Biomedical subjects

B J Fine

Publications and source records attributed to B J Fine.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1994

Effects of caffeine or diphenhydramine on visual vigilance.

The effects of two drugs having opposite effects on the central nervous system were investigated using a newly developed visual vigilance task. Twenty-four male volunteers (median age = 20) performed the task on three separate occasions; after consuming placebo, caffeine (200 mg), or diphenhydramine (25 mg), in a double-blind, Latin Square design. At least 2 days intervened between drug administrations. Caffeine use was restricted for 10 h and smoking for 3 h before drug administration. When compared with placebo, caffeine significantly increased the number of correct responses and decreased response times, whereas diphenhydramine decreased the number of correct responses and increased response times. Low habitual consumers of caffeine (< 100 mg/day) and non-smokers had more correct responses than did high habitual caffeine consumers (> 100 mg/day) and smokers, but only in the placebo condition. Non-smokers had faster response times than smokers only in the placebo condition. Both caffeine and diphenhydramine altered certain aspects of mood.

Adult↗

PubMed1994

Perindopril and physiologic responses to exercise.

Cardiovascular drugs have varying effects on hemodynamic, metabolic, and hormonal responses to exercise. To evaluate the effects of the novel angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor, perindopril on these exercise-related responses, we studied 9 healthy volunteers in a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial. After a week of perindopril 4 mg orally daily or placebo therapy, volunteers performed a treadmill effort test; the sequence was repeated after a 1-week washout period. Perindopril caused a significant reduction in mean resting systolic and diastolic blood pressure (SBP, DBP) without increasing resting heart rate (HR); 15-min post-exercise SBP was also significantly reduced. There were no significant differences between the perindopril and placebo effort tests with respect to metabolic indexes studied (serum K+, plasma glucose, plasma free fatty acids) or plasma hormonal concentrations measured (ACTH and cortisol, norepinephrine (NE) and epinephrine (EPI), glucagon and insulin, growth hormone and prolactin, renin activity). In the perindopril arm of the study, however, there were modest but significant increases in mean serum K+ before exercise to immediately after exercise (0.4 +/- 0.1 mM, p < 0.01) and mean plasma glucose from before exercise to 5 min (0.6 +/- 0.2 mM, p < 0.01) and 15 min (0.5 +/- 0.2 mM, p < 0.05) after exercise. These data show that perindopril does not impair the hormonal changes associated with exercise in healthy subjects but induces a more consistent increase in blood K+ and glucose concentrations.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone↗

PubMed1993

Effects of caffeine and diphenhydramine on auditory evoked cortical potentials.

Caffeine and diphenhydramine are known to affect cognitive functioning in vigilance tasks. In this study, long-latency auditory evoked potentials (AEPs) obtained during concomitant performance of a visual vigilance task were examined for changes in response to administration of caffeine (200 mg) and diphenhydramine (25 mg). The AEPs were also analyzed for changes over time for up to two hours postdrug administration. Significant increases in N1 and P2 latencies and decreases in amplitude voltage were exhibited over time. The P2-N2 amplitude was significantly lower throughout testing after taking caffeine. A significant increase was seen in the P2-N2 amplitude 40 min. after diphenhydramine ingestion. These changes in amplitude may be the result of the auditory stimulus acting as a diversion to the participants while performing the visual vigilance task. Diphenhydramine was more likely to impair participants' vigilance, resulting in greater attention paid toward the auditory stimulus, whereas caffeine seemed to help participants maintain their focus of attention on the visual vigilance task.

Acoustic Stimulation↗

PubMed1991

Oral contraceptive use, caffeine consumption, field-dependence, and the discrimination of colors.

We attempted to validate laboratory research which indicated that single doses of oral contraceptives (OCs) and caffeine affect the ability to discriminate colors (Böhme & Böhme, 1985). We did this in a nonlaboratory setting by surveying habitual use of OCs and caffeine by 43 female college students and relating that information to their performance on the Farnsworth-Munsell 100-Hue Test. When field-dependence, conceptualized as an indirect measure of sensitivity of the nervous system and previously shown to be strongly related to color discrimination, was included in the analyses, the results supported Böhme and Böhme's findings. For Trays 2 and 3 of the 100-Hue Test (yellow through blue of the color spectrum), higher caffeine consumption among OC users was related to poorer color discrimination, whereas, among nonusers of OCs, it was related to better performance. Study design limitations do not permit attribution of causation to either caffeine or OCs at this time.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1987

Cigarette smoking, field-dependence and contrast sensitivity.

This study examined the separate and combined effects of cigarette smoking and field-dependence on contrast sensitivity. No previous research on these relationships exists; however, all three variables are known to be significantly related to many aspects of human performance. Under carefully controlled conditions, 12 smokers and 16 non-smokers were tested for field-dependence and measured for contrast sensitivity (Nicolet CS 2000 Testing System). No differences in contrast sensitivity of smokers were found when measured immediately after smoking 1 cigarette, as compared with having been deprived of smoking for at least 90 min. Habitual smoking and field-dependence were found to be separately and interactively related to contrast sensitivity. A field-independent non-smoker group performed significantly better than a field-dependent smoker group at all but the lowest spatial frequency. The results have important implications for many types of performance, particularly aircraft and motor vehicle operation, and may be valuable for use in selection and training.

Adult↗

PubMed1987

Effect of heat and chemical protective clothing on cognitive performance.

This study examined the effects of heat on the sustained cognitive performance of sedentary soldiers clad in chemical protective clothing. There were 23 men trained for 2 weeks on selected military tasks. Then they performed the tasks for 7-h periods on 4 successive days (Days 1 and 3 = 21.1 degrees C, 35%rh, battle dress uniform; Day 2 = 12.8 degrees C, protective clothing; Day 4 = 32.8 degrees C, 61%rh, protective clothing). After 4-5 h in the heat wearing protective clothing, the cognitive performance of the group began to deteriorate markedly. By the end of 7 h of exposure to heat, increases in percent group error on investigator-paced tasks ranged from 17%-23% over control conditions. Virtually all of the decrements were due to increases in errors of omission. The productivity of the group on a self-paced task (map plotting) diminished by approximately 40% from control conditions after 6 h in the heat in protective clothing; accuracy of plotting was not markedly affected.

Adult↗

PubMed1983

Individual differences in distance estimation: comparison of judgments in the field with those from projected slides of the same scenes.

This study was designed to determine the comparative accuracy with which trained and untrained observers could judge distances to a target and to assess the correspondence of those judgments with other judgments, by the same observers, from photographic slides of the same target and scene at identical viewing distances. 9 experienced and 15 untrained observers estimated distances ranging from 600 to 1550 m in 50-m increments. Photographic slides were made of the target at each distance and, 1 mo. later, observers made the same judgments from the slides. It was found that averages of the group's judgments in the field very closely approximated true target distances. However, judgments of the individual observers were so erratic and inaccurate as to render questionable the interpretation of those averages. In addition, while the averages of the group indicated that judgments from two-dimensional slides could be substituted fro three-dimensional real-world judgments, detailed analysis of the individual observers' performances dramatically contradicted this conclusion.

Discrimination Learning↗

PubMed1983

Field-dependence and color discrimination ability in females.

Previous research has shown that field-independent males are very superior to field-dependent males in ability to discriminate colors. The research reported here examined the same relationship with females. 30 females were tested twice on the Farnsworth-Munsell 100-Hue Test. As predicted, field-independent females, as a group, performed significantly better on the task than did field-dependent females.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1980

Announcing the great frame-tilt judging contest.

A contest is used to dramatize the fact that in all rod-and-frame studies, the investigator rather than the observer has defined direction of frame tilt and this is a serious theoretical and methodological error.

Field Dependence-Independence↗

PubMed1980

Field dependence, practice, and low illumination as related to the Farnsworth-Munsell 100-Hue Test.

36 soldiers were given the Farnsworth-Munsell 100-Hue Test to: (1) validate published research in which a field-independent group had been found to be superior to a field-dependent group in discriminating colors; (2) investigate unpublished findings in which substantial improvement had been shown in color discrimination performance over five trials of the 100-Hue test; and (3) determine the effect of low illumination (25 w, 40 w, and 60 w) on performance of the color discrimination task. A field-independent and a field-central group each performed significantly more accurately than a field-dependent group under all illumination conditions, and seven repeated administrations at 100 w resulted in significant improvements in performance. Color discrimination in the 25-w condition was significantly poorer than in the other illumination conditions. The implications are discussed.

Color Perception Tests↗

PubMed1976

Note on the relationship between introversion-extraversion, field-dependence-independence and accuracy of visual target detection.

49 soldier-observers viewed 40 slides in which a stimulus soldier was identically posed in a constant background [corrected] but a different viewing distance (175, 200, 225, 2508 and 275 ft.) and viewing angles (14 degrees and 21 degrees, left and right) from the observer. Accuracy of target detection was compared with viewers' scores on the Hidden Shapes Test and the Maudsley Personality Inventory. Field-dependence-independence and extraversion-introversion were determined to be separately and jointly related to accuracy of target detection. The major effects were attributable to the notably poorer perfromance of Ss characterized of field-dependent extraverts.

Altitude↗

PubMed1976

Heat and simulated high altitude: effects on biochemical indices of stress and performance.

Five healthy, military test volunteers were alternately exposed on separate days to sea level, control conditions (22-23 degrees C, 40-50% RH), a hot wet environment (35 degrees C, 90% RH) or stimulated high altitude (4300 m, 22-23 degrees C, 20-30% RH) while carrying out assigned performance tasks. Acute exposure of 7 h to environmental heat consistently elicited significant increments in plasma levels of cortisol, dopamine-beta-hydroxylase, and uric acid while cholesterol and cyclic AMP levels were unaffected. Alternatively, exposure to altitude for the same duration failed to effect significant alterations in any of the aforementioned biochemical factors. Although both environmental stresses caused similar performance decrements, the responses of biochemical indices of stress were consistently related to the environment itself.

Adult↗

PubMed1975

Field-dependence, extraversion and perception of the vertical: empirical and theoretical perspectives of the rod-and-frame test.

Using conventional scoring procedures for the Rod-and-frame Test (RFT), extraversion was shown to interact with field-dependence (defined by scores on the Hidden-shapes Test), with the field dependent extraverts being most inaccurate performers on the rod and frame. Of greater importance, serious questions were raised about theoretical and empirical aspects of the relationship between paper-and-pencil measures of field-dependence and performance on the rod and frame, and it was concluded that "what has...been demonstrated over the past ten years is the reliability of a relationship of questionable validity."

Extraversion, Psychological↗

PubMed1973