Opposing Effects of D? and D? Receptor Activation on Odor Discrimination Learning.

Dopaminergic modulation of cortical activity has been implicated in the formation of reward associations. There is abundant evidence for dopaminergic effects on olfactory processing. Using an olfactory discrimination task, the authors show that D? and D? dopamine receptors can regulate rats' olfactory discrimination capacities and that the effects of receptor activation functionally oppose one another. Injection of either the D? agonist SKF 38393 (10 mg/kg) or the D? antagonist spiperone (0.62 mg/kg) facilitated the discrimination of similar odorants but had no effect on the discrimination of dissimilar odorants, whereas both the D, antagonist SCH 23390 (0.025 mg/kg) and the D? agonist quinpirole (0.2 mg/kg) significantly impaired rats' ability to discriminate similar and dissimilar odorants. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Intramaze and Extramaze Cue Processing in Adult APPSWE Tg2576 Transgenic Mice.

The present study examined spatial and nonspatial learning in adult Tg2576 mice. Transgenic mice were impaired in acquisition of a T-maze forced-choice alternation task. However, mutant mice were as sensitive as control mice to the introduction of retention intervals and proactive interference, and this suggested that short-term memory processes were intact in Tg2576 mice. Probe trials revealed that the Tg2576 mice did not use an allocentric strategy to navigate to the goal arm. However, mutant mice acquired an intramaze brightness discrimination, a simple room discrimination, and a contextual biconditional left-right discrimination in a T maze. Results suggest that Tg2576 mice are able to process both intramaze and extramaze stimuli but are impaired in forming an allocentric representation of their environment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of gendered character representation on person perception and informational social influence in computer-mediated communication

Two experiments examined (a) if the gender of a randomly assigned character would affect individuals' inferences about an anonymous partner in computer-mediated communication (CMC) and (b) how the gender inference would moderate informational social influence. In Experiment 1, participants played a trivia game on a gender-biased topic (sports vs. fashion) with their ostensible partner via computer, represented by a gender-marked cartoon character. The results showed that both men and women, despite the arbitrary nature of character assignment, categorized the partner according to the character's gender. However, the effects of the gender inference on conformity were moderated by the topic and the participant's gender. First, when the topic matched the participant's gender, there was no character effect. Second, whereas women used “expertise heuristics”, exhibiting greater conformity to the male-charactered than female-charactered partner on a masculine topic, men displayed greater conformity to the male-charactered than female-charactered partner on a feminine topic, suggesting male resistance to female influence. Using a gender-neutral topic, Experiment 2 confirmed the explanations. Although the character triggered gender-stereotypical perception of the partner, when the gender was not diagnostic of expertise, the character's gender did not affect women's conformity behavior while men nonetheless showed greater conformity to the male-charactered partner.     

Improving the MCA Spectra of BC‐400 Plastic Scintillation Detectors at Room Temperature

Abstract

In the presented work, the leading edge timing and constant fraction discrimination timing techniques were applied to beta rays emitted from a ¹³⁷Cs radioactive source through the developed spectrometers in order to improve the beta energy spectrum of the source. The energy spectra, with and without the techniques, were obtained with a BC‐400 plastic scintillation detector. The obtained spectra were compared with each other for the elimination of spurious pulses, which rise from background, backscattering, scattering, and any radiations other than the source, on the multichannel analyzer output.     

人脸识别技术综述

文章首先对人脸识别技术进行了介绍，其次回顾了人脸识别研究的发展历程及识别方法的基本分类，然后对当前主流的人脸识别方法展开了详细的论述，最后提出了人脸识别技术面临的问题及研究方向。     

Gender influences on performance,mood and recovery sleep in fatigued aviators

Female aviators now are able to serve in combat roles, but few studies have addressed potential differences between the ability of males and females to withstand combat stressors. This study examined responses of men and women to one operational stressor, sleep deprivation. Pilots were tested on flight performance and mood during 40-h periods of sustained wakefulness. Baseline and recovery sleep also were examined. Gender produced no operationally significant effects on flight performance or recovery sleep. Although mood tests showed that women felt less tense and more energetic than men, there were no interactions between sleep deprivation and gender on either flight performance or psychological mood.     

Smartphone habit and behavior in Brunei: Personalization,gender, and generation gap

A smartphone is a device which offers advanced technologies, functions similarly to a computer, supports multitasking and makes it easy to remain connected with others. The following survey design research examined the usage patterns of smartphone users across different demographics. The results of this study provide insights into the prevalence of respondents’ usage of smartphones and their habits and behavior related to smartphone use itself especially among the younger generation of social disorders such as nomophobia and phubbing. In addition to documenting the experience of smartphone users, the research also examines personality patterns related to smartphone usage, the trends of different age groups, and the effects of gender preferences.     

Does country context matter? Investigating the predictors of teen sexting across Europe

Despite growing research interest in sexting, not much is known about individual and country differences in engaging in sexting. Therefore, the aims of this study were to investigate (a) which individual and country characteristics explain sexting and (b) whether individual predictors vary across countries. On the individual level, we investigated age, gender, sensation seeking, and internet use. On the country level, we investigated traditionalism, gross domestic product, and broadband internet penetration. The sample consisted of 14,946 adolescents (49.7% boys) aged 11–16 from 20 European countries. Data were collected as part of the EU Kids Online project. Participants were interviewed at home. Using multilevel modeling, findings indicate that on the individual level, age, sensation seeking, and frequency of internet use predicted sexting across all countries. Gender differences in sexting varied across countries. Although country characteristics (GDP, broadband internet penetration, traditional values) had no direct effect on adolescent sexting, traditionalism significantly predicted gender differences in sexting. In more traditional countries, gender differences were more pronounced than in less traditional countries, with more boys than girls engaging in sexting. In less traditional countries, gender differences were smaller.     

Gender differences and the effects of perceived internet privacy on self-reports of sexual behavior and sociosexuality

The use of the Internet for conducting research has found that the level of anonymity intrinsic to web-based surveys is useful in deterring various participant biases. Though, concerns about Internet privacy could interfere with the effects of perceived anonymity and influence how a person responds. In this study, participants were asked to take an Internet survey and then were randomly assigned to conditions with varying degrees of implied privacy in which they answered questions about their desire for casual sex (sociosexuality) and their lifetime sexual partners. Only in the condition without any threat to the participant’s anonymity was there no difference between men and women’s reports of their sexual behavior. However, in every condition men reported having a significantly higher sociosexuality than women. Findings are consistent with both the biologic and gender-biased explanations in differences of self-report for sexual information. Implications for social constraints and Internet based research are discussed.     

Day of the week lost time occupational injury trends in the US by gender and industry and their implications for work scheduling

While there is a growing body of research on the impact of work schedules on the risk of occupational injuries, there has been little investigation into the impact that the day of the week might have. The present research was completed to explore day of the week trends, reasons for such trends and the corresponding implications for work scheduling. Data for the number of injuries and illnesses involving days away from work (lost time; LT) in 2004 were provided by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics Office of Safety and Health Statistics. Data from the American Time Use Survey database were used to estimate work hours in 2004. From these two data sources, the rate of LT injuries and illnesses (per 200 000 work hours) by day of the week, industry sector and gender were estimated. The analysis revealed clear differences by day of the week, gender and major industry sector. Sundays had the highest rate overall – nearly 37% higher than the average of the remaining days, Monday to Saturday. Mondays had the next highest rate followed closely by Saturdays. This pattern was not the same for males and females. For males, Mondays had the highest LT rate (27% higher than the average of all other days) with all remaining days having essentially the same rate. For females, Sundays and Saturdays had much higher LT rates – 122% and 60% higher, respectively, than the average weekday rate. There were also differences by industry and differences between genders by industry. The present analysis suggests that several factors may be contributing to the weekend and Monday trends observed. Lower-tenured (and younger) workers on the weekends, lower female management/supervision and second jobs on the weekend seem to be contributors to the high Saturday and Sunday LT rates. Differences in day of the week employment by industry did not account for the trends observed. Fraud and overtime also could not be confirmed as contributing to these trends. Monday trends were more complex to explain, with possible explanations including non-work-related weekend injuries being reported on Mondays, soft-tissue symptoms becoming more noticeable on Mondays, greater Monday morning flexion risk and reduced supervision in the construction industry on Mondays. Interpretation of these trends and the implications for work scheduling are discussed.