Geometric reduction in optimal control theory with symmetries

A general study of symmetries in optimal control theory is given, starting from the presymplectic description of this kind of system. Then, Noether's theorem, as well as the corresponding reduction procedure (based on the application of the Marsden-Weinstein theorem adapted to the presymplectic case) are stated both in the regular and singular cases, which are previously described.Comment: 24 pages. LaTeX file. The paper has been reorganized. Additional comments have been included in Section 3. The example in Section 5.2 has been revisited. Some references have been adde

The effect of breakfast cereal consumption on adolescents’ cognitive performance and mood. Front Hum Neurosci (2013

The aim of the current study was to investigate the effect of breakfast consumption on cognitive performance and mood in adolescents, and any interaction that breakfast consumption might have with cognitive load. The rationale for this approach was that the beneficial effects of any intervention with regard to cognitive function may be more readily apparent when more demands are placed on the system. Furthermore, as skipping breakfast is particularly prevalent within this age group, thus, we focused on adolescents who habitually skip breakfast. Cognitive load was modulated by varying the level of difficulty of a series of cognitive tasks tapping memory, attention, and executive functions. Mood measured with Bond-Lader scales (1974) as well as measures of thirst, hunger, and satiety were recorded at each test session both at baseline and after the completion of each test battery. Forty adolescents (mean age = 14:2) participated in this within-subjects design study. According to treatment, all participants were tested before and after the intake of a low Glycaemic index breakfast (i.e., a 35 g portion of AllBran and 125 ml semi-skimmed milk) and before and after no breakfast consumption. Assessment time had two levels: 8.00 am (baseline) and 10.45 am. The orders of cognitive load tasks were counterbalanced. Overall it appeared that following breakfast participants felt more alert, satiated, and content. Following breakfast consumption, there was evidence for improved cognitive performance across the school morning compared to breakfast omission in some tasks (e.g., Hard Word Recall, Serial 3's and Serial 7's). However, whilst participants performance on the hard version of each cognitive task was significantly poorer compared to the corresponding easy version, there was limited evidence to support the hypothesis that the effect of breakfast was greater in the more demanding versions of the tasks. Keywords: adolescent, cognitive performance, breakfast, mood, cognitive load INTRODUCTION The importance of breakfast consumption in terms of nutritional benefits has been well documented In addition to physical health and nutritional benefits, cognitive scientists have investigated the effects of breakfast consumption on cognitive function and the specific cognitive processes that are affected. The majority of these studies have examined the effects of breakfast skipping in adults and children (typically 8-11 year olds). Several experimental studies have suggested that, in both adults and children, behavior and cognitive performance is improved after consumption of breakfast compared to omission of breakfast. For example, research has shown that breakfast is associated with short-term improvements to memory A number of nutritional mechanisms have been proposed in order to explain the effects of breakfast consumption and composition on cognitive function. For example, HUMAN NEUROSCIENCE Defeyter and Russo Breakfast cereal consumption in adolescents primarily as glucose is the only fuel that can be used directly by the brain. Whilst breakfast consumption/omission may not have a significant effect on low cognitive loads tasks, involving mostly information processing; high cognitive load tasks require an increase in the metabolic resources to successfully complete the task Overall, across studies there is emerging evidence that breakfast is beneficial in terms of self-report measures; although the effects of breakfast consumption on cognitive function in adolescents appear to be rather mixed. One possibility is that differences in the findings relating to cognitive function are a result of the different breakfasts provided. For example, Cooper et al. Unlike the aforementioned studies, the present study focused on adolescents who habitually skip breakfast as it has been found that skipping breakfast is particularly prevalent within this age group The aim of the current study was to investigate the effect of breakfast consumption on cognitive performance and mood and any interaction that breakfast consumption might have with differing levels of cognitive load in 13-15 years old using a randomized crossover design. The underlying rationale for this approach was that the beneficial effects of any intervention with regard to cognitive function may be more readily apparent when more demands are placed on the system. Following the recommendation of METHODS PARTICIPANTS Forty adolescents (mean age = 14:2, range 13:2-15:6 years; 21 females and 19 males) whom did not habitually consume breakfast participated. We intentionally sampled from a small age range as neuroanatomical studies have shown that young, middle, and late adolescents differ in brain maturation DESIGN The study was approved the Life Sciences Ethics Committee at Northumbria University. Participants were recruited through one school and in accordance with the British Psychological Society Code of Ethics. Written consent was obtained from the head teacher, parents or guardians, and pupils. The short-term effects of cereal consumption on cognition were investigated using a crossover design in which 40 adolescents were given a ready-toeat breakfast cereal or no breakfast cereal. According to treatment, all participants were provided with 35 g of Allbran (low GI breakfast cereal selected from an international table of glycaemic index; MEASURES The test battery comprised a series of computerized tasks derived from standard psychometric measures. All tasks were programmed in JAVA language and the timing of the test battery and reaction times were made independently of the computer's internal timing. The presentations of high and low cognitive load tasks were counterbalanced across participants. The tasks utilized in the current study comprised: Delayed Word recall; Choice reaction time; Rapid Visual Information Processing; Stroop; and Serial subtractions. In addition to the test battery, participants were asked to complete the Bond-Lader mood scale, and visual analog scales for thirst, hunger, and satiety. Delayed word recall Participants were presented with lists of 15 words taken from Choice reaction time Choice reaction time tasks is a widely used test of attention and has previously demonstrated sensitivity to the improvements and decrements seen in cognitive performance following a number of food components and dietary supplements. Fifty stimuli were presented with an inter-stimulus interval that varied randomly between 1 and 3.5 s. Accuracy and reaction times (ms) were recorded. The cognitive load of this task was modulated by presenting either two choices of response (low load) or four choices of response (high load). In the low cognitive load version of this task participants were required to press the "x" key on a computer keyboard as soon as they saw the letter "N" and the "?" key each time they saw the letter "M." In the high load version of this task participants were required to also press the "c" key as soon as they saw the letter "B" and the ">" key as soon as they saw the letter "V" presented on a computer screen. Rapid visual information processing task (RVIP) Participants were instructed to monitor a continuous series of digits for targets of three consecutive odd or three consecutive even digits. The participant responded to the detection of a target string by pressing a response key as quickly as possible. The task was continuous and lasted for 5 min, with 8 correct target strings being presented in each minute. Dependent variables include the number of target strings correctly detected (hits), number of false alarms, and reaction time for hits. The cognitive load of this task was modulated by altering the rate at which the digits were presented: 80 per min (low load) or 100 per min (high load). Stroop color-word test (Stroop, 1935) Participants were presented with words describing one of four colors ("RED," "YELLOW," "GREEN," "BLUE") on a computer screen. The cognitive load of this task was modulated by presenting either congruent (low load) or incongruent stimuli (high load). The participant was instructed to press the corresponding button as quickly as possible in order to identify the font color (e.g., if the word "Red" is presented in a blue font, the correct response would be to press the "blue" button). Serial subtractions A modified, 2 min, computerized version of the serial subtraction tests was utilized. In this task, participants were asked to count backwards in threes or sevens from the given randomly generated number, as quickly and accurately as possible, using the numeric keypad to enter each response. Participants were also instructed verbally that if they make a mistake they should carry on subtracting from the new incorrect number. Each three-digit response was entered via the numeric keypad with each digit being represented on screen by an asterisk. Pressing the "enter" key signals the end of each response and clears the three asterisks from the screen. The task was scored for total number of subtractions and number of errors. In the case of incorrect responses, subsequent responses were scored as positive if they were correct in relation to the new number. The cognitive load of this task was modulated by instructing participants to either subtract "threes" (low load) or "sevens" (high load). Mood (Bond and Lader, 1974) Mood was assessed with Bond-Lader scales following completion of the cognitive test battery. Scores from the 16 Bond-Lader visual analog scales were combined as recommended by the authors to form three mood factors: "alert," "calm" and "contentment." The scales were completed by participants placing a cross with the mouse and cursor on a 100 mm line displayed on a computer screen between the description "not at all" and "extremely" for each of the listed mood states (i.e., alert, content, and calm). Each mood factor was scored as a percentage along the line demoting more of the relevant adjective. Visual analog scales Hunger, Thirst and Satiety were assessed using visual analog scales (1-100; with 1 indicating the lowest levels). As in the Bond-Lader Mood Scales, participants completed the VAS by placing a cross with the mouse and cursor on a 100 mm line displayed on a computer screen. VAS were scored as percentage along the line denoting more of the relevant adjective. PROCEDURE All participants were tested in a quiet room within their High School. The researcher visited the school on three separate occasions and participants were tested individually on laptops. Each participant undertook a familiarization session which preceded the start of the main test phase of the study by 1 week. The purpose of each cognitive test was explained to participants and a demonstration given. Participants then completed the full battery of cognitive tests which lasted about 30 min. Throughout the familiarization phase, researchers were available to answer any questions. Participants also completed the Bond-Lader Mood Scales and VAS measuring hunger, thirst, and satiety. This enabled participants to become familiar with the test protocol. In this visit the researcher obtained participant's informed consent; and collected parental consent forms. Participants were also given a health screening questionnaire to be completed and signed both by the participant and their parents/guardian. Participant's height and body mass were also measured. These measures allowed the determination of BMI. In order to ensure confidentiality participants were provided with a stamped addressed envelope in which to return the questionnaire directly to the research team. Demographic data were collected and participants were randomly allocated to treatment conditions. Participants were reminded that, for the testing session, Defeyter and Russo Breakfast cereal consumption in adolescents they would need to arrive at their school for 8.00 am, having consumed no caffeine for at least 12 h previously and no food from midnight. Following standard protocol, the two testing visits took place 1 week apart DATA ANALYSIS Primary analyses consisted of repeated-measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) with two within-subjects variables: breakfast trial (breakfast vs. no breakfast) and time (pre-vs. post-breakfast consumption). This type of analysis was applied to each dependent variable used in the study. Moreover, in the case of cognitive tasks, this analysis was applied first to the low cognitive load and then to the high cognitive load condition. Further analyses to assess any differential effect of the cognitive load variable were conducted only if there was at least a significant breakfast by time interaction either at the low or at the high level of load version of the task being considered. A significance level of 0.05 was used through the study and effect sizes (partial-η 2 -indicated in the text simply as η 2 ) were reported for F ratios larger than one. As a rule of thumb partial-η 2 of the following magnitudes: 0.01, 0.06, 0.14, correspond to small, medium, and large effect sizes, respectively. For each ANOVA, the outcome of the interaction between breakfast trial by time is reported first, followed by the main effects. For each measure of cognitive function, mood, thirst, hunger and satiety, preliminary analyses had been conducted to ascertain whether there was any significant effect of either gender or trial order. Since these factors did not have any significant effect, data had been collapsed across gender and trial order in all subsequent analysis. Factorial repeated withinsubjects and mixed models ANOVAs were conducted using SPSS version 18. Further preliminary analyses were conducted to test if there was any significant difference at baseline (i.e., the first measurement of the morning) between breakfast and no breakfast conditions for each dependent variable used. The only significant difference emerged in the Serial 3's task. However, given the large amount of pair-wise comparisons being performed this significant difference may simply reflect a Type 1 statistical error. RESULTS SELF REPORT MEASURES Alertness Analysis revealed a significant and a rather large effect of the breakfast by time interaction [F (1, 39) Calm The analysis on self-report measure of calmness showed a significant breakfast by time interaction [F (1, 39) = 5.96, p < 0.05, η 2 = 0.133]. All participants reported feeling less calm across time, although this effect was far more pronounced in the no breakfast trials (63.10 vs. 55.16) compared to the breakfast trials (64.21 vs. 63.12). There were also significant main effect of breakfast [F (1, 39) = 11.21, p < 0.05, η 2 = 0.223; 63.7 vs. 59.1 for breakfast and no breakfast conditions, respectively]; and a significant main effect of time [F (1, 39) = 6.96, p < 0.05, η 2 = 0.152; 63.7 vs. 59.1 for pre and post breakfast conditions, respectively]. Contentment The analysis revealed a significant and a rather large effect of the interaction between breakfast and time [F (1, 39) = 9.53, p < 0.05, η 2 = 0.196], with participants in the breakfast trials reporting a greater level of contentment later in the morning (55.4 vs. 61.6), whilst participants in the no breakfast trials reported lower level of contentment later in the morning (53.9 vs. 51.4). There was no significant main effect of time [F (1, 39) = 1.54, p > 0.05, η 2 = 0.038], but there was a significant main effect of breakfast [F (1, 39) = 14.34, p < 0.05, η 2 = 0.269; 58.5 vs. 52.7 for breakfast and no breakfast conditions, respectively]. Hunger There was a significant breakfast by time interaction [F (1, 39) DELAYED WORD RECALL Easy word recall Participants performance on all of the cognitive tasks are reported in Hard word recall There was a significant and substantially large effect of the breakfast by time interaction [F (1, 39) = 13.96, p < 0.05, η 2 = 0.264]. Participants recalled more correct words in the breakfast trials across the school morning (50.33 vs. 54.08) compared to the no breakfast trials under which performance decreased (51.7 vs. 44.0). There was a significant effect of breakfast [F (1, 39) = 5.73, p < 0.05, η 2 = 0.128] and no significant main effect of time (F < 1). When easy and hard tasks were compared it appeared that there was, as expected, a significant and very large effect of difficulty, [F (1, 39) = 70.83, p < 0.05, η 2 = 0.645], indicating that more words were recalled in the easy (63.58) than in the hard condition (50.04). More interestingly the three-way interaction was significant and rather large in terms of the magnitude of the size of its effect, [F (1, 39) = 12.68, p < 0.05, η 2 = 0.245], indicating that differences in performance in favor of the breakfast condition emerged only when the recall task was made harder

The effect of breakfast cereal consumption on adolescents’ cognitive performance and mood. Front Hum Neurosci (2013

The aim of the current study was to investigate the effect of breakfast consumption on cognitive performance and mood in adolescents, and any interaction that breakfast consumption might have with cognitive load. The rationale for this approach was that the beneficial effects of any intervention with regard to cognitive function may be more readily apparent when more demands are placed on the system. Furthermore, as skipping breakfast is particularly prevalent within this age group, thus, we focused on adolescents who habitually skip breakfast. Cognitive load was modulated by varying the level of difficulty of a series of cognitive tasks tapping memory, attention, and executive functions. Mood measured with Bond-Lader scales (1974) as well as measures of thirst, hunger, and satiety were recorded at each test session both at baseline and after the completion of each test battery. Forty adolescents (mean age = 14:2) participated in this within-subjects design study. According to treatment, all participants were tested before and after the intake of a low Glycaemic index breakfast (i.e., a 35 g portion of AllBran and 125 ml semi-skimmed milk) and before and after no breakfast consumption. Assessment time had two levels: 8.00 am (baseline) and 10.45 am. The orders of cognitive load tasks were counterbalanced. Overall it appeared that following breakfast participants felt more alert, satiated, and content. Following breakfast consumption, there was evidence for improved cognitive performance across the school morning compared to breakfast omission in some tasks (e.g., Hard Word Recall, Serial 3's and Serial 7's). However, whilst participants performance on the hard version of each cognitive task was significantly poorer compared to the corresponding easy version, there was limited evidence to support the hypothesis that the effect of breakfast was greater in the more demanding versions of the tasks. Keywords: adolescent, cognitive performance, breakfast, mood, cognitive load INTRODUCTION The importance of breakfast consumption in terms of nutritional benefits has been well documented In addition to physical health and nutritional benefits, cognitive scientists have investigated the effects of breakfast consumption on cognitive function and the specific cognitive processes that are affected. The majority of these studies have examined the effects of breakfast skipping in adults and children (typically 8-11 year olds). Several experimental studies have suggested that, in both adults and children, behavior and cognitive performance is improved after consumption of breakfast compared to omission of breakfast. For example, research has shown that breakfast is associated with short-term improvements to memory A number of nutritional mechanisms have been proposed in order to explain the effects of breakfast consumption and composition on cognitive function. For example, HUMAN NEUROSCIENCE Defeyter and Russo Breakfast cereal consumption in adolescents primarily as glucose is the only fuel that can be used directly by the brain. Whilst breakfast consumption/omission may not have a significant effect on low cognitive loads tasks, involving mostly information processing; high cognitive load tasks require an increase in the metabolic resources to successfully complete the task Overall, across studies there is emerging evidence that breakfast is beneficial in terms of self-report measures; although the effects of breakfast consumption on cognitive function in adolescents appear to be rather mixed. One possibility is that differences in the findings relating to cognitive function are a result of the different breakfasts provided. For example, Cooper et al. Unlike the aforementioned studies, the present study focused on adolescents who habitually skip breakfast as it has been found that skipping breakfast is particularly prevalent within this age group The aim of the current study was to investigate the effect of breakfast consumption on cognitive performance and mood and any interaction that breakfast consumption might have with differing levels of cognitive load in 13-15 years old using a randomized crossover design. The underlying rationale for this approach was that the beneficial effects of any intervention with regard to cognitive function may be more readily apparent when more demands are placed on the system. Following the recommendation of METHODS PARTICIPANTS Forty adolescents (mean age = 14:2, range 13:2-15:6 years; 21 females and 19 males) whom did not habitually consume breakfast participated. We intentionally sampled from a small age range as neuroanatomical studies have shown that young, middle, and late adolescents differ in brain maturation DESIGN The study was approved the Life Sciences Ethics Committee at Northumbria University. Participants were recruited through one school and in accordance with the British Psychological Society Code of Ethics. Written consent was obtained from the head teacher, parents or guardians, and pupils. The short-term effects of cereal consumption on cognition were investigated using a crossover design in which 40 adolescents were given a ready-toeat breakfast cereal or no breakfast cereal. According to treatment, all participants were provided with 35 g of Allbran (low GI breakfast cereal selected from an international table of glycaemic index; MEASURES The test battery comprised a series of computerized tasks derived from standard psychometric measures. All tasks were programmed in JAVA language and the timing of the test battery and reaction times were made independently of the computer's internal timing. The presentations of high and low cognitive load tasks were counterbalanced across participants. The tasks utilized in the current study comprised: Delayed Word recall; Choice reaction time; Rapid Visual Information Processing; Stroop; and Serial subtractions. In addition to the test battery, participants were asked to complete the Bond-Lader mood scale, and visual analog scales for thirst, hunger, and satiety. Delayed word recall Participants were presented with lists of 15 words taken from Choice reaction time Choice reaction time tasks is a widely used test of attention and has previously demonstrated sensitivity to the improvements and decrements seen in cognitive performance following a number of food components and dietary supplements. Fifty stimuli were presented with an inter-stimulus interval that varied randomly between 1 and 3.5 s. Accuracy and reaction times (ms) were recorded. The cognitive load of this task was modulated by presenting either two choices of response (low load) or four choices of response (high load). In the low cognitive load version of this task participants were required to press the "x" key on a computer keyboard as soon as they saw the letter "N" and the "?" key each time they saw the letter "M." In the high load version of this task participants were required to also press the "c" key as soon as they saw the letter "B" and the ">" key as soon as they saw the letter "V" presented on a computer screen. Rapid visual information processing task (RVIP) Participants were instructed to monitor a continuous series of digits for targets of three consecutive odd or three consecutive even digits. The participant responded to the detection of a target string by pressing a response key as quickly as possible. The task was continuous and lasted for 5 min, with 8 correct target strings being presented in each minute. Dependent variables include the number of target strings correctly detected (hits), number of false alarms, and reaction time for hits. The cognitive load of this task was modulated by altering the rate at which the digits were presented: 80 per min (low load) or 100 per min (high load). Stroop color-word test (Stroop, 1935) Participants were presented with words describing one of four colors ("RED," "YELLOW," "GREEN," "BLUE") on a computer screen. The cognitive load of this task was modulated by presenting either congruent (low load) or incongruent stimuli (high load). The participant was instructed to press the corresponding button as quickly as possible in order to identify the font color (e.g., if the word "Red" is presented in a blue font, the correct response would be to press the "blue" button). Serial subtractions A modified, 2 min, computerized version of the serial subtraction tests was utilized. In this task, participants were asked to count backwards in threes or sevens from the given randomly generated number, as quickly and accurately as possible, using the numeric keypad to enter each response. Participants were also instructed verbally that if they make a mistake they should carry on subtracting from the new incorrect number. Each three-digit response was entered via the numeric keypad with each digit being represented on screen by an asterisk. Pressing the "enter" key signals the end of each response and clears the three asterisks from the screen. The task was scored for total number of subtractions and number of errors. In the case of incorrect responses, subsequent responses were scored as positive if they were correct in relation to the new number. The cognitive load of this task was modulated by instructing participants to either subtract "threes" (low load) or "sevens" (high load). Mood (Bond and Lader, 1974) Mood was assessed with Bond-Lader scales following completion of the cognitive test battery. Scores from the 16 Bond-Lader visual analog scales were combined as recommended by the authors to form three mood factors: "alert," "calm" and "contentment." The scales were completed by participants placing a cross with the mouse and cursor on a 100 mm line displayed on a computer screen between the description "not at all" and "extremely" for each of the listed mood states (i.e., alert, content, and calm). Each mood factor was scored as a percentage along the line demoting more of the relevant adjective. Visual analog scales Hunger, Thirst and Satiety were assessed using visual analog scales (1-100; with 1 indicating the lowest levels). As in the Bond-Lader Mood Scales, participants completed the VAS by placing a cross with the mouse and cursor on a 100 mm line displayed on a computer screen. VAS were scored as percentage along the line denoting more of the relevant adjective. PROCEDURE All participants were tested in a quiet room within their High School. The researcher visited the school on three separate occasions and participants were tested individually on laptops. Each participant undertook a familiarization session which preceded the start of the main test phase of the study by 1 week. The purpose of each cognitive test was explained to participants and a demonstration given. Participants then completed the full battery of cognitive tests which lasted about 30 min. Throughout the familiarization phase, researchers were available to answer any questions. Participants also completed the Bond-Lader Mood Scales and VAS measuring hunger, thirst, and satiety. This enabled participants to become familiar with the test protocol. In this visit the researcher obtained participant's informed consent; and collected parental consent forms. Participants were also given a health screening questionnaire to be completed and signed both by the participant and their parents/guardian. Participant's height and body mass were also measured. These measures allowed the determination of BMI. In order to ensure confidentiality participants were provided with a stamped addressed envelope in which to return the questionnaire directly to the research team. Demographic data were collected and participants were randomly allocated to treatment conditions. Participants were reminded that, for the testing session, Defeyter and Russo Breakfast cereal consumption in adolescents they would need to arrive at their school for 8.00 am, having consumed no caffeine for at least 12 h previously and no food from midnight. Following standard protocol, the two testing visits took place 1 week apart DATA ANALYSIS Primary analyses consisted of repeated-measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) with two within-subjects variables: breakfast trial (breakfast vs. no breakfast) and time (pre-vs. post-breakfast consumption). This type of analysis was applied to each dependent variable used in the study. Moreover, in the case of cognitive tasks, this analysis was applied first to the low cognitive load and then to the high cognitive load condition. Further analyses to assess any differential effect of the cognitive load variable were conducted only if there was at least a significant breakfast by time interaction either at the low or at the high level of load version of the task being considered. A significance level of 0.05 was used through the study and effect sizes (partial-η 2 -indicated in the text simply as η 2 ) were reported for F ratios larger than one. As a rule of thumb partial-η 2 of the following magnitudes: 0.01, 0.06, 0.14, correspond to small, medium, and large effect sizes, respectively. For each ANOVA, the outcome of the interaction between breakfast trial by time is reported first, followed by the main effects. For each measure of cognitive function, mood, thirst, hunger and satiety, preliminary analyses had been conducted to ascertain whether there was any significant effect of either gender or trial order. Since these factors did not have any significant effect, data had been collapsed across gender and trial order in all subsequent analysis. Factorial repeated withinsubjects and mixed models ANOVAs were conducted using SPSS version 18. Further preliminary analyses were conducted to test if there was any significant difference at baseline (i.e., the first measurement of the morning) between breakfast and no breakfast conditions for each dependent variable used. The only significant difference emerged in the Serial 3's task. However, given the large amount of pair-wise comparisons being performed this significant difference may simply reflect a Type 1 statistical error. RESULTS SELF REPORT MEASURES Alertness Analysis revealed a significant and a rather large effect of the breakfast by time interaction [F (1, 39) Calm The analysis on self-report measure of calmness showed a significant breakfast by time interaction [F (1, 39) = 5.96, p < 0.05, η 2 = 0.133]. All participants reported feeling less calm across time, although this effect was far more pronounced in the no breakfast trials (63.10 vs. 55.16) compared to the breakfast trials (64.21 vs. 63.12). There were also significant main effect of breakfast [F (1, 39) = 11.21, p < 0.05, η 2 = 0.223; 63.7 vs. 59.1 for breakfast and no breakfast conditions, respectively]; and a significant main effect of time [F (1, 39) = 6.96, p < 0.05, η 2 = 0.152; 63.7 vs. 59.1 for pre and post breakfast conditions, respectively]. Contentment The analysis revealed a significant and a rather large effect of the interaction between breakfast and time [F (1, 39) = 9.53, p < 0.05, η 2 = 0.196], with participants in the breakfast trials reporting a greater level of contentment later in the morning (55.4 vs. 61.6), whilst participants in the no breakfast trials reported lower level of contentment later in the morning (53.9 vs. 51.4). There was no significant main effect of time [F (1, 39) = 1.54, p > 0.05, η 2 = 0.038], but there was a significant main effect of breakfast [F (1, 39) = 14.34, p < 0.05, η 2 = 0.269; 58.5 vs. 52.7 for breakfast and no breakfast conditions, respectively]. Hunger There was a significant breakfast by time interaction [F (1, 39) DELAYED WORD RECALL Easy word recall Participants performance on all of the cognitive tasks are reported in Hard word recall There was a significant and substantially large effect of the breakfast by time interaction [F (1, 39) = 13.96, p < 0.05, η 2 = 0.264]. Participants recalled more correct words in the breakfast trials across the school morning (50.33 vs. 54.08) compared to the no breakfast trials under which performance decreased (51.7 vs. 44.0). There was a significant effect of breakfast [F (1, 39) = 5.73, p < 0.05, η 2 = 0.128] and no significant main effect of time (F < 1). When easy and hard tasks were compared it appeared that there was, as expected, a significant and very large effect of difficulty, [F (1, 39) = 70.83, p < 0.05, η 2 = 0.645], indicating that more words were recalled in the easy (63.58) than in the hard condition (50.04). More interestingly the three-way interaction was significant and rather large in terms of the magnitude of the size of its effect, [F (1, 39) = 12.68, p < 0.05, η 2 = 0.245], indicating that differences in performance in favor of the breakfast condition emerged only when the recall task was made harder

Parsing partially bracketed input

with structural information (brackets). Parsing partially bracketed strings arises naturally in several cases. One interesting application is semi-automatic treebank construction. Another application is parsing of input strings which are first annotated by a NP-chunker. Three ways of annotating an input string with structure information are introduced: identifying a complete constituent by using a pair of round brackets, identifying the start or the end of a constituent by using square brackets and identifying the type of a constituent by subscripting the brackets with the type. If an input string is annotated with structural information and is parsed with the BCFG, the number of generated parse trees can be reduced. Only parse trees are generated which comply with the indicated structure. An important non-trivial property of the proposed transformation is that it does not generate spurious ambiguous parse trees.

Thermal and non-thermal processing technologies on intrinsic and extrinsic quality factors of tomato products: A review

Tomato and tomato-based products play a vital role in human diet due to the presence of bioactive compounds. The conventional heat treatment is designed as a current practice in tomato products industry to ensure food safety but it can lead to undesirable changes both in the nutritional and in the sensory properties of the products. In order to avoid these unfavorable changes during the heat treatment, novel thermal, and non-thermal processing technologies have been receiving much attention with the aim of improving and replacing conventionally processed products. Among them, some of the most promising technologies of high pressure processing, pulsed electric fields, and power ultrasound in comparison to conventional thermal processing technologies are highlighted in this article. This review presents recent scientific information on impact of these technologies on physico-chemical, organoleptic, and microbial properties of tomato-based products. Furthermore, it analyses and discusses the opportunities and drawbacks in commercial applications. Practical applications: The preservation of tomato and tomato products is of primary interest for the food industry. Several novel thermal and non-thermal technologies—discussed in this review—could be utilized for the production of high quality tomato-based products. These technologies are increasingly attracting the attention of food processors as they efficiently provide products with extended shelf life and higher quantities of labile bioactive compounds when compared to conventionally processed products