Equivalent own name bias in autism: An EEG study of the Attentional Blink

The “Attentional Blink” refers to difficulty in detecting the second of two target stimuli presented in rapid temporal succession. Studies have shown that salient target stimuli, such as one’s own name, reduce the magnitude of this effect. Given indications that self-related processing is altered in autism, it is an open question whether this attentional self-bias is reduced in autism. To investigate this, in the current study we utilised an Attentional Blink paradigm involving one’s own and others’ names, in a group of 24 autistic adults, and 22 neurotypical adults, while measuring EEG. In line with previous studies, the Attentional Blink was reduced when the participant’s own name was the second target, with no differences between autistic and neurotypical participants. ERP results show that the effect on the Attentional Blink of one’s own name was reflected in increased N2 and P3 amplitudes, for both autistic and nonautistic individuals. This is the first event-related potential study of own-name processing in the context of the Attentional Blink. The results provide evidence of an intact attentional self-bias in autism, both at the behavioural and neural level.

Pepper variome reveals the history and key loci associated with fruit domestication and diversification

Pepper (Capsicum spp.) is one of the earliest domesticated crops, providing a unique pungent sensation when eaten. Through the construction of the first pepper variome, we describe the main groups that emerged during domestication and breeding of C. annuum, their relations and temporal succession, and the molecular events underlying the main transitions. The initial differentiation in fruit shape and pungency, increase in fruit weight, and transition from erect to pendent fruits, and the recent appearance of blocky, large, sweet fruits (bell peppers), were accompanied by strong selection/fixation of key alleles and introgressions in two large genomic regions. Furthermore, we describe the identification of Up, a key domestication gene controlling erect vs pendent fruit orientation, encoding a BIG GRAIN protein involved in auxin transport, and Flip1 associated with capsaicinoid content, encoding a protein involved in phospholipid flipping. The function of Up was confirmed by virus-induced gene silencing. These findings constitute a cornerstone for understanding the domestication and differentiation of a key horticultural crop.

TIME REPRESENTATION IN SCIENTIFIC DIAGRAMS: GALILEO GALILEI’S SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM OF THE MOTION OF A FALLING BODY

Рассматриваются способы научного изображения темпоральных явлений на примере чертежей Галилео Галилея, при помощи которых он описывает и исследует равноускоренное движение. Для анализа применяется концептуальная рамка теории изобразительной и неизобразительной репрезентации Грегори Карри. Показано, что в случае научных диаграмм и графиков, представляющих время как одно из измерений пространства, основанием для геометрической изобразимости времени становится полагаемый изоморфизм между временем как континуумом мгновений и линией как континуумом точек. Парадигму такого структурного сопоставления мы находим в математическом мышлении Галилея, наиболее ярко проявляющемся в доказательстве формулы равноускоренного движения, представленном в «Беседах и математических доказательствах». The textbook narrative of the scientific revolution of the 17th century says that the early modern transformation of physics and mechanics was grounded in mathematization, that is, the application of mathematical principles and procedures to physical entities and events. However, such a transformation faces a major obstacle: compared to geometry, mechanics includes an additional dimension, namely, time. When temporality of motion is to be represented geometrically, a question arises on how a temporal succession can be expressed by a static image. The problem of representation of temporal events is not limited to science. In my paper, I apply a conceptual tool elaborated by Gregory Currie for the analysis of temporal representations in art, especially in cinema, to the analysis of scientific diagrams. In his book Image and Mind. Film, Philosophy, and Cognitive Science (1995), Currie distinguishes depictive and nondepictive representations, arguing that depictive representation requires similarity and homomorphism between an object ant its representation. Thus, it seems that any non-temporal image of temporal processes would lack the required similarity and cannot be a depictive representation. However, taking into account explanations given by Galileo Galilei for his famous diagrams of accelerated motion, I argue that the representation of time in scientific diagrams as a geometrical line is grounded in isomorphism between time as a continuous structure and continuous structure of a geometrical line. The main temporal process studied by mechanics is motion. Motion can be represented in two main ways: as a trajectory of a body over some period of time or as a functional relation of various parameters of motion (speed, path, acceleration) versus time. In the latter case, time is usually represented in a diagram as a geometrical line. We can find the origin of this type of representation in the late medieval doctrine of ‘intensio et remissio qualitatum’, intension and remission of qualities, in the context of which first diagrams representing intensity and extension of velocity of nonuniform motion as a changing quality over time were produced (Nicolas Oresme). We can find very similar graphical schemes in Galileo Galilei’s works, especially in Discorsi e dimostrazioni matematiche intorno a due nuove scienze (1638). In this work, Galileo announces with all clarity that he considers time to be the same aggregate of temporal moments as a line is an aggregate of points: every moment of time has a corresponding point on the geometrical line. This allows us to establish a homomorphic similarity between temporal duration and spatial (geometrical) extension. Thus, the essential requirement for depictive representation is met. Concluding, I have to point out that the homomorphic relation in this case is established between not real but abstract entities. The visible line itself is a representation of non-visible abstract geometrical line; in the same way, time consisting of non-divisible moments is just an abstract construction which refers to physical of psychological time-duration. However, the established relation between abstract time and abstract geometrical lines is a grounding event of the modern physical science.

Attention to a Moment in Time Impairs Episodic Distinctiveness during Rapid Serial Visual Presentation

Human attention is limited in the ability to select and segregate relevant distinct events from the continuous flow of external information while concurrently encoding their temporal succession. While it is well-known that orienting attention to one external target stimulus impairs the encoding of ensuing relevant external events, it is still unknown whether orienting attention to internally generated events can interfere with concurrent processing of external input. We addressed this issue by asking participants to identify a single target embedded among distractors in a non-spatial rapid serial visual presentation (RSVP) stream and to indicate whether that target appeared before or after an internally estimated midpoint of the stream. The results indicate that (a) such an internally generated temporal benchmark does not interfere with the identification of a subsequent physical target stimulus but (b) the two events cannot be accurately segregated when the physical target immediately follows the internally generated temporal event. These findings indicate that the asymmetrical distribution around the midpoint of order reversals reflects an impaired temporal discrimination ability. Orienting attention to a moment in time reduces episodic distinctiveness as much as orienting attention to external events.

Bacterial community structure of early-stage biofilms is dictated by temporal succession rather than substrate types in the southern coastal seawater of India

Bacterial communities colonized on submerged substrata are recognized as a key factor in the formation of complex biofouling phenomenon in the marine environment. Despite massive maritime activities and a large industrial sector in the nearshore of the Laccadive Sea, studies describing pioneer bacterial colonizers and community succession during the early-stage biofilm are scarce. We investigated the biofilm-forming bacterial community succession on three substrata viz. stainless steel, high-density polyethylene, and titanium over 15 days of immersion in the seawater intake area of a power plant, located in the southern coastal region of India. The bacterial community composition of biofilms and peripheral seawater were analyzed by Illumina MiSeq sequenced 16S rRNA gene amplicons. The obtained metataxonomic results indicated a profound influence of temporal succession over substrate type on the early-stage biofilm-forming microbiota. Bacterial communities showed vivid temporal dynamics that involved variations in abundant bacterial groups. The proportion of dominant phyla viz. Proteobacteria decreased over biofilm succession days, while Bacteroidetes increased, suggesting their role as initial and late colonizers, respectively. A rapid fluctuation in the proportion of two bacterial orders viz. Alteromonadales and Vibrionales were observed throughout the successional stages. LEfSe analysis identified specific bacterial groups at all stages of biofilm development, whereas no substrata type-specific groups were observed. Furthermore, the results of PCoA and UPGMA hierarchical clustering demonstrated that the biofilm-forming community varied considerably from the planktonic community. Phylum Proteobacteria preponderated the biofilm-forming community, while the Bacteroidetes, Cyanobacteria, and Actinobacteria dominated the planktonic community. Overall, our results refute the common assumption that substrate material has a decisive impact on biofilm formation; rather, it portrayed that the temporal succession overshadowed the influence of the substrate material. Our findings provide a scientific understanding of the factors shaping initial biofilm development in the marine environment and will help in designing efficient site-specific anti-biofouling strategies.

A primer on rhythm quantification for fish sounds: a Mediterranean case study

We have used a lately established workflow to quantify rhythms of three fish sound types recorded in different areas of the Mediterranean Sea. So far, the temporal structure of fish sound sequences has only been described qualitatively. Here, we propose a standardized approach to quantify them, opening the path for assessment and comparison of an often underestimated but potentially critical aspect of fish sounds. Our approach is based on the analysis of inter-onset-intervals (IOIs), the intervals between the start of one sound element and the next. We calculate exact beats of a sequence using Fourier analysis and IOI analysis. Furthermore, we report on important parameters describing the variability in timing within a given sound sequence. Datasets were chosen to depict different possible rhythmic properties: Sciaena umbra sounds have a simple isochronous—metronome-like—rhythm. The /Kwa/ sound type emitted by Scorpaena spp. has a more complex rhythm, still presenting an underlying isochronous pattern. Calls of Ophidion rochei males present no rhythm, but a random temporal succession of sounds. This approach holds great potential for shedding light on important aspects of fish bioacoustics. Applications span from the characterization of specific behaviours to the potential discrimination of yet not distinguishable species.

A chimeric nuclease substitutes a phage CRISPR-Cas system to provide sequence-specific immunity against subviral parasites

Mobile genetic elements, elements that can move horizontally between genomes, have profound effects on their host's fitness. The phage-inducible chromosomal island-like element (PLE) is a mobile element that integrates into the chromosome of Vibrio cholerae and parasitizes the bacteriophage ICP1 to move between cells. This parasitism by PLE is such that it abolishes the production of ICP1 progeny and provides a defensive boon to the host cell population. In response to the severe parasitism imposed by PLE, ICP1 has acquired an adaptive CRISPR-Cas system that targets the PLE genome during infection. However, ICP1 isolates that naturally lack CRISPR-Cas are still able to overcome certain PLE variants, and the mechanism of this immunity against PLE has thus far remained unknown. Here, we show that ICP1 isolates that lack CRISPR-Cas encode an endonuclease in the same locus, and that the endonuclease provides ICP1 with immunity to a subset of PLEs. Further analysis shows that this endonuclease is of chimeric origin, incorporating a DNA-binding domain that is highly similar to some PLE replication origin-binding proteins. This similarity allows the endonuclease to bind and cleave PLE origins of replication. The endonuclease appears to exert considerable selective pressure on PLEs and may drive PLE replication module swapping and origin restructuring as mechanisms of escape. This work demonstrates that new genome defense systems can arise through domain shuffling and provides a greater understanding of the evolutionary forces driving genome modularity and temporal succession in mobile elements.

Using eigen decomposition and sequence-based representation to extract movement patterns from contextualized tracking data

State sequences are a new paradigm to encode and represent contextualised movement data. A state sequence is a temporal succession of characters representing categorical states of the moving entity or its surrounding environment. Eigen decomposition, a principal components analysis method, is an option to reduce and find patterns in such multi-dimensional categorical data through dimensionality reduction. Recurrent patterns can be found by identifying the most relevant eigenbehaviours, which are a set of vectors that characterize the variation in the behaviour of an entity during a time period. Dimensionality reduction techniques have so far not been widely used in movement analytics and in this paper we demonstrate how they could help analyse responses of a moving entity to the dynamic environmental conditions. Specifically, we use sequence-based representation and eigen decomposition to investigate movement patterns of maned wolves (Chrysocyon brachyurus) in relation to vegetation vigour in their habitat. We use a set of GPS-trajectories from a group of maned wolves to which we link multi-source NDVI data as a proxy for the state of vegetation. We find that eigenbehaviours can identify patterns in the wolves’ responses to dynamic environmental conditions that align with the current literature on the species. Our research highlights the potential for dimensionality reduction and sequence-based methods to identify patterns in large tracking databases linked to contextual data.

Acute Ischemic Stroke Associated with Myocardial Infarction: Challenges and Management

Acute ischemic stroke (AIS) and acute myocardial infarction (AMI) may co-occur simultaneously or in close temporal succession, with occurrence of one ischemic vascular event increasing a patient's risk for the other. Both employ time-sensitive treatments, and both benefit from expert consultation. Patients are at increased risk of stroke for up to 3 months following AMI, and aggressive treatment of AMI, including use of reperfusion therapy, decreases the risk of AIS. For patients presenting with AIS in the setting of a recent MI, treatment with alteplase, an intravenous tissue plasminogen activator, can be given, provided anterior wall myocardial involvement has been carefully evaluated. It is important for clinicians to recognize that troponin elevations can occur in the setting of AIS as well as other clinical scenarios and that this may have implications for short- and long-term mortality.