Age-dependent glutamate induction of synaptic plasticity in cultured hippocampal neurons

A common denominator for the induction of morphological and functional plasticity in cultured hippocampal neurons involves the activation of excitatory synapses. We now demonstrate massive morphological plasticity in mature cultured hippocampal neurons caused by a brief exposure to glutamate. This plasticity involves a slow, 70%-80% increase in spine cross-section area associated with a significant reduction in the width of dendrites. These changes are age dependent and expressed only in cells >18 d in vitro (DIV). Activation of both NMDARs and AMPARs as well as a sustained rise of internal calcium levels are necessary for induction of this plasticity. On the other hand, blockade of network activity or mGluRs does not abolish the observed morphological plasticity. Electrophysiologically, a brief exposure to glutamate induces an increase in the magnitude of EPSCs evoked between pairs of neurons, as well as in mEPSC frequency and amplitude, in mature but not young cultures. These results demonstrate an age-dependent, rapid and robust morphological and functional change in cultured central neurons that may contribute to their ability to express long term synaptic plasticity.     

Pathways to intercultural accuracy: Social projection processes and core cultural values

The present research examines intercultural accuracy—people's ability to make accurate judgments about outgroup values—and the role of social projection processes. Across four studies, U.S. and British participants showed low overall levels of intercultural accuracy for Chinese students’ individualistic and collectivistic values. In line with recent changes toward individualism in China, we observed different levels of intercultural accuracy, hinging on whether the criterion values of Chinese were assessed before (2001) or after (2015) this shift. Important for the study of social projection, we observed that U.S./British participants projected their values onto the outgroup. Social projection tendency (measured in Study 2 and manipulated in Study 3) was associated with greater intercultural accuracy. The relationship between projection and accuracy also depended on the shifts in individualistic values of Chinese. Important for the study of intergroup relations, accuracy was positively associated with interest in future relationships with the Chinese.     

Reconstructing Life Stories of Holocaust Survivors Through Art

This article discusses the late works of two women Holocaust survivors, Esther Nisenthal Krinitz and Ilana Ravek, as seen through the prism of the artistic reconstructing of a life story. Their life stories are expressed in works depicting their Holocaust experiences together with additional “rehabilitation” works illustrating elements such as their childhood before the Holocaust, their establishment of families afterwards, their experience of parenthood and grandparenthood, their successful resettlement in their new countries and their acquisition of a new national identity. Each of these artists' work represents a different approach to the construction of a life story. Nisenthal Krinitz's art works exemplify a linear narrative approach, displaying a sequence of events arranged chronologically in an interrelated plot at whose centre stands her Holocaust story, wrapped by works depicting her life before and afterwards. Ravek's works, which are not limited to her Holocaust experience and its ramifications, demonstrate the second approach, which requires far more active involvement on the part of the viewer. Both artists' life stories express a conflicted ambivalent consciousness, as tragic depictions coexist side by side with images of rehabilitation. The enfolding of the past in the present assists them in their reconstruction of a consecutive identity that has a past, present, and future and enables them to give meaning to their life after their survival.