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It is obvious from the above that there are several independent mechanisms in the production of the various types of lumbar fractures. The details of these mechanisms must be fully understood in each case of lumbar vertebral injury. The cases reviewed in the present paper show that similar if not identical lumbar injuries can occur in car occupants wearing or not wearing lap belts at the time of the crash. Thus, cauxally relating a lumbar injury to the lap seat belt is in error. Only distraction injuries located between 1-2 and 1-4 with no evidence of either compression or anterior wedging can be causally related to a lap belt. Even some injuries with this typical confuguration have been observed in persons who were not belted (10). Thus, without knowledge of details of the crunch, lumbar fractures could mistakenly related to use of the lap belt. Thoraculumbar injuries have been senn in patients who were ejected from the car some time during the crash event. Relating the ejection event to the lumbar fracture must be done with great caution. As has been shown by Roaf (48) and by Kaufer and Hayes (33), the type and location of the lumbar spine injury can frequently and indicatory of load application. Other body injuries, or lack thereof, are often good clues to determine the point of load application causing lumbar injury. In addition, it has been recomended that additional details of the injury and of the accident be obtained for accuracy reporting of seat belt injuries.

1. Grasping movements, as a pathological phenomenon, are executed by the same neuromuscular apparatus which, under normal circumstances, works under volitional control; they occur, however, without the patient's intention and must, therefore, be regarded as reflex-like actions even though they may be highly co-ordinated. 2. Attention, normally under volitional control and guidance, may be diverted and kept in a state of “forced distraction” with the production of akinesia by the same brain lesion which produces forced grasping. 3. The determining factor of this syndrome which was found in the monkey and in man alike, and which occurs in association with states of primary akinesia, is the destruction of the pre-motor area (area 6), although at least a partial involvement of the remaining part of the frontal lobe is also necessary for the production of the syndrome. 4. It would seem that a lesion situated in area 6, as the intermediary zone between the motor area and the frontal lobe proper, not only produces motor and mental symptoms, but also establishes a common type of disturbance which is readily recognizable and has been analysed in this paper. I wish to express my thanks to Prof. Le Gros Clark, who provided the facilities for the experimental work, and I also gratefully acknowledge a grant from the Nuffield Committee for the Advancement of Medicine

Problem: In view of finding, as a first step in the research on mental tempo, to what extent the “Vp” s' mental tempo holds its constancy with respect to a definite stimulus, a series of experiments has been conducted for a comparatively long period on the measurement of the mental tempo in the fycld of perception and motion Procedure: The general proeedure was similal to that of Frischeisen-kohler (1) For measuring the mental tempo in auditory perception, each “Vp” was instructed to listen to a metronome. (2) For measuring the mental tempo in visual perception, each “Vp” was shown in a dark room a small flickering lamp synchronized ai wth metronome. (3) For the same purpose, eaoh “Vp” was instructed to watch the motion of a small sheet of white paper attached to the top of the pendulum of a metron-ome. (4) For tapping, each “Vp” was asked to tap a steel stand with the tip of his or her middle finger. (5) Each “Vp” was asked to tap the table with a mental bar. (6) Each “Vp” was asked to tap the floor with the heel of his shoe. (7) Each “Vp” was asked to bend and stretch his middle finger, using an ergograph (8) Each “Vp” was asked to walk under a definite condition. (9) Each “Vp” was asked to draw a straight line with a pencil.In adition to the above, several experiments were performed in order tosee whether or not the “Vp”s' tempo was kept constant under distraction.Subjects: 28 students (including 22 male and female students)Date: July, November, Desember, 1950Results:(1) According to Frischeisen-Kohler, there wasn't much sexual difference in the tempo with finger-tips or a metronome, it being slightly quicker in women than in men. In the present research, however, men's tempo, which showed nearly the same figure as in Frischeisen-Kohler's, proved to be considerably quicker than women's.(2) For each “Vp” the coefficients of correlation between the results of different days throughout the entire period of experiments were not always high and at times no correlations were found. Neverthess, the tempo of each “Vp” for the same day showed high constancy, which should be interpreted as indicating that in a new field whether normal or abnormal (i.e. under distraction) a new tempo was established and that this tempo was constant.This makes us assume that mental tempo is constant within a field but it varies with different fields.(3) The correlation between the results under normal conditions and those under distraction was high.From this it can be inferred that, as Frischeisen Kohler says, the constancy is high even under an abnormal condition.(4) A few “Vp”s showed extremely low constancy in their tempos. These subjects were seen to be sufiering from nervous prostraction or schizoid mixed with a certain complex.This makes us believe in the possibility of applying the above mentioned measurement of mental tempo to the clinical examination of a disease of character or emotional instability.

This paper reviews and discusses the measurement of attitudes toward traffic safety and the attempts to change these attitudes and related driving behavior. Psychological testing of such attitudes and personality characteristics is fairly well developed and there are some instruments of good reliability and useable validity. Efforts to modify driver attitudes and behavior are inconclusive and only mildly encouraging. Considerable research needs to be done before the attitudes and behavior of drivers can be changed to improve traffic safety in the United States. Keywords: Driver distraction; Language: en

In the preceding paper the effect of experimental distraction was examined and the findings discussed. The present report is concerned with a similar study of the effect of distraction on tests which involve another aspect of schizophrenic performance, that of psychomotor ability. Earlier studies (Chapman and McGhie, 1961, 1962) produced both clinical and experimental evidence that auditory distraction disrupted the motor responses of some schizophrenic patients. As the previous experimental findings were based on two tests involving only very limited areas of psychomotor performance, it was necessary to examine patients on a wide range of psychomotor tests. A second aim of the present investigation was to assess any differential effects due to variation in the sensory modality of the distracting stimuli.

Digital techniques promise to be a major factor in future aerospace communications systems. Voice is cumbersome, slow and redundant, and does not make efficient use of the frequency spectrum. The digital approach permits the use of very narrow bandwidths, reduces redundancy and utilizes a constant loading factor. Selective addressing means that those not concerned with a message are not bothered by it, a very important factor in reducing distraction and fatigue of crew members in high performance aircraft. This paper describes terminal equipment developed for test and evaluation by the Air Force. The AN/URA-22 Control Monitor equipment provides for transmission of up to 456,976 different four-letter selective addresses, and recognition of individual, group and general calls, each of which can be any preassigned four-letter call. Remote switching is provided through the use of two mode characters, giving up to 676 possible combinations. The fieldata code is used. Mode characters and addressor call are displayed at the receive end. The AN/URA-29 Digital Data equipment adds message capability, using both words and alpha-numeric characters to provide three word messages, followed by up to 48 alpha-numeric characters in three lines of 16 characters each. Insertion is by simple push-button matrix and the message being composed is displayed. Received messages are displayed on receipt in plain language. The composed message is retained in storage until cleared. Operation of both equipments is explained in detail.

This paper describes a procedure for the conditioning of attending behaviour in a brain-injured hyperactive boy. Observations of the behaviour of two hyperactive children were made in the classroom setting. These observations were made from an observation bootn adjoining the classroom and provided data on the frequency of occurrence of the following high rate responses: walking, talking, distraction, “wiggling”. Each child was observed for a minimum of ten minutes a day, four days a week. Following several weeks of baseline observation, the conditioning procedure was begun with the expel imental subject. The conditioning trials took place in the classroom setting. During each time interval in which one of the high rate responses did not occur, S received an auditory stimulus (secondary reinforcer). This auditory stimulus had previously been paired with the delivery of candy and pennies. The stimulus was dispensed by a radio device which activated an earphone worn by the subject. At the end of each conditioning trial, S received whatever candy or pennies he had “earned”. The data show that the control subject showed no significant change in the frequency of occurrence of the high rate responses during the three month period. The experimental subject showed a significant decrease in non-attending behaviour. This reduction in rate was maintained over a four week extinction period.

This paper reports an investigation of the effects of E.C.T. upon two aspects of psychological function : psychomotor slowness and the distraction effect. Fifteen depressed patients were used as an experimental group and 15, who had also been prescribed E.C.T. for depression, were used as controls. Both groups were tested and re-tested with the same battery of psychomotor tests and Foulds′ distraction tests upon the Porteus Mazes.The main outcomes were: 1. E.C.T., if anything, increased relative slowness and had no effect on the distraction effect. 2. E.C.T. had a significant effect on the patients' complaints as measured by the Hildreth Feeling and Attitude Scale.

Previous papers [P.S. Veneklasen and J. R. Hyde, J. Acoust. Soc. Amer. 47, 78(A) (1970)] have discussed the results of model studies of the open plan which have yielded information such as barrier efficiency, attenuation due to distance and treatment, source orientation, and space planning for a specific open plan layout. These results are used to help predict the “acceptability” of such an environment for its intended use, along with articulation index calculations and assumptions of ambient background noise conditions. The end result comes in the form of recommendations to the architect. Here we compare our model studies, calculations, assumptions, and anticipated subjective response with results measured and observed in the full‐scale final product. Conscious acoustical design is shown to be imperative. In addition, less quantitative concepts are discussed, such as distraction and the need for the individual to understand the acoustical limitations of the open space in which he performs his work. Results are given for both open plan offices and schools.

Systematic observation of behavior has been used in a variety of naturalistic and laboratory situations by both ethologists and psychologists. Many of the recording techniques used in these situations involve time-sampling procedures in which observed and recorded events are sampled during specified time units. Such an approach is particularly appropriate when frequency measures, rather than response duration, behavior sequences, etc., are of primary interest. Time sampling can take several forms, but in each case preselected behavioral categories are recorded at regular time intervals. These time intervals are usually signaled by an external stimulus, such as the click of a metronome. Although widely used, such procedures have a number of limiting deficiencies. Most profoundly, the presence of an external signal not only defines time units for the 0, but also serve as an extraneous source of stimulation for the observed Ss. Such sources of potential distraction may distort environmental conditions in important unknown ways. In addition, devices such as metronomes have only a limited short range of time intervals, while some time-sampling procedures require relatively large time intervals. Then, too, available devices are often large or require an external power source, making it awkward or even impossible to use in field investigations. The present paper describes an inexpensive signal generator which has none of these deficiencies. It is a small compact instrument, which can fit comfortably into a shirt or jacket pocket and be taken anywhere, is battery operated, is infinitely variable from about 5 pulses/sec to at least 30 sec, and delivers a tone signal only to the O. As such, it is ideally suited for both laboratory and field investigations which require time-sampling observation procedures. The device is constructed around two Signetics

Of all the skills demanded by contemporary civilization the one of driving an automobile is certainly the most important to the individual, in the sense at least that a defect in it is the greatest threat to his life. But despite the consequent importance of knowledge about the nature and acquisition of this scale, no more than a beginning in this direction has been made by psychologists, and that chiefly in the field of devising tests to measure some of its inferred components. A systematic set of concepts is needed in terms of which we can describe precisely what goes on when a man drives an automobile, and such a theory, it is to be useful, must have practical as well as psychological validity. This paper has been written in the effort to make a systematic description of this sort. http://www.jstor.org/view/00029556/ap050198/05a00020/0 Keywords: Driver distraction