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Journal of Visualized Experiments : JoVE May 2024Developing objective and quantitative methods of early gross motor assessment is essential to better understand neurodevelopment and to support early therapeutic...
Developing objective and quantitative methods of early gross motor assessment is essential to better understand neurodevelopment and to support early therapeutic interventions. Here, we present a method to quantify gross motor performance using a multisensor wearable, MAIJU (Motility Assessment of Infants with a JUmpsuit), which offers an automated, scalable, quantitative, and objective assessment using a fully automated cloud-based pipeline. This wearable suit is equipped with four movement sensors that record synchronized data to a mobile phone utilizing a low-energy Bluetooth connection. An offline analysis in the cloud server generates fully analyzed results within minutes for each recording. These results include a graphical report of the recording session and a detailed result matrix that gives second-by-second classifications for posture, movement, infant carrying, and free playtime. Our recent results show the virtue of such quantified motor assessment providing a potentially effective method for distinguishing variations in the infant's gross motor development.
Topics: Humans; Wearable Electronic Devices; Infant; Motor Skills; Child Development
PubMed: 38829118
DOI: 10.3791/65949 -
Human Brain Mapping Jun 2024Gilles de la Tourette syndrome (GTS) is a disorder characterised by motor and vocal tics, which may represent habitual actions as a result of enhanced learning of...
Gilles de la Tourette syndrome (GTS) is a disorder characterised by motor and vocal tics, which may represent habitual actions as a result of enhanced learning of associations between stimuli and responses (S-R). In this study, we investigated how adults with GTS and healthy controls (HC) learn two types of regularities in a sequence: statistics (non-adjacent probabilities) and rules (predefined order). Participants completed a visuomotor sequence learning task while EEG was recorded. To understand the neurophysiological underpinnings of these regularities in GTS, multivariate pattern analyses on the temporally decomposed EEG signal as well as sLORETA source localisation method were conducted. We found that people with GTS showed superior statistical learning but comparable rule-based learning compared to HC participants. Adults with GTS had different neural representations for both statistics and rules than HC adults; specifically, adults with GTS maintained the regularity representations longer and had more overlap between them than HCs. Moreover, over different time scales, distinct fronto-parietal structures contribute to statistical learning in the GTS and HC groups. We propose that hyper-learning in GTS is a consequence of the altered sensitivity to encode complex statistics, which might lead to habitual actions.
Topics: Humans; Tourette Syndrome; Male; Adult; Female; Electroencephalography; Young Adult; Learning; Psychomotor Performance; Middle Aged; Probability Learning
PubMed: 38826009
DOI: 10.1002/hbm.26719 -
Scientific Reports Jun 2024We describe an approach aimed at helping artificial intelligence develop theory of mind of their human teammates to support team interactions. We show how this can be...
We describe an approach aimed at helping artificial intelligence develop theory of mind of their human teammates to support team interactions. We show how this can be supported through the provision of quantifiable, machine-readable, a priori information about the human team members to an agent. We first show how our profiling approach can capture individual team member characteristic profiles that can be constructed from sparse data and provided to agents to support the development of artificial theory of mind. We then show how it captures features of team composition that may influence team performance. We document this through an experiment examining factors influencing the performance of ad-hoc teams executing a complex team coordination task when paired with an artificial social intelligence (ASI) teammate. We report the relationship between the individual and team characteristics and measures related to task performance and self-reported perceptions of the ASI. The results show that individual and emergent team profiles were able to characterize features of the team that predicted behavior and explain differences in perceptions of ASI. Further, the features of these profiles may interact differently when teams work with human versus ASI advisors. Most strikingly, our analyses showed that ASI advisors had a strong positive impact on low potential teams such that they improved the performance of those teams across mission outcome measures. We discuss these findings in the context of developing intelligent technologies capable of social cognition and engage in collaborative behaviors that improve team effectiveness.
Topics: Humans; Artificial Intelligence; Theory of Mind; Male; Female; Cooperative Behavior; Adult; Task Performance and Analysis
PubMed: 38825652
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-63122-8 -
NeuroImage Jul 2024Executive functions are essential for adaptive behavior. One executive function is the so-called 'interference control' or conflict monitoring another one is inhibitory...
Executive functions are essential for adaptive behavior. One executive function is the so-called 'interference control' or conflict monitoring another one is inhibitory control (i.e., action restraint and action cancelation). Recent evidence suggests an interplay of these processes, which is conceptually relevant given that newer conceptual frameworks imply that nominally different action/response control processes are explainable by a small set of cognitive and neurophysiological processes. The existence of such overarching neural principles has as yet not directly been examined. In the current study, we therefore use EEG tensor decomposition methods, to look into possible common neurophysiological signatures underlying conflict-modulated action restraint and action cancelation as mechanism underlying response inhibition. We show how conflicts differentially modulate action restraint and action cancelation processes and delineate common and distinct neural processes underlying this interplay. Concerning the spatial information modulations are similar in terms of an importance of processes reflected by parieto-occipital electrodes, suggesting that attentional selection processes play a role. Especially theta and alpha activity seem to play important roles. The data also show that tensor decomposition is sensitive to the manner of task implementation, thereby suggesting that switch probability/transitional probabilities should be taken into consideration when choosing tensor decomposition as analysis method. The study provides a blueprint of how to use tensor decomposition methods to delineate common and distinct neural mechanisms underlying action control functions using EEG data.
Topics: Humans; Electroencephalography; Conflict, Psychological; Male; Executive Function; Female; Adult; Young Adult; Brain; Inhibition, Psychological; Psychomotor Performance
PubMed: 38825216
DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2024.120667 -
Brain and Cognition Aug 2024A single bout of exercise improves executive function (EF) and is a benefit - in part -attributed to an exercise-mediated increase in cerebral blood flow enhancing...
A single bout of exercise improves executive function (EF) and is a benefit - in part -attributed to an exercise-mediated increase in cerebral blood flow enhancing neural efficiency. Limited work has used an event-related protocol to examine postexercise changes in preparatory phase cerebral hemodynamics for an EF task. This is salient given the neural efficiency hypothesis' assertion that improved EF is related to decreased brain activity. Here, event-related transcranial Doppler ultrasound was used to measure pro- (saccade to target) and antisaccades (saccade mirror-symmetrical target) preparatory phase middle cerebral artery velocity (MCAv) prior to and immediately after 15-min of aerobic exercise. Antisaccades produced longer reaction times (RT) and an increased preparatory phase MCAv than prosaccades - a result attributed to greater EF neural activity for antisaccades. Antisaccades selectively produced a postexercise RT reduction (ps < 0.01); however, antisaccade preparatory phase MCAv did not vary from pre- to postexercise (p=0.53) and did not correlate with the antisaccade RT benefit (p = 0.31). Accordingly, results provide no evidence that improved neural efficiency indexed via functional hyperemia is linked to a postexercise EF behavioural benefit. Instead, results support an evolving view that an EF benefit represents the additive interplay between interdependent exercise-mediated neurophysiological changes.
Topics: Humans; Saccades; Exercise; Male; Female; Young Adult; Adult; Cerebrovascular Circulation; Ultrasonography, Doppler, Transcranial; Executive Function; Reaction Time; Hemodynamics; Inhibition, Psychological; Middle Cerebral Artery; Psychomotor Performance
PubMed: 38824809
DOI: 10.1016/j.bandc.2024.106182 -
Cognition Aug 2024Perceptual decision-making often lacks explicit feedback, making confidence in our choices pivotal for guiding subsequent actions. Recent studies have highlighted the...
Perceptual decision-making often lacks explicit feedback, making confidence in our choices pivotal for guiding subsequent actions. Recent studies have highlighted the role of motor responses in modulating decision confidence. Two competing mechanisms have been proposed to elucidate this phenomenon. The "fluency hypothesis" posits that the ease and smoothness of executing a motor response can serve as a cue to enhance retrospective confidence. Conversely, the "monitoring hypothesis" suggests that the extent of action monitoring during response selection may boost retrospective confidence, with heightened monitoring potentially offsetting response fluency. We conducted a pre-registered experiment to directly test these hypotheses. Participants engaged in a perceptual task involving the discrimination of Gabor patch orientation. Perceptual responses required high or low motor precision, manipulated by the size of target circles that participants had to reach with the computer mouse to provide a response. Contrary to the "fluency hypothesis", our results showed that, in trials requiring higher precision (utilizing small circles), participants reported higher confidence levels compared to trials with less demanding responses (involving larger circles). Importantly, this increase in confidence did not coincide with any change in perceptual accuracy. These findings align with the "monitoring hypothesis," suggesting that the degree of action monitoring during response execution can indeed influence retrospective decision confidence.
Topics: Humans; Decision Making; Adult; Young Adult; Psychomotor Performance; Female; Male; Motor Activity; Metacognition
PubMed: 38824695
DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2024.105832 -
Applied Ergonomics Sep 2024Floor inclination can alter hand force production, and lower limb kinetics, affecting control operations, and threatening operator safety in various domains, such as...
Floor inclination can alter hand force production, and lower limb kinetics, affecting control operations, and threatening operator safety in various domains, such as aviation, naval, construction industry, or agriculture. This study investigates the effects of different floor inclinations, on handle push or pull force production. Participants performed maximal isometric contraction tasks requiring to exert a maximal voluntary force either by pulling or pushing a handle, at different floor inclinations from -30° to +30° about the transverse and longitudinal axes. Maximal hand force and Ground Reaction Forces about both feet were recorded. The results revealed non-equivalent variations in hand and feet responses as a function of inclination angle. Specifically, there was a significant reduction in handle push-pull force production, up to 70% (p < 0.001) for extreme inclinations, around both axes. This study provides critical data for design engineers, highlighting the challenge of production forces at steep angles.
Topics: Humans; Male; Biomechanical Phenomena; Adult; Isometric Contraction; Upper Extremity; Young Adult; Floors and Floorcoverings; Female; Ergonomics; Task Performance and Analysis; Hand; Foot; Equipment Design; Hand Strength
PubMed: 38823210
DOI: 10.1016/j.apergo.2024.104322 -
Experimental Brain Research Jul 2024The vigilance decrement, a temporal decline in detection performance, has been observed across multiple sensory modalities. Spatial uncertainty about the location of...
The vigilance decrement, a temporal decline in detection performance, has been observed across multiple sensory modalities. Spatial uncertainty about the location of task-relevant stimuli has been demonstrated to increase the demands of vigilance and increase the severity of the vigilance decrement when attending to visual displays. The current study investigated whether spatial uncertainty also increases the severity of the vigilance decrement and task demands when an auditory display is used. Individuals monitored an auditory display to detect critical signals that were shorter in duration than non-target stimuli. These auditory stimuli were presented in either a consistent, predictable pattern that alternated sound presentation from left to right (spatial certainty) or an inconsistent, unpredictable pattern that randomly presented sounds from the left or right (spatial uncertainty). Cerebral blood flow velocity (CBFV) was measured to assess the neurophysiological demands of the task. A decline in performance and CBFV was observed in both the spatially certain and spatially uncertain conditions, suggesting that spatial auditory vigilance tasks are demanding and can result in a vigilance decrement. Spatial uncertainty resulted in a more severe vigilance decrement in correct detections compared to spatial certainty. Reduced right-hemispheric CBFV was also observed during spatial uncertainty compared to spatial certainty. Together, these results suggest that auditory spatial uncertainty hindered performance and required greater attentional demands compared to spatial certainty. These results concur with previous research showing the negative impact of spatial uncertainty in visual vigilance tasks, but the current results contrast recent research showing no effect of spatial uncertainty on tactile vigilance.
Topics: Humans; Male; Female; Young Adult; Uncertainty; Adult; Auditory Perception; Cerebrovascular Circulation; Space Perception; Acoustic Stimulation; Hemodynamics; Attention; Arousal; Psychomotor Performance
PubMed: 38822826
DOI: 10.1007/s00221-024-06857-0 -
ENeuro Jun 2024Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by an initial decline in declarative memory, while nondeclarative memory processing remains relatively intact. Error-based...
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by an initial decline in declarative memory, while nondeclarative memory processing remains relatively intact. Error-based motor adaptation is traditionally seen as a form of nondeclarative memory, but recent findings suggest that it involves both fast, declarative, and slow, nondeclarative adaptive processes. If the declarative memory system shares resources with the fast process in motor adaptation, it can be hypothesized that the fast, but not the slow, process is disturbed in AD patients. To test this, we studied 20 early-stage AD patients and 21 age-matched controls of both sexes using a reach adaptation paradigm that relies on spontaneous recovery after sequential exposure to opposing force fields. Adaptation was measured using error clamps and expressed as an adaptation index (AI). Although patients with AD showed slightly lower adaptation to the force field than the controls, both groups demonstrated effects of spontaneous recovery. The time course of the AI was fitted by a hierarchical Bayesian two-state model in which each dynamic state is characterized by a retention and learning rate. Compared to controls, the retention rate of the fast process was the only parameter that was significantly different (lower) in the AD patients, confirming that the memory of the declarative, fast process is disturbed by AD. The slow adaptive process was virtually unaffected. Since the slow process learns only weakly from an error, our results provide neurocomputational evidence for the clinical practice of errorless learning of everyday tasks in people with dementia.
Topics: Humans; Alzheimer Disease; Male; Female; Aged; Adaptation, Physiological; Learning; Aged, 80 and over; Psychomotor Performance; Bayes Theorem; Middle Aged
PubMed: 38821873
DOI: 10.1523/ENEURO.0108-24.2024 -
Applied Ergonomics Sep 2024The role of task priority on task selection in multi-task management is unclear based on prior work, leading to a common finding of 'priority neglect'. However,...
The role of task priority on task selection in multi-task management is unclear based on prior work, leading to a common finding of 'priority neglect'. However, properties such as urgency and conflict may influence whether operators weigh priority in their decision. We examined the role of instructed task prioritization, bolstered by more urgent and conflicting conditions, on how operators select among emergent, concurrent tasks when multitasking. Using the Multi-Attribute Task Battery (MATB) multitasking platform we tested both an auditory communications task and a manual tracking task as the priority tasks. Results showed that instructed priority significantly increased target task selection under the conflicting task conditions for both tasks. Urgency itself may modulate whether instructions to prioritize affect task selection choices when multitasking, and therefore counter to prior results instructions may yet be useful for helping operators select a higher priority task under conflict, a generalizable effect to be further explored.
Topics: Humans; Male; Task Performance and Analysis; Female; Decision Making; Multitasking Behavior; Young Adult; Adult; Choice Behavior; Conflict, Psychological
PubMed: 38820920
DOI: 10.1016/j.apergo.2024.104317