A Multiple Definitions Model of Classification into Fuzzy Categories

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas M Gruenenfelder
Keyword(s):  
Mental Representation ◽  
Opposite Effect ◽  
Middle Age ◽  
Distance Effect ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Satisfactory Explanation ◽  
Single Dimension ◽  
New Hypothesis ◽  
Range Of Values

This paper describes a new hypothesis, referred to as the multiple definitions model, concerning the mental representation of fuzzy concepts. The basic claim of the model is that such concepts are represented as a set of multiple definitions, where each definition is exact. Fuzziness results from the fact that using such concepts requires sampling multiple such exact definitions of the concept. The model was applied to concepts that can be defined as a range of values over a single dimension (such as middle-age), and tested using conjunctions and disjunctions of middle-age (e.g., “A person is middle-aged at both 50 and 63.”). The model predicts that, controlling for the truths of individual ages, the truths of conjunctions involving ages that are close together will be judged higher than the truths of conjunctions involving ages farther apart, and that the opposite effect will occur for disjunctions (the distance effect). The results of two experiments confirmed this prediction. However, both experiments also found that conjunctions were judged truer than the less true of their component ages, and that disjunctions were judged less true than the truer of their component ages. The model does not predict this “minimax” effect. One possible explanation of the minimax effect was tested; another modeled. The overall conclusion is that the multiple definitions model is a viable contender to explain the distance effect. The minimax effect, however, is still in need of a satisfactory explanation.

scholarly journals Several frailty parameters highly prevalent in middle age (50–65) are independent predictors of adverse events

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lauriane Segaux ◽  
Amaury Broussier ◽  
Nadia Oubaya ◽  
Claire Leissing-Desprez ◽  
Marie Laurent ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Adverse Events ◽  
Middle Age ◽  
Executive Dysfunction ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Living Alone ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Balance Impairment ◽  
Logistic Regression Models ◽  
Paris Area

AbstractAlthough frailty can arise in middle age, very few studies have investigated frailty before 65 years. Our objectives were to assess the prevalence of frailty parameters in middle-aged individuals and probe the association with future adverse events. We performed cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses of community-dwelling individuals aged 50 to 65 (n = 411, median age: 59.0) having undergone a multidomain geriatric assessment (2010–2015) in an outpatient clinic in the greater Paris area of France (SUCCEED cohort). The primary outcome was a composite measure of adverse events (non-accidental falls, fractures, unplanned hospitalizations, death), recorded in 2016/2017. Multivariable logistic regression models were built to identify independent predictors. Six frailty parameters were highly prevalent (> 20%): low activity (40.1%), exhaustion (31.3%), living alone (28.5%), balance impairment (26.8%), weakness (26.7%), and executive dysfunction (23.2%). Female sex (odds ratio: 2.67 [95% confidence interval: 1.17–6.11]), living alone (2.39 [1.32–4.33]), balance impairment (2.09 [1.16–3.78]), executive dysfunction (2.61, [1.18–5.77]), and exhaustion (2.98 [1.65–5.39]) were independent predictors of adverse events. Many frailty parameters are already altered in middle-aged individuals and are predictive of adverse health events. Our findings highlight a possible need for frailty screening and preventive programs targeting middle-aged individuals.

Mental representation: What can pitch tell us about the distance effect?

Cortex ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 44 (4) ◽  
pp. 470-477 ◽  
Author(s):  
R KADOSH ◽  
W BRODSKY ◽  
M LEVIN ◽  
A HENIK
Keyword(s):  
Mental Representation ◽  
Distance Effect

scholarly journals Missionaries, Middle Age, and the Generative Life

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Robert Dunaetz
Keyword(s):  
Adult Development ◽  
Recent Literature ◽  
Middle Age ◽  
Future Generations ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Life Narrative ◽  
Values And Beliefs ◽  
Middle Aged Adults

By the time career missionaries reach middle age, the risk of personal stagnation is high. Some missionaries, however, are very productive during this period of life. In Erickson’s classic description of adult development, middle-aged adults who successfully navigate this period need to lead a generative life, learning how to positively influence future generations. This paper reviews recent literature on the predictors of generativity, including awareness of early blessings and calling, awareness of others’ problems and pain, strong values and beliefs, pursuing goals to benefit others, and the presence of redemptive sequences in one’s life narrative (the story that we tell ourselves and others which helps define our identity). Missionaries are encouraged to update their life narrative, going beyond the story of their conversion to Christianity, to include stories of how God has worked in their lives in recent years.

Oxidative stress associated with middle aging leads to sympathetic hyperactivity and downregulation of soluble guanylyl cyclase in corpus cavernosum

2014 ◽  
Vol 307 (10) ◽  
pp. H1393-H1400 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fábio H. Silva ◽  
Carolina Lanaro ◽  
Luiz Osório Leiria ◽  
Renata Lopes Rodrigues ◽  
Ana Paula Davel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mrna Expression ◽  
Superoxide Anion ◽  
Middle Age ◽  
Corpus Cavernosum ◽  
Soluble Guanylyl Cyclase ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Sympathetic Hyperactivity ◽  
Aged Group ◽  
Erectile Tissue ◽  
Th Mrna

Impairment of nitric oxide (NO)-mediated cavernosal relaxations in middle age contributes to erectile dysfunction. However, little information is available about the alterations of sympathetic neurotransmission and contraction in erectile tissue at middle age. This study aimed to evaluate the alterations of the contractile machinery associated with tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) in rat corpus cavernosum (RCC) at middle age, focusing on the role of superoxide anion. Male Wistar young (3.5-mo) and middle-aged (10-mo) rats were used. Electrical-field stimulation (EFS)- and phenylephrine-induced contractions were obtained in RCC strips. Levels of reactive-oxygen species (ROS) and TH mRNA expression, as well as protein expressions for α1/β1-subunits of soluble guanylyl cyclase (sGC), in RCC were evaluated. The neurogenic contractile responses elicited by EFS (4–32 Hz) were greater in RCC from the middle-aged group that was accompanied by elevated TH mRNA expression ( P < 0.01). Phenylephrine-induced contractions were also greater in the middle-aged group. A 62% increase in ROS generation in RCC from middle-aged rats was observed. The mRNA expression for the α1A-adrenoceptor remained unchanged among groups. Protein levels of α1/β1-sGC subunits were decreased in RCC from the middle-aged compared with young group. The NADPH oxidase inhibitor apocynin (85 mg·rat−1·day−1, 4 wk) fully restored the enhanced ROS production, TH mRNA expressions, and α1/β1-subunit sGC expression, indicating that excess of superoxide anion plays a major role in the sympathetic hyperactivity and hypercontractility in erectile tissue at middle age. Reduction of oxidative stress by dietary antioxidants may be an interesting approach to treat erectile dysfunction in aging population.

scholarly journals Effect of a Strawberry and Spinach Dietary Supplement on Spatial Learning in Early and Late Middle-Aged Female Rats

Antioxidants ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Paula Millin ◽  
Gina Rickert
Keyword(s):  
Dietary Supplement ◽  
Middle Age ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Female Rats ◽  
Superior Performance ◽  
Experimental Investigations ◽  
Standard Diet ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Freeze Dried ◽  
Antioxidant Diet

The present experiment sought to determine the effect of an eight-week, high antioxidant, whole-foods dietary supplement on Morris Water Maze performance in early and late middle-aged female rats. To improve ecological validity over past experimental studies, rats in the current study received antioxidants by consuming freeze-dried organic strawberries and spinach rather than by being given food extracts or antioxidant injections. Latency and path length measures both indicated that late middle-aged rats fed the high antioxidant diet performed on a par with the younger animals earlier in training than their standard diet counterparts (p < 0.05). Superior performance was not due to improved fitness in the antioxidant-supplemented rats. Thus, our model showed that a high antioxidant diet of relatively short duration mitigated the mild cognitive decline that was seen in control animals during the developmental period of late middle-age. The current results offer support for the promising role of dietary antioxidants in maintaining cognitive health in normal aging and extend past findings to females, who have been relatively neglected in experimental investigations. Moreover, the current model suggests that the period of transition from early to late middle age is a promising target for dietary intervention in healthy adults.

The Sexual Clock: Middle-Aged American Women and Sexual Vitality in the 1960s and 1970s

2020 ◽  
Vol 53 (4) ◽  
pp. 922-938
Author(s):  
Leslie Paris
Keyword(s):  
Intimate Relationships ◽  
Middle Age ◽  
Sexual Revolution ◽  
Sexual Pleasure ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Significant Challenge ◽  
Body Project ◽  
Self Actualization ◽  
1960S And 1970S ◽  
The 1960S

Abstract In the wake of the “sexual revolution” of the 1960s and 1970s, a new American consensus emerged both that women’s sexual lives remained important past their youth and that women’s sexual pleasure generally increased into middle age. Challenging the idea that older people were (or ought to be) asexual, mainstream pundits suggested ways to retain or even improve one’s sexual vitality into middle age and beyond, and argued that sex itself was both physically and emotionally rejuvenating. New attitudes toward middle-aged women’s sexuality did not entirely supplant a more traditional body project whose focus was physical maintenance, the appearance of youthfulness, and a nostalgic return to the “true” (that is, younger) self. Yet by the 1970s, increasing numbers of middle-aged women began to consider sexual renewal as an avenue for personal and relational growth, sparked by unexpected shifts in midlife, the mainstreaming of feminist critiques of ageism, and a new ethos of self-actualization. The redefinition of sexuality as a lifelong journey enabled middle-aged women to reconsider their intimate relationships and their bodies, rethink their assumptions about age and sexual desirability, and examine their current levels of sexual satisfaction. By defying the notion that aging was inherently shameful and desexualizing for women, sexologists and feminists of the late 1960s and 1970s offered a significant challenge to the “sexual clock” and helped to redefine middle age as a time of continued growth.

Fear of Personal Death and the Mmpi Profile of Middle-Age Men: The Moderating Impact of Personal Losses

1994 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 151-164 ◽  
Author(s):  
Victor Florian ◽  
Mario Mikulincer ◽  
Edna Green
Keyword(s):  
Middle Age ◽  
Fear Of Death ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Personal Loss ◽  
Psychological Maladjustment ◽  
Mmpi Profile

The present study examines the association of fear of personal death and aspects of psychological maladjustment and the moderating impact of personal losses. Ninety-seven middle-aged Israeli males completed the MMPI, a brief scale on personal loss experiences, and the Fear of Personal Death Scale. Results revealed that the MMPI profile was significantly related to the pattern of fear of personal death. This association, however, only reached significance among the middle-aged men who had not experienced personal losses. In addition, respondents who had experienced personal losses reported higher levels of fear of personal death than respondents who had not experienced any personal loss. Results were discussed from a multidimensional perspective of fear of death.

scholarly journals Effects of Forest Therapy on Health Promotion among Middle-Aged Women: Focusing on Physiological Indicators

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (12) ◽  
pp. 4348 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bum-Jin Park ◽  
Chang-Seob Shin ◽  
Won-Sop Shin ◽  
Chung-Yeub Chung ◽  
Si-Hyung Lee ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Vitamin D ◽  
Middle Age ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Therapy Program ◽  
Vitamin D Levels ◽  
The City ◽  
Day Program

Women experience more stress in middle age than in other life stages, and health in middle age is vital, because it influences the quality of life in old age. In this study, the effects of a forest therapy program on physiological changes in 53 middle-aged women (divided into two groups) who lived in the city were examined. One group participated in a three-day program in the forest, followed by three days in the city; the other group participated in a three-day program in the city, followed by three days in the forest. Forest experiments were conducted in a “healing forest,” and urban experiments were conducted near a university campus. Blood tests were performed to evaluate the physiological effects of forest therapy. Differences in serotonin levels and vitamin D levels were verified before and after the forest (experimental group) and urban (control group) programs through paired t-tests. Statistically significant increases in serotonin levels were noted for participants in the forest program; vitamin D levels also increased, but not by statistically significant values. The findings of this study verify that forest therapy programs promote health among middle-aged women, and may prevent disease and improve quality of life.

Apathetic Hyperthyroidism in Middle Age

1991 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 393-400 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonio Palacios ◽  
Mary Ann Adler Cohen ◽  
Ronald Cobbs
Keyword(s):  
Psychiatric Diagnosis ◽  
Elderly Population ◽  
Medical Literature ◽  
Middle Age ◽  
Rare Complication ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Aged Patient ◽  
Middle Aged

Apathetic hyperthyroidism was first described in the medical literature by Lahey in 1931. It is a form of hyperthyroidism found principally in the elderly population. In this disorder the usual hyperkinetic presentation of thyrotoxicosis is replaced by apathy and inactivity, often leading to an erroneous psychiatric diagnosis. Although there is a paucity of literature on apathetic hyperthyroidism, it has been described in the elderly and as an extremely rare complication of hyperthyroid disorder in children. It was described only rarely in middle age. The following case highlights the diagnostic and therapeutic dilemmas encountered in a middle-aged patient who presented with dementia and apathetic hyperthyroidism.

scholarly journals PREDICTORS OF MIDDLE AGED WOMEN`S PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING: ATTITUDES TOWARD PARENTS

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (8) ◽  
pp. 20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tatyana L. Krukova ◽  
Maria V. Saporovskaia ◽  
Maria E. Voronina
Keyword(s):  
Middle Age ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
Growing Up ◽  
Middle Adulthood ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Psychological Well Being ◽  
Aging Parents ◽  
Empirical Results ◽  
Developmental Theories

The analysis of developmental theories of well-being in middle adulthood, concerning women is presented in the paper. The research is based on  Ryff`s (1996) conception relating <em>psychological well-being</em> to eudemonic lifestyle as most confirmed. Empirical results reveal how middle aged women`s attitudes toward parents impact on their psychological well-being through 4 basic adult attachment types. Special focus is made on correlations of emotional autonomy from parents, guilt and well-being. The guilt of responsibility is enhanced in middle age, being a mechanism motivating a woman to realize the eudemonic lifestyle (self-realization through care, first of all for aging parents and growing up children).

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