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Developmental and individual differences in conditional reasoning: The role of contradiction training and cognitive style

Previous research has suggested that logical competence may not always be reflected in task performances but is influenced by various moderator variables that affect the actual application of competence. The present research examines the development of conditional reasoning from the perspective of a competencemoderator-performance approach (Overton, 1985; Overton & Newman, 1982). The effects of task interpretation and cognitive style as moderator variables for conditional reasoning were examined with 8th, 10th, and 12th grade students. Half of the students at each grade received training with contradictory evidence to alert them to faulty task interpretations. Generalization of training was assessed with a second conditional reasoning task. Cognitive style was assessed with the Matching Familiar Figures test. Results indicate that only the 12th graders benefit from training and training generalized to the subsequent task. It was also found that a reflective style enhanced performance at each grade level for the initial task. However, the beneficial effects of a reflective style were restricted on the generalization task to 12th graders who had received contradiction training. Conditional reasoning has been a central concern of recent research on logical though

The needs of stakeholders in the formation of a local children's university : an exploration through grounded theory of participant drivers and their underpinning features

There are over ninety local Children’s Universities (CUs) throughout the United Kingdom and overseas. CUs aim to recognise the learning needs of children which are met through extracurricular and out of school provision. The performance of some local CUs has been evaluated for the National Children’s University on an annual basis. There has never been a detailed exploration of factors underpinning the needs of stakeholders, including children, teachers, teacher education students and Higher Education tutors, involved in the formation of a local CU. The aim of this research was to identify motives for stakeholder participation in the local CU, to discover their needs and identify issues that contributed to those needs. This qualitative study used open, unstructured individual and focus group interviews with stakeholders using a constructivist grounded theory approach. The research identified that the unique approach by this CU benefited learners at several levels of development by providing a context within which children, teachers, teacher education students and Higher Education (HE) tutors could learn in a less formal way than in standard school practice. There was informal acquisition of knowledge and skills by children, continuing professional development for teachers and modelling of effective practice to teacher education students by their tutor. Teachers described the pedagogy adopted as innovative. They considered the tutor as a trusted expert who was able to support their professional development. Tutor credibility was enhanced in the eyes of the teacher education students who valued the opportunity to observe their tutor teaching children rather than just modelling it to them. These views were upheld in comments made by other education-related professionals, by school governors and by parents. Findings have implications for the professional development of teachers. They are relevant to current moves to ‘train’ new teachers in schools. This approach, with more emphasis on non-formal learning, is valued by students and by teachers but the latter, in particular, value the presence of someone with expertise to moderate the process

Cognitive psychology and problem solving in the physical sciences

This paper provides and introduction to the literature on cognitive psychology and problem solving in physical sciences. We consider the working memory and its three different components, two of which hold and record information and are controlled by an executive that controls attention. Working memory alone cannot explain problem solving ability and we review the influence of schemata, the construction of mental models, visual reasoning and the cognitive style of field dependence

Evaluation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons using analytical methods, toxicology, and risk assessment research: seafood safety after a petroleum spill as an example.

BackgroundPolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are abundant and widespread environmental chemicals. They are produced naturally and through man-made processes, and they are common in organic media, including petroleum. Several PAHs are toxic, and a subset exhibit carcinogenic activity. PAHs represent a range of chemical structures based on two or more benzene rings and, depending on their source, can exhibit a variety of side modifications resulting from oxygenation, nitrogenation, and alkylation.ObjectivesHere we discuss the increasing ability of contemporary analytical methods to distinguish not only different chemical structures among PAHs but also their concentrations in environmental media. Using seafood contamination following the Deepwater Horizon accident as an example, we identify issues that are emerging in the PAH risk assessment process because of increasing analytical sensitivity for individual PAHs, and we describe the paucity of toxicological literature for many of these compounds.DiscussionPAHs, including the large variety of chemically modified or substituted PAHs, are naturally occurring and may constitute health risks if human populations are exposed to hazardous levels. However, toxicity evaluations have not kept pace with modern analytic methods and their increased ability to detect substituted PAHs. Therefore, although it is possible to measure these compounds in seafood and other media, we do not have sufficient information on the potential toxicity of these compounds to incorporate them into human health risk assessments and characterizations.ConclusionsFuture research efforts should strategically attempt to fill this toxicological knowledge gap so human health risk assessments of PAHs in environmental media or food can be better determined. This is especially important in the aftermath of petroleum spills

Genetic susceptibility to allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis in asthma: a genetic association study

Background: In patients with asthma, the fungus Aspergillus fumigatus can cause allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (ABPA). Familial ABPA is reported, and some genetic factors have been associated with the disease, however, these are small studies (n ≤ 38) and do not explain all cases of ABPA.Methods: We analysed SNPs in 95 ABPA patients, comparing frequencies to 152 atopic asthmatic and 279 healthy controls. Twenty two genes were selected from literature, and 195 tagging SNPs were analysed for genetic association with ABPA using logistic regression corrected for multiple testing. We also analysed monocyte-derived macrophage gene expression before and during co-culture with A. fumigatus.Results: Seventeen ABPA-associated SNPs (ABPA v Atopic asthma) were identified. Three remained significant after correction for multiple testing; IL13 rs20541, IL4R rs3024656, TLR3 rs1879026. We also identified minor differences in macrophage gene expression responses in the ABPA group compared to the control groups.Conclusions: Multiple SNPs are now associated with ABPA. Some are novel associations. These associations implicate cytokine pathways and receptors in the aberrant response to A. fumigatus and susceptibility to ABPA, providing insights into the pathogenesis of ABPA and/or its complications. We hope these results will lead to increased understanding and improved treatment and diagnostics for ABPA

Monte Carlo studies of two-dimensional polymer–solvent systems

<div><p>Allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (ABPA) in asthma is a severe, life-affecting disease that potentially affects over 4.8 million people globally. In the UK, ABPA is predominantly caused by the fungus <i>Aspergillus fumigatus</i>. Phagocytosis is important in clearance of this fungus, and Early Endosome Antigen 1 (<i>EEA1</i>) has been demonstrated to be involved in phagocytosis of fungi. We sought to investigate the role of <i>EEA1</i> mutations and phagocytosis in ABPA. We used exome sequencing to identify variants in <i>EEA1</i> associated with ABPA. We then cultured monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs) from 17 ABPA subjects with <i>A</i>. <i>fumigatus</i> conidia, and analyzed phagocytosis and phagolysosome acidification in relation to the presence of these variants. We found that variants in <i>EEA1</i> were associated with ABPA and with the rate of phagocytosis of <i>A</i>. <i>fumigatus</i> conidia and the acidification of phagolysosomes. MDMs from ABPA subjects carrying the disease associated genotype showed increased acidification and phagocytosis compared to those from ABPA subjects carrying the non-associated genotypes or healthy controls.The identification of ABPA-associated variants in EEA that have functional effects on MDM phagocytosis and phagolysosome acidification of <i>A</i>. <i>fumigatus</i> conidia revolutionizes our understanding of susceptibility to this disease, which may in future benefit patients by earlier identification or improved treatments. We suggest that the increased phagocytosis and acidification observed demonstrates an over-active MDM profile in these patients, resulting in an exaggerated cellular response to the presence of <i>A</i>. <i>fumigatus</i> in the airways.</p></div

The production and detoxification of a potent cytotoxin, nitric oxide, by pathogenic enteric bacteria

The nitrogen cycle is based on several redox reactions that are mainly accomplished by prokaryotic organisms, some archaea and a few eukaryotes, which use these reactions for assimilatory, dissimilatory or respiratory purposes. One group is the Enterobacteriaceae family of Gammaproteobacteria, which have their natural habitats in soil, marine environments or the intestines of humans and other warm-blooded animals. Some of the genera are pathogenic and usually associated with intestinal infections. Our body possesses several physical and chemical defence mechanisms to prevent pathogenic enteric bacteria from invading the gastrointestinal tract. One response of the innate immune system is to activate macrophages, which produce the potent cytotoxin nitric oxide (NO). However, some pathogens have evolved the ability to detoxify NO to less toxic compounds, such as the neuropharmacological agent and greenhouse gas nitrous oxide (N2O), which enables them to overcome the host's attack. The same mechanisms may be used by bacteria producing NO endogenously as a by-product of anaerobic nitrate respiration. In the present review, we provide a brief introduction into the NO detoxification mechanisms of two members of the Enterobacteriaceae family: Escherichia coli and Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium. These are discussed as comparative non-pathogenic and pathogenic model systems in order to investigate the importance of detoxifying NO and producing N2O for the pathogenicity of enteric bacteria