Neurodidactics of Languages: Neuromyths in Multilingual Learners

From the perspective of neuroscience applied to education and the teaching of foreign languages, this exploratory study analyzes the beliefs and conceptions about the functioning of the brain and language learning in students enrolled in Education degrees at the Melilla campus of the University of Granada. The sample consisted of 397 participants. The data collection was carried out by means of a questionnaire designed for this purpose, consisting of questions related to the context and linguistic background of the respondents and to educational neuromyths regarding language learning. The data were analyzed using the SPSS version 27 statistical software, and univariate and bivariate analyses were carried out according to the three grouping dimensions: (a) brain functioning, (b) multiple intelligences and learning styles, and (c) language learning. The results indicate the prevalence of neuromyths related to general concepts, which determine the learning comprehension. This corroborates the findings of research studies in other contexts. Although the participants do not show a prevalence of neuromyths regarding foreign language learning, presumably due to their experiences in multilingual contexts, which constitutes the main contribution of this study.

Bile Acids and Their Value for Central Nervous System

Aim. A review to highlight the bile acids importance as steroid mediators of nervous system activity and show the nervous system involvement in cholesterol metabolism and bile acids production.Key points. Presence of bile acid membrane and nuclear receptors and their activation role in mediating manifold metabolic processes have been established in various organs and tissues. Bile acid transporters are discovered in CNS. The animal brain under physiological conditions was found to contain about 20 bile acid types of likely innate origin suggested by their high contents; the bile acids spectrum in CNS differs significantly from blood plasma. Clinical and experimental works are conclusive about the CNS bile acids influence on mitochondrial membrane, their antioxidative role and, probably, steroid-mediator involvement in indirect regulation of memory, attention, motor functions and appetite.Conclusion. Bile acids act as pleiotropic signalling molecules affecting various tissues. The presence in CNS of various bile acid synthesis-related receptors and enzymes indicates their value in brain functioning and warrants research into their metabolism.

Reflections on Bharatanatyam and Neuroscience. A Dance Studies Perspective

Building on recent interest in the convergence of arts and sciences, we propose specific areas of intersection between the disciplines of Bharatanatyam, a classical Indian dance, and neuroscience. We present personal reflections by practitioners of both disciplines and propose that Bharatanatyam can be used to understand and explain brain functioning and that neuroscience can help analyze the dancing Bharatanatyam brain. We explore conceptual areas of convergence between the two fields as well as specific points of connection using language acquisition, rhythm, music, and cognition as examples. We conjecture that Bharatanatyam training and practice support long-term neuronal plasticity in various parts of the brain, including but not limited to the hippocampus, motor, premotor cortex, and the cerebellum. The beginning of the study of the intersection between these disciplines will pave the way for additional allied fields of rich thinking, exploration and potentially, therapy.

APPLICATION OF BRAIN NEUROIMAGING TECHNOLOGIES FOR CHILDHOOD OBESITY

The problem of obesity among children and adolescents is becoming more and more significant every year due to the increasing prevalence and its complications. Altered brain functioning is noted in obesity and contribute to eating behavior as well as the brain-gastrointestinal tractvisceral fat axis. This literature review is focuses on the issues of neuroimaging studies of the brain in obesity in childhood and the possibilities of various methods in the diagnosis and prediction of disorders. Medline and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) databases from 2000 to 2021 were used for the literature search.

Revisit the Effectiveness of Educational Kinesiology on Stress and Anxiety Amelioration in Kindergarteners With Special Needs Using Biological Measures

Background: Educational kinesiology is a popular intervention that aims to improve brain functioning via physical movements. Yet, it lacks supporting scientific evidence and is regarded as pseudoscience. Given the popularity of educational kinesiology in school settings, it is important to revisit its effectiveness through scientific research. Previous studies that evaluated the effectiveness of educational kinesiology relied mainly on subjective measures, in which subjective bias is inevitable. Cortisol and oxytocin levels in saliva have been reported to be reliable stress and anxiety markers that provide unbiased objective data. This study explores the effect of educational kinesiology on the changes in salivary cortisol and oxytocin levels in kindergarteners with special needs.Methods: A quasi-experimental design was adopted in this study. Thirty-seven kindergarteners (3.5–6.5 years old) who were either diagnosed with one type of special needs or referred by school principals due to the requirement of special supports at school were assigned to either the intervention group, which received 1-h educational kinesiology intervention weekly for a total of 10 weeks, or the wait-list control group. Saliva samples were collected at baseline and after the completion of intervention programme for the measurement of cortisol and oxytocin levels. Scores of Parent-rated Preschool Anxiety Scale (PAS-TC) were also collected at pre- and post-intervention. Because of the small samples, non-parametric tests such as Mann-Whitney U test, Quade test, and Fisher's exact tests were used in this study where appropriate.Results: After controlled for the effect at baseline, gender and types of special needs, the changes in oxytocin levels were significantly higher in the intervention group compared with control [F(1, 35) = 4.747, p = 0.036, eta2 = 0.119], whereas no significant between-group difference in changes of cortisol levels was observed [F(1, 35) = 0.306, p = 0.584, eta2 = 0.009]. Results from PAS-TC showed significant improvement in anxiety levels after the intervention in the intervention group (p = 0.048, ϕ = 0.344, p = 0.037).Conclusions: Our findings suggest a plausible anti-anxiety effect of educational kinesiology in kindergarteners with special needs by elevating the oxytocin levels. Future studies are warranted to further confirm our findings with a larger sample.

Neuroscience in the system of vocational education

В статье рассматриваются актуальные проблемы нейрообразования в системе подготовки профессиональных кадров. Цель работы — оценить достижения нейронауки с точки зрения их применения в вузе, в том числе при обучении студентов профессиональной терминологии. В частности, впервые анализируется возможность сформировать профессиональное мышление у обучающихся на основе знаний о закономерностях и механизмах функционирования головного мозга (brain-based learning) при усвоении понятий. В работе показано, что усвоение и понимание новых слов (терминов) происходит за счет деятельности нейрональных систем, которые отвечают за процессы восприятия, внимания, памяти и исполнительных функций, а также за вознаграждение и мотивацию. Кроме того, делается вывод о том, насколько важно в процессе усвоения учитывать специфику профессиональной терминологии — абстрактных и конкретных понятий. Изучение проблематики нейрообразования выявило разницу между направлениями исследований в разных странах: российские специалисты сосредоточились в основном на поиске персонализированных нейротехнологий и внедрении цифровых программ и устройств, разработанных с учетом работы мозга. Иностранные исследователи пытаются создать единую методологию нейрообразования и доказать эффективность методов обучения, основанных на знаниях о функционировании головного мозга. Авторы статьи считают, что необходимо повышать компетентность преподавателей в области нейробиологии, чтобы профессионально развенчивать нейромифы и усиливать эффективность процесса обучения. Данные, приведенные в работе, могут быть полезны преподавателям вузов при организации образовательного процесса. The article is dedicated to the relevant issues of neuroeducation in the system of vocational education. The article aims to reflect on the results of neuroscience integration into university practice, including professional terminology teaching. Notably, for the first time the possibility of forming professional thinking among university students based on knowledge about mechanisms of brain functioning during concepts acquisition (brain-based learning) was analyzed. The article shows that new words (terms) acquisition and understanding is based on neural systems that are responsible for processes of perception, attention, memory and executive functions, as well as reward and motivational states. Moreover, the importance of addressing the specifics of professional terminology, abstract and concrete concepts, during the acquisition process is stated. The difference between research directions in different countries was revealed during the study of neuroeducation: Russian scientists are focused more on personalized neuroeducational technologies and on the development of neurodidactics methods; scientists abroad aim to develop a unified methodology of neuroeducation and find evidence of the efficiency of teaching methods based on knowledge about brain functioning. The authors of the artcile believe that improving teachers’ competence in the field of neurobiology in order to avoid the prevalence of neuromyphs and to increase the efficiency of the learning process is important. The data given in the article may be useful to university teachers in organizing the educational process.

Neuropsychological Correlates of Internet Addiction

The Internet, mobile phones, and other similar tools are often necessary for the current functioning of both private life and business. During these two years of pandemic (2019-2021), Internet use, especially different games and mobile phones, were indispensable for the global population. Internet addiction is defined as a psychological dependence on the internet, regardless of the type of activity once logged on. Many studies have confirmed the correlation of stress, depression, and anxiety with internet addiction. It has also been proven that internet addiction, per se, increases the risk of depression, anxiety, and stress. Moreover, the COVID-19 pandemic has generated and promoted social isolation along with unmonitored and increased screen time, all of which are the main causes of internet addiction. The aim of this article is to give a short review of internet addiction research, terminology, and symptoms related to brain functioning. The source material was articles cited in the database, PubMed. Our interest was especially oriented towards the personality characteristics of users and addicted persons as well as neuroimage findings among affected people. We selected the newest articles, published in the period of 2012-2021, of which there are more than 2000. The selected obtained results will be presented and discussed.

Exploring the Impact of the Microbiome on Neuroactive Steroid Levels in Germ-Free Animals

Steroid hormones are essential biomolecules for human physiology as they modulate the endocrine system, nervous function and behaviour. Recent studies have shown that the gut microbiota is directly involved in the production and metabolism of steroid hormones in the periphery. However, the influence of the gut microbiota on levels of steroids acting and present in the brain (i.e., neuroactive steroids) is not fully understood. Therefore, using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry, we assessed the levels of several neuroactive steroids in various brain areas and the plasma of germ-free (GF) male mice and conventionally colonized controls. The data obtained indicate an increase in allopregnanolone levels associated with a decrease in those of 5α-androstane-3α, 17β-diol (3α-diol) in the plasma of GF mice. Moreover, an increase of dihydroprogesterone and isoallopregnanolone in the hippocampus, cerebellum, and cerebral cortex was also reported. Changes in dihydrotestosterone and 3α-diol levels were also observed in the hippocampus of GF mice. In addition, an increase in dehydroepiandrosterone was associated with a decrease in testosterone levels in the hypothalamus of GF mice. Our findings suggest that the absence of microbes affects the neuroactive steroids in the periphery and the brain, supporting the evidence of a microbiota-mediated modulation of neuroendocrine pathways involved in preserving host brain functioning.

Design and development of IoT enabled gas sensing system for remote monitoring of air quality in borewell rescue operations

The children demise inside the borewell is expanded in nowadays, with uncovered borewell they fallen without knowing and lost their lives due to asphyxiant inside, likewise without oxygen, food and so forth The harmful gases like carbon monoxide, Methane, LPG, hydrogen sulphide inside the bore-well it will influence the children breathing and furthermore this may prompt unconsciousness, and without oxygen it might influence the brain functioning of child and child may die and furthermore explicit distance of the child at what distance child stuck isn’t know. To overcome these, we need to detect the various gases with different multiple gas sensors additionally to get the temperature and humidity condition. Alongside this ultrasonic sensor is utilized to get the distance of child at what distance child got stuck. We have utilized two Arduino Uno microcontrollers which is at the transmitter side and other at Receiver side also utilized two ZigBee’s as the communication devices. With the help of IoT involved in the proposed system. Every one of these information are sent to the cloud and we can monitor the data in the thing speak dashboard through PC or from our smart phone through Android App Usage and also, through LCD at Receiver end. We can utilize this proposed framework inside the borewell for up to 80-meter depth. Thus, we came up with this Design and Development of IoT enabled Gas sensing system for remote monitoring of Air quality in borewell Rescue operations. Based on proposed system results of real time data the Rescue specialists can make a further move by providing of oxygen, food, and so forth Save their lives.

Post-Stroke Aphasia in the Context of Modern Views on the Neurophysiology of Speech Function

The purpose of the study is to highlight the clinical experience of specialists from various countries, clinics and neurological specialties, in order to form an up-to-date review of the speech function neurophysiology, as well as the features of pathology, diagnosis and treatment of aphasia, as one of the most disabling symptoms accompanying ischemic stroke. Results. The speech function does not only limit communication options between doctor and patient, but it is also an important factor that makes it difficult to collect anamnesis and interpret the results of a neurological examination. In addition, the quality of life of patients with speech disorders is significantly reduced, they experience remarkable difficulties in interacting with society, and they stop building new communication connections. Taking into account the intensive use of modern neuroimaging methods in scientific studies, a large amount of new data has appeared about the brain functioning in normal and pathological conditions. Due to significant disadvantages, the classical model of the functioning of such a cognitive domain as speech has not just undergone significant changes, but has been almost completely revised. Now, it is not limited only by the two key regions – Broca and Wernicke, and also does not ignore the existence of subcortical structures and connections. The whole set of structures that provide the speech functioning is combined into the concept of "speech connectome". It includes four main groups of associative connections: frontotemporal, occipito-parietal, occipito-temporal and fronto-frontal. The lesion of each of the groups is manifested by certain symptoms, which are combined into several typical clinical patterns. This approach allows clinicians to take a fresh look at the diagnosis of speech disorders, as well as significantly expand therapeutic opportunities in this area. Usage of diagnostic scales and tests, neuroimaging methods, as well as biomarkers of cognitive-aphasic decline is now focused not only on finding the affected structures of the cerebral cortex, but also at interpreting the clinical picture in the form of so-called disconnection syndromes, which is the result of lesions of the neural pathways in the white matter. Conclusion. Speech-language therapy remains the gold standard and an integral part of the treatment of aphasia, and the use of drugs is mainly focused on modulating the work of various neurotransmitter systems. But therapeutic and rehabilitation options based on modern neuroimaging data (in particular, using diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging) can significantly improve the effectiveness of treatment and functional recovery. However, this area remains very promising for further study and more extensive scientific research