Attention Limitations in the Detection and Identification of Alarms in Close Temporal Proximity

Objective The aim of this study was to establish the effects of simultaneous and asynchronous masking on the detection and identification of visual and auditory alarms in close temporal proximity. Background In complex and highly coupled systems, malfunctions can trigger numerous alarms within a short period of time. During such alarm floods, operators may fail to detect and identify alarms due to asynchronous and simultaneous masking. To date, the effects of masking on detection and identification have been studied almost exclusively for two alarms during single-task performance. This research examines 1) how masking affects alarm detection and identification in multitask environments and 2) whether those effects increase as a function of the number of alarms. Method Two experiments were conducted using a simulation of a drone-based package delivery service. Participants were required to ensure package delivery and respond to visual and auditory alarms associated with eight drones. The alarms were presented at various stimulus onset asynchronies (SOAs). The dependent measures included alarm detection rate, identification accuracy, and response time. Results Masking was observed intramodally and cross-modally for visual and auditory alarms. The SOAs at which asynchronous masking occurred were longer than reported in basic research on masking. The effects of asynchronous and, even more so, simultaneous masking became stronger as the number of alarms increased. Conclusion Masking can lead to breakdowns in the detection and identification of alarms in close temporal proximity in complex data-rich domains. Application The findings from this research provide guidance for the design of alarm systems.

The hippocampal formation and action at a distance

The question of why our conceptions of space and time are intertwined with memory in the hippocampal formation is at the forefront of much current theorizing about this brain system. In this article I argue that animals bridge spatial and temporal gaps through the creation of internal models that allow them to act on the basis of things that exist in a distant place and/or existed at a different time. The hippocampal formation plays a critical role in these processes by stitching together spatiotemporally disparate entities and events. It does this by 1) constructing cognitive maps that represent extended spatial contexts, incorporating and linking aspects of an environment that may never have been experienced together; 2) creating neural trajectories that link the parts of an event, whether they occur in close temporal proximity or not, enabling the construction of event representations even when elements of that event were experienced at quite different times; and 3) using these maps and trajectories to simulate possible futures. As a function of these hippocampally driven processes, our subjective sense of both space and time are interwoven constructions of the mind, much as the philosopher Immanuel Kant postulated.

Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) occurring in temporal proximity between siblings

We report a pair of siblings who developed multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) in close temporal proximity after recent exposure to SARS-CoV-2. Both siblings presented with Kawasaki disease-like features and haemodynamic instability, with the onset of symptoms within 6 days of each other. Remarkably, one of the siblings was the elder of a pair of monozygotic twins. The younger monozygotic twin, however, did not develop MIS-C.

Renal Thrombotic Microangiopathy in Concurrent COVID-19 Vaccination and Infection

We report on the development of nephrotic proteinuria and microhematuria, with histological features of renal thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA), following the first dose of BNT162b2 COVID-19 vaccine (Pfizer-BioNTech) and COVID-19 diagnosis. A 35-year-old previously healthy man was admitted at our hospital due to the onset of foamy urine. Previously, 40 days earlier, he had received the first injection of the vaccine, and 33 days earlier, the RT-PCR for SARS-CoV-2 tested positive. Laboratory tests showed nephrotic proteinuria (7.9 gr/day), microhematuria, serum creatinine 0.91 mg/dL. Kidney biopsy revealed ultrastructural evidence of severe endothelial cell injury suggestive of a starting phase of TMA. After high-dose steroid treatment administration, complete remission of proteinuria was achieved in a few weeks. The association of COVID-19 with renal TMA has been previously described only in patients with acute renal injury. Besides, the correlation with COVID-19 vaccine has not been reported so far. The close temporal proximity (7 days) between the two events opens the question whether the histological findings should be ascribed to COVID-19 itself or to vaccine injection.

Impact of MRI Timing on Tumor Volume and Anatomic Displacement for Brain Metastases Undergoing Stereotactic Radiosurgery

Background The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of the time interval between planning imaging and SRS delivery on tumor volumes and spatial anatomic displacements of brain metastases (BM). Methods Consecutive patients diagnosed with BM treated with SRS over a three-year period were evaluated. Only patients who underwent an institutionally standardized diagnostic MRI (MRI-1) and a treatment planning MRI (MRI-2) were included. The impact of histology, inter-scan time interval, lesion location, tumor volume and diameter were evaluated on final lesion diameter, volume, anatomic displacement, and ultimate need for change in management (i.e. expanding margins, rescanning). Results 101 patients (531 lesions) with a median inter-scan time interval of 8 days (range: 1-42 days) met the inclusion criteria. The median percentage increase in BM diameter and volume were 9.5% (IQR: 2.25% - 24.0%) and 20% (IQR: 0.7% - 66.7%). Overall, 147 lesions (27.7%) in 57 patients (56.4%) required a change in management. There was a statistically significant relationship between initial tumor diameter (cm) and change in management (OR:2.69, 95%CI: 1.93 - 3.75) (p<0.001). Each day between MRI-1 and MRI-2 was associated with a change in management with an OR of 1.05 (95% CI: 1.03-1.07) (p<0.001). Conclusions Changes in tumor diameter, volume, and spatial position occur as a function of time. Planning imaging for SRS is recommended to occur in close temporal proximity to treatment; for those with delays, a larger setup margin may need to be used to ensure tumor coverage and account for positional changes.

Automatic inhibition of habitual response associated with a non-target object while performing goal-directed actions

This study is devoted to investigating mechanisms that inhibit habituated response associated with affordance of a non-target while executing action directed to a target. In four experiments, a paradigm was used that required a rapid left- or right-hand response according to the direction of the target arrow presented simultaneously or in close temporal proximity to a non-target whose handle position afforded grasping with the left or right hand. In general, responding was decelerated and more erroneous when the handle position was compatible with the responding hand. This effect of response inhibition was removed when the delay between the non-target offset and target onset was longer than 200 ms, and reversed into response facilitation when the target onset was delayed for 400–600 ms. The study suggests that processes that control withholding habitual response associated with affordance of a non-target utilise response inhibition mechanisms overlapping with those involved in behavioural control of the stop-signal task. This response inhibition is triggered automatically and directly by affordance of a non-target without preceding response excitation associated with this affordance cue.

Tobacco and Marijuana Co-use Behaviors among Cigarillo Users

Objectives: In this study, we examine the frequency of 'simultaneous use' (smoking tobacco in close temporal proximity to smoking marijuana) and substitution (smoking a cigarillo in place of a marijuana blunt – a cigar wrapper filled with marijuana) and their association with nicotine dependence (ND) among young cigarillo users. Methods: The sample consisted of 686 cigarillo and blunt co-users who responded to a cross-sectional, Web-based survey of 14-28-year-olds recruited via social media. We used bivariate analyses and multiple linear regression to examine the association of simultaneous use and substitution with participant demographics, tobacco product use, marijuana use, and ND. Results: Most users reported simultaneous use (72.4%) and substitution (67.9%). Chasing was the most common form of simultaneous use (63%). Simultaneous users were more likely to use tobacco daily and to smoke cigarettes, and reported a lower age of initiation to marijuana and tobacco than non-simultaneous users. The most common reason for substituting (73%) was the lack of availability of marijuana. Both practices were strongly and independently associated with greater ND, adjusting for covariates. Conclusions: Simultaneous use and substitution are common co-use behaviors among cigarillo users, and may play a role in promoting increased tobacco use and nicotine dependence.

From a calf’s perspective: humpback whale nursing behavior on two US feeding grounds

Nursing influences growth rate and overall health of mammals; however, the behavior is difficult to study in wild cetaceans because it occurs below the surface and can thus be misidentified from surface observations. Nursing has been observed in humpback whales on the breeding and calving grounds, but the behavior remains unstudied on the feeding grounds. We instrumented three dependent calves (four total deployments) with combined video and 3D-accelerometer data loggers (CATS) on two United States feeding grounds to document nursing events. Two associated mothers were also tagged to determine if behavior diagnostic of nursing was evident in the mother’s movement. Animal-borne video was manually analyzed and the average duration of successful nursing events was 23 s (±7 sd, n = 11). Nursing occurred at depths between 4.1–64.4 m (along the seafloor) and in close temporal proximity to foraging events by the mothers, but could not be predicted solely by relative positions of mother and calf. When combining all calf deployments, successful nursing was documented eleven times; totaling only 0.3% of 21.0 hours of video. During nursing events, calves had higher overall dynamic body acceleration (ODBA) and increased fluke-stroke rate (FSR) compared to non-nursing segments (Mixed effect models, ODBA: F1,107 = 13.57756, p = 0.0004, FSR: F1,107 = 32.31018, p < 0.0001). In contrast, mothers had lower ODBA and reduced FSR during nursing events compared to non-nursing segments. These data provide the first characterization of accelerometer data of humpback whale nursing confirmed by animal-borne video tags and the first analysis of nursing events on feeding grounds. This is an important step in understanding the energetic consequences of lactation while foraging.

Competitive interactions between motor and episodic memory systems during interleaved learning

Distinct motor and episodic memory systems are widely thought to compete during memory consolidation and retrieval, yet the nature of their interactions during learning is less clear. Motor learning is thought to depend on contributions from both systems, with the episodic system supporting rapid updating and the motor system supporting gradual tuning of responses by feedback. However, this competition has been identified when both systems are engaged in learning the same material (motor information), and so competition might be emphasized. We tested whether such competition also occurs when learning involved separate episodic-memory and motor information presented distinctly but yet in close temporal proximity. We measured behavioral and brain-activity correlates of motor-episodic competition during learning using a novel task with interleaved motor-adaptation and episodic-learning demands. Despite unrelated motor versus episodic information and temporal segregation, motor learning interfered with episodic learning and episodic learning interfered with motor learning. This reciprocal competition was tightly coupled to corresponding reductions of fMRI activity in motor versus episodic learning systems. These findings suggest that distinct motor and episodic learning systems compete even when they are engaged by system-specific demands in close temporal proximity during memory formation.