Men clearly projected more sexy & positive emotions onto the stimuli when the stimuli displayed erect nipples; women did project more positive emotions with erect nipples, but did not differ in their expression of sexy

Burch, R. L., & Widman, D. R. (2020). The point of nipple erection 1: The experience and projection of perceived emotional states while viewing women with and without erect nipples. Evolutionary Behavioral Sciences, Aug 2020. https://doi.org/10.1037/ebs0000244

Abstract: To determine whether female nipple erection is perceived as a sign of sexual arousal or interest, male and female participants were asked to rate photos of real women with and without salient nipple erection on a series of 16 emotional and physiological states, including positive, negative, and sexually aroused states. Nipple erection salience was rated by independent raters, and faces in photos were obscured to prevent discerning emotional states from facial cues. Men clearly projected more sexy and positive emotions onto the stimuli when the stimuli displayed erect nipples. Whereas women did project more positive emotions with erect nipples, they did not differ in their expression of sexy. We also observed that men’s self-ratings of sexy and positive emotions were the same as their ratings of the stimuli. Women, however, reported significantly less sexy and positive emotions for themselves relative to the stimuli.

Electrical stimulation of the human cortex: The farther removed from sensory input or motor output structures, the less likely it is that a region contributes to consciousness

Hot or not. Christof Koch. Nature Human Behaviour, Jul 2020. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41562-020-0925-7

Abstract: Electrical stimulation of the human cortex, undertaken for brain surgery, triggers percepts and feelings. A new study documents an ordering principle to these effects: the farther removed from sensory input or motor output structures, the less likely it is that a region contributes to consciousness.

The elicitation rate, the fraction of electrodes the participant can sense when activated (within the safety limits of the stimulation protocol), varies across the accessible cortical surface. It is as high as two out of three electrodes above visual and somatosensory areas and as low as one out of five electrodes above limbic areas or one out of six over the anterior prefrontal regions. When electrode locations were projected onto a 7- or 17-region parcellation of cerebral cortex (derived from functional MRI resting state functional connectivity of a thousand healthy adults), a compelling pattern emerged: the elicitation rate decreased monotonically along a functional-anatomical gradient, starting with sensory regions at the bottom and ending with transmodal, default-mode and limbic networks at the top. The higher up in the cortex a region is, the less likely gentle brain stimulation there will be noticed by the participating brain (Fig. 1). The silence of these frontoparietal, limbic and default mode networks is remarkable as they are thought to be central to much of cognition.

Furthermore, the varieties of distinct experiences (for example, a visual phosphene, a recall of a song, a feeling of unease) increased when ascending this gradient: while the majority of evoked responses in sensorimotor areas reflect the appropriate visual, somatosensory or motor modality, the smaller number of experiences evoked in limbic, midline and the farthest forward prefrontal region were the most diverse across participants. A variety of controls, such as sham trials and varying the amplitude of the iES, ruled out systematic confounds, such as participants having different rates of false alarm or excitability of the underlying tissue varying systematically with location.

While iES is safe and effective, it is also crude: the electrodes are many square millimetres in area and deliver up to 10 mA of bipolar current between adjacent electrodes that can modulate the excitability of a million or more pyramidal neurons and interneurons within a volume given by the resistive spread of the current, supplemented by more remote effects caused by evoking spikes in axons of passage. Still, effects induced by iES can be quite localized, with responsiveness changing from all to none within millimetres or across a sulcus3,7. The challenge for the future will be to move towards microstimulation, common in laboratory animals, in which a thousand-fold-smaller current is sent through thousand-fold-smaller electrodes to give rise to ever more specific sensations. Perhaps this will reveal the remarkable absence of auditory percepts when stimulating Heschl’s gyri, in the neighbourhood of auditory cortex.

The exacting data collected by Fox and colleagues provides critical causal, not just observational, evidence to identify the neuronal correlates of consciousness. Indeed, whether or not the epicentre of experience is in a postulated posterior hot zone or in prefrontal cortex8,9 can be addressed in this manner.

What Is a Coalition? A Systematic Review of Coalitions in Community Psychology

Lawlor, Jennifer, Zachary Neal, and Kyle Metta. 2020. “What Is a Coalition? A Systematic Review of Coalitions in Community Psychology.” PsyArXiv. August 20. doi:10.31234/osf.io/ba4yw

Abstract: Coalitions have a long history as part of the field of community psychology. While community psychologists often work with coalitions, these entities engage in a wide range of activities and structures that are not well defined within the field. In this paper, we explore the following questions: (1) What are the characteristics of coalitions that community psychologists study? (2) What are the themes in the way authors define coalitions in their work? To address these questions, we conducted a systematic review of articles about coalitions in journals serving community psychologists. Findings suggest coalitions can be characterized by a focus on local level community issues around health and wellness and include a diverse group of stakeholders. Coalitions are defined by a focus on three types of coordination: knowledge coordination, negotiated coordination, and action coordination. These types of coordination are used to address specific problems coalitions encounter and define the goals and techniques appropriate for resolving them.

Between 2002 & 2013 statin use in the US nearly doubled, cholesterol levels are falling, yet cardiovascular deaths appear to be on the rise; statin usage may lead to unhealthy behaviours that may actually increase risks

Hit or miss: the new cholesterol targets. Robert DuBroff, Aseem Malhotra, Michel de Lorgeril. BMJ Evidece-Based Medicine, Aug 2020. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjebm-2020-111413

Abstract: Drug treatment to reduce cholesterol to new target levels is now recommended in four moderate- to high-risk patient populations: patients who have already sustained a cardiovascular event, adult diabetic patients, individuals with low density lipoprotein cholesterol levels ≥190 mg/dL and individuals with an estimated 10-year cardiovascular risk ≥7.5%. Achieving these cholesterol target levels did not confer any additional benefit in a systematic review of 35 randomised controlled trials. Recommending cholesterol lowering treatment based on estimated cardiovascular risk fails to identify many high-risk patients and may lead to unnecessary treatment of low-risk individuals. The negative results of numerous cholesterol lowering randomised controlled trials call into question the validity of using low density lipoprotein cholesterol as a surrogate target for the prevention of cardiovascular disease.

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What to do now

Cardiovascular disease continues to be the leading cause of death worldwide. Between 2002 and 2013 statin use in the US nearly doubled, cholesterol levels are falling, yet cardiovascular deaths appear to be on the rise.30 31 In Sweden, recent widespread and increasing utilisation of statins did not correlate with any significant reduction in acute myocardial infarction or mortality, while in Belgium a very modest reduction in cardiovascular events was reported between 1999 and 2005, but primarily in elderly individuals not taking statins.32 33 These population studies suggest that, despite the widespread use of statins, there has been no accompanying decline in the risk of cardiovascular events or cardiovascular mortality. In fact, there is some evidence that statin usage may lead to unhealthy behaviours that may actually increase the risk of cardiovascular disease.34 35 The evidence presented in this analysis adds to the chorus that challenges our current approach to cardiovascular disease prevention through targeted reductions of LDL-C. Given the lack of clarity on how best to prevent cardiovascular disease, we encourage informed decision-making. Ideally, this includes a discussion of absolute risk reduction and/or number needed to treat at an individual patient level in addition to reviewing the potential benefits and harms of any intervention.

Exploring the Roles of Conformity, Hazard, & Convenience in Risk Mitigation Decisions: An Observational Study of Helmet Use Among Bicyclists and E-scooter Riders in Los Angeles During Two Natural Experiments

Sparks, Adam M., Daniel M. Fessler, and Marlee Zinsser. 2019. “Exploring the Roles of Conformity, Hazard, and Convenience in Risk Mitigation Decisions: An Observational Study of Helmet Use Among Bicyclists and E-scooter Riders in Los Angeles During Two Natural Experiments.” PsyArXiv. October 7. doi:10.31234/osf.io/gspbm

Abstract: Despite the protection offered by bicycle helmets, their use varies substantially across populations of riders. Building on previous efforts to understand helmet use as reflecting tradeoffs between convenience and safety, we explore whether helmet use is influenced by conformity, that is, by a preference to make the same helmet use decision as other riders. If so, an experiment introducing more riders with or without helmets in a specific location might shift helmet use patterns among other nearby riders. We conducted an observational study of helmet use over eight months at five locations across two university campuses in Los Angeles, California, U.S.A. During this time, a bikeshare program and electronic scooter rental services were introduced in the local area. The low use of helmets among riders of these vehicles allow us to treat these as natural experiments testing the conformity hypothesis. Corresponding to the sudden appearance of numerous helmetless e-scooter riders, helmet use declined among riders of ordinary bicycles at the more hazardous study locations, a pattern we cautiously interpret as consistent with a conformity preference among ordinary cyclists traveling long distances along city streets among helmetless e-scooter riders. At the safer locations, helmet use rates increased among ordinary cyclists, which we suggest was driven by vehicle selection decisions, with the most convenience-oriented riders preferring to use e-scooters, leaving a more safety-oriented population of ordinary cyclists. The possibility that social conformity may influence risk mitigation decisions has important implications for designing and measuring the impact of public health interventions. Also of note are are empirical demonstrations that helmet use patterns can vary substantially across seemingly similar populations and over short periods of time

Moral Psychology and Artificial Agents (part 1): Ontologically Categorizing Bio-cultural Humans

Laakasuo, Michael, Anton Berg, Jukka Sundvall, Marianna Drosinou, Volo Herzon, Anton Kunnari, Mika Koverola, et al. 2020. “Moral Psychology and Artificial Agents (part 1): Ontologically Categorizing Bio-cultural Humans.” PsyArXiv. August 19. http://osf.io/29bsp

Abstract: In this chapter, we will provide theoretical background of discussion on issues related to AIs. Some of the main topics, theories and frameworks are mind perception and moral cognition, moral psychology, evolutionary psychology, trans-humanism and ontological categories shaped by evolution.



Pre-print of:
Laakasuo et al. (in press). Moral Psychology and Artificial Agents (Part 1): Ontologically
Categorizing Bio-Cultural Humans. Machine Law, Ethics and Morality in the Age of
Artificial Intelligence. Steven Thompson (ed). New York: Igi Global.

The continued influence effect refers to continuing to rely on misinformation in their reasoning even if the information has been retracted; study of impact of retraction source credibility on this effect

Ecker, Ullrich K. H., and Luke Antonio. 2020. “Can You Believe It? an Investigation into the Impact of Retraction Source Credibility on the Continued Influence Effect.” PsyArXiv. August 20

Abstract: The continued influence effect refers to the finding that people often continue to rely on misinformation in their reasoning even if the information has been retracted. The present study aimed to investigate the extent to which the effectiveness of a retraction is determined by its credibility. In particular, we aimed to scrutinize previous findings suggesting that perceived trustworthiness but not perceived expertise of the retraction source determines a retraction’s effectiveness, and that continued influence arises only if a retraction is not believed. In two experiments, we found that indeed source trustworthiness but not source expertise influences retraction effectiveness, with retractions from low-trustworthiness sources entirely ineffective. We also found that retraction belief is indeed a predictor of continued reliance on misinformation, but that substantial continued influence effects can still occur with retractions designed to be and rated as highly credible.

Consumers’ associations, perceptions and acceptance of meat and plant-based meat alternatives: While meat is being associated with positive terms, meat alternatives were viewed more negatively

Consumers’ associations, perceptions and acceptance of meat and plant-based meat alternatives. Fabienne Michel, Christina Hartmann, Michael Siegrist. Food Quality and Preference, August 20 2020, 104063. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodqual.2020.104063

Highlights
• Meat alternatives are associated with “tofu,” “vegan and vegetarian,” as well as “disgust.”
• Meat alternatives are similarly perceived to their processed meat counterparts.
• Eating meat alternatives is perceived to be more appropriate in informal situations.
• Meat alternatives similar to processed meat have the best chance to replace meat.

Abstract: The consumption of meat contributes significantly to undesirable effects on the environment. In order to reduce the impact of animal husbandry, one approach is to decrease meat consumption by substituting plant-based meat alternatives. Because the consumption of such meat alternatives is currently rather low, the aim of this research was to identify the barriers that keep people from consuming meat alternatives and increase the probability of future consumption. This was accomplished by exploring free associations people have towards meat and meat alternatives, comparing selected meat products with their respective meat alternatives using the semantic differential, and studying the perceived appropriateness of eating meat alternatives in different consumption situations. To achieve these objectives, we carried out an online survey with participants from Germany (N=1039). Our results suggest that while meat is being associated with positive terms, meat alternatives were viewed more negatively. The previous findings that meat alternatives should be similar to meat with regard to taste, texture, and ease of preparation were confirmed. Results from the direct comparison of meat with corresponding meat alternatives indicate that meat alternatives are similarly perceived to their processed meat counterparts. Regarding different consumption situations, our results show that eating meat alternatives is perceived to be more appropriate in situations where one eats alone or with family and friends. In conclusion, our findings demonstrate that meat alternatives have the best chance of successfully replacing meat when they closely resemble highly processed meat products in taste and texture and are offered at competitive prices. The recommendation for producers of meat alternatives is thus to focus on replicating processed meat products instead of trying to imitate meat cuts such as steak or escalope.

Keywords: meatmeat alternativesmeat replacementsmeat substitutesvegetarianveganplant-based

Sex Disparities in Psychiatric and Neurodegenerative Disorders: Insights from Large-scale Neuroimaging

Salminen, Lauren, Meral Tubi, Joanna Bright, and Paul Thompson. 2020. “Sex Disparities in Psychiatric and Neurodegenerative Disorders: Insights from Large-scale Neuroimaging.” PsyArXiv. August 17. doi:10.31234/osf.io/m59dg

Abstract: Sex differences are found in the incidence and expression of psychiatric and neurodegenerative conditions, and many studies suggest these differences are influenced by innate biological differences between males and females and risk factors that interact with these differences. However, few studies have used neuroimaging to examine brain signatures of disease separately by sex, and many studies of sex differences have been based on small samples and their findings have not been replicated in larger cohorts. Large-scale neuroimaging initiatives such as the Enhancing NeuroImaging Genetics through Meta-Analyses (ENIGMA) consortium, the UK Biobank, Human Connectome Project, and others offer an unprecedented source of power to address important questions about the role of sex as a risk or protective factor for suboptimal brain health, as well as sex-specific neuroimaging phenotypes in brain-related illnesses. Here we review the existing neuroimaging literature on sex differences in the human brain in healthy adults and those with the most common and debilitating psychiatric and age-related neurodegenerative conditions. Finally, we discuss key gaps in this literature and opportunities of large-scale collaborative efforts to identify, characterize, and explain how biological sex influences the human brain in health and disease.