bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
When sex hurts: Female genital pain with sexual consequences deserves attention: A position paper
Authors: Thomtén Johanna , Linton Steven J.
Published: April 2014

Background and aims

The problem of sexual pain is an area that has been shamefully ignored by both the pain community and the health service authorities. Although about 40% of women report such pain and 30% report it during their last intercourse, sexual pain has historically not even been considered a pain problem. The objectives of the present study was to present a background to the problem of female sexual pain, further elaborate on the problem and offer some direction for how advances might be concretely made.

Discussion

Genital pain is common and many women describe pain during several non-sexual activities. Therefore describing the pain strictly as a sexual problem, threatens to lose important information about the experience of pain which will be misleading both in assessment and treatment. Instead, seeing the problem as a multidimensional pain condition with debilitating sexual consequences is suggested. It has become apparent that although biological aspects are central in the experience of genital pain, psychological and social aspects may play a major role.

The fear avoidance model which has played a major role in our understanding of the development of chronic musculoskeletal pain, also seems to be applicable in genital pain conditions. However, one has to be aware of certain differences when comparing genital pain from musculoskeletal conditions. In addition, there is a lack of established guidelines for assessing or treating unexplained genital pain conditions, and there is a risk of not acknowledging the role of socio-cultural context on how female sexuality is viewed. The problem of recurrent sexual pain is a highly volatile, personal, and socially weighted experience. Because of the lack of understanding of the mechanisms, it is a risk of over-emphasizing the role of vaginal penetration in the assessment and treatment of female sexual pain and clinicians may simply fail to investigate sexual function from a broader perspective.

Conclusions and implications

There is a growing interest in the problem of female genital pain and associated problems with sexual pain. However, research predominately refers to the field of sex research, and the involvement from the pain community has to date been relatively low. There is an immediate need to identify the psychosocial mechanisms involved in the transition from acute to chronic genital pain in women and to address these components in treatment using established methods. Since sexual pain is far more than pain during vaginal penetration, there is a risk of treatment interventions being oriented towards performance in terms of a narrowly defined sexual behavior instead of focusing on valued activities, meaning and pleasure for the individual. Assessment and treatment have to include a broad perspective on pain and on sex.
A Note on Gluckman’s 1930s Fieldwork in Natal
Authors: Kapferer Bruce
Published: April 2014

This essay gives an historiographical introduction to the article “On Burning One’s Bridge: The Context of Gluckman’s Zulu Fieldwork,” by Robert Gordon.
A probabilistic model to evaluate population dietary recommendations
Authors: Chalabi Zaid , Ferguson Elaine , Stanley Robert , Briend André
Published: April 2014

Food-based dietary recommendations (FBR) play an essential role in promoting a healthy diet. To support the process of formulating a set of population-specific FBR, a probabilistic model was developed specifically to predict the changes in the percentage of a population at risk of inadequate nutrient intakes after the adoption of alternative sets of FBR. The model simulates the distribution of the number of servings per week from food groups or food items at baseline and after the hypothetical successful adoption of alternative sets of FBR, while ensuring that the population's energy intake distribution remains similar. The simulated changes from baseline in median nutrient intakes and the percentage of the population at risk of inadequate nutrient intakes are calculated and compared across the alternative sets of FBR. The model was illustrated using a hypothetical population of 12- to 18-month-old breast-feeding children consuming a cereal-based diet low in animal source foods.
Dietary vitamin D2 – a potentially underestimated contributor to vitamin D nutritional status of adults?
Authors: Cashman Kevin D. , Kinsella Michael , McNulty Breige A. , Walton Janette , Gibney Michael J. , Flynn Albert , Kiely Mairead
Published: April 2014

It has been suggested that vitamin D2 is not very prevalent in the human food chain. However, data from a number of recent intervention studies suggest that the majority of subjects had measurable serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D2 (25(OH)D2) concentrations. Serum 25(OH)D2, unlike 25(OH)D3, is not directly influenced by exposure of skin to sun and thus has dietary origins; however, quantifying dietary vitamin D2 is difficult due to the limitations of food composition data. Therefore, the present study aimed to characterise serum 25(OH)D2 concentrations in the participants of the National Adult Nutrition Survey (NANS) in Ireland, and to use these serum concentrations to estimate the intake of vitamin D2 using a mathematical modelling approach. Serum 25(OH)D2 concentration was measured by a liquid chromatography–tandem MS method, and information on diet as well as subject characteristics was obtained from the NANS. Of these participants, 78·7 % (n 884) had serum 25(OH)D2 concentrations above the limit of quantification, and the mean, maximum, 10th, 50th (median) and 90th percentile values of serum 25(OH)D2 concentrations were 3·69, 27·6, 1·71, 2·96 and 6·36 nmol/l, respectively. To approximate the intake of vitamin D2 from these serum 25(OH)D2 concentrations, we used recently published data on the relationship between vitamin D intake and the responses of serum 25(OH)D concentrations. The projected 5th to 95th percentile intakes of vitamin D2 for adults were in the range of 0·9–1·2 and 5–6 μg/d, respectively, and the median intake ranged from 1·7 to 2·3 μg/d. In conclusion, the present data demonstrate that 25(OH)D2 concentrations are present in the sera of adults from this nationally representative sample. Vitamin D2 may have an impact on nutritional adequacy at a population level and thus warrants further investigation.
LDL-cholesterol-lowering effect of plant sterols and stanols across different dose ranges: a meta-analysis of randomised controlled studies
Authors: Ras Rouyanne T. , Geleijnse Johanna M. , Trautwein Elke A.
Published: April 2014

Phytosterols (PS, comprising plant sterols and plant stanols) have been proven to lower LDL-cholesterol concentrations. The dose–response relationship for this effect has been evaluated in several meta-analyses by calculating averages for different dose ranges or by applying continuous dose–response functions. Both approaches have advantages and disadvantages. So far, the calculation of averages for different dose ranges has not been done for plant sterols and stanols separately. The objective of the present meta-analysis was to investigate the combined and separate effects of plant sterols and stanols when classified into different dose ranges. Studies were searched and selected based on predefined criteria. Relevant data were extracted. Average LDL-cholesterol effects were calculated when studies were categorised by dose, according to random-effects models while using the variance as weighing factor. This was done for plant sterols and stanols combined and separately. In total, 124 studies (201 strata) were included. Plant sterols and stanols were administered in 129 and fifty-nine strata, respectively; the remaining used a mix of both. The average PS dose was 2·1 (range 0·2–9·0) g/d. PS intakes of 0·6–3·3 g/d were found to gradually reduce LDL-cholesterol concentrations by, on average, 6–12 %. When plant sterols and stanols were analysed separately, clear and comparable dose–response relationships were observed. Studies carried out with PS doses exceeding 4 g/d were not pooled, as these were scarce and scattered across a wide range of doses. In conclusion, the LDL-cholesterol-lowering effect of both plant sterols and stanols continues to increase up to intakes of approximately 3 g/d to an average effect of 12 %.
The Spatial Dimensions of Early Mesopotamian Urbanism: The Tell Brak Suburban Survey, 2003–2006
Authors: Ur Jason , Karsgaard Philip , Oates Joan
Published: April 2014

The 2003–2006 Suburban Survey at Tell Brak investigated the spatial dimensions of the city's urban origins and evolution via intensive systematic surface survey. This report places this research in the broader context of research on Near Eastern urban origins and development, describes the survey and remote sensing methods and summarises the results, which challenge several long-held models for the timing and geographical origins of urbanism in the Near East. Urbanism at Brak coalesced over the course of several centuries in the late fifth and early fourth millennia BC, when it evolved from a series of spatially discrete settlement zones into a 130-hectare city, without the benefit of irrigated agriculture. Other urban phases occurred in the late third millennium (70 hectare) and in the Late Bronze Age (45 hectare), all with different urban morphologies. Brak's final settlement occurred in the Abbasid period, when a 14-hectare town grew around the Castellum. In addition to the timing, growth and variability of urban form at the site, the Suburban Survey also documented well preserved off-site ancient landscapes of tracks, field systems and irrigation canals.
Untouchable or Unrepeatable? The Upper End of the Old Babylonian Metrological Systems for Capacity and Area
Authors: Chambon Grégory , Robson Eleanor
Published: April 2014

This article re-examines the cuneiform evidence for the upper end of the Old Babylonian metrological systems for capacity and area. We demonstrate that the reading 1(šar2) gal šu nu-tag “one large šar2 that the hand cannot touch” is not supported by that evidence, and show instead that the phrase's final sign is not tag but gi4 “return” or “repeat”. We then consider several likely interpretations of this reading, arguing that the size of the largest units in both systems is probably sixty times smaller than previously assumed, but nevertheless more than adequate for practical needs. Editions of two important metrological cuneiform texts are appended.
Making Tablets or Taking Tablets?ṭuppa/u ṣabātuin Assyria
Authors: Postgate Nicholas
Published: April 2014

Middle Assyrian texts have a phraseṭuppa ṣab¯atu, which is usually understood to mean “to take (possession of) a tablet”. There is a corresponding type of tablet called aṭuppu ṣabittu(plural (ṭuppatu ṣabbutātu). This article contends thatṭuppa ṣabātuis a technical term for drawing up a formal document, and thatṭuppu ṣabittuis a “formally drawn-up tablet”, normally if not invariably involving at least one seal impression, used both in private commercial contexts and in public administration. It is further maintained that this usage survives into Neo-Assyrian times, when its most frequent (but not exclusive) usage is at the end of a legal document where a witness (often identified as a scribe) is described asṣābit ṭuppi: this has been understood to mean that this scribe retained possession of the document, or that a third party “kept” the document. In the light of the fresh Middle Assyrian evidence, it is preferable to see it as referring to the scribe “who drew up the document”.
Traditional Dam Construction in Modern Iraq: A Possible Analogy for Ancient Mesopotamian Irrigation Practices
Authors: Rost Stephanie , Hamdani Abdulamir , George Steven
Published: April 2014

Lack of archaeological and comparative ethnographic data has limited our ability to interpret textual information that refers to ancient Mesopotamian irrigation works. This paper presents ethnographic data from modern Iraq regarding the construction, use and maintenance of a traditional irrigation system. Because traditional construction methods make use of organic materials similar to those available in the past, the data presented in this paper are considered to provide a set of analogies that can assist the interpretation of textual evidence and hence lead to a better understanding of irrigation practices in ancient Mesopotamia.
New Investigations in the Environment, History, and Archaeology of the Iraqi Hilly Flanks: Shahrizor Survey Project 2009–2011
Authors: Altaweel Mark , Marsh Anke , Mühl Simone , Nieuwenhuyse Olivier , Radner Karen , Rasheed Kamal , Saber Saber Ahmed
Published: April 2014

Recent palaeoenvironmental, historical, and archaeological investigations, primarily consisting of site reconnaissance, in the Shahrizor region within the province of Sulaymaniyah in Iraqi Kurdistan are bringing to light new information on the region's social and socio-ecological development. This paper summarises two seasons of work by researchers from German, British, Dutch, and Iraqi-Kurdish institutions working in the survey region. Palaeoenvironmental data have determined that during the Pleistocene many terraces developed which came to be occupied by a number of the larger tell sites in the Holocene. In the sedimentary record, climatic and anthropogenic patterns are noticeable, and alluviation has affected the recovery of archaeological remains through site burial in places. Historical data show the Shahrizor shifting between periods of independence, either occupied by one regional state or several smaller entities, and periods that saw the plain's incorporation within large empires, often in a border position. New archaeological investigations have provided insight into the importance of the region as a transit centre between Western Iran and northern and southern Mesopotamia, with clear material culture links recovered. Variations between periods' settlement patterns and occupations are also beginning to emerge.
The Rays of Šamaš: Light in Mesopotamian Architecture and Legal Practice
Authors: Shepperson Mary
Published: April 2014

As part of ongoing research into the significance of light in ancient Mesopotamian architecture and ideology, a reorientation of the main external gateways of city temples can be identified, occurring from around the beginning of the Ur III period. This change in orientation allowed temple gateways to receive direct sunlight onto their external façades during the morning throughout the year. One possible explanation for this architectural change is found in the legal practices of the late third and second millennia B.C. It is proposed that access to sunlight, and therefore the presence of the sun god, was significant for the taking of oaths and the administration of law at temple gateways from the Ur III period onwards, thereby promoting a south-easterly orientation for these gateways. With this in mind, the careful provision of morning light access to the doorways of the neighbourhood chapels of residential Ur may be taken as evidence for the local neighbourhood administration of some legal functions. This in turn suggests a possible cultic and legal basis for the formation of these localised subdivisions of urban communities.
Surface Survey and Satellite Reconnaissance: Reconstructing the Urban Layout of Mashkan-Shapir
Authors: Stone Elizabeth C.
Published: April 2014

The recent introduction of irrigation around the site of Mashkan-shapir, together with the availability of high resolution satellite imagery, has resulted in the preservation of architectural traces which could not be recovered when the site was researched between 1987 and 1990. In spite of recent looting, these traces have allowed the identification of the location of the palace and the reconstruction of much of the street system of this city, including the connection points across the ancient canals. Moreover, the survey data recovered through past fieldwork can be related to these traces, allowing an understanding of the larger context for many of the activities at the site, especially burial and manufacturing. Together these data provide a detailed view of how an ancient Mesopotamian city was conceived—in this instance by Sin-iddinam, who transformed it from a small village to a large city by building the city wall.
The Horizontal Forearm Harp: Assyria's National Instrument
Authors: Cheng Jack
Published: April 2014

A horizontal harp, strung with seven to nine strings and usually decorated with a finial in the shape of a human forearm, is likely to have been a symbol of the Neo-Assyrian state. Various features distinguish this musical instrument from contemporary Elamite harps, and from other harps in Mesopotamian history. The horizontal forearm harp was the most frequently depicted musical instrument on Neo-Assyrian palace reliefs and bronze doors; pairs of male Assyrians play the harp for the king in official duties of state or cult. The decorative forearm sometimes wears the rosette bracelet associated with royalty. Consideration of the iconographic significance of the forearm suggests possible Neo-Assyrian attitudes toward music.
On Standardisation and Variation in the Introductory Formulae of Neo-Assyrian Letters
Authors: Luukko Mikko
Published: April 2014

The introductory formulae of Neo-Assyrian letters sent to the king or a superior official during the eighth century B.C. attest to a highly standardised form of letter writing (especially in the address), proving scribal sensitivity to an established letter writing etiquette. The introductory formula reflects the office of the sender; exactly the same formula (including the greeting) may be used by successive officeholders. Yet these formulae are by no means entirely uniform. In particular, the presence or absence of a blessing may tell us about the sender's relationship with the Assyrian king.
Cuneiform Tablets from the Wiseman Collection
Authors: Taylor Jon
Published: April 2014

The remains of the Percy J. Wiseman collection of cuneiform tablets were acquired in 2010 by the British Museum, where they now form the 2010-6-022 collection. The tablets almost all originate from southern Iraq, including the sites of Drehem, Larsa, Nippur, Sippar and Umma. They constitute records from the Ur III and Old Babylonian periods (21st–17th century B.C.) and from the Neo-Babylonian and Achaemenid periods (6th–4th century B.C.). This article provides an overview of the collection and makes the texts available for further study.
Ancient Cities and Landscapes in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq: The Erbil Plain Archaeological Survey 2012 Season
Authors: Ur Jason , de Jong Lidewijde , Giraud Jessica , Osborne James F. , MacGinnis John
Published: April 2014

In 2012, the Erbil Plain Archaeological Survey (EPAS) conducted its first season of fieldwork. The project's goal is the complete mapping of the archaeological landscape of Erbil, with an emphasis on the Neo-Assyrian and Hellenistic periods. It will test the hypothesis that the Neo-Assyrian landscape was closely planned. This first report emphasizes the project's field methodology, especially the use of a variety of satellite remote sensing imagery. Our preliminary results suggest that the plain was part of the urbanized world of Mesopotamia, with new cities of the Bronze Age, Iron Age, and Sasanian era identified.
Dr Lee's Collection of Cylinder Seals
Authors: Thorn Brett , Collon Dominique
Published: April 2014

Dr Lee was known as a collector of cylinder seals only because six of them were published by Cullimore in 1843. Now twenty seals have been rediscovered in the Buckinghamshire County Museum in Aylesbury, and have been registered and recorded. Some of the preliminary drawings made for Cullimore's publication have also survived and have thrown light on the way the seals were recorded for publication in the early 1840s. Here a full catalogue and assessment of Lee's collection is presented, together with evidence for the way seals were recorded for Cullimore's catalogue.
Secrets in the Library: Protected Knowledge and Professional Identity in Late Babylonian Uruk
Authors: Stevens Kathryn
Published: April 2014

Injunctions to secrecy in the colophons of scholarly cuneiform tablets offer potential insights into the classification and protection of knowledge in Mesopotamia. However, most models of a body of “secret knowledge” defined by the so-called “Geheimwissencolophons” have found it difficult to account for a seemingly disparate corpus of protected texts. This study argues first for an expanded definition of intellectual protection, which leads to a larger corpus of protected texts. Through a case study of Late Babylonian colophons from Uruk, it is suggested that there is a strong correlation between texts related to the professional specialism of the tablet owner, and the occurrence of protective formulae in the colophon. This implies that it is fruitful to consider “secret knowledge” less as an abstracted corpus of esoteric texts and more as a mutable categorisation strongly linked to professional and individual intellectual identity.
Local Gambling Preferences and Corporate Innovative Success
Authors: Chen Yangyang , Podolski Edward J. , Rhee S. Ghon , Veeraraghavan Madhu
Published: April 2014

This paper examines the role of local attitudes toward gambling on corporate innovative activity. Using a county’s Catholics-to-Protestants ratio as a proxy for local gambling preferences, we find that firms located in gambling-prone areas tend to undertake riskier projects, spend more on innovation, and experience greater innovative output. We contrast the local gambling effect with chief executive officer (CEO) overconfidence, another behavioral effect reported to influence innovation. We find that local gambling preferences are a stronger determinant of innovative activity, with CEO overconfidence being more relevant to innovation in areas where gambling attitudes are strong.
Does host immunity influence helminth egg hatchability in the environment?
Authors: Lambert K.A. , Pathak A.K. , Cattadori I.M.
Published: April 2014

Transmission success for helminths with free-living stages depends on the ability of eggs and larvae to develop and survive once in the environment. While environmental conditions are often suggested to influence egg phenology and hatching rate, immunity against parasite eggs might also play a role. We examined this hypothesis using the gastrointestinal helminthsTrichostrongylus retortaeformisandGraphidium strigosum, two common infections of the European rabbit. Changes in egg hatching rate and volume were examined in relation to specific antibodies in the serum and bound to eggshells, using eggs shed in host faeces over a 15-week period. Hatching rate was consistently higher forT. retortaeformisthanG. strigosumand no changes were observed between weeks. Egg volume increased forG. strigosumbut decreased forT. retortaeformis. We did find evidence of egg-specific antibody responses and fewer antibodies were bound to eggs ofT. retortaeformiscompared toG. strigosum. Little to no association was found between antibodies and hatchability, or volume, for both helminths. We suggest that host antibodies play a relatively minor role in the egg hatching rate of these gastrointestinal helminths.
Experimental anisakid infections in mice
Authors: Vericimo M.A. , Figueiredo I. , Teixeira G.A.P.B. , Clemente S.C. São
Published: April 2014

Anisakidosis is a human parasitic disease caused by infections with members of the Anisakidae family. Accidental infection after fish intake affects the gastrointestinal tract as a consequence of mechanical damage caused by migrating larvae. Infections can also trigger allergies, hives, severe asthma or anaphylaxis with angioedema. Although mouse models of intraperitoneal antigenic stimulation exist, enabling immunological studies, few models using gastric introduction of live larvae are available for the study of immunological and gastrointestinal damage in mice. This study was designed to characterize serum reactivity againstAnisakisspp. andContracaecumspp. in Balb/c mice following orogastric inoculation and to assess gastrointestinal damage. These anisakid species were classified at the Universidade Federal Fluminense (UFF) School of Veterinary Medicine and materials for live larval inoculation were developed at the UFF Immunobiology laboratory. Live larvae were inoculated following injection with a NaCl solution. Blood samples were collected and sera screened for immunoglobulin (Ig)E and IgG anti-larva responses to both nematodes, specific for somatic and excretory/secretory antigens, by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The means of the optical densities were analysed using analysis of variance (ANOVA) with Tukey's post-hoc test and the general linear model. This analysis identified the presence of anti-IgG seroreactivity to both somatic and excretory/secretoryAnisakisantigens in inoculated animals compared with controls (P< 0.001), and no gastric or intestinal damage was observed. These experiments demonstrated that introduction of liveContracaecumspp. into the gastrointestinal tract did not elicit serum sensitization in animals.
The Limits of Judicial Independence: A Model with Illustration from Venezuela under Chávez
Authors: TAYLOR MATTHEW M.
Published: April 2014

This paper presents a heuristic model of judicial independence that illustrates how it is that changes in de facto judicial independence may occur, even in the absence of overt institutional changes in de jure protections. The model is illustrated by the marked decline in the independence of Venezuela's high court between 1998 and 2010, under President Hugo Chávez. Focusing on the trade-off that courts face between jurisprudential change and policy change, the paper demonstrates how courts – even those that closely mirror the executive branch's policy preferences – may enter into conflict with dominant executives, and find their judicial independence restricted by informal means.
Pages from a Yellow Press: Print Culture, Public Life and Political Genealogies in Modern Brazil
Authors: WOODARD JAMES P.
Published: April 2014

An examination of the Brazilian newspaperO Combate, this article accomplishes four goals. First, it defines the politics of a periodical long cited but little understood by historians. Second, it documentsO Combate's place, alongside other ‘yellow press’ outlets, in the making of a ‘public sphere’ in São Paulo. Third, it situates the same publications' role in the bringing into being of a more commercial, publicity-driven press, which would shed the yellow press's radicalism and abet the collapse of the public sphere of its heyday. Fourth, it suggests thatO Combate's radical republicanism was one fount of the democratic radicalism of the late 1920s and early 1930s, as well as of the regionally chauvinist constitutionalism of 1932–7. In this rare application of the ‘public sphere’ idea to twentieth-century Brazil, readers may also detect an account closer to Jürgen Habermas’ original formulation than that found in the historiography of nineteenth-century Spanish America.
Contradictions of Green Development: Human Rights and Environmental Norms in Light of Belo Monte Dam Activism
Authors: BRATMAN EVE Z.
Published: April 2014

This paper offers a historical examination of the ways in which advocacy strategies and tactics have shifted in relation to political opportunities, using a case study of a hydroelectric dam project in the Brazilian Amazon, known as the Belo Monte Dam. Drawing on over three decades of resistance by transnational activist coalitions, the paper looks at how new tactics and political alignments have altered the dynamics of activism and norm diffusion in Brazilian domestic environmental, human rights and development policies. The paper argues that current theories of norm diffusion inadequately explain backslides and tend to underestimate the complexity of domestic political alignments. The case adds political insight to our understanding of the relationship of transnational advocacy strategy to environmental and human rights political realities in Brazil.
A comparison of pigmentation features among North Atlantic killer whale (Orcinus orca) populations
Authors: Mäkeläinen Pirjo , Esteban Ruth , Foote Andrew D. , Kuningas Sanna , Nielsen Julius , Samarra Filipa I.P. , Similä Tiu , van Geel Nienke C.F. , Víkingsson Gíslia A.
Published: April 2014

Here we present a comparison of saddle and eye patch patterns of killer whales from Norwegian, Icelandic, British, Spanish and Greenlandic waters. We found only a small amount of variation in saddle patch shapes, which may reflect a recent phylogenetic divergence from the most recent common ancestor. Eye patch shapes were more variable than saddle patches in small details. Most individuals had eye patches with parallel orientation, with the exception of a small group of killer whales from the Hebrides, which, as previously reported, had sloping eye patches that sloped downward at the posterior end. This differentiation in pigmentation patterns of the Hebridean killer whales from neighbouring populations could reflect one or more of several evolutionary processes, including a deeper phylogenetic divergence, low gene flow with other local populations and drift.
Protein kinase B (AKT1) genotype mediates sensitivity to cannabis-induced impairments in psychomotor control
Authors: Bhattacharyya S. , Iyegbe C. , Atakan Z. , Martin-Santos R. , Crippa J. A. , Xu X. , Williams S. , Brammer M. , Rubia K. , Prata D. , Collier D. A. , McGuire P. K.
Published: April 2014

Background.

What determines inter-individual variability to impairments in behavioural control that may underlie road-traffic accidents, and impulsive and violent behaviours occurring under the influence of cannabis, the most widely used illicit drug worldwide?

Method.

Employing a double-blind, repeated-measures design, we investigated the genetic and neural basis of variable sensitivity to cannabis-induced behavioural dyscontrol in healthy occasional cannabis users. Acute oral challenge with placebo or Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main psychoactive ingredient in cannabis, was combined with functional magnetic resonance imaging, while participants performed a response inhibition task that involved inhibiting a pre-potent motor response. They were genotyped for rs1130233 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the protein kinase B (AKT1) gene.

Results.

Errors of inhibition were significantly (p = 0.008) increased following administration of THC in carriers of the A allele, but not in G allele homozygotes of theAKT1rs1130233 SNP. The A allele carriers also displayed attenuation of left inferior frontal response with THC evident in the sample as a whole, while there was a modest enhancement of inferior frontal activation in the G homozygotes. There was a direct relationship (r = − 0.327,p = 0.045) between the behavioural effect of THC and its physiological effect in the inferior frontal gyrus, whereAKT1genotype modulated the effect of THC.

Conclusions.

These results require independent replication and show that differing vulnerability to acute psychomotor impairments induced by cannabis depends on variation in a gene that influences dopamine function, and is mediated through modulation of the effect of cannabis on the inferior frontal cortex, that is rich in dopaminergic innervation and critical for psychomotor control.
Cross-saturation and transferred cross-saturation experiments
Authors: Ueda Takumi , Takeuchi Koh , Nishida Noritaka , Stampoulis Pavlos , Kofuku Yutaka , Osawa Masanori , Shimada Ichio
Published: April 2014

Structural analyses of protein–protein interactions are required to reveal their functional mechanisms, and accurate protein–protein complex models, based on experimental results, are the starting points for drug development. In addition, structural information about proteins under physiologically relevant conditions is crucially important for understanding biological events. However, for proteins such as those embedded in lipid bilayers and transiently complexed with their effectors under physiological conditions, structural analyses by conventional methods are generally difficult, due to their large molecular weights and inhomogeneity. We have developed the cross-saturation (CS) method, which is an nuclear magnetic resonance measurement technique for the precise identification of the interfaces of protein–protein complexes. In addition, we have developed an extended version of the CS method, termed transferred cross-saturation (TCS), which enables the identification of the residues of protein ligands in close proximity to huge (>150 kDa) and heterogeneous complexes under fast exchange conditions (>0.1 s−1). Here, we discuss the outline, basic theory, and practical considerations of the CS and TCS methods. In addition, we will review the recent progress in the construction of models of protein–protein complexes, based on CS and TCS experiments, and applications of TCS to in situ analyses of biologically and medically important proteins in physiologically relevant states.
Government as Institutional Entrepreneur: Extending Working Life in the UK and Japan
Authors: FLYNN MATTHEW , SCHRÖDER HEIKE , HIGO MASA , YAMADA ATSUHIRO
Published: April 2014

Through the lens of Institutional Entrepreneurship, this paper discusses how governments use the levers of power afforded through business and welfare systems to affect change in the organisational management of older workers. It does so using national stakeholder interviews in two contrasting economies: the United Kingdom and Japan. Both governments have taken a ‘light-touch’ approach to work and retirement. However, the highly institutionalised Japanese system affords the government greater leverage than that of the liberal UK system in changing employer practices at the workplace level.
Selfish goals serve more fundamental social and biological goals
Authors: Becker D. Vaughn , Kenrick Douglas T.
Published: April 2014

Proximate selfish goals reflect the machinations of more fundamental goals such as self-protection and reproduction. Evolutionary life history theory allows us to make predictions about which goals are prioritized over others, which stimuli release which goals, and how the stages of cognitive processing are selectively influenced to better achieve the aims of those goals.
Development links psychological causes to evolutionary explanations
Authors: Fedyk Mark , Kushnir Tamar
Published: April 2014

Our conscious abilities are learned in environments that have evolved to support them. This insight provides an alternative way of framing Huang & Bargh's (H&B's) provocative hypothesis. To understand the conflict between unconscious goals and consciousness, we can study the emergence of conscious thought and control in childhood. These developmental processes are also central to the best available current evolutionary theories.
The motivational self is more than the sum of its goals
Authors: Fishbach Ayelet
Published: April 2014

I present evidence in favor of an overarching motivational self: a mental function that regulates expression of multiple goals. Goals often conflict with each other, and the role of a motivational self is to consciously or unconsciously prioritize pursuit of these goals. When observing inconsistency in expression of goals, it is therefore useful to consider whether the motivational self is attempting to balance between conflicting goals or if such inconsistency results from temporary self-control weakness.
Winner takes it all: Addiction as an example for selfish goal dominance
Authors: Müller Christian P. , Amato Davide
Published: April 2014

Here we argue that the selfish goal concept may well be suitable to explain inconsistencies not only in micro-behaviors, but also in the gross behavioral repertoire of an individual, which is often associated with psychopathologies, such as addiction. Neurophysiological evidence for pathological conditions like addiction emerged, and this evidence may also serve as an explanatory model for normal behaviors.
Automatic goals and conscious regulation in social cognitive affective neuroscience
Authors: Sripada Chandra , Swain John D. , Ho S. Shaun , Swain James E.
Published: April 2014

The Selfish Goal model challenges traditional agentic models that place conscious systems at the helm of motivation. We highlight the need for ongoing supervision and intervention of automatic goals by higher-order conscious systems with examples from social cognitive affective neuroscience. We contend that interplay between automatic and supervisory systems is required for adaptive human behavior.
Should an individual composed of selfish goals be held responsible for her actions?
Authors: Washington Natalia , Kelly Daniel
Published: April 2014

We discuss the implications of the Selfish Goal model for moral responsibility, arguing it suggests a form of skepticism we call the “locus problem.” In denying that individuals contain any genuine psychological core of information processing, the Selfish Goal model denies the kind of locus of control intuitively presupposed by ascriptions of responsibility. We briefly consider ways the problem might be overcome.
Associative learning is necessary but not sufficient for mirror neuron development
Authors: Bonaiuto James
Published: April 2014

Existing computational models of the mirror system demonstrate the additional circuitry needed for mirror neurons to display the range of properties that they exhibit. Such models emphasize the need for existing connectivity to form visuomotor associations, processing to reduce the space of possible inputs, and demonstrate the role neurons with mirror properties might play in monitoring one's own actions.
More than associations: An ideomotor perspective on mirror neurons
Authors: Brass Marcel , Muhle-Karbe Paul S.
Published: April 2014

In this commentary, we propose an extension of the associative approach of mirror neurons, namely, ideomotor theory. Ideomotor theory assumes that actions are controlled by anticipatory representations of their sensory consequences. As we outline below, this extension is necessary to clarify a number of empirical observations that are difficult to explain from a purely associative perspective.
Motor-visual neurons and action recognition in social interactions
Authors: de la Rosa Stephan , Bülthoff Heinrich H.
Published: April 2014

Cook et al. suggest that motor-visual neurons originate from associative learning. This suggestion has interesting implications for the processing of socially relevant visual information in social interactions. Here, we discuss two aspects of the associative learning account that seem to have particular relevance for visual recognition of social information in social interactions – namely, context-specific and contingency based learning.
Understanding action with the motor system
Authors: Gallese Vittorio , Sinigaglia Corrado
Published: April 2014

We challenge Cook et al.'s claim about the vagueness of the notion of action understanding in relation with mirror neurons. We show the multidimensional nature of action understanding and provide a definition of motor-based action understanding, shedding new light on the various components of action understanding and on their relationship. Finally, we propose an alternative perspective on the origin of mirror neurons, stressing the necessity to abandon the dichotomy between genetic and associative hypotheses.
Hebbian Learning is about contingency, not contiguity, and explains the emergence of predictive mirror neurons
Authors: Keysers Christian , Perrett David I. , Gazzola Valeria
Published: April 2014

Hebbian Learning should not be reduced to contiguity, as it detects contingency and causality. Hebbian Learning accounts of mirror neurons make predictions that differ from associative learning: Through Hebbian Learning, mirror neurons become dynamic networks that calculate predictions and prediction errors and relate to ideomotor theories. The social force of imitation is important for mirror neuron emergence and suggests canalization.
Relating the “mirrorness” of mirror neurons to their origins
Authors: Kilner James M. , Friston Karl J.
Published: April 2014

Ever since their discovery, mirror neurons have generated much interest and debate. A commonly held view of mirror neuron function is that they transform “visual information into knowledge,” thus enabling action understanding and non-verbal social communication between con-specifics (Rizzolatti & Craighero 2004). This functionality is thought to be so important that it has been argued that mirror neurons must be a result of selective pressure.
The origin and function of mirror neurons: The missing link
Authors: Lingnau Angelika , Caramazza Alfonso
Published: April 2014

We argue, by analogy to the neural organization of the object recognition system, that demonstration of modulation of mirror neurons by associative learning does not imply absence of genetic adaptation. Innate connectivity defines the types of processes mirror neurons can participate in while allowing for extensive local plasticity. However, the proper function of these neurons remains to be worked out.
Associative learning alone is insufficient for the evolution and maintenance of the human mirror neuron system
Authors: Oberman Lindsay M. , Hubbard Edward M. , McCleery Joseph P.
Published: April 2014

Cook et al. argue that mirror neurons originate from associative learning processes, without evolutionary influence from social-cognitive mechanisms. We disagree with this claim and present arguments based upon cross-species comparisons, EEG findings, and developmental neuroscience that the evolution of mirror neurons is most likely driven simultaneously and interactively by evolutionarily adaptive psychological mechanisms and lower-level biological mechanisms that support them.
The mirror system in human and nonhuman primates
Authors: Orban Guy A.
Published: April 2014

The description of the mirror neuron system provided by Cook et al. is incomplete for the macaque, and incorrect for humans. This is relevant to exaptation versus associative learning as the underlying mechanism generating mirror neurons, and to the sensorimotor learning as evidence for the authors' viewpoint. The proposed additional testing of the mirror system in rodents is unrealistic.
The emergence of mirror-like response properties from domain-general principles in vision and audition
Authors: Saygin Ayse P. , Dick Frederic
Published: April 2014

Like Cook et al., we suggest that mirror neurons are a fascinating product of cross-modal learning. As predicted by an associative account, responses in motor regions are observed for novel and/or abstract visual stimuli such as point-light and android movements. Domain-specific mirror responses also emerge as a function of audiomotor expertise that is slowly acquired over years of intensive training.
Neonatal imitation and an epigenetic account of mirror neuron development
Authors: Simpson Elizabeth A. , Fox Nathan A. , Tramacere Antonella , Ferrari Pier F.
Published: April 2014

Neonatal imitation should not exclusively be considered at the population-level; instead, we propose that inconsistent findings regarding its occurrence result from important individual differences in imitative responses. We also highlight what we consider to be a false dichotomy of genetic versus learning accounts of the development of mirror neurons, and instead suggest a more parsimonious epigenetic perspective.
Mirror neurons: Tests and testability
Authors: Catmur Caroline , Press Clare , Cook Richard , Bird Geoffrey , Heyes Cecilia
Published: April 2014

Commentators have tended to focus on the conceptual framework of our article, the contrast between genetic and associative accounts of mirror neurons, and to challenge it with additional possibilities rather than empirical data. This makes the empirically focused comments especially valuable. The mirror neuron debate is replete with ideas; what it needs now are system-level theories and careful experiments – tests and testability.
Multitudes of perspectives: Integrating the Selfish Goal model with views on scientific metaphors, goal systems, and society
Authors: Huang Julie Y. , Bargh John A.
Published: April 2014

In our response, we address commentators' feedback regarding the contributions and limitations of the Selfish Goal model. We first clarify potential misunderstandings regarding the model's contributions and the role of consciousness. Second, we situate evaluations of the selfish metaphor within the similarities and differences inherent to the goal-gene comparison. We then respond to commentators' insights regarding future directions and implications of our model, particularly with respect to the broader organizational systems in which goals may operate. Finally, we reiterate important considerations for goal research moving forward.
Influence of backlash in gear reducer on dynamic of single-link manipulator arm
Authors: Lu Jian-Wei , Sun Xiao-Ming , Vakakis Alexander F. , Bergman Lawrence A.
Published: April 2014

The dynamic modeling of a flexible single-link manipulator arm with consideration of backlash in the planetary gear reducer at the joint is presented, and the influence of backlash on the dynamic response of the system is evaluated. A 2K-H planetary gear reducer with backlash was employed as an example to discuss the dynamic modeling of the sub-model of the planetary gear reducer, and the sub-model of the planetary gear reducer was established based on the lumped mass method. The flexible manipulator was regarded as an Euler--Bernoulli beam, and the dynamic model of the flexible manipulator arm with backlash in the planetary gear reducer was determined from Lagrange's equations. Based on the this model, the influence of the backlash in the planetary gear reducer and excitation frequency on the dynamic response of the system were evaluated through simulation, and the results showed that the dynamic response of the system is sensitive to the backlash and the excitation frequency simultaneously, which provides a theoretical foundation for improvement of dynamic modeling and control of the flexible manipulator arm.
Screw theory based motion analysis for an inchworm-like climbing robot
Authors: Yao Jianjun , Gao Shuang , Jiang Guilin , Hill Thomas L. , Yu Han , Shao Dong
Published: April 2014

To obtain better performance on unstructured environments, such as in agriculture, forestry, and high-altitude operations, more and more researchers and engineers incline to study classes of biologically inspired robots. Since the natural inchworm can move well in various types of terrain, inchworm-like robots can exhibit excellent mobility. This paper describes a novel inchworm-type robot with simple structure developed for the application for climbing on trees or poles with a certain range of diameters. Modularization is adopted in the robot configuration. The robot is a serial mechanism connected by four joint modules and two grippers located at the front and rear end, respectively. Each joint is driven by servos, and each gripper is controlled by a linear motor. The simplified mechanism model is established, and then is used for its kinematic analysis based on screw theory. The dynamics of the robot are also analyzed by using Lagrange equations. The simulation of the robot gait imitating the locomotion of real inchworm is finally presented.
Model-driven analysis and design for software development of autonomous underwater vehicles
Authors: Ortiz Francisco J. , Insaurralde Carlos C. , Alonso Diego , Sánchez Francisco , Petillot Yvan R.
Published: April 2014

Software engineering plays a key role in state-of-the-art robotics where more effective and efficient software development solutions are needed for implementation and integration of advanced robotics capabilities. Component-based software engineering and model-driven software development are two paradigms suitable to deal with such challenges. This paper presents the analysis, design, and implementation of control software for an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV). The software development stages are carried out by using a model-driven toolchain that provides support to design and build component-based software for robotics applications. A case study of a high-performance AUV control application and experimental results from a software schedulability analysis are presented.