Present and past selves : a steady-state visual evoked potentials approach to self-face processing

The self-face has a prioritized status in the processing of incoming visual inputs. As the self-face changes over the lifespan, this stimulus seems to be well-suited for investigation of the self across time. Here, steady-state visual evoked potentials (SSVEP, oscillatory responses to periodic stimulation with a frequency that mirrors the frequency of stimulation) were used to investigate this topic. Different types of faces (present self, past self, close-other's, unknown, scrambled) flickered four times per second in two types of stimulation (‘identical', with the same image of a given type of face; ‘different', with different images of the same type of face). Each of the 10 stimulation sessions lasted 90 seconds and was repeated three times. EEG data were recorded and analyzed in 20 participants. In general, faces evoked higher SSVEP than scrambled faces. The impact of identical and different stimulation was similar for faces and scrambled faces: SSVEP to different stimuli (faces, scrambled faces) was enhanced in comparison to identical ones. Present self-faces evoked higher SSVEP responses than past self-faces in the different stimulation condition only. Thus, our results showed that the physical aspects of the present and past selves are differentiated on the neural level in the absence of an overt behavior

Knowing when to stop: Aberrant precision and evidence accumulation in schizophrenia

Predictive coding and active inference formulations of the dysconnection hypothesis suggest that subjects with schizophrenia (SZ) hold unduly precise prior beliefs to compensate for a failure of sensory attenuation. This implies that SZ subjects should both initiate responses prematurely during evidence-accumulation tasks and fail to inhibit their responses at long stop-signal delays. SZ and healthy control subjects were asked to report the timing of billiards-ball collisions and were occasionally required to withhold their responses. SZ subjects showed larger temporal estimation errors, which were associated with premature responses and decreased response inhibition. To account for these effects, we used hierarchical (Bayesian) drift-diffusion models (HDDM) and model selection procedures to adjudicate among four hypotheses. HDDM revealed that the precision of prior beliefs (i.e., starting point) rather than increased sensory precision (i.e., drift rate) drove premature responses and impaired response inhibition in patients with SZ. From the perspective of active inference, we suggest that premature predictions in SZ are responses that, heuristically, are traded off against accuracy to ensure action execution. On the basis of previous work, we suggest that the right insular cortex might mediate this trade-off

A study of the symmetry of roots and root canal morphology in mandibular anterior teeth using cone-beam computed tomographic imaging in a Polish population

Background: The purpose of the study was to analyse mandibular anterior teeth in a Polish population and determine the symmetry of root and root canal morphology between the right and left side using cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) scanning.Materials and methods: From 111 CBCT examinations, 303 pairs of equivalent mandibular anterior teeth were analysed on the right and left sides to evaluate symmetry. Axial, sagittal, and cross-sectional slices with a thickness of 0.2–0.25 mm were used. The number of root canals and their internal patterns were classified following Vertucci’s criteria.Results: All incisors in this study had 1 root. Canines usually had a single root and much less often had 2 roots. Type I and III root canal configurations were found most often, while type V and II configurations were less frequent. Significant compatibility between the left and right side was observed in all evaluated variables. Incisors had the highest symmetry with regard to the number of roots (100%). Second canals were observed more often in males than females, but only the results in lateral incisors were significant.Conclusions: This study provides supplemental information for dentists and should help them to better predict the morphology of mandibular anterior teeth in complicated cases in the Polish population. Symmetry was observed in roots and root canal morphology in all examined parameters

The use of carbon monoxide as a probe molecule in spectroscopic studies for determination of exposed gold sites on TiO2

The sol immobilisation technique, in which a stabilising ligand (such as polyvinyl alcohol or polyvinyl pyridine) can be used to tune metal particle size and composition, has become a valuable method of making supported nanoparticle catalysts. An unfortunate consequence of the stabilising ligand is that often access of reactant molecules to the metal nanoparticle surface is impeded. Several methods have been proposed for the removal of these ligands, though determination of the degree of their success is difficult. Here, we demonstrate the use of in situ infrared and UV-Vis spectroscopy to elucidate the access of carbon monoxide to the surface of Au/TiO2 catalysts before and after various ligand removal treatments. These were contrasted with a catalyst prepared by deposition precipitation prepared in the absence of stabilising ligand as a control. Changes were observed in the infrared spectrum, with the wavenumber of carbon monoxide linearly bonded to Au for catalysts shifting before and after ligand removal, which correlated well with the activity of the catalyst for carbon monoxide oxidation. Also the extent of shifting of the Au surface resonance plasmon band on the addition of carbon monoxide, observed by UV-Vis, also correlated well with catalyst activity. These simple methods can be used to determine the quantity of exposed metal sites after a ligand removal treatment and so determine the treatments effectiveness

Obesogenic dietary intake in families with 1-year-old infants at high and low obesity risk based on parental weight status: baseline data from a longitudinal intervention (Early STOPP)

PURPOSE: To compare dietary intake in 1-year-old infants and their parents between families with high and low obesity risk, and to explore associations between infant dietary intake and relative weight. METHODS: Baseline analyses of 1-year-old infants (n = 193) and their parents participating in a longitudinal obesity intervention (Early STOPP) were carried out. Dietary intake and diet quality indicators were compared between high- and low-risk families, where obesity risk was based on parental weight status. The odds for high diet quality in relation to parental diet quality were determined. Associations between measured infant relative weight and dietary intake were examined adjusting for obesity risk, socio-demographics, and infant feeding. RESULTS: Infant dietary intake did not differ between high- and low-risk families. The parents in high-risk families consumed soft drinks, French fries, and low-fat spread more frequently, and fish and fruits less frequently (p < 0.05) compared to parents in low-risk families. Paternal intake of vegetables and fish increased the odds for children being consumers of vegetables (OR 1.7; 95 % CI 1.0-2.9) and fish, respectively (OR 2.5; 95 % CI 1.4-4.4). Infant relative weight was weakly associated with a high intake of milk cereal drink (r = 0.15; p < 0.05), but not with any other aspect of dietary intake, obesity risk, or early feeding patterns. CONCLUSIONS: At the age of one, dietary intake in infants is not associated with family obesity risk, nor with parental obesogenic food intake. Milk cereal drink consumption but no other infant dietary marker reflects relative weight at this young age.published_or_final_versio

The structural invisibility of outsiders: the role of migrant labour in the meat-processing industry

This article examines the role of migrant workers in meat-processing factories in the UK. Drawing on materials from mixed methods research in a number of case study towns across Wales, we explore the structural and spatial processes that position migrant workers as outsiders. While state policy and immigration controls are often presented as a way of protecting migrant workers from work-based exploitation and ensuring jobs for British workers, our research highlights that the situation ‘on the ground’ is more complex. We argue that ‘self-exploitation’ among the migrant workforce is linked to the strategies of employers and the organisation of work, and that hyper-flexible work patterns have reinforced the spatial and social invisibilities of migrant workers in this sector. While this creates problems for migrant workers, we conclude that it is beneficial to supermarkets looking to supply consumers with the regular supply of cheap food to which they have become accustomed