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Recent research has demonstrated that, when instructed to prioritize a serial position in visual working memory (WM), adults are able to boost performance for this selected item, at a cost to nonprioritized items (e.g., Hu, Hitch, Baddeley, Zhang, & Allen, 2014). While executive control appears to play an important role in this ability, the increased likelihood of recalling the most recently presented item (i.e., the recency effect) is relatively automatic, possibly driven by perceptual mechanisms. In 3 Experiments 7 to 10 year-old's ability to prioritize items in WM was investigated using a sequential visual task (total N = 208). The relationship between individual differences in WM and performance on the experimental task was also explored. Participants were unable to prioritize the first (Experiments 1 and 2) or final (Experiment 3) item in a 3-item sequence, while large recency effects for the final item were consistently observed across all experiments. The absence of a priority boost across 3 experiments indicates that children may not have the necessary executive resources to prioritize an item within a visual sequence, when directed to do so. In contrast, the consistent recency boosts for the final item indicate that children show automatic memory benefits for the most recently encountered stimulus. Finally, for the baseline condition in which children were instructed to remember all 3 items equally, additional WM measures predicted performance at the first and second but not the third serial position, further supporting the proposed automaticity of the recency effect in visual WM.

This book examines the UK's fiscal constitution and how it influenced public spending from the early 1990s to 2015. It covers three periods of government and includes interviews with over 130 individuals, including Treasury Ministers and officials. The book explores various aspects of spending control, such as investment and infrastructure spending, devolved spending, administration costs, forecasting, and budget classification. It highlights the UK's unique approach to public financial management and identifies recurring features of its fiscal constitution. The book also discusses the challenges and limitations of different budgeting approaches and provides insights into the UK's experiences with participatory budgeting and performance budgeting. Overall, it offers a comprehensive analysis of the UK's fiscal constitution and its impact on public spending. [Extracted from the article]

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a fatal lung disease accounting for 1% of UK deaths. In the familial form of pulmonary fibrosis, causal genes have been identified in about 30% of cases, and a majority of these causal genes are associated with telomere maintenance. Prematurely shortened leukocyte telomere length is associated with IPF and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a disease with similar demographics and shared risk factors. Using mendelian randomisation, we investigated evidence supporting a causal role for short telomeres in IPF and COPD. Mendelian randomisation inference of telomere length causality was done for IPF (up to 1369 cases) and COPD (13 538 cases) against 435 866 controls of European ancestry in UK Biobank. Polygenic risk scores were calculated and two-sample mendelian randomisation analyses were done using seven genetic variants previously associated with telomere length, with replication analysis in an IPF cohort (2668 cases vs 8591 controls) and COPD cohort (15 256 cases vs 47 936 controls). In the UK Biobank, a genetically instrumented one-SD shorter telomere length was associated with higher odds of IPF (odds ratio [OR] 4·19, 95% CI 2·33–7·55; p=0·0031) but not COPD (1·07, 0·88–1·30; p=0·51). Similarly, an association was found in the IPF replication cohort (12·3, 5·05–30·1; p=0·0015) and not in the COPD replication cohort (1·04, 0·71–1·53; p=0·83). Meta-analysis of the two-sample mendelian randomisation results provided evidence inferring that shorter telomeres cause IPF (5·81 higher odds of IPF, 95% CI 3·56–9·50; p=2·19 × 10−12). There was no evidence to infer that telomere length caused COPD (OR 1·07, 95% CI 0·90–1·27; p=0·46). Cellular senescence is hypothesised as a major driving force in IPF and COPD; telomere shortening might be a contributory factor in IPF, suggesting divergent mechanisms in COPD. Defining a key role for telomere shortening enables greater focus in telomere-related diagnostics, treatments, and the search for a cure in IPF. Investigation of therapies that improve telomere length is warranted. Medical Research Council. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Easter and Christmas are the most important events in the Christian calendar. Despite their global reach and cultural significance, astonishingly little is known about the festivals' genesis. Equally obscure is our understanding of the animals that have come to be associated with these celebrations - notably the Christmas Turkey and the Easter 'Bunny' (brown hare and the European rabbit). Like Christianity, none of these animals are native to Britain and the timing and circumstances of their arrivals are poorly understood, often obfuscated by received wisdom. This paper firstly refines the bio-cultural histories of the species that, in contemporary Britain, form integral parts of Easter and Christmas festivities. Secondly, we celebrate the non-native species which have played such an important role in the creation of Britain's cultural heritage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ability to encode, retain, and implement instructions within working memory is central to many behaviours, including classroom activities which underpin learning. The three experiments presented here explored how action-planned, enacted, and observed-impacted 6- to 10-year-old's ability to follow instructions. Experiment 1 ( N = 81) found enacted recall was superior to verbal recall, but self-enactment at encoding had a negative effect on enacted recall and verbal recall. In contrast, observation of other-enactment (demonstration) at encoding facilitated both types of recall (Experiment 2a: N = 81). Further, reducing task demands through a reduced set of possible actions (Experiment 2b; N = 64) led to a positive effect of self-enactment at encoding for later recall (both verbal and enacted). Expecting to enact at recall may lead to the creation of an imaginal spatial-motoric plan at encoding that boosts later recall. However, children's ability to use the additional spatial-motoric codes generated via self-enactment at encoding depends on the demands the task places on central executive resources. Demonstration at encoding appears to reduce executive demands and enable use of these additional forms of coding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A visual object can be conceived of as comprising a number of features bound together by their joint spatial location. We investigate the question of whether the spatial location is automatically bound to the features or whether the two are separable, using a previously developed paradigm whereby memory is disrupted by a visual suffix. Participants were shown a sample array of four colored shapes, followed by a postcue indicating the target for recall. On randomly intermixed trials, a to-be-ignored suffix array consisting of two different colored shapes was presented between the sample and the postcue. In a random half of suffix trials, one of the suffix items overlaid the location of the target. If location was automatically encoded, one might expect the colocation of target and suffix to differentially impair performance. We carried out three experiments, cuing for recall by spatial location (Experiment 1), color or shape (Experiment 2), or both randomly intermixed (Experiment 3). All three studies showed clear suffix effects, but the colocation of target and suffix was differentially disruptive only when a spatial cue was used. The results suggest that purely visual shape-color binding can be retained and accessed without requiring information about spatial location, even when task demands encourage the encoding of location, consistent with the idea of an abstract and flexible visual working memory system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The strength of the United Kingdom's central finance agency (H.M. Treasury) has been attributed to its broad and powerful influence on policy issues; the high intellectual standards of its staff; the relatively clear division between the "official" treasury and the political level; and the important role played by the permanent secretary as an anchor and point of communication between officials and ministers. To maintain its power the Treasury has to adapt quickly to changing economic and political circumstances, most recently the global financial crisis. It has also engaged in two major reorganisations over the past 20 years, which have resulted in a substantial streamlining of the organisation, a flattening of the management structure, and a casting out of functions regarded as peripheral to its core finance and economic mandate. Some critics, however, have argued that the performance of the Treasury has failed, and that the department needs to be cut back to its traditional role as a budget and finance ministry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The advent of the American War of Independence not only saw a shift in mid-Atlantic politics but also occasioned a transformation in the economic networks that had existed from the opening up of the American colonies in the seventeenth century. One particular community affected by these tensions was the Nantucket Quaker-whalers whose determination to carry on their trade while attempting to maintain neutrality led to sequestration of their goods and ships, occupation of the homes and ultimately a repositioning of their industry. This article explains the reasons for their migration, the protracted negotiations with the British government and the eventual settlement of a number of the Quaker-whalers at Milford Haven in west Wales. It also explores the central roles of Sir William Hamilton, Sir Charles Greville, William Rotch Snr and his decision to briefly relocate his business in France as well as the personal experiences of Rotch, his daughter-in-law, Elizabeth, the diarist, Abiel Folger and the other settlers at Milford. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses how efforts by the British East India Company to control or eliminate the slave trade in India illustrate the relationship of abolitionism to British imperialism. The author comments on the lack of research regarding the trading of African and Indians slaves across the Indian Ocean and discusses how trade in Indian child slaves and concepts of childhood affected the British abolition movement. British opposition to the slave trade to French colonies on Mauritius and Réunion in the Mascarene Islands is discussed.

Abstract: Background and purpose: The link between brain iron deficiency and RLS is now well established. In a related observation, several conditions that can deplete iron stores have been linked to increased probability of RLS. Blood donation has been linked to iron deficiency. It has thus been hypothesized that donating blood may be a risk factor for developing RLS. Patients and methods: Two thousand and five UK blood donors, ranging from first-time donors to some who had donated more than 70 times, completed the validated Cambridge-Hopkins RLS questionnaire (CH-RLSq) following their donation session. The questionnaire included a set of questions designed to diagnose RLS. The donors’ histories of blood donations were determined both from self-report and from the National Blood Service database. Results: A number of statistical models were constructed to determine whether the probability of RLS diagnosis was related to the history of blood donations. Controlling for age and sex, no evidence was found to suggest that a greater number or frequency of blood donations increased the risk of RLS. Even amongst sub-groups especially vulnerable to iron depletion through blood donation, such as vegetarians or low weight individuals, no evidence for an increased risk of RLS could be found. Conclusions: We found no evidence that the frequency or number of blood donations up to the UK maximum of three times a year would increase the risk of RLS. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

People involved in training and development, internal consulting, and others in the human resource function are in an immensely powerful position to change their organisations for the better -- whatever their formal position in the hierarchy.
It might not always seem like this. Frequently training and development is not seen as of strategic importance. Usually the training manager does not report in, at or near the top of the organisation. Often top management believe that training and development is not for them but for the more junior and less experienced managers.
However, given an adequate period of time -- usually several years -- people in our kind of role are in a unique position profoundly to influence and change an organisation for the better. We have a huge amount of data about the organisation and its needs. Because of our widespread contacts, we usually have a clear view of what management are getting right and the ways in which they need to act differently -- the key issues of the organisation. We have expertise in those areas in which most managers are only too ready to admit their need for help, e.g. strategic management, managing change, teamwork, developing people, gaining the support of everyone for a shared vision and common purpose. We also have widespread contacts with managers, many of whom are steadily moving upward into positions of greater influence. In other words, we have the network to change things for the better.
We believe that trainers and consultants should see themselves not so much as "professionals" but as leaders. The mask of "professionalism" tends to distance us from our clients and limit us to a relatively reactive role. If we decide to take the lead and make the contribution we are capable of, most managers will be more than willing to support our initiatives and even follow us. We will be "taking on" the issues they want tackled too. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the effect of the emotional nature of to-be-retrieved material on semantic retrieval monitoring. Across 2 groups, participants were either asked whether they have experienced a tip-of-the-tongue (TOT) state or to make a feeling-of-knowing (FOK) judgment. We examined the overall reporting rate as well as subjective (not accompanied by partial information recall) TOT and FOK reporting, comparing whether these differed between emotional (negatively valenced and arousing) and neutral items. The results demonstrated that emotion does not impact semantic TOT and FOK reports, a conclusion supported by Bayesian analysis of the results. The outcomes extend other findings in the metamemory literature, and are discussed with a focus on future research avenues concerning interactions between emotion and metamemory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reports on the Pesaro festival, a two-year program of Asian motion pictures. The Pesaro is subsidized by a network of provincial, regional and national funds in Great Britain. The festival organized films from countries like China, South Korea, the Philippines, Vietnam, Hong Kong and Thailand. Directors Lino Brocka and Mike de Leon from the Philippines have declined the invitation to attend the festival. They have announced their intention to draw attention to the repressive censorship laws in their country.

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has led to over 100 million cases worldwide. The UK has had over 4 million cases, 400 000 hospital admissions and 100 000 deaths. Many patients with COVID-19 suffer long-term symptoms, predominantly breathlessness and fatigue whether hospitalised or not. Early data suggest potentially severe long-term consequence of COVID-19 is development of long COVID-19-related interstitial lung disease (LC-ILD)., Methods and Analysis: The UK Interstitial Lung Disease Consortium (UKILD) will undertake longitudinal observational studies of patients with suspected ILD following COVID-19. The primary objective is to determine ILD prevalence at 12 months following infection and whether clinically severe infection correlates with severity of ILD. Secondary objectives will determine the clinical, genetic, epigenetic and biochemical factors that determine the trajectory of recovery or progression of ILD. Data will be obtained through linkage to the Post-Hospitalisation COVID platform study and community studies. Additional substudies will conduct deep phenotyping. The Xenon MRI investigation of Alveolar dysfunction Substudy will conduct longitudinal xenon alveolar gas transfer and proton perfusion MRI. The POST COVID-19 interstitial lung DiseasE substudy will conduct clinically indicated bronchoalveolar lavage with matched whole blood sampling. Assessments include exploratory single cell RNA and lung microbiomics analysis, gene expression and epigenetic assessment., Ethics and Dissemination: All contributing studies have been granted appropriate ethical approvals. Results from this study will be disseminated through peer-reviewed journals., Conclusion: This study will ensure the extent and consequences of LC-ILD are established and enable strategies to mitigate progression of LC-ILD., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2021. Re-use permitted under CC BY. Published by BMJ.)