This research examined age differences in the acquisition and reacquisition of instance-based aut... more This research examined age differences in the acquisition and reacquisition of instance-based automaticity. In 2 experiments, young and older adults were trained to enumerate targets presented in otherwise empty displays or in displays that contained distractors. Experiment 1 revealed that older adults required more practice to reach asymptote than young adults. For both age groups, modifications of the identities and locations of targets produced substantial disruptions in performance, whereas modifications of the identities or locations of distractors produced little interference. However, no age differences in the representations of instances in memory were obtained in participants who reached asymptote. Experiment 2 revealed age deficits in the long-term retention and rate of reacquisition of instance-based automaticity 18 months after initial training.
Organization of the family system at two points in early parenthood was examined through the stud... more Organization of the family system at two points in early parenthood was examined through the study of family rituals. Fifty-four couples whose oldest child was 12 months of age or less and sixty-one couples whose oldest child was between 24 and 66 months of age ...
Both cognitive tests and MRI-based measures have been suggested as outcomes in trials assessing d... more Both cognitive tests and MRI-based measures have been suggested as outcomes in trials assessing disease-modifying therapies in Alzheimer's disease (AD).
Adult age differences in the effects of different types of distractor interference on visual sear... more Adult age differences in the effects of different types of distractor interference on visual search were examined. Young adults (mean age = 18.5 years) and older adults (mean age = 69.5 years) performed a target-counting task that required a complete search of a visual display in each trial. Varying numbers of targets were presented alone in displays or were interspersed among eight distractor items that were either categorically related (letters) or conceptually related (numbers representing either the correct number or the incorrect number of targets in the display) to the target item (letter Q). An adult age difference in the speed of target enumeration was observed when targets were presented alone in the display. In addition, when targets appeared with distractors, both younger and older adults were penalized more by conceptually interfering distracters than by categorically related distractors. Results did not suggest an age-related decline in inhibitory processes.
The potential impact of parenting on adult self-development was examined through the motivational... more The potential impact of parenting on adult self-development was examined through the motivational construct of possible selves (hoped-for and feared scenarios for the future). The present study was designed to determine the extent to which parenting possible selves are present among young adults in the transition to parenthood phase and young adults in the early parenting phase. Results indicated that
The effects of secondary tasks on verbal and spatial working memory were examined in multiple chi... more The effects of secondary tasks on verbal and spatial working memory were examined in multiple child, young adult, and older adult samples. Although memory span increased with age in the child samples and decreased with age in the adult samples, there was little evidence of systematic change in the magnitude of interference effects. Surprisingly, individuals who had larger memory spans
The effects of secondary tasks on verbal and spatial working memory were examined in multiple chi... more The effects of secondary tasks on verbal and spatial working memory were examined in multiple child, young adult, and older adult samples. Although memory span increased with age in the child samples and decreased with age in the adult samples, there was little evidence of systematic change in the magnitude of interference effects. Surprisingly, individuals who had larger memory spans
The ability of RNA polymerase (RNAP) to select the right promoter sequence at the right time is f... more The ability of RNA polymerase (RNAP) to select the right promoter sequence at the right time is fundamental to the control of gene expression in all organisms. However, there is only one crystallized structure of a complete activator/RNAP/DNA complex. In a process called σ appropriation, bacteriophage T4 activates a class of phage promoters using an activator (MotA) and a co-activator (AsiA), which function through interactions with the σ(70) subunit of RNAP. We have developed a holistic, structure-based model for σ appropriation using multiple experimentally determined 3D structures (Escherichia coli RNAP, the Thermus aquaticus RNAP/DNA complex, AsiA /σ(70) Region 4, the N-terminal domain of MotA [MotA(NTD)], and the C-terminal domain of MotA [MotA(CTD)]), molecular modeling, and extensive biochemical observations indicating the position of the proteins relative to each other and to the DNA. Our results visualize how AsiA/MotA redirects σ, and therefore RNAP activity, to T4 promote...
Twenty-seven cases of inverted duplications of chromosome 15 (inv dup [15]) were investigated by ... more Twenty-seven cases of inverted duplications of chromosome 15 (inv dup [15]) were investigated by FISH with two DNA probes specific for the Prader-Willi syndrome/Angelman syndrome (PWS/AS) region on proximal 15q. Sixteen of the marker chromosomes displayed two copies of each probe, while in the remaining 11 markers no hybridization was observed. A significant association was found between the presence of this region and an abnormal phenotype (P < .01). This is the largest study to date of inv dup(15) chromosomes, that uses molecular cytogenetic methods and is the first to report a significant association between the presence of a specific chromosomal region in such markers and an abnormal phenotype.
This research examined age differences in the acquisition and reacquisition of instance-based aut... more This research examined age differences in the acquisition and reacquisition of instance-based automaticity. In 2 experiments, young and older adults were trained to enumerate targets presented in otherwise empty displays or in displays that contained distractors. Experiment 1 revealed that older adults required more practice to reach asymptote than young adults. For both age groups, modifications of the identities and locations of targets produced substantial disruptions in performance, whereas modifications of the identities or locations of distractors produced little interference. However, no age differences in the representations of instances in memory were obtained in participants who reached asymptote. Experiment 2 revealed age deficits in the long-term retention and rate of reacquisition of instance-based automaticity 18 months after initial training.
Organization of the family system at two points in early parenthood was examined through the stud... more Organization of the family system at two points in early parenthood was examined through the study of family rituals. Fifty-four couples whose oldest child was 12 months of age or less and sixty-one couples whose oldest child was between 24 and 66 months of age ...
Both cognitive tests and MRI-based measures have been suggested as outcomes in trials assessing d... more Both cognitive tests and MRI-based measures have been suggested as outcomes in trials assessing disease-modifying therapies in Alzheimer's disease (AD).
Adult age differences in the effects of different types of distractor interference on visual sear... more Adult age differences in the effects of different types of distractor interference on visual search were examined. Young adults (mean age = 18.5 years) and older adults (mean age = 69.5 years) performed a target-counting task that required a complete search of a visual display in each trial. Varying numbers of targets were presented alone in displays or were interspersed among eight distractor items that were either categorically related (letters) or conceptually related (numbers representing either the correct number or the incorrect number of targets in the display) to the target item (letter Q). An adult age difference in the speed of target enumeration was observed when targets were presented alone in the display. In addition, when targets appeared with distractors, both younger and older adults were penalized more by conceptually interfering distracters than by categorically related distractors. Results did not suggest an age-related decline in inhibitory processes.
The potential impact of parenting on adult self-development was examined through the motivational... more The potential impact of parenting on adult self-development was examined through the motivational construct of possible selves (hoped-for and feared scenarios for the future). The present study was designed to determine the extent to which parenting possible selves are present among young adults in the transition to parenthood phase and young adults in the early parenting phase. Results indicated that
The effects of secondary tasks on verbal and spatial working memory were examined in multiple chi... more The effects of secondary tasks on verbal and spatial working memory were examined in multiple child, young adult, and older adult samples. Although memory span increased with age in the child samples and decreased with age in the adult samples, there was little evidence of systematic change in the magnitude of interference effects. Surprisingly, individuals who had larger memory spans
The effects of secondary tasks on verbal and spatial working memory were examined in multiple chi... more The effects of secondary tasks on verbal and spatial working memory were examined in multiple child, young adult, and older adult samples. Although memory span increased with age in the child samples and decreased with age in the adult samples, there was little evidence of systematic change in the magnitude of interference effects. Surprisingly, individuals who had larger memory spans
The ability of RNA polymerase (RNAP) to select the right promoter sequence at the right time is f... more The ability of RNA polymerase (RNAP) to select the right promoter sequence at the right time is fundamental to the control of gene expression in all organisms. However, there is only one crystallized structure of a complete activator/RNAP/DNA complex. In a process called σ appropriation, bacteriophage T4 activates a class of phage promoters using an activator (MotA) and a co-activator (AsiA), which function through interactions with the σ(70) subunit of RNAP. We have developed a holistic, structure-based model for σ appropriation using multiple experimentally determined 3D structures (Escherichia coli RNAP, the Thermus aquaticus RNAP/DNA complex, AsiA /σ(70) Region 4, the N-terminal domain of MotA [MotA(NTD)], and the C-terminal domain of MotA [MotA(CTD)]), molecular modeling, and extensive biochemical observations indicating the position of the proteins relative to each other and to the DNA. Our results visualize how AsiA/MotA redirects σ, and therefore RNAP activity, to T4 promote...
Twenty-seven cases of inverted duplications of chromosome 15 (inv dup [15]) were investigated by ... more Twenty-seven cases of inverted duplications of chromosome 15 (inv dup [15]) were investigated by FISH with two DNA probes specific for the Prader-Willi syndrome/Angelman syndrome (PWS/AS) region on proximal 15q. Sixteen of the marker chromosomes displayed two copies of each probe, while in the remaining 11 markers no hybridization was observed. A significant association was found between the presence of this region and an abnormal phenotype (P < .01). This is the largest study to date of inv dup(15) chromosomes, that uses molecular cytogenetic methods and is the first to report a significant association between the presence of a specific chromosomal region in such markers and an abnormal phenotype.
Uploads
Papers