The effects of cheating on deception detection during a social dilemma

Research by social psychologists and others consistently finds that people are poor at detecting attempted deception by others. However, Tooby and Cosmides (cognitive psychologists who favor evolutionary analyses of behavior) have argued and shown that humans have evolved a special “cognitive module” for detecting cheaters. Their research suggests that people are good at detecting cheating by group members. These two literatures seem to be at odds with one another. The hypothesis of this research was that when participants are told a lie by a fellow group member whose attempted deception involves cheating on a task that affects their outcomes, they will be good at detecting deception. In this experiment, participants played blackjack in groups using a social dilemma paradigm. Participants’ outcomes were either interdependent or independent with a confederate’s outcomes. It was predicted that participants whose outcomes were interdependent with the confederate would be better at detecting deception by the confederate than those participants whose outcomes were independent from the confederate’s outcomes. Results indicate that when judging other participants’ lies interdependent players were more successful at deception detection than independent players but were not more sensitive to the lies. This effect may be driven by the truth bias, people assume that their interaction partners are truthful which would explain why sensitivity measures (which remove response biases) did not show the hypothesized effect. Independent players were not more successful or sensitive when judging the confederate’s lies. The failure to find the hypothesized effect may be due to methodological factors. Both participants heard may have had their cheating detection modules activated when hearing the instructions for the experiment which implied that cheating could occur. Overall success rates support this idea because they were significantly higher than success rates reached by most deception detection research (50%) which may be indicative that both participants cheating detection modules were active. Results also indicate that as the number of lies told increases overall success decreases but success at detecting lies and sensitivity increase. Thus the more lies that are told the better people are at catching them

Voorstudie kansen en risico's van on-farm verwerken van kadavers (focus op varkens)

Pre-study on aspects of on-farm carcass destruction that need further elaboration in future research. Focus on pig farms

Dual tasking under compromised visual and somatosensory input in elderly fallers and non-fallers

Background: Performance of additional tasks disturbs postural control in elderly. It is unknown, however, how postural control is affected in elderly fallers and non-fallers in a reduced sensory situation. Objective: To compare differences between single and dual tasking in three test conditions; (1) no-vision, (2) under reduced somatosensory information and (3) with a combination of both conditions. Design: An observational cohort study with participants assigned to a 12-month pretest fall assessment and a postural balance assessment. Methods: Fifteen independently living elderly participated (77.5 ± 7.0 [63-87] years). Falls were pre-assessed with a 1- year monthy “fall calendar”. Postural control was analyzed by means of a force platform. Participants were standing quiet (first task) while counting backwards (second task). A 2-factor (group x condition) ANOVA was performed at p<.05. Differences of postural (DTCp) and cognitive dual task costs (DTCc) between test conditions were analyzed (one-way ANOVA). Results: The analysis showed significant group (fallers/non-fallers) and condition effects. Post hoc analyses indicated that the postural control variables were significantly different during the concurrent reduced vision and somatosensory information. Dual task costs showed a significant difference between normal (N) and the combined condition (NV+RP) in non-fallers. Conclusion: The combination of reduced visual and somatosensory information causes a larger disturbance of postural stability compared with the reduction of visual or somatosensory information alone. Non-fallers seem to have no threats to the postural control stability in this combined reduced sensory situation. They reduce their postural control, which leaves them enough resources to compensate for the reduced sensory information

Evenwichtige aanpak nodig bij preventie varkensziekten

Om een optimale diergezondheid te kunnen realiseren, is het belangrijk dat een varken zo min mogelijk gevolgen ondervindt van dierziekten. De varkenshouder staat voor de uitdaging om een aanpak te kiezen die een robuuste gezondheid op het bedrijf mogelijk maakt. Dit kan helpen bij het reduceren van het gebruik van antibiotica. Maar welke aanpak is dat? WUR-onderzoek geeft enkele aanknopingspunten

COMPTEL gamma ray and neutron measurements of solar flares

COMPTEL on the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory has measured the flux of x‐rays and neutrons from several solar flares. These data have also been used to image the Sun in both forms of radiation. Unusually intense flares occurred during June 1991 yielding data sets that offer some new insight into of how energetic protons and electrons are accelerated and behave in the solar environment. We summarize here some of the essential features in the solar flare data as obtained by COMPTEL during June 1991

Chandra and RXTE studies of the X-ray/gamma-ray millisecond pulsar PSR J0218+4232

We report on high-resolution spatial and timing observations of the millisecond pulsar PSR J0218+4232 performed with the Chandra X-ray Observatory (CXO) and the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE). With these observations we were able to study a) the possible spatial extent at X-ray energies of the DC source coincident with PSR J0218+4232 in detail (CXO), b) the relative phasing between the X-ray, radio and gamma-ray profiles (CXO and RXTE) and c) the spectral properties at energies beyond 10 keV (RXTE). We found no indications for extended emission at X-ray energies down to ~ 1 arcsec scales and confirmed the presence of a point-like DC-component. The 2 non-thermal pulses in the X-ray profile are found to be aligned with 2 of the 3 pulses visible at radio-frequencies and more importantly with the two gamma-ray pulses seen in the EGRET 100-1000 MeV pulse profile. The latter reduces now the random occurrence probability for the detected gamma-ray signal to ~ 1.E-6, which corresponds to a 4.9 sigma detection significance.Comment: 8 pages,7 figures, accepted for publication in Adv Sp Res: Proceedings of the 34th COSPAR Scientific Assembly held in Housto

COMPTEL’s solar flare catalog

COMPTEL, the imaging gamma‐ray telescope, capable of detecting gamma rays in the range of 0.1–30 MeV, is one of four instruments aboard NASA’s Compton Gamma‐Ray Observatory. The Comptel burst detectors (single Defector Mode) have a field of view of ∼2.5 π sr. These detectors of COMPTEL permit measurements of energy spectra and time histories of solar flare gamma‐ray emission. A search through the Single Detector Mode’s data is being conducted. We summarize the preliminary results of this search

Search for gamma‐ray emission from AGN with COMPTEL

The COMPTEL data (∼0.7–30 MeV) were searched for emission from AGN. Four sources have been detected so far: the quasars 3C 273, 3C 279, PKS 0528+134, and the radio galaxy Centaurus A. 3C 273 and 3C 279 were detected in CGRO observation period 3 with quite different spectral shapes. There is also evidence for 3C 273 at a weak flux level in observation period 11. The quasar PKS 0528+134 was detected above 3 MeV as part of a search for AGN already observed by EGRET. Cen A was seen up to 3 MeV by combining data from different observation periods

Neutron and gamma‐ray measurements of the solar flare of 1991 June 9

The COMPTEL Imaging Compton Telescope on‐board the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory measured significant neutron and γ‐ray fluxes from the solar flare of 9 June 1991. The γ‐ray flux had an integrated intensity (≳1 MeV) of ∼30 cm−2, extending in time from 0136 UT to 0143 UT, while the time of energetic neutron emission extended approximately 10 minutes longer, indicating either extended proton acceleration to high energies or trapping and precipitation of energetic protons. The production of neutrons without accompanying γ‐rays in the proper proportion indicates a significant hardening of the precipitating proton spectrum through either the trapping or extended acceleration process

Gamma‐ray burst studies by COMPTEL during its first year of operation

During the first year of Compton GRO operations, more than 20 cosmic gamma‐ray burst‐detected by the BATSE instrument ‐ occurred inside the 1 sr field of view of the imaging gamma‐ray telescope COMPTEL. Using COMPTEL’s primary mode of operation (the telescope mode) direct images (with ∼1° GRB location accuracy) and event spectra (0.7 MeV – 30 MeV) with spectral resolution better than 10% FWHM have been obtained. In its secondary mode of burst operations, COMPTEL has recorded time resolved spectra (0.1 MeV – 10 MeV) from its large NaI detectors. This paper summarises the results on cosmic GRB sources obtained by COMPTEL during its first year of operation