Aging, working memory capacity and the proactive control of recollection:An event-related potential study

The present study investigated the role of working memory capacity (WMC) in the control of recollection in young and older adults. We used electroencephalographic event-related potentials (ERPs) to examine the effects of age and of individual differences in WMC on the ability to prioritize recollection according to current goals. Targets in a recognition exclusion task were words encoded using two alternative decisions. The left parietal ERP old/new effect was used as an electrophysiological index of recollection, and the selectivity of recollection measured in terms of the difference in its magnitude according to whether recognized items were targets or non-targets. Young adults with higher WMC showed greater recollection selectivity than those with lower WMC, while older adults showed nonselective recollection which did not vary with WMC. The data suggest that aging impairs the ability to engage cognitive control effectively to prioritize what will be recollected

Tropical and subtropical Asia's valued tree species under threat

Tree diversity in Asia's tropical and subtropical forests is central to nature-based solutions. Species vulnerability to multiple threats, which affects the provision of ecosystem services, is poorly understood. We conducted a region-wide, spatially explicit vulnerability assessment (including overexploitation, fire, overgrazing, habitat conversion, and climate change) of 63 socio-economically important tree species selected from national priority lists and validated by an expert network representing 20 countries. Overall, 74% of the most important areas for conservation of these trees fall outside of protected areas, with species severely threatened across 47% of their native ranges. The most imminent threats are overexploitation and habitat conversion, with populations being severely threatened in an average of 24% and 16% of their distribution areas. Optimistically, our results predict relatively limited overall climate change impacts, however, some of the study species are likely to lose more than 15% of their habitat by 2050 because of climate change. We pinpoint specific natural forest areas in Malaysia and Indonesia (Borneo) as hotspots for on-site conservation of forest genetic resources, more than 82% of which do not currently fall within designated protected areas. We also identify degraded lands in Indonesia (Sumatra) as priorities for restoration where planting or assisted natural regeneration will help maintain these species into the future, while croplands in Southern India are highlighted as potentially important agroforestry options. Our study highlights the need for regionally coordinated action for effective conservation and restoration

Improve recognition-based segmentation for printed persian character recognition

The most scientific papers dealing with handwriting recognition systems make statements relating to recognition performance based on a forced-recognition rate. This rate describes the ratio between the number of the correct recognized samples and the number of all possible samples. This paper proposes a new technique to improve the previous research work in order to have a better result. As part of the preprocessing phase the image file is checked for skewing. If the image is skewed, it is corrected by a simple rotation technique in the appropriate direction. Character fragmentation process is done based on the existing technique. The improvement of feature extraction process is made by detecting details of glyph and used as an input for the classification process of ANN (Artificial Neural Network) to develop a full OCR system. Result indicated that some versions, even upon first using them, were at least as good as last methods of recognition

Memory retrieval processing: neural indices of processes supporting selective episodic retrieval

Event-related potentials (ERPs) were acquired during separate test phases of a verbal recognition memory exclusion task in order to contribute to current understanding of the functional significance of differences between ERPs elicited by new (unstudied) test words, which are assumed to index processes engaged in pursuit of task-relevant information. Participants were asked to endorse old words from one study task (targets), and to reject new test words as well as those from a second study task (non-targets). The study task designated as the target category varied across test phases. The left-parietal ERP old/new effect – the electrophysiological signature of recollection – was reliable for targets and for non-targets in all test phases, consistent with the view that participants recollected information about both of these classes of test word. The contrast between the ERPs evoked by new test words separated according to target designation revealed no reliable differences. These findings contrast with those in a recent study in which the same tasks were used, but in which the accuracy of task judgments was markedly higher (Dzulkifli, M.A., & Wilding, E. L. (2005). Electrophysiological indices of strategic episodic retrieval processing. Neuropsychologia, 43, 1152–1162). In that study, there were reliable differences between the ERPs evoked by the two classes of new words, but reliable left-parietal ERP old/new effects for targets only. In combination, the findings suggest that differences between ERPs evoked by new test words can reflect processes that are important for controlling what kinds of information will and will not be recollected

Positive effects of liana cutting on seedlings are reduced during El Niño‐induced drought

1.Liana cutting is a management practice currently applied to encourage seedling regeneration and tree growth in some logged tropical forests. However, there is limited empirical evidence of its effects on forest demographic rates in Southeast Asia.2.We used 22 four‐hectare plots in the Sabah Biodiversity Experiment (a reduced impact logging site) enrichment line planted with 16 dipterocarp species to assess the effects of complete liana cutting on tree growth and survival. We compared plots where lianas were only cut along planting lines (standard enrichment line planting) with those with one (2014) or two rounds (2011 and 2014) of complete liana cutting. 3.We found increased seedling growth following the first complete liana cut in 2011 relative to the enrichment line planting, consistent with previous studies. The response after three years to the cutting in 2014 depended on whether lianas had been previously cut or not: in twice‐cut plots, seedling growth was not significantly different from the standard enrichment planting controls, whereas growth in plots with only one complete cut in 2014 was significantly slower. Seedling survival decreased through time for both once‐ and twice‐cut liana treatments but remained stable in controls. 4.Sapling growth after the 2014 liana cutting showed a similar pattern to seedling growth, while tree growth following the 2014 liana cutting was significantly lower than controls regardless of whether lianas were cut twice (2011 and 2014) or once (2014). 5.Differences in response between the two rounds of liana cutting were likely due to changes in precipitation ‐ 2011 was followed by consistent rainfall while 2014 was followed by two severe droughts within two years. 6.Synthesis and applications. Our results generally support the widely‐reported positive effects of liana cutting on tree growth and survival. However, reduced growth and survival after the 2015/16 El Niño suggests that drought may temporarily undermine the benefits of liana cutting in logged tropical forests. Managers of similar areas in SE Asia should consider halting liana cutting during El Niño events. In other tropical areas, seedling survival should be monitored to assess to what extent results from SE Asia are transferable.</p

Positive effects of liana cutting on seedlings are reduced during El Niño‐induced drought

1.Liana cutting is a management practice currently applied to encourage seedling regeneration and tree growth in some logged tropical forests. However, there is limited empirical evidence of its effects on forest demographic rates in Southeast Asia.2.We used 22 four‐hectare plots in the Sabah Biodiversity Experiment (a reduced impact logging site) enrichment line planted with 16 dipterocarp species to assess the effects of complete liana cutting on tree growth and survival. We compared plots where lianas were only cut along planting lines (standard enrichment line planting) with those with one (2014) or two rounds (2011 and 2014) of complete liana cutting. 3.We found increased seedling growth following the first complete liana cut in 2011 relative to the enrichment line planting, consistent with previous studies. The response after three years to the cutting in 2014 depended on whether lianas had been previously cut or not: in twice‐cut plots, seedling growth was not significantly different from the standard enrichment planting controls, whereas growth in plots with only one complete cut in 2014 was significantly slower. Seedling survival decreased through time for both once‐ and twice‐cut liana treatments but remained stable in controls. 4.Sapling growth after the 2014 liana cutting showed a similar pattern to seedling growth, while tree growth following the 2014 liana cutting was significantly lower than controls regardless of whether lianas were cut twice (2011 and 2014) or once (2014). 5.Differences in response between the two rounds of liana cutting were likely due to changes in precipitation ‐ 2011 was followed by consistent rainfall while 2014 was followed by two severe droughts within two years. 6.Synthesis and applications. Our results generally support the widely‐reported positive effects of liana cutting on tree growth and survival. However, reduced growth and survival after the 2015/16 El Niño suggests that drought may temporarily undermine the benefits of liana cutting in logged tropical forests. Managers of similar areas in SE Asia should consider halting liana cutting during El Niño events. In other tropical areas, seedling survival should be monitored to assess to what extent results from SE Asia are transferable.</p

The Impact of Stimuli Color in Lexical Decision and Semantic Word Categorization Tasks

In two experiments, we examined the impact of color on cognitive performance by asking participants to categorize stimuli presented in three different colors: red, green, and grey (baseline). Participants were either asked to categorize the meaning of words as related to the concepts of “go” or “stop” (Experiment 1) or to indicate if a neutral verbal stimulus was a word or not (lexical decision task, Experiment 2). Overall, we observed performance facilitation in response to go stimuli presented in green (vs. red or grey) and performance inhibition in response to go stimuli presented in red. The opposite pattern was observed for stop-related stimuli. Importantly, results also indicate that color can be used to categorize neutral stimuli. Overall, these findings provide support to the green-go and red-stop color associations and test some boundary conditions to the generalization of color effects on stimuli categorization. Here we include the full list of stimuli and databases for both experiments

THE SYNTHESIS, CHARACTERISATION, AND ADSORPTION STUDY OF NOVEL 4-ETHYL-3-THISEMICARBAZONE MICROCRYSTALLINE CELLULOSE

Cellulose is a linear glucose polymer manufacturable from various sources via different methods. Under the right conditions, small amounts of cellulose are transformed into derivatives that could be utilised to produce numerous commercial products. The selective cleavage of the C2-C3 bonds in anhydroglucose units in cellulose chains with a strong oxidant, namely sodium periodate (NaIO4), produces dialdehyde cellulose (DAC). In the present study, DAC was reacted with 4-ethyl-3-thiosemicarbazide to produce 4-ethyl-3-thiosemicarbazone microcrystalline cellulose (TSCMCC). The structures of microcrystalline cellulose (MCC), DAC, and TSCMCC were characterised through FTIR, FESEM-EDX, XRD, and TGA. The ʋ(C=O) stretching band observed at 1728 cm−1 proved that DAC was successfully formed, while the bands at 1632 and 1225 cm−1 were correlated to ʋ(C=N) and ʋ(C=S) in TSCMCC. The FESEM revealed that the MCC were in bundles arrangement, the DAC was rod-shaped, and TSCMCC was needle-like. The EDX analysis showed sulphur (S) and nitrogen (N) atoms were present only in the TSCMCC. TSCMCC recorded the largest crystallite compared to MCC and DAC. Moreover, the TGA results exhibited that TSCMCC had lower thermal stability than MCC but higher than DAC. The zinc(II) ion adsorption capabilities of TSCMCC were assessed with ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) fitted with Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms