CYBERSPACE AS A SPACE: ANALYSIS OF METAPHORICAL STATEMENTS OF UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

Over the last thirty years, technology has created a new space (cyberspace) where people meet each other, seek information, or simply try to navigate through. However, there is no consensus in research on the character of cyberspaces and the extent to which they are real. In the first systematic empirical research of this nature, the study found an answer to this question through a survey of metaphorical accounts of university students in Information Studies, and Librarianship (N=102) collected over three years (2019-2021). Cyberspace is a real space in students' experiences, language, and thought structures. A space that allows movement, orientation, and search to be related with one another. An environment in which cognition, learning, and knowledge are structuring activities. Learning and cognition in this space occur differently than in the physical environment, which poses a challenge for developing specific didactic practices and social programs for students. Students perceive cyberspace as linked to the need to acquire new epistemic tools to help them overcome the crisis of knowledge they experience through this space. Keywords: cyberspace, didactic practices, information literacy, metaphors, pragmatism, tacit knowledge, on life

One Function One Tool? A Review on Mutual Exclusivity in Tool Use Learning in Human and Non-human Species

The goal of this review is twofold: first to explore whether mutual exclusivity and functional fixedness overlap and what might be their respective specificities and second, to investigate whether mutual exclusivity as an inferential principle could be applied in other domains than language and whether it can be found in non-human species. In order to do that, we first give an overview of the representative studies of each phenomenon. We then analyze papers on tool use learning in children that studied or observed one of these phenomena. We argue that, despite their common principle -one tool one function- mutual exclusivity and functional fixedness are two distinct phenomena and need to be addressed separately in order to fully understand the mechanisms underlying social learning and cognition. In addition, mutual exclusivity appears to be applicable in other domains than language learning, namely tool use learning and is also found in non-human species when learning symbols and tools.

The cyber-learning paradox: facts, myths and expectations about the impact of digital technologies on learning and cognition

The impact of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) on learning remains one of the most controversial topics among scholars. There are experts who see them as the cornerstone of a revolution in education but others consider that ICTs have been overrated, as it was the case with radio and television in the twentieth century. This study attempted to analyze the potential and actual value of ICTs on learning and cognition, based on a qualitative content analysis that allowed to contrast the results of 150 research articles published between 2006 and 2021, with international reports and scholars’ contributions to the topic in discussion.

Higher-Order Conditioning and Dopamine: Charting a Path Forward

Higher-order conditioning involves learning causal links between multiple events, which then allows one to make novel inferences. For example, observing a correlation between two events (e.g., a neighbor wearing a particular sports jersey), later helps one make new predictions based on this knowledge (e.g., the neighbor’s wife’s favorite sports team). This type of learning is important because it allows one to benefit maximally from previous experiences and perform adaptively in complex environments where many things are ambiguous or uncertain. Two procedures in the lab are often used to probe this kind of learning, second-order conditioning (SOC) and sensory preconditioning (SPC). In second-order conditioning (SOC), we first teach subjects that there is a relationship between a stimulus and an outcome (e.g., a tone that predicts food). Then, an additional stimulus is taught to precede the predictive stimulus (e.g., a light leads to the food-predictive tone). In sensory preconditioning (SPC), this order of training is reversed. Specifically, the two neutral stimuli (i.e., light and tone) are first paired together and then the tone is paired separately with food. Interestingly, in both SPC and SOC, humans, rodents, and even insects, and other invertebrates will later predict that both the light and tone are likely to lead to food, even though they only experienced the tone directly paired with food. While these processes are procedurally similar, a wealth of research suggests they are associatively and neurobiologically distinct. However, midbrain dopamine, a neurotransmitter long thought to facilitate basic Pavlovian conditioning in a relatively simplistic manner, appears critical for both SOC and SPC. These findings suggest dopamine may contribute to learning in ways that transcend differences in associative and neurological structure. We discuss how research demonstrating that dopamine is critical to both SOC and SPC places it at the center of more complex forms of cognition (e.g., spatial navigation and causal reasoning). Further, we suggest that these more sophisticated learning procedures, coupled with recent advances in recording and manipulating dopamine neurons, represent a new path forward in understanding dopamine’s contribution to learning and cognition.

Structure-Functional-Selectivity Relationship Studies on A-86929 Analogs and Small Aryl Fragments toward Discovery of Biased D1 Agonists

ABSTRACTDopamine regulates normal functions such as movement, reinforcement learning, and cognition, and its dysfunction has been implicated in multiple psychiatric and neurological disorders. Dopamine acts through the D1- (D1R and D5R) and D2-class (D2R, D3R and D4R) of seven transmembrane receptors, and activates both G-protein- and β-arrestin-dependent signaling pathways, to mediate its physiological effects. Current dopamine receptor-based therapies are used to ameliorate motor deficits in Parkinson’s disease, or as antipsychotic medications for schizophrenia. These drugs show efficacy for ameliorating only some symptoms caused by dopamine dysfunction and are plagued by debilitating side-effects. Studies in primates and rodents have shown that shifting the balance of dopamine receptor signaling towards the arrestin pathway can be beneficial for inducing normal movement, while reducing motor side-effects such as dyskinesias, and can be efficacious at enhancing cognitive function compared to balanced agonists. Several structure-activity-relationship (SAR) studies have embarked on discovering β-arrestin-biased dopamine agonists, focused on D2 partial agonists, non-catechol D1 agonists, and mixed D1/D2R dopamine receptor agonists. Here, we describe an SAR study to identify novel D1R β-arrestin biased ligands using A-86929, a high-affinity D1R catechol agonist, as a core scaffold. Previously described and novel analogs of A-86929 were synthesized and screened in vitro for structure-functional-selectivity relationships (SFSR) studies to identify chemical motifs responsible for β-arrestin biased activity at both D1 and D2Rs. Most of the A-86929 analogs screened were G protein biased but none of them were exclusively arrestin-biased. Additionally, various catechol aryl fragments were designed and synthesized. Other compounds surveyed included hydroxyl and chloro analogs of dopamine to test for hydrogen bonding and ionic interactions. Some of these small molecular probes displayed weak bias towards the β-arrestin pathway. Continued in-depth SFSR studies informed by structure determination, molecular modeling, and mutagenesis studies will facilitate discovery of potent and efficacious arrestin-biased dopamine receptor ligands.

Elementary Students’ Reasoning in Drawn Explanations Based on a Scientific Theory

Constructing explanations of scientific phenomena is a high-leverage practice that promotes student understanding. In the context of this study, we acknowledge that children are used to receiving explanations from teachers. However, they are rarely encouraged to construct explanations about the causes and consequences of phenomena. We modified a strategy to elicit and analyze primary students’ reasoning based on scientific theory as a methodological advance in learning and cognition. The participants were fourth-graders of middle socioeconomic status in Chile’s geographical zone with high seismic risk. They drew explanations about the causes and consequences of earthquakes during a learning unit of eighteen hours oriented toward explanation-construction based on the Tectonic Plates Theory. A constant comparative method was applied to analyze drawings and characterize students’ reasoning used in pictorial representations, following the first coding step of the qualitative Grounded Theory approach. The results show the students expressed progressive levels of reasoning. However, several participants expressed explanations based on the phenomena causes even at an early stage of formal learning. More sophisticated reasoning regarding the scientific theory underpinning earthquakes was found at the end of the learning unit. We discuss approaching elementary students’ scientific reasoning in explanations based on theory, connected with context-based science education.

Honeybee Cognition as a Tool for Scientific Engagement

Apis mellifera (honeybees) are a well-established model for the study of learning and cognition. A robust conditioning protocol, the olfactory conditioning of the proboscis extension response (PER), provides a powerful but straightforward method to examine the impact of varying stimuli on learning performance. Herein, we provide a protocol that leverages PER for classroom-based community or student engagement. Specifically, we detail how a class of high school students, as part of the Ryukyu Girls Outreach Program, examined the effects of caffeine and dopamine on learning performance in honeybees. Using a modified version of the PER conditioning protocol, they demonstrated that caffeine, but not dopamine, significantly reduced the number of trials required for a successful conditioning response. In addition to providing an engaging and educational scientific activity, it could be employed, with careful oversight, to garner considerable reliable data examining the effects of varying stimuli on honeybee learning.

Two-Photon Laser Ablation and In Vivo Wide-Field Imaging of Inferior Olive Neurons Revealed the Recovery of Olivocerebellar Circuits in Zebrafish

The cerebellum, a brain region with a high degree of plasticity, is pivotal in motor control, learning, and cognition. The cerebellar reserve is the capacity of the cerebellum to respond and adapt to various disorders via resilience and reversibility. Although structural and functional recovery has been reported in mammals and has attracted attention regarding treatments for cerebellar dysfunction, such as spinocerebellar degeneration, the regulatory mechanisms of the cerebellar reserve are largely unidentified, particularly at the circuit level. Herein, we established an optical approach using zebrafish, an ideal vertebrate model in optical techniques, neuroscience, and developmental biology. By combing two-photon laser ablation of the inferior olive (IO) and long-term non-invasive imaging of whole-brain imaging at a single-cell resolution, we succeeded in visualization of the morphological changes occurring in the IO neuron population and showed at a single-cell level that structural remodeling of the olivocerebellar circuit occurred in a relatively short period. This system, in combination with various functional analyses, represents a novel and powerful approach for uncovering the mechanisms of the cerebellar reserve, and highlights the potential of the zebrafish model to elucidate the organizing principles of neuronal circuits and their homeostasis in health and disease.

Are flexible school start times associated with higher academic grades? A 4-year longitudinal study.

The mismatch between teenagers' late sleep phase and early school start time results in acute and chronic sleep reductions. This is not only harmful for students' learning in the short-term but may impact on students' career prospects and widen social inequalities. Delaying school start times has been shown to improve sleep but whether this translates to better achievement is unresolved. The current evidence is limited due to a plethora of outcome measures and the many factors influencing sleep and grade/score trajectories. Here, we studied whether 0.5-1.5 years of exposure to a flexible school start system, with the daily choice of an 8AM or 8:50AM-start (intervention), allowed secondary school students (n=63-157, 14-19 years) to improve their quarterly school grades in a 4-year longitudinal pre-post design. We investigated whether sleep, changes in sleep or frequency of later starts predicted grade improvements in the flexible system. Our mixed model regressions with 5,111-16,724 official grades as outcomes did not indicate meaningful grade improvements in the flexible system per se or with previously observed sleep variables (nor their changes) - the covariates academic quarter, discipline and grade level had a greater, more systematic effect in our sample. Importantly, this finding does not preclude improvements in learning and cognition in our sample. However, at the 'dose' received here, intermittent sleep benefits did not obviously translate into detectable grade changes, which is in line with several other studies and highlights that grades are suboptimal to evaluate timetabling interventions despite their importance for future success.

Working Dog Training for the Twenty-First Century

Dogs are trained for a variety of working roles including assistance, protection, and detection work. Many canine working roles, in their modern iterations, were developed at the turn of the 20th century and training practices have since largely been passed down from trainer to trainer. In parallel, research in psychology has advanced our understanding of animal behavior, and specifically canine learning and cognition, over the last 20 years; however, this field has had little focus or practical impact on working dog training. The aims of this narrative review are to (1) orient the reader to key advances in animal behavior that we view as having important implications for working dog training, (2) highlight where such information is already implemented, and (3) indicate areas for future collaborative research bridging the gap between research and practice. Through a selective review of research on canine learning and behavior and training of working dogs, we hope to combine advances from scientists and practitioners to lead to better, more targeted, and functional research for working dogs.