Does tool use extend peripersonal space? A review and re-analysis

The fascinating idea that tools become extensions of our body appears in artistic, literary, philosophical, and scientific works alike. In the last fifteen years, this idea has been re-framed into several related hypotheses, one of which states that tool use extends the neural representation of the multisensory space immediately surrounding the hands (variously termed peripersonal space, peri-hand space, peri-cutaneous space, action space, or near space). This and related hypotheses have been tested extensively in the cognitive neurosciences, with evidence from molecular, neurophysiological, neuroimaging, neuropsychological, and behavioural fields. Here, I briefly review the evidence for and against the hypothesis that tool use extends a neural representation of the space surrounding the hand, concentrating on neurophysiological, neuropsychological, and behavioural evidence. I then provide a re-analysis of data from six published and one unpublished experiments using the crossmodal congruency task to test this hypothesis. While the re-analysis broadly confirms the previously-reported finding that tool use does not literally extend peripersonal space, the overall effect-sizes are small and statistical power is low. I conclude by questioning whether the crossmodal congruency task can indeed be used to test the hypothesis that tool use modifies peripersonal space.

Reading comprehension in autism spectrum disorders: The role of oral language and social functioning

Reading comprehension is an area of difficulty for many individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). According to the Simple View of Reading, word recognition and oral language are both important determinants of reading comprehension ability. We provide a novel test of this model in 100 adolescents with ASD of varying intellectual ability. Further, we explore whether reading comprehension is additionally influenced by individual differences in social behaviour and social cognition in ASD. Adolescents with ASD aged 14-16 years completed assessments indexing word recognition, oral language, reading comprehension, social behaviour and social cognition. Regression analyses show that both word recognition and oral language explain unique variance in reading comprehension. Further, measures of social behaviour and social cognition predict reading comprehension after controlling for the variance explained by word recognition and oral language. This indicates that word recognition, oral language and social impairments may constrain reading comprehension in ASD.

Sequence and phylogenetic analysis of viper venom serine proteases

Snakebites are a major neglected tropical disease responsible for as many as 95000 deaths every year worldwide. Viper venom serine proteases disrupt haemostasis of prey and victims by affecting various stages of the blood coagulation system. A better understanding of their sequence, structure, function and phylogenetic relationships will improve the knowledge on the pathological conditions and aid in the development of novel therapeutics for treating snakebites. A large dataset for all available viper venom serine proteases was developed and analysed to study various features of these enzymes. Despite the large number of venom serine protease sequences available, only a small proportion of these have been functionally characterised. Although, they share some of the common features such as a C-terminal extension, GWG motif and disulphide linkages, they vary widely between each other in features such as isoelectric points, potential N-glycosylation sites and functional characteristics. Some of the serine proteases contain substitutions for one or more of the critical residues in catalytic triad or primary specificity pockets. Phylogenetic analysis clustered all the sequences in three major groups. The sequences with substitutions in catalytic triad or specificity pocket clustered together in separate groups. Our study provides the most complete information on viper venom serine proteases to date and improves the current knowledge on the sequence, structure, function and phylogenetic relationships of these enzymes. This collective analysis of venom serine proteases will help in understanding the complexity of envenomation and potential therapeutic avenues.

‘Historical ‘lessons’ and discourse on defence in France, Germany, 1945-1990’,

This article demonstrates how experiences of the same historical events (especially wars), but experienced from different angles, have led France and Germany to draw diametrically opposed lessons from them, which play key roles in the articulation of their defence postures and strategies.

Behavioral and spatial analysis of extraterritorial movements in red foxes (Vulpes vulpes)

Abstract: Movements away from the natal or home territory are important to many ecological processes, including gene flow, population regulation, and disease epidemiology, yet quantitative data on these behaviors are lacking. Red foxes exhibit 2 periods of extraterritorial movements: when an individual disperses and when males search neighboring territories for extrapair copulations during the breeding season. Using radiotracking data collected at 5-min interfix intervals, we compared movement parameters, including distance moved, speed of movement, and turning angles, of dispersal and reproductive movements to those made during normal territorial movements; the instantaneous separation distances of dispersing and extraterritorial movements to the movements of resident adults; and the frequency of locations of 95%, 60%, and 30% harmonic mean isopleths of adult fox home territories to randomly generated fox movements. Foxes making reproductive movements traveled farther than when undertaking other types of movement, and dispersal movements were straighter. Reproductive and dispersal movements were faster than territorial movements and also differed in intensity of search and thoroughness. Foxes making dispersal movements avoided direct contact with territorial adults and moved through peripheral areas of territories. The converse was true for reproductive movements. Although similar in some basic characteristics, dispersal and reproductive movements are fundamentally different both behaviorally and spatially and are likely to have different ultimate purposes and contrasting effects on spatial processes such as disease transmission

Heterozygosity and diversity analysis using mapped single nucelotide polymorphisms in a faba bean inbreeding programme

The aim of this study was to convert existing faba bean (Vicia faba L.) single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers from cleaved amplification polymorphic sequences and SNaPshot® formats, which are expensive and time-consuming, to the more convenient KBiosciences competitive allele‐specific PCR (KASP) assay format. Out of 80 assays designed, 75 were validated, though a core set of 67 of the most robust markers is recommended for further use. The 67 best KASP SNP assays were used across two generations of single seed descent to detect unintended outcrossing and to track and quantify loss of heterozygosity, a capability that will significantly increase the efficiency and performance of pure line production and maintenance. This same set of assays was also used to examine genetic relationships between the 67 members of the partly inbred panel, and should prove useful for line identification and diversity studies in the future.

Language and thought in bilinguals: the case of grammatical number and nonverbal classification preferences

Recent research shows that speakers of languages with obligatory plural marking (English) preferentially categorize objects based on common shape, whereas speakers of nonplural-marking classifier languages (Yucatec and Japanese) preferentially categorize objects based on common material. The current study extends that investigation to the domain of bilingualism. Japanese and English monolinguals, and Japanese–English bilinguals were asked to match novel objects based on either common shape or color. Results showed that English monolinguals selected shape significantly more than Japanese monolinguals, whereas the bilinguals shifted their cognitive preferences as a function of their second language proficiency. The implications of these findings for conceptual representation and cognitive processing in bilinguals are discussed.

Physiological, biochemical and transcriptional analysis of onion bulbs during storage

Abstract: During the transition from endo-dormancy to eco-dormancy and subsequent growth, the onion bulb undergoes the transition from sink organ to source, to sustain cell division in the meristematic tissue. The mechanisms controlling these processes are not fully understood. Here, a detailed analysis of whole onion bulb physiological, biochemical and transcriptional changes in response to sprouting is reported, enabling a better knowledge of the mechanisms regulating post-harvest onion sprout development. Biochemical and physiological analyses were conducted on different cultivars ('Wellington', 'Sherpa' and 'Red Baron') grown at different sites over 3 years, cured at different temperatures (20, 24 and 28 degrees C) and stored under different regimes (1, 3, 6 and 6 1 degrees C). In addition, the first onion oligonucleotide microarray was developed to determine differential gene expression in onion during curing and storage, so that transcriptional changes could support biochemical and physiological analyses. There were greater transcriptional differences between samples at harvest and before sprouting than between the samples taken before and after sprouting, with some significant changes occurring during the relatively short curing period. These changes are likely to represent the transition from endo-dormancy to sprout suppression, and suggest that endo-dormancy is a relatively short period ending just after curing. Principal component analysis of biochemical and physiological data identified the ratio of monosaccharides (fructose and glucose) to disaccharide (sucrose), along with the concentration of zeatin riboside, as important factors in discriminating between sprouting and pre-sprouting bulbs. These detailed analyses provide novel insights into key regulatory triggers for sprout dormancy release in onion bulbs and provide the potential for the development of biochemical or transcriptional markers for sprout initiation. Evidence presented herein also suggests there is no detrimental effect on bulb storage life and quality caused by curing at 20 degrees C, producing a considerable saving in energy and costs.