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This study explored the longitudinal association between overall and individual sources of social support and global cognitive function in older adults.There was no significant association between perceived overall social support and global cognitive function over time (Our findings highlight the importance of examining perceived social support from specific elements of one's social networks, rather than in an aggregated variable. Although the positive effect of perceived support from children may be small to moderate, the findings could provide a target for interventions to protect the cognitive function of older adults.

The LC is a brainstem region associated with broad physiological and neural arousal as part of the release of norepinephrine, but it has increasingly been associated with multiple specific cognitive processes. These include sustained attention, deficits in which are associated with a variety of neuropsychological disorders. Neural models of attention deficits to date have focused on interrupted dynamics between the salience network (SAL) with the fronto-parietal network (FPN), which has been associated with task-switching and processing of external stimuli, respectively. Conflicting findings based on these regions suggest the possibility of upstream signaling leading to attention dysfunction, and recent research suggest the LC may play this role. In this study, resting-state functional connectivity (FC) and behavioral performance on an attention task was examined within 584 individuals. Analysis revealed significant clusters connected to the LC activity in the bilateral insula, anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), and bilateral ventral striatum, all regions associated with the SAL. Given previous findings that attention deficits may be caused by dysfunctions in network switching by the SAL, our findings here further suggest that dysfunction in LC signaling to the SAL may interfere with attention.

Prior research has demonstrated that the frontal lobes play a critical role in the top–down control of behavior, and damage to the frontal cortex impairs performance on tasks that require executive control [Burgess, P. W., & Stuss, D. T. Fifty years of prefrontal cortex research: Impact on assessment. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 23, 755–767, 2017; Stuss, D. T., & Levine, B. Adult clinical neuropsychology: Lessons from studies of the frontal lobes. Annual Review of Psychology, 53, 401–433, 2002]. Across executive functioning tasks, performance deficits are often quantified as the number of false alarms per total number of nontarget trials. However, most studies of frontal lobe function focus on individual task performance and do not discuss commonalities of errors committed across different tasks. Here, we describe a neurocognitive account that explores the link between deficient frontal lobe function and increased false alarms across an array of experimental tasks from a variety of task domains. We review evidence for heightened false alarms following frontal deficits in episodic long-term memory tests, working memory tasks (e.g., n-back), attentional tasks (e.g., continuous performance tasks), interference control tasks (e.g., recent probes), and inhibitory control tasks (e.g., go/no-go). We examine this relationship via neuroimaging studies, lesion studies, and across age groups and pathologies that impact the pFC, and we propose 11 issues in cognitive processing that can result in false alarms. In our review, some overlapping neural regions were implicated in the regulation of false alarms. Ultimately, however, we find evidence for the fractionation and localization of certain frontal processes related to the commission of specific types of false alarms. We outline avenues for additional research that will enable further delineation of the fractionation of the frontal lobes' regulation of false alarms.

Online dashboards are valuable tools for gaining insights about population health metrics of interest and for disseminating data collected through research networks. The process of aggregating data from separate databases for use in online dashboards, while also ensuring data quality, is complex. We describe a method for integrating HIV dashboard aggregation scripts into an existing web-based data quality checking application and leveraging REDCap to store aggregated metrics.

Affect and cognition have both been associated with communication across one's social network during ageing. Thus, it is important to consider how communication varies by different aspects of one's social network, and by communication mode, including phone, email and social media. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between technology-mediated communication, depression and an executive function-related fluid-reasoning measure among older adults. Data were drawn from the Health and Retirement dataset's 2016 wave. Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted to examine the link between communication modes (phone, email and social media) with children, family and friends with a fluid-reasoning cognition measure and Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, controlling for demographic covariates, among 3,798 older American adults. Phone and email communication, but not social media, were significantly related to depression and cognition. The model fit was considerably stronger for the analyses with cognition than depression. Curvilinear associations were found for communication via phone and email with cognition, suggesting moderate amounts of communication by phone and email across social groups were most closely linked with higher scores on fluid reasoning. For depression, curvilinear relationships were found for talking on the phone with family and friends, and emailing for children and family, indicating that moderate communication levels revealed the lowest depression levels. Implications for how older adults’ social support may contribute to depression and cognition status are discussed.

Objective: Understanding the association between polygenic risk for ADHD and cognition throughout aging has not been widely studied. This study aimed to determine whether ADHD risk influences cognitive performance among individuals at both young-old and middle-old age. Method: Participants from the Health and Retirement Study, a biennial survey of 20,000 Americans, were compared on executive function and delayed recall measures using regression analyses. Results: There was no significant effect of ADHD risk on memory at both age waves for African-ancestry (AA; n = 403) and European-ancestry (EA; n = 2,286). There was, however, a significant association between ADHD risk and performance on executive function for EA at middle-old age ( p = .028), but not young-old age; no such association was observed for AA adults. Conclusion: This finding suggests that ADHD risk may differentially influence cognition among older adults throughout the aging process, with important implications for future research.

To describe a unique ocular presentation of Cat Eye Syndrome and review the ocular and systemic findings associated with the syndrome.Case report with multimodal imaging.A newborn female presented with a unilateral Peters anomaly with contralateral microphthalmia with cyst. The patient's other systemic findings included a hypoplastic right heart, persistent ductus arteriosus, intrauterine growth retardation, bilateral anotia, preauricular ear pits and skin tags, micrognathia, hypoplastic female genitalia, and unilateral cranial nerve VII palsy. Chromosomal microarray testing showed tetrasomy of chromosome 22 in the q11.1-q11.21 region consistent with Cat Eye Syndrome. The patient ultimately underwent a successful optical iridectomy on one side and orbitotomy with excision of the cystic mass on the other.The co-occurrence of unilateral Peters anomaly with contralateral microphthalmia with cyst in Cat Eye Syndrome is rare and demonstrative of the syndrome's phenotypic variability. The medical and surgical management of these patients may require a multidisciplinary approach and must be tailored to the individual findings and overall systemic health of the patient.

A growing number of studies within the field of gerontology have included samples recruited from Amazon’s Mechanical Turk (MTurk), an online crowdsourcing portal. While some research has examined how younger adult participants recruited through other means may differ from those recruited using MTurk, little work has addressed this question with older adults specifically. In the present study, we examined how older adults recruited via MTurk might differ from those recruited via a national probability sample, the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), on a battery of outcomes related to health and cognition. Using a Latin-square design, we examined the relationship between recruitment time, remuneration amount, and measures of cognitive functioning. We found substantial differences between our MTurk sample and the participants within the HRS, most notably within measures of verbal fluency and analogical reasoning. Additionally, remuneration amount was related to differences in time to complete recruitment, particularly at the lowest remuneration level, where recruitment completion required between 138 and 485 additional hours. While the general consensus has been that MTurk samples are a reasonable proxy for the larger population, this work suggests that researchers should be wary of overgeneralizing research conducted with older adults recruited through this portal.

A mechanical stimulation device for cell-seeded scaffolds was designed and manufactured to provide control of dynamic compressive loading on biomimetic 3D neo-tissue constructs for enhanced tissue regeneration. Despite emerging evidence implicating the importance of mechanical forces in directing cellular differentiation and dental tissue formation, the role of variable mechanical stimuli in developing dental tissue has not been fully investigated. The device described here was designed to be easily cleanable by technicians and scientists between individual tests providing repeatable displacement of gels for their experiments. Increased extracellular matrix production of temporomandibular joints (TMJ – the joints that connect the jawbone to the skull) was observed while under loading by the device and the device is capable of providing compression as low as 0.01 mm of the desired displacement. Force calibration and sterilization testing were also performed to validate the functional requirements and device performance. The preliminary results show that the resulting device can deliver up to 2 kPa of dynamic compressive pressure to bioengineer cell-based constructs, and that ethanol sterilization is sufficient to maintain a sterile environment in long term tissue culture. In this paper, we introduce a device to mechanically stimulate bioengineered tissue formation, which could be used for a variety of applications in regenerative medicine.

Overall social network size, often the sum of common lifetime relationships, including children, family, and friends, has been linked to cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's Disease. However, little research has examined the association between network size composition and cognitive function in middle-aged and older adults in the context of race/ethnicity. We investigated the associations between the number of close children, family, and friends independently with executive function (EF) and memory across a subsample of non-Hispanic Black, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic White participants who completed the Health and Retirement Study Harmonized Cognitive Assessment Protocol (N = 2,395). We found that network size composition was more closely linked to EF than memory and that these associations varied by race/ethnicity. Specifically, the strongest associations existed between EF and quadratic estimates of the number of close children of non-Hispanic Black participants, and number of close family members for Hispanic participants. Among Black participants, a curvilinear relationship indicated that two close children were associated with greater EF, while a smaller or larger number of close children were associated with lower EF. On the other hand, among Hispanic participants, higher EF was associated with fewer (0-1) and greater (4-5+) numbers of family member contacts. Overall, these results indicate that examining children, family, and friends independently may be more useful than the common practice of aggregation of overall network size, especially in the context of race/ethnicity.

Previous work analyzing the health and wellbeing correlates of caregiving has found increased rates of depression (Caputo, Pavalko, & Hardy, 2016), anxiety (Joling et al., 2015), and elevated risks of health problems, specifically cardiovascular-related incidents like hypertension (Capistrant, Moon, & Glymour, 2012), cardiovascular disease (Capistrant et al., 2012), and strokes (Haley et al., 2010). Research on specific cognitive effects that this responsibility may elicit has been less of an area of focus, especially when examining domains related to executive functioning. The present research investigated whether executive functioning mechanisms (such as processing speed, recall, and attention) are impacted in caregivers and if their function is mediated by interpersonal factors like birth year, gender, education, and depressive symptomology. Using the Health and Retirement Study, we compared spousal and parental caregivers of persons with medical conditions (n = 143) and non-caregivers (n = 975) who completed the 2015 Consumer and Activities Mail Survey (CAMS). Additional demographic and cognitive performance information was paired from the corresponding RAND 2016 data and the 2016 Harmonized Cognitive Assessment Protocol (HCAP) data. Preliminary ANCOVA results indicated, surprisingly, that spousal/parental caregivers were more likely to exhibit better executive function performance (p < .05) compared to non-caregivers, while delayed recall measures were not linked to caregiving status. These results indicate that intact executive function might be linked to one’s ability to provide caregiving for parents and/or spouses; while the HCAP was only administered at a single time point, future research should examine the longitudinal effects of caregiving on cognitive function.

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) affects approximately 4.4% of adults in the US and impacts multiple domains of daily life including education, workplace performance and interpersonal relationships. Although an increasing number of individuals with ADHD are now entering later life, there is very little research on how ADHD risk may impact cognitive function during aging. As such, there is value in understanding the association between polygenic risk for ADHD and cognition during different stages of later life. This study utilized data from the Health and Retirement Study which surveys 37,000 Americans biennially and aimed to determine if there was an influence of ADHD risk on cognitive performance when individuals were young-old (ages 65-74) or middle-old (ages 75-84). Only participants who responded in 2006, 2016, and to the Venous Blood Study were selected. The resulting sample size of 403 African-ancestry individuals (AA) and 2286 European-ancestry individuals (EA) was compared on executive function-focused measures as well as delayed recall measures. Results showed that there was no significant effect of ADHD risk on memory-related measures at both time-points for AA and EA individuals. However, there was a statistically significant association between ADHD risk and performance on the executive function measure for EA older adults who were middle-old (p = 0.028), but not when they were young-old; no such association was observed for AA adults. This finding suggests that ADHD risk may influence cognition among older adults and has significant implications for treatment and care of individuals with ADHD throughout the life course.

A growing body of literature describes important advances in the study of chronic conditions, most notably a paradigm shift from the study of individual chronic conditions to the study of multiple chronic conditions (MCCs). Despite these advances, little research has explored MCC combinations, and almost no published research has explored how MCC combinations are related to health service utilization. Using data from the 2018 wave of the Health and Retirement Study, we categorized 16,447 older adults into one of 32 groups using self-reports of five prevalent chronic conditions: arthritis, diabetes, heart problems, hypertension, and respiratory problems. ANOVAs assessed associations between MCC combinations and two self-report measures of health service use: (1)number of medical visits, including emergency room visits, clinic visits, and house calls; and (2)total out-of-pocket costs for major medical expenses. Results show that older adults with more conditions had a greater number of medical visits (p< 0.0001). The pattern between total number of conditions and out-of-pocket costs is less clear, though still varied significantly (p< 0.01). Findings demonstrate variability in outcomes among MCC combinations with the same total number of conditions. Those in the Heart-Hypertension-Respiratory group averaged 9 medical visits while those in the Arthritis-Diabetes-Heart group averaged 16. Adults in the Diabetes-Heart group averaged $2,546 in out-of-pocket costs, which is nearly double the costs reported by the Diabetes-Hypertension group ($1,254). Findings highlight complex associations of MCC combinations with health service use, and can inform resource allocation, policy priorities, and care planning among providers serving older adults with MCCs.

In bulk crystals dislocation junctions underlie the physics of strain hardening. In two-dimensional (2D) crystals, dislocations take the form of surface ripples owing to the ease of bending and weak vdW adhesion of the atomic layers. Here we report that a ripple junction in 2D crystals features distinct morphologies and functions from their bulk counterparts. Our atomistic simulations show that a ripple junction in monolayer graphene exhibits four-fold symmetry. Upon biaxial compression the ripple junction undergoes helical instability, forming a helix with a random orientation. Differently, in-plane shear separates the junction into two individual ripples. We further demonstrate that the helicity of the junction can be controlled by a shear-compression loading sequence or the adsorption of a single chiral molecule at the junction. Shear-controlled helicity forms the basis for mechanical transduction and electro-opto-mechanical coupling, while adsorbate-driven helicity – which imparts the chirality of a single molecule onto a helical distortion pattern of the host 2D layer – has ramifications for sensing and chiral control.

Research demonstrates the adverse effects of coexisting multiple chronic conditions (MCCs) on older adults’ health and wellbeing. While most research relies on total counts of chronic conditions, little work explores how specific MCC combinations may have compounding effects on depression and memory. Furthermore, no published research explores differences in the prevalence and correlates of MCC combinations between Black and White older adults. The current study assesses within- and between-group heterogeneity in the prevalence and correlates of MCC combinations to advance health equity research. We utilize a sample of 16,757 Black and White older adults drawn from the 2014 wave of the Health and Retirement Study. Respondents were categorized into one of 32 MCC combination groups. Depressive symptoms and self-rated memory were calculated separately for Black and White respondents across each of the 32 groups. Chi-square tests, t-tests, and ANCOVAs were used to compare differences. Black and White respondents differed significantly in the prevalence of 14 out of 32 MCC combinations. Within-group differences were found such that 45% of Black respondents experiencing only Lung Disease met criteria for clinical depression; this rate is similar to Black respondents experiencing Diabetes + Heart Condition + Hypertension + Lung Disease (44.5%). Between-group differences revealed that Black respondents experiencing Arthritis + Diabetes + Hypertension had worse self-rated memory than White counterparts (MB = 3.24, MW = 3.13; two sample t[1139]= -2.04, p < .05; Cohen’s d = 0.13). Additional findings are presented, and theoretical and practical implications for this work are discussed.

Demanding cognitive functions like working memory (WM) depend on functional brain networks being able to communicate efficiently while also maintaining some degree of modularity. Evidence suggests that aging can disrupt this balance between integration and modularity. In this study, we examined how cognitive training affects the integration and modularity of functional networks in older and younger adults. Twenty three younger and 23 older adults participated in 10 days of verbal WM training, leading to performance gains in both age groups. Older adults exhibited lower modularity overall and a greater decrement when switching from rest to task, compared to younger adults. Interestingly, younger but not older adults showed increased task‐related modularity with training. Furthermore, whereas training increased efficiency within, and decreased participation of, the default‐mode network for younger adults, it enhanced efficiency within a task‐specific salience/sensorimotor network for older adults. Finally, training increased segregation of the default‐mode from frontoparietal/salience and visual networks in younger adults, while it diffusely increased between‐network connectivity in older adults. Thus, while younger adults increase network segregation with training, suggesting more automated processing, older adults persist in, and potentially amplify, a more integrated and costly global workspace, suggesting different age‐related trajectories in functional network reorganization with WM training., We examined how working memory (WM) training affects the integration and modularity of functional networks in older and younger adults. Younger adults increase network segregation with training, suggesting more automated processing. Older adults persist in, and potentially amplify, a more integrated and costly global workspace, suggesting different age‐related trajectories in functional network reorganization with WM training.

Asking whether a cognitive training program “works” does less to further research in the field than asking why a participant does or does not improve on training or transfer measures following the intervention. To better understand the divergent results between many cognitive training studies, it is likely necessary to investigate the individual difference factors that might influence the outcome of training. The present chapter covers a range of factors that have been examined in cognitive training research, including baseline performance, age, motivation, personality, and socioeconomic status. While baseline performance and age have received the most attention, a growing body of cognitive training studies have incorporated other individual difference factors in their analyses as well. Given this development, we include a discussion of how researchers might more effectively incorporate individual difference variables into their studies. Continued, high quality research into the role of these factors in the outcome of training remains an important step in developing training interventions that are broadly effective for individuals from a variety of backgrounds.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) vaccination patterns and the understanding of its risks among healthcare workers (HCWs) is a critical step to decrease transmission. However, the depth of this understanding is understudied. We distributed surveys to HCWs in 12 countries in Africa. Surveys had nine multiple-choice questions that assessed HCWs' awareness and understanding of HBV. Participants included consultants, medical trainees, nurses, students, laboratory personnel, and other hospital workers. Surveys were completed anonymously. Fisher's exact test was used for analysis, with a P-value of < 0.05 considered significant; 1,044 surveys were collected from Kenya, Egypt, Sudan, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Uganda, Malawi, Madagascar, Nigeria, Cameroon, Ghana, and Sierra Leone. Hepatitis B virus serostatus awareness, vaccination rate, and vaccination of HCWs' children were 65%, 61%, and 48%, respectively. Medical trainees had higher serostatus awareness, vaccination rate, and vaccination of their children than HCWs in other occupations (79% versus 62%, P < 0.001; 74% versus 58%, P < 0.001; and 62% versus 45%, P = 0.006, respectively). Cost was cited as the most frequent reason for non-vaccination. West African countries were more aware of their serostatus but less often vaccinated than East African countries (79% versus 59%, P < 0.0001 and 52% versus 60%, P = 0.03, respectively). West African countries cited cost as the reason for non-vaccination more than East African countries (59% versus 40%, P = 0.0003). Our study shows low HBV serostatus awareness and vaccination rate among HCWs in Africa, and reveals gaps in the perception and understanding of HBV prevention that should be addressed to protect HCWs and improve their capacity to control HBV infection.

Brain activity typically increases with increasing working memory (WM) load, regardless of age, before reaching an apparent ceiling. However, older adults exhibit greater brain activity and reach ceiling at lower loads than younger adults, possibly reflecting compensation at lower loads and dysfunction at higher loads. We hypothesized that WM training would bolster neural efficiency, such that the activation peak would shift towards higher memory loads after training. Pre-training, older adults showed greater recruitment of the WM network than younger adults across all loads, with decline at the highest load. Ten days of adaptive training on a verbal WM task improved performance and led to greater brain responsiveness at higher loads for both groups. For older adults the activation peak shifted rightward towards higher loads. Finally, training increased task-related functional connectivity in older adults, both within the WM network and between this task-positive network and the task-negative/default-mode network. These results provide new evidence for functional plasticity with training in older adults and identify a potential signature of improvement at the neural level. National Institute on AgingUnited States Department of Health & Human ServicesNational Institutes of Health (NIH) - USANIH National Institute on Aging (NIA) [R21-AG-045460]; National Institutes of HealthUnited States Department of Health & Human ServicesNational Institutes of Health (NIH) - USA [1S10OD012240-01A1] This research was supported by a National Institute on Aging [R21-AG-045460] grant to P.A.R.-L. and a National Institutes of Health [1S10OD012240-01A1] grant. The authors thank Krisanne Litinas for assistance with MRI data reconstruction and Daniel Weissman for comments on a previous version of the manuscript.

Research investigating transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) to enhance cognitive training augments both our understanding of its long-term effects on cognitive plasticity as well as potential applications to strengthen cognitive interventions. Previous work has demonstrated enhancement of working memory training while applying concurrent tDCS to the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). However, the optimal stimulation parameters are still unknown. For example, the timing of tDCS delivery has been shown to be an influential variable that can interact with task learning. In the present study, we used tDCS to target the right DLPFC while participants trained on a visuospatial working memory task. We sought to compare the relative efficacy of online stimulation delivered during training to offline stimulation delivered either immediately before or afterwards. We were unable to replicate previously demonstrated benefits of online stimulation; however, we did find evidence that offline stimulation delivered after training can actually be detrimental to training performance relative to sham. We interpret our results in light of evidence suggesting a role of the right DLPFC in promoting memory interference, and conclude that while tDCS may be a promising tool to influence the results of cognitive training, more research and an abundance of caution are needed before fully endorsing its use for cognitive enhancement. This work suggests that effects can vary substantially in magnitude and direction between studies, and may be heavily dependent on a variety of intervention protocol parameters such as the timing and location of stimulation delivery, about which our understanding is still nascent. Accepted version

Background Cognitive function, including executive function (EF)-related capacities (eg, working memory, inhibitory and attentional control), has been linked to adherence to healthy lifestyle behaviors. Dehydration is associated with impaired cognitive function, whereas improvements in hydration status may improve inhibitory and attentional performance. No systematic reviews have examined the effects of both dehydration and euhydration on EF. Objective The objectives of this systematic review are to examine studies that have investigated the spectrum of hydration status and EF in adults, and to identify future research needs. Design The review was conducted according to the 2015 Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Protocols (PRISMA-P) guidelines. The database search was initially conducted on May 12, 2019 and then updated on April 26, 2020. Databases searched included PubMed, Medline, Psyc Info, SCOPUS, Proquest, and ISI Web of Science. Data extraction included the following: method used to assess de/hydration status, study design, participant characteristics, EF tasks and domain, and results. Article quality ratings were performed on included studies using the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Quality Rating Checklist. Participants/Setting Studies done with healthy or diseased adults, aged older than 18 years, in any setting, were included. Studies of individuals with disease states that impact fluid balance or require fluid restrictions as treatments were excluded. Main Outcome Measure All EF-related outcomes were included, such as working memory, inhibitory control, task switching, and attention. Results Four thousand eight hundred thirty-three articles were screened using title/abstracts. Seventy-one full-text articles were assessed for eligibility; 33 were included (26 included investigations of dehydration; 27 included investigations of rehydration/euhydration) with 3,636 participants across all studies. Little consistency was found across outcomes. Roughly half of the available studies suggested unclear or neutral EF effects, and half suggested effects on EF domains, particularly working memory, inhibitory control, and attention. Studies including a euhydration condition were slightly more likely to demonstrate improvements to EF capacities. Conclusions Overall, there is a strong need for consistent methodological approaches and a greater number of long-term (ie, >3 days) studies of dehydration and euhydration and EF.

Legged robots have been highlighted as promising mobile platforms for disaster response and rescue scenarios because of their rough terrain locomotion capability. In cluttered environments, small robots are desirable as they can maneuver through small gaps, narrow paths, or tunnels. However small robots have their own set of difficulties such as limited space for sensors, limited obstacle clearance, and scaled-down walking speed. In this paper, we extensively address these difficulties via effective sensor integration and exploitation of dynamic locomotion and jumping. We integrate two Intel RealSense sensors into the MIT Mini-Cheetah, a 0.3 m tall, 9 kg quadruped robot. Simple and effective filtering and evaluation algorithms are used for foothold adjustment and obstacle avoidance. We showcase the exploration of highly irregular terrain using dynamic trotting and jumping with the small-scale, fully sensorized Mini-Cheetah quadruped robot.

Despite dozens of empirical studies and a growing body of meta-analytic work, there is little consensus regarding the efficacy of cognitive training. In this review, we examine why this substantial corpus has failed to answer the often-asked question, “Does cognitive training work?” We first define cognitive training and discuss the general principles underlying training interventions. Next, we review historical interventions and discuss how findings from this early work remain highly relevant for current cognitive-training research. We highlight a variety of issues preventing real progress in understanding the underlying mechanisms of training, including the lack of a coherent theoretical framework to guide training research and methodological issues across studies and meta-analyses. Finally, suggestions for correcting these issues are offered in the hope that we might make greater progress in the next 100 y of cognitive-training research.

It is unclear whether existing computer-based cognitive training can improve prefrontal function in a manner relevant to real-life outcomes. An important scientific goal for research is to identify the necessary and sufficient experiences that could lead to the creation of efficient and effective cognitive interventions. Researchers who have developed computerized cognitive training interventions have attempted to identify the core executive processes of the prefrontal cortex and to target and tax exactly those processes. However, a vast space of possibilities (and potential barriers) remains between the development of targeted and successful cognitive interventions and the natural set of rich early-life experiences that have been shown to be important in the development of prefrontal function. To construct efficient, effective training interventions that may generalize to real-life outcomes, properly mapping out this space is necessary. Therefore, the chapter discusses the cognitive skills that are the focus of many cognitive interventions: executive functions, working memory, and functions of the prefrontal cortex.

Recent work has established the possibility that messaging and incentive during recruitment may influence the outcome of cognitive training. These factors may impact intrinsic and extrinsic motivation to complete a training intervention, and one provocative single session study suggests that recruitment messaging may be responsible for an expectancy effect in certain training experiments. To examine the effects of payment and payment messaging during recruitment on a longer training program, participants were recruited to complete a twenty-session working memory regimen with or without payment, and with messaging that either emphasized payment or improving cognition. Significant group differences were observed at baseline; unpaid participants reported a significantly higher number of cognitive failures compared to compensated participants. However, both paid and unpaid training groups improved on transfer measures compared to an active control group, and payment had no effect on transfer. An additional post-test survey within the compensated group revealed different motivational orientations that were associated with significant performance differences on the visuospatial reasoning factor at baseline. While these differences in motivation were not predictive of transfer or training gain, it is possible that other elements of the study, including researcher involvement, may also play a role in determining the extent to which participants demonstrate transfer on untrained tasks. We conclude that while payment and recruitment messaging may affect training and transfer performance to some degree, a variety of additional factors likely contribute to the outcome of any individual study and the influence of certain factors may matter less during a longer-term program.

Objective: The efficacy of n-back training for children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) was tested in a randomized controlled trial. Method: 41 children aged 7 to 14 years with ADHD were trained on an n-back task, and their performance was compared with that of an active control group ( n = 39) who were trained on a general knowledge and vocabulary task. Results: The experimental group demonstrated transfer of training to a nontrained n-back task as well as to a measure of inhibitory control. These effects were correlated with the magnitude of training gains. Conclusion: Our results suggest that n-back training may be useful in addressing some of the cognitive and behavioral issues associated with ADHD.

Existing data dissemination structures primarily rely on top-down approaches. Unless designed with the end user in mind, this may impair data-driven clinical improvements to Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) prevention and care. In this study, we implemented a data visualization activity to create region-specific data presentations collaboratively with HIV providers, consumers of HIV care, and New York State (NYS) Department of Health AIDS Institute staff for use in local HIV care decision-making. Data from the NYS HIV Surveillance Registry (2009-2013) and HIV care facilities (2010-2015) participating in a Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Systems Linkages and Access to Care project were used. Each data package incorporated visuals for: linkage to HIV care, retention in care and HIV viral suppression. End-users were vocal about their data needs and their capacity to interpret public health data. This experience suggests that data dissemination strategies should incorporate input from the end user to improve comprehension and optimize HIV care.