Oscillatory activity in the infant brain reflects object maintenance

The apparent failure of infants to understand "object permanence" by reaching for hidden objects is perhaps the most striking and debated phenomenon in cognitive development. Of particular interest is the extent to which infants perceive and remember objects in a similar way to that of adults. Here we report two findings that clarify infant object processing. The first is that 6-mo-old infants are sensitive to visual cues to occlusion, particularly gradual deletion. The second finding is that oscillatory electroencephalogram activity recorded over right temporal channels is involved in object maintenance. This effect occurs only after disappearance in a manner consistent with occlusion and the object's continued existence

Eye Movement Dynamics Differ between Encoding and Recognition of Faces

Facial recognition is widely thought to involve a holistic perceptual process, and optimal recognition performance can be rapidly achieved within two fixations. However, is facial identity encoding likewise holistic and rapid, and how do gaze dynamics during encoding relate to recognition? While having eye movements tracked, participants completed an encoding (“study”) phase and subsequent recognition (“test”) phase, each divided into blocks of one- or five-second stimulus presentation time conditions to distinguish the influences of experimental phase (encoding/recognition) and stimulus presentation time (short/long). Within the first two fixations, several differences between encoding and recognition were evident in the temporal and spatial dynamics of the eye-movements. Most importantly, in behavior, the long study phase presentation time alone caused improved recognition performance (i.e., longer time at recognition did not improve performance), revealing that encoding is not as rapid as recognition, since longer sequences of eye-movements are functionally required to achieve optimal encoding than to achieve optimal recognition. Together, these results are inconsistent with a scan path replay hypothesis. Rather, feature information seems to have been gradually integrated over many fixations during encoding, enabling recognition that could subsequently occur rapidly and holistically within a small number of fixations

Gender differences in the association between adiposity and probable major depression: a cross-sectional study of 140,564 UK Biobank participants

<b>Background</b><p></p> Previous studies on the association between adiposity and mood disorder have produced contradictory results, and few have used measurements other than body mass index (BMI). We examined the association between probable major depression and several measurements of adiposity: BMI, waist circumference (WC), waist-hip-ratio (WHR), and body fat percentage (BF%).<p></p> <b>Methods</b><p></p> We conducted a cross-sectional study using baseline data on the sub-group of UK Biobank participants who were assessed for mood disorder. Multivariate logistic regression models were used, adjusting for potential confounders including: demographic and life-style factors, comorbidity and psychotropic medication.<p></p> <b>Results</b><p></p> Of the 140,564 eligible participants, evidence of probable major depression was reported by 30,145 (21.5%). The fully adjusted odds ratios (OR) for obese participants were 1.16 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.12, 1.20) using BMI, 1.15 (95% CI 1.11, 1.19) using WC, 1.09 (95% CI 1.05, 1.13) using WHR and 1.18 (95% CI 1.12, 1.25) using BF% (all p <0.001). There was a significant interaction between adiposity and gender (p = 0.001). Overweight women were at increased risk of depression with a dose response relationship across the overweight (25.0-29.9 kg/m2), obese I (30.0-34.9 kg/m2), II (35.0-39.9 kg/m2) and III (≥40.0 kg/m2) categories; fully adjusted ORs 1.14, 1.20, 1.29 and 1.48, respectively (all p < 0.001). In contrast, only obese III men had significantly increased risk of depression (OR 1.29, 95% CI 1.08, 1.54, p = 0.006).<p></p> <b>Conclusion</b><p></p> Adiposity was associated with probable major depression, irrespective of the measurement used. The association was stronger in women than men. Physicians managing overweight and obese women should be alert to this increased risk

The Distribution of Amphibians in the Portneuf Drainage

The goal of this study was to determine the distribution of amphibian species in the Portneuf drainageof Southeast Idaho as part of a Managing Idaho’s Landscapes for Ecosystem Services (MILES) study, an NSF/EPSCoR project to discern the impact of urban development and climate change on social and ecological systems and services in mid-sized Idaho cities. We compiled historic amphibian records from museum collections, surveys, Idaho Department of Fish and Game records, and contributed observations. We imported these records into ArcMap and created dot distribution maps for each of the 6 amphibian species found within the drainage. Preliminary results suggest that amphibian populations have declined throughout the drainage (especially in and around the Pocatello area) with the drainage-wide loss of 1 species, the Western Toad, Anaxyrus boreas. We plan to resurvey the historic amphibian locations to compare with our current results and add new data to the distribution maps. The final results will benefit Federal, State, County, and City organizations by helping to plan for future changes regarding these species, two of which have recently been considered for Endangered Species status

A rich vein? Mining and the pursuit of sustainability

The removal of a nonrenewable natural resource such as metals or petrochemicals hardly meets the definition of “sustainable”. However the methods used to extract the materials can be designed for overall environmental protection. Theoretically controllable variables include water use, transportation methods, and potential remediation/landscape alteration for the postclosure period. Further, in the case of metals, recycling means that the long-term sustainability of such resources can be realized. Amezaga et al. review how mining practices have evolved to consider sustainability over the last few decades and remark on what challenges still need to be overcome

The Distribution of Reptiles in the Portneuf Drainage

Our goal was to determine the distribution of reptile species in the Portneuf drainage of Southeastern Idaho as part of a Managing Idaho’s Landscapes for Ecosystem Services (MILES) study, an NSF/EPSCoR project to discern the impact of urban development and climate change on social and ecological systems and services in mid-sized Idaho cities. We assembled reptile occurrence records from museums, surveys, Idaho Department of Fish and Game records, and contributed observations. We then used a Geographic Information System to generate dot-distribution maps. Thirteen species of reptiles have been found in the Portneuf drainage since the 1890s but only 10 species since 1980. The disappearance of 3 species appears to be related to habitat loss. The next step is to develop distribution models for each species based on several environmental variables (e.g. topography, temperature, and land cover). The results should help MILES researchers evaluate the effects of climate change and urban growth on ecosystem services (such as the roles of reptiles in food webs, as indicators of ecosystem function, and recreational wildlife viewing opportunities)