Engaging and disengaging recurrent inhibition coincides with sensing and unsensing of a sensory stimulus

AbstractEven simple sensory stimuli evoke neural responses that are dynamic and complex. Are the temporally patterned neural activities important for controlling the behavioral output? Here, we investigated this issue. Our results reveal that in the insect antennal lobe, due to circuit interactions, distinct neural ensembles are activated during and immediately following the termination of every odorant. Such non-overlapping response patterns are not observed even when the stimulus intensity or identities were changed. In addition, we find that ON and OFF ensemble neural activities differ in their ability to recruit recurrent inhibition, entrain field-potential oscillations and more importantly in their relevance to behaviour (initiate versus reset conditioned responses). Notably, we find that a strikingly similar strategy is also used for encoding sound onsets and offsets in the marmoset auditory cortex. In sum, our results suggest a general approach where recurrent inhibition is associated with stimulus ‘recognition’ and ‘derecognition’.</jats:p

Furor over furs.

Furor Over Furs was designed to provide a true account of the fur industry by removing bias and emotion that can often cloud fact. To obtain this information, literature reviews, surveys and interviews were all implemented. We examined all sides of the fur industry, and then reported the information so that a fair opinion could be drawn from our research. Problems arose from the lack of willing communication from members of the fur industry. We conclude that animal rights groups have overstated their bounds, largely unopposed by an industry which, in general, treats its animals humanely

Genomic data mining

In this project, we used two data mining tools, CBA and WEKA, to search for genetic polymorphisms that affect two human diseases, autosomal recessive spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) and bilateral optic neuropathy (LHON). We modified WEKA to be able to mine genetic data. Our results provided a number of association rules, which identified important genetic variants and phenotypic factors affecting the disease state and severity

The Effect of Surgical Video on Resident Performance of Carpal Tunnel Release: A Cadaveric Simulation-Based, Prospective, Randomized, Blinded Pilot Study

Background: Surgical videos are increasingly common, although their role in residency curricula remains unclear. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of an educational surgical video on resident performance of an open carpal tunnel release through an Objective Structured Assessment of Technical Skills and serial questionnaires. Methods: Twenty-two residents representing six postgraduate years were randomized to receive text-based materials with or without a surgical video before performing a carpal tunnel release on human cadavers. Procedures were video recorded, anonymized, and independently evaluated by three hand surgeons using the Objective Structured Assessment of Technical Skills global rating scale, a procedure-specific technical rating scale, a record of operative errors, and pass/fail designation. Residents completed questionnaires before and after the procedure to track confidence in their technical skills. Results: Residents in their first and second postgraduate years (n = 10) who watched the surgical video committed fewer operative errors (median, 4 versus 1.3; p = 0.043) and were more confident in their abilities following the procedure (median, 75 versus 32; p = 0.043) than those receiving text resources alone. There were no significant differences in Objective Structured Assessment of Technical Skills performance or questionnaire responses among more senior residents (n = 12). The technical rating scale was internally consistent (Cronbach α = 0.95; 95 percent CI, 0.91 to 0.98), reliable (intraclass correlation coefficient, 0.73; 95 percent CI, 0.40 to 0.88), and correlated with surgical experience (Spearman ρ = 0.57; p = 0.006). Conclusion: Watching an educational surgical video to prepare for a cadaveric procedure significantly reduced operative errors and improved confidence among junior trainees performing a carpal tunnel release