Biomedical subjects

J L Pulaski

Publications and source records attributed to J L Pulaski.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1997

Association learning and recognition memory in alcoholic Korsakoff patients.

Association learning and recognition memory were examined in 8 male alcoholic Korsakoff patients (mean age 58), and in the following 4 groups of 10 men: non-Korsakoff alcoholics (mean age 59), nonalcoholic controls (mean age 64), younger alcoholics (mean age 36), and nonalcoholic controls (mean age 37). The tasks were modeled after those used for testing memory functioning in nonhuman primates. Association learning, defined as the ability to distinguish rewarded from equally familiar nonrewarded visual stimuli, was impaired in Korsakoff patients. Korsakoff patients also were impaired on recognition memory-the ability to discriminate familiar from novel items. Results support the view of loss of multiple memory functions in alcoholic amnesia. An effect of aging was indicated by differences in performance levels between younger and older groups of non-Korsakoff participants, although the latter were superior to the Korsakoff patients.

Adult↗

PubMed1990

Cross-modal functions in alcoholism and aging.

Two experiments were performed to measure separate aspects of cross-modal functions in normal and alcoholic research participants: matching, and utilization of concepts. In Experiment 1, cross-modal equivalence-matching was measured, i.e. the ability to select in a second modality (e.g. vision), the same stimulus that was first presented in a different modality (e.g. touch). Experiment 2 measured cross-modal transfer of information about stimulus dimensions, i.e. the ability to recognize and use the concepts of texture and form, based upon prior experience solving tactual problems, to solve visual problems. Fifty-five normal and alcoholic research participants comprised the following five groups: 13 young normals (YN) and 10 young alcoholics (YA), 28-48 years of age; 13 older normals (ON) and 14 older alcoholics (OA), 50-71 years of age; and 5 alcoholic Korsakoff patients (K), 55-68 years of age. Separate subgroups of 9 age-matched ONs and 9 OAs were devised for purposes of statistical analyses of data involving the 5 Ks. Results of the experiments indicated that aging is associated with decline in tactual discrimination ability. Further, cross-modal functions appear to be compromised by alcoholic Korsakoff's disease, and--to a lesser extent--by the combined effects of alcoholism and normal chronological aging. Brain mechanisms important for normal cross-modal functions are discussed.

Adult↗

PubMed1977

Joseph Lancaster and behavior modification in education.

In the early 1800s, Joseph Lancaster (1778-1838) developed an inexpensive method of education large numbers of the poor in England. Referred to as the "monitorial system," his method utilized students as monitors who performed many of the tasks normally undertaken by a teacher; it was used to teach classes that often exceeded a thousand students at one time. Student monitors were responsible for teaching and evaluating small groups of individuals in a somewhat regimented fashion. An incentive system was also used in a manner that closely resembles current applications of positive reinforcement in educational settings. Lancaster devised a token economy in which students earned tangible reinforcers for academic performance and deportment. Interestingly, the system spread quickly in the 1800s, and was implemented in many countries throughout the world. Its use declined as a result of both specific sources of dissatisfaction, such as the lack of individualization and dependence upon rote memorization, and general changes in the philosophy of education.

Behavior Therapy↗