Prior work with the crab's contextual memory model showed that CS-US conditioned animals undergoing an unreinforced CS presentation would either reconsolidate or extinguish the CS-US memory, depending on the length of the reexposure to the CS. Either memory process is only triggered once the CS is terminated. Based on these results, the following…

Memory shows age-related decline. According to the current prevailing theoretical model, encoding of memories relies on modifications in the strength of the synapses connecting the different cells within a neuronal network. The selective increases in synaptic weight are thought to be biologically implemented by long-term potentiation (LTP). Here,…

Separate groups of rats underwent an unbiased conditioned place preference (CPP) procedure involving alternate pairings of distinct environments with intravenous (IV) injections of cocaine (0.75 mg/kg) or saline immediately or 15 min after injection. A subsequent extinction phase consisted of exposure to both conditioning environments preceded by…

It has been claimed that recursion is one of the properties that distinguishes human language from any other form of animal communication. Contrary to this claim, a recent study purports to demonstrate center-embedded recursion in starlings. I show that the performance of the birds in this study can be explained by a counting strategy, without any…

How do we come to recognize and represent different kinds of objects in the world? Some developmental psychologists have hypothesized that learning language plays a crucial role in this capacity. If this hypothesis were correct, then non-linguistic animals should lack the capacity to represent objects as kinds. Previous research with rhesus…

Silastic E RTV silicone was used to produce tracheobronchial cast for use in an undergraduate human anatomy course. Following air-drying, the trachea and lungs were injected with E RTV silicone and allowed to cure for 24 hr. The parenchyma was then removed from the tracheobronchial cast by maceration and boiling and then whitened in a 10% solution…

Four experiments studied the role of GABA[subscript A] receptors in the temporal dynamics of memory retention. Memory for an active avoidance response was a nonmonotonic function of the retention interval. When rats were tested shortly (2 min) or some time (24 h) after training, retention was excellent, but when they were tested at intermediate…

Planning and directing thought and behavior require the working memory (WM) functions of prefrontal cortex. WM is compromised by stress, which activates phosphatidylinositol (PI)-mediated IP[subscript 3]-PKC intracellular signaling. PKC overactivation impairs WM operations and in vitro studies indicate that IP[subscript 3] receptor (IP[subscript…

One of the main problems we face in science teaching is that students are learning isolated facts and missing central concepts. For instance, consider what you know about life cycles. Chances are that you remember something about butterflies and stages, such as egg, larva, pupa, adult. But what's the take-home idea that we should have learned…

Five experiments with rat subjects compared the effects of immediate and delayed extinction on the durability of extinction learning. Three experiments examined extinction of fear conditioning (using the conditioned emotional response method), and two experiments examined extinction of appetitive conditioning (using the food-cup entry method). In…

Decades of research have documented in school-aged children a persistent difficulty apprehending an overarching biological concept that encompasses animate entities such as humans and nonhuman animals, as well as plants. This has led many researchers to conclude that young children have yet to integrate plants and animate entities into a concept…

Children's abuse of animals may be predictive of aggression towards humans. This study assessed concurrent engagement in animal abuse and bullying behaviour in 241 adolescents aged 12 to 16 years. A total of 20.6% of youths reported abusing animals at least "sometimes" and 17.8% reported bullying others on at least one occasion in the past year.…

In multiple sclerosis, CD8 T-cells are thought play a key pathogenetic role, but mechanistic evidence from rodent models is limited. Here, we have tested the encephalitogenic potential of CD8 T-cells specific for the model antigen ovalbumin (OVA) sequestered in oligodendrocytes as a cytosolic molecule. We show that in these "ODC-OVA" mice, the…

Understanding the dynamics of memory change is one of the current challenges facing cognitive neuroscience. Recent animal work on memory reconsolidation shows that memories can be altered long after acquisition. When reactivated, memories can be modified and require a restabilization (reconsolidation) process. We recently extended this finding to…

We describe an exercise, the production of a species action plan, which utilises components of both transmission mode and experiential learning. This exercise brings together students and a professional role model to promote a stronger engagement with aspects of local biodiversity management. We outline perceived benefits and outcomes of the…