Measures of visuospatial short-term memory: the Knox Cube Imitation Test and the Corsi Blocks Test compared

The present investigation analyzes the characteristics of two tasks that have been considered as a measure of visuospatial abilities: The Knox Cube Imitation Test and the Corsi Blocks Test. The former was originally devised by Knox (1913) to diagnose mental retardation in potential immigrants to the United States, while the latter has been specifically designed to be used in neuropsychological practice by Corsi (1972). Although both tasks have been widely used in the past, there is little empirical research investigating the characteristics of these tasks from a theoretical point of view. In order to do so, we carried out two parallel experiments in which both tasks were presented in a baseline condition as well as in association with three different concurrent tasks (i.e., articulatory suppression, spatial tapping, and random generation) supposed to tap the various components of working memory. Results showed that neither of the tasks can be considered as a pure measure of visuospatial processing and that, at the same time, it is necessary to reconsider the architecture of working memory in order to suggest a more integrated functioning of the system.     

Markets and The Needy: Organ Sales or Aid?

As organ shortages have become more accute, support for a market in organs has steadily increased. Whilst many have argued for such a market, it is Gerald Dworkin who most persuasively defends its ethics. As Dworkin points out, there are two possibilities here--a futures market and a current market. I follow Dworkin in focusing on a current market in the sale of organs from living donors, as this is generally considered to be the most difficult to justify. One of the most pressing concerns here is that such a market will exploit the poor. I outline this concern and scrutinize Dworkin's and others' rejection of it. Briefly, I argue that the arguments Dworkin employs for allowing the poor to sell their organs fail, and in fact better support an argument for increasing aid to the needy.     

The influence of expertise and task factors on age differences in pilot communication

The influence of expertise and task factors on age differences in a simulated pilot-Air Traffic Control (ATC) communication task was examined. Young, middle-aged, and older pilots and nonpilots listened to ATC messages that described a route through an airspace, during which they referred to a chart of this airspace. Participants read back each message and then answered a probe question about the route. It was found that pilots read back messages more accurately than nonpilots, and younger participants were more accurate than older participants. Age differences were not reduced for pilots. Pilots and younger participants also answered probes more accurately, suggesting that they were better able to interpret the ATC messages in terms of the chart in order to create a situation model of the flight. The findings suggest that expertise benefits occur for adults of all ages. High levels of flying experience among older pilots (as compared with younger pilots) helped to buffer age-related declines in cognitive resources, thus providing evidence for the mediating effects of experience on age differences.     

Language decline across the life span: findings from the Nun Study

The present study examines language samples from the Nun Study. Measures of grammatical complexity and idea density were obtained from autobiographies written over a 60-year span. Participants who had met criteria for dementia were contrasted with those who did not. Grammatical complexity initially averaged 4.78 (on a 0-to-7-point scale) for participants who did not meet criteria for dementia and declined .04 units per year; grammatical complexity for participants who met criteria for dementia initially averaged 3.86 and declined .03 units per year. Idea density averaged 5.35 propositions per 10 words initially for participants who did not meet criteria for dementia and declined an average of .03 units per year, whereas idea density averaged 4.34 propositions per 10 words initially for participants who met criteria for dementia and declined .02 units per year. Adult experiences, in general, did not moderate these declines.     

The central nucleus of the amygdala; a conduit for modulation of HPA axis responses to an immune challenge?

Physical stressors such as infection, inflammation and tissue injury elicit activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. This response has significant implications for both immune and central nervous system function. Investigations in rats into the neural substrates responsible for HPA axis activation to an immune challenge have predominantly utilized an experimental paradigm involving the acute administration of the pro-inflammatory cytokine interleukin- 1β (IL-1β). It is well recognized that medial parvocellular corticotrophin-releasing factor cells of the paraventricular nucleus (mPVN CRF) are critical in generating HPA axis responses to an immune challenge but little is known about how peripheral immune signals can activate and/or modulate the mPVN CRF cells. Studies that have examined the afferent control of the mPVN CRF cell response to systemic IL-1β have centred largely on the inputs from brainstem catecholamine cells. However, other regulatory neuronal populations also merit attention and one such region is a component of the limbic system, the central nucleus of the amygdala (CeA). A large number of CeA cells are recruited following systemic IL-lβ administration and there is a significant body of work indicating that the CeA can influence HPA axis function. However, the contribution of the CeA to HPA axis responses to an immune challenge is only just beginning to be addressed. This review examines three aspects of HPA axis control by systemic IL-1β: (i) whether the CeA has a role in generating HPA axis responses to systemic IL-1β, (ii) the identity of the neural connections between the CeA and mPVN CRF cells that might be important to HPA axis responses and(iii) the mechanisms by which systemic IL-Iβ triggers the recruitment of CeA cells.     

Analogue assessment of child behavior problems

The psychometric properties of analogue assessment measures of child behavior problems are reviewed. Analogue assessment refers to an observational measure of targeted behaviors that are elicited by simulated experimental conditions, which, in turn, are devised to approximate natural circumstances. For the most part, this assessment approach has been used sporadically in the clinical setting with children who are behaviorally disturbed. Lack of standardization of measures and inconsistent findings of ecological validity are among several concerns noted. The paucity of available data limits conclusions that can be drawn at this time about the role of analogue assessment in the evaluation and treatment of child behavior problems.     

Adolescent depression and risk factors

Seventy-nine high school seniors were administered the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D), as well as a questionnaire on parent relationships, peer relationships, positive and negative feelings including suicidal thoughts, and lifestyle variables including academic performance, exercise, and drug use. The group of adolescents who scored above the clinical cutoff for depression on the CES-D (n = 29) had poorer relations with parents. Further, the incidence of paternal depression in that group was greater. The depressed adolescents also had less optimal peer relationships, fewer friends, and were less popular. They experienced less happiness and more frequent suicidal thoughts. They spent less time doing homework, had a lower grade point average, and spent less time exercising. The depressed group also reported more use of marijuana and cocaine. A stepwise regression indicated that physical affection with parents, homework, well-being, exercise, happiness, and parent relations explained 55% of the variance.