A questionnaire was developed and administered to 30 young children with autism and a control group to explore sensory hyper- and hypo-sensitivities. Significant differences were found between groups across all (auditory, tactile, visual, gustatory, and vestibular) domains. Findings are interpreted within the framework of theory of mind and joint…

Forty children (ages 7-11) referred for evaluation of learning problems, who had normal scores on measures of academic achievement, were compared to 81 similarly referred children who had scored low. Children with normal achievement scores had higher IQs and better decoding skills, however, the two groups showed similar neuropsychological…

In two experiments, the time course of the expression of fear in trace (hippocampus-dependent) versus delay (hippocampus-independent) conditioning was characterized with a high degree of temporal specificity using fear-potentiated startle. In experiment 1, groups of rats were given delay fear conditioning or trace fear conditioning with a 3- or…

The polysialylated neural cell adhesion molecule (PSA-NCAM) has been implicated in activity-dependent synaptic remodeling and memory formation. Here, we questioned whether training-induced modulation of PSA-NCAM expression might be related to individual differences in spatial learning abilities. At 12 h posttraining, immunohistochemical analyses…

It is well established that the cerebellum and its associated circuitry are essential for classical conditioning of the eyeblink response and other discrete motor responses (e.g., limb flexion, head turn, etc.) learned with an aversive unconditioned stimulus (US). However, brain mechanisms underlying extinction of these responses are still…

Motor learning in the vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) and eyeblink conditioning use similar neural circuitry, and they may use similar cellular plasticity mechanisms. Classically conditioned eyeblink responses undergo extinction after prolonged exposure to the conditioned stimulus in the absence of the unconditioned stimulus. We investigated the…

Recent advances in neuroscience show clearly how experience can change brain neurochemicals, and how this in turn affects the way the brain functions. As a result, early negative events actually get built into the growing brain's neurochemistry, altering the brain's architecture. Research is continuing to investigate how children with genetic…

In this study the "neural efficiency" phenomenon (more efficient brain function in brighter as compared to less intelligent individuals) was investigated regarding differences in intelligence (average vs. above-average intelligence) and scholastic achievement (achievers vs. underachievers). The cortical activation (assessed by…

Teenagers are perplexing, intriguing, and spirited creatures. In an attempt to discover the secrets to their thoughts and actions, parents have tried talking, cajoling, and begging them for answers. The result has usually been just more confusion. Light is being shed on these mysterious young adults. What was once thought to be hormones run amuck…

A study investigated how Accelerated Learning (AL), a teaching methodology that purports to increase the quantity and improve the quality of learning, affected tertiary students' knowledge of and skills in writing and their feelings towards writing. AL has its origins in G. Lozanov's "suggestopedia." Believing that formal teaching…

A study examined laterality effects observed in previous studies in which men as well as right-handers show a right-visual field (RVF) advantage for letter recall and a left-visual field (LVF) advantage for letter position recall, suggesting asymmetrical brain organization for these groups. Subjects, 96 undergraduates equally divided by sex and…

A study of eight adult chronic aphasic patients' comprehension of sentences and pictures in which comparisons of time and space were crucial was designed to assess A. R. Luria's approach to designing comprehension test tasks. The investigation required patients, with lesions of varying size and location, to determine whether a sentence expressing…

Research has suggested that the two hemispheres of the brain serve specialized functions, with the most recent studies portraying the left hemisphere as processing information in a linear, serial, or sequential manner and the right hemisphere as processing information in a holistic, concrete, or visual mode. Although few systematic studies have…

Happy, neutral, and unhappy visual expressions were combined with positive, neutral, and negative intonations of positive, neutral, and negative messages to investigate congruent and incongruent verbal/nonverbal classroom communication. The 53 students in the study viewed pictures of their teacher, listened to a recording of their teacher, then…

This study examined behavioral correlates of the rapid central nervous system changes occurring in the first 4 months of life. It was hypothesized that during the early months of infancy, visual preference would occur as a function of quantitative dimensions of the stimuli (size) which could be mediated at a subcortical level. It was further…