In Physics Education,Perception Matters

Student difficulties in science learning are frequently attributed to misconceptions about scientific concepts. We argue that domain‐general perceptual processes may also influence students' ability to learn and demonstrate mastery of difficult science concepts. Using the concept of center of gravity (CoG), we show how student difficulty in applying CoG to an object such as a baseball bat can be accounted for, at least in part, by general principles of perception (i.e., not exclusively physics‐based) that make perceiving the CoG of some objects more difficult than others. In particular, it is perceptually difficult to locate the CoG of objects with asymmetric‐extended properties. The basic perceptual features of objects must be taken into account when assessing students' classroom performance and developing effective science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) teaching methods.     

Teachers' Spatial Anxiety Relates to 1st‐ and 2nd‐Graders' Spatial Learning

Teachers' anxiety about an academic domain, such as math, can impact students' learning in that domain. We asked whether this relation held in the domain of spatial skill, given the importance of spatial skill for success in math and science and its malleability at a young age. We measured 1st‐ and 2nd‐grade teachers' spatial anxiety (N = 19) and students' spatial skill (N = 132). Teachers' spatial anxiety significantly predicted students' end‐of‐year spatial skill, even after accounting for students' beginning‐of‐year spatial skill, phonological working memory, grade level, and teachers' math anxiety. Since spatial skill is not a stand‐alone part of the curriculum like math or reading, teachers with high levels of spatial anxiety may simply avoid incorporating spatial activities in the classroom. Results suggest that addressing teachers' spatial anxieties may improve spatial learning in early elementary school.     

Training patterns of athletes during pregnancy and postpartum

The purpose of the present investigation was to examine exercise patterns and psychological variables mediating a return to training and competition after pregnancy. Competitive female athletes who had given birth within the last 10 years completed surveys concerning (a) training patterns before, during, and after childbirth, (b) childbirth complications and training advice, (c) perceptions of success in their postpartum comebacks to training, and (d) self-efficacy, social support, and perceived barriers to training during pregnancy and after childbirth. Results indicated that women decreased both cardiovascular and resistance training during pregnancy. Additionally, training efforts during pregnancy were independent of those during the pre- and postpartum periods. This finding suggests that athletes may be able to alter their training patterns during pregnancy without a significant impact on their postpartum training program.     

减少和抑制核HDAC5对骨骼肌细胞GLUT4基因表达的影响

验证收缩骨骼肌细胞葡萄糖转运蛋白4（GLUT4）基因的表达在转录水平上是否受转录抑制子Ⅱ型HDAC5蛋白（简写为HDAC5）的调节。研究运用运动模拟信号5-氨基-4-甲酰胺咪唑核糖核苷酸（AICAR）和HDACs抑制剂SCRIPTAID孵育骨骼肌细胞。用蛋白印迹技术测定HDAC5蛋白表达,定量RT-PCR法检测GLUT4 mRNA表达。与无AICAR的对照组相比,AICAR组骨骼肌细胞内HDAC5减少了29%,并伴随有124% GLUT4 mRNA的增加,但肌细胞内HDAC5的蛋白总量无变化;使用HDACs抑制剂SCRIPTAID刺激骨骼肌细胞能够明显增加核心组蛋白乙酰化水平和上调GLUT4基因的表达。这些结果提示,通过AICAR和SCRIPTAID分别减少或抑制核HDAC5均能上调骨骼肌细胞GLUT4基因的转录,HDAC5可能在转录水平上对肌肉收缩引起的GLUT4基因的表达起着重要的调节作用。     

Exercise and working memory: an individual differences investigation

In the current work we asked whether executive function, as measured by tests of working memory capacity, might benefit from an acute bout of exercise and, more specifically, whether individuals who are lower or higher in working memory to begin with would be more or less affected by an exercise manipulation. Healthy adults completed working memory measures in a nonexercise (baseline) session and immediately following a 30-min self-paced bout of exercise on a treadmill (exercise session). Sessions were conducted 1 week apart and session order was counterbalanced across participants. A significant Session x Working Memory interaction was obtained such that only those individuals lowest in working memory benefited from the exercise manipulation. This work suggests that acute bouts of exercise may be most beneficial for healthy adults whose cognitive performance is generally the lowest, and it demonstrates that the impact of exercise on cognition is not uniform across all individuals.