In this study, ethnic identity, stereotype threat, and perceived discrimination were examined in relationship to academic achievement and hopelessness in a sample of 129 Native American adolescents aged 14-19. Regression analyses with self-reported data indicated two major findings. Ethnic identity interacted with stereotype threat to predict academic achievement, where participants with high e...

The objective of this study was to investigate whether aesthesiometric threshold changes occur over the course of a workshift in vibration exposed hard rock miners relative to workers unexposed to vibration during the shift. The subjects were 99 miners and 40 smelter workers; four subjects declined to participate and nine were excluded from the analysis because of apparent failure to comprehend...

Many previous studies have used noise tolerance to quantify sensitivity to point-light walkers heading +/-90 degrees from straight-ahead. Here we measured the smallest deviations from straight-ahead that observers could detect (azimuth thresholds) in the absence of noise. Thresholds were measured at a range of stimulus sizes and eccentricities for (1) upright and (2) inverted walkers, (3) intac...

Studies with time-limited point-lights suggested that biological motion does not require local motion detection. These studies used walkers seen from the side, but biological motion perception excels also when walkers are oriented toward the observer, or in intermediate, half-profile views. In perspective projection, the local motion of points on the body provides a cue to the 3D structure of t...

The polarisation of light is used by many species of cephalopods and crustaceans to discriminate objects or to communicate. Most visual systems with this ability, such as that of the fiddler crab, include receptors with photopigments that are oriented horizontally and vertically relative to the outside world. Photoreceptors in such an orthogonal array are maximally sensitive to polarised light ...

Distance information is critical to our understanding of our surrounding environment, especially in virtual reality settings. Unfortunately, as we gage distance mainly visually, the blind are prevented from properly utilizing this parameter to formulate 3D cognitive maps and cognitive imagery of their surroundings. We show qualitatively that with no training it is possible for blind and blindfo...

In this paper we propose two interpretations for the discrimination parameter in the two-parameter logistic model (2PLM). The interpretations are based on the relation between the 2PLM and two stochastic models. In the first interpretation, the 2PLM is linked to a diffusion model so that the probability of absorption equals the 2PLM. The discrimination parameter is the distance between the two ...

There is a growing body of literature investigating point-light biological motion perception. Based solely on the kinematics of a handful of dots representing the body and major joints of a human actor, observers can extract complex information such as gender from point-light displays. Many previous studies have used artificially generated point-light animations to investigate critical features...

BACKGROUND Reconstruction of the heel represents a difficult challenge for surgeons, given the demand for thick, durable skin capable of withstanding both pressure and shear. The authors describe the use of a sensate medial plantar flap for heel reconstruction in three patients and document the long-term retention of sensation compared with the contralateral uninjured heel and corresponding don...