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Articles, Behavioral/Systems/Cognitive
Congruence of BOLD Response across Intertemporal Choice Conditions: Fictive and Real Money Gains and Losses
Warren K. Bickel, Jeffery A. Pitcock, Richard Yi and Edgardo J. C. Angtuaco
Journal of Neuroscience 8 July 2009, 29 (27) 8839-8846; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.5319-08.2009
Warren K. Bickel
Jeffery A. Pitcock
Richard Yi
Edgardo J. C. Angtuaco
Intertemporal choice is predicated on the valuation of commodities with respect to delay until their receipt. Subjective value of a future outcome decreases, or is discounted, as a function of that delay (Bickel and Johnson, 2003). Although behavioral studies suggest no difference between the devaluation of real and fictive outcomes, no neuroimaging studies have investigated potential differences in the underlying deliberative process. Here, we compare behavioral and neural correlates of intertemporal valuation of real and hypothetical monetary gains as well as hypothetical losses, which have been posited to involve different mechanisms. Behavioral and neuroimaging sessions were conducted in which participants made intertemporal choice decisions in a gains condition using both real and hypothetical $100 money and in a loss condition using a fictive $100 money. Within-subject comparison of behavioral data revealed no significant difference between levels of discounting across the three conditions. Random-effects analysis of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data of each of the three discounting conditions independently revealed significant signal change in limbic (anterior cingulate, striatum, posterior cingulate) and executive functioning areas (lateral prefrontal cortex), whereas a repeated-measures ANOVA failed to detect differences in signal change across the three discounting conditions after correcting for multiple comparisons. These data support a concordance between real and hypothetical conditions from delay-discounting studies and further suggest a congruence of the fMRI blood oxygen level-dependent signal across brain regions associated with the deliberative process of different forms of intertemporal choice.
Delay (or temporal) discounting refers to the devaluation of an outcome as a function of the time to the delivery of that outcome. Delay discounting has been proposed to underlie impulsive decision making (Ainslie and Haendel, 1983; Bickel and Marsch, 2001), with increased levels of discounting observed in drug-dependent cohorts (Madden et al., 1997; Kirby et al., 1999; Coffey et al., 2003).
A variety of reward outcomes have been used in discounting experiments including money, compact disks, alcohol, and cigarettes (Odum and Rainaud, 2003; Estle et al., 2007; Charlton and Fantino, 2008). These rewards are typically hypothetical and used in lieu of real rewards for three reasons. First, real reward outcomes can be cost prohibitive because of the number of data points typically collected. Second, temporal delays used in this assessment often include delays making delivery of the reward problematic (Johnson and Bickel, 2002). Third, providing real monetary outcomes to those with addictive disease, e.g., would be ethically questionable (Madden et al., 1997). However, potentially real rewards have been used whereby temporal delays are abbreviated and one or more randomly selected choices are awarded as opposed to every choice. This method assumes the participant will consider each trial as though the outcome were real, given that each choice has the potential of being realized. Johnson and Bickel (2002) awarded participants on average, one reinforcer for every 89.9 choices, whereas Madden et al. (2004) awarded one for every 412, and in a second experiment, one for every 15. In all instances, within-subject comparisons failed to show a difference in discounting between the real and hypothetical reward conditions.
Although the behavioral research using delay discounting of commodities typically employs rewards (or gains), the discounting of losses has been less studied but has been reported as being qualitatively similar but with gains discounted to a greater degree than losses of the same commodity and magnitude (Murphy et al., 2001; Baker et al., 2003; Yi et al., 2006). However, reported differences between gains and losses, referred to as the sign effect, have not been determined to be consistent across discounting conditions (Yi et al., 2006). This quantitative difference, when observed, has led some to speculate that different processes are involved in the discounting of rewards and losses (Estle et al., 2006).
Although previous findings indicate that both real and hypothetical reward outcomes, as well as gains and losses are discounted in a similar manner, there has been a paucity of research investigating possible differences in the neural correlates associated with these intertemporal choice conditions. Whether the qualitative similarities or quantitative differences in choice behavior is matched in brain activations is unknown. Given the expansion of functional brain imaging studies of choice (McClure et al., 2004, 2007; Boettiger et al., 2007; Kable and Glimcher, 2007; Monterosso et al., 2007; Wittmann et al., 2007; Hoffman et al., 2008), knowledge of these effects is necessary for appropriate interpretation of this growing area of research.
Here, we conduct behavioral and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) assessments of 30 participants to examine (1) possible within-subject difference in behavioral measures of delay discounting between real and hypothetical rewards, as well as gains and losses of $100 money and (2) potential within-subject differences in the neural correlates of intertemporal choice behavior between these three discounting conditions.
Thirty right-handed participants (21 females) between the ages of 20 and 67 years (mean age, 47.1 ± 4.9) with an average education of 14.0 years (±0.8) were consented under an Institutional Review Board-approved protocol at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. Participants indicating substance abuse/dependence (other than cigarettes) or significant psychiatric disorder were excluded from participation. Subjects completed delay-discounting conditions including real money gains (RMG), hypothetical money gains (HMG), and hypothetical money losses (HML) in a behavioral session before scanning with an average time between behavioral session and scanning session of 38 d (±10.5). Two previous studies have exhibited stability in the discounting of rewards over 2 and 3 month spans, respectively (Ohmura et al., 2006; Takahashi et al., 2007), but to our knowledge the stability of the discounting of losses has not been reported.
Behavioral discounting conditions were counterbalanced across participants and presented on computer using a decreasing amount algorithm (Du et al., 2002). Trials were presented on a computer monitor with the immediate alternative above a horizontal line bisecting approximately the middle of the screen and the delayed alternative beneath. Participants were instructed to respond to their preferred alternative with a hand-held response pad similar to the one that would be subsequently used within the scanner. Seven indifference points (at delays of 1, 7, 30, 180, 365, 1825, 9125 d) were determined in the HMG and HML conditions. Four indifference points (at delays of 1, 7, 30, 180 d) were determined in the RMG condition because of pragmatic issues regarding delivery of extremely delayed rewards. In this condition, one of the choices that the participant made was selected at random, and the participant was paid the outcome of that choice (one reinforcer for 24 choices).
Three delay-discounting conditions, designed to represent the three outcomes of interest obtained in the behavioral session, were administered to each participant during the scanning session: RMG, HMG, and HML. Each of the three conditions included two types of trials: (1) discounting trials, where participants indicated their preference between immediate and delayed outcomes (e.g., "Receive $99.85 now," "Receive $100.00 in 1 week") and (2) control trials, where the participants responded to their preference between outcomes without a temporal component (e.g., "Receive $99.85," "Receive $100.00"). In all discounting trials, the delayed outcome was fixed at $100 with delays of 1 week, 1 month, and 6 months, whereas the immediate outcome was varied systematically (see supplemental material for additional information and full listing of stimuli; supplemental Table S1, available at www.jneurosci.org as supplemental material). Control trial stimuli were created to include common task-related physiological requirements (e.g., visual perception, premotor, motor) to better identify brain regions associated with the deliberative process by contrasting choices made in the discounting trials to those made in the control trials. These control stimuli were based on the choices appearing in the discounting trials; however, one half of the delayed amounts ($100) were substituted with an amount equal to 150% of the smaller alternative (e.g., "Receive $99.85," "Receive $149.78") to ensure that a judgment was being made with respect to the amount of the outcome and not a simple response to the location of the $100 amount.
In all, there were 56 unique trials per condition (28 discounting trials and 28 control trials). Each trial was visually presented with one choice appearing above a horizontal line bisecting approximately the center of the screen and the second choice appearing below. For discounting trials, immediate and delayed outcomes were counterbalanced with respect to their position on the screen (top/bottom), as were the larger and smaller amounts contained within the control trials. Participants were informed before scanning that they would be awarded the outcome chosen in one randomly selected discounting trial of the RMG condition and that choices that appeared without an explicit temporal component were experimental controls and would not be considered for selection (one reinforcer for 28 choices). The HMG condition was identical to the RMG condition in every facet except for the awarding of a randomly selected trial choice. HMG and HML conditions differed only in that the word "Receive" was replaced by the word "Lose" in both discounting and control trials. Before the first trial in each of the three conditions, an instruction screen was presented that notified the participant of which task was about to be administered and required the participant to push a response pad button to proceed.
The stimuli were visually presented to participants in the scanner using IFIS-SA (Intergrated Functional Imaging System, Invivo). Participants were instructed to respond to their preferred alternative via button push of an MRI compatible response pad: right index finger for choice appearing above the horizontal line and right thumb for choice appearing below the horizontal line. Stimulus blocks were comprised of 3–4 trials of a trial-type (i.e., discounting, control) with each block of trials alternating. Trials within each block terminated at button-push (or at a maximum of 6000 ms) at which time a fixation point would appear for a varied duration (3000–5000 ms) to jitter stimulus onset within each block. Each block was followed by a 12 s rest period (fixation point). See supplemental Figure S8, available at www.jneurosci.org as supplemental material, for schematic diagram of experimental design. Each functional scan (per condition) consisted of acquiring 190 volumes (including two dummy scans preceding stimulus onset of the first trial to allow the magnet to reach a steady state and subsequently removed before preprocessing and analysis of the data). If the participant completed all 56 trials before acquiring 190 volumes, the sequence of trials would repeat without interruption or notification. The average number of trials completed in the RMG condition was 70.6 ± 1.7, with HMG, 70.5 ± 1.6 and HML, 69.3 ± 1.5. Order of presentation of conditions was balanced over participants to control for novelty.
Imaging data were acquired on a Siemens 3T Trio using a standard head coil. T1-weighted high resolution anatomical images were acquired using a magnetization-prepared rapid gradient-echo sequence. Whole-brain, blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD)-weighted images were acquired as participants responded to choices in three discounting conditions using an echo-planar imaging (EPI) sequence (repetition time, 2940 ms, echo time, 30 ms, flip angle, 90°, 36 slices acquired at a thickness of 4 mm with a 1 mm gap, field of view, 22 cm, 64 × 64 acquisition matrix, 3.44 mm × 3.44 mm in plane resolution).
Imaging data were adjusted for slice acquisition time, corrected for motion by realigning volumes from the first condition acquired (per subject) to the third EPI volume (given that the first two dummy scans were excluded from the preprocessing) and creating a mean motion-corrected volume which was then subsequently used as a reference in realigning volumes from the two remaining conditions. The motion-corrected volumes were then normalized to Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI) coordinates, resampled at 3 mm3 resolution, and spatially smoothed with an 8 mm full-width half-maximum Gaussian kernel using SPM2. Signal changes were modeled as delta functions temporally synchronized with the onset of each trial and convolved with a canonical hemodynamic response function. Two regressors were established for each condition's general linear model to represent discounting trials and control trials and subsequently used to detect differences in responses between the two. We excluded events from the analysis where the participant failed to respond within 6 s of stimulus onset. The resulting individual t maps were then entered into a second level, random effects analysis to establish significant patterns of activation at the group level and controlled for multiple comparisons using a False Discovery Rate (FDR) of p < 0.05. We subsequently used the random effects results in a repeated-measures ANOVA to detect main effect statistical differences between the three conditions, as well as paired t tests, and in a correlation analysis using prescan discounting parameters as predictors. Nonlinear transformations of MNI coordinates to Talairach coordinates were conducted using a Matlab function [mni2tal (http://imaging.mrc-cbu.cam.ac.uk/imaging/MniTalairach)]. Transformed coordinates for cluster maximum voxels were subsequently entered into the Talairach daemon database (http://www.talairach.org) to establish Talairach and Brodmann area labels.
Behavioral session
In a single behavioral session before scanning, each subject completed a computerized delay-discounting procedure in three conditions ($100 RMG, $100 HMG, and $100 HML) where the magnitude of a delayed outcome is held constant, whereas the magnitude of an immediate outcome is systematically adjusted. In each trial of this procedure, subjects indicated their preference between an immediate outcome and a delayed outcome. A point of equilibrium is established representing the individual's indifference between the immediate and delayed amounts. In each condition, indifference points were determined at several delays and fit to a simple hyperbolic model of discounting (Mazur, 1987) using SAS Software to estimate a single index of discounting for each condition.
Vd represents the discounted value at D delay, V is the undiscounted amount, and k is the estimated discounting parameter. High values of k indicate greater discounting, and low values of k indicate less discounting. Because of the skewed distributions shown to be associated with the hyperbolic function estimate, the estimated k value for each individual/condition was log transformed (ln(k)) to permit use of parametric statistics in the analysis. To more accurately measure differences between conditional measures of discounting as estimated using the hyperbolic equation (1), indifference points for delays in the hypothetical conditions that were not also collected in the real money condition (i.e., 365, 1825, 9125 d) were excluded. A repeated-measures ANOVA was used to detect within-subject differences between ln(k) values in the three discounting conditions and indicated no differences in levels of discounting between RMG l̅n̅(̅k̅)̅ = −5.42 ± 0.95, HMG l̅n̅(̅k̅)̅ = −5.61 ± 0.86, and HML l̅n̅(̅k̅)̅ = −5.60 ± 1.37; F(2,28) = 0.21, p = 0.81 (Fig. 1A). We further examined area under the curve (AUC) measures (an alternative index of discounting) to compare the within-subject levels of discounting between the three conditions because AUC allows for freedom from the theoretical framework of the hyperbolic discounting function and problems associated with estimated parameters (Myerson et al., 2001). Results of the analysis of discount rates were confirmed with repeated-measures ANOVA using area under the curve measures. For the RMG, HMG, and HML conditions, A̅U̅C̅ was 0.72 ± 0.09, ±0.10, ±0.10, respectively (F(2,28) = 0.00, p > 0.99) (Fig. 1B). It should be noted that when ln(k) values for fictive gains and losses were estimated with the full number of indifference points, a significant difference between RMG and HMG was found (mean difference, −0.93; t = −2.22; df = 29; p = 0.03). In addition, we made no attempt to exclude any behavioral data from our analysis based on goodness of fit measures associated with the hyperbolic estimate of discounting (k) as is frequently done.
Indifference points for delays of 1, 7, 30, and 180 d were collected from each individual before scanning in each of three discounting conditions and were subsequently fitted to a hyperbolic curve using Mazur's (1987) nonlinear function. Estimated ks were then log transformed to address skewed distributions and then entered into a repeated-measures ANOVA to test for differences in discounting between the conditions. Within-subject differences between discounting conditions were determined not to be significant (F(2,28) = 0.21, p = 0.81): RMG–HMG = 0.196 ± 0.68, HMG–HML = −0.014 ± 1.34, and HML–RMG = −0.18 ± 1.17 (A). Indifference points were also used to calculate AUC measures which were subsequently used in a repeated-measures ANOVA to detect within-subject difference between discounting conditions. AUC allows for freedom from the theoretical framework of the hyperbolic discounting function and problems associated with estimated parameters (Myerson et al., 2001). Results indicate no statistically significant difference between average normalized AUC measures (F(2,28) = 0.00, p = 0.99) (B): RMG–HMG = 0.001 ± 0.05, HMG–HML = −0.003 ± 0.10, and HML–RMG = 0.002 ± 0.07.
Imaging session
Responses made to delay-discounting trials performed in the scanner were examined to investigate the consistency of discounting behavior between behavioral and scanning sessions. Individual's respective ln(k) values (as estimated from behavioral session data) were found to be positively and significantly correlated with the ratio of preference for immediate amounts in both the RMG (r = +0.73, p < 0.0001) and HMG (r = +0.52, p = 0.003) conditions, indicating that participant's with high rates of discounting showed a greater preference for immediate gains (real and hypothetical) in the scanning sessions. Fisher's z transformation was used to test for difference in effect size between the two correlation coefficients from the gains conditions and indicated no significant difference between the measures, Z = 1.345, p = 0.09. Consistent with theory, high rates of the discounting of losses were associated with preference for delayed losses in the HML condition, although this relationship did not meet statistical significance (r = +0.30, p = 0.15). Participant responses in the RMG condition were significantly correlated with responses in the HMG condition (r = +0.74, p < 0.0001), whereas HML responses were inversely correlated with those in both gains conditions (HMG: r = −0.42, p < 0.0001; RMG: r = −0.42, p < 0.0001), signifying a parallel between increasing ratio of preference for immediate gains and a decreasing ratio preference for immediate losses. On average, participant's responses to replicated discounting trials were consistent with theory between the two gains conditions 87.0% (±3.3%) of the time, between HML and RMG (74.3 ± 6.3%), and HML and HMG (75.9 ± 4.8%). Behavior across these analyses was widely consistent within-subject and also with discounting theory.
Mean response time in the discounting trials of the RMG condition (2360 ± 53 ms) was not significantly different from that in the HMG condition (2396 ± 57 ms) (t = 0.83, p = 0.40), whereas HML mean response time (2540 ± 67 ms) was significantly greater than both the RMG (t = −4.26, p < 0.0001) and HMG (t = −3.41, p = 0.0007) conditions, perhaps indicating increased deliberation in selecting a preferred loss as opposed to a gain.
Imaging results
An initial conjunction analysis of the trial types (discount and control) in all three conditions was performed at the second level to assess areas of significant overlap between the two trial types to ensure that contrasting, discounting, and control trials would not inadvertently annul signal change in brain regions other than those related to rudimentary task performance (e.g., visual processing, motor activity). Results at an uncorrected threshold (p < 0.001) revealed that no areas other than those intended would be canceled out in a contrast of the two trial types (supplemental Fig. S1, available at www.jneurosci.org as supplemental material). Random effects analysis of responses to discounting trials versus control trials resulted in significant areas of signal change using an FDR threshold of p < 0.05 for contrasts in RMG, HMG, and HML conditions (Fig. 2A–C, respectively) (see supplemental Figs. S2–S4, and full listing of activations in supplemental Tables S2–S4, available at www.jneurosci.org as supplemental material). The resulting areas of signal change across all conditions included areas previously identified in imaging studies investigating the neural correlates of decision making in delay discounting (McClure et al., 2004, 2007; Boettiger et al., 2007; Monterosso et al., 2007; Wittmann et al., 2007). These include areas of executive functioning (i.e., lateral prefrontal cortex, parietal cortex) and limbic areas (i.e., striatum, posterior cingulate), with bilateral striatum reaching statistical threshold in RMG and HMG conditions but lateralizing primarily to the left hemisphere in the HML condition. Significant signal change within the limbic areas including the striatum have been previously reported and have been indirectly shown to be positively correlated with individual's level of discounting (Hariri et al., 2006). Signal change in premotor and supplementary motor areas have been noted in previous studies but were regarded as part of rudimentary task performance (i.e., pushing a button representing the preferred choice). However, we note the same areas of significant signal change in all discounting conditions where the contrasting control condition also required response. This contrast theoretically should eliminate any signal change associated with the motor (pre- and supplementary) requirements of task performance, suggesting that signal change within premotor area (PMA) and supplementary motor area (SMA) is indicative of another task-associated process, perhaps cognitive in nature. Signal change within the bilateral anterior insula was identified in all three conditions and has been previously shown to correlate behaviorally with the delay of gratification in a delay-discounting procedure. Precuneus area of activation noted here in all conditions have also been revealed in previous studies and is known to have extensive afferent and efferent connections with both cortical (lateral parietal, frontal, anterior cingulate) and subcortical (thalamus, striatum, brainstem) areas (Cavanna and Trimble, 2006). Behavioral correlates associated with the precuneus include motor coordination associated with visuo-spatial imagery (Wenderoth et al., 2005), episodic memory retrieval (Lundstrom et al., 2005), and self-processing (Kircher et al., 2002; Kjaer et al., 2002). Signal change within the V2 area of the visual cortex—Brodmann's area 18 (BA18)—is also shown to be significant across all conditions within the discounting more than control contrast but may be explained by either the increased visual information presented in the discounting trials compared with the control trials, the resulting latency in stimulus presentation (with regard to response) of the discounting trials compared with the control trials, or a combination of both.
fMRI random effects results for real money gains (A), hypothetical money gains (B), and hypothetical money losses (C) discounting conditions, contrasting the discounting trials where individuals responded to their preference for smaller sooner or larger later rewards/losses, with control events where participants responded to their preference for gaining or losing dollar amounts where the temporal delay component has been removed (FDR: p < 0.05). Resulting areas of signal change occurred in similar regions across all three conditions: left and right lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC/RPFC), PMA and SMA, posterior cingulate cortex (PCC), bilateral insula (seen lateralized primarily to the left hemisphere above), precuneus (PCu), visual cortex (VCtx), striatum (STR), and left and right parietal (data not shown).
To detect whether the neural correlates of the decision-making process across theses three discounting conditions would elicit different levels of activation and/or different anatomical brain regions, random effects results from each of the independently analyzed discounting conditions were subsequently used in a repeated-measures ANOVA to test for main effect differences across discounting conditions. After controlling for multiple comparisons using an FDR threshold (p < 0.05), no differences in signal change were detected, inferring congruence of neural activity regardless of commodity or sign. We were, however, able to distinguish limited differences in paired t tests when we did not control for multiple comparisons using an uncorrected threshold of p < 0.001 and an extent threshold of five contiguous voxels (see supplemental materials, available at www.jneurosci.org as supplemental material, for figures and tables of differences between conditions). In the gains conditions comparison, RMG > HMG resulted in a single cluster (n = 6 contiguous voxels) located in the left locus coeruleus, a structure outside of the cognitive and limbic areas typically associated with the deliberative process, but implicated in the processing of salient sensory information (Berridge and Waterhouse, 2003). HMG > RMG resulted in loci in the right frontal gyrus (BA48) (n = 13), left middle frontal gyri (BA9) (n = 6), and the right inferior parietal lobule (BA40) (n = 6). Comparison of the hypothetical conditions, HMG > HML resulted in no differential signal change above threshold, whereas HML > HMG comparison identified signal change in the left superior frontal gyrus (BA6) (n = 20), left superior temporal gyrus (BA38) (n = 6), and the right occipital lobe, precuneus (BA31) (n = 6). RMG > HML contrast identifies a single locus of signal change in the left cerebellum, inferior semilunar lobule (n = 7), and HML > RMG resulted in five areas above threshold; left occipital lobe (cuneus) (n = 13), left middle frontal gyrus (BA47) (n = 28), right occipital lobe (cuneus) (n = 5), right frontal lobe (BA9) (n = 7), and left medial frontal gyrus (BA8) (n = 9).
Given the strong correlation between participants' discounting behavior measured before scanning and their preference for immediate reward in both the real and hypothetical gains conditions within the scanner, we conducted a simple correlation analysis using imaging data from both RMG and HMG conditions with prescan ln(k) values as predictors, to identify regions associated with increasing levels of discounting. Using an uncorrected threshold of p < 0.001 and an extent threshold of five contiguous voxels, two areas within the dorsal prefrontal cortex correlated highly with log transformed k values: right middle frontal gyrus (BA9) and left medial frontal gyrus (BA10) (Fig. 3). Additional areas within the cerebellum and cuneus were also identified (Table 1). The dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex has been identified previously in the functional imaging of intertemporal choice and correlated with behavioral measures of impulsivity (Boettiger et al., 2007; Hoffman et al., 2008), whereas McClure et al. (2004, 2007) identified these executive functioning areas as being uniformly engaged without respect to delay.
fMRI correlation analysis of random effects contrasts (discounting trials > control trials) in combined RMG and HMG conditions. Log transformed k values (ln(k)) estimated from data collected before scanning used to predict areas correlated with discounting across subjects. Increased activity in the right middle frontal gyrus, BA9 (A), and left medial frontal gyrus, BA10 (B), are both shown here to be significantly correlated with increasing levels of discounting using an uncorrected threshold of p < 0.001 and an extent threshold of five contiguous voxels. Results are displayed at p < 0.005. Additional areas of significant correlation are listed in Table 1.
Areas of significant BOLD signal in discounting > control trial contrasts within both gains conditions that positively correlated with prescan measures of impulsivity (ln(k))
In this study, we investigate the similarities and disparities of delay discounting of real and hypothetical rewards and hypothetical loses, within both a behavioral and neuroimaging framework. Based on previous behavioral results, we hypothesized that (1) there would be no statistical within-subject difference in the estimated measure of discounting between equal amounts of a real and hypothetical gains (Johnson and Bickel, 2002; Madden et al., 2003, 2004; Lagorio and Madden, 2005) and (2) losses of hypothetical money would be discounted less than gains (Murphy et al., 2001; Estle et al., 2006; Yi et al., 2006). The first hypothesis was confirmed, with no within-subject difference observed in the discounting of real and hypothetical money gains. The second hypothesis was not confirmed, with no significant within-subject difference in the levels of discounting of gains and hypothetical money losses detected (Fig. 2A,B).
Based on previous neuroimaging results, we hypothesized that detection of fMRI signal change in limbic areas associated with reward would be greater when deliberating real money outcomes compared with hypothetical ones with no difference in the levels of executive functioning areas. However, we were uncertain as to the extent these areas of activity would generalize within the losses condition. Results from the independent random effects analysis of each condition produced robust activations in limbic and executive functioning areas across all three discounting conditions. However, no areas within the limbic system survived repeated-measures analysis either at a corrected (FDR: p < 0.05) or uncorrected threshold (p < 0.001). These findings challenge the notion of greater limbic response to real reward outcomes compared with hypothetical ones based on a hedonic reaction to the former in contrast to the latter. We found significant levels of activation within striatum and posterior cingulate in conditions with both real and hypothetical rewards as well as hypothetical losses, again with no differences in activation levels when these conditions are directly compared. Areas of activation within the PMA and SMA noted here have also been noted in previous neuroimaging studies of delay discounting but have been attributed to motor-related requirements (i.e., button push). However, our experimental design incorporated control trials that included a button push requirement to offset an identical requirement in the contrasting discounting trials. Significant activation in these areas (PMA/SMA) may suggest another functional role in the deliberative process of delay discounting.
Activation within the medial prefrontal cortex has been associated with the availability of an immediate reward outcome (McClure et al., 2004, 2007), whereas a significant correlation between activation of the medial prefrontal/anterior cingulate cortex (BA32/24) with subjective value was shown to be independent of immediacy of reward (Kable and Glimcher, 2007). Our imaging results did not reveal activation within this region although, or perhaps attributable to, the presence of an immediate reward/loss option in all discounting trials. Results from the respective repeated-measures analyses of fMRI data here do not support the hypothesis of significantly different levels of activation within limbic areas in association with valence (gain vs loss).
We further hypothesized, based on previous findings, that areas associated with executive functioning (lateral prefrontal and parietal cortex) would not vary significantly in the level of signal change between the decision-making processes related to preference of real/hypothetical rewards or gains/losses. Here, the results are inconclusive. Although statistical significance was not reached after controlling for multiple comparisons, uncorrected signal change differences were detected in the middle and medial frontal lobes in contrasts comparing both hypothetical outcomes to real money gains. Whether these differences in the BOLD signal are indicative of a difference in the cognitive-processing requirements between the respective conditions is unclear. Given that analysis of the prescan behavioral data indicated no within-subject differences in the level of discounting across the three conditions, it would seem unlikely that the differences noted in the fMRI data would have a substantial influence on the process overall.
The correlation between behavioral estimates and imaging data in the gains conditions revealed areas within the left medial frontal (BA10) and right middle frontal (BA9) gyri, indicating increased activity associated with increasing ln(k) values. Areas within the prefrontal cortex (PFC) have been identified with behavioral measures in previous studies of delay discounting. Monterosso et al. (2007) found increased signal change in the right ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (VLPFC) to be associated with less discounting, McClure et al. (2004) found both right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and right VLPFC responded at a significantly higher level in response to hard choices compared with easy. Both Boettiger et al. (2007) and Hoffman et al. (2008), using hypothetical money gains of $100 money, reported a positive correlation between delay-discounting measures of impulsivity and increased BOLD signal in the left dorsal PFC and right superior frontal gyrus (BA9), respectively. Although our results directly support those of Boettiger et al. (2007) and Hoffman et al. (2008), we cannot dismiss the possibility that responding to the discounting trials within our study was more difficult for those participants with higher levels of discounting. However, where McClure et al. (2004) used response times to substantiate hard from easy choices, we were unable to significantly correlate participant's average response times with ln(k) values here (r = −0.1, p = 0.26), suggesting that difficulty in the deliberation of discounting trials was not associated with level of discounting. One plausible explanation for the similarities between findings here and with those of Boettiger et al. (2007) and Hoffman et al. (2008) is the utilization of comparable control conditions within the experimental designs. In all three experiments, control trials were used in which a deliberative response was required and subsequently contrasted with discounting trials to form the random effects results used in the respective correlation analyses. Although control trials in our design were replications of the stimuli presented in the discounting trials without explicit reference to a temporal component, Boettiger et al. (2007) used control trials that prompted the subject to choose either the smaller or the larger amount of two alternatives requiring the subject to ignore the explicit temporal component. Hoffman et al. (2008) contrasted discounting trials with control trials whereby subjects responded to their preference between two choices in which either the delay or reward was held constant (e.g., $50 today vs $50 in 65 d, $50 in 12 d vs $75 in 12 d). Our results differ from those of Monterosso et al. (2007) who used a contrasting effect in their correlation analyses of "hard choice versus no choice" where "no choice" trials simply required the subject to identify the location of a single option presented on either the left or right side of the screen, thereby requiring no assessment of the stimuli other than spatial location.
A potential limitation or confound to this study is the plausibility of participants' adoption of rule-governed behavior in lieu of an authentic intertemporal choice deliberative process given exposure to discounting examinations in the prescan behavioral session. Given the degree of concordance of these neuroimaging findings with previously published works, we believe that the neural correlates as identified here reflect the nature of the discounting decision-making process as intended although lack of activity in the medial orbital frontal cortex and anterior cingulate regions as identified in previous studies admittedly gives us pause. The behavioral and imaging results from this study suggest that participant's undergoing delay-discounting conditions discount the value of a real money outcome equal to that of a hypothetical money outcome and that the neural correlates of these comparable conditions do not differ to a great degree within the primary brain regions believed to be associated with this cognitive process (limbic and executive). Whether a detectable behavioral difference between the discounting of these three conditions would ultimately provide significant difference within the imaging data is plausible, but previous studies comparing differing levels of discounting between groups have failed to yield any noteworthy findings.
The value of the results of this study are at least twofold. First, the results are practical in that they indicate that real and hypothetical outcomes not only produce comparable behavioral outcomes but also comparable neural correlates. This means that the study of hypothetical outcomes are not questionable a priori and may very well be consistent with real outcomes if it were feasible or ethical to evoke real outcomes in research studies. Second, and more importantly, these results suggest that the brain regions related to considering real and hypothetical future outcomes appear to be equivalent. Given that consideration of the future is an important neurobehavioral process, we show here that the process does not appear to change when the outcomes of those considerations are fictive or real. This makes sense from an evolutionary basis as humans often have to consider future outcomes to make plans important to survival. It would be difficult to imagine evolutionary pressure that would result in differing neurobehavioral processes for future events that occur versus those that do not.
This work was funded by National Institute on Drug Abuse Grants R01 DA11692 and R01 DA024080, Wilbur Mills Chair Endowment, and in part by the Arkansas Biosciences Institute, a partnership of scientists from Arkansas Children's Hospital, Arkansas State University, the University of Arkansas, Division of Agriculture, the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. The Arkansas Biosciences Institute is the major research component of the Tobacco Settlement Proceeds Act of 2000. We thank D. Lindquist for her efforts in the experimental design and imaging protocols, D. Cardwell and D. Kesterson for their assistance in the acquisition of the imaging data, R. Landes for his assistance in the statistical analysis of behavioral data, and Samuel McClure and P. R. Montague for comments on earlier versions of this manuscript.
Correspondence should be addressed to Warren K. Bickel, Center for Addiction Research, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, 4301 West Markham Street #843, Little Rock, AR 72205. wbickel{at}uams.edu
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You are going to email the following Congruence of BOLD Response across Intertemporal Choice Conditions: Fictive and Real Money Gains and Losses
Warren K. Bickel, Jeffery A. Pitcock, Richard Yi, Edgardo J. C. Angtuaco
Journal of Neuroscience 8 July 2009, 29 (27) 8839-8846; DOI: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.5319-08.2009
Behavioral/Systems/Cognitive
Episodic Reinstatement in the Medial Temporal Lobe
Musical Expertise Induces Audiovisual Integration of Abstract Congruency Rules
The Laminar Development of Direction Selectivity in Ferret Visual Cortex
Show more Behavioral/Systems/Cognitive


"What Elevator does brilliantly, is provide new perspectives. The management session they ran, gave us a whole new set of techniques for dealing with age old issues. Their approach opens up your mind to a fresh way of thinking that really sinks in and is genuinely useable. We've seen a marked improvement in the way we work together and manage the business.
Elevator techniques are equally illuminating for brands too. Insightful, relevant, creative and entertaining, the Elevator approach stretches thinking in new directions that provide fresh impetus to brand development."


What favorite shoe keeps podiatrists in business? What do podiatrists wish you'd do before your appointment? Here, what your foot doctor wants you to know.
A lot of you have been wearing the same-size shoe for the past 30 years because no one measures your feet anymore, but feet often get bigger as you age.
You use antiperspirant on your armpits to keep them from getting stinky, don't you? The same stuff works on your feet. Try the spray kind. Alternate your shoes so they have a chance to dry completely, and wear socks. Otherwise, the sweat will promote the growth of bacteria that stay in your shoes. Here's another important reason to never wear shoes without socks.
If you want a pedicure, book the first appointment of the day, when the equipment is cleaner. Those footbaths can be especially germy. Even if technicians spray the basin between customers, many of the tubs have drains and filters that don't get cleaned.
…but they aren't going to get rid of hammertoes and bunions. You've got to come to me for that. If you have a structural problem, a $6 device isn't going to reverse anything.
But I don't believe in cosmetic surgery for feet. You shouldn't have surgery if you're not in pain, because you will have pain after surgery—that's a guarantee. It has to be worth it. Otherwise, you're asking for trouble.
Well-trained staff will help you get the right athletic shoe. They can really analyze your foot and gait. But be warned: These are the 20 things your shoe salesman is secretly thinking about you.
You really shouldn't clean your loaded gun after you've had a couple of beers. Another dumb move: mowing the lawn in flip-flops. The first weekend of every spring, doctors see a lot of injuries.
It's just an over-the-counter lotion, but it's like a miracle. Put it on a couple of times a week, and the calluses will just slough off. You can also try these homemade foot scrubs to pamper your feet.
I won't do it, because it won't fix the problem. I tell those patients to tell their daughters: Get your bunions taken care of now. If you wait until they get really bad, they'll be much harder to fix.
You might be embarrassed by your stubble, but it will be worse when bacteria and fungus enter the microscopic nicks on your ankle and give you an infection. In the meantime, look out for these subtle signs of disease your feet can reveal.
They'll help if you just need some arch support and padding, but they're nothing like the orthotics I make after creating a mold of your feet in my office. Orthotics are like eyeglasses for the feet. They're made to correct the specific biomechanics of the way you walk. Don't fall for these other little shoe mistakes that are killing your feet.
But unless he or she is specifically trained in the foot and ankle, coming to me is a better bet.
That might not be your great toe—a lot of people's second toe is longer.
Do it on concrete, and you'll end up with stress fractures and some very bad inflammation.
Make some really strong black tea, then soak your feet in it two or three times a week for 20 minutes. The tannic acid has been shown to temporarily shrink sweat ducts so they don't work as hard. Plus, here are ten more smart tricks to keep your shoes smell-free.
I'm a podiatrist, not a pedicurist.
But if you wear them every day, all day, you will end up in my office eventually. Those shoes are designed for the beach and pool, not for walking all over the place. Make sure you know these doctor-approved tips about wearing sandals.
And it turns out all I did was tell them to wear a bigger size. I think, Did that really change your life? But if they had a lot of pain, it's a big deal.
Yes, just like a shoe can. Go with what feels comfortable. Don't miss these other secrets your feet wish they could tell you.
A good shoe salesman will always watch you walk or run.
Look for materials that promise to wick moisture away.
You want to try an over-the-counter remedy for your nail fungus first?
Go ahead. I know you'll be back to see me before long. Find out how to get rid of toenail fungus.
You can push them back, but don't cut.
Ten years later, her foot was bothering her. When I went in, I found a pencil lead, perfectly intact.
If it's jelly-like or soft and smushy, then that's not support, that's cushioning, and it's probably not going to help your problem. Don't miss these common foot problems and podiatrists' simple solutions.
I can't tell you how many women have told me that they feel as if they are going to the gynecologist when they have to take off their shoes!
And change your socks. I can tell if you've worn the same ones for three days.
Here are some tips for finding a doctor you can trust.
Sources: Jane Andersen, a podiatrist in Chapel Hill, North Carolina; Marlene Reid, a podiatrist in Naperville, Illinois; Carly Robbins, a podiatrist in Columbus, Ohio; Jacqueline Sutera, a podiatrist in New York, New York; Cary Zinkin, a podiatrist in Deerfield Beach, Florida.


text:
Stamping out free speech
This fall the Orange & Black staff members had a choice: publish a controversial photo and risk a community backlash or self-censor and save the newspaper from possibly losing editorial control.
In the end, the newspaper staff at Grand Junction High School in Colorado decided to run the photo illustration which depicted two students protesting Colorado's mandatory Pledge of Allegiance law with a Nazi-style salute.
The photo illustration accompanied a three-page spread about the law, which was a hot topic of conversation among students, said Mark Newton, the newspaper's adviser. The students were protesting the law because they felt it was fascist.
Three thousand copies of the newspaper were distributed both on and off campus in October. Backlash against the photo and the newspaper was immediate, Newton said.
The newspaper received complaints from students, teachers and community members who felt the photo was offensive, Newton said.
Some teachers reportedly refused to distribute the newspaper and even threw copies in the trash. Then the school district announced it would review its student publication policies.
Jeff Kirtland, the district's spokesman, said after examining the policies the district determined they were sound and consistent with the state statute. The district also determined the Orange & Black properly followed the policies when covering the story.
The Orange & Black staff members were able to maintain their right to free speech, but many of their counterparts across the country this fall were not as fortunate.
At Hooker High School in Oklahoma, administrators decided to clamp down on "negative" commentary in the school yearbook after a spread in last year's edition characterized the school's new paint job as "institutional white," students say.
Yearbook staff member Sarah Heil said administrators informed the yearbook staff that coverage involving non-school-related activities, news about administrative decisions not involving students and stories about the school budget cuts are prohibited.
The controversy arose after administrators reviewed the 2002-2003 yearbook, which contained a two-page spread about how the interior school walls were changed from royal blue to white. The spread showed a before-and-after picture of a wall and used the adjective "institutional white" to describe the new color.
Heil said most students at the school did not like the change in paint color and that the layout reflected the student body's opinion. The yearbook is the only student publication at the school.
Although the yearbook staff did not receive written guidelines outlining the topics that can and cannot be covered, the administration told students they plan to review each spread before it is published, said Tabitha Brown, a yearbook staff member.
The students said they plan to stand up for the coverage they believe should be in the yearbook.
Members of the Avonworth High School newspaper in Pennsylvania say administrators created policies this fall that impede the production of the newspaper, an allegation the administration denies.
According to Josh Wilwohl, a layout editor for the Avonews, the problems began when he interviewed Principal Peggy Boden and the superintendent for an editorial outlining how the school board is "educationally, fiscally and emotionally irresponsible."
A day after the meeting, Wilwohl said Boden informed him that staff members would only be allowed into the publications lab with faculty supervision, making production of the newspaper nearly impossible.
However, Boden said she made the decision to lock the publications facility to protect equipment purchased more than a year ago at a cost of $10,000. She denies that any of the changes are an attempt to censor the publication.
After students objected to the decision, administrators said they would move some of the equipment into the library or a classroom for easier access. Wilwohl said that moving the equipment would make it difficult to work with other staff members and allows faculty members to keep an eye on what the newspaper is covering.
Wilwohl, along with four other staff members, submitted a letter to the school board in October outlining their complaints, but he said the policy has remained the same.
Rachel Boim, a freshman at Roswell High School in Georgia, was suspended and later expelled for writing a fictional story in her personal journal about a student who dreams of killing a teacher.
Administrators found out about the story after Boim's art teacher confiscated the journal in October because she passed it to a friend in class. The teacher kept Boim's journal overnight and read through its contents.
The story told of an unnamed girl who dreams she shoots and kills an unidentified math teacher. As the girl is escaping from school, she is shot by a security guard. Then the school bell rings and the girl wakes up, gathers her books and goes to her next class.
Initially, Boim was suspended for 10 days, but after a closed hearing, a school official decided Boim should be expelled from Roswell High School for the remainder of the year.
Mitzi Edge, a district spokeswoman, said Boim, an honors student, was expelled because she violated the student code of conduct, which prohibits students from making threats against the school.
In November, the Fulton County school board overturned the expulsion and erased it from her record. The 10-day suspension she served will remain on her record.
In Mississippi, a federal court ruled that Oxford Middle School officials could ban Mary August Phillips from displaying her seventh grade student council campaign poster at school.
A U.S. district court ruled in September that school administrators could prohibit Phillips from hanging a poster that read: "He chose Mary … You should, too. Mary August for Student Council!" Pictured between the words "Mary" and "You" was a reproduction of the Renaissance painting "Madonna and Child."
According to court documents, the case began after Phillips hung the poster and a teacher complained that she should not "mix religion and politics."
For three days, the poster was removed and then rehung as school officials received various complaints from Christians and non-Christians who felt the school was allowing the election to blur the division between religion and government or that the school was allowing religion to be ridiculed. Eventually, the superintendent ordered that the poster be removed.
In denying the preliminary injunction, the court said that because student council elections are school-sponsored speech, the district had the right to determine whether the poster should hang in the school hallway.
One day after the injunction was denied, Phillips was elected to the student council.
In Georgia, two eighth-graders were suspended from Trickum Middle School for allegedly posting racial slurs and threats on their off-campus Web site.
School officials took disciplinary actions in October after investigating complaints from parents about the racial tone of the Web site, said Sloan Roach, spokeswoman for the Gwinnett County Public Schools.
Roach said the Web site was anti-African American and included racial and ethnic slurs as well as threatening language directed toward African Americans. The site also named students who were going to meet and fight.
The students created and maintained the Web site off-campus, Roach said. After the students learned they were in trouble, the site was removed.
She said she was unaware if any students had accessed the site from a school computer. However, she said Trickum students were discussing the Web site at school and creating a disruption.
Two other Gwinnett County students and their fathers filed a lawsuit against the school district, claiming school officials violated the students' First Amendment rights by suspending the students for comments they posted on an off-campus Web site.
The American Civil Liberties Union and two Georgia attorneys filed the lawsuit on behalf of the students and their fathers.
According to the lawsuit filed in U.S. district court in Atlanta, Brookwood High School students Lloyd "L.E." Goldsmith Jr. and Edward Alexander Morgan were suspended in March after administrators said their comments — posted on another student's site — threatened a teacher at the school.
The Web site, used by students and others to vent frustrations about the teacher, included "some hypothetical scenarios which visualized some fictional acts," but "did not contain any direct threats or expressions of any intent to commit any violent acts," the lawsuit said.
After a student reported the site to a teacher, school officials suspended Goldsmith for more than seven months. Morgan was suspended for 10 days and required to perform 20 hours of community service.
Administrators said the comments violated the district's policies, including one that prohibits posting on the Internet "any expression (oral, written, or gesture) which could have the effect of undermining the authority of the school employee."
Later, after the Goldsmiths hired attorneys, the district said Goldsmith could return to school and required him to perform 40 hours of community service.
The lawsuit asks that the district expunge all references to the students' discipline and suspensions from their records. It also seeks undisclosed compensatory and punitive damages. In addition, the lawsuit asks the court to declare provisions in the Gwinnett County School System student conduct code unconstitutionally vague and overbroad.
In August, the Beaverton School District in Oregon agreed to pay $20,000 to settle a lawsuit filed on behalf of a 13-year-old boy who was expelled for creating an off-campus Web site school administrators deemed offensive.
Carlson Muss, now 16, created the Web site "Sexy (and available) Man" in the fall of 2000 using his home computer. The Web page named "people I can stand to be around" and commented: "If you made it on this list, Kudos to you, you are not on my shit list, which means you get to live another week."
Muss said he did not intend his comments to be taken seriously.
Despite a school psychological evaluation that concluded Muss did not pose a threat to school safety, administrators expelled Muss claiming he violated the district's policies against "intimidation, threats [and] menacing."
Muss requested a hearing, but school officials decided to expunge the incident from his records before the hearing convened. Muss claimed that when he later applied for a district magnet academy, his application was rejected because of his Web site. The school district denied the allegation.
Maureen Wheeler, the district spokesperson, said the settlement does not mean the district accepts any liability.
In Ohio, a Mechanicsburg High School junior stood trial in November for using his home computer to create a link on his personal Web page to a friend's off-campus Web site, which school administrators and peers later deemed a threat to school safety. The Mechanicsburg student who created the site also stood trial in November.
The student who linked to the site, Jameson Pack, 16, was charged with six counts of a first degree misdemeanor for aggravated menacing, a fourth degree felony for complicity to menacing by stalking and a first degree misdemeanor for inducing panic. In addition, school administrators suspended him for 10 days and banned him from the school's computer facilities for two years, said Lisa Pack, Jameson's mother.
Joshua Allerton, the student who created the site, was charged with six counts of menacing by stalking, a fourth degree felony; six counts of aggravated menacing, a first degree misdemeanor; and inducing panic, also a first degree misdemeanor.
According to the Champaign County Sheriff's Office incident report, one of the students' classmates and her mother reported the existence of a Web site entitled, "Melodies of Life" in September. The site listed the girl and some of her friends under the category "preps."
The report claims that the Web site endorsed violent action against the group of girls and encouraged the use of a semi-automatic assault type rifle against them. The girls are students at Mechanicsburg High School.
CASE: Phillips v. Oxford Separate?Municipal School District, Case No. 2:03CV292-M-A (N.D. Miss. Sept. 22, 2003)
Tagged , Avonews, Beaverton School District, Colorado, Georgia, Grand Junction High School, Hooker High School, MIssissippi, Oklahoma, Orange & Black, Oregon, Oxford Middle School, Pennsylvania, reports, Roswell High School, Trickum Middle School, Winter 2003-04

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


I met up with this wonderful family again. This time we met up at the Indianapolis Museum of Arts. We had wonderful weather on Sunday. I can't believe how big little "X" has gotten. He is filling out and is so happy all the time. His sister is getting so big too. Little "A" makes me smile. Of course, they both do. I only just started editing their pics so I'll post one of each of them. In a later post I'll include the links to the previous sessions that I had with them.
I did a another session with this family, only this time focusing on just the baby. We'll be meeting up again sometime in the summer to do the entire family. I can't wait.
Skylar is a month and a half and what a cutie! I love the zebra print with the pink background. She is really a very content baby.
I just got finished with a wonderful Senior session. I've known this family since Shelby was a baby. Actually, I knew this family before Shelby was ever born. I remember her as a baby, she had hair that stuck straight up in the air. Shelby and my oldest have always been really close so they got some pictures together.
Here is a few for ya to hold you over.
Yesterday though we had some amazing temps and so "E" and I got outside and I was able to take some pictures of flowers and her. I'll post her pictures tomorrow though.
To process these images I used an action from Coffee Shop Photography. I believe there is a link on the right hand side. If there isn't, I'll post the link again.
Not textured. If anyone knows what kind of tree this is, let me know.


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text:
Q: Facebook watchman everytime looses connection on ubuntu 16.04 Facebook watchman everytime looses connection on ubuntu 16.04. Also it gives error "Error: Watcher took too long to load (WatchmanWatcher)". How can I uninstall watchman on ubuntu?

A: Run these commands:
$ watchman watch-del-all
$ watchman watch-project /path/to/your/project/dir

and try to run it again.
Explanation
With this command
$ watchman watch-list
{
    "version": "4.7.0",
    "roots": [
        "~/path/one"
        "~/path/two"
        "~/path/three"
        "~/path/four"
    ]
}

you get all the paths that are watched by watchman. If there are too many paths (see roots), watchman takes too long to crawl all the files.
To delete all the paths, run this command:
$ watchman watch-del-all

To add the new project directories to crawl, add project dir with this command:
$ watchman watch-project ~/path/to/project/dir

Since you have deleted all the unnecessary folders, now the react packages should take less time to crawl and build.
Hope this helps someone.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


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Lawyers representing the Lebashe Investment Group, have lashed out at UDM leader Bantu Holomisa for failing to give concrete evidence.


Mention the word "feedback" and most people jump to the conclusion that they're about to experience something uncomfortable or negative. But imagine a world without feedback— we would cease to learn, grow, and improve ourselves, our performance, our behavior, and our lives. Yet most of us resist giving and getting feedback because we fail to see the upside.
Giving feedback appropriately is a powerful skill. And it is a skill everyone needs to master—especially in the business world, where delivering feedback can make a marked difference in performance. The good news is it is a skill and can be learned!
The Giving Feedback Program is a 2 part webinar series focuses on developing critical skills that assist Leaders in the effective coaching and developing of others. Leaders know that, "Feedback is the breakfast of champions!". No world-class performers could ever develop their talents without meaningful feedback on their performance. The focus is on how leaders stay in touch with the performance of the people they are leading so they can provide information that will help them improve their performance. Giving feedback creates a relationship where people are open to hearing and accepting the feedback. Once feedback skills are developed, leaders find it easier and easier to help others develop.


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David Stockton re-joins USA roster for FIBA World Cup qualifiers
Former Gonzaga point guard David Stockton is back with Team USA on the FIBA World Cup qualifying roster, according to a release from USA Basketball on Thursday.
Stockton is joined on the team by former BYU forward Eric Mika, as well as former Lakers guard Mac McClung (who was a transfer target for the Zags) and former Colorado point guard McKinley Wright.
A post shared by USA Basketball (@usabasketball)
Stockton is back with the team for the third time in the past seven months. He was with the team for qualifiers back in February, playing in two victories over Puerto Rico and Mexico and averaging 10.5 points and 3.5 assists while shooting 5-7 from deep.
He was named to the roster again in July but was unable to suit up because of a hand injury. Now he's back with the squad as they prepare to face Uruguay on August 25 in Las Vegas before heading to Colombia for a game on August 29, in what will be the fourth of six 2023 FIBA World Cup qualifying windows.
Stockton played at Gonzaga from 2010-2014, averaging 4.8 points and 3.1 assists. He started all 36 games as a senior in 2013-14, averaging 7.4 points, 4.2 assists, and 1.5 steals.
Andy Patton August 12, 2022 August 12, 2022 david stockton, featured, fiba, FIBA world cup qualifiers, gonzaga, gonzaga basketball, Pro Zags, team usa
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Eliades Ochoa Planning European Tour
HAVANA TIMES — The popular Cuban singer and member of the "Buena Vista Social Club," Eliades Ochoa, said on Wednesday at a news conference that his upcoming European tour will include Spain, Belgium and the Netherlands, reported the Prensa Latina news agency.
During the tour he will perform songs from his most recent CD, Un bolero para ti, which has been nominated for a Latin Grammy award in the category of Best Traditional Tropical Album. The CD contains 15 songs from the early 20th century in addition to four works by the Cuban musician himself.
Ochoa noted that he will not be able to attend the Latin Grammy awards ceremony because of his European performances, which will run from this Sunday until December 12.
A guitarist, singer and songwriter, Eliades Ochoa is considered one of the most relevant soneros of all time and is a major proponent of traditional Cuban music.
← French Communist Predicts a Favorable Vote for Cuba at the UN
European Commission Approves 6 Million Euros for Cuba and Haiti →
One thought on "Eliades Ochoa Planning European Tour"
I' ve been to the show on Friday, November 30 in the netherlands.
It was a very good performance, we enjoyed the show.
He called us "familia" We love Cuba and the music.
We where on Varadero in oct. 2010 and visited the BVSC there.
Since then we like the Cuban music.
gr. John.


Orange peel is the unlikely by-product behind a new textile that's being incorporated into collections by designer Salvatore Ferragamo.
Back in 2013, Adriana Santanocito, a fashion student in Milan, and her friend and colleague Enrica Arena looked into whether anything useful could be done with the vast amounts of orange peel left behind by juicing machines.
Working with the polytechnic university of Milan, the pair developed and patented a process that attracted €500,000 in funding from private investors, the EU and the H&M Foundation. They are now collaborating with Boniser, an orange producer, to turn the peel into a silk-like fabric, Orange Fiber.
The eponymous company behind the material offers the fabric for €30-€40 per metre and it can be coloured and treated on the same production lines as silk. Orange Fiber is just one of a number of small firms experimenting with repurposing everything from waste milk to pineapple stalks to make fibres for clothing and accessories.
Producing a kilogram of cotton currently requires three kilograms of chemicals, according to the Foundation, which believes innovation in materials making, to avoid toxic substances, is crucial. "Also important are innovations that use waste products from other industries as a feedstock, such as Orange Fiber, and artificial silk fibres, such as Biosteel Fiber or Bolt Threads, or fibres produced from algae, such as AlgaeFabrics," adds Opsomer.
German company QMilk recently presented its fibre, made from waste cow's milk, on the runway of Berlin's Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, as part of a collection of backpacks and shoes by outdoor clothing company Vaude.
QMilk was started seven years ago after biologist Anke Domaske – who was searching for a non-allergenic fibre for clothes for her stepfather, who was suffering from cancer – stumbled upon YouTube videos of a 1930s technique to create fibre from milk proteins.
"We first succeeded in getting the product stable in 2015, and the first commercial applications were in paper, tissues and toilet paper, because the supply chain is shorter there," says Domaske. "Now we have the first yarns and fabrics, and the felt can be used for fashion applications also.
Gwen Cunningham, who leads the circle textiles programme at campaign group Circle Economy, believes small innovators can demonstrate the business case to larger firms – particularly with the help of initiatives linking them such as the denim alliance. "These examples are very much on the radar of the bigger companies," she says, "and there's a willingness from government to help if there's combined action.


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Sports roundup
by October 23, 2012 February 8, 2021
RB football
The Bulldogs dropped their regular season finale 20-10 at Fenton. RB (2-7, 2-2 MSC) struggled in nonconference games, but under first-year head Brendan Curtin the team was in contention for the Metro Suburban title leading into the final week. Jack VandeMerkt, Adolfo Linares, Justin Agne, John Husir, Jason Straka, Zach Greenwell, Christian Verdin and Mike Davis are expected to return to the team next season.
LT tennis
Alex Chatt dominated Naperville Centralfs Tiffany Chen 6-1, 6-0 in the third place match of the State Tournament. Chatt, who finished as the state runner-up in 2011, scored 13 points. Singles teammate Kristen Thoms added seven points to power LT (20 points overall) to a fifth-place showing this year. @
RB boys cross country
The Bulldogs (35 points) won their fourth consecutive regional championship on Saturday as all-regional runners Kevin Faje (16:32.9) and Spencer Purcell (16:49.4) finished second and third, respectively. Jeremy Vasquez (16:57.9, 7th) and Matt Sagan (17:07, 8th) also recorded Top 10 times, while Ken Sprague (14th), Eugene Makovetskiy (18th) and Ryan Janney (23rd) rounded out the RB lineup.
LT swimming
The Lions put the finishing touches on an undefeated record in conference dual meets with a 116-70 victory against York last week. LT swept three relay races against the Dukes, while Louisa Hoffman sparked the Lions in individual events, claiming first in the 50-yard freestyle (24.74) and 100-yard freestyle (54.76) races.
RB girls cross country
RB captured its own regional with 30 points, followed by runner-up Nazareth (33), Joliet Catholic (70) and Evergreen Park (116), which all advance to sectional competition.
The Bulldogsf talented tandem of juniors Clare Bollnow (19:13) and Sarah Melone (19:34.7) placed first and second, while Meaghan Dorsey (20:27.2), Alma Rodriguez (20:47.4), Deanna Keen (20:49.3), Danielle Ulloa (20:54.2) and Amy Wagner (21:05.4) all crossed the finish line within the top 15 spots.
RB volleyball
RB (24-11) won three of five matches at the Kaneland October Spikefest. The Bulldogs defeated Metea Valley 27-25, 25-23, Hampshire 26-24, 26-24 and Yorkville 25-19, 25-10, but lost matches to Kaneland and Geneva.
Led by Hannah Claywell (9 kills), Lizzy Hawk (19 assists) and Annabelle Gardiner (11 digs), RB also cruised by Ridgewood 25-10, 25-13 last week.


Pixar turned box-office records upside down with its brainy flick about the clashing emotions inside a little girl's head. Now what?
Pixar's Inside Out had parents deep-diving into their pockets last weekend. The film far exceeded expectations by grossing $90 million at the domestic box office. Though Jurassic World took the top spot with $107 million, the animation studio isn't complaining. Inside Out, directed by Pete Docter (Up), is now the biggest original box office debut in history.
Also in the Pixar pipeline through 2018 are three franchise spin-offs, including Finding Dory, Toy Story 4, and The Incredibles 2. "We try to have a balance, ideally an original film every year and a sequel every other year," Morris explains. Which leads to the question that's already on everyone's mind: Will there be an Inside Out sequel?
Docter doesn't seem to be in the mood. "There's no sequel idea from me at this point," says, adding that he'd rather build more original fare for the studio. But not all hope is lost. "Never say never," he teases. Hey, that's enough to bring us at least a little Joy.