Encoding of temporal probabilities in the human brain

Anticipating the timing of future events is a necessary precursor to preparing actions and allocating resources to sensory processing. This requires elapsed time to be represented in the brain and used to predict the temporal probability of upcoming events. While neuropsychological, imaging, magnetic stimulation studies, and single-unit recordings implicate the role of higher parietal and motor-related areas in temporal estimation, the role of earlier, purely sensory structures remains more controversial. Here we demonstrate that the temporal probability of expected visual events is encoded not by a single area but by a wide network that importantly includes neuronal populations at the very earliest cortical stages of visual processing. Moreover, we show that activity in those areas changes dynamically in a manner that closely accords with temporal expectations

The Effects Of Unions On Wages By Occupation In The Public Sector

This study examines union wage premiums by occupation in the public sector in the U.S. for the 2000-2004 period.  In examining union-nonunion wage differences for public sector workers in occupations accounting for 66 percent of all public workers in the 2000-2004 Current Population Survey, we find positive and statistically significant union premiums for 27 out of 41 occupations examined.  We also find large differences among occupations, with miscellaneous teachers and instructors receiving a 61 percent premium, secretaries and administrative assistants receiving a 5 percent premium, and 14 occupations receiving no statistically significant premium.  In comparing union premiums by occupation between the private and public sectors, we find, in most cases, that private sector premiums are larger than public sector premiums.  Finally, an Oaxaca decomposition shows that the majority of the differential between private sector union premiums and public sector union premiums appears to be due to differences in the way unions reward workers in the private and public sectors, not because of differences in the types of workers in the private and public sectors

Death Anxiety, Reliability, Validity, and Factorial Structure of the Farsi Form of the Arabic Scale of Death Anxiety in Iranian Old-Aged Persons

The present study is aimed at examining the level of death anxiety and the sex-related differences among old-aged Iranian individuals sample to compare the old-aged persons with young college students and to explore the psychometric properties of the Arabic Scale of Death Anxiety (ASDA) factors in old-aged sample. A sample of 146 volunteer Iranian individuals took part in the study. The mean ages were 68.58 (SD = 7.10), men 68.81 (SD = 7.44) and women 68.28 (SD = 6.76), respectively. The mean score of the ASDA was 51.09 (SD = 20.19). Cronbach's alpha of the ASDA was found to be high (0.94); and Spearman-Brown coefficient was 0.92. Women had a significantly higher mean total score on the ASDA. Old-aged individuals had a significantly higher mean ASDA total score than younger college students (M age = 25.77). The factor analysis of the ASDA items yielded three factors accounting for 67.88 of the total variance labeled (F1) fear of dead people and tombs; (F2) fear of lethal disease and postmortem events; and (F3) death fear. These factors were highly replicable with previous factors extracted from a middle-aged Kuwaiti sample. On the basis of the present results, there are the following three general conclusions: death anxiety is not significantly correlated with age; the sex-related differences on death anxiety are striking in the Iranian samples; and the ASDA has a highly replicable factor structure among two Iranian and Arab countries. © 2016 Mahboubeh Dadfar et al

Helping the waiter to hold his tray: Rigid haptic linkage promotes inter-personal motor coordination

When a glass is lifted from a tray, there is a challenge for the waiter. He must quickly compensate for the reduction in the weight of the tray to keep it balanced. This compensation is easily achieved if the waiter lifts the glass himself. Because he has, himself, initiated the action, he can predict the timing and the magnitude of the perturbation of the tray and respond (via the holding hand) accordingly. In this study, we examined coordination when either one or two people hold the tray while either one of them or a third person removes the glass. Our results show that there is exquisite coordination between the two people holding the tray. We suggest that this coordination depends upon the haptic link provided by the rigid platform that both people are holding. We conclude that the guest at a reception should not lift his drink from the waiter’s tray until they have the waiter’s attention but, if too thirsty to wait, should lend a hand holding the tray

Unusual Behaviour of an Earth-Rockhill Dam

The post-construction behaviour of a 47.5 m high and 700 m long earth-rockfill dam, located in northwestern Iran, is described. The embankment dam is founded on Tertiary rock on both abutments, but in the river channel it rests on alluvial deposits of variable composition and thickness. Since the first impoundment, the dam has undergone large deformations, both in vertical and in horizontal directions. These have resulted in unusual differential settlements, visible along the crest, and have produced wide longitudinal cracks in the asphalt pavement of the crest road. The principle features of the dam are described and selected monitoring results of the crest movements for a sixteen year period are presented. Based on the analysis of the available data and taking into account the geotechnical characteristics of the foundation and the fill materials, an interpretation of the unusual behaviour has been attempted

Distinct neurocomputational mechanisms support informational and socially normative conformity

A change of mind in response to social influence could be driven by informational conformity to increase accuracy, or by normative conformity to comply with social norms such as reciprocity. Disentangling the behavioural, cognitive, and neurobiological underpinnings of informational and normative conformity have proven elusive. Here, participants underwent fMRI while performing a perceptual task that involved both advice-taking and advice-giving to human and computer partners. The concurrent inclusion of 2 different social roles and 2 different social partners revealed distinct behavioural and neural markers for informational and normative conformity. Dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) BOLD response tracked informational conformity towards both human and computer but tracked normative conformity only when interacting with humans. A network of brain areas (dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC) and temporoparietal junction (TPJ)) that tracked normative conformity increased their functional coupling with the dACC when interacting with humans. These findings enable differentiating the neural mechanisms by which different types of conformity shape social changes of mind

Scorpion envenomation in Bagh-E Malek, Iran –a 5 year study

Scorpionism is a major health problem in many tropical countries including Iran. The aim of this study was to describe the epidemiological and demographic information among whom stung by scorpions in Bagh-E Malek, Iran. In this retrospective cross-sectional study the information were gathered through evaluation of the records of stung patients referring to Shahid Tabatabai hospital of Bagh-E Malek April 2008 to April 2012. A total of 132 cases stung by scorpion were recorded including 3115 males (43%) and 4121 females (57%).Approximately 42.1 percent of the sting cases occurred in the summer followed by spring with 35.9% of stings. About 59.8% of stings happened in people by the age of 15-44 years old. Most of the stings happened in exposed extremities (78.5%) with most of it in upper limbs (41.8%). The scorpions’ species were unknown but 60.4% of them were yellow, 34.0% black and 5.6% were “other colors”. Since the highest rate of scorpionism cases were reported in rural areas (74.2%), it is suggested that the main focus should be considered for education of rural people, especially women who play a major role in the family. Additionally, evaluation of residential houses and surrounding environment and giving information on method of cleaning up the environment from the equipment and the factors from which scorpion may use as shelter, can also be effective in reducing the incidence of Scorpionism.Keywords: Scorpion sting; Epidemiology; Bagh-E Malek; Ira

Inflammatory Markers Associated With Subclinical Coronary Artery Disease: The Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study.

BackgroundDespite evidence for higher risk of coronary artery disease among HIV+ individuals, the underlying mechanisms are not well understood. We investigated associations of inflammatory markers with subclinical coronary artery disease in 923 participants of the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study (575 HIV+ and 348 HIV- men) who underwent noncontrast computed tomography scans for coronary artery calcification, the majority (n=692) also undergoing coronary computed tomography angiography.Methods and resultsOutcomes included presence and extent of coronary artery calcification, plus computed tomography angiography analysis of presence, composition, and extent of coronary plaques and severity of coronary stenosis. HIV+ men had significantly higher levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), intercellular adhesion molecule-1, C-reactive protein, and soluble-tumor necrosis factor-α receptor (sTNFαR) I and II (all P<0.01) and a higher prevalence of noncalcified plaque (63% versus 54%, P=0.02) on computed tomography angiography. Among HIV+ men, for every SD increase in log-interleukin-6 and log intercellular adhesion molecule-1, there was a 30% and 60% increase, respectively, in the prevalence of coronary stenosis ≥50% (all P<0.05). Similarly, sTNFαR I and II in HIV+ participants were associated with an increase in prevalence of coronary stenosis ≥70% (P<0.05). Higher levels of interleukin-6, sTNFαR I, and sTNFαR II were also associated with greater coronary artery calcification score in HIV+ men (P<0.01).ConclusionsHigher inflammatory marker levels are associated with greater prevalence of coronary stenosis in HIV+ men. Our findings underscore the need for further study to elucidate the relationships of inflammatory pathways with coronary artery disease in HIV+ individuals