85 posts · 53,480 views
The Psychological & Neuroscientific musings of sndygautam.
sandygautam
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- August 21, 2011
- 12:26 PM
- 377 views
Dopamine: prediction-error vs. incentive salience
by sandygautam in The Mouse Trap
The exact role that dopamine plays in learning remains controversial; some think it acts as a prediction error signal, while Berrdige et al believe that dopamine codes for incentive salience.
A recent paper throws some light on the issue. It uses a simple Pavlovian conditioning paradigm. To recap, US and CS are paired and after some [...]Rating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)... Read more »
Flagel, S., Clark, J., Robinson, T., Mayo, L., Czuj, A., Willuhn, I., Akers, C., Clinton, S., Phillips, P., & Akil, H. (2010) A selective role for dopamine in stimulus–reward learning. Nature, 469(7328), 53-57. DOI: 10.1038/nature09588
- March 16, 2011
- 02:26 PM
- 204 views
Intrinsic connectivity Networks: Neurodegenerative link
by sandygautam in The Mouse Trap
In my last 3 posts, I have talked about ICNs and how they change over developmental time-frame and how many basic ICNs we have in the adult human brain. This post will talk about neuroegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and how the underlying atrophy in neurodegenrative networks closely resembles the underlying ICNs and SCNs. But firstRating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)... Read more »
Mathuranath, P., Aswathy, P., & Jairani, P. (2010) Genetics of frontotemporal lobar degeneration. Annals of Indian Academy of Neurology, 13(6), 55. DOI: 10.4103/0972-2327.74246
Hodges, J., & Leyton, C. (2010) Frontotemporal dementias: Recent advances and current controversies. Annals of Indian Academy of Neurology, 13(6), 74. DOI: 10.4103/0972-2327.74249
Zhou, J., Greicius, M., Gennatas, E., Growdon, M., Jang, J., Rabinovici, G., Kramer, J., Weiner, M., Miller, B., & Seeley, W. (2010) Divergent network connectivity changes in behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia and Alzheimer's disease. Brain, 133(5), 1352-1367. DOI: 10.1093/brain/awq075
Seeley, W., Crawford, R., Zhou, J., Miller, B., & Greicius, M. (2009) Neurodegenerative Diseases Target Large-Scale Human Brain Networks. Neuron, 62(1), 42-52. DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2009.03.024
- March 14, 2011
- 11:30 PM
- 242 views
Intrinsic Connectivity Networks: the adult form
by sandeep gautam in The Mouse Trap
Describes the ICNs/SCNs found in the adult human brain... Read more »
Zuo, X., Kelly, C., Adelstein, J., Klein, D., Castellanos, F., & Milham, M. (2010) Reliable intrinsic connectivity networks: Test–retest evaluation using ICA and dual regression approach. NeuroImage, 49(3), 2163-2177. DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2009.10.080
Damoiseaux, J., Rombouts, S., Barkhof, F., Scheltens, P., Stam, C., Smith, S., & Beckmann, C. (2006) Consistent resting-state networks across healthy subjects. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 103(37), 13848-13853. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0601417103
Fair, D., Cohen, A., Power, J., Dosenbach, N., Church, J., Miezin, F., Schlaggar, B., & Petersen, S. (2009) Functional Brain Networks Develop from a “Local to Distributed” Organization. PLoS Computational Biology, 5(5). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1000381
Zielinski, B., Gennatas, E., Zhou, J., & Seeley, W. (2010) Network-level structural covariance in the developing brain. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 107(42), 18191-18196. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1003109107
- March 10, 2011
- 12:45 PM
- 547 views
Intrinsic Connectivity Networks: developmental time course
by sandygautam in The Mouse Trap
In my last post I introduced the mouse trap readers to ICNs , ICA and the rs-fcMRI (resting state Functional connectivity fMRI) procedure that is used to detect such networks. This post extends that exciting line of work by commenting on 3 papers that list the ICNs found in the developing brain (infant, child ,Rating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)... Read more »
Fransson, P., Skiold, B., Horsch, S., Nordell, A., Blennow, M., Lagercrantz, H., & Aden, U. (2007) Resting-state networks in the infant brain. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 104(39), 15531-15536. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0704380104
Fair, D., Cohen, A., Power, J., Dosenbach, N., Church, J., Miezin, F., Schlaggar, B., & Petersen, S. (2009) Functional Brain Networks Develop from a “Local to Distributed” Organization. PLoS Computational Biology, 5(5). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1000381
Zielinski, B., Gennatas, E., Zhou, J., & Seeley, W. (2010) Network-level structural covariance in the developing brain. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 107(42), 18191-18196. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1003109107
- March 9, 2011
- 01:03 PM
- 575 views
Intrinsic Connectivity Networks: more than just DMN
by sandygautam in The Mouse Trap
fMRI has become an important investigation and research tool in trying to locate neural correlates of a function X,Y,Z in the brain. However notwithstanding the allure of seductive neuroscan images, fMRI studies at times leaves us as clueless about the brain and its organization as we were before the studies were conducted. However , justRating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)... Read more »
Zuo, X., Kelly, C., Adelstein, J., Klein, D., Castellanos, F., & Milham, M. (2010) Reliable intrinsic connectivity networks: Test–retest evaluation using ICA and dual regression approach. NeuroImage, 49(3), 2163-2177. DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2009.10.080
Zhang, H., Duan, L., Zhang, Y., Lu, C., Liu, H., & Zhu, C. (2011) Test–retest assessment of independent component analysis-derived resting-state functional connectivity based on functional near-infrared spectroscopy. NeuroImage, 55(2), 607-615. DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2010.12.007
AUER, D. (2008) Spontaneous low-frequency blood oxygenation level-dependent fluctuations and functional connectivity analysis of the ‘resting’ brain. Magnetic Resonance Imaging, 26(7), 1055-1064. DOI: 10.1016/j.mri.2008.05.008
Damoiseaux, J., Rombouts, S., Barkhof, F., Scheltens, P., Stam, C., Smith, S., & Beckmann, C. (2006) Consistent resting-state networks across healthy subjects. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 103(37), 13848-13853. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0601417103
- January 21, 2011
- 01:41 PM
- 550 views
Mind perception of others: opposing effects of having Autism/Psychosis
by sandygautam in The Mouse Trap
Image via Wikipedia It has been this blog’s thesis that autism and its milder form autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are diametrically opposed to psychosis and its milder form schizotypy. In no area is this more apparent than in the perception or attribution of minds to others. It thus gave me immense pleasure to read thisRating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)... Read more »
Gray, K., Jenkins, A., Heberlein, A., & Wegner, D. (2010) Distortions of mind perception in psychopathology. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 108(2), 477-479. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1015493108
- January 6, 2011
- 01:52 PM
- 418 views
I could have avoided writing this blogpost, but I was fated to be a blogger!
by sandygautam in The Mouse Trap
Image via Wikipedia What can you say about an academic paper that starts with references to Milan Kundera and ends with a quote from Shakespeare. Well you gotta love it and blog about it; but I might have easily passed over that paper for something more interesting ; also how much is it to luckRating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)... Read more »
Burrus, J. (2006) Long Ago It Was Meant to Be: The Interplay Between Time, Construal, and Fate Beliefs. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 32(8), 1050-1058. DOI: 10.1177/0146167206288282
- November 22, 2010
- 02:21 PM
- 404 views
Personality and Behavioural Ecology
by sandygautam in The Mouse Trap
Image by The Happy Robot via Flickr I am an avid personality researcher and most recently have posted a series on personality and emotion. I have also talked a bit about life-history theories and thus am aware of the broad filed of behavioral ecology. A recent paper by Nettle and Penke brings the two fieldsRating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)... Read more »
Nettle, D., & Penke, L. (2010) Personality: bridging the literatures from human psychology and behavioural ecology. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 365(1560), 4043-4050. DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2010.0061
- October 13, 2010
- 03:08 PM
- 483 views
Altruism as a result of sexual selection
by sandygautam in The Mouse Trap
Image via Wikipedia There is a new article in BPS, that has found some evidence for the fact that altruism may have evolved by the process of sexual selection. There are many mechanisms that underlie exactly how and why sexual selection takes place- one is the ‘handicap’ /’costly honest signal‘ theory according to which aRating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)... Read more »
Tim Phillips1, Eamonn Ferguson2, & Fruhling Rijsdijk. (2010) A link between altruism and sexual selection: Genetic influence on altruistic behaviour and mate preference towards it. British Journal of Psychology. DOI: 10.1348/000712610X493494
- October 1, 2010
- 12:02 PM
- 602 views
ADHD and CNVs
by sandygautam in The Mouse Trap
Image via Wikipedia I have written previously about CNV’s and how de novo CNV’s have been recently shown to correlate with disorders like autism and schizophrenia. I have also been militantly proposing that autism and psychosis are diametrically opposed disorders and have been gladdened to find that recent CNV data support that hypothesis. I reportedRating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)... Read more »
Williams, N., Zaharieva, I., Martin, A., Langley, K., Mantripragada, K., Fossdal, R., Stefansson, H., Stefansson, K., Magnusson, P., & Gudmundsson, O. (2010) Rare chromosomal deletions and duplications in attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: a genome-wide analysis. The Lancet. DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(10)61109-9
- September 5, 2010
- 10:52 AM
- 474 views
Maslow’s motivational hierarchy revisited
by sandygautam in The Mouse Trap
Image via Wikipedia I’ve written previously about Maslow’s motivational hierarchy and how that relates to the eight stage evo-devo model. Most people are familiar with the 5 motivational basic needs/motives theory of Maslow, but are not aware that he had later revised it to include eight basic needs/ motives. A recent paper by Krenrick etRating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)... Read more »
Douglas T. Kenrick,, Vladas Griskevicius,, Steven L. Neuberg, & Mark Schaller. (2010) Renovating the Pyramid of Needs Contemporary Extensions Built Upon Ancient Foundations. Perspectives on Psychological science. DOI: 10.1177/1745691610369469
- August 23, 2010
- 03:47 PM
- 365 views
Life History theory and eight stage evo-devo model
by sandygautam in The Mouse Trap
Image via Wikipedia I’ve touched upon life history theory earlier, in an oblique fashion, while discussing evolutionary perspectives on personality. Life History theory posits that an individual’s life efforts can be subsumed under two headings- somatic life efforts and reproductive life efforts. The latter relates to selection due to being able to successfully replicate one-self;Rating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)... Read more »
Graf, M., Cellerino, A., & Englert, C. (2010) Gender Separation Increases Somatic Growth in Females but Does Not Affect Lifespan in Nothobranchius furzeri. PLoS ONE, 5(8). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0011958
FIGUEREDO, A., VASQUEZ, G., BRUMBACH, B., SCHNEIDER, S., SEFCEK, J., TAL, I., HILL, D., WENNER, C., & JACOBS, W. (2006) Consilience and Life History Theory: From genes to brain to reproductive strategy. Developmental Review, 26(2), 243-275. DOI: 10.1016/j.dr.2006.02.002
- August 21, 2010
- 11:00 AM
- 442 views
The five dimensions of an autistic brain
by sandygautam in The Mouse Trap
Image via Wikipedia Autism is a spectrum disorder , better referred to as ASD, It has been known for some time that differences like autism are, multi-dimensional and not readily reducible to a single set of mechanisms or genetic causes. In the past we have discussed how the disorder may be related to structural differencesRating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)... Read more »
Ecker, C., Marquand, A., Mourao-Miranda, J., Johnston, P., Daly, E., Brammer, M., Maltezos, S., Murphy, C., Robertson, D., Williams, S.... (2010) Describing the Brain in Autism in Five Dimensions--Magnetic Resonance Imaging-Assisted Diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder Using a Multiparameter Classification Approach. Journal of Neuroscience, 30(32), 10612-10623. DOI: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.5413-09.2010
- July 20, 2010
- 02:42 PM
- 371 views
Why is the world vivid in mania, but bleak in depression?
by sandygautam in The Mouse Trap
Image by ParanoidMonk via Flickr No, I am not speaking metaphorically. Quite literally,there has been accumulating evidence that sense are sharpened and have great acuity in mania while they are dulled in depression and the effects can be seen within the same individual over time as he/she suffers from manic/depressive episodes. The latest study to More >Rating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)
Related posts:Depression not only has bland taste but bland sense of smell too In one of my earlier post on........ Read more »
Bubl, E., Kern, E., Ebert, D., Bach, M., & Tebartz van Elst, L. (2010) Seeing Gray When Feeling Blue? Depression Can Be Measured in the Eye of the Diseased. Biological Psychiatry, 68(2), 205-208. DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2010.02.009
- July 20, 2010
- 10:49 AM
- 440 views
Cognitive control: when less is more!
by sandygautam in The Mouse Trap
Yesterday I wrote a post about ADHD and creativity and how the frontal lobes hypo-function and dopamine may be the mediating factors involved. Today I serendipitously came across this article by Thomson-Schill et al in which they posit that frontal cortex hypofunction during childhood is beneficial, on average, as it enables convention learning and thus More >Rating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)
Related posts:Autism:a cognitive style and not a deficit Continuing with the theme of my last post, ........ Read more »
Thompson-Schill, S., Ramscar, M., & Chrysikou, E. (2009) Cognition Without Control: When a Little Frontal Lobe Goes a Long Way. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 18(5), 259-263. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8721.2009.01648.x
- July 18, 2010
- 03:25 PM
- 352 views
ADHD and creativity
by sandygautam in The Mouse Trap
Image via Wikipedia ADHD has traditionally been conceptualized in terms of deficits- that of attention , impulse control or motor restraint; but the new neurodiversity paradigm forces us to take a more balanced look and acknowledge the strengths that the ADHD kid may have- divergent thinking, spontaneity and high energy and vitality. That brings me More >Rating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)
Related posts:Autism and ADHD as opposites based on fly models? Image via Wikipedia Regular readers of this........ Read more »
Cramond, B. (1995) The Coincidence of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Creativity. University of Connecticut, The National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented. info:other/ED388016
- July 6, 2010
- 02:44 PM
- 412 views
Happine$$: Money does buy you life satisfaction, but for feeling good rely on psychosocial capital
by sandygautam in The Mouse Trap
Image via Wikipedia A new and important research paper by Ed Diener et al has been recently published in JPSP and you should read the paper in full by requesting reprint using this page (this is how I got access to the paper) . It is very lucidly written and bears upon an important question: More >Rating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)
Related posts:Is low IQ the cause of income inequality and low life expectancy or is it the other way round? As per this post from the BPS research digest, Kanazawa......... Read more »
Diener, E., Ng, W., Harter, J., & Arora, R. (2010) Wealth and happiness across the world: Material prosperity predicts life evaluation, whereas psychosocial prosperity predicts positive feeling. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 99(1), 52-61. DOI: 10.1037/a0018066
- June 9, 2010
- 12:38 PM
- 469 views
Positive emotions increase with old age; while negative emotions decline
by sandygautam in The Mouse Trap
Image via Wikipedia
As per a new study reported in PNAS, positive emotions and hedonic well being, like happiness and enjoyment, increase past the age of 50 (after reaching a nadir at that age) , while negative emotions , like stress, worry and anger decline with age throughout.
This is the conclusion that Stone et al reached More >Rating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)
Related posts:Schizophrenia and plasticity/neurogenisis: a case for positive selection? A recent s........ Read more »
Stone, A., Schwartz, J., Broderick, J., & Deaton, A. (2010) A snapshot of the age distribution of psychological well-being in the United States. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 107(22), 9985-9990. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1003744107
- June 1, 2010
- 11:59 AM
- 502 views
Autism, Psychosis and circadian clock
by sandygautam in The Mouse Trap
Image via Wikipedia
I recently came across this post by Michelle Dawson that states the thesis that one of the abnormalities in Autism spectrum disorders is due to abnormal circadian clock functioning. More specifically, the clock is internally driven and has a greeter ‘free running’ period and does not entrain readily to environmental and social clues.
Autistics More >Rating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)
Related posts:Tick, Tick, Tock: The Mouse without the C........ Read more »
Barnard, A., & Nolan, P. (2008) When Clocks Go Bad: Neurobehavioural Consequences of Disrupted Circadian Timing. PLoS Genetics, 4(5). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1000040
- May 27, 2010
- 02:01 PM
- 545 views
Personality and emotion: take 4
by sandygautam in The Mouse Trap
Image via Wikipedia
I’ve written about the relation between personality and emotion from my perspective, but was gladdened when I found Scherer has written on the matter in a very eloquent and apt manner. To quote from him and Revelle:
Personality is the coherent patterning of affect, behavior, cognition, and desires (goals) over time and space. Just More >Rating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)
Related posts:Emotions and personality : take 2 Image via Wikipedia In my........ Read more »
Fontaine, J., Scherer, K., Roesch, E., & Ellsworth, P. (2007) The World of Emotions is not Two-Dimensional. Psychological Science, 18(12), 1050-1057. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9280.2007.02024.x
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