Complete Pictures Research Articles

Can we rely on the neutrophil left shift for the diagnosis of neonatal sepsis? Need for re-evaluation

BackgroundNeonatal sepsis cause significant morbidities and mortality among affected neonates. The gold standard for its diagnosis is the blood culture. However, its usefulness is limited by many factors. A rapid diagnostic test with high sensitivity and specificity is needed for rapid identification of neonatal sepsis without exposing unaffected neonates to antibiotic therapy. The accuracy of immature neutrophil count for the diagnosis of neonatal sepsis is controversial. ObjectiveBeing rapid, simple and readily available, this study aimed to re-evaluate the usefulness of neutrophil left shift for the diagnosis of neonatal sepsis and assess its prognostic value in reflecting the patients’ outcome. MethodsThis prospective cross-sectional study included 285 neonates admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit, Cairo University. Demographic, clinical and laboratory data were collected including complete blood pictures with manual differentials and blood culture results. The diagnostic accuracy of neutrophil left shift was done through applying multiple logistic regression and receiver operating characteristic [ROC] curve. ResultsAmong the study group, 61.4% had definite sepsis while 12.3% had probable sepsis. The median immature to total neutrophil ratio (I/T ratio) was 0.25, IQR 0.21, range 0.03–0.8. I/T ratio ≥ 0.2 was present in 65.6% of the patients and had significantly increased odds of infection, sensitivity (82.4%), specificity (81.3%), positive predictive value (92.5%) and negative predictive value (62.2%). By plotting neutrophil left shift against blood culture, total white blood cell count (WBC) and platelet count in a ROC curve and calculating areas under the curve (AUC), it proved to be a good diagnostic test (AUC: 0.861) while total WBC count (AUC: 0.515) and platelet count (AUC: 0.366) had poor diagnostic accuracy. ConclusionNeutrophil left shift is a rapid, simple and readily available test that has a reasonable positive predictive value and specificity which denotes its usefulness in the early diagnosis of neonatal sepsis as well as in decreasing the exposure of non-septic neonates to antimicrobial therapy.

A new record in Argentina and lectotypification of Stromanthe boliviana K. Schum. (Marantaceae)

Stromanthe boliviana is recorded for the first time in northwestern Argentina. This species is lectotypified, and a complete morphological description, illustration, and pictures are provided

Fully Coupled Multiphysics Simulation of Crosstalk Effect in Bipolar Resistive Random Access Memory

A versatile multiphysics simulation packet for investigating different resistive random acces memories (RRAMs) is developed in this paper. Heat transfer, electrical conduction, and ion migration in such heterogeneous structure are all taken into consideration. Three fully coupled partial differential equations are solved using our self-developed finite-difference algorithm, where Scharfetter–Gummel method is adopted to simulate ion migration with fast convergence achieved. This packet is validated in comparison with the commercial software based on the finite-element method. With its implementation, complete and clear pictures for crosstalk effect in vertically integrated RRAM are captured and compared, where the effects of key physical and geometrical factors are characterized and understood. Some useful suggestions to mitigate its unfavorable influences are given.

Visualizing the Architectures and Interactions of Nuclear Receptors.

Nuclear receptors (NRs) are master regulators of broad genetic programs in metazoans. These programs are regulated in part by the small-molecule ligands that bind NRs and modulate their interactions with transcriptional coregulatory factors. X-ray crystallography is now delivering more complete pictures of how the multidomain architectures of NR homo- and heterodimers are physically arranged on their DNA elements and how ligands and coactivator peptides act through these complexes. Complementary studies are also pointing to a variety of novel mechanisms by which NRs access their DNA-response elements within chromatin. Here, we review the new structural advances together with proteomic discoveries that shape our understanding of how NRs form a variety of functional interactions with collaborating factors in chromatin.

Comparative study for adding some medical plants powders to the rasion with Amprolium on hematology, serology and productive properties of broiler chickens Rose 308

The purpose of the study is to mix some medicinal plant powders with the food diet and to compare them with the Amberolium antibiotic and to study their effect as dietary aids in improving the hematological , serological, and productive characteristics of the broiler chickens (Rose 308).The four types of medicinal plants were added to the Rose308 broiler Rosemary ,peel of pomegranate, pine and willow plants, and treatment of amberolium was added to water at a concentration of 0.5 g / L. our research includes studies the following : complete blood pictures, biochemical blood parameters ,and all the results oversoften to SSD statistic programs.The results of the study showed that the cumulative performance characteristics of the period (1-42 days) showed significant differences (P< 0.05) For the treatment of control compared with other treatments. It was found that the best treatment in improving the performance characteristics when mixed with the diet and calculating the length of time of breeding period and the body's resistance to diseases and the percentage of losses is the treatment to which the pomegranate powder was added compared with the production characteristics of the other treatments and compared with the control , And the treatment was reduced from the loss rate. The efficiency of the pomegranate peel powder to the type of active ingredient may have been widely used in commercial medical treatments, and the blood parameters ratios of this treatment were closely correlated with the control ratios. As it had an active role in increasing the amount of( Hb , RBC and Platelate) and lower the levels of ESR compared with control and the rest of the other transactions, either serological factors which include: (Total serum protein, albumins, uric acid, creatinine)& (Lipid TC, TG, HDL).It was also found that giving some natural extracts of plants has led to a significant stability of the serological factors. (lipid TC, TG, HDL), and some natural extracts of plants have resulted in significant stability in the results, The final results of our study found that peel of pomegranate powder was the best treatment in terms of improvement of the performance traits and the indicators of the hemolytic , serological and ionic characteristics, while the lowest of the above indicators was in the powder of rosemary leave.

A Cross Sectional Study on Morphological Pattern of Anemia

Background:Anemia is a global health problem of immense health significance, affecting persons of all ages and economic groups. Anemia is functionally defined as an insufficient RBC mass to adequately deliver oxygen to peripheral tissue. Developing countries like India; it is more common in pregnant women and in adolescent girls.Objectives:The present study was to emphasize various morphological patterns of anemia and its prevalence in various age groups. Materials and methods: This was a cross sectional study on 920 complete blood pictures (CBPs), over a period of 2 years from 2010 to 2012 at department of pathology,S.V.R.R.G.G.H &Sri Venkateswara Medical College, Tirupati, a tertiary health care center. The results wereanalyzed andinterpreted statically. Results:Of the total 920 hemograms that were studied, 685 were anemic with prevalence of 74.5%. Females were 419 (61.2%) and Males were 266 (38.8%), was showing Female preponderancewith Male Female ratio 1:1.6. Most common age group in females was 21-30 years and in males was 51-60 years. Commonest pattern of anemia was observed Microcytic Hypochromicfollowed by Dimorphic and Macrocytic anemia respectively. Conclusions:The introduction of automated cell counters has initiated a rethink on the conventional classification of routinely encountered conditions such as anemia. Iron deficiency anemia (IDA) is the most common anemia with microcytic hypochromic picture. It occurs in all age groups especially in woman in the reproductive age group.Diagnosing anemia and knowing its pattern is important since it help in directing further investigation, identifying the etiology and most importantly helps in treatment.

Beneficial Effects of Omega-3 Supplement to the Enteral Feeding in Children With Mild to Moderate Sepsis.

The objective was to investigate the benefits of supplementing enteral feeding with omega-3 fatty acids in children with mild to moderate sepsis and its effects on acute-phase reactants and interleukin 6 (IL-6) level. The study was a prospective randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study from January 2012 to June 2014, which included 2 groups of children with mild to moderate sepsis tolerating enteral feeding. Group A included 60 children supplemented with omega-3 fatty acids, whereas group B included 60 children who received enteral feeding without omega-3 supplementation. Both groups had complete blood pictures, C-reactive protein (CRP), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), serum albumin, and IL-6 before and after 7 days from supplementation. There was a significant improvement in hemoglobin percentage ( P < .0001), total white blood cell (WBC) count ( P < .0001), and platelet count ( P < .0001) and significant decrease in CRP ( P < .0001), ESR ( P < .0001), IL-6 ( P < .0001), and albumin level ( P < .001) in the supplemented group than the nonsupplemented group. The supplemented group also had a significantly shorter duration of stay in pediatric intensive care unit (PICU; P < .01) and decreased death rate than the nonsupplemented group. Children with mild to moderate sepsis showed significant improvement in inflammatory markers and had shorter PICU admission when enteral feeding was supplemented with omega-3 essential fatty acids.

Pharmacologic Strategies to Prevent Blood Loss and Transfusion in Orthotopic Liver Transplantation.

Patients undergoing orthotopic liver transplantation are at risk of both life-threatening blood loss and thrombosis due to preexisting liver dysfunction and major intra- and postoperative coagulopathy. Traditional laboratory markers of hemostasis and coagulopathy are often inadequate to describe the alterations. Whole blood global viscoelastic tests, thromboelastography, and thromboelastometry may provide more complete pictures of the hematologic derangements and allow for more targeted therapy to prevent blood loss and massive transfusion. Antifibrinolytic medications such as aprotinin, tranexamic acid, and [Latin Small Letter Open E]-aminocaproic acid have been used successfully to reduce blood loss and the need for transfusion, although most published data are from small prospective trials or larger retrospective cohorts. Recombinant factor VIIa has not been shown to improve outcomes. Although transfusion needs have been associated with adverse outcomes, no studied medications for prevention of blood loss and transfusion have been associated with improved mortality or graft survival post-liver transplant.

Toward a Model of Strategic Influence, International Broadcasting, and Global Engagement

This article explores how strategic communication, public diplomacy, international governmental broadcasting, and social media networking can be brought together in a system of strategic influence and global engagement. The analysis offers a contrasting approach to various views of public diplomacy or strategic communication which privilege one form of governmental influence over others and treat partial aspects of national persuasion as complete pictures of government communication aimed at foreign audiences. Because so much of public diplomacy literature today emphasizes social media, it is necessary to determine how specific tools of influence such as international broadcasting, can be used in ways that fit new thinking in public diplomacy as well as continuously emerging new media ecologies.

Abstract P6-07-03: Genetic heterogeneity revealed by targeted exome sequencing in advanced triple-negative breast cancer

Abstract Introduction: Clinical decisions in oncology are increasingly guided by molecular genetics. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) provides a platform for identifying potential therapeutic targets and clinically relevant genetic markers for personalized therapy. Methodology: We performed sequencing with the SmartGen 421 NGS gene panel, on relapsed triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) specimens (n = 11) by obtaining a biopsy from the most recent site of progressive disease. Custom HaloplexTM reagents were used to capture the regions of interest by hybridization to probes corresponding to target regions. Targets were amplified to enrich DNA libraries. Libraries were sequenced on an Ion Torrent Personal Genome Machine, and sequences compared to the reference genome GRCh37/hg19. The coding regions and +/-5 base pairs of the introns of 421 genes were sequenced. Analytic sensitivity for SNP calls was 94.1% (69.2%-99.7%, at 95% CI), specificity was 100%, for introns and deletions sensitivity was 78.9% (62.2%-89.9%, 95% CI) and specificity was 99.994%. Results: A total of 96 genes contained genetic variants, with each case harbouring 4 to 15 variants. No two cases had identical mutation profiles, indicating significant genetic heterogeneity. We tabulated a) all the genetic variants and b) potentially actionable variants based on predicted effects on protein structure and conservation of mutated amino acids, using COSMIC. Among the identified variants, n = 10/96 have been previously described in COSMIC. The others are previously unreported, de novo mutations of unknown functional significance. Not surprisingly, n = 8/11 tumors contained TP53 mutations, 7 of which previously described. Genes involved in DNA repair and cell stress responses were found frequently mutated (e.g., ATM, ATR, CHEK1, CHEK2, MLH1, MUTYH, PMS1, PMS2, XPC). Interestingly, 5 mutations in the PI3K-AKT-TOR pathway were identified, including two previously described PIK3CA mutations historically linked to estrogen receptor positive disease. We did not observe PTEN mutations often linked to basal-like breast cancer. Among identified genetic variants, n = 23/96 affected genes encoding kinases (receptor and non-receptor tyrosine kinases, serine/threonine kinases, lipid kinases), including 4 involved in DNA damage response. Developmental genes in the Notch, Wnt and Hedgehog pathways were also mutated. Our results emphasize molecular heterogeneity of TNBC and suggest a variety of possible mechanisms for treatment resistance. We must also acknowledge limitation of this study, which include: lack of information on transcript expression levels of the mutated genes, the limited set of genes examined (n = 421/ case), incomplete knowledge of functional and structural effects of genetic variants on each target gene and the contextual effect of coexisting variants, and the possibility that rare cellular clones may be below the limit of detection. Conclusions: We demonstrate that targeted sequencing using NGS is cost-effective, reliable and feasible for clinical use. Multiparamenter molecular profiling (DNA, RNA, protein, metabolism) will eventually provide more complete pictures of individual tumors for truly personalized treatment. Citation Format: Pannuti A, Filipovic A, Hicks C, Lefkowitz E, Ptacek T, Miele L, Stebbing J. Genetic heterogeneity revealed by targeted exome sequencing in advanced triple-negative breast cancer. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Thirty-Eighth Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium: 2015 Dec 8-12; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(4 Suppl):Abstract nr P6-07-03.

The Place You Come from Stamps You: Saul Bellow’s Midwest

The Place You Come from Stamps You:Saul Bellow’s Midwest Andrew Seal A review of Zachary Leader’s The Life of Saul Bellow: To Fame and Fortune, 1915–1964 (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2015) and Saul Bellow’s There is Simply Too Much to Think About: Collected Nonfiction, edited by Benjamin Taylor ( New York: Viking Press, 2015). “I am an American, Chicago-born,” wrote Saul Bellow, in the opening line of The Adventures of Augie March. But while that simple statement was true of Augie, it was not true of Bellow, who was born in Québec, in Montréal. Bellow did not even become a naturalized American citizen until 1943, only ten years before Augie March was published. Bellow is therefore, among other things, the most decorated first-generation author in U.S. literary history—a distinction not often mentioned in his list of accolades. He is also perhaps the best-known undocumented immigrant writer in U.S. history (his family crossed the Canadian border on the Fourth of July, 1924, smuggled over by bootleggers). Yet in the most important senses, Augie bore no false witness on Bellow’s behalf: if Saul was not a Chicagoan by nativity, he had what some Jews would call a Chicagoan neshama, a Chicagoan soul or spirit. Bellow brought a renewed wave of literary respect to the city of Chicago; he spoke often of it in public talks and affirmed how much it had shaped him. Although his fiction was set in many places over the years, Chicago was obviously an anchor, his axis mundi, a place to renew his literary gifts. The Chicago that people all over the world knew was the Chicago of the Bellovian imagination. But if Bellow was unimpeachably a Chicagoan, was he also a midwesterner? In Zachary Leader’s first volume of a two-volume biography of Bellow, we are given Bellow affirming his affinity for the Midwest on a number of occasions, for instance in an interview with a University of Minnesota student newspaper: “I think the place you come from stamps you,” he remarked, [End Page 207] and added, “I consider myself a mid-westerner.” But generally Bellow discussed his midwesternness in connection with his love for the City of Broad Shoulders, as when he wrote to Ralph Ellison enthusiastically about his time spent in Minneapolis: “I find the Midwest agrees with me. Here I recognize things. And I’m near Chicago.” A Chicagoan first, then, and a midwesterner second—perhaps not an uncommon form of nested identities, local and then regional. But even though a good chunk of the biography is set in Minneapolis and in Madison, Wisconsin, Leader’s biography of Bellow barely probes the question of region or regionalism in Bellow’s work or life, though that is not exactly a knock on his work, as most Chicago-centric lives and books seem to let the question of regionalism subside rather quickly, that jump from city to region left undefined. Those books which have been written about this question generally take a roundabout way of answering it. When that relationship is faced squarely—in a novel or a monograph or a biography—it is generally from the viewpoint of a migrant to the Windy City—which Bellow was, although not from the midwestern hinterland. Midwesterners become Chicagoans; Chicagoans, perhaps, are midwesterners by a kind of courtesy appointment. To read the two books under review—Leader’s biography and Benjamin Taylor’s edited collection of Bellow’s nonfiction—simply to settle the case of Saul Bellow’s midwesternness, however, would be a poor use of their vast scope. Leader’s biography in particular is an extraordinary work of accumulation and organization—it is really one of the most complete pictures of intellectual life in the United States of midcentury that we have. It more than earns the title “authoritative,” although biographies which are considered authoritative are also often said to have “the last word” on their subject, and while the work is certainly the former, it does not really attempt to have the latter. It is comprehensive—enormously impressive in its breadth of context and in its diligence of detail—but it...

The Severity of Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome is related to Red Cell Distribution Width and Hematocrit Values

Background: Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) is a common sleep disorder characterized by recurrent upper airway collapse during sleep. Recently, some hematological parameters as red cell distribution width (RDW), mean platelet volume (MPV), and platelet distribution width (PDW) have been emerged as inflammatory biomarkers. Limited, controversial data is available on the association between these hematological parameters and the severity of OSAS. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the levels of these parameters in patients with OSAS and its correlation with the severity of OSAS. Methods: The clinical data, polysomnography and laboratory results of complete blood pictures of 116 patients with OSAS were retrospectively collected and statistically analyzed. Results: Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome was associated with increased levels of hematocrit, RDW, MPV, PDW, and platelets count. RDW is positively correlated with Apnea–hypopnea index, oxygen desaturation index, Epworth sleepiness scale, and negatively correlated with minimum oxygen saturation and rapid eye movement sleep. Conclusion: RDW may be a marker for the severity of OSAS. As RDW is included in a complete blood count, it could provide an easy, inexpensive tool for triaging OSAS patients for polysomnography evaluation.

New records of Agaricaceae (Basidiomycota, Agaricales) from Araripe Nacional Forest, Ceará State, Brazil

An account is given of some new records of Agaricaceae species collected in fragments of the Araripe National Forest in the following municipalities of Ceara state: Barbalha, Crato and Santana do Cariri. As preliminary results, a total of six species belonging to five genera have been identified: Agaricus stijvei, Chlorophyllum hortense, Cystolepiota seminuda and Lepiota plumbicolor are new records from the Northeast of Brazil, while Leucocoprinus birnbaumii and Leucocoprinus fragilissimus are new records from the state of Ceara. Complete morphological descriptions, notes, drawings and color pictures of the basidiomes are provided.

Study on the documents of Java in Siku Quanshu Historical knowledge and historians’ point of view

The dissertation discusses various documents on Java collected in Siku Quanshu (Complete Library of Four Treasures). The documents used as the sources of this study are the ones with complete pictures and strong narration on Javanese recorded from Han Dynasty (206 bc–220 ad) to Ming Dynasty (1364–1644) in order to reveal what kind of historical knowledge or historical information is delivered by Chinese historians in general and what kind of point of view is used by historians to deliver the notes about Java. Through analytical reading, the readers will find that historians paid attention to three issues: the relationship between China and Java, the condition of Javanese kingdoms and their culture, and the Java land natural resources. People of China regard their country as an ancient country with long history of remarkable civilization which located in the centre of the world. The awareness of how important is their country, indirectly influences the historians’ points of views. The texts analyzed indirectly prove that some areas on Java are culturally left behind and the countries beyond China, including Java, are the barbaric ones obliging their people to submit or pay tributes to the Kingdoms of China.

A PICTURE BOOK OF INVISIBLE WORLDS: semblances of insects and humans in jakob von uexküll's laboratory

Dorion Sagan observes that pioneering ethologist Jakob von Uexküll tends to be read in contrasting ways, as a “humble naturalist” pre-empting current research in biosemiotics, animal perception and agency; and as a “biologist-shaman,” gesturing to a transcendental realm where the life-worlds of animals interconnect in a vast symphony of nature. In both cases the tools of the laboratory are thought to generate complete pictures of the invertebrates that Uexküll studies, in unity with their environments. As Giorgio Agamben points out, these experiments form part of an abstract mechanism that produces the human, by isolating instinctual life as an object for study and management from social and ethical modes of existence. What these readings neglect to consider is that Uexküll imagines his experiments through a Picture Book frame. We argue that for Uexküll there is always something fabulous and child-like about the enterprise of reconstructing the subjective environments of the small animals he works with. Drawing on Bernard Stiegler, we propose the Picture Book as a particular technics, or tertiary memory, that cultivates modes of attention that are associated with childhood and are open to the emergence of partial objects and relations. Considered through the Picture Book frame, the Umwelten of insects and other small animals are no longer fixed but are drawn and redrawn in partial expressive ways, through the uncanny picturing – or what Brian Massumi would call “semblances” – of different configurations of animal, technology, human relations. By considering the Picture Book as a technic for ecological thought and imagination, our paper will explore how the small creatures that Uexküll describes might enable the emergence of new ethical sensibilities and relations.

Trust and relational embeddedness: Exploring a paradox of trust pattern development in key supplier relationships

This paper explores the role of trust as an enabler and constraint between buyers and suppliers engaged in long-term relationships. According to the relational view, cooperative strategies require trust-based mutual commitments to co-create value. However, complete pictures of the positive and negative outcomes from trust development have yet to be fully developed. In particular, trust as an originator of path dependent constraints resulting from over embeddedness is yet to be integrated into the relational view. We use a case-based methodology to explore whether trust is an optimizing phenomenon in key supplier relationships. Two cases where trust development processes demonstrate a paradox of trust-building behaviors cultivate different outcomes constraining value co-creation.

A General Approach for Combining Voxel-Based Meta-Analyses Conducted in Different Neuroimaging Modalities

Meta-analyses are useful to summarize the exponential amount of inconsistent and conflicting neuroimaging data. However, they are usually separately conducted for each different neuroimaging modality, preventing the multimodal integration of different imaging findings in a given neuropsychiatric disorder. Here, we describe an innovative method to meta-analytically combine the results of different imaging modalities, such as structural and functional paradigms. The method accounts for the presence of noise in the estimation of the p-values, and can be easily applied to any meta-analytical software. We hope that with this advanced imaging tool, researchers will be able to provide more complete multimodal pictures of the brain regions affected in different neuropsychiatric disorders.

Developing new methods to investigate nuclear physics input to the cosmological lithium problem

A significant challenge to nuclear astrophysics is the cosmological lithium problem, where models of Big Bang nucleosynthesis indicate abundances of 7 Li two to four times larger than what is inferred via spec- troscopic measurements of metal-poor stars. Recent experimental techniques developed for nuclear reaction studies at energies near the fusion barrier, if extended to reactions of astrophysical interest, may help under- stand nuclear reactions that can affect the production of 7 Li during the Big Bang. Experiments at the ANU, using new experimental techniques, have provided complete pictures of the breakup mechanisms of light nuclei in collisions with heavy targets, such as 208 Pb and 209 Bi (1). These experiments revealed dominant breakup mechanisms which had not even been considered in theoretical models. The study of the breakup of 6 Li and 7 Li following interactions with 58,64 Ni and 27 Al acts as a stepping stone from this previous work towards future ex- perimental studies of breakup reactions of astrophysical relevance. In all cases studied, breakup is dominantly triggered by nucleon transfer between the colliding partners, but the transfer mechanisms are different. The findings of these experiments and experimental considerations for extensions to reactions of light nuclei, such as d + 7 Be, will be presented.

Dyskurs medialny i polityka wobec młodzieży a jej społeczne reprezentacje

Media discourse, policy towards youth and its social representations&#x0D; The article attempts to trace the discourse of the press about youth from the perspective of twenty years of transition appearing in media communications by „Gazeta Wyborcza”, „Dziennik. Polska‑Europa- Świat”, „Tygodnik Powszechny” and „Przegląd Polityczny”. Discursive construction of reality is treated as a social activity. Symbolic activity understood as ways of defining reality for young people, is, in my opinion, a key to try to answer questions about youth identity, position and role in the social world. Analysis were based on eight debates with the participation of young people. The analysis allowed to reconstruct a complete pictures of each debate, which were then presented in the form of graphic diagrams. It helped to restore the views of young people, the world around them, their place in it, subject of their concerns, fears, anxieties, dreams, life goals, values, etc. What is more, that knowledge reveal four collective representation of youth: “Generation ‘68”, “Generation ‘89”, “Generation 2000”, “Generation 2010”: and conditions under which they were created. Analysis are testimony to the progressive deconstruction of cultural tools, by which young people could define themselves in terms of a community. As a result, in discourse there appear a pragmatic and individualistic attitudes to reality and materialization of the awareness of young people.

The Gestalt in Unconscious Processing: Evidence for the Unconscious Binding Hypothesis

It remains unclear whether higher-level aspects of visual stimuli can be represented without awareness.The global workspace theory suggested that basic stimulus properties such as orientation,spatial frequency,color,and translational motion could still be encoded when rendered invisible.However,higher-level aspects of visual stimuli,for example,face perception,the meaning of words,could not be processed without awareness.Meanwhile,the unconscious binding hypothesis insisted that object-related representation could be formed by early and late perceptual binding even under invisible situation.In this study,we used incomplete pictures to investigated whether gestalt could facilitate perceptual binding during binocular rivalry.Specificly,we scrambled the complete and incomplete pictures to investigate:(1) whether there was a scrambled effect for both kinds of invisible pictures;(2) whether familiarity of the simple line pictures affected the time for stimuli breaking suppression.Continuous flash suppression was used in our experiment.Three factors were included:completeness of the construction(complete vs.incomplete),destruction of the meaning(scrambled vs.non-scrambled) and familiarity(upright vs.inverted).Subjects were instructed to respond as accurately and quickly as possible the appearance of any part of the test image as soon as possible and regardless of the specific content of the image.Eighteen volunteers participated in the experiment(8 males and 10 females).Results showed that non-scrambled pictures occupied less time than scrambled pictures to gain dominance against the identical suppression noise;The scrambled effect was observed both for incomplete and complete pictures;Upright pictures were not faster to enter consciousness than inverted ones.These results suggested that the features in incomplete pictures,even suppressed and invisible,could be bound together to form the object representation by gestalt.Apparently,high-level information(gestalt principles and meanings) of a stimulus did contribute to the strength of breaking suppression during its suppressed phase.Substantial information in the suppression phase of binocular rivalry could be processed to the extent that object-related representations could be achieved by gestalt.Our findings provided direct evidence for the unconscious binding hypothesis.