Timing disownership experiences in the rubber hand illusion

Some investigators of the rubber hand illusion (RHI) have suggested that when standard RHI induction procedures are employed, if the rubber hand is experienced by participants as owned, their corresponding biological hands are experienced as disowned. Others have demurred: drawing upon a variety of experimental data and conceptual considerations, they infer that experience of the RHI might include the experience of a supernumerary limb, but that experienced disownership of biological hands does not occur. Indeed, some investigators even categorically deny that any experimental paradigm has been employed or any evidence can be adduced to support the claim that disownership experiences occur during the RHI. It goes without saying that RHI experiences can be elusive, and that there is some evidence to support claims that supernumerary limb experiences can sometimes occur. Here, however, we test the claim that the conscious experience of disownership can occur during the RHI. In order to test this claim, we developed two new online proxies—onset time for the illusion and illusion duration—and combined these with established questionnaires that concern the conscious contents of the RHI, in particular ownership/disownership experiences. Both online proxy data and post hoc questionnaire data converge in supporting the claim that disownership experiences do occur, at least when the left hand is the object of investigation. Our findings that onset time and illusion duration are reliable measures suggest that investigations of the RHI stand to benefit by devoting more attention to data collected while the RHI is being experienced, in particular data concerning temporal dynamics

The general election in the UK, May 2005

At the 2005 general election in the UK, held on 5 May, the Labour Party won an historically unprecedented third victory in a row, and, correspondingly, the Conservative Party suffered its third defeat in a row. In total, 62 seats changed hands, and, as all three major parties experienced both some success and some failure, the election results were curiously ambivalent

Hands-on approach during breastfeeding support in a neonatal intensive care unit: a qualitative study of Swedish mothers' experiences

BACKGROUND: Assisting mothers to breastfeed is not easy when babies experience difficulties. In a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), nurses often help mothers by using hands-on-breast without their permission. Little is known about how mothers feel about this unusual body touching. To gain more knowledge from mothers who lived through this experience, this hands-on practice was studied in a NICU in Sweden. METHODS: Between January and June 2001, in-depth interviews were conducted with ten mothers of preterm or sick term infants and all of them experienced the hands-on approach. In this research, Radnitzky's seven principles of hermeneutic interpretation were applied in order to interpret the meaning of mothers' responses. This article presents results related to the period of initiation of breastfeeding. This qualitative study was based on a combination of the models of Gustafsson, Orem, and Aarts' Marte Meo. RESULTS: Five main themes were identified: Insult to integrity, Manipulating the baby, Understanding and adjustment, Breasts as objects, Alternatives to this practice. Hands-on help in the breastfeeding situation was experienced as unpleasant and the women experienced their breasts as objectified. The mothers accepted the hands-on help given by nursing staff, even though they considered it unpleasant. Most mothers expressed a need for assistance when starting breastfeeding, but could not suggest any alternative to hands-on help such as demonstrating with an artificial breast and a doll. CONCLUSION: The study provides information about how mothers experience unexpected hands-on help with breastfeeding in a NICU, which has not been described previously. Since most mothers in this study regarded this behavior as unpleasant and not helpful mostly because it was unexpected and unexplained, it would be important to either explain beforehand to mothers what type of physical approach could be attempted on their body or better, to avoid this type of approach completely

Surgical techniques in substitution urethroplasty using buccal mucosa for the treatment of anterior urethral strictures

OBJECTIVES: Since the resurgence in the use of buccal mucosa (BM) in substitution urethroplasty in the late 1980s and early 1990s, there has been controversy as to which surgical technique is the most appropriate for its application. METHODS: The authors performed an updated literature review. Several centres have published widely on this topic, and the points considered include the use BM in dorsal onlay grafts, ventral onlay grafts, and tubularised grafts and the role of two-stage procedures. RESULTS: In experienced hands, the outcomes of both dorsal onlay grafts and ventral onlay grafts in bulbar urethroplasty are similar. The dorsal onlay technique is, however, possibly less dependent on surgical expertise and therefore more suitable for surgeons new to the practice of urethroplasty. The complications associated with ventral onlay techniques can be minimised by meticulous surgical technique, but in series with longer follow-up, complications still tend to be more prevalent. In penile urethroplasty, two-stage dorsal onlay of BM (after complete excision of the scarred urethra) still provides the best results, although in certain circumstances a one-stage dorsal onlay procedure is possible. In general, ventral onlay of BM and tube graft procedures in the management of penile strictures are associated with much higher rates of recurrence and should therefore be avoided. CONCLUSIONS: In experienced hands the results of the ventral and dorsal onlay of BM for bulbar urethroplasty are equivalent. Two-stage procedures are preferable in the penile urethra, except under certain circumstances when a one-stage dorsal onlay is feasible

Hands of Another

I believe that our biggest battles in the Disabled Community are battles we face with our personal care attendants. This poem was experienced and written during an intense three week period in which I fired and then hired a new attendant. “Hands of Another” are his hands, and are symbolic of any personal care attendant

Applying standard competency assessment in vocational teaching practices

Teaching in vocational education is focused on knowledge and skills. Psychomotor is an aspect that emphasized in teaching competency in vocational education. Teaching based on psychomotor is a way to provide students with the hands on skills. Teachers are the main character in the teaching session. Therefore, this paper explained the differences among teachers in teaching based Standard Competency Assessment with their expertise in particular field. Research used survey design involved 301 teachers from Vocational Colleges specifically teaching practical task in Technology Courses. The focused elements are experienced and qualification of expertise based on recognition by Malaysia Skill Certification. Result showed that there are differences in the application of the teaching methods between experienced and inexperienced instructors teaching at the workshop from the teaching and evaluation aspects. The skills certificates ownership by the instructors shows differences in the aspects of teaching methods compared to the teaching implementation. In summary, teachers or instructors who teaching in vocational courses need the basic requirement especially skills recognition to fulfill competency assessment

Applying standard competency assessment in vocational teaching practices

Teaching in vocational education is focused on knowledge and skills. Psychomotor is an aspect that emphasized in teaching competency in vocational education. Teaching based on psychomotor is a way to provide students with the hands on skills. Teachers are the main character in the teaching session. Therefore, this paper explained the differences among teachers in teaching based Standard Competency Assessment with their expertise in particular field. Research used survey design involved 301 teachers from Vocational Colleges specifically teaching practical task in Technology Courses. The focused elements are experienced and qualification of expertise based on recognition by Malaysia Skill Certification. Result showed that there are differences in the application of the teaching methods between experienced and inexperienced instructors teaching at the workshop from the teaching and evaluation aspects. The skills certificates ownership by the instructors shows differences in the aspects of teaching methods compared to the teaching implementation. In summary, teachers or instructors who teaching in vocational courses need the basic requirement especially skills recognition to fulfill competency assessment

Book Review: Between 2 Gods: Memoir of Abuse in the Mennonite Community

Excerpt: Metzger’s journey toward this epiphany is a difficult one, and she does not attempt to mollify readers by avoiding distressing details. This is a definite strength in Between 2 Gods. Rather than offer us a pleasant story of healing and redemption alone, Metzger names the many abuses she experienced at the hands of those who should love and protect her, including family members and church leaders. One point made both implicitly in Between 2 Gods, and explicitly by its publication, is exactly this: that people need to acknowledge their abuses for there to be healing; and that stories about abuse need to be told, even when doing so might implicate presumably Christian people and institutions

Laparoscopic Resection of an Undifferentiated Pleomorphic Splenic Sarcoma

Malignant fibrous histiocytoma is a rare tumor with a poor prognosis. In experienced hands, laparoscopic splenectomy may be an appropriate choice for primary splenic sarcoma