Bicriteria cost versus service analysis of a distribution network—a case study

In order to improve the distribution system for the Nordic countries the BASF AG considered 13 alternative scenarios to the existing system. These involved the construction of warehouses at various locations. For every scenario the transportation, storage, and handling cost incurred was to be as low as possible, where restrictions on the delivery time were given. The scenarios were evaluated according to (minimal) total cost and weighted average delivery time. The results led to a restriction to only three cases involving only one new warehouse each. For these, a more accurate model for the cost was developed and evaluated, yielding results similar to a simple linear model. Since there were no clear preferences between cost and delivery time, the final decision was chosen to represent a compromise between the two criteria. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The quality of sucking in infants with colic

Feeding problems have been reported in infants with colic. The purpose of this study was to examine the nutritive sucking pattern of infants identified as having colic. Twenty-nine infants (16 with colic and 13 controls) between the ages of 1 to 3 months, being bottle-fed by their mothers, were observed by a blind examiner. We hypothesized that infants with colic would show greater disorganization in nutritive sucking and show greater variability in sucking rate than infants without colic, as assessed by the revised Neonatal Oral Motor Assessment Scale (NOMAS). Infants with colic were found to present a disorganized sucking pattern; namely, a lack of rhythmical movement and a difference in amount of sucks per burst than infants without colic. Methods of intervention are suggested.     

Propositionalism about intention: shifting the burden of proof

A widespread view in the philosophy of mind and action holds that intentions are propositional attitudes. Call this view ‘Propositionalism about Intention’. The key alternative holds that intentions have acts, or do-ables, as their contents. Propositionalism is typically accepted by default, rather than argued for in any detail. By appealing to a key metaphysical constraint on any account of intention, I argue that on the contrary, it is the Do-ables View which deserves the status of the default position, and Propositionalism which bears the burden of proof. I go on to show that this burden has not been met in the literature.     

Cognitive predictors of parent-rated inattention in very preterm children: The role of working memory and processing speed

Inattention is one of the most common neurobehavioral problems following very preterm birth. Attention problems can persist into adulthood and are associated with negative socio-emotional and educational outcomes. This study aimed to determine whether the cognitive processes associated with inattention differ between term-born and very preterm children. Sixty-five children born very preterm (<33+0 weeks’ gestation) aged 8–11 years were recruited alongside 48 term-born controls (?37 20 +0 weeks’ gestation). Both groups included children with a wide spectrum of parent-rated inattention (above average attention to severe inattention) measured as a continuous dimension using the Strengths and Weaknesses of ADHD and Normal-Behavior (SWAN) scale. The children completed tests to assess basic cognitive processes and executive function. A hierarchical multiple regression analysis was implemented to assess which neurocognitive processes explained variance in parent-rated inattention and whether these differed between preterm and term-born children. In both groups, poorer verbal and visuospatial short-term memory and poorer visuospatial working memory independently explained variance in parent-rated inattention. Slower motor processing speed explained variance in inattention among very preterm children only. The cognitive mechanisms associated with parent-rated inattention were predominantly overlapping between groups, but relationships between motor processing speed and inattention were unique to very preterm children. These associations may reflect risk factors for inattention in term and very preterm children. Future research should assess the efficacy of these cognitive processes as potential targets for intervention     

The profile of abstract rule learning in infancy: Meta‐analytic and experimental evidence

Everyone agrees that infants possess general mechanisms for learning about the world, but the existence and operation of more specialized mechanisms is controversial. One mechanism—rule learning—has been proposed as potentially specific to speech, based on findings that 7‐month‐olds can learn abstract repetition rules from spoken syllables (e.g. ABB patterns: wo‐fe‐fe, ga‐tu‐tu…) but not from closely matched stimuli, such as tones. Subsequent work has shown that learning of abstract patterns is not simply specific to speech. However, we still lack a parsimonious explanation to tie together the diverse, messy, and occasionally contradictory findings in that literature. We took two routes to creating a new profile of rule learning: meta‐analysis of 20 prior reports on infants’ learning of abstract repetition rules (including 1,318 infants in 63 experiments total), and an experiment on learning of such rules from a natural, non‐speech communicative signal. These complementary approaches revealed that infants were most likely to learn abstract patterns from meaningful stimuli. We argue that the ability to detect and generalize simple patterns supports learning across domains in infancy but chiefly when the signal is meaningfully relevant to infants’ experience with sounds, objects, language, and people.     

Evidence for a sensitive period in the effects of early life stress on hippocampal volume

Exposure to stress has been causally linked to changes in hippocampal volume (HV). Given that the hippocampus undergoes rapid changes in the first years of life, stressful experiences during this period may be particularly important in understanding individual differences in the development of the hippocampus. One hundred seventy‐eight early adolescents (ages 9–13 years; 43% male) were interviewed regarding exposure to and age of onset of experiences of stress; the severity of each stressful event was rated by an objective panel. All participants underwent structural magnetic resonance imaging, from which HVs were automatically segmented. Without considering the age of onset for stressful experiences, there was a small but statistically significant negative association of stress severity with bilateral HV. When considering the age of onset, there was a moderate and significant negative association between stress severity during early childhood (through 5 years of age) and HV; there was no association between stress severity during later childhood (age 6 years and older) and HV. We provide evidence of a sensitive period through 5 years of age for the effects of life stress on HV in adolescence. It will be important in future research to elucidate how reduced HV stemming from early life stress may contribute to stress‐related health outcomes.     

Brain bases of morphological processing in Chinese‐English bilingual children

Can bilingual exposure impact children's neural circuitry for learning to read? To answer this question, we investigated the brain bases of morphological awareness, one of the key spoken language abilities for learning to read in English and Chinese. Bilingual Chinese‐English and monolingual English children (N = 22, ages 7–12) completed morphological tasks that best characterize each of their languages: compound morphology in Chinese (e.g. basket + ball = basketball) and derivational morphology in English (e.g. re + do = redo). In contrast to monolinguals, bilinguals showed greater activation in the left middle temporal region, suggesting that bilingual exposure to Chinese impacts the functionality of brain regions supporting semantic abilities. Similar to monolinguals, bilinguals showed greater activation in the left inferior frontal region [BA 45] in English than Chinese, suggesting that young bilinguals form language‐specific neural representations. The findings offer new insights to inform bilingual and cross‐linguistic models of language and literacy acquisition.     

Does Group CBT for Depression Do What It Says on the Tin? A Systemic Review and Meta-analysis of Group CBT for Depressed Adults (2000–2016)

The present study aimed to update previous meta-analyses of gCBT, and focus specifically on recent studies in which the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) was used to assess outcome. PsycINFO, PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane were searched for eligible studies. Both randomized controlled trials (RTC, k = 9) and non-RTCs (k = 1) published since 2000 were included. On the BDI large significant effect sizes were found for gCBT compared with treatment as usual (TAU, d = 4.64), wailing list controls (WLC, d = 1.20), and both of these comparison conditions combined with studies of well-defined alternative treatments (ALT, d = 1.61). On the BDI a moderate effect size (d = 0.53) was found for comparisons of gCBT and ALT groups. gCBT also had large and significant effects on depressive cognition assessed with the Automatic Thoughts Questionnaire and the Dysfunctional Attitudes Scale compared with WLC and ALT comparison groups (d = 2.66). This meta-analysis shows that gCBT is a robust intervention for depression in adults.     

Trait anger,neuroticism, and the hostile reaction to provocation: examining the hierarchical organization of affective traits in context

It has been suggested that the broad trait of neuroticism may predict the tendency to become aggressive when provoked. Based on functionalist theories of emotion, however, we suspected that only the more specific trait of anger would predict such tendencies. To test these competing predictions, two laboratory studies and one daily diary study were conducted. Consistent with functionalist accounts, trait anger consistently predicted the angry emotional and aggressive behavioral response to provocation, even after controlling for neuroticism. This was true in relation to laboratory-based provocations and in provocations experienced in daily life. Neuroticism only predicted a more diverse negative emotional reaction. It is therefore proposed that trait anger clearly elicits an angry emotional response, which directly motivates aggressive behavior. By contrast, neuroticism may lead to a very diverse reaction which elicits different and even contradictory behavioral tendencies.     

Differences in Paradox between Islam and Christianity: a statistical comparison

Historically Islam has been recognized as a religion that is logical. Christianity has long been recognized as having a number of beliefs or doctrines that could be described as paradoxical. Sixty-nine religious doctrines or beliefs were evaluated for paradoxical content and in terms of whether Islam and Christianity agreed or disagreed with respect to each doctrine or belief. It was hypothesized that disagreement between the two religions would be much more common with respect to paradoxical doctrines or beliefs. Nearly 90% of doctrinal agreement or disagreement could be traced to the paradoxical or non-paradoxical content of the beliefs evaluated. The relationship between agreement and paradox was very significant statistically. Implications for future Christian–Muslim dialogue are discussed.