Impaired verb fluency: a sign of mild cognitive impairment

We assessed verb fluency vs. noun and letter-based fluency in 199 subjects referred for cognitive complaints including Subjective Cognitive Impairment, Mild Cognitive Impairment, and Alzheimer's disease. ANCOVAs and factor analyses identified verb, noun, and letter-based fluency as distinct tasks. Verb fluency performance in Mild Cognitive Impairment differed significantly from Subjective Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer's disease. Reduced verb fluency thus appears to be a linguistic marker for incipient dementia. One possibility is that the verb fluency deficit in Mild Cognitive Impairment results from degenerative processes known to occur in the parahippocampal region.     

Human Dignity—A Theological and Confucian Discussion

Abstract :  There is no doubt in the Christian tradition that humans are created in the image of God, which establishes the fundamental difference between humans and animals. However, problems concerning differences between humans have become more serious in theological discussions today with regard to human dignity. While theologians of the West argue for recognition of and respect for human dignity for every individual human being through legislation in the political system, one must not overlook the fact that in China, the emphasis of Confucian anthropology on the cultivation of moral personality is of vital importance for the practice and domination of politicians.     

Academic Locus of Control,Self-Esteem,and Perceived Distance From Home as Predictors of College Adjustment

Eighty-eight female college freshmen completed questionnaires designed to assess academic locus of control, self-esteem, and geographical distance from home (actual and perceived) as predictors of college adjustment. Results indicated that an internal academic locus of control, a high level of self-esteem, and a perception that the distance from home was “just right” were related to four dimensions of college adjustment (Personal, Academic, Social, and Attachment). Regression analysis revealed that each predictor variable significantly increased the overall predictive accuracy of college adjustment. No associations, however, were found between actual distance and the various dimensions of college adjustment. Finally, the implications of using multiple predictors of college adjustment are discussed.     

主客体向不同角度倾斜时的图形再認

問題 自威纳尔与瓦普纳(H. Werner,& S. Wapner)提出所谓“感觉-紧张”的知觉理论后,关于身体处于不同倾斜状态下对知觉影响的问题,近年来引起不少学者们的注意。鲁利亚(S. M. Luria)比较了身体倾斜状态下视锐的变化,认为身体在不正常的姿势条件下视锐受到影响。长塚研究了身体倾斜状态下的似动知觉,结果表明身体倾斜时     

Late reaction times identify MCI

A group of 172 mild cognitive impairment (MCI) patients and 79 healthy control participants (HC) were tested on simple reaction time (SRT). There was a significant difference between MCI and HC in mean SRT. The test could be partitioned into five segments of 16 trials each, but RT's were not always available for each partition. However, scores from each segment for 166 MCI and 41 of the HC's were available. These data showed that a significant interaction between RT‐partition and diagnostic category was the main source of the difference between groups. The interaction indicated that MCI patients performed at about the same level as HC in the initial three of the five segments of the test, but were significantly impaired during the last two segments of the 80 trials. The results were interpreted as impaired sustained attention among a large part of the MCI group, and the study shows the importance of taking into account all avaliable data resulting from this type of test.     

Memory factors in Rey AVLT: Implications for early staging of cognitive decline

Supraspan verbal list learning is widely used to assess dementia and related cognitive disorders where declarative memory deficits are a major clinical sign. While the overall learning rate is important for diagnosis, serial position patterns may give insight into more specific memory processes in patients with cognitive impairment. This study explored these patterns in a memory clinic clientele. One hundred eighty three participants took the Rey Auditory‐Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT). The major groups were patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD), Vascular Dementia (VD), Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), and Subjective Cognitive Impairment (SCI) as well as healthy controls (HC). Raw scores for the five trials and five serial partitions were factor analysed. Three memory factors were found and interpreted as Primacy, Recency, and Resistance to Interference. AD and MCI patients had impaired scores in all factors. SCI patients were significantly impaired in the Resistance to Interference factor, and in the Recency factor at the first trial. The main conclusion is that serial position data from word list testing reflect specific memory capacities which vary with levels of cognitive impairment.     

Theology is not Mere Sociology: A Theological Reflection on the Reception of the Christian Religion in Mainland China

Abstract :  Post‐Maoist China retains its loyalty to Marxist principles; yet voices are being heard that interpret religion much more positively. Both government spokespersons and Religious Studies scholars measure the value of religion according to its social function. Such a criterion of evaluation fails to take account of what is essential to Christian theology, namely, appeal to divine transcendence. Yet, Christian theology in the tradition of the Lutheran Reformation begins with transcendence and turns toward human responsibility for the world through loving the neighbor. This may mark a common cause between Chinese sociology of religion and Christian commitments to social well‐being.     

中小学普通教室自然光、白炽灯、萤光灯课桌面照度的研究

问 题 关于中小学普通教室的照度水平问题,近年来我国学者从保护视力的角度出发,曾作了不少有益的探讨。张国栋建议,教室人工照明最低照度可定为50勒;朱文思认为,教室人工照明的照度应高于50勒;胡瑞荣建议教室白炽灯的平均照度应以75勒为宜。这些研究多半是关于教室的人工照明方面的问题,至于不同光源,特别是对自然光的不同照度水平,对学生视觉功能影响的问题,较系统的研究尚不多见。