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Broken Escalator Phenomenon
The broken escalator phenomenon, also known as the escalator effect and the Walker effect, is the sensation of losing balance, confusion or dizziness reported by some people when stepping onto an escalator which is not working. It is said that there is a brief, odd sensation of imbalance, despite full awareness that the escalator is not going to move. It has been shown that this effect causes people to step inappropriately fast onto a moving platform that is no longer moving, even when this is obvious to the participant. Even though subjects are fully aware that the platform or escalator is not moving now, parts of their brains still act on previous experience gained when it was moving, and so misjudge how to step onto it. Thus, this effect demonstrates the separateness of the declarative and procedural functions of the brain. The broken escalator phenomenon is the result of a locomotor after-effect which replicates the posture adopted when walking onto a moving platform to stab ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dizziness
Dizziness is an imprecise term that can refer to a sense of disorientation in space, vertigo, or lightheadedness. It can also refer to disequilibrium or a non-specific feeling, such as giddiness or foolishness. Dizziness is a common medical complaint, affecting 20-30% of persons. Dizziness is broken down into 4 main subtypes: vertigo (~25-50%), disequilibrium (less than ~15%), presyncope (less than ~15%), and nonspecific dizziness (~10%). * Vertigo is the sensation of spinning or having one's surroundings spin about them. Many people find vertigo very disturbing and often report associated nausea and vomiting. * Presyncope describes lightheadedness or feeling faint; the name relates to syncope, which is actually fainting. * Disequilibrium is the sensation of being off balance and is most often characterized by frequent falls in a specific direction. This condition is not often associated with nausea or vomiting. * Non-specific dizziness may be psychiatric in origin. It is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Motor Adaptation
Motor adaptation, a form of motor learning, is the process of acquiring and restoring locomotor patterns (e.g. leg coordination patterns) through an error-driven learning process. This type of adaptation is context-dependent and hence, is specific to the environment in which the adaptation occurred. The Central nervous system, particularly the cerebellum, underlies this form of adaptation in vertebrates. It is suggested that the nervous system learns to predict and cancel effects of a novel environment, returning movements to near baseline (unperturbed) conditions. During motor adaptation the nervous system constantly uses error information to improve future movements. Split-Belt Adaptation Split-belt adaptation is a sub-type of motor adaptation in which the limbs on each side of the animal's body are driven at different speeds. This is achieved through the use of a split-belt treadmill that consists of two independently controlled treadmill belts. Animals undergoing split-bel ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vestibular System
The vestibular system, in vertebrates, is a sensory system that creates the sense of balance and spatial orientation for the purpose of coordinating movement with balance. Together with the cochlea, a part of the auditory system, it constitutes the labyrinth of the inner ear in most mammals. As movements consist of rotations and translations, the vestibular system comprises two components: the semicircular canals, which indicate rotational movements; and the otoliths, which indicate linear accelerations. The vestibular system sends signals primarily to the neural structures that control eye movement; these provide the anatomical basis of the vestibulo-ocular reflex, which is required for clear vision. Signals are also sent to the muscles that keep an animal upright and in general control posture; these provide the anatomical means required to enable an animal to maintain its desired position in space. The brain uses information from the vestibular system in the head and fro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Journal Of Neurophysiology
The ''Journal of Neurophysiology'' is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal established in 1938. It is published by the American Physiological Society with Jan "Nino" Ramirez as its editor-in-chief. Ramirez is the Director for the Center for Integrative Brain Research at the University of Washington. The ''Journal of Neurophysiology'' publishes original articles on the function of the nervous system. All levels of function are included, from membrane biophysics to cell biology to systems neuroscience and the experimental analysis of behavior. Experimental approaches include molecular neurobiology, cell culture and slice preparations, membrane physiology, developmental neurobiology, functional neuroanatomy, neurochemistry, neuropharmacology, systems electrophysiology, imaging and mapping techniques, and behavioral analysis. Experimental preparations may be invertebrate or vertebrate species, including humans. Theoretical studies are acceptable if they are tied closely to t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Motor System
The motor system is the set of central and peripheral structures in the nervous system that support motor functions, i.e. movement. Peripheral structures may include skeletal muscles and neural connections with muscle tissues. Central structures include cerebral cortex, brainstem, spinal cord, pyramidal system including the upper motor neurons, extrapyramidal system, cerebellum, and the lower motor neurons in the brainstem and the spinal cord. Pyramidal motor system The pyramidal motor system, also called the pyramidal tract or the corticospinal tract, start in the motor center of the cerebral cortex.Rizzolatti G, Luppino G (2001) The Cortical Motor System. ''Neuron'' 31: 889-90SD/ref> There are upper and lower motor neurons in the corticospinal tract. The motor impulses originate in the giant pyramidal cells or Betz cells of the motor area; i.e., precentral gyrus of cerebral cortex. These are the upper motor neurons (UMN) of the corticospinal tract. The axons of these cel ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cognition
Cognition refers to "the mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses". It encompasses all aspects of intellectual functions and processes such as: perception, attention, thought, intelligence, the formation of knowledge, memory and working memory, judgment and evaluation, reasoning and computation, problem solving and decision making, comprehension and production of language. Imagination is also a cognitive process, it is considered as such because it involves thinking about possibilities. Cognitive processes use existing knowledge and discover new knowledge. Cognitive processes are analyzed from different perspectives within different contexts, notably in the fields of linguistics, musicology, anesthesia, neuroscience, psychiatry, psychology, education, philosophy, anthropology, biology, systemics, logic, and computer science. These and other approaches to the analysis of cognition (such as embodied cognition) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gait
Gait is the pattern of movement of the limbs of animals, including humans, during locomotion over a solid substrate. Most animals use a variety of gaits, selecting gait based on speed, terrain, the need to maneuver, and energetic efficiency. Different animal species may use different gaits due to differences in anatomy that prevent use of certain gaits, or simply due to evolved innate preferences as a result of habitat differences. While various gaits are given specific names, the complexity of biological systems and interacting with the environment make these distinctions "fuzzy" at best. Gaits are typically classified according to footfall patterns, but recent studies often prefer definitions based on mechanics. The term typically does not refer to limb-based propulsion through fluid mediums such as water or air, but rather to propulsion across a solid substrate by generating reactive forces against it (which can apply to walking while underwater as well as on land). Due to th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Central Nervous System
The central nervous system (CNS) is the part of the nervous system consisting primarily of the brain and spinal cord. The CNS is so named because the brain integrates the received information and coordinates and influences the activity of all parts of the bodies of bilaterally symmetric and triploblastic animals—that is, all multicellular animals except sponges and diploblasts. It is a structure composed of nervous tissue positioned along the rostral (nose end) to caudal (tail end) axis of the body and may have an enlarged section at the rostral end which is a brain. Only arthropods, cephalopods and vertebrates have a true brain (precursor structures exist in onychophorans, gastropods and lancelets). The rest of this article exclusively discusses the vertebrate central nervous system, which is radically distinct from all other animals. Overview In vertebrates, the brain and spinal cord are both enclosed in the meninges. The meninges provide a barrier to chemicals dissolv ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Electromyography
Electromyography (EMG) is a technique for evaluating and recording the electrical activity produced by skeletal muscles. EMG is performed using an instrument called an electromyograph to produce a record called an electromyogram. An electromyograph detects the electric potential generated by muscle cells when these cells are electrically or neurologically activated. The signals can be analyzed to detect abnormalities, activation level, or recruitment order, or to analyze the biomechanics of human or animal movement. Needle EMG is an electrodiagnostic medicine technique commonly used by neurologists. Surface EMG is a non-medical procedure used to assess muscle activation by several professionals, including physiotherapists, kinesiologists and biomedical engineers. In Computer Science, EMG is also used as middleware in gesture recognition towards allowing the input of physical action to a computer as a form of human-computer interaction. Clinical uses EMG testing has a variety of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Escalator
An escalator is a moving staircase which carries people between floors of a building or structure. It consists of a motor-driven chain of individually linked steps on a track which cycle on a pair of tracks which keep the step tread horizontal. Escalators are often used around the world in places where lifts would be impractical, or they can be used in conjunction with them. Principal areas of usage include department stores, shopping malls, airports, transit systems (railway/railroad stations), convention centers, hotels, arenas, stadiums and public buildings. Escalators have the capacity to move large numbers of people. They have no waiting interval (except during very heavy traffic). They can be used to guide people toward main exits or special exhibits and may be weatherproofed for outdoor use. A non-functional escalator can function as a normal staircase, whereas many other methods of transport become useless when they break down or lose power. Design, components ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Psychologist
''The Psychologist'' is the monthly publication of the British Psychological Society. It provides a forum for communication, discussion and controversy among all members of the society and helps it promote the advancement and diffusion of a knowledge of psychology, pure and applied. ''The Psychologist'' is read by more than 50,000 members in print, and many non-members read the online version. It was launched in 1988, incorporating the existing ''Bulletin of the British Psychological Society''. The 2016 issues are volume 29. Dr Jon Sutton, who joined the Society in March 2000, from a psychology lectureship at Glasgow Caledonian University Glasgow Caledonian University ( gd, Oilthigh Chailleannach Ghlaschu, ), informally GCU, Caledonian or Caley, is a public university in Glasgow, Scotland. It was formed in 1993 by the merger of The Queen's College, Glasgow (founded in 1875) and G ..., is the Managing Editor. Notes External links * 1988 establishments in the United Kin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Induced Movement
Induced movement or induced motion is an illusion of visual perception in which a stationary or a moving object appears to move or to move differently because of other moving objects nearby in the visual field. It is interpreted in terms of the change in the location of an object due to the movement in the space around it. The object affected by the illusion is called the ''target'', and the other moving objects are called the ''background'' or the ''context'' (Duncker, 1929). Induced movement with stationary target A stationary object appears to move in the opposite direction to the background. For example, the moon on a cloudy, windy night appears to be racing through the sky opposite to the direction of the clouds, though the moon is essentially stationary in the sky and only appears to be moving due to the movement of the clouds. For an illustration, see http://psychlab1.hanover.edu/Classes/Sensation/induced/ Induced movement with a moving target A moving object appears to be ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
