Developmental dyscalculia is a familial learning disability

Whereas current evidence attests to a genetic component in the etiology of dyslexia and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), little is known about the role of genetics in developmental dyscalculia (DC). The objective of this study was to determine the familial aggregation of DC. Siblings and parents of children with DC were assessed for arithmetic, reading and attention disorders. The criteria for DC were an IQ higher than 85, poor performance in arithmetic, and a significant discrepancy between arithmetic achievement and IQ. The study group was composed of 39 children with DC, 21 mothers, 22 fathers, 90 siblings, and 16 second-degree relatives. We found that 66% of mothers, 40% of fathers, 53% of siblings, and 44% of second-degree relatives had DC. The intraclass correlation between the sib pairs was .27. A 95% confidential interval (CI) for the prevalence of DC among siblings of DC probands (see Note 1) ranged from 40% to 64%, indicating a familial prevalence almost tenfold higher than expected for the general population. IQ and attention problems were not risk factors for DC. We conclude that DC, like other learning disabilities, has a significant familial aggregation, suggesting a role for genetics in the evolution of this disorder.     

DETERMINATION OF CYANIDE BY A SPECTROPHOTOMETRIC REVERSED FLOW INJECTION METHOD

ＤＥＴＥＲＭＩＮＡＴＩＯＮＯＦＣＹＡＮＩＤＥＢＹＡＳＰＥＣＴＲＯＰＨＯＴＯＭＥＴＲＩＣＲＥＶＥＲＳＥＤＦＬＯＷＩＮＪＥＣＴＩＯＮＭＥＴＨＯＤ￥ＪｉｎｇｆｕＬｉｕａｎｄＨｕｉｃｈａｎｇＭａ（ＲｅｓｅｔｒｃｈＣｅｎｔｅｒｆｏｒＥｃｏ－Ｅｎｖｉｒｏｎｍｅｎ...     

The mystery of the Einstein-Poincaré connection

This essay discusses attempts that have been made to explain the striking similarities between two theories propounded in 1905 by Albert Einstein and Henri Poincaré without any mutual reference.     

我的大学

大学,这个无数人向往的象牙塔。大学是智慧的象征,是精神的家园,是令人向往和憧憬的圣地。从高中走进大学,就如同沿着小溪和江河蛋糕进了大海。请关注本期特别策划——我的大学!     

Dissection videos do not improve anatomy examination scores

In this quasi-experimental study, we describe the effect of showing dissection videos on first-year medical students' performance in terms of test scores during a gross anatomy course. We also surveyed students' perception regarding the showing of dissection videos. Two hundred eighty-seven first-year medical students at Rawalpindi Medical College in Pakistan, divided into two groups, dissected one limb in first term and switched over to the other limb in the second term. During the second term, instruction was supplemented by dissection videos. Second-term anatomy examination marks were compared with first-term scores and with results from first-year medical students in previous years. Multiple linear regression analysis was performed, with term scores (continuous, 0-200) as the dependent variable. Students shown dissection videos scored 1.26 marks higher than those not shown. The relationship was not statistically significant (95% CI: -1.11, 3.70; P = 0.314). Ninety-three percent of students favored regular inclusion of dissection videos in curriculum, and 50% termed it the best source for learning gross anatomy. Seventy-six percent of students did not perform regular cadaver dissection. The most frequent reason cited for not performing regular dissection was high student-cadaver ratio. Dissection videos did not improve performance on final examination scores; however, students favored their use.     

Korean deaf adolescents' awareness of thematic and taxonomic relations among ordinary concepts represented by pictures and written words

Individuals' relative awareness of thematic and taxonomic relations is influenced by factors such as language and background knowledge. Relatively weak in Korean language skills and also having relatively limited social opportunities, Korean deaf adolescents might be different from hearing adolescents in how they make decisions in taxonomically and thematically associated entities represented by pictures and words. Experiment 1 indicated that deaf adolescents had longer reaction times than hearing adolescents in a forced-choice decision-making task. Both deaf and hearing adolescents had shorter reaction times and higher accuracies with pictures than with words, but deaf adolescents' differences were bigger than those of hearing adolescents. Experiment 2 further showed that deaf adolescents had lower accuracies than hearing adolescents in a priming task of living-nonliving categorization. Both deaf and hearing adolescents had shorter reaction times with taxonomic than with thematic categories, but deaf adolescents' difference was bigger than that of hearing adolescents. In conclusion, Korean deaf adolescents were aware of thematic and taxonomic relations less than hearing adolescents in general. They were more likely than hearing adolescents to show the advantage of pictures over words in their performance in conceptual activities and to prefer taxonomic to thematic associations for written words in Experiment 2.     

PSYCHOLOGICAL ACCULTURATION: DEVELOPMENT OF A NEW MEASURE FOR PUERTO RICANS ON THE U.S. MAINLAND

Most instruments designed to measure acculturation have relied on specific cultural behaviors and preferences as primary indicators of acculturation. In contrast, feelings of belonging and emotional attachment to cultural communities have not been widely used. The Psychological Acculturation Scale (PAS) was developed to assess acculturation from a phenomenological perspective, with items pertaining to the individual's sense of psychological attachment to and belonging within the Anglo-American and Latino/Hispanic cultures. Responses from samples of bilingual individuals and Puerto Rican adolescents and adults are used to establish a high degree of measurement equivalence across the Spanish and English versions of the scale along with high levels of internal consistency and construct validity. The usefulness of the PAS and the importance of studying acculturation from a phenomenological perspective are discussed.     

人口教育概念的重新定义

最初给人口教育下定义的尝试没有能制订出一个让所有国家都信服的结构紧凑的概念。更确切地说,早期的一些被许多国家所采用的概念只包括了大致的指导方针。 虽然这个研究领域的专家们普遍认为人口教育应该致力于宏观国家的和微观家庭及     

最后一名骑士

冬夜,寒风呼啸,大雪纷飞。在通往华盛顿的大路旁,一位年过古稀、鬓角斑白的老人倒在雪地里发出痛苦的呻吟。就在刚才,这位冒雪独行的老人被一帮凶恶残暴的抢匪打劫了。贪婪、冷酷的抢匪把老人身上的财物洗劫一空,连他穿的皮袄都不放过。临走时,这帮惨无人道的抢匪还将一再哀求把皮袄留下来给自己御寒的老人暴打一顿扔在路边。雪越下越大,风越刮越急。刺骨的寒风裹着鹅毛大雪砸在衣着单薄、遍体鳞伤的老人身上,冻得老人瑟瑟发抖,脸色青紫。此时已是深夜,路上十分冷清,一个行人都没有。老人绝望地闭上眼睛,不出一个小时他就会被活活冻死。突然…     

关于哲学人类学(上)

现代哲学人类学起源于本世纪二十年代。四十年代它成为德国哲学中有代表性的一种哲学流派。它与生命哲学,存在主义和现象学同时兴起并且吸收了这些哲学流派的精华,但它又与这些哲学流派有着明显不同,它与实用主义和认知社会学有过密切的联系。从历史的观点看,尽管现代哲学人类学是在广泛吸收德国传统基础之