Focal Subjects Research Articles

Parliamentary procedures and democratization in Italy during the liberal age (1861–1922)

ABSTRACT This article revolves around two focal subjects: parliamentary procedures and democratization. On the one hand it explores the use of the term ‘democratization’ in the Italian parliamentary debate during the Liberal Age (1861–1922). On the other hand, it tries to clarify how the general trend of democratization, in particular the extensions of suffrage and the birth of mass parties, affected parliamentary practices in Italy.

The Thermal Effects of Coastal Nuclear Power Plant Thermal Discharge on Two Fish Species Based on the Probabilistic Frequency of Temperature Increment

This study selected Trachinotus ovatus and Nibea albiflora as the focal subjects to investigate the impacts of probabilistic frequency of temperature increment through laboratory simulations that mimicked the seasonal water elevated temperature adjacent to two coastal nuclear power plants. This research was underpinned by the probabilistic analysis of temperature increase frequencies, aiming to evaluate the thermal tolerance of these species across different seasonal contexts. Results demonstrated that the T. ovatus did not exhibit mortality in the spring, autumn, and winter. Mortality in T. ovatus occurred only during the summer in temperature-duration probability experimental groups subjected to 8.5ºC above ambient temperature with exposure probabilities of 50%, 75%, and 100%. The average survival rates were (93.3±3.3) %, (93.3±5.1) %, and (86.7±2.9) % respectively. The N. albiflora experienced mortality in spring, summer, autumn, and winter, with the highest mortality rate in summer. Compared to N. albiflora, T. ovatus exhibited significantly higher thermal tolerance across all seasons. As the experimental temperature increased and the duration probability rose, the mortality rates of both fish species showed an upward trend. There was an interaction between elevated temperature and duration probability, with the duration of different elevated temperature amplitudes significantly impacting the fish’s survival rates.

Prospective Long-term Seizure Outcomes in Medically-resistant Focal Epilepsy Subjects with Neuromodulation Devices (P3-1.009)

Prospective Long-term Seizure Outcomes in Medically-resistant Focal Epilepsy Subjects with Neuromodulation Devices (P3-1.009)

Determination of carbon nanoparticle dispersion solubility parameters using the classic Hansen and the DiPEVa method

Hansen's three-dimensional Solubility Parameter (3DSP) are widely recognized for assessing the compatibility of a dispersed phase with a continuous phase. A modified approach, known as the DiPEVa method, has recently emerged in the literature. This method refines 3DSP by incorporating surface tension considerations. Given the presence of these two similar methodologies, the objective of this study is to conduct a comparative analysis between the two approaches, employing carbon nanoparticles, including graphene oxide, carbon quantum dots (produced via microwave pyrolysis of Spirulina microalgae, and the reaction between citric acid and ethylenediamine), graphene nanoplatelets, and carbon nanotubes as the focal subjects. To achieve this, assessing solubility parameters involved dispersing these nanoparticles in 32 organic solvents with well-established solubility parameters. Subsequently, the collected data underwent a genetic algorithm optimization, facilitating the computation of the Hansen 3D dispersibility sphere. This process included the calculation of the 3DSP for the sphere's central point and its interaction radius (R0). Quality-of-fit metrics, such as DataFit values and the percentage of outliers, were computed to assess the accuracy of the models. As a result, it was evident that the DiPEVa method outperformed the Hansen method in most cases, except for carbon quantum dot dispersion obtained through Spirulina pyrolysis, where both methods yielded comparable results.

The role of Caenorhabditis elegans in the discovery of natural products for healthy aging.

Covering: 2012 to 2023The human population is aging. Thus, the greatest risk factor for numerous diseases, such as diabetes, cancer and neurodegenerative disorders, is increasing worldwide. Age-related diseases do not typically occur in isolation, but as a result of multi-factorial causes, which in turn require holistic approaches to identify and decipher the mode of action of potential remedies. With the advent of C. elegans as the primary model organism for aging, researchers now have a powerful in vivo tool for identifying and studying agents that effect lifespan and health span. Natural products have been focal research subjects in this respect. This review article covers key developments of the last decade (2012-2023) that have led to the discovery of natural products with healthy aging properties in C. elegans. We (i) discuss the state of knowledge on the effects of natural products on worm aging including methods, assays and involved pathways; (ii) analyze the literature on natural compounds in terms of their molecular properties and the translatability of effects on mammals; (iii) examine the literature on multi-component mixtures with special attention to the studied organisms, extraction methods and efforts regarding the characterization of their chemical composition and their bioactive components. (iv) We further propose to combine small in vivo model organisms such as C. elegans and sophisticated analytical approaches ("wormomics") to guide the way to dissect complex natural products with anti-aging properties.

UNRAVELING THE AMBIGUITY BETWEEN COGNITION AND DEPRESSION: A LONGITUDINAL ANALYSIS OF OLDER ADULTS

Abstract Research on directionality of the relationship between cognitive functioning and depression is ambiguous, especially when considering implications for patients with mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer disease (AD). Previous research suggests that depression in late life could be a pre-clinical manifestation of AD before other cognitive symptoms are detectable. Some research supports the hypothesis that level of depression can independently predict level of cognition. Other research suggests that depression is a risk factor for developing dementia or AD late in life. Further research on the impact of subjective cognitive decline versus objective cognitive performance in association with depressive symptoms is a critical area to explore. Using data from the Social Networks in Alzheimer Disease (SNAD) study and the Indiana Alzheimer Disease Research Center (IADRC), we conducted a preliminary longitudinal analysis of 196 focal subjects (Mage = 71.6 years, Pfemale = 63%). Interviews conducted one year apart were leveraged to elucidate the bidirectional relationship between depressive symptomology and cognition. Using a lagged dependent variable approach controlling for age, sex, race, and education, the results indicate that only executive function predicts depression at timepoint 2 (-0.31 SD, p< 0.001). However, depression predicts focal Cognitive Change Index (CCI) (0.06 SD, p< 0.05), processing speed (-0.04 SD, p< 0.05), and episodic memory (-0.04 SD, p< 0.05). Other cognitive domains examined, including attention, language, visual/spatial skills, MoCA score, and informant-rated CCI, were not significant as predictors or as outcomes. These results suggest that depression may be a more robust predictor of cognition than cognition is of depression.

Norway rats help social partners in need in response to ultrasonic begging signals

AbstractBegging signals are widespread in animals and have been extensively studied in the context of brood care. In contrast, the functionality of begging signals expressed among adults has not yet been scrutinised experimentally. Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus) have been shown to express 50‐kHz calls towards a social partner when in need of help to obtain food. Here, we tested with help of playbacks whether focal subjects exposed to a high rate of ultrasonic calls would increase their helping rate towards their social partner. The propensity to help a partner was significantly enhanced when the focal rats were exposed to playback with a doubled number of calls relative to baseline conditions. To the best of our knowledge, this provides the first evidence of increased help in response to an experimentally altered begging signal in adult animals.

Behavioral responses to riparian and anthropogenic edge effects in mantled howler monkeys (Alouatta palliata) in a disturbed riverine forest.

Fragmented forests contain natural edges, including riparian zones, and anthropogenic edges. Edges generally have lower plant density and fewer large trees than forest interior. Riparian edges, however, contain gap-specialist trees yielding leaves with high protein content, providing primates with important resources. We examined mantled howler monkeys' behavioral responses to riparian and anthropogenic edges at La Suerte Biological Research Station (LSBRS), Costa Rica. We predicted the monkeys would spend more time resting and feeding and less time traveling, and be less spatially cohesive, in both anthropogenic and riparian edges compared to forest interior due to lower resource abundance in edges, and in anthropogenic compared to riparian edge due to higher leaf quality in riparian zones. From 2017 to 2020, we collected data across forest zones on activity and spatial cohesion patterns via focal sampling, recording data every 2min. Howler monkeys were significantly more likely to rest and significantly less likely to travel in both anthropogenic and riparian edges compared to forest interior; however, there were no differences between these edge types. There were significantly more monkeys within a 5-m radius of focal subjects in both anthropogenic and riparian edges compared to forest interior, but no differences between these edge types. While prior research found no differences across zones when only anthropogenic edge and forest interior were compared, results of this study demonstrate that howler monkeys at LSBRS modify their activity patterns in anthropogenic and riparian edge zones compared to forest interior, highlighting the importance of focusing on both natural and anthropogenic edge zones to fully understand primates' behavioral responses in fragmented landscapes.

The presence of a potential competitor modulates risk preferences in rats

Although both human and non-human animals, in everyday life, deal with risky decisions in a social environment, few studies investigated how social dimension influences risk preferences (i.e., if consequences on others feeds back over own choice). Here, we assessed whether the presence of a conspecific, acting as a potential competitor for the same food resource, influenced risky decision-making in male rats. Subjects received a series of choices between a safe option (always yielding a small yet optimal reward, solely to itself) and a risky option (yielding a larger but suboptimal reward, one third of times to itself and two third of times delivered to the other half cage); rats were tested twice, both alone and paired with a conspecific, recipient of own-lost food and hence acting as potential competitor. Results showed that focal subjects were more risk-prone when paired with a conspecific than when tested alone. However, rats exhibited also a higher motivational conflict with a competing bystander present than alone: data suggest that the primary drive was to increase "own" food rather than either a competitive or prosocial tendency. Overall, for rats tested in a risky-choice task, a competitive social context increased the salience and attractiveness of larger food outcomes, as observed in humans and great apes. This led to the economically irrational response of selecting the “binge-but-risky” option, notwithstanding uncertainty about the actual recipient of such food.

An intentional cohesion call in male chimpanzees of Budongo Forest

Many social animals travel in cohesive groups but some species, including chimpanzees, form flexible fission–fusion systems where individuals have some control over group cohesion and proximity to others. Here, we explored how male chimpanzees of the Sonso community of Budongo Forest, Uganda, use communication signals during resting, a context where the likelihood of group fission is high due to forthcoming travel. We focused on a context-specific vocalisation, the ‘rest hoo’, to investigate its function and determine whether it is produced intentionally. We found that this call was typically given towards the end of typical silent resting bouts, i.e., the period when individuals need to decide whether to continue travelling after a brief stop-over or to start a prolonged resting bout. Subjects rested longer after producing ‘rest hoos’ and their resting time increased with the number of calls produced. They also rested longer if their calls were answered. Furthermore, focal subjects’ resting time was prolonged after hearing others’ ‘rest hoos’. Subjects called more when with top proximity partners and in small parties and rested longer if a top proximity partner called. We also found an interaction effect between rank and grooming activity, with high-ranking males with a high grooming index calling less frequently than other males, suggesting that vocal communication may serve as a cohesion strategy alternative to tactile-based bonding. We discuss these different patterns and conclude that chimpanzee ‘rest hoos’ meet key criteria for intentional signalling. We suggest that ‘rest hoos’ are produced to prolong resting bouts with desired partners, which may function to increase social cohesion.

On word order variation and informationstructure in peninsular spanish and italian ‘why’-interrogatives

In this paper, we investigate the effect of information structure on word order in Italian and Peninsular Spanish ‘why’-interrogatives, and whether these two languages differ from each other. To this end, we conducted two empirical studies. In a parallel text corpus study, we compared the frequency of the word order patterns ‘why’SV and ‘why’VS, as well as the distribution of focal and non-focal subjects in the two languages. In order to get a deeper understanding of the impact of the information structural categories focus and givenness on word order in ‘why’-interrogatives, we conducted a forced-choice experiment. The results indicate that word order is affected by focus in Italian, while it is not determined by any information structural category in Peninsular Spanish. We show that Italian and Peninsular Spanish ‘why’-interrogatives differ from each other in two ways. First, non-focal subjects occur preverbally in Italian, while they occupy the postverbal position in Peninsular Spanish. Second, Italian reveals a lower level of optionality with respect to word order patterns. Even though we find a high preference for the postverbal position in Peninsular Spanish, we argue that this limitation is related to a higher flexibility regarding word order in Peninsular Spanish than in Italian which does not allows for ‘why’VSO in contrast to Peninsular Spanish.

How to have fun with sticks, bowls, and colored water: insights into multimodal signifier operations through Lacan’s four discourses

Abstract In this manuscript, I present a signifier-based, multimodal discourse analysis of a focal event involving four children (ages 4–5) as they interacted with materials and with one another in their preschool classroom. I draw upon Jacques Lacan’s theory of the four discourses, applying the mathemes, or formulas that he developed, in order to map the multimodal signifier operations as they occurred in the moment-to-moment interactions during the event. My purpose was to use the signifier as a conceptual tool for multimodal discourse analysis, which revealed the highly particular discursive agencies that are characteristic aspects of signifier operations. Further, I examined the movement and operations of the signifiers as they were drawn from across modes and combined to create opportunities for the subjects to participate in the discourse. These signifier operations occurred according to discursive agencies of an educational discourse that both reduced and delimited subjectivities, as well as agencies that the focal subjects introduced to challenge and re-signify toward new ways to participate in the discourse.

Characterizing the electrophysiological abnormalities in visually reviewed normal EEGs of drug-resistant focal epilepsy patients.

Routine scalp EEG is essential in the clinical diagnosis and management of epilepsy. However, a normal scalp EEG (based on expert visual review) recorded from a patient with epilepsy can cause delays in diagnosis and clinical care delivery. Here, we investigated whether normal EEGs might contain subtle electrophysiological clues of epilepsy. Specifically, we investigated (i) whether there are indicators of abnormal brain electrophysiology in normal EEGs of epilepsy patients, and (ii) whether such abnormalities are modulated by the side of the brain generating seizures in focal epilepsy. We analysed awake scalp EEG recordings of age-matched groups of 144 healthy individuals and 48 individuals with drug-resistant focal epilepsy who had normal scalp EEGs. After preprocessing, using a bipolar montage of eight channels, we extracted the fraction of spectral power in the alpha band (8–13 Hz) relative to a wide band of 0.5–40 Hz within 10-s windows. We analysed the extracted features for (i) the extent to which people with drug-resistant focal epilepsy differed from healthy subjects, and (ii) whether differences within the drug-resistant focal epilepsy patients were related to the hemisphere generating seizures. We then used those differences to classify whether an EEG is likely to have been recorded from a person with drug-resistant focal epilepsy, and if so, the epileptogenic hemisphere. Furthermore, we tested the significance of these differences while controlling for confounders, such as acquisition system, age and medications. We found that the fraction of alpha power is generally reduced (i) in drug-resistant focal epilepsy compared to healthy controls, and (ii) in right-handed drug-resistant focal epilepsy subjects with left hemispheric seizures compared to those with right hemispheric seizures, and that the differences are most prominent in the frontal and temporal regions. The fraction of alpha power yielded area under curve values of 0.83 in distinguishing drug-resistant focal epilepsy from healthy and 0.77 in identifying the epileptic hemisphere in drug-resistant focal epilepsy patients. Furthermore, our results suggest that the differences in alpha power are greater when compared with differences attributable to acquisition system differences, age and medications. Our findings support that EEG-based measures of normal brain function, such as the normalized spectral power of alpha activity, may help identify patients with epilepsy even when an EEG does not contain any epileptiform activity, recorded seizures or other abnormalities. Although alpha abnormalities are unlikely to be disease-specific, we propose that such abnormalities may provide a higher pre-test probability for epilepsy when an individual being screened for epilepsy has a normal EEG on visual assessment.

Rats show direct reciprocity when interacting with multiple partners

Direct reciprocity, where individuals apply the decision rule ‘help someone who has helped you’, is believed to be rare in non-human animals due to its high cognitive demands. Especially if previous encounters with several partners need to be correctly remembered, animals might either stop reciprocating favours previously received from an individual, or switch to the simpler generalized reciprocity mechanism. Here we tested the decision rules Norway rats apply when interacting with multiple partners before being able to return received help. In a sequential prisoner’s dilemma situation, focal subjects encountered four different partners that were either helpful or not, on four consecutive days. On the fifth day, the focal subject was paired with one of the previous four partners and given the opportunity to provide it with food. The focal rats returned received help by closely matching the quantity of help their partner had previously provided, independently of the time delay between received and given help, and independently of the ultimate interaction preceding the test. This shows that direct reciprocity is not limited to dyadic situations in Norway rats, suggesting that cognitive demands involved in applying the required decision rules can be met by non-human animals even when they interact with multiple partners differing in helping propensity.

Examining Agency in Children’s Nonfiction Picture Books

Given increased attention toward nonfiction and informational texts due to recent educational reforms in the nation, it is critical to examine how various cultural identities are depicted in nonfiction children’s picture books. Focusing on the Orbis Pictus honor and awarded texts (n = 60) from 1990 to 2019, this article reports the findings of a critical multicultural analysis of the depictions of age, sex, socio-economic status, ethnicities, and geographic regions of these awarded texts. Using a secondary analysis of opportunities for agency, we examine how focal subjects (Crisp in Lang Arts 92(4):241–255, 2015) exert their agency in their respective contexts. Our aim in doing so is to problematize the notion of agency in these texts, specifically understanding who exerts agency, how, and for what purposes. Findings suggest that the authors of these awarded texts rely on highlighting White, European males where agency is typically depicted as an act that occurs in adulthood. As a result, discussion focuses on how such texts, although well-meaning, perhaps perpetuate the traditional notion and passivity of young children in relation to their agency and calls to question the lack of multiple perspectives and voices in the awarded texts.

Eye Preference for Emotional Stimuli in Sichuan Snub-Nosed Monkeys

This study presents the first evidence of effects of applying both positive and negative stimuli simultaneously on visual laterality in Old World monkeys. Thirteen captive individuals of Sichuan snub-nosed monkeys (Rhinopithecus roxellana) were chosen as focal subjects in the monocular box task. In total, 4 emotional categories (the preferred, the novel, the neutral, and the fearful) of visual stimuli were applied, and eye preference was recorded when individuals looked at each stimulus through an observation hole in the box. We found evidence of visual laterality at the individual level, but not at the group level for each stimulus. For the preferred stimulus, 9 individuals showed significant right-eye preference while 4 individuals showed significant left-eye preference. For the other 3 stimuli, 7 individuals displayed significant right-eye preference while 6 individuals displayed significant left-eye preference. Totally, 11 of 13 individuals showed consistency in the visual laterality direction (7 right-eye preference and 4 left-eye preference) across the 4 stimuli. The remaining 2 individuals displayed right-eye preference for the preferred stimulus while they showed left-eye preference for the other 3 stimuli. There was no significant difference among various stimuli regarding the direction of visual laterality. However, there was a significant difference in the strength of visual laterality among various stimulus categories. The strength of visual laterality for the preferred stimulus was significantly lower than that for the other 3 stimuli. The strength of visual laterality for the fearful stimulus was significantly higher than that for the novel stimulus and the neutral stimulus. Furthermore, the looking duration for the preferred stimulus was significantly higher than that for the other 3 stimuli. The looking duration for the novel stimulus was significantly higher than that for the neutral stimulus and the fearful stimulus. The looking duration for the neutral stimulus was significantly higher than that for the fearful stimulus. Our findings indicate emotional valence of stimuli significantly influence eye looking duration and the strength of visual laterality but not for the direction of visual laterality in this species. Taken together, emotional valence of stimuli plays an important role in the eye use of R. roxellana.

Behavioral Teleporting of Individual Ethograms onto Inanimate Robots: Experiments on Social Interactions in Live Zebrafish.

SummarySocial behavior is widespread in the animal kingdom, and it remarkably influences human personal and professional lives. However, a thorough understanding of the mechanisms underlying social behavior is elusive. Integrating the seemingly different fields of robotics and preclinical research could bring new insight on social behavior. Toward this aim, we established “behavioral teleporting” as an experimental solution to independently manipulate multiple factors underpinning social interactions. Behavioral teleporting consists of real-time transfer of the complete ethogram of a live zebrafish onto a remotely-located robotic replica. Through parallel and simultaneous behavioral teleporting, we studied the interaction between two live fish swimming in remotely-located tanks: each live fish interacted with an inanimate robot that mirrored the behavior of the other fish, and the morphology of each robot was independently tailored. Our results indicate that behavioral teleporting can preserve natural interaction between two live animals, while allowing fine control over morphological features that modulate social behavior.

Shared transcriptional responses to con- and heterospecific behavioral antagonists in a wild songbird

The recognition of and differential responses to salient stimuli are among the main drivers of behavioral plasticity, yet, how animals evolve and modulate functional responses to novel classes of antagonistic stimuli remain poorly understood. We studied free-living male red-winged blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus) to test whether gene expression responses in blood are distinct or shared between patterns of aggressive behavioral responses directed at simulated conspecific versus heterospecific intruders. In this species, males defend territories against conspecific males and respond aggressively to female brown-headed cowbirds (Molothrus ater), a brood parasite that commonly lays eggs in blackbird nests. Both conspecific songs and parasitic calls elicited aggressive responses from focal subjects and caused a downregulation in genes associated with immune system response, relative to control calls of a second, harmless heterospecific species. In turn, only the conspecific song treatment elicited an increase in singing behavior and an upregulation of genes associated with metabolic processes relative to the two heterospecific calls. Our results suggest that aspects of antagonistic behaviors to both conspecifics and brood parasites can be mediated by similar physiological responses, suggestive of shared molecular and behavioral pathways involved in the recognition and reaction to both evolutionarily old and new enemies.

Adapting Methodology Used on Captive Subjects for Estimating Gut Passage Time in Wild Monkeys

Gut passage time of food has consequences for primate digestive strategies, which subsequently affect seed dispersal. Seed dispersal models are critical in understanding plant population and community dynamics through estimation of seed dispersal distances, combining movement data with gut passage times. Thus, developing methods to collect in situ data on gut passage time are of great importance. Here we present a first attempt to develop an in situ study of gut passage time in an arboreal forest guenon, the samango monkey (Cercopithecus albogularis schwarzi) in the Soutpansberg Mountains, South Africa. Cercopithecus spp. consume large proportions of fruit and are important seed dispersers. However, previous studies on gut passage times have been conducted only on captive Cercopithecusspp. subjects, where movement is restricted, and diets are generally dissimilar to those observed in the wild. Using artificial digestive markers, we targeted provisioning of a male and a female samango monkey 4 times over 3 and 4 days, respectively. We followed the focal subjects from dawn until dusk following each feeding event, collecting faecal samples and recording the date and time of deposition and the number of markers found in each faecal sample. We recovered 6.61 ± 4 and 13 ± 9% of markers from the male and the female, respectively, and were able to estimate a gut passage window of 16.63–25.12 h from 3 of the 8 trials. We discuss methodological issues to help future researchers to develop in situ studies on gut passage times.

Types of Personal Social Networks of Older Adults in Portugal

This study presents and discusses a three-dimensional typology for personal social networks of Portuguese older adults. We used a K-means cluster analysis of structural, functional and relational-contextual variables of the networks of 612 participants aged 65 + (M = 76 ± 7.6), mostly women (63%). Four types of networks emerged: family networks, friendship networks, neighbourhood networks and institutional networks. The most frequent are family networks (61.8%), constituted by 94.6% of family ties, on average, attesting the familistic nature of the older persons’ networks in Portugal, followed by friendship networks (23.5%) and neighbourhood networks (11.9%). The less frequent type is the institutional network (2.8%), dominated by formal ties (M = 59.3%). Sociographic profiles reveal that family networks are more likely to be held by middle-old focal subjects, married or widowed, and with children. Friendship and neighbourhood networks are held by young-old subjects with different marital status, many of them living alone, with a higher proportion of men with friendship networks. Institutional networks are held by old–old, widowed or single with no children. The presented typology contributes to understand social support needs and social isolation. The conclusions allow to anticipate social services’ demand trajectories and to propose intervention plans and social policy measures to promote the wellbeing of the older population.