Lateral orbitofrontal cortex anticipates choices and integrates prior with current information

Adaptive behavior requires integrating prior with current information to anticipate upcoming events. Brain structures related to this computation should bring relevant signals from the recent past into the present. Here we report that rats can integrate the most recent prior information with sensory information, thereby improving behavior on a perceptual decision-making task with outcome-dependent past trial history. We find that anticipatory signals in the orbitofrontal cortex about upcoming choice increase over time and are even present before stimulus onset. These neuronal signals also represent the stimulus and relevant second-order combinations of past state variables. The encoding of choice, stimulus and second-order past state variables resides, up to movement onset, in overlapping populations. The neuronal representation of choice before stimulus onset and its build-up once the stimulus is presented suggest that orbitofrontal cortex plays a role in transforming immediate prior and stimulus information into choices using a compact state-space representation

A Foundation for the Study of Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning Requiring Immersive Presence (CSCLIP) For Next Generation Elearning

The dramatic increase in distance learning (DL) enrollments in higher education is likely to continue. However, research on DL that includes psychomotor, cognitive, and affective skills is virtually non-existent. Indeed, DL for psychomotor skills has been viewed as impossible. Laboratory coursework, which we define as including learning of psychomotor, cognitive, and affective skills, has become a limiting factor in the growth of DL. What is needed is a synergistic integration of technologies and Human-Computer Interface (HCI) principles from Computer Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL), collaborative learning systems, and immersive presence technologies to enable achievement of psychomotor learning objectives. This paper defines the Computer Supported Collaborative Learning requiring Immersive Presence (CSCLIP) research area, provides a theoretical foundation for CSCLIP, and develops an agenda for research in CSCLIP to establish a foundation for the study of this emerging area. It also briefly describes a CSCLIP-based telecommunications lab currently under development. CSCLIP is presented as a major research opportunity for IS researchers interested in empirical research as well as technical development

Differentiating CPE from training: Reconsidering terms, boundaries, and economic factors

The differences between continuing professional education (cpe) and training are examined by presenting a systems view of the factors that make cpe different from training. The authors analyze these differences by discussing scope, stakeholders, control, and occupational mobility. These factors provide a framework for examining differences between cpe and training from an economic perspective. The authors review economic rationales for cpe and discuss how existing training evaluation concepts, such as cost-benefit analysis and return on investment may be adapted to the specific characteristics of cpe. They end by reflecting on the possibilities that the proposed approach offers and list a number of recommendations for further research