The neural basis of responsibility attribution in decision-making

Social responsibility links personal behavior with societal expectations and plays a key role in affecting an agent's emotional state following a decision. However, the neural basis of responsibility attribution remains unclear. In two previous event-related brain potential (ERP) studies we found that personal responsibility modulated outcome evaluation in gambling tasks. Here we conducted a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study to identify particular brain regions that mediate responsibility attribution. In a context involving team cooperation, participants completed a task with their teammates and on each trial received feedback about team success and individual success sequentially. We found that brain activity differed between conditions involving team success vs. team failure. Further, different brain regions were associated with reinforcement of behavior by social praise vs. monetary reward. Specifically, right temporoparietal junction (RTPJ) was associated with social pride whereas dorsal striatum and dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) were related to reinforcement of behaviors leading to personal gain. The present study provides evidence that the RTPJ is an important region for determining whether self-generated behaviors are deserving of praise in a social context

Above 400 K Robust Perpendicular Ferromagnetic Phase in a Topological Insulator

The quantum anomalous Hall effect (QAHE) that emerges under broken time-reversal symmetry in topological insulators (TI) exhibits many fascinating physical properties for potential applications in nano-electronics and spintronics. However, in transition-metal doped TI, the only experimentally demonstrated QAHE system to date, the effect is lost at practically relevant temperatures. This constraint is imposed by the relatively low Curie temperature (Tc) and inherent spin disorder associated with the random magnetic dopants. Here we demonstrate drastically enhanced Tc by exchange coupling TI to Tm3Fe5O12, a high-Tc magnetic insulator with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy. Signatures that the TI surface states acquire robust ferromagnetism are revealed by distinct squared anomalous Hall hysteresis loops at 400 K. Point-contact Andreev reflection spectroscopy confirms that the TI surface is indeed spin-polarized. The greatly enhanced Tc, absence of spin disorder, and perpendicular anisotropy are all essential to the occurrence of the QAHE at high temperatures

Floquet Engineering of Nonequilibrium Valley-Polarized Quantum Anomalous Hall Effect with Tunable Chern Number

Numerous attempts have been made so far to explore the quantum anomalous Hall effect (QAHE), but the ultralow observed temperature strongly hinders its practical applications. Hence, it is of great interest to go beyond the existing paradigm of QAHE. Here, we propose that Floquet engineering offers a strategy to realize the QAHE via hybridization of Floquet-Bloch bands. Based on first-principles calculations and Floquet theorem, we unveil that nonequilibrium valley-polarized QAHE (VP-QAHE), independent of magnetic orders, is widely present in ferromagnetic and nonmagnetic members of two-dimensional family materials $M$Si$_2$$Z_4$ ($M$ = Mo, W, V; $Z$ = N, P, As) by irradiating circularly polarized light (CPL). Remarkably, by tuning the frequency, intensity, and handedness of incident CPL, the Chern number of VP-QAHE is highly tunable and up to $\mathcal{C}=\pm 4$. We reveal that such Chern number tunable VP-QAHE attributes to light-induced trigonal warping and multiple band inversion at different valleys. The valley-resolved chiral edge states and quantized plateau of Hall conductance, which facilitates the experimental measurement, are visible inside the global band gap. Our work not only establishes Floquet Engineering of nonequilibrium VP-QAHE with tunable Chern number in realistic materials, but also provides a promising avenue to explore emergent topological phases under light irradiation.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure

High Self-Control Reduces Risk Preference: The Role of Connectivity Between Right Orbitofrontal Cortex and Right Anterior Cingulate Cortex

Risk preference, the preference for risky choices over safe alternatives, has a great impact on many fields, such as physical health, sexual safety and financial decision making. Ample behavioral research has attested that inadequate self-control can give rise to high risk preference. However, little is known about the neural substrates underlying the effect of self-control on risk preference. To address this issue, we combined voxel-based morphometry (VBM) with resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) analyses to explore the neural basis underlying the effect of self-control on risk preference across two independent samples. In sample 1 (99 participants; 47 males; 20.37 ± 1.63 years), the behavioral results indicated that the scores of self-control were significantly and negatively correlated with risk preference (indexed by gambling rate). The VBM analyses demonstrated that the higher risk preference was correlated with smaller gray matter volumes in right orbitofrontal cortex (rOFC) and right posterior parietal cortex. In the independent sample 2 (80 participants; 33 males; 20.33 ± 1.83 years), the RSFC analyses ascertained that the functional connectivity of rOFC and right anterior cingulate cortex (rACC) was positively associated with risk preference. Furthermore, the mediation analysis identified that self-control mediated the impact of functional connectivity of rOFC-rACC on risk preference. These findings suggest the functional coupling between the rOFC and rACC might account for the association between self-control and risk preference. The present study extends our understanding on the relationship between self-control and risk preference, and reveals possible neural underpinnings underlying this association

Near-Room-Temperature Field-Controllable Exchange Bias in 2D van der Waals Ferromagnet Fe3GaTe2

Exchange bias (EB) is a cornerstone of modern magnetic memory and sensing technologies. Its extension to the realm of two-dimensional (2D) van der Waals (vdW) magnets holds promise for revolutionary advancements in miniaturized and efficient atomic spintronic devices. However, the blocking temperature of EB in 2D vdW magnets is currently well below room temperature ~130 K. This study reports a robust EB phenomenon in Fe3GaTe2 thin-layer devices, which significantly increases the blocking temperature to a near-room-temperature record of 280 K. Both the bias direction and magnitude can be isothermally tuned by adjusting the field sweep range, in striking contrast to the conventional EB in ferromagnetic/antiferromagnetic (FM/AFM) bilayers. We propose an exchange spring model in which crystal defects with higher coercivity act as the pivotal pinning source for the observed EB phenomenon, deviating from the conventional FM/AFM interface mechanism. Cumulative growth of minor loops and multiple magnetization reversal paths are observed in field cycles below the saturation field, consistent with the hard FM defects behavior of our exchange spring model. These findings provide insights into the complex magnetic order in 2D ferromagnets and open new avenues for developing practical ultrathin vdW spintronic devices with EB-like properties at room temperature.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figure

Superconducting Diode Effect and Large Magnetochiral Anisotropy in Td_d-MoTe2_2 Thin Film

In the absence of time-reversal invariance, metals without inversion symmetry may exhibit nonreciprocal charge transport -- a magnetochiral anisotropy that manifests as unequal electrical resistance for opposite current flow directions. If superconductivity also sets in, the charge transmission may become dissipationless in one direction while remaining dissipative in the opposite, thereby realizing a superconducting diode. Through both direct-current and alternating-current measurements, we study the nonreciprocal effects in thin films of the noncentrosymmetric superconductor T$_d$-MoTe\textsubscript{2} with disorders. We observe nonreciprocal superconducting critical currents with a diode efficiency close to 20\%~, and a large magnetochiral anisotropy coefficient up to \SI{5.9e8}{\per\tesla\per\ampere}, under weak out-of-plane magnetic field in the millitesla range. The great enhancement of rectification efficiency under out-of-plane magnetic field is likely abscribed to the vortex ratchet effect, which naturally appears in the noncentrosymmetric superconductor with disorders. Intriguingly, unlike the finding in Rashba systems, the strongest in-plane nonreciprocal effect does not occur when the field is perpendicular to the current flow direction. We develop a phenomenological theory to demonstrate that this peculiar behavior can be attributed to the asymmetric structure of spin-orbit coupling in T$_d$-MoTe\textsubscript{2}. Our study highlights how the crystallographic symmetry critically impacts the nonreciprocal transport, and would further advance the research for designing the superconducting diode with the best performance.Comment: 7 pages, 5figure

Treatment effects of fibrinogen concentrates vs. cryoprecipitate for correcting hypofibrinogenemia in cardiac surgery patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BackgroundHypofibrinogenemia in cardiac surgery increases bleeding risk, but the efficacy and safety of fibrinogen concentrate vs. cryoprecipitate remain unclear. This meta-analysis compares the patient-important outcomes associated with the use of fibrinogen concentrate vs. cryoprecipitate for the management of acquired hypofibrinogenemia in cardiac surgery.MethodsMedline, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Transfusion Evidence Library were searched from their inception until June 2024. Eligible studies included randomized clinical trials (RCTs). Effect estimates were synthesized using risk ratios (RR) and standardized mean differences (SMD), along with their corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs).ResultsWe analyzed 4 RCTs (945 participants: 823 adults, 122 children) comparing fibrinogen concentrate with cryoprecipitate undergoing cardiac surgery. Meta-analysis showed no difference in mortality (RR = 1.25, 95% CI: 0.79–1.96; moderate GRADE), blood loss (SMD = −0.14, 95% CI: −0.46–0.18), transfusion rates (blood cells: RR = 0.98, 0.77–1.26; platelets: RR = 0.17, 0.02–1.40; fresh frozen plasma: RR = 0.48, 0.16–1.45; cryoprecipitate: RR = 1.02, 0.58–1.81), infections (RR = 0.91, 0.64–1.28), volume overload (RR = 1.95, 0.18–21.34), transfusion reactions (RR = 0.98, 0.06–15.54), or postoperative thrombosis (RR = 0.76, 0.47–1.22). No allergic reactions were reported. Subgroup analysis revealed substantial heterogeneity (I2 = 0% to 98%) in most outcome measures between adults and children. Using the GRADE criteria, we assessed the quality of the evidence for mortality as moderate, whereas the quality of evidence for other outcomes was judged to be low.ConclusionsFor patients undergoing cardiac surgery who experience clinically significant bleeding and hypofibrinogenemia, the available trial data provide moderate evidence that fibrinogen concentrate, compared to cryoprecipitate, does not increase the short-term risk of all-cause mortality. However, for the rate of transfusion of allogeneic or individual blood components, and adverse events, the existing evidence is of low certainty. Given the relatively small sample size, the group of children may not be representative of all children.Systematic Review Registration(https://www.who.int/clinical-trials-registry-platform), identifier CRD42023421670

Subclinical Psychiatric Symptomatology and a Proposed Diagnostic Criterion Separating Psychopathological Procrastinators From Trait Procrastinators.

Procrastination trait describes irrational delays of scheduled tasks despite clear awareness of the adverse consequences of doing so. Although procrastination is well-known to be linked to psychiatric or pathological processes, the criterion for "psychopathological procrastination" distinguishing from the procrastination trait is understudied. This is a 5-year longitudinal observational study. Participants (N = 464) completed measures of trait procrastination in 2018, with a follow-up conducted in 2023 (N = 267) collecting subclinical symptomatology. A constrained multivariate direct gradient model (cmDGM) was employed to prospectively predict subclinical psychiatric symptomatology formulated by the DSM-5 framework. The two-stage psychopathological connectome model was then constructed to constitute a "diagnostic criterion" reflecting "psychopathological procrastination." Procrastination prospectively predicted subclinical psychopathological symptoms and unhealthy lifestyles. Subclinical bridge hubs of "failure to self-regulate delays," "failure to control adverse consequences," "useless to self-change," "out-of-control irruptions," "poor sleep quality," and "negative emotional reactions" were identified in the two-stage psychopathological network. These hubs constituted the 9-item pathological procrastination diagnostic criterion (3PDC) with good diagnostic performance (AUC = 0.82, p < 0.01). The present study revealed the predictive role of procrastination for subclinical psychiatric symptomatology and further established the subclinical 3PDC to lay the foundation for the "diagnostics of psychopathological procrastinators." [Abstract copyright: © 2025 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

A longitudinal resource for population neuroscience of school-age children and adolescents in China

During the past decade, cognitive neuroscience has been calling for population diversity to address the challenge of validity and generalizability, ushering in a new era of population neuroscience. The developing Chinese Color Nest Project (devCCNP, 2013–2022), the first ten-year stage of the lifespan CCNP (2013–2032), is a two-stages project focusing on brain-mind development. The project aims to create and share a large-scale, longitudinal and multimodal dataset of typically developing children and adolescents (ages 6.0–17.9 at enrolment) in the Chinese population. The devCCNP houses not only phenotypes measured by demographic, biophysical, psychological and behavioural, cognitive, affective, and ocular-tracking assessments but also neurotypes measured with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of brain morphometry, resting-state function, naturalistic viewing function and diffusion structure. This Data Descriptor introduces the first data release of devCCNP including a total of 864 visits from 479 participants. Herein, we provided details of the experimental design, sampling strategies, and technical validation of the devCCNP resource. We demonstrate and discuss the potential of a multicohort longitudinal design to depict normative brain growth curves from the perspective of developmental population neuroscience. The devCCNP resource is shared as part of the “Chinese Data-sharing Warehouse for In-vivo Imaging Brain” in the Chinese Color Nest Project (CCNP) – Lifespan Brain-Mind Development Data Community (https://ccnp.scidb.cn) at the Science Data Bank