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William (“Bill”) M. Hamner, a pioneer of ethological studies of avian and aquatic organisms who changed the way we think, particularly about the gelatinous zooplankton that suffuse the world’s oceans, died on 06 June, age 84 (Figure 1). Bill’s innovative approach to investigating pelagic animals married simple observation with unconventional methods in novel situations. This work spanned a half-century, beginning when he boldly moved marine science off the deck of ships, out of undiscriminating trawls that tend to macerate specimens, away from the accessible intertidal zone, and into the blue water of the pelagic realm. Bill’s ethological approach defined much of his life’s work and took him to extreme tropical outposts, the frigid waters of the Antarctic, and the depths of the ocean, always with his life-long collaborator in science and life, Peggy Hamner.

The authors investigated the complex relationships of coping associated with suicide risk among community college students. Survey responses were obtained from 733 participants. A multiple linear regression demonstrated that maladaptive coping such as self-distraction, substance use, and denial were predictive factors of suicide among students in the 18-29 age group. Self-distraction and denial were significant coping protective factors of suicide risk for students aged 29-67. Implications for increasing suicide awareness and prevention in education are discussed.

Understanding the full range of consequences of species introductions into island and marine habitats requires quantitative studies of systems that are currently under-represented in the scientific literature. We document the introduction, proliferation and establishment of a non-native sea anemone species in an isolated tropical marine lake, a marine ‘island’. From 2003–2012, we gathered samples to identify the introduced species and used transect and photo-quadrat surveys to describe its abundance, distribution, and any associations with native species or habitats. The non-native sea anemone was first found at the tourist entry into the lake in 2003 and identified as Exaiptasia pallida (Agassiz 1864), a species with zooxanthellae endosymbionts. Temporal patterns of tourism, the spatial extent of the sea anemone in 2003, and genetic analyses of the symbiont were consistent with the early stages of introduction. Subsequent expansion of E. pallida throughout the lake occurred within six years. The native species assemblages that were invaded by E. pallida were heterogeneous among surveys and habitats. Overall, there were few correlations that were significant between percent cover of E. pallida and native species; most significant associations were negative; the majority were on mangrove roots. There was one positive association between E. pallida and a native sponge. No significant relationship was found between the abundance of E. pallida and native species diversity. The rapid expansion of E. pallida but dearth of strong ecosystem effects presents a case study of invasive species in a tropical marine habitat where consequences are not directly proportional to invasive abundance. Whether this outcome is stable and representative of other species introduced into marine lakes, or elsewhere in marine systems, remains to be seen.

Individual differences in reward salience may relate to the difficulty in regulating the effects of multiple substances (e.g., nicotine and food). Increased brain activation in reward and self-regulation (SR) regions has been evidenced while adults view appetitive cues (e.g., food pictures) to test substance use disorder treatment response. Enhancing SR with behavioral interventions may increase brain activation in SR regions and reduce responses in reward regions. Our primary analysis demonstrated increased brain activation in SR regions to smoking cues among individuals who practiced SR by delaying their first cigarette of the day for 2 weeks. However, little is known about the generalizability of SR between appetitive cues. This secondary analysis explored the influence of adherence to a SR behavioral intervention by examining the impact of practicing smoking SR on brain activation to food cues among adults who smoke. Participants (N = 65) were randomly assigned to practice SR by delaying their first daily cigarette or smoking as usual for 2-weeks. Functional magnetic resonance imaging data were collected while people were told to think of "negative" or "positive" associations with the cue. The results indicated that practicing smoking SR was linked with increased activation in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) when viewing food cues. There was no correlation between delaying smoking adherence and brain activation in the dlPFC. Exploratory analyses suggested higher dlPFC activation when people thought about "positive" associations with the food cues instead of "negative" ones. We concluded that practicing smoking SR is related to increased brain activation to food cues, suggesting potential generalizability of SR practice from smoking cues to food cues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To evaluate the association between baseline cognitive function, intervention dropout, adherence and 3-month weight loss (WL) when controlling for confounding demographic variables. Methods: 107 (Mage = 40.9 yrs.), BMI in the overweight and obese range (BMI = 35.6 kg/m2), men (N = 17) and women (N = 90) completed a 3-month WL intervention. Participants attended weekly behavioral sessions, comply with a reduced calorie diet, and complete 100 min of physical activity (PA)/wk. Cognitive function tasks at baseline included Flanker (attention), Stroop (executive control) and working memory, demographics, body weight and cardiovascular fitness were assessed at baseline. Session attendance, adherence to PA and diet were recorded weekly. Results: Baseline attention was positively correlated with age (p <.05), education (p <.05), attendance (p <.05), diet (p <.05) and PA (p <.05). Baseline executive control (p <.05) and working memory (p <.05) were each associated with % WL. Baseline executive control (p <.01) and working memory (p <.001) were also each associated with education. ANOVA indicated that baseline attention (p <.01) was associated with WL, specifically for comparing those who achieved 5–10% WL (p <.01) and those who achieved greater than 10% WL (p <.01) to those who dropped. Significance: Results suggest that stronger baseline attention is associated with completion of a 3-mo. WL intervention. Executive control and working memory are associated with amount of WL achieved. NCT registration: US NIH Clinical Trials, NCT01664715 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Eating Disorders (ED) affect up to 5% of youth and are associated with reward system alterations and compulsive behaviors. Naltrexone, an opioid antagonist, is used to treat ED behaviors such as binge eating and/or purging. The presumed mechanism of action is blockade of reward activation; however, not all patients respond, and the optimal dose is unknown. Developing a tool to detect objective drug response in the brain will facilitate drug development and therapeutic optimization. This pilot study evaluated neuroimaging as a pharmacodynamic biomarker of opioid antagonism in adolescents with ED. Methods: Youth aged 13–21 with binge/purge ED completed functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) pre- and post-oral naltrexone. fMRI detected blood oxygenation-level dependent (BOLD) signal at rest and during two reward probes (monetary incentive delay, MID, and passive food view, PFV) in predefined regions of interest associated with reward and inhibitory control. Effect sizes for Δ%BOLD (post-naltrexone vs. baseline) were estimated using linear mixed effects modeling. Results: In 12 youth (16–21 years, 92% female), BOLD signal changes were detected following naltrexone in the nucleus accumbens during PFV (Δ%BOLD −0.08 ± 0.03; Cohen’s d −1.06, p = 0.048) and anterior cingulate cortex during MID (Δ%BOLD 0.06 ± 0.03; Cohen’s d 1.25, p = 0.086). Conclusion: fMRI detected acute reward pathway modulation in this small sample of adolescents with binge/purge ED. If validated in future, larger trials, task-based Δ%BOLD detected by fMRI may serve as a pharmacodynamic biomarker of opioid antagonism to facilitate the development of novel therapeutics targeting the reward pathway, enable quantitative pharmacology trials, and inform drug dosing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article contributes to the civic identity development literature by exploring how a scholarship program emphasizing entrepreneurship and economic revitalization can facilitate engagement across difference in pursuit of shared anti-poverty commitments. Drawing on theories of entrepreneurial action, civic identity development literature, and a mixed methods approach, we propose a framework for how students conceptualize identity, race, and poverty as entrepreneurs of connection. The role of uncertainty is central to entrepreneurial action and a hallmark of community engagement. Combining an inquiry into their own sense of identity in relationship to their peers and community partners, students contribute to the development of the entrepreneurial ecosystem by making connections at the interpersonal, organizational, and systems levels. Students merge an understanding of their personal identities and situational context to build trust with diverse peers and community partners. Entrepreneurs of connection take action with community partners to pursue innovative solutions with a focus on social change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Medial frontal event-related potentials (ERPs) following rewarding feedback index outcome evaluation. The majority of studies examining the feedback related medial frontal negativity (MFN) employ active tasks during which participants' responses impact their feedback, however, the MFN has been elicited during passive tasks. Many of the studies examining the MFN show enhanced effects when an error in reward prediction occurs (i.e. expected rewards are not delivered). To clarify the roles of reward prediction error and active responding in producing the MFN, the current study employed a reward prediction design with active and passive task blocks. Following the presentation of a reward predictor, participants (active task) or the computer (passive task) indicated whether participants would receive the outcome associated with a stimulus presented on the left or right of the reward predictor. The MFN was largest when the trial outcome was worse than predicted and this effect was enhanced when the participant, rather than the computer, made the choice. These results show that both reward prediction error and active choice impact the neural system of outcome monitoring with the largest MFN when the individual's decision led to the negative outcome. (Contains 5 figures.)