Are women better than men at multi-tasking?

Background: There seems to be a common belief that women are better in multi-tasking than men, but there is practically no scientific research on this topic. Here, we tested whether women have better multi-tasking skills than men.<p></p> Methods: In Experiment 1, we compared performance of 120 women and 120 men in a computer-based task-switching paradigm. In Experiment 2, we compared a different group of 47 women and 47 men on "paper-and-pencil" multi-tasking tests.<p></p> Results: In Experiment 1, both men and women performed more slowly when two tasks were rapidly interleaved than when the two tasks were performed separately. Importantly, this slow down was significantly larger in the male participants (Cohen’s d = 0.27). In an everyday multi-tasking scenario (Experiment 2), men and women did not differ significantly at solving simple arithmetic problems, searching for restaurants on a map, or answering general knowledge questions on the phone, but women were significantly better at devising strategies for locating a lost key (Cohen’s d = 0.49).<p></p> Conclusions: Women outperform men in these multi-tasking paradigms, but the near lack of empirical studies on gender differences in multitasking should caution against making strong generalisations. Instead, we hope that other researchers will aim to replicate and elaborate on our findings.<p></p&gt

Honour and respect in Danish prisons: Contesting ‘cognitive distortions’ in cognitive-behavioural programmes

© 2016, © The Author(s) 2016. Using empirical data from prison-based cognitive-behavioural programmes, this article considers how prisoners’ subcultural capital shapes their responses to demands for ‘cognitive self-change’. We argue that accounts of ‘respect’ in the prior literature fail to capture how prisoners react to these programmes, and that a discussion of honour (and what we term ‘respect plus’) needs to be incorporated. The empirical material derives from four different cognitive-behavioural programme setups in three Danish prisons and semi-structured interviews with participants and course instructors. By attempting to create accountable and rational actors, who ‘self-manage’, the therapeutic ethos neglects participants’ life experiences and subcultural capital. Open expressions of moral values by prisoners (such as displays of honour and respect) are considered to be cognitive distortions which are dismissed by instructors, while alternative and ‘correct’ thinking styles are prescribed. Our findings advance understandings of the meanings of honour and respect in prisons in general and in cognitive-behavioural programmes in particular.This work was supported by the Danish Council for Independent Research | Social Sciences grant number 12-125308 for the research project Education in Social Skills and Emotional Training

Guanylate cyclase C limits systemic dissemination of a murine enteric pathogen

BACKGROUND: Guanylate Cyclase C (GC-C) is an apically-oriented transmembrane receptor that is expressed on epithelial cells of the intestine. Activation of GC-C by the endogenous ligands guanylin or uroguanylin elevates intracellular cGMP and is implicated in intestinal ion secretion, cell proliferation, apoptosis, intestinal barrier function, as well as the susceptibility of the intestine to inflammation. Our aim was to determine if GC-C is required for host defense during infection by the murine enteric pathogen Citrobacter rodentium of the family Enterobacteriacea. METHODS: GC-C(+/+) control mice or those having GC-C genetically ablated (GC-C(−/−)) were administered C. rodentium by orogastric gavage and analyzed at multiple time points up to post-infection day 20. Commensal bacteria were characterized in uninfected GC-C(+/+) and GC-C(−/−) mice using 16S rRNA PCR analysis. RESULTS: GC-C(−/−) mice had an increase in C. rodentium bacterial load in stool relative to GC-C(+/+). C. rodentium infection strongly decreased guanylin expression in GC-C(+/+) mice and, to an even greater degree, in GC-C(−/−) animals. Fluorescent tracer studies indicated that mice lacking GC-C, unlike GC-C(+/+) animals, had a substantial loss of intestinal barrier function early in the course of infection. Epithelial cell apoptosis was significantly increased in GC-C(−/−) mice following 10 days of infection and this was associated with increased frequency and numbers of C. rodentium translocation out of the intestine. Infection led to significant liver histopathology in GC-C(−/−) mice as well as lymphocyte infiltration and elevated cytokine and chemokine expression. Relative to naïve GC-C(+/+) mice, the commensal microflora load in uninfected GC-C(−/−) mice was decreased and bacterial composition was imbalanced and included outgrowth of the Enterobacteriacea family. CONCLUSIONS: This work demonstrates the novel finding that GC-C signaling is an essential component of host defense during murine enteric infection by reducing bacterial load and preventing systemic dissemination of attaching/effacing-lesion forming bacterial pathogens such as C. rodentium

Harmonic Chains: Weaponization in Omega Quintet

This work includes a video clip available online at: https://doi.org/10.1525/jsmg.2021.2.4.1 .Omega Quintet (Idea Factory International, 2014), a role-playing video game released for the Sony PlayStation 4, centers around the concept of weaponizing musical entities and apparatuses to combat threats in a dystopian universe. Omega Quintet weaponizes music literally, supernaturally, and economically, both inside and outside of the game narrative. In this article, we interpret these types of weaponization as an extended allegory for consumption. On one level, the surface narrative denotes sound as a murder tool, on another level the player enables violent consumption of these tools, and yet another level reveals the weaponization of agency within a gendered labor market. The story of Omega Quintet is set in a dystopian Japan overrun by monsters known as the BEEP. Protagonist Takt and his childhood friend, Otoha, join an organization that develops special idols known as Verse Maidens to fight the BEEP. Surviving members of humanity provide the fan base for the Verse Maidens. The Verse Maidens depend on fan support to fuel their powers. Battles in Omega Quintet feature an assortment of musical weaponization. Examples include Sound Weapons as the main conduit for physical attacks, Verse Maidens’ unique songs to play during extended attack sequences known as Live Mode, and special joint attacks known as Harmonic Chains. The battles take the commodification of idols to such an extreme that they are simultaneously consumed and used as weapons. Presented as a duality of fragility and strength, beauty and brutality, art and war, the Verse Maidens are consumed in a complex system of cultural and narrative implications

Maximising Slurry Crop Available Nitrogen Utilisation in Grassland Systems

In the UK, approximately 90 million tonnes of animal manure containing ca 450,000 tonnes of nitrogen (N) are recycled to agricultural land each year. The efficient utilisation of manure N can save farmers money and reduce diffuse air (ammonia) and water (nitrate) pollution. For slurries, bandspreading techniques (e.g. trailing shoe and trailing hose) can improve N utilisation by reducing ammonia volatilisation losses compared with conventional broadcast applications. They also provide increased spreading opportunities in spring/summer as slurry is placed in a band on the soil surface limiting herbage contamination, which can reduce the need to apply slurry in the autumn/early winter period that can exacerbate nitrate leaching losses. However, spring/summer application timings (when temperatures are higher and soils are drier) may lead to increased ammonia emissions compared with autumn/winter applications under cooler and moister soil conditions. This paper reports results from a project to investigate the effects of contrasting slurry application timings on ammonia volatilisation and nitrate leaching losses and grass N utilisation

Concepts of mental disorders in the United Kingdom : Similarities and differences between the lay public and psychiatrists

BACKGROUND: The lay public often conceptualise mental disorders in a different way to mental health professionals, and this can negatively impact on outcomes when in treatment. AIMS: This study explored which disorders the lay public are familiar with, which theoretical models they understand, which they endorse and how they compared to a sample of psychiatrists. METHODS: The Maudsley Attitude Questionnaire (MAQ), typically used to assess mental health professional's concepts of mental disorders, was adapted for use by a lay community sample (N = 160). The results were compared with a sample of psychiatrists (N = 76). RESULTS: The MAQ appeared to be accessible to the lay public, providing some interesting preliminary findings: in order, the lay sample reported having the best understanding of depression followed by generalised anxiety, schizophrenia and finally antisocial personality disorder. They best understood spiritualist, nihilist and social realist theoretical models of these disorders, but were most likely to endorse biological, behavioural and cognitive models. The lay public were significantly more likely to endorse some models for certain disorders suggesting a nuanced understanding of the cause and likely cure, of various disorders. Ratings often differed significantly from the sample of psychiatrists who were relatively steadfast in their endorsement of the biological model. CONCLUSION: The adapted MAQ appeared accessible to the lay sample. Results suggest that the lay public are generally aligned with evidence-driven concepts of common disorders, but may not always understand or agree with how mental health professionals conceptualise them. The possible causes of these differences, future avenues for research and the implications for more collaborative, patient-clinician conceptualisations are discussed.Peer reviewedFinal Accepted Versio

Website design: Technical, social and medical issues for self-reporting by elderly patients

There is growing interest in the use of the Internet for interacting with patients, both in terms of healthcare information provision and information gathering. In this paper we examine the issues in designing healthcare websites for elderly users. In particular this paper uses a year-long case study of the development of a web-based system for self-reporting of symptoms and quality of life with a view to examine the issues relating to website design for elderly users. The issues identified included the technical, social and medical aspects of website design for elderly users. The web-based system developed was based upon the EQ5D health-status questionnaire, a commonly used tool for patient self-reporting of quality of life, and the more specific CROQ (coronary revascularisation outcome questionnaire) questionnaire. Currently self-reporting is generally administered in the form of paper-based questionnaires to be completed in the out-patient clinic, or at home. There are a variety of issues relating to elderly users that imply that websites for elderly patients may involve different design considerations to other types of websites