The eyes don’t have it: Eye movements are unlikely to reflect refreshing in working memory

There is a growing interest in specifying the mechanisms underlying refreshing, i.e., the use of attention to keep working memory (WM) contents accessible. Here, we examined whether participants’ visual fixations during the retention interval of a WM task indicate the current focus of internal attention, thereby serving as an online measure of refreshing. Eye movements were recorded while participants studied and maintained an array of colored dots followed by probed recall of one (Experiments 1A and 1B) or all (Experiment 2) of the memoranda via a continuous color wheel. Experiments 1A and 2 entailed an unfilled retention interval in which refreshing is assumed to occur spontaneously, and Experiment 1B entailed a retention interval embedded with cues prompting the sequential refreshment of a subset of the memoranda. During the retention interval, fixations revisited the locations occupied by the memoranda, consistent with a looking-at-nothing phenomenon in WM, but the pattern was only evident when placeholders were onscreen in Experiment 2, indicating that most of these fixations may largely reflect random gaze. Furthermore, spontaneous fixations did not predict recall precision (Experiments 1A and 2), even when ensuring that they did not reflect random gaze (Experiment 2). In Experiment 1B, refreshing cues increased fixations to the eventually tested target and predicted better recall precision, which interacted with an overall benefit of target fixations, such that the benefit of fixations decreased as the number of refreshing cues increased. Thus, fixations under spontaneous conditions had no credible effect on recall precision, whereas the beneficial effect of fixations under instructed refreshing conditions may indicate situations in which cues were disregarded. Consequently, we conclude that eye movements do not seem suitable as an online measure of refreshing

Novos paradigmas para a educação dos superdotados: a questão dos estudantes underachievers e com dupla excepcionalidade

[Extrato] A primeira década do século XXI chegou ao fim marcada pelo desenvolvimento de uma sociedade cada vez mais interconectada, mediada por tecnologias da informação e da comunicação e pelo sentimento de impotência diante da demanda de soluções que a atualidade exige. A contemporaneidade estabelece mudanças que ocorrem de maneira tão veloz, que já não se consegue mais definir, com a devida antecedência, as habilidades e competências necessárias para se viver e conviver satisfatoriamente...info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Benthic Foraminifera and Bacterial Activity as a Proxy for Environmental Characterization in Potengi Estuary, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil

The aim of this study was to identify possible zonation patterns and assess the environmental impact on the Potengi River Estuary, Rio Grande do Norte State, through the distribution of benthic foraminifera associated to bacterial activity and abiotic parameters. Six sediment samples were collected from locations that presented clear signs of pollution. The environment was predominantly anaerobic and fermentation occurred at all sites. Forty-two species of foraminifera were identified. The dominant species were Ammonia tepida and Arenoparrella mexicana, which are known to be opportunistic, and able to adapt to rapidly changing conditions. CCA analyses showed that salinity and organic matter, followed by bacterial carbon, were more strongly linked to organism distribution in the Potengi River Estuary. Dissolved oxygen concentration, temperature and total organic matter were higher at the estuary mouth than at the other sites, creating favorable conditions for foraminiferal growth and allowing the faunistic succession on the upper estuary. As foraminifera assemblages when associated to environmental parameters can be used as efficient proxies for environmental diagnosis, these results suggest that the Potengi Estuary is under great stress from the surrounding urban development

Foraminíferos bentônicos e atividade bacteriana como ferramenta para análise ambiental no Estuário do Rio Pontegi, Rio Grande do Norte, Brasil

The aim of this study was to identify possible zonation patterns and assess the environmental impact on the Potengi River Estuary, Rio Grande do Norte State, through the distribution of benthic foraminifera associated to bacterial activity and abiotic parameters. Six sediment samples were collected from locations that presented clear signs of pollution. The environment was predominantly anaerobic and fermentation occurred at all sites. Forty-two species of foraminifera were identified. The dominant species were Ammonia tepida and Arenoparrella mexicana, which are known to be opportunistic, and able to adapt to rapidly changing conditions. CCA analyses showed that salinity and organic matter, followed by bacterial carbon, were more strongly linked to organism distribution in the Potengi River Estuary. Dissolved oxygen concentration, temperature and total organic matter were higher at the estuary mouth than at the other sites, creating favorable conditions for foraminiferal growth and allowing the faunistic succession on the upper estuary. As foraminifera assemblages when associated to environmental parameters can be used as efficient proxies for environmental diagnosis, these results suggest that the Potengi Estuary is under great stress from the surrounding urban development.Este estudo teve como objetivo estabelecer um modelo de zonação e avaliar o impacto ambiental sofrido pelo estuário do rio Potengi, estado do Rio Grande do Norte, através da distribuição das assembléias de foraminíferos associados à atividade bacteriana e a parâmetros físico-químicos. Seis amostras de sedimento foram coletadas em regiões que apresentavam algum tipo poluição aparente. Predominaram os processos bacterianos anaeróbicos principalmente sulfatoredução no estuário. Foram identificadas quarenta e duas espécies de foraminíferos. As espécies dominantes foram Ammonia tepida e Arenoparrella mexicana, que são conhecidas como oportunistas, pois se adaptam com facilidade as variações ambientais. A análise em CCA mostrou que a salinidade e a matéria orgânica, seguidos pelo carbono bacteriano, conduziram a distribuição dos organismos no estuário. A concentração de oxigênio, temperatura e matéria orgânica total foram mais altas na foz do que em outras estações, criando condições favoráveis ao crescimento de foraminíferos e permitiu uma sucessão faunística em direção ao estuário superior. Assembléias de foraminíferos quando associadas a parâmetros ambientais podem ser usadas como eficientes indicadores para o diagnostico ambiental. Os resultados sugeriram que o estuário do rio Potengi encontra-se sobre condições de grande estresse ambiental provocado pelo desenvolvimento urbano a sua volta

Influência da cinoterapia e perfil do animal durante exercícios fisioterapêuticos na Síndrome de Smith Lemli Optiz

A cinoterapia é uma modalidade de tratamento que utiliza o cão como facilitador para a realização das atividades, promovendo a saúde física através de mecanismos básicos que incluem, a diminuição da solidão, depressão e ansiedade, aumento do estímulo para prática de exercícios, melhora da saúde social, emocional e cognitiva, além dos efeitos sobre o sistema nervoso simpático. No entanto, para a realização da atividade, o animal deve ter um perfil adequado. O estudo objetivou avaliar o efeito motivador da cinoterapia em uma criança com diagnóstico de Síndrome de Smith Lemli Optiz, bem como a influência do perfil do cão na execução dos exercícios. A pesquisa foi realizada com uma criança do sexo feminino, com idade de 4 anos de idade. O protocolo de tratamento consistiu em alongamento dos músculos isquiotibiais e abdutores de quadril, estimulação à postura ajoelhada e ajoelhada com rotação de tronco, transferência do sentado para a ortostase, a ortostase e o deambular, nos quais foi analisado o tempo de realização através de filmagem. Para a avaliação da motivação foi realizado o teste adaptado de McAuley, Duncan & Tammen (1987). Os resultados encontrados mostram que a cinoterapia teve influência positiva no tempo de realização dos exercícios e que o perfil do animal quando não é adequado à realização da cinoterapia exerce influencia negativa.

Autonomous Data Density pruning fuzzy neural network for Optical Interconnection Network

Traditionally, fuzzy neural networks have parametric clustering methods based on equally spaced membership functions to fuzzify inputs of the model. In this sense, it produces an excessive number calculations for the parameters’ definition of the network architecture, which may be a problem especially for real-time large-scale tasks. Therefore, this paper proposes a new model that uses a non-parametric technique for the fuzzification process. The proposed model uses an autonomous data density approach in a pruned fuzzy neural network, wich favours the compactness of the model. The performance of the proposed approach is evaluated through the usage of databases related to the Optical Interconnection Network. Finally, binary patterns classification tests for the identification of temporal distribution (asynchronous or client–server) were performed and compared with state-of-the-art fuzzy neural-based and traditional machine learning approaches. Results demonstrated that the proposed model is an efficient tool for these challenging classification tasks

Neurodevelopmental regression, severe generalized dystonia, and metabolic acidosis caused by POLR3A mutations.

OBJECTIVE: To expand the clinical phenotype of POLR3A mutations by assessing the functional consequences of a missense and a splicing acceptor mutation. METHODS: We performed whole-exome sequencing for identification of likely pathogenic mutations in a 9-year-old female patient with severe generalized dystonia, metabolic acidosis, leukocytosis, hypotonia, and dysphagia. Brain MRI showed basal ganglia atrophy and presence of lactate and lipid peaks by [1H]-magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Expression levels of Pol III target genes were measured by quantitative real-time (qRT)-PCR to study the pathogenicity of the biallelic mutations in patient fibroblasts. RESULTS: The patient is a compound heterozygous for a novel missense c.3721G>A (p.Val1241Met) and the splicing region c.1771-6C>G mutation in POLR3A, the gene coding for the catalytic subunit of RNA polymerase III (Pol III). Aberrant splicing was observed for the c.1771-6C>G mutation. Decreased RNA expression levels of Pol III targets (HNRNPH2, ubiquitin B, lactotransferrin, and HSP90AA1) were observed in patient fibroblasts with rescue to normal levels by overexpression of the wild-type protein but not by the p.Val1241Met variant. CONCLUSIONS: Mutations in the POLR3A gene cause POLR3A-related hypomyelinating leukodystrophy with or without oligodontia or hypogonadotropic hypogonadism (HLD7, OMIM: 607694) and neonatal progeroid syndrome (OMIM: 264090), both with high phenotypic variability. We demonstrated the pathogenicity of c.1771-6C>G and c.3721G>A mutations causing an early-onset disorder. The phenotype of our patient expands the clinical presentation of POLR3A-related mutations and suggests a new classification that we propose designating as Neurodevelopmental Disorder with Regression, Abnormal Movements, and Increased Lactate