The influence of body motion on random number generation

Poster (2014)

Knowledge and thinking are constrained by sensory-motor processes. This increasingly influential view has been termed the “embodiment theory” and proposes that bodily actions directly impact the quality ... [more ▼]

Knowledge and thinking are constrained by sensory-motor processes. This increasingly influential view has been termed the “embodiment theory” and proposes that bodily actions directly impact the quality of mental representations. The present study specifically aimed to investigate the influence of passive whole-body movement on numerical cognition. Two recent studies (Loetscher, et al., 2008; Hartmann, et al. 2011) indeed indicate that head or body movements can induce a shift of the attention on the mental number line. More precisely, leftward movements seemed to enhance small number generation while rightward movements led to larger number generation. The current study investigated this effect by using a non-motorized rotating chair. Concretely, while seated, participants were cyclically rotated 40 times for a movement amplitude of 90° from left to right and vice versa at an average frequency of 0.3 Hz. During each 90° movement segment they had to randomly produce numbers ranging between 1 and 30, but for methodological reasons the six extreme numbers were excluded from the analysis. The results indicate that the average number produced during leftward movement was smaller than the average number produced during rightward movement. These findings confirm the impact of passive whole-body movement on the production of numerical stimuli, indicating that rotation-movements of the body can displace attention on the mental number line. [less ▲]

„For the Most Part, Teachers Are Very Friendly and Fair—But Not All of Them!“ Negative teacher behavior in the classroom.

Poster (2014)

Community integrated omics links the dominance of a microbial generalist to fine-tuned resource usage

Poster (2014)

Microbial communities are complex and dynamic systems that are influenced by stochastic-neutral processes but are mainly structured by resource availability and usage. High-resolution “meta-omics” offer ... [more ▼]

Microbial communities are complex and dynamic systems that are influenced by stochastic-neutral processes but are mainly structured by resource availability and usage. High-resolution “meta-omics” offer exciting prospects to investigate microbial populations in their native environment. In particular, integrated meta-omics, by allowing simultaneous resolution of fundamental niches (genomics) and realised niches (transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics), can resolve microbial lifestyles strategies (generalist versus specialist) in situ. We have recently developed the necessary wet- and dry-lab methodologies to carry out systematic molecular measurements of microbial consortia over space and time, and to integrate and analyse the resulting data at the population-level. We applied these methods to oleaginous mixed microbial communities located on the surface of anoxic biological wastewater treatment tanks to investigate how niche breadth (generalist versus specialist strategies) relates to community-level phenotypes and ecological success (i.e. population size). Coupled metabolomics and 16S rRNA gene-based deep sequencing demonstrate that the community-wide lipid accumulation phenotype is associated with the dominance of Candidatus Microthrix parvicella. By integrating population-level genomic reconstructions with transcriptomic and proteomic data, we found that the dominance of this microbial generalist population results from finely tuned resource usage and optimal foraging behaviour. Moreover, the fluctuating environmental conditions constrain the accumulation of variations, leading to a genetically homogeneous population likely due to fitness trade-offs. By integrating metagenomic, metatranscriptomic, metaproteomic and metabolomic information, we demonstrate that natural microbial population sizes and structures are intricately linked to resource usage and that differing microbial lifestyle strategies may explain the varying degrees of within-population genetic heterogeneity observed in metagenomic datasets. Elucidating the exact mechanism driving fitness trade-offs, e.g., antagonistic pleiotropy or others, will require additional integrated omic datasets to be generated from samples taken over space and time. Based on our observations, niche breadth and lifestyle strategies (generalists versus specialists) have to be considered as important factors for understanding the evolutionary processes governing microbial population sizes and structures in situ. [less ▲]

SLAPn: A Tool for slicing Algebraic Petri nets

Poster (2014)

Algebraic Petri nets is a well suited formalism to represent the behavior of concurrent and distributed systems by handling complex data. For the analysis of systems modelled in Algebraic Petri nets ... [more ▼]

Algebraic Petri nets is a well suited formalism to represent the behavior of concurrent and distributed systems by handling complex data. For the analysis of systems modelled in Algebraic Petri nets, model checking and testing are used commonly. Petri nets slicing is getting an attention recently to improve the analysis of systems modelled in Petri nets or Algebraic Petri nets. This work is oriented to define Algebraic Petri nets slicing and implement it in a verification tool. [less ▲]

Comparative Analysis of Real-Time Precise Point Positioning Zenith Total Delay Estimates

Poster (2013, December 13)

The use of observations from Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) in operational meteorology is increasing worldwide due to the continuous evolution of GNSS. The assimilation of near real-time (NRT ... [more ▼]

The use of observations from Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) in operational meteorology is increasing worldwide due to the continuous evolution of GNSS. The assimilation of near real-time (NRT) GNSS-derived zenith total delay (ZTD) estimates into local, regional and global scale numerical weather prediction (NWP) models is now in operation at a number of meteorological institutions. The development of NWP models with high update cycles for nowcasting and monitoring of extreme weather events in recent years, requires the estimation of ZTD with minimal latencies, i.e. from 5 to 10 minutes, while maintaining an adequate level of accuracy for these. The availability of real-time (RT) observations and products from the IGS RT service and associated analysis centers make it possible to compute precise point positioning (PPP) solutions in RT, which provide ZTD along with position estimates. This study presents a comparison of the RT ZTD estimates from three different PPP software packages (G-Nut/Tefnut, BNC2.7 and PPP-Wizard) to the state-of-the-art IGS Final Troposphere Product employing PPP in the Bernese GPS Software. Overall, the ZTD time series obtained by the software packages agree fairly well with the estimates following the variations of the other solutions, but showing various biases with the reference. After correction of these the RMS differences are at the order of 0.01 m. The application of PPP ambiguity resolution in one solution or the use of different RT product streams shows little impact on the ZTD estimates. [less ▲]

Social Inequality and the transition to retirement in Europe and the US

Poster (2013, November 28)

This study examines the transition to retirement in a comparative analysis. The intersection to retirement has been linked with diverse consequences in past research. On one side, studies find negative ... [more ▼]

This study examines the transition to retirement in a comparative analysis. The intersection to retirement has been linked with diverse consequences in past research. On one side, studies find negative effects on psychological well-being of retirement due to loss of employment, social networks and stability through work life. Others present results of a positive effect connected to pension. From a life course perspective, experiences in one’s employment history might impact the transition to and the retirement period itself. I hypothesize on the individual level that transition to retirement is influenced by working life experience and quality. The transition to retirement might be easier for people with a higher socio-economic status thus high education as well as financial resources. On the other hand, the experience of unemployment or lower job placement might cause depression or a decline of life satisfaction. The Theory of Cumulative Advantages and the mechanism of scarring propose that unemployment will have a long-life effect on the career. But is the effect even sustaining in old age? How does the transition to retirement influence life satisfaction and what impact has scarring? To answer these questions I will make use of SHARE and HRS longitudinal data on well-being of seniors and their socioeconomic situation and work history. The rich variation of countries in SHARE makes it possible to compare different welfare regimes. As SHARE lacks liberal countries, I will include the US to have a more consistent picture. [less ▲]

Accelerating short transfers in 802.11 networks

Poster (2013, November 14)

The legacy bandwidth discovery phase of TCP spends an unnecessary number of RTTs for reaching the fair share of the network. In this article we introduce a simple modification at the receiver that splits ... [more ▼]

The legacy bandwidth discovery phase of TCP spends an unnecessary number of RTTs for reaching the fair share of the network. In this article we introduce a simple modification at the receiver that splits the TCP ACKs in a controlled manner. This mechanism allows to fast ramp-up the TCP congestion window. Our experiments performed in a real testbed show benefits not only in the increased data throughput but also in a non-congested uplink (Acknowledgement) path in an 802.11 access. [less ▲]

Coping Profiles of Cancer Patients With Different Functional and Psychosocial Status: A Person-Oriented Approach

Poster (2013, November)

The King Edward Point Geodetic Observatory in Support of Sea Level Research

Poster (2013, October 28)

During February 2013 the King Edward Point (KEP) Geodetic Observatory was established in South Geor- gia, South Atlantic Ocean, through a University of Luxembourg funded research project and in ... [more ▼]

During February 2013 the King Edward Point (KEP) Geodetic Observatory was established in South Geor- gia, South Atlantic Ocean, through a University of Luxembourg funded research project and in collaboration with the United Kingdom’s National Oceanography Centre, British Antarctic Survey and Unavco, Inc. Due to its remote location in the South Atlantic Ocean, as well as, being one of few subaerial exposures of the Scotia plate, South Georgia Island has been a key location for a number of global monitoring networks, e.g. seismic, geomagnetic and oceanic. However, no geodetic monitoring station has been established, e.g. by the International Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) Service (IGS) community, despite the lack of such observations from this region. In this study we give details of the establishment of the KEP Geodetic Observatory, i.e. the installation of the continuous GNSS station KEPA on Brown Mountain and the estab- lishment of a new height datum for the tide gauge through a network of benchmarks at the KEP research station. We will present an evaluation of the GNSS positioning results for the period from February to August 2013 and of the survey/levelling work carried out for the height reference. We will discuss the installation in terms of its potential contributions to sea level observations using tide gauges and satellite altimetry, studies of tectonics, glacio-isostatic adjustment and atmospheric processes. [less ▲]

Day-to-day variability of emotions in chronic pain

Poster (2013, October 10)

Estimation abilities of large numerosities in preschool children

Poster (2013, October)

The approximate number system (ANS) is thought to be a building block for the elaboration of formal mathematics. However, little is known about how this core system develops and if it can be influenced by ... [more ▼]

The approximate number system (ANS) is thought to be a building block for the elaboration of formal mathematics. However, little is known about how this core system develops and if it can be influenced by external factors at a young age (before the child enters formal numeracy education). The purpose of this study was to examine numerical magnitude representations of 5-6 year old children at 2 different moments of Kindergarten considering children's early number competence as well as schools' socio-economic index (SEI). This study investigated estimation abilities of large numerosities using symbolic and non-symbolic output formats (8-64). In addition, we assessed symbolic and non-symbolic early number competence (1-12) at the end of the 2nd (N = 42) and the 3rd (N = 32) Kindergarten grade. By letting children freely produce estimates we observed surprising estimation abilities at a very young age (from 5 year on) extending far beyond children's symbolic explicit knowledge. Moreover, the time of testing has an impact on the ANS accuracy since 3rd Kindergarteners were more precise in both estimation tasks. Additionally, children who presented better exact symbolic knowledge were also those with the most refined ANS. However, this was true only for 3rd Kindergarteners who were a few months from receiving math instructions. In a similar vein, higher SEI positively impacted only the oldest children's estimation abilities whereas it played a role for exact early number competences already in 2nd and 3rd graders. Our results support the view that approximate numerical representations are linked to exact number competence in young children before the start of formal math education and might thus serve as building blocks for mathematical knowledge. Since this core number system was also sensitive to external components such as the SEI this implies that it can most probably be targeted and refined through specific educational strategies from preschool on. [less ▲]

The exogenous RNA spectrum in human plasma and the gastrointestinal tract

Poster (2013, October)

Design principles study of ROS management and ROS-induced mitophagy with a kinetic model

Poster (2013, September 27)

In vivo evidence demonstrates three fundamental interconnected adaptive survival mechanisms , which protect against excessive ROS that is generated during mitochondrial dysfunction: (i) autophagy ... [more ▼]

In vivo evidence demonstrates three fundamental interconnected adaptive survival mechanisms , which protect against excessive ROS that is generated during mitochondrial dysfunction: (i) autophagy/mitophagy, (ii) adaptive antioxidant response and (iii) NFkB signaling in cancer and neurodegeneration. We have been expanding a kinetic model which recapitulates the consensus understanding of the mechanisms responsible for cellular ROS – management system and performed modular analysis to analyze emergent behavior. We started with the simplest model and added stepwise new modules. We identify the qualitative role (certain emergent behavior) attributed to each module and thus understand the design principles of the system. We propose a detailed, mechanistic, kinetic model for studying how mutations relevant for diseases such as PD and cancer affect the emergent behavior of ROS management network. [less ▲]

Potential Contributions to Geoscience from GNSS Observations of the King Edward Point Geodetic Observatory, South Georgia, South Atlantic Ocean

Poster (2013, September 01)

During February 2013 the King Edward Point (KEP) Geodetic Observatory was established in South Georgia, South Atlantic Ocean, through a University of Luxembourg funded research project and in ... [more ▼]

During February 2013 the King Edward Point (KEP) Geodetic Observatory was established in South Georgia, South Atlantic Ocean, through a University of Luxembourg funded research project and in collaboration with the United Kingdom’s National Oceanography Centre, British Antarctic Survey and Unavco, Inc. Due to its remote location in the South Atlantic Ocean, as well as, being one of few subaerial exposures of the Scotia plate, South Georgia Island has been a key location for a number of global monitoring networks, e.g. seismic, geomagnetic and oceanic. However, no geodetic monitoring station has been established, e.g. by the International Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) Service (IGS) community, despite the lack of such observations from this region. In this study we will present an evaluation of the GNSS observations from the KEP Geodetic Observatory for the period from February to August 2013. We calculate multipath and positioning statistics and compare these to those from IGS stations. The on-site meteorological data is compared to those from the nearby KEP meteorological station and global numerical weather models, and the impact of these data sets on delay and integrated water vapour estimates will be evaluated. We will discuss the installation in terms of its potential contributions to sea level observations using tide gauges and satellite altimetry, studies of tectonics, glacio-isostatic adjustment and atmospheric processes. [less ▲]

Investigation of an integrative model of emotional competences: theoretical and methodological competences

Poster (2013, September)

Boundary elements for modelling gravitational signals observed by inter-satellite ranging

Poster (2013, September)

Fluctuation Relations and Crystallization in Colloidal Suspensions

Poster (2013, September)

Hard Spheres undergo a fluid to solid phase transition if the packing fraction is above $0.5$. The nucleation process itself and developing structures in this transient process are still matter of current ... [more ▼]

Hard Spheres undergo a fluid to solid phase transition if the packing fraction is above $0.5$. The nucleation process itself and developing structures in this transient process are still matter of current research. \\ Here a new approach is proposed to correlate forming structure and dissipation directly. The system driven externally by a time varying pressure is compressed in a finite time. Thermodynamic work measured and directly correlated to structural information recorded during the process. Fluctuation theorems set the framework of this analysis that still hold at the first order phase transition that are initialized by a macroscopic fluctuation. [less ▲]

Assessing the Status of GNSS Data Processing Systems to Estimate Integrated Water Vapour for Use in Numerical Weather Prediction models

Poster (2013, September)

Modern Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) models make use of the GNSS derived Zenith Total Delay (ZTD) or Integrated Water Vapour (IWV) estimates to enhance the quality of their forecasts. Usually, the ... [more ▼]

Modern Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) models make use of the GNSS derived Zenith Total Delay (ZTD) or Integrated Water Vapour (IWV) estimates to enhance the quality of their forecasts. Usually, the ZTD is assimilated into the NWP models on hourly intervals but with the advancement of NWP models towards higher update rates, it has become necessary to estimate the ZTD on sub-hourly intervals. In turn, this imposes requirements related to the timeliness and accuracy of the ZTD estimates and has lead to a development of various strategies to process GNSS observations to obtain ZTD with different latencies and accuracies. Using present GNSS products and tools, ZTD can be estimated in real-time (RT), near real-time (NRT) and post-processing (PP) modes. The aim of this study is to provide an overview and accuracy assessment of various RT, NRT, and PP IWV estimation systems and comparing their achieved accuracy with the user requirements for GNSS meteorology. The NRT and PP systems are based on the Bernese GNSS Software v5.2 using a double-difference network and Precise Point Positioning (PPP) strategy, and the RT systems are based on BKG Ntrip Client 2.7 and PPP-Wizard both using PPP. One of the RT systems allows integer ambiguity resolution with PPP and therefore the effect of fixing integer ambiguities on ZTD estimates will also be presented. [less ▲]

Fluctuation Relations and Crystallization

Poster (2013, August)

Hard Spheres undergo a fluid to solid phase transition if the packing fraction is approx. $>0.5$. The nucleation process itself and structure formation in this transient process are still under ... [more ▼]

Hard Spheres undergo a fluid to solid phase transition if the packing fraction is approx. $>0.5$. The nucleation process itself and structure formation in this transient process are still under investigation. Here a new approach is proposed to correlate forming structure and dissipation directly. Fluctuation relations are the method of choice. Increasing the pressure with time results in thermodynamic work, linked by the first law of thermodynamics to dissipation.\\ Studying fluctuation relations of structural phase transition and even slow dynamics is important. A new kind of fluctuation enters the dynamics that is macroscopic instead of microscopic based on thermal fluctuations. [less ▲]

Modeling cellular ROS defense in mitochondrial-related diseases

Poster (2013, July 22)

Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) generation is an unavoidable background process during normal cellular function. The main contributor to ROS production is the electron transport chain, which reduces oxygen ... [more ▼]

Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) generation is an unavoidable background process during normal cellular function. The main contributor to ROS production is the electron transport chain, which reduces oxygen to water. Some incompletely-reduced oxygen species escape and oxidize a variety of organic molecules, leading to molecular dysfunction and initiating a positive feedback loop of ever increasing active radical production. The increased concentration of ROS damages the mitochondria, therefore further elevating the rate of ROS generation. Healthy cells manage ROS enzymatically and by mitophagy of damaged mitochondria. The precise tuning of the latter mechanism is crucial for cell survival and is controlled by a ROS-induced regulatory network. We have built a set of kinetic models of varying complexity, based on the current understanding of the mechanism of cellular ROS defense. Our models allow simulation of various patho-physiological scenarios related to mitochondrial dysfunction and the failure of the system of ROS regulation in human cells. We employ the models we have constructed to simulate the effects of diseases related to mitochondrial dysfunction and excessive ROS generation, such as Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease and cancer. Experimental evidence is used for model fitting, and we propose model improvements based on incorporation of single-cell experimental measurements. Finally, we discuss the perspective of integrating our kinetic models with genome-scale, constraint-based, tissue-specific models of metabolism, in order to study the effect of ROS misregulation on metabolic phenotype. [less ▲]

Multilingual Teaching of Psychology: Does language matter?

Poster (2013, July)

Cooperativity, geometrical constraints and slowed dynamics in glass-forming epoxy nanocomposites

Poster (2013, July)

Modifications of the Simpson moduli spaces of 1-dimensional sheaves on a projective plane by vector bundles

Poster (2013, June)

We study how to modify the Simpson moduli spaces of 1-dimensional coherent sheaves on a projective plane in order to obtain a space of vector bundles on curves.

Anomalous behaviour of SBR/Al2O3 nanocomposites at small filler concentrations

Poster (2013, June)

Elastomers filled with hard nanoparticles are of great importance for the rubber industry. In general, the incorporation of the small particles improves the mechanical properties of polymeric materials, e ... [more ▼]

Elastomers filled with hard nanoparticles are of great importance for the rubber industry. In general, the incorporation of the small particles improves the mechanical properties of polymeric materials, e.g. elastic modulus, tensile strength etc. Nanocomposites made of poly(styrene-co-butadiene) and alumina nanoparticles (unmodified and modified with different silane coupling agents) were investigated by temperature modulated differential scanning calorimetry (TMDSC) and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). It has been shown that the glass transition behaviour of SBR/alumina nanocomposites differs when the concentration and surface properties of the Al2O3 nanoparticles are changed. The influence of the fillers on the shear stiffness of the rubber material was also investigated. TMDSC investigations shed light on a surprising behaviour of the glass transition temperature when the nanoparticle concentration is changed: at low filler contents the quasi-static glass transition temperature Tg passes through a minimum. While further increasing the nanoparticle content Tg increases to finally saturate at high concentrations. DMA results showed a quasi-solid-like frequency-independent response of the nanocomposites in the low frequency regime with increasing of the filler concentration. [less ▲]

Mental disorders and personality characteristics in parents of patients with eating disorders

Poster (2013, May 25)

Spezifität der Körperbildstörung für Anorexia nervosa

Poster (2013, May 10)

Récits de parents en situation vulnérable: Trajectoires de résilience familiale?

Poster (2013, May)

Dans la société actuelle, la famille est confrontée à plusieurs domaines d’action et politiques visant l’épanouissement familial et l’amélioration de la situation socio-économique et psycho-éducative ... [more ▼]

Dans la société actuelle, la famille est confrontée à plusieurs domaines d’action et politiques visant l’épanouissement familial et l’amélioration de la situation socio-économique et psycho-éducative, mais ceci en poursuivant différents objectifs à la fois. Dans ces domaines, nous retrouvons l’encouragement de l’emploi des femmes, la promotion de l’égalité des sexes, l’accueil de la petite enfance et l’école désirant entrer en partenariat éducatif, l’aide à l’enfance et à la famille proposant des soutiens à la parentalité etc. (cf. OCDE, 2011). Mais que vivent les parents bénéficiant d’une intervention socio-éducative quant à l’éducation des enfants ou quant aux difficultés intrafamiliales? L’étude qualitative communiquée se centre sur les récits de vie de parents en situation vulnérable dans le but de repérer leur élaboration de la notion de parentalité et d’éducation familiale. Plus spécifiquement, la recherche s’adresse aux difficultés rencontrées par les parents, aux réponses trouvées face aux difficultés parentales voire familiales, et aux trajectoires familiales contenant un développement favorable pour la famille. En outre, l'étude cherche à identifier des critères qualifiant les trajectoires familiales positives comme caractéristiques résilientes. Par ailleurs, nous examinons si le parent occupe un rôle central dans le processus de résilience familiale. Le raisonnement avec le concept de résilience familiale, c’est-à-dire la possibilité de trouver des résultats positifs préservant le développement de chaque membre et de l’unité familiale (Delage, 2010), nous permet de refléter les aspects favorables des trajectoires familiales, sans pour autant négliger les aspects vulnérables. [less ▲]

ROS-induced regulation of mitophagy and its failure in Parkinson’s disease

Poster (2013, May)

Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) generation is an unavoidable background process in the normal functioning of the cell. The greatest contributor to ROS production is the electron transport chain (ETC) where ... [more ▼]

Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) generation is an unavoidable background process in the normal functioning of the cell. The greatest contributor to ROS production is the electron transport chain (ETC) where O2 is reduced to H2O. Some incompletely-reduced oxygen species escape and oxidize a variety of organic molecules (e.g. proteins and lipids in the mitochondrial membrane), leading to molecular dysfunction and initiating a positive feedback loop leading to generation of even more active radicals. Increased ROS concentration damages mitochondria and further increases ROS generation. Healthy cells manage ROS enzymatically with superoxide dismutase and other enzymes, various antioxidants, and ultimately through increased mitophagy of damaged mitochondria. The precise tuning of the latter mechanism is crucial for cell survival and is controlled in the cell by a ROS-induced regulatory network, which consists of many components such as Nrf2, Keap1, Parkin and p62 with a rather complicated cross-talk (Figure 1). In many diseases (cancer, Parkinson’s disease (PD), Huntington’s disease (HD), etc.), various components of the ROS management network are altered. Deconstructing the molecular mechanisms underlying or resulting from these alterations might contribute to better understanding of the dynamics of related pathophysiological processes. We have built a kinetics-based model which recapitulates the consensus understanding of the mechanism responsible for cellular ROS – managing system. [less ▲]

A Psychometric-Scales Based Typology of Newly Unemployed People

Poster (2013, May)

The influence of language on exact additions in bilingual adults.

Poster (2013, April)

To which degree is language involved in arithmetic? We investigated this question in a German-French bilingual setting. In Luxembourg, bilingualism is acquired through education: mathematics are taught in ... [more ▼]

To which degree is language involved in arithmetic? We investigated this question in a German-French bilingual setting. In Luxembourg, bilingualism is acquired through education: mathematics are taught in German in primary and in French in secondary school. Interestingly, the decades and units within two-digit number names follow the unit-decade order in German but the decade-unit order in French. Forty-eight bilingual adults performed simple and complex additions. Participants had to orally respond either in German or in French. Additions were presented in different conditions: (1) visual Arabic presentation, (2) auditory presentation (in German or in French), and (3) as a dual task in which visually presented additions were preceded by visually presented semantic judgments to indirectly activate a German or French language context. The results showed that participants performed complex calculations better in the dominant language (German), while there were no differences for simple calculations. Thus, language proficiency seems to be crucial for the computation of more complex calculations, whereas arithmetic facts can be retrieved equally well in both languages. Further, adding language at the input level (auditory presentation) enhanced performances for simple calculations, especially in the non-dominant language (French), while it was exactly the opposite effect for complex calculations. Additionally, visual additions were better performed within a surrounding linguistic context (3) than alone (1) in their non-dominant language, suggesting the crucial role of the linguistic context of an addition task in bilinguals. Taken together, these results support the view of a strong language impact on calculations. [less ▲]

Long-term mass changes over Greenland derived from high-low satellite-to-satellite tracking

Poster (2013, April)

In the last decade, temporal variations of the global gravity field have become an ubiquitous and invaluable source of information for geophysical and environmental studies. It is important that the time ... [more ▼]

In the last decade, temporal variations of the global gravity field have become an ubiquitous and invaluable source of information for geophysical and environmental studies. It is important that the time series of observations is not interrupted as some geophysical phenomena, e.g. postglacial rebound or long term ice mass trends, are only beginning to be observable. To date, the most valuable source for time variable gravity (TVG) is the GRACE mission which has already exceeded its nominal lifetime. It can cease operations any time now and then only high-low satellite-to-satellite (hl-SST) observations will be available. These observations have, however, only demonstrated limited application for TVG. In this presentation, we show that by using CHAMP data, a thorough reprocessing strategy and a dedicated Kalman filter it is possible to derive the very long wavelength features of the time variable gravity field. The results are validated against GRACE data and height coordinates from long-term GPS ground stations in Greenland. We find that the quality of the CHAMP solutions is sufficient to derive realistic long-term trends and annual amplitudes of mass changes of Greenland. We conclude that hl-SST would be a viable substitute (although at lower spatial resolution) for TVG in the event of a profund operational breakdown of GRACE. [less ▲]

The Parkinson's Disease Map: A Framework for Integration, Curation and Exploration of Disease-related Pathways

Poster (2013, March 09)

Objectives: The pathogenesis of Parkinson's Disease (PD) is multi-factorial and age-related, implicating various genetic and environmental factors. It becomes increasingly important to develop new ... [more ▼]

Objectives: The pathogenesis of Parkinson's Disease (PD) is multi-factorial and age-related, implicating various genetic and environmental factors. It becomes increasingly important to develop new approaches to organize and explore the exploding knowledge of this field. Methods: The published knowledge on pathways implicated in PD, such as synaptic and mitochondrial dysfunction, alpha-synuclein pathobiology, failure of protein degradation systems and neuroinflammation has been organized and represented using CellDesigner. This repository has been linked to a framework of bioinformatics tools including text mining, database annotation, large-scale data integration and network analysis. The interface for online curation of the repository has been established using Payao tool. Results: We present the PD map, a computer-based knowledge repository, which includes molecular mechanisms of PD in a visually structured and standardized way. A bioinformatics framework that facilitates in-depth knowledge exploration, extraction and curation supports the map. We discuss the insights gained from PD map-driven text mining of a corpus of over 50 thousands full text PD-related papers, integration and visualization of gene expression in post mortem brain tissue of PD patients with the map, as well as results of network analysis. Conclusions: The knowledge repository of disease-related mechanisms provides a global insight into relationships between different pathways and allows considering a given pathology in a broad context. Enrichment with available text and bioinformatics databases as well as integration of experimental data supports better understanding of complex mechanisms of PD and formulation of novel research hypotheses. [less ▲]

The impact of inhibition capacities on number-space associations

Poster (2013, March 01)

Numerical and spatial representations are tightly linked (for a review see de Hevia et al., 2008). One specific instance of this link is the finding that when doing a binary classification judgment on ... [more ▼]

Numerical and spatial representations are tightly linked (for a review see de Hevia et al., 2008). One specific instance of this link is the finding that when doing a binary classification judgment on single Arabic digits, participants are faster to respond with their left/right hand to small/large numbers respectively. This observation has first been described by Dehaene and colleagues in the early 1990’s (Dehaene et al., 1993) and termed the SNARC effect (Spatial Numerical Association of Response Codes). Celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, the SNARC effect has been extensively replicated (for a meta-analysis see Wood et al., 2008) but one of its characteristics remains its high inter-individual variability (Wood et al., 2006a; 2006b). The source of this variability can partly be ascribed to differences in mathematical proficiency (Hoffmann et al., submitted) but a more domain general hypothesis implicating general inhibition capacities warrants further investigation. For the present study a total of 77 participants have been evaluated with a SNARC paradigm as well as standard inhibition tests (Stroop, Incompatibility subtest of the TAP test). Results show that when age-appropriate inhibition tests are used, inhibition capacities are strongly correlated with the SNARC effect, in the way that very efficient inhibition capacities lead to weaker SNARC effects. Consequently this finding could at least partly explain the impact of arithmetical proficiency on the SNARC effect. A study combining both measures would be an appropriate next step. [less ▲]

Promoting the construction of alternative representations in arithmetic problem solving with 4th and 5th grade pupils

Poster (2013, March)

The underlying assumption was that the nature of the variable involved in an arithmetical problem in which there are several solving strategies influences the construction of the representation and might ... [more ▼]

The underlying assumption was that the nature of the variable involved in an arithmetical problem in which there are several solving strategies influences the construction of the representation and might force the strategy used, hiding the possibilities to become aware of others (Gamo, Taabane & sander, 2011). This study intended to lead pupils to build an alternative representation than those spontaneously induced by the statement. It investigated the role of training of semantic recoding based on an analogy between the problems and a comparison of strategies to facilitate transfer of problem-solving strategies in problems sharing the same formal mathematical structure but differing in semantic representation [less ▲]

The influence of language on exact additions in bilingual pupils and adults.

Poster (2013, March)

To which degree is language involved in arithmetic? We investigated this question in a German-French bilingual setting. In Luxembourg, bilingualism is acquired through education: mathematics are taught in ... [more ▼]

To which degree is language involved in arithmetic? We investigated this question in a German-French bilingual setting. In Luxembourg, bilingualism is acquired through education: mathematics are taught in German in primary and in French in secondary school. Interestingly, the decades and units within two-digit number names follow the unit-decade order in German but the decade-unit order in French. We studied our research question in the multi-lingual educational context of Luxembourg by applying a developmental design. The present sample (total N = 200) included students from grades 7, 8, 10 and 11, as well as an adult bilingual group. This sample takes advantage of following the progressive transition from German to French as teaching languages. All participants performed simple and complex additions that they had to orally respond either in German or in French. Additions were presented in different conditions: (1) visual Arabic presentation, (2) auditory presentation (in German or in French), and (3) as a dual task in which visually presented additions were preceded by visually presented semantic judgements to indirectly activate a German or French language context. The results suggested that language proficiency seems to be crucial for the computation of more complex calculations, whereas simple additions can be retrieved equally well in both languages. Taken together, these results support the view of a strong language impact on calculations. Further results and implications will be discussed. [less ▲]

The impact of inhibition capacities on number-space associations in young and elderly adults

Poster (2013, February 26)

Background: Numerical and spatial representations are tightly linked, i.e. when doing a binary classification judgment on Arabic digits participants are faster to respond with their left/right hand to ... [more ▼]

Background: Numerical and spatial representations are tightly linked, i.e. when doing a binary classification judgment on Arabic digits participants are faster to respond with their left/right hand to small/large numbers respectively (SNARC effect, Dehaene et al., 1993). The SNARC effect has been extensively replicated but one of its characteristics remains inter-individual variability (Wood et al., 2006). Different sources have been proposed to account for the reported inter-individual variability, namely response speed (Gevers et al., 2006), inhibition capacities (Wood et al., 2008) and age (Wood et al., 2008). The present study aims to investigate the impact of inhibition capacities on the SNARC effect in young and elderly adults, controlling for individual general processing speed. Methods: Two groups of participants were included: young adults, N=28, mean age: 23 years (SD=3.02) and elderly adults, N=46, mean age: 65.9 years (SD=3.9). Participants performed a parity judgment SNARC paradigm as well as inhibition tests (Stroop, Incompatibility). General processing speed was evaluated using a simple shape matching task. Results: The two age-groups differed in the strength of the SNARC effect, inhibition capacities and processing speed, with the elderly adults displaying stronger SNARC effects, weaker inhibition capacities and slower processing speed. Correlation analysis including all participants confirmed these findings on an individual level by showing relations between the SNARC effect and age, as well as relations between the SNARC effect and both inhibition capacities (i.e. the Stroop effect) and processing speed. When controlling for processing speed, the relations between the SNARC effect and both inhibition capacities and age remained. Conversely, when controlling for inhibition capacities, only the relation between the SNARC effect and age (but not processing speed) remained significant, even when controlling in addition for processing speed. Relevance: By combining the variables age, inhibition capacities and individual processing speed, the present data are the first to reveal a strong link between inhibition capacities and number-space associations. Importantly, we demonstrate that this link is not mediated by general processing speed. Interestingly, the robust relation between the SNARC effect and age remains after controlling for processing speed and inhibition capacities, pointing to a new source of inter-individual differences in the strength of the SNARC effect that will need to be clarified in future research projects. [less ▲]

The Good, The Bad, and The Oxytocin: context-specific facilitation of helping.

Poster (2013)

Evidence suggests that oxytocin might facilitate helping behavior. Participants (N =122) were tested in a double-blind randomized placebo-controlled trial with intranasal oxytocin. Helping behavior was 1 ... [more ▼]

Evidence suggests that oxytocin might facilitate helping behavior. Participants (N =122) were tested in a double-blind randomized placebo-controlled trial with intranasal oxytocin. Helping behavior was 1) shaped by stimulus valence, 2) triggered by social stimuli and 3) sensitive to social group (animals vs. humans). [less ▲]

Electronic structure of artificial graphene/silicene superlattices

Poster (2013)

The SNARC effect and its relationship to spatial abilities in women

Poster (2013)

A classical demonstration of number-space associations is the so-called SNARC (Spatial Numerical Association of Response Codes) effect. It consists in faster reaction times to small/large digits with the ... [more ▼]

A classical demonstration of number-space associations is the so-called SNARC (Spatial Numerical Association of Response Codes) effect. It consists in faster reaction times to small/large digits with the left/right hand respectively. To get a better understanding of the well-documented inter-individual variability in the SNARC effect, we investigated the relationship between the classically used parity SNARC and spatial abilities, as indexed by visuo-spatial working memory capacity (WMC). The study population consisted of female university students (n=20; mean age=23.79; SD=2.50) recruited in the fields of humanities and educational sciences. Since systematic studies on the reliability of the SNARC effect are still lacking, we first measured the internal consistency, as assessed by split-half reliability, as well as test-retest reliability of the parity SNARC. Split-half and test-retest correlation coefficients were (r(19)=0.41; p<0.05) and (r(19)=0.25; p=0.14) respectively, indicating a trend towards consistency. In the present female population, a significant negative correlation was revealed between the strength of the parity SNARC effect (mean slope=-10.04; SD=8.66) and visuo-spatial WMC (mean WMC=2.85; SD=1.12; r(19)=-0.51; p<0.05). This finding thus indicates that number-space associations as measured by the parity SNARC effect tend to be stronger in young female adults with higher spatial abilities. [less ▲]

OnTheFly 2.0: a tool for automatic annotation of files and biological information extraction.

Poster (2013)

Retrieving all of the necessary information from databases about bioentities mentioned in an article is not a trivial or an easy task. Following the daily literature about a specific biological topic and ... [more ▼]

Retrieving all of the necessary information from databases about bioentities mentioned in an article is not a trivial or an easy task. Following the daily literature about a specific biological topic and collecting all the necessary information about the bioentities mentioned in the literature manually is tedious and time consuming. OnTheFly 2.0 is a web application mainly designed for non-computer experts which aims to automate data collection and knowledge extraction from biological literature in a user friendly and efficient way. OnTheFly 2.0 is able to extract bioentities from individual articles such as text, Microsoft Word, Excel and PDF files. With a simple drag-and-drop motion, the text of a document is extensively parsed for bioentities such as protein/gene names and chemical compound names. Utilizing high quality data integration platforms, OnTheFly allows the generation of informative summaries, interaction networks and at-a-glance popup windows containing knowledge related to the bioentities found in documents. OnTheFly 2.0 provides a concise application to automate the extraction of bioentities hidden in various documents and is offered as a web based application. [less ▲]

Sex-related effects of oxytocin on interpersonal closeness and emotional accuracy.

Poster (2013)

The effects of oxytocin might be sexual dimorphic. Male and female participants (N=122; 49% females) were tested using intranasal spray in a double-blind randomized, OT vs. placebo-controlled trial. OT ... [more ▼]

The effects of oxytocin might be sexual dimorphic. Male and female participants (N=122; 49% females) were tested using intranasal spray in a double-blind randomized, OT vs. placebo-controlled trial. OT-men reported an increase in interpersonal closeness and higher emotional accuracy relative to OT-women; placebo conditions did not yield sex differences. [less ▲]

A model microbial community for Eco-Systems Biology

Poster (2013)

Objective Microbial communities (MCs) play crucial roles in human health and disease. In-depth characterization of the vast organismal and functional diversity of MCs is now facilitated by high-resolution ... [more ▼]

Objective Microbial communities (MCs) play crucial roles in human health and disease. In-depth characterization of the vast organismal and functional diversity of MCs is now facilitated by high-resolution molecular approaches. Systematic measurements are key for meaningful data integration, analysis and modeling. Based on a model MC from a biological wastewater treatment plant, we have developed a new framework based on wet- and dry-lab methods for the integrated analyses of MCs at the population- as well as at the community-level. Methods The overall methodological framework first relies on a standardised wet-lab procedure for the isolation of concomitant biomolecules, i.e., DNA, RNA, proteins and metabolites, from single undivided samples. Purified biomolecular fractions then are subjected to high-resolution omic analyses including metagenomics, metatranscriptomics, metaproteomics and (meta-) metabolomics. The resulting data form the input for integrated bioinformatic analyses. Population-level integrated omic analyses rely on a newly developed binning and re-assembly method, which yields near-complete genome reconstructions for dominant populations. Community-level analyses involve the reconstruction of community-wide metabolic networks. Functional omic data is then mapped onto these reconstructions and contextualized. Results Application of the population-centric workflow has allowed us to reconstruct and identify 10 major populations within the model MC and has led to the identification of a key generalist population, Candidatus Microthrix spp., within the community. Analysis of the community-wide metabolic networks has allowed the identification of keystone genes involved in lipid and nitrogen metabolism within the MC. Conclusions Our new methodological framework offers exciting new prospects for elucidating the functional relevance of specific populations and genes within MCs. The established workflows are now being applied to samples of biomedical research interest such as human gastrointestinal tract-derived samples. [less ▲]

Neural correlates of the acquisition of a motor expertise with extended practice: A fMRI study

Poster (2013)

Complex Dynamics in Random DNA Strand Circuits

Poster (2013)

Effects of state aggregation in duration analysis

Poster (2013)

Wenn das Lebkuchenherz höher schlägt: Zusammenhänge zwischen Essverhalten und Interozeption

Poster (2013)

Integrated omics highlights keystone genes in community-wide metabolic networks

Poster (2013)

Differentiated SH-SY5Y Cells as PD Model for Mitochondrial Dysfunction: From Whole Genome Sequencing to an Educated Design of High-Throughput Experiments

Poster (2013)

Objectives: Mitochondrial dysfunction is a cellular hallmark of Parkinson's disease (PD) and energetic stress of dopaminergic neurons appears to be a physiological risk factor for mitochondrial ... [more ▼]

Objectives: Mitochondrial dysfunction is a cellular hallmark of Parkinson's disease (PD) and energetic stress of dopaminergic neurons appears to be a physiological risk factor for mitochondrial dysfunction. It is however challenging to assess the high variety of factors regulating mitochondrial physiology in living neurons in a high throughput manner. To overcome this bottleneck, we established an analysis platform, using the neuroblastoma cell line SH-SY5Y. For the first time ever we have characterized the SH-SY5Y cell line in an integrated whole genome, transcriptome, and proteome approach. In addition, we show that neuronal differentiation improves the physiological properties of this experimental model for studying mitochondrial dysfunction in PD. Methods: Whole genome sequencing, RNA-Seq, qRT-PCR, MS, FRET using Voltage sensing proteins, Immunofluorescence, cytometry, and live cell imaging. Results: The integrated molecular characterization of SH-SY5Y uncovers the level of molecular network integrity and hence the relevance of this cell line for targeted studies in selected molecular processes. Furthermore, we dissect changes in mitochondrial and energetic stress factors during the process of neuronal differentiation. Conclusions: In terms of both morphology and energetic stress response, differentiated SH-SY5Y cells are more similar to dopaminergic neurons than their undifferentiated precursors. Thanks to dividing progenitors and the short duration of differentiation, combined with the use of specific endpoints analysed with high-content microscopy, our platform paves the route for high throughput experiments on a neuronal cell culture model for PD. Our genomic characterization and expression profiling of SH-SY5Y cells furthermore helps guiding the experimental design and interpretation of such studies. [less ▲]

Modeling default correlation in a US retail loan portfolio

Poster (2013)

Systematic molecular measurements reveal key microbial populations driving community-wide phenotype

Poster (2013)

Natural microbial communities are heterogeneous and dynamic. Therefore, a major consideration for multiple omic data studies is the sample-to-sample heterogeneity, which can lead to inconsistent results ... [more ▼]

Natural microbial communities are heterogeneous and dynamic. Therefore, a major consideration for multiple omic data studies is the sample-to-sample heterogeneity, which can lead to inconsistent results if the different biomolecular fractions are obtained from distinct sub-samples. Conversely, systematic omic measurements, i.e. the standardised, reproducible and simultaneous measurement of multiple features from a single undivided sample, result in fully integrable datasets. Objective In order to prove the feasibility and benefits of such systematic measurements in the study of the respective contributions of different populations to the community-wide phenotype, we purified and analysed all biomolecular fractions, i.e. DNA, RNA, proteins and metabolites, obtained from a unique undivided sample of lipid accumulating microbial community (LAMC) from wastewater treatment plant and integrate the resulting datasets. Methods One time point of particular interest was first selected out of 4 LAMC samples for its high diversity and strong lipid accumulation phenotype. Then, the systematic measurement strategy was applied to the selected undivided LAMC sample and the purified biomolecules were analysed by high-throughput techniques. DNA and RNA sequencing reads were assembled at the population-level using different binning strategies. A database, containing predicted proteins, was constructed to identify the detected peptides. Finally, all biomolecular information was mapped onto the assembled composite genomes to identify the precise roles of the different populations in the community-wide lipid accumulation phenotype. Results Metabolomics and 16S diversity analyses were used to select the sample of highest interest for detailed analysis. The systematic measurements of the selected sample followed by data integration have allowed us to probe the functional relevance of the population-level composite genomes, leading to the identification of the LAMC key players. Conclusion As community phenotype is not the sum of the different partner phenotypes, understanding a microbial community system requires more than the study of isolated organisms. Even if both approaches are complementary, top-down systematic approached only provides a holistic perspective of micro-ecological processes. [less ▲]