Eye tracking provides no evidence that young infants understand path obstruction

In two experiments with 47 4-month-olds, we investigated attention to key aspects of events in which an object moved along a partly occluded path that contained an obstruction. Infants were familiarized with a ball rolling behind an occluder to be revealed resting on an end wall, and on test trials an obstruction wall was placed in the ball's path. In Experiment 1, we did not find longer looking when the object appeared in an impossible location beyond the obstruction, and infants did not selectively fixate the object in this location. In Experiment 2, after rolling one or two balls, we measured infants' fixations of a two-object outcome with one ball in a novel but possible resting position and the other in a familiar but impossible location beyond the obstruction. Infants looked longer at the ball in the possible but novel location, likely reflecting a looking preference for location novelty. Thus we obtained no evidence that infants reasoned about obstruction and identified a violation on that basis.     

Paradoxical breathlessness in asthma

This study tested the hypothesis that breathlessness in asthma relates linearly to airway obstruction when situational, attentional and emotional influences are held constant via random presentation of different intensities of externally applied airflow obstruction. Adolescents with stable asthma and normal controls (n=25+25) with lung functions of approximately 3.5 l forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV₁) breathed through a device which obstructed airflow with five stimulus intensities, analogous to a mean reduction in FEV₁ of 8–66%. A session consisted of 10 blocks, each with presentation of five stimulus intensities plus the baseline resistance of the apparatus. Breathlessness was continuously reported by moving a lever along a 10-point scale. The mean breathlessness was computed per stimulus intensity. Lung function and anxiety were measured before and after the test.

Participants with asthma, not controls, manifested a paradoxical response: they reported significantly more breathlessness, but undifferentially. One patient against 12 controls reported consistently more breathlessness from baseline to severe obstruction. The hypothesis was only supported for controls. Breathlessness did not correlate with severity of asthma, lung function, duration of asthma, number of exacerbations over the last six months, age, sex or anxiety.

It was concluded that the meaning of airflow obstruction in patients with asthma has changed and underlies their paradoxical responses, even when situational, attentional and emotional factors are controlled.     

关于晚期消化道肿瘤姑息性手术治疗的思考

晚期消化道肿瘤预后差,生存期短,容易合并某种或某些严重影响脏器功能、甚至危及生命的并发症,如果手术无法彻底根治,需要尽快处理,采取姑息性手术治疗能够缓解症状、减轻痛苦、改善生活质量,甚至达到延长生命的目的。在综合治疗过程中,外科手术能够为下一步治疗提供基础,创造条件。多年以来,对于晚期消化道肿瘤的治疗,姑息性手术取得一...     

Female degus (Octodon degus) monitor their environment while foraging socially

Vigilance or scanning involves interruptions in foraging behavior when individuals lift their heads and conduct visual monitoring of the environment. Theoretical considerations assume that foraging with the "head down", and scanning ("head up") are mutually exclusive activities, such that foraging precludes vigilance. We tested this generalization in a socially foraging, small mammal model, the diurnal Chilean degu (Octodon degus). We studied spontaneous bouts of scanning of captive degus when foraging in pairs of female sibs and non-sibs. We examined the extent to which foraging (head down postures) and scanning (head up postures) were mutually exclusive in subjects exposed to none, partial, and complete lateral visual obstruction of their partners. In addition, we monitored the orientation of their bodies to examine the target of attention while foraging and scanning. Lastly, we examined the temporal occurrence of scanning events to assess the extent of scanning coordination, and whether this coordination is kin-biased. Visual obstruction had a significant influence on degu vigilance. Focal degus increased their quadrupedal and semi-erect scanning when foraging under a partially obstructed view of their partners. Degus oriented their bodies toward partners when foraging and scanning. Despite this, degus did not coordinate scanning bouts; instead, they scanned independently from one another. Relatedness among cage mates did not influence any aspect of degu behavior. Contrary to theoretical expectations, these results indicate that foraging and vigilance are not mutually exclusive, and that kinship per se does not influence scanning behavior and coordination.     

经腹会阴直肠癌术后肠梗阻行结肠造口灌肠治疗的临床研究

评价吸痰管灌肠治疗经腹会阴直肠癌术后肠梗阻的可行性与临床疗效。一次性吸痰管经结肠造口灌肠或肛管经结肠造口灌肠治疗38例经腹会阴直肠癌术后肠梗阻。结果20例吸痰管灌肠治疗组均安全放置或减压,其操作成功率为100％（20/20）。吸痰管灌肠治疗组大部分患者腹痛、腹胀明显缓解,并腹围、X线肠管最大直径、C T肠管最长液平明显小于灌肠前,差异有统计学意义（P＜0．05）。吸痰管灌肠治疗组明显优于肛管灌肠组。一次性吸痰管经结肠造口灌肠治疗经腹会阴直肠癌术后肠梗阻的操作技术是安全的、可行的,并吸痰管经结肠造口灌肠是治疗经腹会阴直肠癌术后肠梗阻的有效方法。     

Removal of an obstacle: Problem-solving behavior in pigeons

The importance of a subject's personal history in the solution of an obstruction problem was demonstrated with pigeons. Four birds were trained to peck a key located outside the chamber by poking their heads through an opening in a screen. During tests, a white block was placed in front of the opening, so that it was not possible to peck the key without removing the block. All birds failed to remove the block. However, all birds that were subsequently trained to push the white block around the chamber in the absence of the key and a few of the birds trained similarly but with a black block solved the problem by pushing the block aside and pecking the key. One bird showed the abrupt descent in the learning curve that has been considered a characteristic of “insightful” problem solving. All birds maintained their successful performance after a 1-month interval with no intervening tests.     

Le comportement de « prise de parole » (voice) : validation de la version française de la mesure de Maynes et Podsakoff

Voice is an essential behaviour that can inhibit or generate processes of innovation and organisational change. To date, few measurement scales adapted to the French context and allowing to analyse this behaviour exists. This article proposes to translate the 4’factors Voice scale from Maynes and Podsakoff (2014). The translation of this scale was tested by 4 studies on different samples of 1275 French workers from various organisational backgrounds. The first studies test the reliability, internal consistency, divergent and convergent validity of the scale. Then, a gender invariance analysis tests the metric properties of the scale. The results obtained present acceptable psychometric qualities that validate the French version.     

Development of the infant's ability to retrieve food through a slit

The main purpose of the present study is to explore infants' ability to comprehend task manipulation, and whether they can feed themselves with a spoon when food has to be retrieved through a slit in a lid placed over a plate. To access the food, the infant has to align the bowl of the spoon with the slit. The orientation of the slit is manipulated, and certain orientations require more elaborate modifications of the feeding action than others. The infants are observed at monthly intervals, from 12 to 17 months of age. The presence of the lid affects the behaviour of the infants at all ages. Some behaviours become more immature. The infants grasp the spoon with more primitive grasp configurations, they grasp the spoon less consistently at the top of the handle, and they orient the spoon less consistently, with its bowl facing upwards. These differences decrease with age. The infants also make attempts to adjust to the constraints of the task, mainly by inclining the spoon more vertically, and rotating the hand in such a way as to align the spoon with the orientation of the slit. These adjustments improve with age. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.