“Alternative ecological strategies lead to avian brain size bimodality in variable habitats” (2019) Nature Communications
Alternative ecological strategies lead to avian brain size bimodality in variable habitats
(2019) Nature Communications, 10 (1), art. no. 3818, .
Fristoe, T.S.a b , Botero, C.A.b
a Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, Konstanz, 78464, Germany
b Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, Campus Box 1137, One Brookings Drive, St. Louis, MO 63130-4899, United States
Abstract
The ecological contexts that promote larger brains have received considerable attention, but those that result in smaller-than-expected brains have been largely overlooked. Here, we use a global sample of 2062 species to provide evidence that metabolic and life history tradeoffs govern the evolution of brain size in birds and play an important role in defining the ecological strategies capable of persisting in Earth’s most thermally variable and unpredictable habitats. While some birds cope with extreme winter conditions by investing in large brains (e.g., greater capacity for planning, innovation, and behavioral flexibility), others have small brains and invest instead in traits that allow them to withstand or recover from potentially deadly events. Specifically, these species are restricted to large body sizes, diets consisting of difficult-to-digest but readily available foods, and high reproductive output. Overall, our findings highlight the importance of considering strategic tradeoffs when investigating potential drivers of brain size evolution. © 2019, The Author(s).
Document Type: Article
Publication Stage: Final
Source: Scopus
Access Type: Open Access
“Retrieval in prospective memory: Multiple processes or just delay?” (2019) Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology (2006)
Retrieval in prospective memory: Multiple processes or just delay?
(2019) Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology (2006), 72 (9), pp. 2197-2207.
Anderson, F.T., McDaniel, M.A.
Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, United States
Abstract
In prospective memory (PM) research, a common finding is that PM accuracy is greater using focal, rather than nonfocal, cues. Under the multiprocess framework, the high PM performance for focal cues (cues that facilitate noticing of the target), often in the absence of task interference, reflects people’s ability to rely on spontaneous retrieval processes. By contrast, nonfocal cues (cues that do not facilitate noticing) require monitoring. A competing explanation suggests that a single process underlies focal versus nonfocal PM: People adjust their delay in ongoing responding to allow enough time for PM information to reach awareness (delay theory). Participants’ lower nonfocal performance arises because they fail to delay responding to a sufficient degree; with focal cues, the PM information accumulation rate is fast enough that no delay is necessary (and thus most everyone performs well). We sought to improve nonfocal PM performance by pairing a PM task with fast information accumulation to an ongoing task for which the requisite information accumulated more slowly. Reasoning from delay theory, we expected PM accuracy levels in this nonfocal PM task to approximate that observed in a focal PM task (for which the PM tasks were identical). In contrast to this expectation, the focal condition displayed significantly higher PM accuracy (despite demonstrating a reliably shorter response delay). In light of these findings, we concluded that the multiprocess interpretation is favoured.
Author Keywords
Delay theory; focal/nonfocal; monitoring; multiprocess theory; prospective memory
Document Type: Article
Publication Stage: Final
Source: Scopus
“The Future Is Open: Open-Source Tools for Behavioral Neuroscience Research” (2019) eNeuro
The Future Is Open: Open-Source Tools for Behavioral Neuroscience Research
(2019) eNeuro, 6 (4), .
White, S.R.a , Amarante, L.M.a , Kravitz, A.V.b , Laubach, M.a
a Center for Behavioral Neuroscience, American UniversityWA 20016, United States
b Department of Psychiatry, Washington University, St. Louis, MO 63130, United States
Author Keywords
behavior; designs; methods; open source; protocols; tools
Document Type: Article
Publication Stage: Final
Source: Scopus
Access Type: Open Access
“Longitudinal evaluation of cognition after stroke – A systematic scoping review” (2019) PLoS ONE
Longitudinal evaluation of cognition after stroke – A systematic scoping review
(2019) PLoS ONE, 14 (8), art. no. e0221735, .
Saa, J.P.a b c , Tse, T.a , Baum, C.d e , Cumming, T.c , Josman, N.f , Rose, M.g , Carey, L.a b c
a Occupational Therapy, School of Allied Health, Human Services and Sport, College of Science Health and Engineering, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia
b Neurorehabilitation and Recovery, Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
c Stroke Division, Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
d Occupational Therapy, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, MO, United States
e George Warren Brown School of Social Work, Washington University in Saint Louis, Saint Louis, MO, United States
f Department of Occupational Therapy, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
g Speech Pathology, School of Allied Health, Human Services and Sport, College of Science Health and Engineering, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia
Abstract
Background Cognitive impairment affects up to 80 percent of the stroke population, however, both the available evidence about post-stroke cognition and the measures used to evaluate it longitudinally have not been well described. The aims of this systematic scoping review were: to identify and characterize studies evaluating cognition longitudinally after stroke; to summarize the cognitive instruments used and the domains they target; and to organize cognitive domains assessed using the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF). Methods We used a systematic scoping approach to search for peer-reviewed articles involving adults with stroke that evaluated cognition longitudinally. Screening of titles, abstracts, and full reports was completed independently by two reviewers, across six electronic databases (PubMed, PsycInfo, Medline, Cinahl Plus, Embase, and Web of Science). Cognitive domains were mapped to an ICF function independently by the same two reviewers, using a previously tested, standardized approach. Results A total of 5,540 records were found; 257 were included, representing a total pooled sample of 120,860 stroke survivors. Of these studies, 200 (78%) provided specific cognitive outcomes from the longitudinal evaluations, 57 (22%) reported model predictions, and 77 (30%) included interventions. Cognition was evaluated with 356 unique instruments, targeting 95 distinct cognitive domains, and 17 mental functions from the ICF. The Mini-Mental State Examination was the most frequently used instrument (117 reports, 46%). Other tools used longitudinally were the Trail Making Test (17% of reports), tests of verbal fluency (14%), the Functional Independence Measure (14%), the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (13%), the Digit Span (11%), and the Stroop test (10%). Global cognition was evaluated in 170 reports (66%), followed by higher-level cognitive functioning (29%), memory (28%), language (21%), attention (21%), and perceptual skills (14%). Studies using functional (or performance-based) cognitive assessments over time were scarce (< 1%). Conclusion Our findings indicate that whilst there is a substantial number of studies available that report longitudinal evaluations of cognition after stroke, there is large variability in the measures used and the cognitive domains they target. Nonetheless, the available data for evaluation of cognition over time after stroke can be organized and described systematically. © 2019 Saa et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Document Type: Article
Publication Stage: Final
Source: Scopus
Access Type: Open Access