1,517 research outputs found
Neural correlates of emotion processing comparing antidepressants and exogenous oxytocin in postpartum depressed women: An exploratory study
Despite common use of antidepressants to treat postpartum depression, little is known about the impact of antidepressant use on postpartum brain activity. Additionally, although oxytocin has been investigated as a potential treatment for postpartum depression, the interaction between antidepressants and exogenous oxytocin on brain activity is unknown. We explored postpartum depressed women’s neural activation in areas identified as important to emotion and reward processing and potentially, antidepressant response: the amygdala, nucleus accumbens and ventral tegmental area. We conducted a secondary analysis of a functional imaging study of response to sexual, crying infant and smiling infant images in 23 postpartum depressed women with infants under six months (11 women taking antidepressants, 12 unmedicated). Participants were randomized to receive a single dose of oxytocin or placebo nasal spray. There was significantly higher amygdala activation to sexual stimuli than either neutral or infant-related stimuli among women taking antidepressants or receiving oxytocin nasal spray. Among unmedicated women receiving placebo, amygdala activation was similar across stimuli types. There were no significant effects of antidepressants nor oxytocin nasal spray on reward area processing (i.e., in the nucleus accumbens or ventral tegmental area). Among postpartum women who remain depressed, there may be significant interactions between the effects of antidepressant use and exogenous oxytocin on neural activity associated with processing emotional information. Observed effect sizes were moderate to large, strongly suggesting the need for further replication with a larger sample
A composition theorem for the Fourier Entropy-Influence conjecture
The Fourier Entropy-Influence (FEI) conjecture of Friedgut and Kalai [FK96]
seeks to relate two fundamental measures of Boolean function complexity: it
states that holds for every Boolean function , where
denotes the spectral entropy of , is its total influence,
and is a universal constant. Despite significant interest in the
conjecture it has only been shown to hold for a few classes of Boolean
functions.
Our main result is a composition theorem for the FEI conjecture. We show that
if are functions over disjoint sets of variables satisfying the
conjecture, and if the Fourier transform of taken with respect to the
product distribution with biases satisfies the conjecture,
then their composition satisfies the conjecture. As
an application we show that the FEI conjecture holds for read-once formulas
over arbitrary gates of bounded arity, extending a recent result [OWZ11] which
proved it for read-once decision trees. Our techniques also yield an explicit
function with the largest known ratio of between and
, improving on the previous lower bound of 4.615
The GDPR and the Consequences of Big Regulation
This Article summarizes the key features of the European Union’s General Data Privacy Regulation (GDPR) that became effective on May 25, 2018. The stated purpose of the law is to give individuals greater control over personal information that is handled by companies and organizations. The Article argues that the GDPR is fundamentally flawed. Key terms within the GDPR are undefined; the burdens of the GDPR will fall heaviest on small businesses; the GDPR disrupts a valuable business model; the GDPR will stymie growth, innovation, and information sharing; and it may be the product of protectionist impulses rather than concerns for consumer welfare
Universal Properties of Linear Magnetoresistance in Strongly Disordered Semiconductors
Linear magnetoresistance occurs in semiconductors as a consequence of strong
electrical disorder and is characterized by nonsaturating magnetoresistance
that is proportional to the applied magnetic field. By investigating a
disordered MnAs-GaAs composite material, it is found that the magnitude of the
linear magnetoresistance (LMR) is numerically equal to the carrier mobility
over a wide range and is independent of carrier density. This behavior is
complementary to the Hall effect that is independent of the mobility and
dependent on the carrier density. Moreover, the LMR appears to be insensitive
to the details of the disorder and points to a universal explanation of
classical LMR that can be applied to other material systems.Comment: Accepted by Phys. Rev. B (2010
Magnetic properties of Fe/Dy multilayers: a Monte Carlo investigation
We investigate the magnetic properties of a Heisenberg ferrimagnetic
multilayer by using Monte Carlo simulations. The aim of this work is to study
the local structural anisotropy model which is a possible origin of the
perpendicular magnetic anisotropy in transition metal/rare earth amorphous
multilayers. We have considered a face centered cubic lattice where each site
is occupied by a classical Heisenberg spin. We have introduced in our model of
amorphous multilayers a small fraction of crystallized Fe-Dy nanoclusters with
a mean anisotropy axis along the deposition direction. We show that a
competition in the energy terms takes place between the mean uniaxial
anisotropy of the Dy atoms in the nanoclusters and the random anisotropy of the
Dy atoms in the matrix.Comment: accepte pour publication - Proceeding of the Joint European Magnetic
Symposia (JEMS 06) - Journal of Magnetism and Magnetic Material
Genetic components affecting the interval between consecutive inseminations
International audienc
The Impact of Gain- and Loss-Framed Messages on Young Adults' Sexual Decision Making: An Experimental Study
Messages that frame a target behavior in terms of its benefits (gain frame) or costs (loss frame) have been widely and successfully used for health promotion and risk reduction. However, the impact of framed messages on decisions to have sex and sexual risk, as well as moderators of these effects, has remained largely unexplored. We used a computerized laboratory task to test the effects of framed messages about condom use on young adults' sexual decision making. Participants (N = 127) listened to both gain- and loss-framed messages and rated their intentions to have sex with partners who posed a high and low risk for sexually transmitted infections (STIs). The effects of message frame, partner risk, participant gender, ability to adopt the messages, and message presentation order on intentions to have sex were examined. Intentions to have sex with high-risk partners significantly decreased after the loss-framed message, but not after the gain-framed message, and intentions to have sex increased for participants who received the gain-framed message first. Yet, participants found it easier to adopt the gain-framed message. Results suggest that loss-framed messages may be particularly effective in reducing intentions to have sex with partners who might pose a higher risk for STIs, and that message presentation order may alter the relative effectiveness of gain- and loss-framed messages on sexual decision making. Future studies should examine the precise conditions under which gain- and loss-framed messages can promote healthy sexual behaviors and reduce sexual risk behaviors
Methodological innovations and challenges in the Kinsey Institute National Survey Pilot Project
Abstract: Despite the growth of mixed methods, little attention has focused on the specific challenges of conducting mixed methods research on sexual experience and perceptions of sexuality. This paper's purpose is to discuss the exploratory sequential design of, and methodological considerations originally arising from, a mixed methods pilot project that explored the possibility of updating components of Alfred Kinsey's mid-20th century research on US men and women. This pilot project consisted of three phases: (1) cognitive interviews, (2) two modalities of computer-based surveys conducted in two settings with two samples, and (3) debriefing interviews with selected survey participants from phase two coupled with ethnographic observations. We describe the phases, focusing on how multiple methods facilitated the design and assessment of our pilot project. We end by highlighting methodological considerations relevant to our mixed methods approach--phase timing, research environment, longitudinal design, data security and privacy, and cost--and their implications for sexuality researchers
Transepithelial Electrical Impedance Increase Following Porous Substrate Electroporation Enables Label-Free Delivery
Porous substrate electroporation (PSEP) is a promising new method for delivering molecules such as proteins and nucleic acids into cells for biomedical research. Although many applications have been demonstrated, fundamentals of the PSEP delivery process are not yet well understood, partly because most PSEP studies rely solely on fluorescent imaging for evaluating delivery and quantifying successful outcomes. Although effective, only utilizing imaging alone limits our understanding of the intermediate processes leading to intracellular delivery. Since PSEP is an electrical process, electrical impedance measurements are a natural addition to fluorescent imaging for PSEP characterization. In this study, we developed an integrated device capable of simultaneously measuring impedance and performing PSEP and we monitored changes in transepithelial electrical impedance (TEEI), an electrical characteristic of cell monolayers that has not yet been leveraged for understanding PSEP. Our TEEI measurements show PSEP behaves differently from other electroporation methods following membrane permeabilization, with a significant increase in TEEI during high-efficiency, low-death delivery. We demonstrated how this post-electroporation response is influenced by cell culture conditions and electrical waveform parameters. More importantly, we were able to show label-free delivery of PSEP by leveraging TEEI monitoring. Specifically, correlating features of the post-electroporation response with cell viability and delivery efficiency allows prediction of delivery outcomes without fluorescent cargo, imaging, or image processing. This label-free delivery allows for improved temporal resolution of transient processes that occur following PSEP, which we expect will aid PSEP optimization for new cell types and cargos
- …