Perception of therapeutic Qi, a nonmechanical, nonpsychological factor in acupuncture that originates from the therapist

So far, most research attempts to explain the mechanism of the action of acupuncture have focused mostly on mechanically-triggered active factors and have produced inconclusive findings. In this study, we investigate whether acupuncture might also involve nonmechanical, nonpsychological active factors originating in the therapist. In 30 individuals, an acupuncture needle was inserted in the acupoint PC6 using a special device without touching the needle. A second device was used to fix the needle rigidly in place, excluding any mechanical transmission of movement from the handle to the needle's tip. Each participant was exposed in random order to a control and a stimulation phase. During the stimulation phase, the free needle's end was held by the therapist to allow the transmission of Qi; during the control phase, it was left untouched. Participants' subjective sensations during the stimulation phase and the control phase were recorded using a questionnaire. Twenty-two of 28 (79%; p = 0.003) test participants believed that they had received stimulation when it had actually been performed, and 26 (93%; p < 0.001) sensed differences between the two experimental phases. Thus, participants were able to sense the transmission of therapeutic Qi in the absence of mechanical or psychological factors.

People, protected areas and ecosystem services: a qualitative and quantitative analysis of local people's perception and preferences in Côte d'Ivoire

The long-term integrity of protected areas (PAs), and hence the maintenance of related ecosystem services (ES), are dependent on the support of local people. In the present study, local people's perceptions of ecosystem services from PAs and factors that govern local preferences for PAs are assessed. Fourteen study villages were randomly selected from three different protected forest areas and one control site along the southern coast of Côte d'Ivoire. Data was collected through a mixed-method approach, including qualitative semi-structured interviews and a household survey based on hypothetical choice scenarios. Local people's perceptions of ecosystem service provision was decrypted through qualitative content analysis, while the relation between people's preferences and potential factors that affect preferences were analyzed through multinomial models. This study shows that rural villagers do perceive a number of different ecosystem services as benefits from PAs in Côte d'Ivoire. The results based on quantitative data also suggest that local preferences for PAs and related ecosystem services are driven by PAs' management rules, age, and people's dependence on natural resources.

From local perception to global perspective

Recent sociological studies show that over short time periods the large day-to-day, month-to-month or year-to-year variations in weather at a specific location can influence and potentially bias our perception of climate change, a more long-term and global phenomenon. By weighting local temperature anomalies with the number of people that experience them and considering longer time periods, we illustrate that the share of the world population exposed to warmer-than-normal temperatures has steadily increased during the past few decades. Therefore, warming is experienced by an increasing number of individuals, counter to what might be simply inferred from global mean temperature anomalies. This behaviour is well-captured by current climate models, offering an opportunity to increase confidence in future projections of climate change irrespective of the personal local perception of weather.

Subjective perception of sleepiness in a driving simulator is different from that in the Maintenance of Wakefulness Test.

OBJECTIVE To test whether sleep-deprived, healthy subjects who do not always signal spontaneously perceived sleepiness (SPS) before falling asleep during the Maintenance of Wakefulness Test (MWT) would do so in a driving simulator. METHODS Twenty-four healthy subjects (20-26 years old) underwent a MWT for 40 min and a driving simulator test for 1 h, before and after one night of sleep deprivation. Standard electroencephalography, electrooculography, submental electromyography, and face videography were recorded simultaneously to score wakefulness and sleep. Subjects were instructed to signal SPS as soon as they subjectively felt sleepy and to try to stay awake for as long as possible in every test. They were rewarded for both "appropriate" perception of SPS and staying awake for as long as possible. RESULTS After sleep deprivation, seven subjects (29%) did not signal SPS before falling asleep in the MWT, but all subjects signalled SPS before falling asleep in the driving simulator (p <0.004). CONCLUSIONS The previous results of an "inaccurate" SPS in the MWT were confirmed, and a perfect SPS was shown in the driving simulator. It was hypothesised that SPS is more accurate for tasks involving continuous feedback of performance, such as driving, compared to the less active situation of the MWT. Spontaneously perceived sleepiness in the MWT cannot be used to judge sleepiness perception while driving. Further studies are needed to define the accuracy of SPS in working tasks or occupations with minimal or no performance feedback.

Cathodal HD-tDCS on the right V5 improves motion perception in humans

Brain lesions in the visual associative cortex are known to impair visual perception, i.e., the capacity to correctly perceive different aspects of the visual world, such as motion, color, or shapes. Visual perception can be influenced by non-invasive brain stimulation such as transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). In a recently developed technique called high definition (HD) tDCS, small HD-electrodes are used instead of the sponge electrodes in the conventional approach. This is believed to achieve high focality and precision over the target area. In this paper we tested the effects of cathodal and anodal HD-tDCS over the right V5 on motion and shape perception in a single blind, within-subject, sham controlled, cross-over trial. The purpose of the study was to prove the high focality of the stimulation only over the target area. Twenty one healthy volunteers received 20 min of 2 mA cathodal, anodal and sham stimulation over the right V5 and their performance on a visual test was recorded. The results showed significant improvement in motion perception in the left hemifield after cathodal HD-tDCS, but not in shape perception. Sham and anodal HD-tDCS did not affect performance. The specific effect of influencing performance of visual tasks by modulating the excitability of the neurons in the visual cortex might be explained by the complexity of perceptual information needed for the tasks. This provokes a "noisy" activation state of the encoding neuronal patterns. We speculate that in this case cathodal HD-tDCS may focus the correct perception by decreasing global excitation and thus diminishing the "noise" below threshold.

Mémoire sur la répartition la plus équitable et sur la perception la plus convenable des impôts : supplément au mémoire: "Sur les moyens d'améliorer fondamentalement et d'une manière durable la situation des classes ouvrières", publiés à Berlin, en 1849

Boberach: Durch eine Steuerreform ist die Lage der arbeitenden Klassen zu verbessern

A picture paints a thousand words: Heart drawings reflect acute distress and illness perception and predict posttraumatic stress symptoms after acute myocardial infarction

The aim of this study was to examine whether heart drawings of patients with acute myocardial infarction reflect acute distress symptoms and negative illness beliefs and predict posttraumatic stress symptoms 3 months post-myocardial infarction. In total, 84 patients aged over 18 years drew pictures of their heart. The larger the area drawn as damaged, the greater were the levels of acute distress (r = 0.36; p < 0.05), negative illness perceptions (r = 0.42, p < 0.05), and posttraumatic stress symptoms (r = 0.54, p < 0.01). Pain drawings may offer a tool to identify maladaptive cognitions and thus patients at risk of posttraumatic stress disorder.

Expectations and effects of a single yoga session on pain perception

BACKGROUND Several studies show yoga may benefit chronic pain management. We investigated the effect of a single yoga session on the perception of pain, measured by a standardized pain provocation test in healthy yoga participants while also comparing pain perception to participants' own expectations. MATERIALS AND METHODS Ninety yoga participants were recruited at hatha yoga schools in Switzerland. Pain perception was measured with a standardized algometric pain provocation test; i.e., a calibrated peg was applied for 10 seconds after which the participant rated pain intensity on a 0-10 numerical rating scale. The test was applied to the middle finger, ear lobe, and second toe before and after a 60-minute yoga session. RESULTS Sixty out of 90 (66.7%) yoga participants expected a reduced pain perception after the yoga session. However, 36 (40%) participants actually experienced less pain after compared to before the yoga session. But overall, pain perception statistically did not significantly change from before to after the yoga session at any of the three body locations assessed. The expectations and also the previous yoga experience did not significantly influence the participants' pain perception. CONCLUSIONS Regardless of the high positive expectations on the influence of yoga on pain, a single yoga session does not significantly influence pain perception induced by a pain provocation test. Hypoalgesic effects of yoga should be explained otherwise.

Perception of a hectic hospital environment at admission relates to acute stress disorder symptoms in myocardial infarction patients.

OBJECTIVE Hospital crowding is a public health problem that may impact on the quality of medical treatment and increase the risk of developing traumatic stress, e.g., after myocardial infarction (MI). This study examines whether subjective appraisal of crowding at hospital admission due to MI is associated with acute stress disorder (ASD) symptoms. METHOD We investigated 102 consecutive patients with acute MI within 48h after having reached stable circulatory conditions. The appraisal of crowding was measured by the retrospective assessment of the perception of a hectic hospital environment at admission. Furthermore, patients completed the Acute Stress Disorder Scale to rate the psychological stress reaction. RESULTS The perception of a hectic hospital environment was associated with the development of ASD symptoms (r=0.254, P=.013) independently of demographic, peritraumatic and medical factors. Post hoc analysis revealed associations with dissociative (r=0.211, P=.041), reexperiencing (r=0.184, P=.074) and arousal (r=0.179, P=.083) symptoms. CONCLUSION The findings suggest that, besides objective circumstances, the way hospital admission due to MI is perceived by the patient may influence the development of MI-triggered ASD symptoms. The psychological and physiological long-term outcomes of the perception of a hectic hospital environment and the role of preventive interventions need further examination.

Visual Perception and Acuity of Hand Surgeons Using Loupes.

PURPOSE To assess the visual performance of Swiss hand surgeons in an environment similar to their workplace. The influence of Galilean (lenses only) and Keplerian loupes (lenses and prisms), the surgeon's age, and the credibility of a self-assessment of his or her own optical performance were evaluated. METHODS Sixty-three hand surgeons between 29 and 68 years of age with 70 loupes were included in the study (Galilean n = 35, Keplerian n = 35). The visual performance as surgeons was self-assessed on a modified visual analog scale and objectively measured with miniaturized visual tests in a simulated clinical setting. We evaluated the influence of the optical device by comparing Galilean and Keplerian loupes and the influence of the surgeon's age by comparing 2 subgroups: < 40 years and ≥ 40 years. RESULTS The correlation between self-assessment and objective visual performance was weak, with a Spearman rank correlation coefficient of 0.25. The near visual acuity with habitual optical aids showed considerable variability, with a range of 300% in the dimension of the smallest detected structure. The near visual acuity was significantly lower in the older group ≥ 40 years than in the younger group < 40 years with both Galilean and Keplerian loupes. Keplerian loupes allowed a significantly higher visual performance than Galilean loupes. Surgeons 40 years or older using Keplerian loupes had a similar visual acuity to surgeons younger than 40 years with Galilean loupes. CONCLUSIONS The magnified near vision of hand surgeons showed an important individual variability. Self-assessment was not a valuable instrument for surgeons to estimate their own near vision. Hand surgeons older than 40 years should use higher magnification loupes. TYPE OF STUDY/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE Diagnostic III.