The local perceptual bias of a non-remote and educated population

In 1977, Navon argued that perception is biased towards the processing of global as opposed to local visual information (or the forest before the trees) and implicitly assumed this to be true across places and cultures. Previous work with normally developing participants has supported this assumption except in one extremely remote African population. Here we explore local-global perceptual bias in normally developing African participants living much less remotely than the African population tested previously. These participants had access to modern artefacts and education but presented with a local bias on a similarity matching Navon task, contrary to Navon’s assumptions. Nevertheless, the urban and more educated amongst these participants showed a weaker local bias than the rural and less educated participants, suggesting an effect of urbanicity and education in driving differences in perceptual bias. Our findings confirm the impact of experience on perceptual bias and suggest that differences in the impact of education and urbanicity on lifestyles around the world can result in profound differences in perceptual style. In addition, they suggest that local bias is more common than previously thought; a global bias might not be universal after all

Improving working memory and pain inhibition in older persons using transcranial direct current stimulation

The aim of the present study was to examine whether transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) could enhance working memory and pain inhibition in older persons. Fifteen volunteers (7 women, 8 men; mean ± SD: 64 ± 4.4 y.o.) participated in two tDCS sessions during which an n-back task was performed with two levels of working memory load, while painful stimulation was delivered at the ankle. The experiment included five within-subject counterbalanced conditions (pain alone and 0-back or 2-back with or without pain) performed twice during each session. Compared with the pre-tDCS baseline, anodal tDCS decreased response times and improved pain inhibition by working memory in the 2-back condition (p 0.3). These results indicate that working memory and pain inhibition can be improved by tDCS in older persons. © 2019 Elsevier B.V. and Japan Neuroscience Societ

Enhancement of pain inhibition by working memory with anodal transcranial direct current stimulation of the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex

The aim of this study was to examine whether transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) enhances pain inhibition by improving working memory (WM). Forty healthy volunteers participated in two tDCS sessions. Pain was evoked by electrical stimulation at the ankle. Participants performed an n-back task (0-back and 2-back). The experimental protocol comprised five counterbalanced conditions (0-back, 2-back, pain, 0-back with pain and 2-back with pain) that were performed twice (pre-tDCS baseline and during tDCS). Compared with the pre-tDCS baseline values, anodal tDCS decreased response times for the 2-back condition (p  0.5). Anodal tDCS also decreased pain ratings marginally in the 2-back with pain condition, but not the 0-back with pain condition (p = 0.052 and p > 0.2, respectively). No effect was produced by sham tDCS for any condition (p > 0.2). These results indicate that tDCS of the left DLPFC may enhance pain inhibition by improving WM. © 2018, The Physiological Society of Japan and Springer Japan KK, part of Springer Nature

Dead wood gathering among Neanderthal groups: Charcoal evidence from Abric del Pastor and El Salt (Eastern Iberia)

We present here a new approach combining the microscopic characterization of fungal decay features and the fragmentation degree of the charcoal remains from Middle Palaeolithic combustion structures: features H4 and H11 from Abric del Pastor, unit IV (>75 ka BP) and features H50 and H57 from El Salt, unit Xb (ca. 52 ka BP), Eastern Iberia. The observation of wood degradation patterns that occurred prior to charring followed by their quantitative analysis according to previous experimental studies revealed differences between the alteration degrees of the firewood used in the hearths, highlighting the existence of firewood acquisition criteria based on dead wood gathering and also suggesting smoke-related functions. Coupled with fragmentation analyses, this method highlighted possible post-depositional processes affecting the higher degraded charcoals. These results lead us to propose a quantitative analysis of the fungal decay patterns on Middle Palaeolithic charcoal reinforcing the previous hypotheses about dead wood gathering among Neanderthal groups as an accessible and available resource in the surroundings. These data have significant implications for the interpretation of firewood use and management by Palaeolithic hunter-gatherers which was traditionally defined as an opportunistic activity according to the absence of selection criteria based on specific taxa

A united statement of the global chiropractic research community against the pseudoscientific claim that chiropractic care boosts immunity.

BACKGROUND: In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, the International Chiropractors Association (ICA) posted reports claiming that chiropractic care can impact the immune system. These claims clash with recommendations from the World Health Organization and World Federation of Chiropractic. We discuss the scientific validity of the claims made in these ICA reports. MAIN BODY: We reviewed the two reports posted by the ICA on their website on March 20 and March 28, 2020. We explored the method used to develop the claim that chiropractic adjustments impact the immune system and discuss the scientific merit of that claim. We provide a response to the ICA reports and explain why this claim lacks scientific credibility and is dangerous to the public. More than 150 researchers from 11 countries reviewed and endorsed our response. CONCLUSION: In their reports, the ICA provided no valid clinical scientific evidence that chiropractic care can impact the immune system. We call on regulatory authorities and professional leaders to take robust political and regulatory action against those claiming that chiropractic adjustments have a clinical impact on the immune system

The effect of emotion on interpretation and logic in a conditional reasoning task

The effect of emotional content on logical reasoning is explored in three experiments. The participants completed a conditional reasoning task (If p, then q) with emotional and neutral contents. In Experiment 1, existing emotional and neutral words were used. The emotional value of initially neutral words was experimentally manipulated in Experiments 1B and 2, using classical conditioning. In all experiments, participants were less likely to provide normatively correct answers when reasoning about emotional stimuli, compared with neutral stimuli. This was true for both negative (Experiments 1B & 2) and positive contents (Experiment 2). The participants' interpretations of the conditional statements were also measured (perceived sufficiency, necessity, causality, and plausibility). The results showed the expected relationship between interpretation and reasoning. However, emotion did not affect interpretation. Emotional and neutral conditional statements were interpreted similarly. The results are discussed in light of current models of emotion and reasoning. Copyright 2006 Psychonomic Society, Inc