Cognitive processes mediate the effects of insomnia treatment:evidence from a randomized wait-list controlled trial

INTRODUCTION: Both guided online and individual face-to-face cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) are effective in improving insomnia symptoms and sleep efficiency. Little is known about the underlying mechanisms generating this effect. The present study tests the assumption that pre-sleep arousal, sleep-related worry and dysfunctional beliefs about sleep are mediators in the effect of cognitive behavioral treatment for insomnia. METHODS: A secondary analysis was performed on data previously collected from a randomized controlled trial (N = 90). In this trial, participants were randomized to either a face-to-face CBT-I condition, an internet-delivered CBT-I condition, or a wait-list group. This article reports on the efficacy of these interventions on pre-sleep arousal, sleep-related worry, and dysfunctional beliefs. Furthermore, we investigated whether these measures mediated the treatment effect on insomnia severity and sleep efficiency. RESULTS: Both treatment modalities were efficacious for these cognitive measures; however, face-to-face treatment showed superiority over the online treatment. All three cognitive measures mediated the effect on insomnia severity. Sleep-related worry and pre-sleep arousal mediated the effect on sleep efficiency, but dysfunctional beliefs did not. CONCLUSION: Overall, these results point toward the importance of cognitive processes in the treatment of insomnia, implying that psychological treatments for insomnia may best be guided by (also) targeting these cognitive processes

Markers of success: A study of twins' instructed second language acquisition

We examined the association between proficiency in instructed second language acquisition (ISLA) and previous bilingualism, starting age of ISLA, language anxiety and attitude. The analyses were conducted on 564 adolescent Australian twins. Additionally, by examining discrepancies within approximately 100 pairs of monozygotic twins, we sought to specifically identify the environmental effects related to attitude and anxiety on achievement (i.e. with genetic effects removed). We found a clear relationship between attitude towards language learning and proficiency in the second language. Furthermore, the analyses on the monozygotic twins point to the possibility that higher language anxiety is associated with higher proficiency. On the other hand, bilingualism and starting age of ISLA appear to be unrelated to proficiency in the language being learned.</p

The Young Lady in Pink. New Light on the Life and Afterlife of an Ancient Portrait

A Roman-Egyptian mummy portrait of a young woman in a pink tunic is part of the Allard Pierson collection in Amsterdam. The portrait is well-known and a key piece of the collection, but has received little scholarly attention so far. The life and the afterlife of the portrait are therefore poorly understood. The authors approach the portrait from different perspectives: its provenance and acquisition, the artist’s materials and techniques, the dating conventions surrounding mummy portraits and their cultural context. The authors advocate for this in-depth multidisciplinary approach primarily because it spotlights specific areas in mummy portraits (in this case, the pearl earrings) where iconography, materials and techniques and ancient socio-economic developments converge. Provenance research proved important not only for securing the object’s bona fide acquisition, but also for tracing its second-life biography. These converging perspectives effectively cast light on research areas where more work remains desirable. In lieu of secure documentation of the archaeological findspot (which is the case with most mummy portraits) this approach is a powerful tool to nonetheless compose histories that help to understand the meaning of mummy portraits in the past and in the present and provide a durable framework for future research

The Etiology of Individual Differences in Second Language Acquisition in Australian School Students: A Behavior‐Genetic Study

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/93553/1/j.1467-9922.2012.00718.x.pd

A value hierarchy for inclusive design of heart valve implants in regenerative medicine

Aim: This paper investigates the conditions for inclusive design of regenerative medicine interventions from a bioethical perspective, taking regenerative valve implants as a showcase. Methods: A value hierarchy is construed to translate the value of justice into norms and design requirements for inclusive design of regenerative valve implants. Results: Three norms are proposed and translated into design requirements: regenerative valve implants should be designed to promote equal opportunity to good health for all potential users; equal respect for all potential users should be shown; and the implants should be designed to be accessible to everyone in need. Conclusion: The norms and design requirements help to design regenerative valve implants that are appropriate, respectful and available for everyone in need.</p

Safety and efficacy of xenon in routine use as an inhalational anaesthetic

Abstract 40 patients (24 male, 16 female, aged 21-59 years) of American Society of Anesthesiologists class I or II who were undergoing routine surgery took part in a randomised, double-blind comparison of the anaesthetic efficacy and potency of xenon and nitrous oxide and their effects on the circulatory and respiratory systems. During anaesthesia, for each rise in blood pressure of more than 20% of the preanaesthetic (baseline) value, the patient received 0·1 mg fentanyl. The total amount of fentanyl required per patient was used as an index of the anaesthetic potency of the study gases. Patients in the xenon group required on average only 0·05 mg fentanyl, whereas those in the nitrous oxide group required 0·24 mg fentanyl; the duration of anaesthesia was similar in the two groups. Changes in blood pressure were significantly greater throughout the study in the nitrous oxide than in the xenon group. Thorax-lung compliance fell during the study period in the nitrous oxide group but not in the xenon group. Thus, xenon is a potent and effective anaesthetic which can be safely used under routine conditions

Treatment of developmental dyslexia: A review

Remarkably few research articles on the treatment of developmental dyslexia were published during the last 25 years. Some treatment research arose from the temporal processing theory, some from the phonological deficit hypothesis and some more from the balance model of learning to read and dyslexia. Within the framework of that model, this article reviews the aetiology of dyslexia sub-types, the neuropsychological rationale for treatment, the treatment techniques and the outcomes of treatment research. The possible mechanisms underlying the effects of treatment are discussed. © 2005 Informa UK Ltd All rights reserved