The Neural Correlates of Non-Spatial Working Memory in Velocardiofacial Syndrome (22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome)

Velocardiofacial syndrome (VCFS), also known as 22q11.2 deletion syndrome, is a neurogenetic disorder that is associated with both learning disabilities and a consistent neuropsychological phenotype, including deficits in executive function, visuospatial perception, and working memory. Anatomic imaging studies have identified significant volumetric reductions in the parietal lobe of individuals with VCFS, but several studies have reported that the frontal lobe is relatively preserved. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging to investigate the neural correlates of non-spatial working memory in 17 youths with VCFS, 10 of their unaffected siblings, and 10 community controls (with the same proportion of learning disabilities as the VCFS youths). Task performance of siblings tended to be more accurate than children with VCFS, who did not differ from community controls. All three-study groups recruited parietal regions that were equivalent in location and magnitude. Whereas the sibling group also recruited the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), Broca\u27s area, and anterior cingulate, DLPFC activation was absent in the whole brain analyses of children with VCFS and controls. Moreover, the magnitude of frontal activation in VCFS participants was restricted relative to both siblings and controls. These findings suggest that VCFS participants exhibit frontal hypoactivation that is not attributable to performance. In addition, VCFS children and controls (many with idiopathic learning disabilities) appear to rely on phonological rehearsal to hold information on line instead of the DLPFC. Despite previous anatomic MRI reports of preserved frontal lobe volumes in VCFS therefore, these fMRI findings suggest that the frontal component of the distributed network subserving executive function and working memory may be disrupted in youth with this disorder

Duchamp's Erotic Stereoscopic Exercises

This article explores certain links between medicine and art, with regard to their use of stereoscopy. I highlight a work by the artist Marcel Duchamp (the ready-made Stéréoscopie a la Main) and stereoscopic cards used in ophthalmic medicine. Both instances involve the drawing of graphic marks over previously existing stereoscopic cards. This similarity between Stéréoscopie a la Main and stereoscopic cards is echoed in the form of "stereoscopic exercises." Stereoscopic exercises were prescribed by doctors to be performed with the stereoscope as early as 1864. Stereoscopic cards were widely diffused in the 19th century, often promoted as "stay-at-home travel." It was over such kinds of materials that both Marcel Duchamp and doctors of ophthalmic medicine drew their graphic marks. I explore Duchamp's Stéréoscopie a la Main as a hypothetical basis for stereoscopic exercises of different types, proposing that this rectified ready-made is the locus for erotic stereoscopic exercises.Este artigo busca explorar certos elos entre a medicina e a arte por meio da estereoscopia. Destaca-se uma obra do artista Marcel Duchamp (o ready-made Stéréoscopie a la Main) e cartões estereoscópicos usados na oftalmologia. As duas instâncias envolvem o desenho de marcas gráficas sobre cartões estereoscópicos pré-existentes. A similaridade entre Stéréoscopie a la Main e os ditos cartões ecoa também na forma dos exercícios estereoscópicos. O cartão estereoscópico foi amplamente difundido na segunda metade do séc. XIX, frequentemente na forma da "viagem sem sair de casa." Foi sobre esse tipo de material que tanto médicos quanto Marcel Duchamp desenharam suas marcas. Explora-se a obra Stéréoscopie a la Main como um sítio hipotético para uma espécie de exercício, propondo que tal ready-made retificado seja um lugar para exercícios estereoscópicos eróticos

Assessing coastal wetland vulnerability to sea-level rise along the northern Gulf of Mexico coast: Gaps and opportunities for developing a coordinated regional sampling network.

Coastal wetland responses to sea-level rise are greatly influenced by biogeomorphic processes that affect wetland surface elevation. Small changes in elevation relative to sea level can lead to comparatively large changes in ecosystem structure, function, and stability. The surface elevation table-marker horizon (SET-MH) approach is being used globally to quantify the relative contributions of processes affecting wetland elevation change. Historically, SET-MH measurements have been obtained at local scales to address site-specific research questions. However, in the face of accelerated sea-level rise, there is an increasing need for elevation change network data that can be incorporated into regional ecological models and vulnerability assessments. In particular, there is a need for long-term, high-temporal resolution data that are strategically distributed across ecologically-relevant abiotic gradients. Here, we quantify the distribution of SET-MH stations along the northern Gulf of Mexico coast (USA) across political boundaries (states), wetland habitats, and ecologically-relevant abiotic gradients (i.e., gradients in temperature, precipitation, elevation, and relative sea-level rise). Our analyses identify areas with high SET-MH station densities as well as areas with notable gaps. Salt marshes, intermediate elevations, and colder areas with high rainfall have a high number of stations, while salt flat ecosystems, certain elevation zones, the mangrove-marsh ecotone, and hypersaline coastal areas with low rainfall have fewer stations. Due to rapid rates of wetland loss and relative sea-level rise, the state of Louisiana has the most extensive SET-MH station network in the region, and we provide several recent examples where data from Louisiana's network have been used to assess and compare wetland vulnerability to sea-level rise. Our findings represent the first attempt to examine spatial gaps in SET-MH coverage across abiotic gradients. Our analyses can be used to transform a broadly disseminated and unplanned collection of SET-MH stations into a coordinated and strategic regional network. This regional network would provide data for predicting and preparing for the responses of coastal wetlands to accelerated sea-level rise and other aspects of global change