Browsing by Subject "behavior"
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Item Accelerational Implications of Hummingbird Display Dives(1995-10) Larimer, James L.; Dudley, Robert;Item Alcohol Disinhibition of Behaviors in C. elegans(PLOS One, 2014-03-28) Topper, Stephen M.; Aguilar, Sara C.; Topper, Viktoria Y.; Elbel, Erin; Pierce-Shimomura, Jonathan T.Alcohol has a wide variety of effects on physiology and behavior. One of the most well-recognized behavioral effects is disinhibition, where behaviors that are normally suppressed are displayed following intoxication. A large body of evidence has shown that alcohol-induced disinhibition in humans affects attention, verbal, sexual, and locomotor behaviors. Similar behavioral disinhibition is also seen in many animal models of ethanol response, from invertebrates to mammals and primates. Here we describe several examples of disinhibition in the nematode C. elegans. The nematode displays distinct behavioral states associated with locomotion (crawling on land and swimming in water) that are mediated by dopamine. On land, animals crawl and feed freely, but these behaviors are inhibited in water. We found that additional behaviors, including a variety of escape responses are also inhibited in water. Whereas alcohol non-specifically impaired locomotion, feeding, and escape responses in worms on land, alcohol specifically disinhibited these behaviors in worms immersed in water. Loss of dopamine signaling relieved disinhibition of feeding behavior, while loss of the D1-like dopamine receptor DOP-4 impaired the ethanol-induced disinhibition of crawling. The powerful genetics and simple nervous system of C. elegans may help uncover conserved molecular mechanisms that underlie alcohol-induced disinhibition of behaviors in higher animals.Item Association of Breakfast Intake with Obesity, Dietary and Physical Activity Behavior Among Urban School-Aged Adolescents in Delhi, India: Results of a Cross-Sectional Study(2012-10) Arora, Monika; Nazar, Gaurang P.; Gupta, Vinay K.; Perry, Cheryl L.; Reddy, K. Srunath; Stigler, Melissa H.; Perry, Cheryl L.; Stigler, Melissa H.In developed countries, regular breakfast consumption is inversely associated with excess weight and directly associated with better dietary and improved physical activity behaviors. Our objective was to describe the frequency of breakfast consumption among school-going adolescents in Delhi and evaluate its association with overweight and obesity as well as other dietary, physical activity, and sedentary behaviors. Methods: Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Eight schools (Private and Government) of Delhi in the year 2006. Participants: 1814 students from 8th and 10th grades; response rate was 87.2%; 55% were 8th graders, 60% were boys and 52% attended Private schools. Main outcome measures: Body mass index, self-reported breakfast consumption, diet and physical activity related behaviors, and psychosocial factors. Data analysis: Mixed effects regression models were employed, adjusting for age, gender, grade level and school type (SES). Results: Significantly more Government school (lower SES) students consumed breakfast daily as compared to Private school (higher SES) students (73.8% vs. 66.3%; p<0.01). More 8th graders consumed breakfast daily vs. 10th graders (72.3% vs. 67.0%; p<0.05). A dose-response relationship was observed such that overall prevalence of overweight and obesity among adolescents who consumed breakfast daily (14.6%) was significantly lower vs. those who only sometimes (15.2%) or never (22.9%) consumed breakfast (p<0.05 for trend). This relationship was statistically significant for boys (15.4 % vs. 16.5% vs. 26.0; p<0.05 for trend) but not for girls. Intake of dairy products, fruits and vegetables was 5.5 (95% CI 2.4-12.5), 1.7 (95% CI 1.1-2.5) and 2.2 (95% CI 1.3-3.5) times higher among those who consumed breakfast daily vs. those who never consumed breakfast. Breakfast consumption was associated with greater physical activity vs. those who never consumed breakfast. Positive values and beliefs about healthy eating; body image satisfaction; and positive peer and parental influence were positively associated with daily breakfast consumption, while depression was negatively associated. Conclusion: Daily breakfast consumption is associated with less overweight and obesity and with healthier dietary-and physical activity-related behaviors among urban Indian students. Although prospective studies should confirm the present results, intervention programs to prevent or treat childhood obesity in India should consider emphasizing regular breakfast consumption.Item Capitalizing On Diversity: Interpersonal Congruence In Small Work Groups(2002-06) Polzer, J. T.; Milton, L. P.; Swann, W. B.; Swann, William B. Jr.We examine interpersonal congruence, the degree to which group members see others in the group as others see themselves, as a moderator of the relationship between diversity and group effectiveness. A longitudinal study of 83 work groups revealed that diversity tended to improve creative task performance in groups with high interpersonal congruence, whereas diversity undermined the performance of groups with low interpersonal congruence. This interaction effect also emerged on measures of social integration, group identification, and relationship conflict. By eliciting self-verifying appraisals, members of some groups achieved enough interpersonal congruence during their first ten minutes of interaction to benefit their group outcomes four months later. In contrast to theories of social categorization, the interpersonal congruence approach suggests that group members can achieve harmonious and effective work processes by expressing rather than suppressing the characteristics that make them unique.Item Do Violent Video Games Impair the Effectiveness of In-Game Advertisements? The Impact of Gaming Environment on Brand Recall, Brand Attitude, and Purchase Intention(2011-07) Yoo, Seung-Chul; Pena, Jorge; Yoo, Seung-Chul; Pena, JorgeThe present study examined whether a violent video game impairs the effectiveness of in-game advertisements compared to a nonviolent video game. Participants recalled and evaluated in-game ads after navigating identical violent or nonviolent game scenarios. Participants' brand recall, recognition, and attitudes were comparatively lower after navigating the violent video game. Also, females in the violent game condition reported lower brand attitudes in comparison to males in the violent game condition, thus suggesting that the effects of gaming environment interacts with participants' gender. The findings supported the predictions of the limited capacity model of attention and cognitive priming effects. The results also extend previous studies on how violent media impair advertising effectiveness and provide practical implications for researchers and practitioners.Item Electrical Stimulation of Lateral Habenula during Learning: Frequency-Dependent Effects on Acquisition but Not Retrieval of a Two-Way Active Avoidance Response(PLOS One, 2013-06-28) Ilango, Anton; Shumake, Jason; Wetsel, Wolfram; Scheich, Henning; Ohl, Frank W.The lateral habenula (LHb) is an epithalamic structure involved in signaling reward omission and aversive stimuli, and it inhibits dopaminergic neurons during motivated behavior. Less is known about LHb involvement in the acquisition and retrieval of avoidance learning. Our previous studies indicated that brief electrical stimulation of the LHb, time-locked to the avoidance of aversive footshock (presumably during the positive affective “relief” state that occurs when an aversive outcome is averted), inhibited the acquisition of avoidance learning. In the present study, we used the same paradigm to investigate different frequencies of LHb stimulation. The effect of 20 Hz vs. 50 Hz vs. 100 Hz stimulation was investigated during two phases, either during acquisition or retrieval in Mongolian gerbils. The results indicated that 50 Hz, but not 20 Hz, was sufficient to produce a long-term impairment in avoidance learning, and was somewhat more effective than 100 Hz in this regard. None of the stimulation parameters led to any effects on retrieval of avoidance learning, nor did they affect general motor activity. This suggests that, at frequencies in excess of the observed tonic firing rates of LHb neurons (>1–20 Hz), LHb stimulation may serve to interrupt the consolidation of new avoidance memories. However, these stimulation parameters are not capable of modifying avoidance memories that have already undergone extensive consolidation.Item Equilibrium characteristics of semiflexible polymer solutions near probe particles(2008-11) Ganesan, Venkat; Khounlavong, Landry; Pryamitsyn, Victor; Ganesan, Venkat; Khounlavong, Landry; Pryamitsyn, VictorWe present a numerical analysis of the mean-field theory for the structure of semiflexible polymer solutions near spherical surfaces, and use the framework to study the depletion characteristics of semiflexible polymers near colloids and nanoparticles. Our results suggest that the depletion characteristics depend sensitively on the polymer concentrations, the persistence lengths, and the radius of the particles. Broadly, two categories of features are identified based on the relative ratios of the persistence lengths to the correlation length of the polymer solution. For the limit where the correlation length is larger than the persistence length, the correlation length proves to be the critical length scale governing both the depletion thickness and the curvature effects. In contrast, for the opposite limit, the depletion thickness and the curvature effects are dependent on a length scale determined by an interplay between the persistence length and the correlation length. This leads to nontrivial (numerical) scaling laws governing the concentration and radii dependence of the depletion thicknesses. Our study also highlights the manner by which the preceding features rationalize the parametric dependencies of insertion free energies of small probes in semiflexible polymer solutions.Item Gene Bionetworks Involved in the Epigenetic Transgenerational Inheritance of Altered Mate Preference: Environmental Epigenetics and Evolutionary Biology(2014-05) Skinner, Michael K.; Savenkova, Marina I.; Zhang, Bin; Gore, Andrea C.; Crews, David; Gore, Andrea C.Mate preference behavior is an essential first step in sexual selection and is a critical determinant in evolutionary biology. Previously an environmental compound (the fungicide vinclozolin) was found to promote the epigenetic transgenerational inheritance of an altered sperm epigenome and modified mate preference characteristics for three generations after exposure of a gestating female. Results: The current study investigated gene networks involved in various regions of the brain that correlated with the altered mate preference behavior in the male and female. Statistically significant correlations of gene clusters and modules were identified to associate with specific mate preference behaviors. This novel systems biology approach identified gene networks (bionetworks) involved in sex-specific mate preference behavior. Observations demonstrate the ability of environmental factors to promote the epigenetic transgenerational inheritance of this altered evolutionary biology determinant. Conclusions: Combined observations elucidate the potential molecular control of mate preference behavior and suggests environmental epigenetics can have a role in evolutionary biology.Item Graphoepitaxy for translational and orientational ordering of monolayers of rectangular nanoparticles(2016-03) Ferraro, Mark E.; Truskett, Thomas M.; Bonnecaze, Roger T.; Ferraro, Mark E.; Truskett, Thomas M.; Bonnecaze, Roger T.The combinations of particle aspect ratio and enthalpic-barrier templates that lead to translational and orientational ordering of monolayers of rectangular particles are determined using Monte Carlo simulations and density functional theory. For sufficiently high enthalpic barriers, we find that only specific combinations of particle sizes and template spacings lead to ordered arrays. The pattern multiplication factor provided by the template extends to approximately ten times the smallest dimension of the particle.Item incorporating Health Care Quality into Health Antitrust Law(2008-04) Schneider, Helen; Schneider, HelenAntitrust authorities treat price as a proxy for hospital quality since health care quality is difficult to observe. As the ability to measure quality improved, more research became necessary to investigate the relationship between hospital market power and patient outcomes. This paper examines the impact of hospital competition on the quality of care as measured by the risk-adjusted mortality rates with the hospital as the unit of analysis. The study separately examines the effect of competition on non-profit hospitals. Methods: We use California Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development (OSHPD) data from 1997 through 2002. Empirical model is a cross-sectional study of 373 hospitals. Regression analysis is used to estimate the relationship between Coronary Artery Bypass Graft (CABG) risk-adjusted mortality rates and hospital competition. Results: Regression results show lower risk-adjusted mortality rates in the presence of a more competitive environment. This result holds for all alternative hospital market definitions. Nonprofit hospitals do not have better patient outcomes than investor-owned hospitals. However, they tend to provide better quality in less competitive environments. CABG volume did not have a significant effect on patient outcomes. Conclusion: Quality should be incorporated into the antitrust analysis. When mergers lead to higher prices and lower quality, thus lower social welfare, the antitrust challenge of hospital mergers is warranted. The impact of lower hospital competition on quality of care delivered by non-profit hospitals is ambiguous.Item Introduction to bifurcation-theory(1991-10) Crawford, J. D.; Crawford, J. D.The theory of bifurcation from equilibria based on center-manifold reductio, and Poincare-Birkhoff normal forms is reviewed at an introductory level. Both differential equations and maps are discussed, and recent results explaining the symmetry of the normal form are derived. The emphasis is on the simplest generic bifurcations in one-parameter systems. Two applications are developed in detail: a Hopf bifurcation occurring in a model of three-wave mode coupling and steady-state bifurcations occurring in the real Landau-Ginzburg equation. The former provides an example of the importance of degenerate bifurcations in problems with more than one parameter and the latter illustrates new effects introduced into a bifurcation problem by a continuous symmetry.Item Letter to H.B. Stenzel from Hubert Frings on 1964-03-12(1964-03-12) Frings, HubertItem Optical Threshold Layer And Intermediate State Two-Photon Pag Approaches To Double Exposure Lithography(2009-04) Berro, A. J.; Gu, X. Y.; O'Connor, N.; Jockusch, S.; Nagai, T.; Ogata, T.; Zimmerman, P.; Rice, B. J.; Adolph, E.; Byargeon, T.; Gonzalez, J.; Turro, N. J.; Willson, C. G.; Berro, Adam J.; Gu, Xinyu; Nagai, Tomoki; Ogata, Toshiyuki; Adolph, Elizabeth; Byargeon, Travis; Gonzalez, Jose; Willson, C. GrantIntermediate state two-photon (ISTP) photoacid generator (PAG) and optical threshold layer (OTL) approaches to double exposure lithography have been explored. We have synthesized >transparent> PAG and sensitizer compounds for use in ISTP systems and have demonstrated the possibility of utilizing such energy transfer systems to generate acid. We have also synthesized side chain liquid crystalline polymers and small molecule azobenzene compounds for use in OTL applications and have begun photoswitching studies.Item A Population of Woodrats in Southern Texas(Texas Memorial Museum, The University of Texas at Austin, 1966-04) Raun, Gerald G.Item Vortex bubble formation in pair plasmas(2013-07) Berezhiani, V. I.; Shatashvili, N. L.; Mahajan, S. M.; Aleksic, B. N.; Mahajan, S. M.It is shown that delocalized vortex solitons in relativistic pair plasmas with small temperature asymmetries can be unstable for intermediate intensities of the background electromagnetic field. Instability leads to the generation of ever-expanding cavitating bubbles in which the electromagnetic fields are zero. The existence of such electromagnetic bubbles is demonstrated by qualitative arguments based on a hydrodynamic analogy, and by numerical solutions of the appropriate nonlinear Schrodinger equation with a saturating nonlinearity.