Distinct patterns of neural activity during memory formation of nonwords versus words

Research into the neural underpinnings of memory formation has focused on the encoding of familiar verbal information. Here, we address how the brain supports the encoding of novel information that does not have meaning. Electrical brain activity was recorded from the scalps of healthy young adults while they performed an incidental encoding task (syllable judgments) on separate series of words and "nonwords" (nonsense letter strings that are orthographically legal and pronounceable). Memory for the items was then probed with a recognition memory test. For words as well as nonwords, event-related potentials differed depending on whether an item would subsequently be remembered or forgotten. However, the polarity and timing of the effect varied across item type. For words, subsequently remembered items showed the Usually observed positive-going, frontally distributed modulation from around 600 msec after word onset. For nonwords, by contrast, a negative-going, spatially widespread modulation predicted encoding success from 1000 rnsec onward. Nonwords also showed a modulation shortly after item onset. These findings imply that the brain supports the encoding of familiar and unfamiliar letter strings in qualitatively different ways, including the engagement of distinct neural activity at different points in time. The processing of semantic attributes plays an important role in the encoding of words and the associated positive frontal modulation

Study of the damping characteristics of general aviation aircraft panels and development of computer programs to calculate the effectiveness of interior noise control treatment, part 1

Tests were carried out on 20 inch x 20 inch panels at different test conditions using free-free panels, clamped panels, and panels as installed in the KU-FRL acoustic test facility. Tests with free-free panels verified the basic equipment set-up and test procedure. They also provided a basis for comparison. The results indicate that the effect of installed panels is to increase the damping ratio at the same frequency. However, a direct comparison is not possible, as the fundamental frequency of a free-free panel differs from the resonance frequency of the panel when installed. The damping values of panels installed in the test facility are closer to the damping values obtained with fixed-fixed panels. Effects of damping tape, stiffeners, and bonded and riveted edged conditions were also investigated. Progress in the development of a simple interior noise level control program is reported

Ability of CEA blood levels to reflect tumour burden: a study in a human xenograft model.

The relationship of serum carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) levels to tumour size and antigen content was studied in artificially immune-deprived mice bearing human colonic, breast and lung tumour xenografts. Size was measured as in vivo volume and tumour weight at post-mortem. A multiple implant technique combined with early harvest was used to minimize centrilobular tumour necrosis. CEA was extracted from resected tumours with perchloric acid. A radioimmunoassay using chemical precipitation was used to estimate CEA in blood samples. A correlation was found between CEA blood levels and tumour size in half the tumour lines, in contrast to a recent report (Lewis & Keep, 1981). The CEA content was found to be constant for one tumour line but not another. The possibility that central necrosis in xenograft tumours may account for the discrepancies is discussed. There may be serious limitations for the use of xenograft tumour models for studying the biology of CEA

Digital Signal Processing Education: Technology and Tradition

In this paper we discuss a DSP course presented to both University students and to participants on industrial short courses. The "traditional" DSP course will typically run over one to two semesters and usually cover the fundamental mathematics of z-, Laplace and Fourier transforms, followed by the algorithm and application detail. In the course we will discuss, the use of advanced DSP software and integrated support software allow the presentation time to be greatly shortened and more focussed algorithm and application learning to be introduced. By combining the traditional lecture with the use of advanced DSP software, all harnessed by the web, we report on the objectives, syllabus, and mode of teaching

The consumption of Internet child pornography and violent and sex offending

Background: There is an ongoing debate on whether consumers of child pornography pose a risk for hands-on sex offenses. Up until now, there have been very few studies which have analyzed the association between the consumption of child pornography and the subsequent perpetration of hands-on sex offenses. The aim of this study was to examine the recidivism rates for hands-on and hands-off sex offenses in a sample of child pornography users using a 6 year follow-up design.Methods: The current study population consisted of 231 men, who were subsequently charged with consumption of illegal pornographic material after being detected by a special operation against Internet child pornography, conducted by the Swiss police in 2002. Criminal history, as well as recidivism, was assessed using the criminal records from 2008.Results: 4.8% (n = 11) of the study sample had a prior conviction for a sexual and/or violent offense, 1% (n = 2) for a hands-on sex offense, involving child sexual abuse, 3.3% (n = 8) for a handsoff sex offense and one for a nonsexual violent offense. When applying a broad definition of recidivism, which included ongoing investigations, charges and convictions, 3% (n = 7) of the study sample recidivated with a violent and/or sex offense, 3.9% (n = 9) with a hands-off sex offense and 0.8% (n = 2) with a hands-on sex offense.Conclusion: Consuming child pornography alone is not a risk factor for committing hands-on sex offenses at least not for those subjects who had never committed a hands-on sex offense. The majority of the investigated consumers had no previous convictions for hands-on sex offenses. For those offenders, the prognosis for hands-on sex offenses, as well as for recidivism with child pornography, is favorable

Perturbation of Interaction Networks for Application to Cancer Therapy

We present a computational approach for studying the effect of potential drug combinations on the protein networks associated with tumor cells. The majority of therapeutics are designed to target single proteins, yet most diseased states are characterized by a combination of many interacting genes and proteins. Using the topology of protein-protein interaction networks, our methods can explicitly model the possible synergistic effect of targeting multiple proteins using drug combinations in different cancer types