Identification of tone duration, line length and letter position: An experimental approach to timing and working memory deficits in schizophrenia.

Patients with schizophrenia display numerous cognitive deficits, including problems in working memory, time estimation, and absolute identification of stimuli. Research in these fields has traditionally been conducted independently. We examined these cognitive processes using tasks that are structurally similar and that yield rich error data. Relative to healthy control participants (n = 20), patients with schizophrenia (n = 20) were impaired on a duration identification task and a probed-recall memory task but not on a line-length identification task. These findings do not support the notion of a global impairment in absolute identification in schizophrenia. However, the authors suggest that some aspect of temporal information processing is indeed disturbed in schizophrenia.

Letter to the Editor: Calculation of photoionized plasmas with an average-atom model

We use a simple average-atom model (NIMP) to calculate the distribution of ionization in a photoionization-dominated plasma, for comparison with recent experimental measurements undertaken on the Z-machine at the Sandia National Laboratory. The agreement between theory and experiment is found to be as good for calculations with an average-atom model as for those generated by more detailed models.

Copying letters to patients with cystic fibrosis (CF): Letter content and patient perceptions of benefit

Background: Copying letters involves generating an extra copy of all correspondence between healthcare professionals about the patient, to the patient.

'Dancing at the English Opera':'Marie Salle's letter to the Duchess of Richmond

A letter from dancer Marie Salle to her patroness dated 1731 reveals her ambitions to dance at the English opera.