Episodic Future Thinking In Mathematical Situations

Episodic future thinking is a process of mentally projecting one\u27s self into a future event, allowing the event to be experienced before it actually occurs (Atance & O\u27Neill, 2001). The current study explores the possibility that students engage in episodic future thinking while solving mathematical tasks. Participating students were given mathematical situations and verbalized thoughts that emerged as they planned resolutions to the situations. All participants exhibited episodic future thinking and we present a categorization of these thoughts. Given extant results on the positive influence episodic future thinking has on general problem-solving ability, we propose that a similar influence might exist on mathematical problem solving

Posttransplantation Maintenance Therapy and Optimal Frontline Therapy in Myeloma

One of the major efforts to improve the results of intensive therapy and autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) in multiple myeloma involves the integration of novel agents into the transplantation sequence. This can include their administration before, during, and after the transplantation procedure. Several phase 2 and 3 studies have evaluated the use of novel agents as part of induction therapy before transplantation to produce higher response rates and progression-free survival (PFS). Similarly, posttransplantation maintenance-or consolidation-with these agents consistently improves PFS. Survival benefits have been more difficult to demonstrate, although one trial using bortezomib before and after transplantation and a second using lenalidomide as maintenance have shown significantly longer survival times. This article reviews the different regimens used with ASCT, with an emphasis on randomized trials

Genomic Aberrations and Survival of Patients with Light-Chain-Only Multiple Myeloma Undergoing Autologous Stem Cell Transplantation

The majority of patients with multiple myeloma (MM) have intact immunoglobulin, but in a subset of patients (∼15%), their tumors produce monoclonal light chains only (LCO). Although specific genomic aberrations have emerged as a major prognostic factor in MM, their incidence and prognostic impact on LCO myeloma patients are not clear. We therefore investigated a cohort of 86 LCO MM cases diagnosed and treated with autologous stem cell transplantation at our institution. Overall, genomic risk factors del(13q), del(17p), t(4;14), 1p loss, and 1q21 gain were detected by cytoplasmic fluorescence in situ hybridization (cIg-FISH) in 40.6%, 18.5%, 11.9%, 18.8%, and 25% of the cases, respectively. Patients with del(13q) and 1q gains had a significantly shorter overall survival (OS) (median 80.4 vs 56.2 months, P = .021; median 77.9 vs 26.9 months, P = .006, respectively) and shorter progression-free survival (PFS) (median 33.4 vs 15.8 months, P = .002; median 33.4 vs 19.1 months, P = .011, respectively) than those without the genetic abnormalities. In addition, 1p loss was significantly associated with shorter PFS (median 37.9 vs 18.2 months, P = .001). There was no significant difference in PFS or OS in patients with or without t(4;14) or del(17p). On multivariate analysis, del(13q) was an independent prognostic factor for PFS and OS

Relational processing demands and the role of spatial context in the construction of episodic simulations

Reports on differences between remembering the past and imagining the future have led to the hypothesis that constructing future events is a more cognitively demanding process. However, factors that influence these increased demands, such as whether the event has been previously constructed and the types of details comprising the event, have remained relatively unexplored. Across two experiments, we examined how these factors influence the process of constructing event representations by having participants repeatedly construct events and measuring how construction times and a range of phenomenological ratings changed across time points. In Experiment 1, we contrasted the construction of past and future events and found that, relative to past events, the constructive demands associated with future events are particularly heightened when these events are imagined for the first time. Across repeated simulations, future events became increasingly similar to past events in terms of construction times and incorporated detail. In Experiment 2, participants imagined future events involving two memory details (person, location) and then reimagined the event either (a) exactly the same, (b) with a different person, or (c) in a different location. We predicted that if generating spatial information is particularly important for event construction, a change in location will have the greatest impact on constructive demands. Results showed that spatial context contributed to these heightened constructive demands more so than person details, consistent with theories highlighting the central role of spatial processing in episodic simulation. We discuss the findings from both studies in the light of relational processing demands and consider implications for current theoretical frameworks

Interest in coloured objects and behavioural budgets of individual captive freshwater turtles

Recent studies showed that freshwater turtles display inter-individual differences in variousbehavioural traits, which may influence their health and welfare in captivity due to differences inresponse to husbandry and enrichment strategies and in ability to cope with the limitations of thecaptive environment. This study investigated a possible correlation between individual level ofescape behaviour under standard enrichment conditions and level of interest in coloured objects ina group of cooters Pseudemys sp. and sliders Trachemys scripta ssp. on display at a public aquarium.Interest in different colours, colour preference and individual differences in behavioural changes inthe presence of the new enrichment were also studied. Turtles categorised as ‘high’ and ‘moderateescape behaviour’ (17–34 of behavioural budget) showed more interest in coloured objects andtended to display less escape behaviour in their presence, while turtles categorised as ‘low escapebehaviour’ (<10 of behavioural budget) were less interested in coloured objects and tended todisplay more escape behaviour in their presence. Overall, there was more interest in yellow than inred, white or green objects, with more contacts with coloured objects before feeding and at the startof each observation period and a preference for yellow against red objects. The individual differencesin behavioural changes in the presence of the new enrichment suggested that more studies into colourpreference and response to novelty in turtles would be beneficial to ensure that no individuals areunduly stressed by new enrichments

Phase 2 study of dovitinib in patients with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma with or without t(4;14) translocation

Objectives: Approximately 15% of patients with multiple myeloma (MM) exhibit a t(4;14) translocation, which often results in constitutive activation of the receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) fibroblast growth factor receptor 3 (FGFR3). This study evaluated the efficacy and safety of dovitinib, an RTK inhibitor with in vitro inhibitory activity against FGFR, in patients with r