Everyday Ghosts: An Examination of Memory in Social Interactions

Naturally occurring instances of memory suppression seem to be ones in which conflict arises between a memory and present motivations. For example, being reminded of an embarrassing past event may introduce feelings that are not desired or appropriate if you are hosting company. The emotions connected to the negative memory and the desired emotions expected of a host are in conflict, and so the memory in question may be suppressed to preserve your desire to be a congenial host. While research has served to characterize various aspects of suppression, the methodologies used by such studies rely on explicit instruction from the experimenter. To bring the study of suppression closer to how it occurs naturally, this research seeks to minimize instruction and induce suppression through instances of conflict. Participants learned a series of Name-Word pairs (e.g. MARTHA--WATCH) and imagined a distinct person attached to each Name. Audio recordings that corresponded to each person were listened to, providing a positive or negative association to each Name/person. Participants then imagined working on an important task with a subset of these individuals, repeatedly. This was followed by a surprise memory test of the Name-Word pairs. It was hypothesized that working with a person with a negatively associated Name would encourage suppression. Evidence of suppression would be indicated by reduced memory performance on the surprise memory test. There was no significant difference between the recall of positively or negatively associated Name-Word pairs. Still, reports from participants will inform the continued development of a method for the study of suppression as a result of conflict

Acquiring the Tools of Grand Strategy: The US Navy\u27s LCS as a Case Study

Grand strategy is about how states allocate resources and employ these resources to achieve desired political conditions. In examining the match between desired ends and available ways and means, an often-overlooked subject is how the specific tools of grand strategy are forged. One of these tools is the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS), a Major Defense Acquisition Program (MDAP) that started in 2000. LCS remains a controversial and often unpopular program with many stakeholders to this day. This study examines how the means of grand strategy, in this case a new ship class, are acquired. It also looks at how these means are employed (ways) to achieve the desired outcomes (ends) and the feedback loop between means, ways, and ends. The initial portion of the study examines how the U.S. Department of Defense and Department of the Navy formally acquire systems or “systems of systems.” The second portion of the study examines the design, construction, and fielding of the LCS class or the attainment of Initial Operational Capability (IOC). The final portion analyzes the design, construction, and introduction of the LCS into the fleet in terms of the three models used by Graham Allison and Philip Zelikow in Essence of Decision; the Rational Actor Model (RAM), Organizational Behavior, and Governmental Politics – Models I, II, and III respectively. The hypothesis is that individual personalities may have more influence than any of these models account for and that instances of individual impact may offer more nuanced insights into these models of state behavior. This study reveals that the process of evolutionary acquisition and spiral development caused increased risk in the time-line for achieving Final Operational Capacity (FOC) of LCS. It also provides insight into the reaction and adaption of a large organization to changes in its environment. This study does not however reveal strong evidence to support the hypothesis of individual personalities significantly influencing decision making or action taking compared to organizations in Models I-III. The details of individual participation and internal deliberations are obscured by security and proprietary rules which privileges models I and II in the analysis

A Generalized Theory of Varying Alpha

In this paper, we formulate a generalization of the simple Bekenstein-Sandvik-Barrow-Magueijo (BSBM) theory of varying alpha by allowing the coupling constant, \omega, for the corresponding scalar field \psi\ to depend on \psi. We focus on the situation where \omega\ is exponential in \psi\ and find the late-time behaviours that occur in matter-dominated and dark-energy dominated cosmologies. We also consider the situation when the background expansion scale factor of the universe evolves in proportion to an arbitrary power of the cosmic time. We find the conditions under which the fine structure `constant' increases with time, as in the BSBM theory, and establish a cosmic no-hair behaviour for accelerating universes. We also find the conditions under which the fine structure `constant' can decrease with time and compare the whole family of models with astronomical data from quasar absorption spectra.Comment: 25 pages, 6 figures. Minor corrections and clarifications added. Final section on spatial variations removed so that the paper focuses exclusively on time-variatio

Evaluating Otter Reintroduction Outcomes Using Genetic Spatial Capture-Recapture Modified for Dendritic Networks

Monitoring the demographics and genetics of reintroduced populations is critical to evaluating reintroduction success, but species ecology and the landscapes that they inhabit often present challenges for accurate assessments. If suitable habitats are restricted to hierarchical dendritic networks, such as river systems, animal movements are typically constrained and may violate assumptions of methods commonly used to estimate demographic parameters. Using genetic detection data collected via fecal sampling at latrines, we demonstrate applicability of the spatial capture–recapture (SCR) network distance function for estimating the size and density of a recently reintroduced North American river otter (Lontra canadensis) population in the Upper Rio Grande River dendritic network in the southwestern United States, and we also evaluated the genetic outcomes of using a small founder group (n = 33 otters) for reintroduction. Estimated population density was 0.23–0.28 otter/km, or 1 otter/3.57–4.35 km, with weak evidence of density increasing with northerly latitude (β = 0.33). Estimated population size was 83–104 total otters in 359 km of riverine dendritic network, which corresponded to average annual exponential population growth of 1.12–1.15/year since reintroduction. Growth was ≥40% lower than most reintroduced river otter populations and strong evidence of a founder effect existed 8–10 years post-reintroduction, including 13–21% genetic diversity loss, 84%–87% genetic effective population size decline, and rapid divergence from the source population (FST accumulation = 0.06/generation). Consequently, genetic restoration via translocation of additional otters from other populations may be necessary to mitigate deleterious genetic effects in this small, isolated population. Combined with non-invasive genetic sampling, the SCR network distance approach is likely widely applicable to demogenetic assessments of both reintroduced and established populations of multiple mustelid species that inhabit aquatic dendritic networks, many of which are regionally or globally imperiled and may warrant reintroduction or augmentation efforts

Sex differences in misperceptions of sexual interest can be explained by sociosexual orientation and men projecting their own interest onto women

Sex differences in misperceptions of sexual interest have been well documented; however, it is unclear whether this cognitive bias could be explained by other factors. In the current study, 1226 participants (578 men, 630 women) participated in a speed-dating study, where participants rated their sexual interest in each other as well as the sexual interest they perceived from their partners. Consistent with previous findings, we found that men tended to overperceive sexual interest from their partners, while women tended to underperceive sexual interest. However, this sex difference becomes negligible when considering potential mediators, such as the raters’ sociosexual orientation, and raters projecting their own levels of sexual interest onto their partners. These findings challenge the popular notion that sex differences in misperceptions in sexual interest have evolved as a specialised adaptation due to different selection pressures in men and women

Growth Manipulation of Slicer Carrots by Foliar-applied Gibberellic Acid in New York

New York, USA, is a regional hub for processing carrot (Daucus carota ssp. sativus) production and Nantes-type cultivars are preferred for slicing. Diameter is critical in carrots for slicing, with roots larger than 1 5/8 inch being rejected. The potential to manipulate carrot root diameter and hence suitability for slicing by foliar-applied gibberellic acid (GA3) was tested in four small plot replicated field trials over 3 years (2020, 2021, and 2022). In the most efficacious treatments, GA3 resulted in a 23.1% to 135.4% increase in foliar biomass at the expense of root weight and diameter. Increases in foliar biomass are beneficial to facilitate top-pulling harvest. Reductions in root diameter from GA3 ranged from 9.5% to 19.6%, and in 2020 and 2022, increased the proportion of roots suitable for slicing. GA3 did not significantly affect root length and number. In two 2021 trials, GA3 increased color intensity quantified by a colorimeter, but this change was not noticeable to the naked eye. The optimal number of GA3 applications was seasonally dependent, ranging from a single application at 107 to 108 days after planting (DAP) in 2021, to two applications at 74 + 92 DAP in 2022. Three GA3 applications per season or late applications (up to 14 days prior to harvest) were not beneficial

Photoactivated release of membrane impermeant sulfonates inside cells.

Photouncaging delivers compounds with high spatial and temporal control to induce or inhibit biological processes but the released compounds may diffuse out. We here demonstrate that sulfonate anions can be photocaged so that a membrane impermeable compound can enter cells, be uncaged by photoirradiation and trapped within the cell

Constraining Cometary Crystal Shapes from IR Spectral Features

A major challenge in deriving the silicate mineralogy of comets is ascertaining how the anisotropic nature of forsterite crystals affects the spectral features' wavelength, relative intensity, and asymmetry. Forsterite features are identified in cometary comae near 10, 11.05-11.2, 16, 19, 23.5, 27.5 and 33 microns [1-10], so accurate models for forsterite's absorption efficiency (Qabs) are a primary requirement to compute IR spectral energy distributions (SEDs, lambdaF lambda vs. lambda) and constrain the silicate mineralogy of comets. Forsterite is an anisotropic crystal, with three crystallographic axes with distinct indices of refraction for the a-, b-, and c-axis. The shape of a forsterite crystal significantly affects its spectral features [13-16]. We need models that account for crystal shape. The IR absorption efficiencies of forsterite are computed using the discrete dipole approximation (DDA) code DDSCAT [11,12]. Starting from a fiducial crystal shape of a cube, we systematically elongate/reduce one of the crystallographic axes. Also, we elongate/reduce one axis while the lengths of the other two axes are slightly asymmetric (0.8:1.2). The most significant grain shape characteristic that affects the crystalline spectral features is the relative lengths of the crystallographic axes. The second significant grain shape characteristic is breaking the symmetry of all three axes [17]. Synthetic spectral energy distributions using seven crystal shape classes [17] are fit to the observed SED of comet C/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp). The Hale-Bopp crystalline residual better matches equant, b-platelets, c-platelets, and b-columns spectral shape classes, while a-platelets, a-columns and c-columns worsen the spectral fits. Forsterite condensation and partial evaporation experiments demonstrate that environmental temperature and grain shape are connected [18-20]. Thus, grain shape is a potential probe for protoplanetary disk temperatures where the cometary crystalline forsterite formed. The forsterite crystal shapes (equant, b-platelets, c-platelets, b-columns - excluding a- and c-columns) derived from our modeling [17] of comet Hale- Bopp, compared to laboratory synthesis experiments [18], suggests that these crystals are high temperature condensates. By observing and modeling the crystalline features in comet ISON, we may constrain forsterite crystal shape(s) and link to their formation temperature(s) and environment(s)