Reappraising the Rococo : The enduring relevance of eighteenth-century French painting

Often regarded as purely decorative, obsolete, and inconsequential, the rococo paintings of eighteenth-century France acquire historical significance and contemporary resonance once interpreted with fresh eyes. After the French Revolution, rococo paintings were associated with the politics and aristocracy of the ancien régime, a conflation that has colored aesthetic reputation of frivolity and artifice over the course of its history. This research centers on the claim that the rococo survived the Revolution, and continues to be called upon by contemporary artists as a productive artistic idiom. First, the cultural and aesthetic significance of eighteenth-century French rococo paintings will be considered with particular attention to Antoine Watteau, François Boucher, and Jean-Honoré Fragonard. Through a summary of its etymology and historiography of reception, a distinction can be made between the rococo’s intrinsic and acquired significations. Further, consideration of the rococo’s persistence as an artistic current of influence will be analyzed in the twentieth-century works of Florine Stettheimer and Andy Warhol, and the contemporary art of Yinka Shonibare and Genieve Figgis. By acknowledging the historical biases, multivalence, and historicity of the French rococo, this exploration engages with an effort to articulate alternative histories of modernism and the potential for reappraisal of the rococo

Memory recovery in relation to default mode network impairment and neurite density during brain tumor treatment.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to test brain tumor interactions with brain networks, thereby identifying protective features and risk factors for memory recovery after resection. METHODS: Seventeen patients with diffuse nonenhancing glioma (ages 22-56 years) underwent longitudinal MRI before and after surgery, and during a 12-month recovery period (47 MRI scans in total after exclusion). After each scanning session, a battery of memory tests was performed using a tablet-based screening tool, including free verbal memory, overall verbal memory, episodic memory, orientation, forward digit span, and backward digit span. Using structural MRI and neurite orientation dispersion and density imaging (NODDI) derived from diffusion-weighted images, the authors estimated lesion overlap and neurite density, respectively, with brain networks derived from normative data in healthy participants (somatomotor, dorsal attention, ventral attention, frontoparietal, and default mode network [DMN]). Linear mixed-effect models (LMMs) that regressed out the effect of age, gender, tumor grade, type of treatment, total lesion volume, and total neurite density were used to test the potential longitudinal associations between imaging markers and memory recovery. RESULTS: Memory recovery was not significantly associated with either the tumor location based on traditional lobe classification or the type of treatment received by patients (i.e., surgery alone or surgery with adjuvant chemoradiotherapy). Nonlocal effects of tumors were evident on neurite density, which was reduced not only within the tumor but also beyond the tumor boundary. In contrast, high preoperative neurite density outside the tumor but within the DMN was associated with better memory recovery (LMM, p value after false discovery rate correction [Pfdr] < 10-3). Furthermore, postoperative and follow-up neurite density within the DMN and frontoparietal network were also associated with memory recovery (LMM, Pfdr = 0.014 and Pfdr = 0.001, respectively). Preoperative tumor and postoperative lesion overlap with the DMN showed a significant negative association with memory recovery (LMM, Pfdr = 0.002 and Pfdr < 10-4, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Imaging biomarkers of cognitive recovery and decline can be identified using NODDI and resting-state networks. Brain tumors and their corresponding treatment affecting brain networks that are fundamental for memory functioning such as the DMN can have a major impact on patients' memory recovery.We thank all patients for generous involvement in the study. We also thank to Luca Villa, Jessica Ingham, Alexa Mcdonald for their contribution to the study. This research was supported by The Brain Tumour Charity and the Guarantors of Brai

Intraoperative mapping of executive function using electrocorticography for patients with low-grade gliomas

Funder: National Institute for Health Research; doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100000272; Grant(s): Clinician Scientist Award 35 (ref: NIHR/CS/009/011)Abstract: Background: Intraoperative functional mapping with direct electrical stimulation during awake surgery for patients with diffuse low-grade glioma has been used in recent years to optimize the balance between surgical resection and quality of life following surgery. Mapping of executive functions is particularly challenging because of their complex nature, with only a handful of reports published so far. Here, we propose the recording of neural activity directly from the surface of the brain using electrocorticography to map executive functions and demonstrate its feasibility and potential utility. Methods: To track a neural signature of executive function, we recorded neural activity using electrocorticography during awake surgery from the frontal cortex of three patients judged to have an appearance of diffuse low-grade glioma. Based on existing functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) evidence from healthy participants for the recruitment of areas associated with executive function with increased task demands, we employed a task difficulty manipulation in two counting tasks performed intraoperatively. Following surgery, the data were extracted and analyzed offline to identify increases in broadband high-gamma power with increased task difficulty, equivalent to fMRI findings, as a signature of activity related to executive function. Results: All three patients performed the tasks well. Data were recorded from five electrode strips, resulting in data from 15 channels overall. Eleven out of the 15 channels (73.3%) showed significant increases in high-gamma power with increased task difficulty, 26.6% of the channels (4/15) showed no change in power, and none of the channels showed power decrease. High-gamma power increases with increased task difficulty were more likely in areas that are within the canonical frontoparietal network template. Conclusions: These results are the first step toward developing electrocorticography as a tool for mapping of executive function complementarily to direct electrical stimulation to guide resection. Further studies are required to establish this approach for clinical use

Assessment of neuropsychological function in brain tumor treatment: a comparison of traditional neuropsychological assessment with app-based cognitive screening

Background Gliomas are typically considered to cause relatively few neurological impairments. However, cognitive difcul ties can arise, for example during treatment, with potential detrimental efects on quality of life. Accurate, reproducible, and accessible cognitive assessment is therefore vital in understanding the efects of both tumor and treatments. Our aim is to compare traditional neuropsychological assessment with an app-based cognitive screening tool in patients with glioma before and after surgical resection. Our hypotheses were that cognitive impairments would be apparent, even in a young and high functioning cohort, and that app-based cognitive screening would complement traditional neuropsychological assessment. Methods Seventeen patients with difuse gliomas completed a traditional neuropsychological assessment and an app-based touchscreen tablet assessment pre- and post-operatively. The app assessment was also conducted at 3- and 12-month follow up. Impairment rates, mean performance, and pre- and post-operative changes were compared using standardized Z-scores. Results Approximately 2–3 h of traditional assessment indicated an average of 2.88 cognitive impairments per patient, while the 30-min screen indicated 1.18. As might be expected, traditional assessment using multiple items across the difculty range proved more sensitive than brief screening measures in areas such as memory and attention. However, the capac ity of the screening app to capture reaction times enhanced its sensitivity, relative to traditional assessment, in the area of non-verbal function. Where there was overlap between the two assessments, for example digit span tasks, the results were broadly equivalent. Conclusions Cognitive impairments were common in this sample and app-based screening complemented traditional neu ropsychological assessment. Implications for clinical assessment and follow-up are discussed

Assessment of neuropsychological function in brain tumor treatment: a comparison of traditional neuropsychological assessment with app-based cognitive screening.

Funder: Guarantors of Brain; doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100000627Funder: Cancer Research UKFunder: Junta de Andalucía; doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100011011BACKGROUND: Gliomas are typically considered to cause relatively few neurological impairments. However, cognitive difficulties can arise, for example during treatment, with potential detrimental effects on quality of life. Accurate, reproducible, and accessible cognitive assessment is therefore vital in understanding the effects of both tumor and treatments. Our aim is to compare traditional neuropsychological assessment with an app-based cognitive screening tool in patients with glioma before and after surgical resection. Our hypotheses were that cognitive impairments would be apparent, even in a young and high functioning cohort, and that app-based cognitive screening would complement traditional neuropsychological assessment. METHODS: Seventeen patients with diffuse gliomas completed a traditional neuropsychological assessment and an app-based touchscreen tablet assessment pre- and post-operatively. The app assessment was also conducted at 3- and 12-month follow-up. Impairment rates, mean performance, and pre- and post-operative changes were compared using standardized Z-scores. RESULTS: Approximately 2-3 h of traditional assessment indicated an average of 2.88 cognitive impairments per patient, while the 30-min screen indicated 1.18. As might be expected, traditional assessment using multiple items across the difficulty range proved more sensitive than brief screening measures in areas such as memory and attention. However, the capacity of the screening app to capture reaction times enhanced its sensitivity, relative to traditional assessment, in the area of non-verbal function. Where there was overlap between the two assessments, for example digit span tasks, the results were broadly equivalent. CONCLUSIONS: Cognitive impairments were common in this sample and app-based screening complemented traditional neuropsychological assessment. Implications for clinical assessment and follow-up are discussed

Specialist healthcare services for concussion/mild traumatic brain injury in England: a consensus statement using modified Delphi methodology.

Peer reviewed: TrueAcknowledgements: We would like to thank Love of the Game for their support with this work. Peter Hutchinson would also like to thank the NIHR Senior Investigator Award, Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre, Medtech Brain Injury Co-operative, Global Health Research Group on Acquired Brain and Spine Injury and Royal College of Surgeons of England. AH is supported by the Cambridge Biomedical Research Campus, the Royal College of Surgeons of England, and is a Theme Lead in the NIHR Brain Injury MedTech Collaborative.OBJECTIVE: To establish a consensus on the structure and process of healthcare services for patients with concussion in England to facilitate better healthcare quality and patient outcome. DESIGN: This consensus study followed the modified Delphi methodology with five phases: participant identification, item development, two rounds of voting and a meeting to finalise the consensus statements. The predefined threshold for agreement was set at ≥70%. SETTING: Specialist outpatient services. PARTICIPANTS: Members of the UK Head Injury Network were invited to participate. The network consists of clinical specialists in head injury practising in emergency medicine, neurology, neuropsychology, neurosurgery, paediatric medicine, rehabilitation medicine and sports and exercise medicine in England. PRIMARY OUTCOME MEASURE: A consensus statement on the structure and process of specialist outpatient care for patients with concussion in England. RESULTS: 55 items were voted on in the first round. 29 items were removed following the first voting round and 3 items were removed following the second voting round. Items were modified where appropriate. A final 18 statements reached consensus covering 3 main topics in specialist healthcare services for concussion; care pathway to structured follow-up, prognosis and measures of recovery, and provision of outpatient clinics. CONCLUSIONS: This work presents statements on how the healthcare services for patients with concussion in England could be redesigned to meet their health needs. Future work will seek to implement these into the clinical pathway