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Fewer Kids, Less Money: How the Pandemic Puts Districts in a Bind

Enrollment snags, head-count problems, and more home schooling could end up costing districts millions in funding based on the annual tally of how many students actually show up.




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Washington state teachers protest school return in Monroe




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College Football Playoff snubs: Georgia among teams with beef after second rankings

There was some dramatic movement in the second College Football Playoff rankings. Here's who got slighted.




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Neuronal and Behavioral Responses to Naturalistic Texture Images in Macaque Monkeys

Corey M. Ziemba
Oct 16, 2024; 44:e0349242024-e0349242024
Systems/Circuits




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Diurnal Fluctuations in Steroid Hormones Tied to Variation in Intrinsic Functional Connectivity in a Densely Sampled Male

Hannah Grotzinger
May 29, 2024; 44:e1856232024-e1856232024
BehavioralSystemsCognitive




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Neuronal and Behavioral Responses to Naturalistic Texture Images in Macaque Monkeys

The visual world is richly adorned with texture, which can serve to delineate important elements of natural scenes. In anesthetized macaque monkeys, selectivity for the statistical features of natural texture is weak in V1, but substantial in V2, suggesting that neuronal activity in V2 might directly support texture perception. To test this, we investigated the relation between single cell activity in macaque V1 and V2 and simultaneously measured behavioral judgments of texture. We generated stimuli along a continuum between naturalistic texture and phase-randomized noise and trained two macaque monkeys to judge whether a sample texture more closely resembled one or the other extreme. Analysis of responses revealed that individual V1 and V2 neurons carried much less information about texture naturalness than behavioral reports. However, the sensitivity of V2 neurons, especially those preferring naturalistic textures, was significantly closer to that of behavior compared with V1. The firing of both V1 and V2 neurons predicted perceptual choices in response to repeated presentations of the same ambiguous stimulus in one monkey, despite low individual neural sensitivity. However, neither population predicted choice in the second monkey. We conclude that neural responses supporting texture perception likely continue to develop downstream of V2. Further, combined with neural data recorded while the same two monkeys performed an orientation discrimination task, our results demonstrate that choice-correlated neural activity in early sensory cortex is unstable across observers and tasks, untethered from neuronal sensitivity, and therefore unlikely to directly reflect the formation of perceptual decisions.




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Erratum: Spencer et al., "Regulation of the Mouse Ventral Tegmental Area by Melanin-Concentrating Hormone"




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Differential Encoding of Two-Tone Harmonics in the Male and Female Mouse Auditory Cortex

Harmonics are an integral part of music, speech, and vocalizations of animals. Since the rest of the auditory environment is primarily made up of nonharmonic sounds, the auditory system needs to perceptually separate the above two kinds of sounds. In mice, harmonics, generally with two-tone components (two-tone harmonic complexes, TTHCs), form an important component of vocal communication. Communication by pups during isolation from the mother and by adult males during courtship elicits typical behaviors in female mice—dams and adult courting females, respectively. Our study shows that the processing of TTHC is specialized in mice providing neural basis for perceptual differences between tones and TTHCs and also nonharmonic sounds. Investigation of responses in the primary auditory cortex (Au1) from in vivo extracellular recordings and two-photon Ca2+ imaging of excitatory and inhibitory neurons to TTHCs exhibit enhancement, suppression, or no-effect with respect to tones. Irrespective of neuron type, harmonic enhancement is maximized, and suppression is minimized when the fundamental frequencies (F0) match the neuron's best fundamental frequency (BF0). Sex-specific processing of TTHC is evident from differences in the distributions of neurons’ best frequency (BF) and best fundamental frequency (BF0) in single units, differences in harmonic suppressed cases re-BF0, independent of neuron types, and from pairwise noise correlations among excitatory and parvalbumin inhibitory interneurons. Furthermore, TTHCs elicit a higher response compared with two-tone nonharmonics in females, but not in males. Thus, our study shows specialized neural processing of TTHCs over tones and nonharmonics, highlighting local network specialization among different neuronal types.




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Erratum: McCosh et al., "Norepinephrine Neurons in the Nucleus of the Solitary Tract Suppress Luteinizing Hormone Secretion in Female Mice"




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Six months after disaster, Philippine farmers bring in the harvest

Tens of thousands of farmers are bringing in their first rice harvest just six months after one of the worst typhoons to ever hit the Philippines left their fields in [...]




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FAO Director-General listed among the most influential Latin Americans

FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva has been selected as one of the world's most influential Latin Americans for his work against hunger and malnutrition in the world. In its [...]




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Two new reports demonstrate the impact of FAO's partnerships with Belgium and Sweden

Today, FAO launched two new reports in time for the 160th session of the Council:

-          FAO + Belgium: Inclusive approaches to end hunger and promote [...]




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World food commodity prices dip for fifth month in a row in August

The barometer for world food commodity prices declined for the fifth consecutive month in August, as quotations for most benchmark items dropped, according to a new report released today by [...]




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One-of-a-kind FAO cookbook gives fish a voice – among other things

FAO has recently released Fish: Know it, cook it, eat it, a genre-defying cookbook that infuses international recipes with insights into the global fish trade; blends scientific facts and cultural history; melds nutritional information [...]




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Opening Ceremony of the International Year of Millets 2023

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) would like to invite you to the opening ceremony of the International Year of Millets 2023

 




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The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) launches its new Annual and Monthly Funding Overview websites

Rome – The newly released Annual Report for 2020, 2021 and 2022 raises the visibility of the Organization's Resource Partners, including FAO Members, international financial institutions (IFIs), United Nations entities, [...]




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Sign up now to receive monthly updates on FAO publications in English, French and Chinese!

The monthly FAO publications updates produced by the Publications Branch of the FAO Office of Communications are available in English, French and Chinese.

The newsletters highlight key publications available [...]




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Sign up now to receive monthly updates on FAO publications in English, French and Chinese!

The monthly FAO publications updates produced by the Publications Branch of the FAO Office of Communications are available in English, French and Chinese.

The newsletters highlight key publications available [...]




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Weird Science: Humongous Fungus

Sometimes, in fact, nature is stranger than fiction




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Simon Johnson on Over-the-Counter Derivatives

The MIT professor believes many of the financial products sold today will be rightly regarded as not in the best interest of consumers




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Removed From its Setting, the Hope Diamond Stands Alone

The naked stone is on exhibit at the Natural History museum through next spring




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May Yohe and the Hope Diamond

The classic American tale of a woman who grew up poor, became queen of the stage and even owned the Hope Diamond




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Shooting Stars: Pilar Belmonte

Selected by Sylvia Plachy for our special issue, this up-and-coming photographer discusses her work




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The Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Is One of America's Greatest National Monuments

Lonnie Bunch, the director of the National Museum of African American History and Culture, discusses the Martin Luther King, Jr. memorial, one of America's greatest monuments.




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Sloth Bear Cub Plays a Harmonica

Sloth bear cub Remi plays harmonica as part of an animal enrichment program at the Smithsonian National Zoo. The activity encourages the same behavior sloth bears in the wild use to suck insects out of their nests




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Earth Is Getting a New 'Mini Moon' for the Next Two Months, Astronomers Say

A roughly 33-foot-long asteroid called 2024 PT5 will chart a horseshoe-like path around our planet




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Heart Tissue Shows Signs of Aging After Just One Month in Space, Study Finds

Scientists sent bioengineered heart tissue samples to the ISS to study how to keep astronauts safe during future long-term space travel




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Breast Cancer Cases Are Rising Among Younger Women, Report Finds

Though breast cancer mortality is declining overall, Asian American women and women under 50 have experienced an uptick in diagnoses of the disease




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Montana Rancher Who Created Giant, Hybrid Sheep Sentenced to Six Months in Prison

Arthur “Jack” Schubarth cloned illegally imported genetic material from the Marco Polo argali to create hybrid sheep that would draw higher prices from hunting preserves




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A Monet Masterpiece That Hung in Churchill's Home Is Now Free of Grime From Cigar Smoke

The newly restored "Charing Cross Bridge," which once hung in the politician's drawing room, is now on display at London's Courtauld Gallery




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A Rare Monet Painting Has Been Returned to the Family of Its Rightful Owners—Eight Decades After It Was Stolen by the Nazis

The Gestapo seized the Impressionist painting from storage after its owners fled from their home in Vienna. Now, the piece has been returned to their granddaughters




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Salmon Make a Long-Awaited Return to the Klamath River for the First Time in 112 Years, After Largest Dam Removal in U.S.

Chinook salmon spark excitement among local Klamath Tribes, who have advocated for decades to restore the flow of the river in California and Oregon




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Tour Guide at Medieval Manor House Discovers Mysterious Etchings Meant to Repel Evil, Trap Demons and Curse Enemies

A "staggering array" of markings have been hiding in plain sight carved into the walls of Gainsborough Old Hall, a 500-year-old home in Lincolnshire, England




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After Months of Rehab, Moira the Cold-Stunned Sea Turtle Has Been Returned to the Wild

When fishermen found the endangered loggerhead sea turtle off Vancouver Island in February, she was listlessly floating in a bed of kelp




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A Nazi-Looted Painting Recovered by the Monuments Men During World War II Is Going on Sale

When the war ended, Allied soldiers tracked down Nicolas de Largillierre's "Portrait de femme à mi-corps" with the help of a savvy French curator who had been working for the resistance




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Forty-Three Monkeys Are on the Loose in South Carolina After Escaping a Research Facility When a Door Was Left Unsecured

Once the first primate made a break, the 42 others followed suit in a simple case of monkey-see, monkey-do




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Remembrance Day ceremony held for 1st time with Newfoundland's Unknown Soldier

Hundreds congregated in downtown St. John's Monday morning to pay tribute to Newfoundland and Labrador's fallen soldiers, and honoured the dead for the first time at the newly refurbished National War Memorial and tomb of the Unknown Solider. 



  • News/Canada/Nfld. & Labrador

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Remembrance Day ceremony in Halifax held to honour those who served

About a thousand people stood solemnly in the rain at a cenotaph in downtown Halifax on Monday morning to pay tribute to veterans on Remembrance Day.



  • News/Canada/Nova Scotia

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'We're all here together': Montreal English theatre shows its resilience with award ceremony

The Montreal English Theatre Awards ceremony is being held this evening at Le Gesù theatre. For the community, it's a time to celebrate their achievements and resilience coming out of the pandemic, together.




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You can now flag issues in the Montreal Metro system by text

The Société de transport de Montréal (STM) has established a non-urgent text line for transit users to signal security issues in the Metro network.



  • News/Canada/Montreal

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Man, 36, charged with 1st-degree murder of partner on Montreal's South Shore

Shilei Du, 36, was charged Monday morning with the premeditated murder of his partner, Guangmei Ye, whose body was found Sunday in a residence on Fontenelle Street in Candiac, Que.



  • News/Canada/Montreal

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Veterans honoured at Remembrance Day ceremonies across Quebec



  • News/Canada/Montreal

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Montreal neighbourhood rallies around cafe after co-owner’s sudden death

Loved ones, friends, and people from across the city have all come together to support each other at Pastel Rita, the café Jocelyn Després helped so many call home.




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Montreal says it's making it easier for groups to build off-market housing

The City of Montreal wants to sell more land to community organizations, housing co-ops and other groups to build off-market housing. 



  • News/Canada/Montreal

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Music still a ‘passion,’ not a job for Montreal funk band The Brooks as they drop 5th album

Ten years after their formation, the members of The Brooks discuss how they’ve evolved and how they view their collaboration.




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Body found in Montreal nature park was that of kidnapped cryptocurrency influencer, police say

Quebec provincial police have confirmed that the body found in a Montreal nature park on Oct. 30 was that of kidnapping victim and cryptocurrency influencer Kevin Mirshahi.



  • News/Canada/Montreal

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Europe’s Megalithic Monuments Originated in France and Spread by Sea Routes, New Study Suggests

The ancient burial structures, strikingly similar all across Europe and the mediterranean, have puzzled scientists and historians for centuries




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This Defeated Presidential Candidate, Once the 'Best-Known Man in America,' Died in a Sanatorium Less Than a Month After Losing the Election

Newspaper editor Horace Greeley unsuccessfully ran against incumbent Ulysses S. Grant in November 1872. Twenty-four days later, he died of unknown causes at a private mental health facility




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Discover the Mysteries of Italy's Park of Monsters, a 16th-Century Garden Filled With Strange, Colossal Stone Creatures

The Sacro Bosco's meaning is the subject of debate, with scholars alternatively describing the sprawling complex as a memorial, an allegorical site or a tribute to ancient civilizations




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Moncton man found guilty of murdering Joedin Leger

A jury has found a 20-year-old Moncton man guilty of second-degree murder in the 2022 death of an 18-year-old.



  • News/Canada/New Brunswick