Single-subject analyses of magnetoencephalographic evoked responses to the acoustic properties of affective non-verbal vocalizations

Magneto-encephalography (MEG) was used to examine the cerebral response to affective non-verbal vocalizations (ANVs) at the single-subject level. Stimuli consisted of nonverbal affect bursts from the Montreal Affective Voices morphed to parametrically vary acoustical structure and perceived emotional properties. Scalp magnetic fields were recorded in three participants while they performed a 3-alternative forced choice emotion categorization task (Anger, Fear, Pleasure). Each participant performed more than 6000 trials to allow single-subject level statistical analyses using a new toolbox which implements the general linear model (GLM) on stimulus-specific responses (LIMO-EEG). For each participant we estimated ‘simple’ models (including just one affective regressor (Arousal or Valence)) as well as ‘combined’ models (including acoustical regressors). Results from the ‘simple’ models revealed in every participant the significant early effects (as early as ~100 ms after onset) of Valence and Arousal already reported at the group-level in previous work. However, the ‘combined’ models showed that few effects of Arousal remained after removing the acoustically-explained variance, whereas significant effects of Valence remained especially at late stages. This study demonstrates (i) that single-subject analyses replicate the results observed at early stages by group-level studies and (ii) the feasibility of GLM-based analysis of MEG data. It also suggests that early modulation of MEG amplitude by affective stimuli partly reflects their acoustical properties

Biogeochemical and ecological impacts of boundary currents in the Indian Ocean

Monsoon forcing and the unique geomorphology of the Indian Ocean basin result in complex boundary currents, which are unique in many respects. In the northern Indian Ocean, several boundary current systems reverse seasonally. For example, upwelling coincident with northward-flowing currents along the coast of Oman during the Southwest Monsoon gives rise to high productivity which also alters nutrient stoichiometry and therefore, the species composition of the resulting phytoplankton blooms. During the Northeast Monsoon most of the northern Indian Ocean boundary currents reverse and favor downwelling. Higher trophic level species have evolved behavioral responses to these seasonally changing conditions. Examples from the western Arabian Sea include vertical feeding migrations of a copepod (Calanoides carinatus) and the reproductive cycle of a large pelagic fish (Scomberomorus commerson). The impacts of these seasonal current reversals and changes in upwelling and downwelling circulations are also manifested in West Indian coastal waters, where they influence dissolved oxygen concentrations and have been implicated in massive fish kills. The winds and boundary currents reverse seasonally in the Bay of Bengal, though the associated changes in upwelling and productivity are less pronounced. Nonetheless, their effects are observed on the East Indian shelf as, for example, seasonal changes in copepod abundance and zooplankton community structure. In contrast, south of Sri Lanka seasonal reversals in the boundary currents are associated with dramatic changes in the intensity of coastal upwelling, chlorophyll concentration, and catch per unit effort of fishes. Off the coast of Java, monsoon-driven changes in the currents and upwelling strongly impact chlorophyll concentrations, seasonal vertical migrations of zooplankton, and sardine catch in Bali Strait. In the southern hemisphere the Leeuwin is a downwelling-favorable current that flows southward along western Australia, though local wind forcing can lead to transient near shore current reversals and localized coastal upwelling. The poleward direction of this eastern boundary current is unique. Due to its high kinetic energy the Leeuwin Current sheds anomalous, relatively high chlorophyll, warm-core, downwelling eddies that transport coastal diatom communities westward into open ocean waters. Variations in the Leeuwin transport and eddy generation impact many higher trophic level species including the recruitment and fate of rock lobster (Panulirus cygnus) larvae. In contrast, the transport of the Agulhas Current is very large, with sources derived from the Mozambique Channel, the East Madagascar Current and the southwest Indian Ocean sub-gyre. Dynamically, the Agulhas Current is upwelling favorable; however, the spatial distribution of prominent surface manifestations of upwelling is controlled by local wind and topographic forcing. Meanders and eddies in the Agulhas Current propagate alongshore and interact with seasonal changes in the winds and topographic features. These give rise to seasonally variable localized upwelling and downwelling circulations with commensurate changes in primary production and higher trophic level responses. Due to the strong influence of the Agulhas Current, many neritic fish species in southeast Africa coastal waters have evolved highly selective behaviors and reproductive patterns for successful retention of planktonic eggs and larvae. For example, part of the Southern African sardine (Sardinops sagax) stock undergoes a remarkable northward migration enhanced by transient cyclonic eddies in the shoreward boundary of the Agulhas Current. There is evidence from the paleoceanographic record that these currents and their biogeochemical and ecological impacts have changed significantly over glacial to interglacial timescales. These changes are explored as a means of providing insight into the potential impacts of climate change in the Indian Ocean

L'objectivité en sciences humaines, un idéal régulateur? Introduction

Aujourd’hui, l’exigence d’objectivité s’est imposée comme idéal régulateur de la pratique scientifique dans les sciences historiques et sociales. Pourtant, la notion même d’objectivité scientifique n’a pas toujours existé ni eu la même signification. Il apparait ainsi indispensable d’interroger un concept régulièrement utilisé pour légitimer nos savoirs. La question se pose avec d’autant plus d’insistance en ce qui concerne les sciences humaines et sociales, au vu des développements, ces dernières années, de la théorie de la connaissance située (standpoint theory), qui se propose de remettre en cause la notion d’objectivité en proposant de considérer le point de vue des minorités comme un biais de connaissance pertinent pour la critique d’un système donné. L’objectivité en sciences humaines, un idéal régulateur ? C’est sous cet intitulé volontairement provocateur que ce numéro des C@hiers du CRHiDI. Histoire, droit, institutions, société rassemble les contributions de jeunes chercheurs et chercheuses qui se sont prêtés à l’exercice dans leur champ de recherche respectif, soit en interrogeant le lien existant entre rationalité scientifique guidée par une méthodologie spécifique et leurs affinités respectives (méthodologie orientée), soit en analysant la perception subjective des acteurs historiques eux-mêmes au travers des sources mises à disposition. En guise de conclusion, ce numéro propose une interview de l’historienne et philosophe Geneviève Warland dans laquelle elle interroge tour à tour la relation entre les notions de vérité et d’objectivité et les impératifs qui en découlent pour l’historien et l’historienne, tant dans son activité scientifique que d’un point de vue sociétal

L’objectivité en sciences humaines, un idéal régulateur ?

Aujourd’hui, l’exigence d’objectivité s’est imposée comme idéal régulateur de la pratique scientifique dans les sciences historiques et sociales. Pourtant, la notion même d’objectivité scientifique n’a pas toujours existé ni eu la même signification. Il apparait ainsi indispensable d’interroger un concept régulièrement utilisé pour légitimer nos savoirs. La question se pose avec d’autant plus d’insistance en ce qui concerne les sciences humaines et sociales, au vu des développements, ces dernières années, de la théorie de la connaissance située (standpoint theory), qui se propose de remettre en cause la notion d’objectivité en proposant de considérer le point de vue des minorités comme un biais de connaissance pertinent pour la critique d’un système donné. L’objectivité en sciences humaines, un idéal régulateur ? C’est sous cet intitulé volontairement provocateur que ce numéro des C@hiers du CRHiDI. Histoire, droit, institutions, société rassemble les contributions de jeunes chercheurs et chercheuses qui se sont prêtés à l’exercice dans leur champ de recherche respectif, soit en interrogeant le lien existant entre rationalité scientifique guidée par une méthodologie spécifique et leurs affinités respectives(méthodologie orientée), soit en analysant la perception subjective des acteurs historiques euxmêmes au travers des sources mises à disposition. En guise de conclusion, ce numéro propose une interview de l’historienne et philosophe Geneviève Warland dans laquelle elle interroge tour à tour la relation entre les notions de vérité et d’objectivité et les impératifs qui en découlent pour l’historien et l’historienne, tant dans son activité scientifique que d’un point de vue sociétal

Sociodemographic, Cognitive, and Emotional Determinants of Two Health Behaviors during SARS-CoV-2 Outbreak: An Online Study among French- Speaking Belgian Responders during the Spring Lockdown

To contain the SARS-CoV-2 infection rate, health authorities have encouraged the population to enhance protective behaviors such as physical distancing and handwashing. Behavioral sciences emphasize the role of socio-cognitive determinants to explain health behaviors, while largely ignoring emotional factors. In a large online study (N > 4000), we investigated the role of sociodemographic, cognitive, emotional, and social factors that can facilitate or hinder handwashing and limitation of social contacts. Data were collected from March 18 until April 19, 2020, which corresponds to the spring lockdown and the first peak of the pandemic in Belgium. Logistic regressions showed that socio-demographic factors (gender, age, level of education) and the dimensions of the Theory of Planned Behavior (intentions, attitudes, perceived control and subjective norms) had a strong impact on health behaviors, but that emotional factors explained an additional part of the variance. Being attentive/determined and frightened/anxious were related to a higher frequency of handwashing, along with a high level of health anxiety. In contrast, being enthusiastic/happy was related to lower adherence to limiting social contacts. Our results suggest that the type of predictors and the direction of associations depend on the type of health behavior considered. The role of specific emotional factors in addition to more classical predictors is discussed. The study offers new perspectives regarding the factors that are associated with the adherence to behaviors recommended to adopt when faced with a pandemic

« L’objectivité en sciences humaines » ce vers quoi il faut tendre ? L’objectivité selon une historienne située, entretien avec Geneviève Warland

Docteure en histoire, licenciée en philosophie (maîtrise) et détentrice d’un master en Français Langue Etrangère, Geneviève Warland est professeure en historiographie et histoire publique à l’UCLouvain. Ses recherches en historiographie s’inscrivent dans la perspective transnationale des transferts culturels sur la période allant de 1870 jusqu’à l’entre-deux-guerres. Elles concernent, pour l’essentiel, les historiographies allemande, belge, française et néerlandaise. Les thématiques abordées portent essentiellement sur le rôle public de l’historien : l’historien comme intellectuel, l’impact des guerres sur son activité et sa compréhension de l’histoire, les représentations de la nation et de l’Europe, l’historien comme membre de réseaux et acteur de la collaboration scientifique. Ses recherches en histoire publique visent, quant à elles, à promouvoir la médiation des savoirs historiques en lien avec les nouveaux médias et supports virtuels. Le nouvel axe majeur dans ce cadre concerne l’élaboration d’une nouvelle histoire de Belgique en vue de son bicentenaire

French Translation of the Perth Alexithymia Questionnaire

This French translation of the Perth Alexithymia Questionnaire (PAQ) was translated from the original English version. An initial translation from English to French was conducted and refined by the authorship team. These French items were then back-translated into English by a NAATI approved translator. Minor refinements to some of the French items were made by the authorship team on the basis of this back-translation, resulting in the final French version of the PAQ presented in this document. Our team is currently conducting a psychometric study on this French PAQ to examine its validity and reliability. Cette traduction française du Perth Alexithymia Questionnaire (PAQ) a été réalisée à partir de la version originale anglaise. Une première traduction de l'anglais vers le français a été réalisée et affinée par l'équipe des auteurs. Ces items français ont ensuite été retraduits en anglais par un traducteur agréé par le NAATI. Des améliorations mineures ont été apportées à certains items français par l'équipe des auteurs sur la base de cette retraduction, pour aboutir à la version française finale du PAQ présentée dans ce document. Notre équipe mène actuellement des études psychométriques sur la version française du PAQ afin d'en examiner la validité et la fiabilité

What a catch! A case report on denial and myocardial infarction

Background: Coronary disease has long been associated with different behavioral patterns (Pattern A,D) and denial mechanisms. Denial mechanisms can take various and unexpected forms that put the coronary patient at risk during the whole course of his illness [1,2]. Objective: This case shows to what extent denial mechanisms can interfere in the relationship between some coronary patients and their caregivers

Confinement of a bioinspired nonheme Fe(ii) complex in 2D hexagonal mesoporous silica with metal site isolation

International audienceA mixed amine pyridine polydentate FeII complex was covalently tethered in hexagonal mesoporous silica of the MCM-41 type. Metal site isolation was generated using adsorbed tetramethylammonium cations acting as a patterned silanol protecting mask and trimethylsilylazane as a capping agent. Then, the amine/pyridine ligand bearing a tethering triethoxysilane group was either grafted to such a pretreated silica surface prior to or after complexation to FeII. These two synthetic routes, denoted as two-step and one-step, respectively, were also applied to fumed silica for comparison, except that the silanol groups were capped after tethering the metal unit. The coordination of the targeted complex was monitored using UV-visible spectrophotometry and, according to XPS, the best control was achieved inside the channels of the mesoporous silica for the two-step route. For the solid prepared according to the one-step route, tethering of the complex occurred mainly at the entrance of the channel

Experimental investigation of sand transport mechanisms by boiling liquid water under Mars-like conditions and potential implications for Martian Gullies and RSL

International audienceActive flow processes are currently ongoing at the surface of Mars, for example within gullies or RSL (Recuring Slope Lineae). One possible candidate involved in their formation and current activity is liquid water [1,2], but under current martian conditions liquid water is transient and can only be present in limited amounts [3]. However the surface temperature can locally exceed the melting point [4,5] on present-day Mars, leading to rapid boiling of liquid water. So far, little attention has been paid to the role of boiling in sediment transport processes. Recent study has highlighted that boiling water can drive unusual transport mechanisms leading to an enhanced transportation volume [6]. In our work [7,8] we conduct a series of experiments under low pressure to investigate the influence of both sand temperature (Ts) and water temperature (Tw) on the transport capacity of boiling liquid water under martian-like surface conditions. The experimental observations are then compared to physical laws. Results attest that among the two parameters, sand temperature is a driving parameter of sand transport by boiling water. This is enhanced at martian gravity. 1. Experimental set up and protocol The experiments were performed under martian-like pressure (~9 mbar) in the Open University's Mars Simulation Chamber. The test bed was a rectangular tray, filled with a 5 cm thick layer of fine silica sand, set to an angle of 25° which is in the range of observed slope angles for martian gullies and RSL [2,5,7]. The water outlet was positioned at the top of the slope and controlled with a valve from outside. We performed experiments with 9 combinations of 3 different temperatures, 278 K, 288 K and 297 K for sand and water, respectively, which are consistent with temperatures measured at the surface of Mars [4,5]. Water was released for a duration of ~60 s with a mean flow rate of 11 m s-1. We constantly monitored the sand temperature, water temperature, pressure, and humidity. The evolution of the test bed was recorded by cameras. We performed stereo-photogrammetry to produce digital elevation models and calculate the volumes of transported sand. 2. Experimental results From observational data it is clear that the intensity of boiling was mainly driven by sand temperature while water temperature had only a minor influence. As sand temperature increases, the total volume of sand transported is increased by a factor of ~9 [7] while for different water temperatures it is rather constant (Fig. 1) [8]. The volume attributable to different transport mechanisms changed as the sand temperature increased. At Ts = 278 K, the majority of the sand is transported by overland flow while at Ts ≥ 288 K the majority is transported by mechanisms associated with boiling water, i.e. ejected pellets (sand-water mixture) and dry processes (including sand ejection and avalanches). We observe that the gas ejected by the boiling water is strong enough to create an air cushion at the bottom of pellets leading to their downslope levitation rather than rolling as observed at Ts = 278 K. Additionally, the produced gas is also able to eject single sand particles and drive dry avalanches. Water temperature plays a role in the duration of these dry processes which are longer at lower water temperature [8]. Figure 1: Transported sediment volume versus (a) water temperature and (b) sand temperature [8]