Psychological Type and Preferences in the Academic Environment

This research addresses significant relationships between the components of an individual\u27s psychological type and cognitive style, as measured by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), and preferences within the academic environment, as indicated on the Educational Style Survey (ESS). The areas within the academic environment which were addressed include classroom configuration, subject matter difficulty, student\u27s study strategy, testing method preferences, amount of student/faculty interaction, and adaptability to academic stress. The sample consisted of 695 Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) graduate students in the School of Logistics and Acquisition Management (1985-93) who completed the MBTI and the ESS. The analysis utilized in this research was the Chi-Squared Goodness of Fit procedures, which determined that some preferences within the academic environment are most or least preferred by the eight MBTI single letter psychological types and the four cognitive types. The eight single letter types are composed of four bipolar types which are Extraversion/Introversion, Sensing/Intuition, Thinking/Feeling, and Judging/Perceiving, and the four cognitive types are Sensing-Thinking (ST), Sensing-Feeling (SF), Intuitive-Thinking (NT), and Intuitive-Feeling (NF). Recommendations for additional research are provided

Is the relationship between binge eating episodes and personality attributable to genetic factors?

Aspects of disordered eating and personality traits, such as neuroticism are correlated and, individually, heritable. We examined the phenotypic correlation between binge eating episodes and indices of personality (neuroticism, extraversion, openness to experience, agreeableness, conscientiousness and control/impulsivity). For correlations ≥ |0.20|, we estimated the extent to which genetic and environmental factors contributed to this correlation. Participants included 3446 European-American same-sex female twins from the Missouri Adolescent Female Twin Study (median age = 22 years). Binge eating episode was assessed via interview questions. Personality traits were assessed by self-report questionnaires. There was a significant moderate phenotypic correlation between binge eating episode and neuroticism (r = 0.33), as well as conscientiousness (r=−0.21) while other correlations were significant but smaller (r ranging from −0.14 to 0.14). Individual differences in binge eating episodes, neuroticism and conscientiousness were attributed to additive genetic influences (38% [95% confidence interval: 21%–53%], 45% [38%–52%], and 44% [0.33–0.55] respectively), with the remaining variance due to individual-specific environmental influences. Covariance was attributable to genetic (neuroticism r(g) = 0.37; conscientiousness r(g) = −0.22) and individual-specific environmental (neuroticism r(e) = 0.28; conscientiousness r(e) = −0.19) influences. Personality traits may be an early indicator of genetic vulnerability to a variety of pathological behaviors including binge eating episode. Furthermore, prior research documenting phenotypic correlations between eating disorder diagnoses and personality may stem from etiological overlap between these personality traits and aspects of disordered eating, such as binge eating episode

Physical Activity and Public Health in Older Adults: Recommendation From the American College of Sports Medicine and the American Heart Association

Objective - To issue a recommendation on the types and amounts of physical activity needed to improve and maintain health in older adults. Participants - A panel of scientists with expertise in public health, behavioral science, epidemiology, exercise science, medicine, and gerontology. Evidence - The expert panel reviewed existing consensus statements and relevant evidence from primary research articles and reviews of the literature. Process: After drafting a recommendation for the older adult population and reviewing drafts of the Updated Recommendation from the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and the American Heart Association (AHA) for Adults, the panel issued a final recommendation on physical activity for older adults. Summary - The recommendation for older adults is similar to the updated ACSM/AHA recommendation for adults, but has several differences including: the recommended intensity of aerobic activity takes into account the older adult\u27s aerobic fitness; activities that maintain or increase flexibility are recommended; and balance exercises are recommended for older adults at risk of falls. In addition, older adults should have an activity plan for achieving recommended physical activity that integrates preventive and therapeutic recommendations. The promotion of physical activity in older adults should emphasize moderate-intensity aerobic activity, muscle-strengthening activity, reducing sedentary behavior, and risk management

Genetic and environmental risk for major depression in African-American and European-American women

It is unknown whether there are racial differences in the heritability of major depressive disorder (MDD) because most psychiatric genetic studies have been conducted in samples comprised largely of white non-Hispanics. To examine potential differences between African-American (AA) and European-American (EA) young adult women in (1) DSM-IV MDD prevalence, symptomatology and risk factors and (2) genetic and/or environmental liability to MDD, we analyzed data from a large, population representative sample of twins ascertained from birth records (n= 550 AA and n=3226 EA female twins) aged 18–28 years at the time of MDD assessment by semi-structured psychiatric interview. AA women were more likely to have MDD risk factors; however, there were no significant differences in lifetime MDD prevalence between AA and EA women after adjusting for covariates (Odds Ratio = 0.88, 95% confidence interval: 0.67–1.15 ). Most MDD risk factors identified among AAs were also associated with MDD at similar magnitudes among EAs. Although the MDD heritability point estimate was higher among AA than EA women in a model with paths estimated separately by race (56%, 95% CI: 29%–78% vs. 41%, 95% CI: 29%–52%), the best-fitting model was one in which additive genetic and nonshared environmental paths for AA and EA women were constrained to be equal (A = 43%, 33%–53% and E = 57%, 47%–67%). Despite a marked elevation in the prevalence of environmental risk exposures related to MDD among AA women, there were no significant differences in lifetime prevalence or heritability of MDD between AA and EA young women

Rehabilitation medicine summit: building research capacity Executive Summary

The general objective of the "Rehabilitation Medicine Summit: Building Research Capacity" was to advance and promote research in medical rehabilitation by making recommendations to expand research capacity. The five elements of research capacity that guided the discussions were: 1) researchers; 2) research culture, environment, and infrastructure; 3) funding; 4) partnerships; and 5) metrics. The 100 participants included representatives of professional organizations, consumer groups, academic departments, researchers, governmental funding agencies, and the private sector. The small group discussions and plenary sessions generated an array of problems, possible solutions, and recommended actions. A post-Summit, multi-organizational initiative is called to pursue the agendas outlined in this report (see Additional File 1)

Pervasive mantle plume head heterogeneity: Evidence from the late Cretaceous Caribbean-Colombian oceanic plateau

In SW Colombia picritic pillow lavas and tuffs, as well as breccias composed of picritic clasts, occur interspersed with basalts of the Central Cordillera and represent accreted portions of the ∼90 Ma Colombian/Caribbean oceanic plateau (CCOP). We present new geochemical data for these picrites and high-MgO basalts from SW Colombia, along with new data from Deep Sea Drilling Project Leg 15 drill sites. The 40Ar/39Ar ages for the CCOP in the Central Colombian Cordillera range from 87 to 93 Ma. Both SW Colombia picrites and Leg 15 basalts are compositionally diverse and range from reasonably enriched ((La/Nd)n > 1 and (εNd)i +8.0). Nb/Y and Zr/Y systematics suggest that the depleted component is not depleted MORB mantle, but is an intrinsic part of the plume. The bulk of the CCOP compositions can be explained by mixing between this depleted mantle and a HIMU component. However, radiogenic isotope systematics indicate the presence of an EM2 (or possibly EM1) component within the plume. Mantle melt modeling suggests that the enriched magma types are the product of deeper, small degree melting of a pervasively heterogeneous plume comprising a refractory matrix with enriched streaks/blobs, whereas shallower, more extensive melting, results in the formation of relatively depleted magmas

Thalamus and focal to bilateral seizures: A multiscale cognitive imaging study.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the functional correlates of recurrent secondarily generalized seizures in temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) using task-based fMRI as a framework to test for epilepsy-specific network rearrangements. Because the thalamus modulates propagation of temporal lobe onset seizures and promotes cortical synchronization during cognition, we hypothesized that occurrence of secondarily generalized seizures, i.e., focal to bilateral tonic-clonic seizures (FBTCS), would relate to thalamic dysfunction, altered connectivity, and whole-brain network centrality. METHODS: FBTCS occur in a third of patients with TLE and are a major determinant of disease severity. In this cross-sectional study, we analyzed 113 patients with drug-resistant TLE (55 left/58 right), who performed a verbal fluency fMRI task that elicited robust thalamic activation. Thirty-three patients (29%) had experienced at least one FBTCS in the year preceding the investigation. We compared patients with TLE-FBTCS to those without FBTCS via a multiscale approach, entailing analysis of statistical parametric mapping (SPM) 12-derived measures of activation, task-modulated thalamic functional connectivity (psychophysiologic interaction), and graph-theoretical metrics of centrality. RESULTS: Individuals with TLE-FBTCS had less task-related activation of bilateral thalamus, with left-sided emphasis, and left hippocampus than those without FBTCS. In TLE-FBTCS, we also found greater task-related thalamotemporal and thalamomotor connectivity, and higher thalamic degree and betweenness centrality. Receiver operating characteristic curves, based on a combined thalamic functional marker, accurately discriminated individuals with and without FBTCS. CONCLUSIONS: In TLE-FBTCS, impaired task-related thalamic recruitment coexists with enhanced thalamotemporal connectivity and whole-brain thalamic network embedding. Altered thalamic functional profiles are proposed as imaging biomarkers of active secondary generalization