Why are we still so WEIRD? Barriers and bridges towards a diversified science of early development

Why are we still so WEIRD? Barriers and bridges towards a diversified science of early development Leher Singh, Alejandrina Cristia, Lana B. Karasik, and Lisa M. Oakes Author NoteLeher Singh, Department of Psychology, National University of Singapore, Singapore; Alejandrina Cristia, Laboratoire de Sciences Cognitives et Psycholinguistique, Département d’Etudes Cognitives, ENS, EHESS, CNRS, PSL University, Paris, France; Lana B. Karasik, Department of Psychology, College of Staten Island & Graduate Center, CUNY, Staten Island, New York, U.S.; Lisa M. Oakes, Center for Mind and Brain, UC Davis, Davis, CA, U.S.A.C., L.B.K., and L.M.O contributed equally to the manuscript. Acknowledgments: We are very grateful to Sarah J. Rajendra for assistance with data collection and processing. This manuscript was supported by sabbatical funds from the National University of Singapore to LS and by Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR-17-EURE-0017), the J. S. McDonnell Foundation Understanding Human Cognition Scholar Award, European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (ExELang, Grant agreement No. 101001095) grant awards to AC, National Science Foundation Grant DLS-1349044 and Grant DLS-1528831to LBK.Address for correspondence: Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Leher Singh, Department of Psychology, National University of Singapore, 9 Arts Link, Singapore 117570. RUNNING HEAD: Diversifying developmental science AbstractIn developmental psychology, no population has been more relevant to the study of the origins of human behavior than infants. The psychological processes of infants often inform fundamental theories of innateness and/or universality of behavior. However, infant samples are typically small with narrow sociodemographic variation. This review examines changing trends in sociodemographic representation in psychological research with infants. Analyses of 1383 studies, published over the past decade, revealed both consistent underreporting of sociodemographic information and clear skew towards White infants from North America/Western Europe. The impact of these findings on our understanding of and interpretation of research on early human development is discussed. A set of principles and practices are presented to advance towards a more global developmental science.

Efficacy of metamizole versus ibuprofen and a short educational intervention versus standard care in acute and subacute low back pain: a study protocol of a randomised, multicentre, factorial trial (EMISI trial)

IntroductionLow back pain (LBP) is among the top three most common diseases worldwide, resulting in a life with pain-related disability. To date, no study has assessed the efficacy of metamizole (dipyrone), a non-opioid analgesic and antipyretic prodrug compared with the conventional non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug ibuprofen, in patients with an acute LBP episode. Further, it is unclear, whether a short educational intervention is superior to usual care alone.ObjectivesThe objective of this study is to assess first, whether metamizole is non-inferior to ibuprofen in a new episode of acute or subacute LBP. Second, we aim to assess whether a short educational intervention including evidence-based patient information on the nature of LBP is superior to usual care alone.Methods and analysisAn investigator-initiated multicentre, randomised, double blind trial using a factorial design will be performed. A total of 120 participants with a new episode of LBP will be recruited from GP practices, outpatient clinics and from emergency departments, and randomised into four different treatment groups: ibuprofen alone, ibuprofen and short intervention, metamizole alone, metamizole and short intervention. The primary endpoint for the medical treatment will be change in pain assessed on an 11-point Numeric Rating Scale after 14 days. The primary outcome for the short intervention will be change in the Core Outcome Measures Index assessed after 42 days.Ethics, dissemination and fundingThis study has been approved by the responsible Ethics Board (Ethikkommission Bern/2018-01986) and the Swiss Agency for Therapeutic Products (Swissmedic/2019DR4002). Results will be published in open access policy peer-reviewed journals. The study is funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (grant number 32 003B-179346).Trial registration numberNCT04111315

Calculation of Metallocene Ionization Potentials via Auxiliary Field Quantum Monte Carlo: Towards Benchmark Quantum Chemistry for Transition Metals

Main Document<div>Supporting Information</div><div>XYZ Coordinates of Structures</div><div><br></div><div><div> An award of computer time was provided by the Innovative and Novel Computational Impact on Theory and Experiment (INCITE) program. This research used resources of the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, which is supported by the Office of Science of the U.S. Department of Energy under Contract No. DE-AC05-00OR22725.</div><div>This work used the Extreme Science and Engineering Discovery Environment (XSEDE), which is supported by National Science Foundation grant number ACI-1548562. In particular, we used San Diego Computing Center's Comet resources under grant number TG-CHE190007 and allocation ID COL151.</div><div>The Flatiron Institute is a division of the Simons Foundation.</div></div>

Calculation of Metallocene Ionization Potentials via Auxiliary Field Quantum Monte Carlo: Towards Benchmark Quantum Chemistry for Transition Metals

Main Document<div>Supporting Information</div><div>XYZ Coordinates of Structures</div><div><br></div><div><div> An award of computer time was provided by the Innovative and Novel Computational Impact on Theory and Experiment (INCITE) program. This research used resources of the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, which is supported by the Office of Science of the U.S. Department of Energy under Contract No. DE-AC05-00OR22725.</div><div>This work used the Extreme Science and Engineering Discovery Environment (XSEDE), which is supported by National Science Foundation grant number ACI-1548562. In particular, we used San Diego Computing Center's Comet resources under grant number TG-CHE190007 and allocation ID COL151.</div><div>The Flatiron Institute is a division of the Simons Foundation.</div></div>

752 Associations Between Sleep Neurophysiology and Personality Functioning Support Dimensionality in Mental Health

Introduction Most psychiatric disorders in adolescence are linked to alterations in sleep behavior and neurophysiology. Similar but less pronounced changes to sleep have been reported in healthy adolescent and sub-clinical samples, suggesting that the association between sleep and mental health may lie on a continuum. The current study takes a dimensional approach to better understand the link between personality functioning as assessed using the alternative DSM-5 approach to assess personality (AMPD) and brain activity measured with the sleep electroencephalogram (EEG). Methods The current study included 26 medication free participants (10 with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and 16 healthy controls; aged 14 to 17 years (mean = 15.2 (±1.1); 14 girls) recruited as part of a longitudinal study on sleep and depression. All night high-density (58 channel) sleep EEG recordings were conducted and power in the delta (0.6 to 4.6 Hz) and sigma (11 to 16 Hz) bands, corresponding to slow waves and sleep spindles respectively, was computed. Dimensions of personality were assessed using the PID-5, which consists of the five trait domains: detachment, psychoticism, antagonism, disinhibition, and negative affect. Stepwise regression analysis was performed to examine the association between PID-5 dimension and delta and sigma power. The Benjamini-Hochberg procedure was used to correct for multiple comparisons. Results Greater negative affect was associated with diminished delta power for 28 electrodes over frontal, temporal, central and parietal regions (0.03 &lt; p &lt; 0.04). No associations between sigma power and any of the PID-5 dimensions were found. Conclusion In a sample of adolescents with and without depression, we find associations between negative affect and delta power independent of other dimensions of personality functioning. Using a dimensional approach, our findings are in line with previous literature showing diminished delta power in those with MDD compared to healthy controls. Our findings provide neurophysiological support for the notion that personality functioning in youth is accurately conceptualized on a continuum. Support (if any) This research was supported by the Interfaculty Research Cooperation Grant “Decoding Sleep: From Neurons to Health and Mind” from the University of Bern and the Swiss National Science Foundation Grant 32003B_184943 (to L.T.).

Correction of measurement error in a commercial multiple-breath washout device

RationaleNitrogen multiple-breath washout (N2MBW) is an established technique to assess functional residual capacity (FRC) and ventilation inhomogeneity in the lung. Accurate measurement of gas concentrations is essential for the appropriate calculation of clinical outcomes.ObjectivesWe investigated the accuracy of oxygen and carbon dioxide measurements used for the indirect calculation of nitrogen concentration in a commercial MBW device (Exhalyzer D, Eco Medics AG, Duernten, Switzerland) and its impact on FRC and lung clearance index (LCI).MethodsHigh precision calibration gas mixtures and mass spectrometry were used to evaluate sensor output. We assessed the impact of corrected signal processing on FRC and LCI in a dataset of healthy children and children with cystic fibrosis using custom analysis software.ResultsWe found inadequate correction for the cross sensitivity of the oxygen and carbon dioxide sensors in the Exhalyzer D device. This results in an overestimation of expired nitrogen concentration, and consequently FRC and LCI outcomes. Breath-by-breath correction of this error reduced mean (SD) FRC by 8.9 (2.2)% and LCI by 11.9 (4.0)%. It also resulted in almost complete disappearance of the tissue nitrogen signal at the end of measurements.ConclusionsInadequate correction for cross sensitivity between the oxygen and carbon dioxide gas sensors of the Exhalyzer D device leads to an overestimation of FRC and LCI. Correction of this error is possible and could be applied by re-analysing the measurements breath-by-breath in an updated software version.Grants, Gifts, Equipment, DrugsEco Medics AG (Duernten, Switzerland) provided a research version of their commercial software Spiroware 3.2.1 including insight on signal processing algorithms and helped with the acquisition of mass spectrometry measurements. This project was funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation, Grant Nr. 182719 (P. Latzin) and 168173 (K. Ramsey)

Antibodies against the c-terminus of apoA-1 as predictors of death in the general population but not as therapeutic targets actionable through cognate peptides immunomodulation

Aims Autoantibodies against apolipoprotein A-1 (anti-apoA-1 IgGs) have emerged as an independent biomarker for cardiovascular disease and mortality in humans, promote death in ApoE−/− mice, and seem to be preferentially oriented against the c-terminal part of apoA-1 (cterA1). Corresponding specific mimetic peptides were shown to reverse anti-apoA-1 IgG pro-inflammatory effects in vitro. We evaluated the association of IgG against c-terminus apoA-1 (anti-cterA1 IgGs) with all-cause mortality in the community and tested the ability of two cterA1 mimetic peptides to reverse the anti-apoA-1 IgG-induced inflammation in vitro and mortality in ApoE−/− mice. Methods Anti-cterA1 IgGs were measured on serum samples of 5220 consecutive participants included in the CoLaus study with median follow-up duration of 5.6 years. The primary study outcome was all-cause mortality. Two chemically engineered optimized cterA1 mimetic peptides were tested i) on HEK cells to modulate interleukin-8 (IL-8) and tumor necrosis-alpha (TNF-α) production, and ii) in apoE−/− mice exposed to 16 weeks of anti-apoA-1 IgG passive immunisation. Results Anti-cterA1 IgG independently predicted all-cause mortality, each standard deviation of anti-cterA1 IgG being associated with a 18% increase in mortality risk (Hazard Ratio:1.18, 95%confidence intervals:1.04–1.33; p=0.009). Both cterA1 mimetic peptides reduced the anti-apoA-1 IgG-induced inflammation in a dose-dependent manner in vitro, but did not rescue the anti-apoA-1 IgG-associated mortality in mice. Conclusions Anti-cterA1 IgG independently predict all-cause mortality in the general population. By failing to reverse the anti-apoA-1 IgG-induced mortality in mice, our data do not support the hypothesis that these autoantibodies could be actionable through cognate peptides immunomodulation. Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding source: Private grant(s) and/or Sponsorship. Main funding source(s): This work was supported by a grant from the Leenaards Foundation (grant number 3698 to N.V.) by the Swiss National Science Foundation (grant number 310030-163335 to N.V.) and by the De Reuter Foundation (grant number 315112 to N.V.).

Reuse in STEM research writing

Text recycling (hereafter TR), sometimes problematically called “self-plagiarism,” involves the verbatim reuse of text from one’s own existing documents in a newly created text – such as the duplication of a paragraph or section from a published article in a new article. Although plagiarism is widely eschewed across academia and the publishing industry, the ethics of TR are not agreed upon and are currently being vigorously debated. As part of a federally funded (US) National Science Foundation grant, we have been studying TR patterns using several methodologies, including interviews with editors about TR values and practices (Pemberton, Hall, Moskovitz, & Anson, 2019) and digitally mediated text-analytic processes to determine the extent of TR in academic publications in the biological sciences, engineering, mathematical and physical sciences, and social, behavioral, and economic sciences (Anson, Moskovitz, & Anson, 2019). In this article, we first describe and illustrate TR in the context of academic writing. We then explain and document several themes that emerged from interviews with publishers of peer-reviewed academic journals. These themes demonstrate the vexed and unsettled nature of TR as a discursive phenomenon in academic writing and publishing. In doing so, we focus on the complex relationships between personal (role-based) and social (norm-based) aspects of scientific publication, complicating conventional models of the writing process that have inadequately accounted for authorial decisions about accuracy, efficiency, self-representation, adherence to existing or imagined rules and norms, perceptions of ownership and copyright, and fears of impropriety.