Landmark-dependent Navigation Strategy Declines across the Human Life-Span: Evidence from Over 37,000 Participants

Humans show a remarkable capacity to navigate various environments using different navigation strategies, and we know that strategy changes across the life span. However, this observation has been based on studies of small sample sizes. To this end, we used a mobile app-based video game (Sea Hero Quest) to test virtual navigation strategies and memory performance within a distinct radial arm maze level in over 37,000 participants. Players were presented with 6 pathways (3 open and 3 closed) and were required to navigate to the 3 open pathways to collect a target. Next, all 6 pathways were made available and the player was required to visit the pathways that were previously unavailable. Both reference memory and working memory errors were calculated. Crucially, at the end of the level, the player was asked a multiple-choice question about how they found the targets (i.e., a counting-dependent strategy vs. a landmark-dependent strategy). As predicted from previous laboratory studies, we found the use of landmarks declined linearly with age. Those using landmark-based strategies also performed better on reference memory than those using a counting-based strategy. These results extend previous observations in the laboratory showing a decreased use of landmark-dependent strategies with age

Is the water footprint an appropriate tool for forestry and forest products: The Fennoscandian case

The water footprint by the Water Footprint Network (WF) is an ambitious tool for measuring human appropriation and promoting sustainable use of fresh water. Using recent case studies and examples from water-abundant Fennoscandia, we consider whether it is an appropriate tool for evaluating the water use of forestry and forest-based products. We show that aggregating catchment level water consumption over a product life cycle does not consider fresh water as a renewable resource and is inconsistent with the principles of the hydrologic cycle. Currently, the WF assumes that all evapotranspiration (ET) from forests is a human appropriation of water although ET from managed forests in Fennoscandia is indistinguishable from that of unmanaged forests. We suggest that ET should not be included in the water footprint of rain-fed forestry and forest-based products. Tools for sustainable water management should always contextualize water use and water impacts with local water availability and environmental sensitivity

Quo vadis, Europa? Die Verankerung von Hegemonieprojekten in Deutschland und Europa

Die EU und mit ihr die Entwicklung der EU sind geprägt von Krisen, die sich auf Gesell- schaft, Politik und Wirtschaft der einzelnen Mitgliedsstaaten auswirken und ausgewirkt haben. Deutschland nimmt in dieser Entwicklung eine besondere Stellung ein – nicht nur weil Westdeutschland eines der Gründungsmitglieder war. Im gesellschaftlichen Diskurs wird die Zukunft der Europäischen Union vielfach diskutiert. Einige Staaten wünschen sich eine weitere Vertiefung der transnationalen Beziehungen, andere fordern einen Rückzug ins Nationale, welcher so weit reicht, dass Großbritannien den Austritt aus der EU bereits politisch beschlossen hat. Georgi und Kannankulam haben entlang unterschiedlicher Konflikte innerhalb der EU sogenannte Hegemonieprojekte identifiziert, die Strategien, AkteurInnen und ihre Stellung im gesellschaftlichen Kräfteverhältnis beinhalten. Diese Hegemonieprojekte dienen als Grundlage der vorliegenden empirischen Arbeit. Bestimmte Einstellungen der europäi- schen Bevölkerung – die sich zum Einen direkt auf die Ziele der Hegemonieprojekte be- ziehen und zum Anderen einen Aufschluss über die BefürworterInnen dieser Hegemonieprojekte geben sollen – werden mithilfe eines strukturentdeckenden multivaria- ten statistischen Verfahrens geclustert, um diese gebildeten Cluster in einem weiteren Schritt den Hegemonieprojekten zuzuordnen. Dabei ist von Interesse, in welchen Gebieten der EU – besonders Deutschland – die einzelnen Einstellungsgruppen mehr oder weniger vertreten sind und ob sich Muster erkennen lassen. Theoretisch untermauert wird die Arbeit durch die Regulationstheorie, den Staatsbegriff von Poulantzas und den Hegemoniebegriff von Gramsci. Die Hauptergebnisse der Studie zeigen, dass die beiden Cluster „Politisch-Weltoffene“ und „skeptisch-Konservative“ eher als BefürworterInnen der EU und die „unzufrieden- Zukurzgekommenen“ sowie die „unpolitisch-Nationalistischen“ eher als GegnerInnen der EU angesehen werden können. Obwohl die GegnerInnen prozentual in der EU überwie- gen, verfügen die BefürworterInnen über mehr Ressourcen.The EU and with it the development of the EU are marked by crises that have had an im- pact on society, politics and economy of the individual member states. Germany occupies a special position in this development - not only because West Germany was one of the founding members. The future of the European Union is often discussed in social discourse. Some states would like to see transnational relations deepened further, others would like to see a retreat into the national sphere, so far-reaching that Great Britain has already decided politically to withdraw from the EU. Along various conflicts within the EU, Georgi and Kannankulam have identified so-called hegemony projects, which include strategies, actors and their position in the social balance of power. These hegemony projects serve as the basis for this empirical work. Certain atti- tudes of the European population - which on the one hand are directly related to the objec- tives of hegemony projects and on the other hand are intended to provide information about the supporters of these hegemony projects - are clustered by means of a structure- discovering multivariate statistical procedure in order to assign these clusters formed to the hegemony projects in a further step. Special interest lies in which areas of the EU - espe- cially Germany - the individual recruitment groups are more or less represented and wheth- er patterns can be identified. Theoretically, the work is underpinned by the theory of regulation, the state concept of Poulantzas and the concept of hegemony of Gramsci. The main findings of the study show that the two clusters "political-cosmopolitan" and "skeptical-conservative" rather than supporters of the EU and the "dissatisfied-late" as well as the "unpolitical-nationalist" are more likely to be considered opponents of the EU. Alt- hough the opponents are overwhelming in the EU as a percentage, the advocates have more resources

Landmark-dependent Navigation Strategy Declines across the Human Life-Span: Evidence from Over 37,000 Participants

International audienceAbstract Humans show a remarkable capacity to navigate various environments using different navigation strategies, and we know that strategy changes across the life span. However, this observation has been based on studies of small sample sizes. To this end, we used a mobile app–based video game (Sea Hero Quest) to test virtual navigation strategies and memory performance within a distinct radial arm maze level in over 37,000 participants. Players were presented with six pathways (three open and three closed) and were required to navigate to the three open pathways to collect a target. Next, all six pathways were made available and the player was required to visit the pathways that were previously unavailable. Both reference memory and working memory errors were calculated. Crucially, at the end of the level, the player was asked a multiple-choice question about how they found the targets (i.e., a counting-dependent strategy vs. a landmark-dependent strategy). As predicted from previous laboratory studies, we found the use of landmarks declined linearly with age. Those using landmark-based strategies also performed better on reference memory than those using a counting-based strategy. These results extend previous observations in the laboratory showing a decreased use of landmark-dependent strategies with age

Mechanical stimuli regulate rapamycin-sensitive signalling by a phosphoinositide 3-kinase-, protein kinase B- and growth factor-independent mechanism.

In response to growth factors, mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin) has been identified as a central component of the signalling pathways that control the translational machinery and cell growth. Signalling through mTOR has also been shown to be necessary for the mechanical load-induced growth of cardiac and skeletal muscles. Although the mechanisms involved for mechanically induced activation of mTOR are not known, it has been suggested that activation of PI3K (phosphoinositide 3-kinase) and protein kinase B (Akt), via the release of locally acting growth factors, underlies this process. In the present study, we show that mechanically stimulating (passive stretch) the skeletal muscle ex vivo results in the activation of mTOR-dependent signalling events. The activation of mTOR-dependent signalling events was necessary for an increase in translational efficiency, demonstrating the physiological significance of this pathway. Using pharmacological inhibitors, we show that activation of mTOR-dependent signalling occurs through a PI3K-independent pathway. Consistent with these results, mechanically induced signalling through mTOR was not disrupted in muscles from Akt1-/- mice. In addition, ex vivo co-incubation experiments, along with in vitro conditioned-media experiments, demonstrate that a mechanically induced release of locally acting autocrine/paracrine growth factors was not sufficient for the activation of the mTOR pathway. Taken together, our results demonstrate that mechanical stimuli can activate the mTOR pathway independent of PI3K/Akt1 and locally acting growth factors. Thus mechanical stimuli and growth factors provide distinct inputs through which mTOR co-ordinates an increase in the translational efficiency

Personalizing health care: feasibility and future implications

Considerable variety in how patients respond to treatments, driven by differences in their geno- and/ or phenotypes, calls for a more tailored approach. This is already happening, and will accelerate with developments in personalized medicine. However, its promise has not always translated into improvements in patient care due to the complexities involved. There are also concerns that advice for tests has been reversed, current tests can be costly, there is fragmentation of funding of care, and companies may seek high prices for new targeted drugs. There is a need to integrate current knowledge from a payer’s perspective to provide future guidance. Multiple findings including general considerations; influence of pharmacogenomics on response and toxicity of drug therapies; value of biomarker tests; limitations and costs of tests; and potentially high acquisition costs of new targeted therapies help to give guidance on potential ways forward for all stakeholder groups. Overall, personalized medicine has the potential to revolutionize care. However, current challenges and concerns need to be addressed to enhance its uptake and funding to benefit patients

Prospective study of the impact of the Prosigna assay on adjuvant clinical decision-making in unselected patients with estrogen receptor positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor negative, node negative early-stage breast cancer

<p>Improved understanding of risk of recurrence (ROR) is needed to reduce cases of recurrence and more effectively treat breast cancer patients. The purpose of this study was to examine how a gene-expression profile (GEP), identified by Prosigna, influences physician adjuvant treatment selection for early breast cancer (EBC) and the effects of this influence on optimizing adjuvant treatment recommendations in clinical practice.</p> <p>A prospective, observational, multicenter study was carried out in 15 hospitals across Spain. Participating medical oncologists completed pre-assessment, post-assessment, and follow-up questionnaires recording their treatment recommendations and confidence in these recommendations, before and after knowing the patient’s ROR. Patients completed questionnaires on decision-making, anxiety, and health status.</p> <p>Between June 2013 and January 2014, 217 patients enrolled and a final 200 were included in the study. Patients were postmenopausal, estrogen receptor positive, human epidermal growth hormone factor negative, and node negative with either stage 1 or stage 2 tumors. After receiving the GEP results, treatment recommendations were changed for 40 patients (20%). The confidence of medical oncologists in their treatment recommendations increased in 41.6% and decreased in 6.5% of total cases. Patients reported lower anxiety after physicians made treatment recommendations based on the GEP results (<i>p</i> < 0.05).</p> <p>Though this study does not include evaluation of the impact of GEP on long-term outcomes, it was found that GEP results influenced the treatment decisions of medical oncologists and their confidence in adjuvant therapy selection. Patients’ anxiety about the selected adjuvant therapy decreased with use of the GEP.</p