Superior Inhibitory Control and Resistance to Mental Fatigue in Professional Road Cyclists

Purpose: Given the important role of the brain in regulating endurance performance, this comparative study sought to determine whether professional road cyclists have superior inhibitory control and resistance to mental fatigue compared to recreational road cyclists. Methods: After preliminary testing and familiarization, eleven professional and nine recreational road cyclists visited the lab on two occasions to complete a modified incongruent colour-word Stroop task (a cognitive task requiring inhibitory control) for 30 min (mental exertion condition), or an easy cognitive task for 10 min (control condition) in a randomized, counterbalanced cross-over order. After each cognitive task, participants completed a 20-min time trial on a cycle ergometer. During the time trial, heart rate, blood lactate concentration, and rating of perceived exertion (RPE) were recorded. Results: The professional cyclists completed more correct responses during the Stroop task than the recreational cyclists (705±68 vs 576±74, p = 0.001). During the time trial, the recreational cyclists produced a lower mean power output in the mental exertion condition compared to the control condition (216±33 vs 226±25 W, p = 0.014). There was no difference between conditions for the professional cyclists (323±42 vs 326±35 W, p = 0.502). Heart rate, blood lactate concentration, and RPE were not significantly different between the mental exertion and control conditions in both groups. Conclusion: The professional cyclists exhibited superior performance during the Stroop task which is indicative of stronger inhibitory control than the recreational cyclists. The professional cyclists also displayed a greater resistance to the negative effects of mental fatigue as demonstrated by no significant differences in perception of effort and time trial performance between the mental exertion and control conditions. These findings suggest that inhibitory control and resistance to mental fatigue may contribute to successful road cycling performance. These psychobiological characteristics may be either genetic and/or developed through the training and lifestyle of professional road cyclists

Dooryard. My Maine: Fish Story

The author tells the story of his fortuitous encounter with Guy Carroll, a member of the Penobscot Salmon Club, in 1950. The club fished the waters of Bangor Salmon Pool and they were known for sending the first fresh-run salmon, or the “presidential Salmon” to the president of the United States each year. Carroll took Hennessy out to fish with him that day, which began a long association with the two and other anglers of the club. Hennessy recounts some stories from the anglers of that time. The clubhouse is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. [illustration

International Human Rights Law and Sexual Violence Against Men in Conflict Zones

Sexual violence is an abhorrent, and sadly prevalent, feature of many conflicts. The widespread occurrence of sexual violence has a devastating impact on the victims and society at large. Although international treaties seek to prevent such violence occurring these are often ineffectual at times of socio-political flux and therefore protection is required for the victims of these atrocities.Current discourse on sexual violence arising in conflict zones focuses almost exclusively on violence perpetrated against women and children - these groups making up the large majority of reported incidents.However, the current figures do not accurately reflect the number of male victims of sexual violence. A lack of reporting by male victims, for reasons of shame, guilt and fear of not being believed or of being denounced for what has occurred, has created an inaccurate representation of the dynamics of sexual violence in conflict zones.This lack of accurate primary data contributed to the development of a culture of silence amongst governmental organisations and NGOs on the subject of male victims. In the past decade this silence has begun to break but there still remains a reticence to fully engage with the realities of male victims of sexual violence.Efforts have been made to create international legal instruments to provide recourse for victims of sexual violence. However, the positive steps taken to develop an effective framework of legal protection have been focussed almost exclusively on the protection of female and child victims. The lack of recognition of male victims of sexual violence has resulted in an international legalblind spot that needs to be addressed.The gender imbalance of current legislation should be rectified by the UK working towards a UN General Assembly resolution recognising sexual violence against men and demonstrating the UN’s commitment to a gender-neutral approach to sexual violence.Greater protection for the victims of sexual violence can be achieved by the UK accepting the right of individual petition under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, and the Convention Against Torture – allowing those whose rights under the treaty have been violated to bring their casedirectly to the treaty body.The recommendations of this paper seek to: raise awareness within the international community of the male victims of sexual violence in conflict zones; clarify the legal landscape; and provide access to legal redress for previously underrepresented victims

Application of machine-learning methods to milk mid-infrared spectra for discrimination of cow milk from pasture or total mixed ration diets

peer-reviewedThe prevalence of “grass-fed” labeled food products on the market has increased in recent years, often commanding a premium price. To date, the majority of methods used for the authentication of grass-fed source products are driven by auditing and inspection of farm records. As such, the ability to verify grass-fed source claims to ensure consumer confidence will be important in the future. Mid-infrared (MIR) spectroscopy is widely used in the dairy industry as a rapid method for the routine monitoring of individual herd milk composition and quality. Further harnessing the data from individual spectra offers a promising and readily implementable strategy to authenticate the milk source at both farm and processor levels. Herein, a comprehensive comparison of the robustness, specificity, and accuracy of 11 machine-learning statistical analysis methods were tested for the discrimination of grass-fed versus non-grass-fed milks based on the MIR spectra of 4,320 milk samples collected from cows on pasture or indoor total mixed ration–based feeding systems over a 3-yr period. Linear discriminant analysis and partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) were demonstrated to offer the greatest level of accuracy for the prediction of cow diet from MIR spectra. Parsimonious strategies for the selection of the most discriminating wavelengths within the spectra are also highlighted

Control of resting bronchial hemodynamics in the awake dog

In the resting awake dog a continuous-wave Doppler flow transducer on the right bronchoesophageal artery inscribes a sharp early systolic spike and low flow in late systole and throughout diastole, indicating a highly resistive bed. An analysis of autonomic factors using intravenous, cumulative, and randomly applied cholinoceptor, beta 1- and beta 2-adrenoceptor, and alpha 1- and alpha 2-adrenoceptor antagonists indicates that the low vascular conductance is due to cholinoceptor and alpha 1- and alpha 2-adrenoceptor effects in a ratio 3.6:1. No beta-adrenoceptor tone is present. Sighing behavior invokes a transient (< 2 s) fall in intrapleural pressure (and thus rise in bronchovascular transmural pressure) of 10-30 mmHg, which is followed by a two- to threefold increase over 30 s in bronchial flow and conductance, an effect simulated in 50% of dogs when bronchovascular transmural pressure is acutely raised and maintained over 40-60 s by inflating an intra-aortic balloon distal to the origin of the bronchial artery. Autonomic blockade has no effect on bronchovascular dilatation evoked either by sighing or by balloon inflation. It is concluded that, in the resting bronchial circulation, there exists strong cholinoceptor and alpha-adrenoceptor-based vasoconstrictor activity which can be overpowered by strong nonadrenergic noncholinergic local vasodilator reflexes evoked by sudden changes in intrathoracic transmural pressure possibly acting on stretch-sensitive sensory nerve endings containing substance P, calcitonin gene-related peptide, and neurokinins. The tonic vasoconstrictor but not the sigh-evoked vasodilator effects are sensitive to pentobarbital sodium anesthesia

Effect of prior mental exertion on rating of perceived exertion (RPE) during the 20-min time trial in professional (n = 10) and recreational (n = 9) road cyclists.

<p>§ Significant group x time interaction (p < 0.05). # Significant main effects of time in professional and recreational cyclists (p < 0.05). †Simple main effects of group (p < 0.05). Data are presented as mean ± SEM.</p

Reaction time (A) and accuracy (B) over time during the 30-min Stroop task in professional (n = 11) and recreational (n = 9) road cyclists.

<p>§ Significant group x time interaction (p < 0.05). Data are presented as mean ± SEM.</p