Explaining the microbial diversity conundrum: can microbiome composition be crucial for host fitness, while highly divergent among healthy individuals?

Recent empirical studies offer conflicting findings regarding the relation between host fitness and the composition of its microbiome, a conflict which we term the microbial β-diversity conundrum: it has been shown that the microbiome is crucial for host wellbeing and survival. At the same time, different healthy individuals' microbiome compositions, even in the same population, often differ dramatically, contrary to the notion that a vital trait should be highly conserved. Moreover, gnotobiotic individuals exhibit highly deleterious phenotypes, supporting the notion that the microbiome is paramount to host fitness. However, the introduction of almost arbitrarily selected microbiota into the system often achieves a significant rescue effect of the deleterious phenotypes, even microbiota from soil or phylogenetically distant host species, highlighting an apparent paradox. Here we suggest several solutions to the paradox using a computational framework, simulating the population dynamics of hosts and their microbiomes over multiple generations. The answers, relating to factors such as host population size, the specific mode of contribution of the microbes to host fitness, and the typical microbiome richness, offer solutions to the conundrum by creating scenarios where even when a host's fitness is determined in full by its microbiome composition, this composition has little or no effect on the natural selection dynamics of the population.

Not what U expect: Effects of Prediction Errors on Episodic Memory.

The characterization of the relationship between predictions and one-shot episodic encoding poses an important challenge for memory research. On the one hand, events that are compatible with our previous knowledge are thought to be remembered better than incompatible ones. On the other hand, unexpected situations, by virtue of their surprise, are known to cause enhanced learning. Several theoretical accounts try to solve this apparent paradox by conceptualizing prediction error (PE) as a continuum ranging from low PE (for expectation matching events) to high PE (for expectation mismatching ones). Under such framework, the relationship between PE and memory encoding would be described by a U-shape function with higher memory performance for extreme levels of PE and lower memory for middle levels of PE. In this study we used a gradual manipulation of the strength of association between scenes and objects to render different levels of PE and then tested for episodic memory of the (mis)matching events. In two experiments, and in contrast to what was anticipated, recognition memory as a function of PE followed an inverted U-shape, with higher performance for intermediate levels of PE. Furthermore, in two additional experiments we showed the relevance of explicit predictions at encoding to reveal such inverted U pattern, thus providing the boundary conditions of the effect. We discuss our current findings in the light of the uncertainty in the environment and the importance of the operations underlying encoding tasks.

The South Asia Stability-Instability Paradox Under the Nuclear Shadow

Cross-border clashes between India and Pakistan in 2019, and between India and China in 2020, have placed a spotlight on theories about the stabilising and destabilising effects of nuclear weapons. The experience of the India-Pakistan dyad, and now that within the India-China dyad, is that despite the apparent risks of nuclear escalation, nuclear-armed adversaries may still be prepared to engage in limited, but deadly conventional or sub-conventional conflicts under the nuclear shadow. This paper uses stability-instability paradox theory to explain the mechanics of this apparent paradox and to discuss how these relationships may evolve in future.

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: An Evolutionary Adaptation to Lifestyle and the Environment

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is increasingly recognized as a complex metabolic disorder that manifests in genetically susceptible women following a range of negative exposures to nutritional and environmental factors related to contemporary lifestyle. The hypothesis that PCOS phenotypes are derived from a mismatch between ancient genetic survival mechanisms and modern lifestyle practices is supported by a diversity of research findings. The proposed evolutionary model of the pathogenesis of PCOS incorporates evidence related to evolutionary theory, genetic studies, in-utero developmental epigenetic programming, transgenerational inheritance, metabolic features including insulin resistance, obesity and the apparent paradox of lean phenotypes, reproductive effects and subfertility, the impact of the microbiome and dysbiosis, endocrine disrupting chemical exposure, and the influence of lifestyle factors such as poor quality diet and physical inactivity. Based on these premises, the diverse lines of research are synthesized into a composite evolutionary model of the pathogenesis of PCOS. It is hoped that this model will assist clinicians and patients to understand the importance of lifestyle interventions in the prevention and management of PCOS and provide a conceptual framework for future research. It is appreciated that this theory represents a synthesis of the current evidence and that it is expected to evolve and change over time.

No More Than Comfort? A logics approach to the 'grip' of cost-benefit analysis in a New Zealand public policy decision

<p>This study explores an apparent paradox: cost-benefit analysis (CBA) requires a series of highly subjective decisions to calculate, yet is employed for its perceived objectivity. The dominant view of CBA in the academic and policy literature is as a neutral technology, offering an objective resolution to difficult resource allocation problems. However, this view has been much challenged, with long-standing and still-unresolved debates on CBA’s technical calculation and methodological approaches, as well as critiques of its underpinning socio-political assumptions and its consequences. Drawing on the literature considering accounting as a form of discourse, this study investigates CBA and its discursive use in the debate between 2006 and 2008 around the public policy decisions regarding New Zealand’s public funding of Herceptin (trastuzumab) for early HER2-positive breast cancer (‘the debate’). The repeated use of cost and CBA in arguments by the participants in this debate was striking, with both those for and those against funding appearing to regard CBA as especially authoritative. This authority – even dominance – of CBA in public policy decision-making has been addressed from several perspectives, but its affective (embodied, emotional, non-cognitive) dimensions remain under-explored. This study addresses that gap through a qualitative documentary analysis employing the post-structural critical discourse-theoretic approach of Glynos and Howarth’s Logics of Critical Explanation (LCE) framework (Glynos, J., & Howarth, D. (2007). Logics of Critical Explanation in Social and Political Theory. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge). It offers the following contributions: (a) it provides knowledge of how CBA is presented, positioned, contested, and defended in the Herceptin debate; (b) it generates a genealogically-inflected understanding of how these have come about; (c) its offers an explanation for CBA’s ‘grip’ (continued authority despite its difficulties); and (d) it proposes some alternative presentations, positionings, contestations, and defences of CBA.</p>

No More Than Comfort? A logics approach to the 'grip' of cost-benefit analysis in a New Zealand public policy decision

<p>This study explores an apparent paradox: cost-benefit analysis (CBA) requires a series of highly subjective decisions to calculate, yet is employed for its perceived objectivity. The dominant view of CBA in the academic and policy literature is as a neutral technology, offering an objective resolution to difficult resource allocation problems. However, this view has been much challenged, with long-standing and still-unresolved debates on CBA’s technical calculation and methodological approaches, as well as critiques of its underpinning socio-political assumptions and its consequences. Drawing on the literature considering accounting as a form of discourse, this study investigates CBA and its discursive use in the debate between 2006 and 2008 around the public policy decisions regarding New Zealand’s public funding of Herceptin (trastuzumab) for early HER2-positive breast cancer (‘the debate’). The repeated use of cost and CBA in arguments by the participants in this debate was striking, with both those for and those against funding appearing to regard CBA as especially authoritative. This authority – even dominance – of CBA in public policy decision-making has been addressed from several perspectives, but its affective (embodied, emotional, non-cognitive) dimensions remain under-explored. This study addresses that gap through a qualitative documentary analysis employing the post-structural critical discourse-theoretic approach of Glynos and Howarth’s Logics of Critical Explanation (LCE) framework (Glynos, J., & Howarth, D. (2007). Logics of Critical Explanation in Social and Political Theory. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge). It offers the following contributions: (a) it provides knowledge of how CBA is presented, positioned, contested, and defended in the Herceptin debate; (b) it generates a genealogically-inflected understanding of how these have come about; (c) its offers an explanation for CBA’s ‘grip’ (continued authority despite its difficulties); and (d) it proposes some alternative presentations, positionings, contestations, and defences of CBA.</p>

Vascular Endothelial Adiponectin Signaling Across the Lifespan

Cardiovascular disease risk increases with age regardless of sex. Some of this risk is attributable to changes in natural hormones throughout the lifespan. The quintessential example of this being the dramatic increase in cardiovascular disease following the transition to menopause. Plasma levels of adiponectin, a "cardioprotective" adipokine released primarily by adipose tissue and regulated by hormones, also fluctuates throughout one's life. Plasma adiponectin levels increase with age in both men and women, with higher levels in both pre- and post- menopausal women compared to men. Younger cohorts seem to confer cardioprotective benefits from increased adiponectin levels yet elevated levels in the elderly and those with existing heart disease are associated with poor cardiovascular outcomes. Here, we review the most recent data regarding adiponectin signaling in the vasculature, highlight the differences observed between the sexes, and shed light on the apparent paradox regarding increased cardiovascular disease risk despite rising plasma adiponectin levels over time.

Emotions triggered by live arthropods shed light on spider phobia

Spiders are mostly harmless, yet they often trigger high levels of both fear and disgust, and arachnophobia (the phobia of spiders) ranks among the most common specific animal phobias. To investigate this apparent paradox, we turned to the only close relatives of spiders that pose a real danger to humans: scorpions. We adopted a unique methodology in order to assess authentic emotions elicited by arthropods. Over 300 respondents were asked to rate live specimens of 62 arthropod species (including spiders, scorpions, cockroaches, and other insects) based on perceived fear, disgust, and beauty. We found that species’ scores on all three scales depended on the higher taxon as well as on body size. Spiders, scorpions, and other arachnids scored the highest in fear and disgust, while beetles and crabs scored the highest in beauty. Moreover, all chelicerates were perceived as one cohesive group, distinct from other arthropods, such as insects or crabs. Based on these results, we hypothesize that the fear of spiders might be triggered by a generalized fear of chelicerates, with scorpions being the original stimulus that signals danger.

Income Inequality Predicts Competitiveness and Cooperativeness at School

Competitiveness and cooperativeness are important predictors of social and learning outcomes at school. Drawing on evidence suggesting that contexts with high income inequality foster an ethos of competitiveness and inhibit cooperativeness in the economic environment, we examine whether income inequality is also associated with more competitiveness and less cooperativeness in the academic environment. We conducted four preregistered studies to test this idea. In Study 1, analysis of the OECD PISA 2018 dataset (≈500,000 15-year-old students from 75 countries) revealed that students from economically unequal countries perceive their schoolmates as more competitive and less cooperative. In Study 2a-2b, analysis of the PISA 2003 (250,000+ students from 38 countries) and PISA 2000 (75,000+ students from 32 countries) datasets revealed that students from unequal countries are themselves more competitive and, surprisingly, also more cooperative. Follow-up analyses resolved this apparent paradox, showing that students from unequal countries are oriented towards instrumental rather than intrinsic cooperativeness (i.e., using cooperation as a strategic tool to achieve academic success rather than for the enjoyment of the activity itself). Study 3 offers a conceptual experimental replication (≈850 young adults imagining going back to school) and indicates that induced income inequality (i) increases perceived competitiveness, (ii) decreases perceived cooperativeness, (iii) prompts an orientation towards competitiveness, and (iv) prompts an orientation towards instrumental rather than intrinsic cooperativeness. Results are discussed in relation to the multidisciplinary literatures on the psychology of income inequality, the selective function of school systems, coopetition, self-determination, and cooperative learning.

Choices in Sustainable Food Consumption: How Spanish Low Intake Organic Consumers Behave

The consumption of organic products has consistently increased over the last decades, covering increasingly diversified consumers, both in the characteristics and the reasons associated with consumption. This heterogeneity evidences the need to examine in depth the reasons for the purchase and consumption of these products. The core aim of this study is related to the motivational drivers of organic consumption. The survey included 250 respondents from Andalusia (Spain) who completed an online questionnaire and personal interviews. A convenience sampling method was applied, and the best-worst scaling method allowed us to analyze ten attributes of organic purchasing behavior. Health benefits and environmental impact are the key attributes explaining the consumption of organic products. To deeply understand organic consumer motivations, we studied the influence of six classification variables over the studied attributes. Applying ordinal regressions, we found that having children under 18 at home and a consumer’s academic level contribute in a relevant way to explain the valorization of the health benefits attribute. Also, the place to purchase organic food and academic level correlates with the valuation of GMOs in food. Andalusia is one of the largest European regions for organic production but with minor relevance in consumption. Nevertheless, despite this apparent paradox, the results of the present study point to a consumer profile very similar to other European countries with consolidated organic consumption.