Effects of apnoea training on aerobic and anaerobic performance:A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background Trained breath-hold divers have shown physiological adaptations that might improve athletes’ aerobic and anaerobic performance. Objective This study aimed to systematically review the scientific literature and perform a meta-analysis to assess the effects of voluntary apnoea training on markers of anaerobic and aerobic performance, such as blood lactate and VO(2max). Methods A literature search on three databases (Web of Science, PubMed and SCOPUS) was conducted in March 2022. The inclusion criteria were 1) peer-reviewed journal publication; 2) clinical trials; 3) healthy humans; 4) effects of apnoea training; 5) variables included markers of aerobic or anaerobic performance, such as lactate and VO(2max). Results 545 manuscripts were identified following database examination. Only seven studies met the inclusion criteria and were, therefore, included in the meta-analysis. 126 participants were allocated to either voluntary apnoea training (ApT; n = 64) or normal breathing (NB; n = 63). Meta-analysis on the included studies demonstrated that ApT increased the peak blood lactate concentration more than NB (MD = 1.89 mmol*L(−1) [95% CI 1.05, 2.73], z = 4.40, p < 0.0001). In contrast, there were no statistically significant effects of ApT on VO(2max) (MD = 0.89 ml*kg(−1)*min(−1) [95% CI −1.23, 3.01], z = 0.82, p = 0.41). Conclusion ApT might be an alternative strategy to enhace anaerobic performance associated with increased maximum blood lactate; however, we did not find evidence of ApT effects on physiological aerobic markers, such as VO(2max). Systematic Review Registration: [PRISMA], identifier [registration number]

Mental Processes and Strategic Equilibration: An fMRI Study of Selling Strategies in Second Price Auctions

This study is the first to attempt to isolate a relationship between cognitive activity and equilibration to a Nash Equilibrium. Subjects, while undergoing fMRI scans of brain activity, participated in second price auctions against a single competitor following predetermined strategy that was unknown to the subject. For this auction there is a unique strategy that will maximize the subjects' earnings, which is also a Nash equilibrium of the associated game theoretic model of the auction. As is the case with all games, the bidding strategies of subjects participating in second price auctions most often do not reflect the equilibrium bidding strategy at first but with experience, typically exhibit a process of equilibration, or convergence toward the equilibrium. This research is focused on the process of convergence

Perfil regional e setorial das emissões brasileiras de gases de efeito estufa entre 1990 e 2017

O presente trabalho buscou salientar as diferenças regionais das emissões de Gases de Efeito Estufa (GEE) no Brasil entre 1990 e 2017. A partir de uma análise descritiva dos dados de emissões de GEE em toneladas equivalentes de CO2GTP, observa-se uma redução nas emissões em nível nacional para todo o período, especificamente guiada pelo desempenho do setor de mudanças no uso da terra. Destaca-se a importância do desempenho deste setor para as regiões Norte (NO) e Centro-Oeste (CO),sobretudo entre 2004 e 2009. O Sudeste (SE) sobressai-se como a única região cujas emissões não se encontram predominantemente no setor de mudanças no uso da terra. Todavia, nesta região há forte crescimento no setor de energia relacionado às atividades de extração mineral. Há, ainda, tendência de homogeneização das emissões entre as regiões e os setores de emissão, muito embora o principal setor permaneça como sendo o de mudanças no uso da terra. Por fim, o trabalho alerta para uma reversão da tendência de níveis mais baixos de emissão com um enfraquecimento da legislação ambiental.The present paper is aimed at highlighting the regional differences in greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) in Brazil between 1990 and 2017. From a descriptive analysis of the GHG emissions data in tons of CO2equivalent GTP, a reduction in the total period was observed, specifically driven by the performance of the land use change sector. The importance of the sector's performance for the North (NO) and Center-West (CO) regions is highlighted, especially between 2004 and 2009. The Southeast (SE) stands out as the only region whose emissions are not predominantly in this sector and shows a strong growth in the energy sector related to mineral extraction activities. There is also a trend towards the homogenization of emissions among the regions and the emission sectors, even though the main sector remains as land use change. Finally, this paper shows a concern about the reversal of the trend of lower emission levels with a weakening of environmental legislation

Drivers of spatial expansions of vampire bat rabies in Colombia

Spatial expansions of vampire bat-transmitted rabies (VBR) are increasing the risk of lethal infections in livestock and humans in Latin America. Identifying the drivers of these expansions could improve current approaches to surveillance and prevention. We aimed to identify if VBR spatial expansions are occurring in Colombia and test factors associated with these expansions. We analyzed 2336 VBR outbreaks in livestock reported to the National Animal Health Agency (Instituto Colombiano Agropecuario—ICA) affecting 297 municipalities from 2000–2019. The area affected by VBR changed through time and was correlated to the reported number of outbreaks each year. Consistent with spatial expansions, some municipalities reported VBR outbreaks for the first time each year and nearly half of the estimated infected area in 2010–2019 did not report outbreaks in the previous decade. However, the number of newly infected municipalities decreased between 2000–2019, suggesting decelerating spatial expansions. Municipalities infected later had lower cattle populations and were located further from the local reporting offices of the ICA. Reducing the VBR burden in Colombia requires improving vaccination coverage in both endemic and newly infected areas while improving surveillance capacity in increasingly remote areas with lower cattle populations where rabies is emerging

Density pertubation of unparticle dark matter in the flat Universe

The unparticle has been suggested as a candidate of dark matter. We investigated the growth rate of the density perturbation for the unparticle dark matter in the flat Universe. First, we consider the model in which unparticle is the sole dark matter and find that the growth factor can be approximated well by $f=(1+3\omega_u)\Omega^{\gamma}_u$, where $\omega_u$ is the equation of state of unparticle. Our results show that the presence of $\omega_u$ modifies the behavior of the growth factor $f$. For the second model where unparticle co-exists with cold dark matter, the growth factor has a new approximation $f=(1+3\omega_u)\Omega^{\gamma}_u+\alpha \Omega_m$ and $\alpha$ is a function of $\omega_u$. Thus the growth factor of unparticle is quite different from that of usual dark matter. These information can help us know more about unparticle and the early evolution of the Universe.Comment: 6pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in Eur. Phys. J.

The first definitive carcharodontosaurid (Dinosauria:Theropoda) from Asia and the delayed ascent of tyrannosaurids

Little is known about the evolution of large-bodied theropod dinosaurs during the Early to mid Cretaceous in Asia. Prior to this time, Asia was home to an endemic fauna of basal tetanurans, whereas terminal Cretaceous ecosystems were dominated by tyrannosaurids, but the intervening 60 million years left a sparse fossil record. Here, we redescribe the enigmatic large-bodied Chilantaisaurus maortuensis from the Turonian of Inner Mongolia, China. We refer this species to a new genus, Shaochilong, and analyze its systematic affinities. Although Shaochilong has previously been allied with several disparate theropod groups (Megalosauridae, Allosauridae, Tyrannosauroidea, Maniraptora), we find strong support for a derived carcharodontosaurid placement. As such, Shaochilong is the first unequivocal Asian member of Carcharodontosauridae, which was once thought to be restricted to Gondwana. The discovery of an Asian carcharodontosaurid indicates that this clade was cosmopolitan in the Early to mid Cretaceous and that Asian large-bodied theropod faunas were no longer endemic at this time. It may also suggest that the ascent of tyrannosaurids into the large-bodied dinosaurian predator niche was a late event that occurred towards the end of the Cretaceous,between the Turonian and the Campanian

Reading between Eye Saccades

Background: Skilled adult readers, in contrast to beginners, show no or little increase in reading latencies as a function of the number of letters in words up to seven letters. The information extraction strategy underlying such efficiency in word identification is still largely unknown, and methods that allow tracking of the letter information extraction through time between eye saccades are needed to fully address this question. Methodology/Principal Findings: The present study examined the use of letter information during reading, by means of the Bubbles technique. Ten participants each read 5,000 five-letter French words sampled in space-time within a 200 ms window. On the temporal dimension, our results show that two moments are especially important during the information extraction process. On the spatial dimension, we found a bias for the upper half of words. We also show for the first time that letter positions four, one, and three are particularly important for the identification of five-letter words. Conclusions/Significance: Our findings are consistent with either a partially parallel reading strategy or an optimal serial reading strategy. We show using computer simulations that this serial reading strategy predicts an absence of a wordlength effect for words from four- to seven letters in length. We believe that the Bubbles technique will play an importan

Whole-brain in-vivo measurements of the Axonal G-Ratio in a group of 37 healthy volunteers

The g-ratio, quantifying the ratio between the inner and outer diameters of a fiber, is an important microstructural characteristic of fiber pathways and is functionally related to conduction velocity. We introduce a novel method for estimating the MR g-ratio non-invasively across the whole brain using high-fidelity magnetization transfer (MT) imaging and single-shell diffusion MRI. These methods enabled us to map the MR g-ratio in vivo across the brain's prominent fiber pathways in a group of 37 healthy volunteers and to estimate the inter-subject variability. Effective correction of susceptibility-related distortion artifacts was essential before combining the MT and diffusion data, in order to reduce partial volume and edge artifacts. The MR g-ratio is in good qualitative agreement with histological findings despite the different resolution and spatial coverage of MRI and histology. The MR g-ratio holds promise as an important non-invasive biomarker due to its microstructural and functional relevance in neurodegeneration