Incentive value and spatial certainty combine additively to determine visual priorities

How does the brain combine information predictive of the value of a visually guided task (incentive value) with information predictive of where task-relevant stimuli may occur (spatial certainty)? Human behavioural evidence indicates that these two predictions may be combined additively to bias visual selection (Additive Hypothesis), whereas neuroeconomic studies posit that they may be multiplicatively combined (Expected Value Hypothesis). We sought to adjudicate between these two alternatives. Participants viewed two coloured placeholders that specified the potential value of correctly identifying an imminent letter target if it appeared in that placeholder. Then, prior to the target’s presentation, an endogenous spatial cue was presented indicating the target’s more likely location. Spatial cues were parametricallymanipulated with regard to the information gained (in bits). Across two experiments, performance was better for targets appearing in high versus low value placeholders and better when targets appeared in validly cued locations. Interestingly, as shown with a Bayesian model selection approach, these effects did not interact, clearly supporting the Additive Hypothesis. Even when conditions were adjusted to increase the optimality of a multiplicative operation, support for it remained. These findings refute recent theories that expected value computations are the singular mechanism driving the deployment of endogenous spatial attention. Instead, incentive value and spatial certainty seem to act independently to influence visual selection

Developing Evidence-Based Practice in Chaplaincy: A Study of Unit and Chaplain-Specific Integration

Health care chaplains provide spiritual care across diverse hospital units. As a result of the complex and interprofessional nature of health care services, different units are associated with unique integration and collaboration needs. Effective chaplain practice and patient-centered care are enhanced by sensitivity to unit differences. Our research, aimed at quality improvement, examined unit and chaplain integration to promote unit-specific evidence-based practice. Integration was conceptualized by five dimensions: interdependence, newly created professional activities, flexibility, collective ownership of goals, reflection on process. data was collected using the Interprofessional Integration and Collaboration Instrument (Bronstein, 2002), which has appropriate measurement quality (Bainbridge et al., 2015). Addition questions captured chaplain-specific integration and methods of chaplain engagement (charting, referrals). The survey was available in electronic and paper format. Over 150 staff from 10 units participated in the 2017 convenience survey. Survey results were used to develop profiles of unit and chaplain-specific integration; of chaplain engagement; and of perceived contributions of chaplains to patient care. Demographic information was summarized to determine representativeness. The findings contribute to quality improvement and evidence-based practice by identifying how chaplains can effectively integrated within specific units. The findings are being disseminated to unit stakeholders, hospital administration, and other chaplains.https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/gradposters/1026/thumbnail.jp

Enhanced 2-categories and limits for lax morphisms

We study limits in 2-categories whose objects are categories with extra structure and whose morphisms are functors preserving the structure only up to a coherent comparison map, which may or may not be required to be invertible. This is done using the framework of 2-monads. In order to characterize the limits which exist in this context, we need to consider also the functors which do strictly preserve the extra structure. We show how such a 2-category of weak morphisms which is "enhanced", by specifying which of these weak morphisms are actually strict, can be thought of as category enriched over a particular base cartesian closed category F. We give a complete characterization, in terms of F-enriched category theory, of the limits which exist in such 2-categories of categories with extra structure.Comment: 77 pages; v2 minor changes only, to appear in Advance

Mycobacterium tuberculosis transcription machinery: Ready to respond to host attacks

Regulating responses to stress is critical for all bacteria, whether they are environmental, commensal, or pathogenic species. For pathogenic bacteria, successful colonization and survival in the host are dependent on adaptation to diverse conditions imposed by the host tissue architecture and the immune response. Once the bacterium senses a hostile environment, it must enact a change in physiology that contributes to the organism's survival strategy. Inappropriate responses have consequences; hence, the execution of the appropriate response is essential for survival of the bacterium in its niche. Stress responses are most often regulated at the level of gene expression and, more specifically, transcription. This minireview focuses on mechanisms of regulating transcription initiation that are required by Mycobacterium tuberculosis to respond to the arsenal of defenses imposed by the host during infection. In particular, we highlight how certain features of M. tuberculosis physiology allow this pathogen to respond swiftly and effectively to host defenses. By enacting highly integrated and coordinated gene expression changes in response to stress, M. tuberculosis is prepared for battle against the host defense and able to persist within the human population

How information sharing can improve patient and family experience in critical care: A focus group study

The experience of being in hospital critical care has major impacts upon the patient, their family and carers. This situation is likely to be stressful, fast changing and challenging for those involved. Crucial to this encounter are factors relating to information sharing between the clinical team, the patient, family and carers. Focus groups at a UK hospital site with former patients, their families and carers provides insight into their journey and the factors that influence this. Issues that emerged included the format of information, how and who delivered this, communication transition out of critical care and leaving hospital. While participants expressed the need for personalised information, they also requested practical guidance at appropriate times in accessible formats. The encouragement from staff to keep diaries and record the patient’s journey was very valued and helped recall and share progress in difficult and challenging situations. Support and coordination of care when leaving critical care and the hospital also requires planning and communication with the patient, their family and carers and relevant health care teams. The experience of patients, their families and carers is important to understand in order to ensure future services can be tailored to meet their requirements. Experience Framework This article is associated with the Patient, Family & Community Engagement lens of The Beryl Institute Experience Framework. (http://bit.ly/ExperienceFramework) Access other PXJ articles related to this lens. Access other resources related to this lens

CLINICOPATHOLOGIC FEATURES OF INFECTION WITH NOVEL BRUCELLA ORGANISMS IN CAPTIVE WAXY TREE FROGS (\u3ci\u3ePHYLLOMEDUSA SAUVAGII\u3c/i\u3e) AND COLORADO RIVER TOADS (\u3ci\u3eINCILIUS ALVARIUS\u3c/i\u3e)

Two novel and distinct Brucella strains were recovered from 5 of 10 adult, sex undetermined, captive waxy tree frogs (Phyllomedusa sauvagii) and two of five adult, sex undetermined, captive Colorado river toads (Incilius alvarius) held in a zoologic collection with clinical and pathologic findings of bacterial disease. These amphibians originated from three separate private breeding facilities over several years and exhibited disease 9–49 mo following release from quarantine. Common presenting signs were vague but included focal abscessation, weight loss, change in coloration, anorexia, and decreased perching. Two waxy tree frogs and one Colorado river toad recovered with supportive care and antimicrobial treatment based on susceptibility testing. Microgranulomatosis, subcutaneous and renal abscessation, femoral osteomyelitis, and multicentric infection were the most common histologic findings. The organisms were identified antemortem in samples from subcutaneous abscesses, cloaca, and skin and from a variety of organ systems postmortem, and demonstrated a consistent susceptibility pattern. Initial isolates were misidentified as Ochrobactrum anthropi. Polymerase chain reaction and sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene identified the two organisms as novel Brucella strains similar to Brucella inopinata–like sp. and other novel organisms within the emerging ‘‘BO clade.’’ Brucella strain oaks (isolated from waxy tree frogs) and Brucella strain leathers (isolated from Colorado river toads) differed from each other by 16 of 571 base pairs in a region of chromosome 2, and did not closely match any previous GenBank entries. This report describes the clinicopathologic features of infection by these bacteria in two amphibian species and expands the range of novel Brucella organisms from amphibian reservoirs

Abusive Interactions: Research in Locked Wards for People with dementia

This paper reports on a study in which unique access to 3 locked psycho-geriatric wards of a hospital allowed ethnographic exploration into everyday social worlds of fourteen people with dementia. Findings indicate abusive practice in the wards and show that participants in receipt of such practice responded with self-defence and resistance, but ultimately were defeated. In a development of Sabat’s (2001) Selfs 1-3 framework, I identify how abusive practice arose due to staffs’ inability to recognise different aspects of patients’ self. Recommendations for practice include integrating a developed Selfs 1-3 framework into staff training and evaluating its impact on practice

Modulation of alpha oscillations by attention is predicted by hemispheric asymmetry of subcortical regions

Evidence suggests that subcortical structures play a role in high-level cognitive functions such as the allocation of spatial attention. While there is abundant evidence in humans for posterior alpha band oscillations being modulated by spatial attention, little is known about how subcortical regions contribute to these oscillatory modulations, particularly under varying conditions of cognitive challenge. In this study, we combined MEG and structural MRI data to investigate the role of subcortical structures in controlling the allocation of attentional resources by employing a cued spatial attention paradigm with varying levels of perceptual load. We asked whether hemispheric lateralization of volumetric measures of the thalamus and basal ganglia predicted the hemispheric modulation of alpha-band power. Lateral asymmetry of the globus pallidus, caudate nucleus, and thalamus predicted attention-related modulations of posterior alpha oscillations. When the perceptual load was applied to the target and the distractor was salient caudate nucleus asymmetry predicted alpha-band modulations. Globus Pallidus was predictive of alpha-band modulations when either the target had a high load, or the distractor was salient, but not both. Finally, the asymmetry of the thalamus predicted alpha band modulation when neither component of the task was perceptually demanding. In addition to delivering new insight into the subcortical circuity controlling alpha oscillations with spatial attention, our finding might also have clinical applications. We provide a framework that could be followed for detecting how structural changes in subcortical regions that are associated with neurological disorders can be reflected in the modulation of oscillatory brain activity

Homomorphisms of higher categories

We describe a construction that to each algebraically specified notion of higher-dimensional category associates a notion of homomorphism which preserves the categorical structure only up to weakly invertible higher cells. The construction is such that these homomorphisms admit a strictly associative and unital composition. We give two applications of this construction. The first is to tricategories; and here we do not obtain the trihomomorphisms defined by Gordon, Power and Street, but only something equivalent in a suitable sense. The second is to Batanin's weak omega-categories.Comment: 40 pages; v2: hand-waving arguments replaced by proofs; v3: final journal versio