel methods (latent profile analysis [LPA]) to examine the qualitatively different subgroups or profiles that comprise broader community positions on this issue. North American participants (N = 578) completed measures of the frequency with which they engaged in 18 different animal welfare actions. LPA identified 3 meaningful profiles: ambivalent omnivores (n = 410; people who occasionally limited their consumption of meat/animal products), a lifestyle activist group (n = 134; limited their consumption of animal/meat products and engaged in political actions), and a vegetarian radical group (n = 34; strictly limited their consumption of animal/meat products and engaged in both political and radical actions). Membership of the 3 populations was predicted by different balances of social identities (supporter of animal welfare, vegan/vegetarian, solidarity with animals), and markers of politicization and/or radicalization. Results reveal the utility of adopting person-centred methods to study political engagement and extremism generally, and highlight heterogeneity in the ways that people respond to the harms perpetrated against animals.