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Music and Cognition: How to Keep the Brain on Beat
Full text linkMusic, as the conversion of words and sounds into expressive art, has been often used as a form of catharsis or emotional regulation. While research on common mood outcomes from music exists, further examination is necessary, as this knowledge, once fully understood, can be applied beyond music therapy, and be utilized to enhance our cognitive efficiency. Current research includes Music Mood Theory, which suggests that music has a meaningful impact on our moods, which correlate with behaviors such as maintaining tempo and harmony (Hu, 2010). The purpose of this study was to establish a deeper perspective on the impact music has on one’s psychology and learn the extent of its effects on one’s cognitive abilities. Data was gathered through a Qualtrics survey, through which participants were instructed to listen to songs intended to prime their moods, before having them complete exams for memory and cognitive reasoning. While the results did not find any statistically significant outcomes, there are noteworthy implications to glean from this study. There is currently a lack of verifiably valid and reliable studies focused on the interaction between music and psychology, and what currently exists is not feasible without the funding for a longitudinal study. This study seeks to draw attention to the research gap in this subfield, and set the groundwork for future endeavors in testing a potentially potent mental reinforcer
Understanding Threats to Public Officials - 2025
No full textThe project’s third year is underway and continues to work toward a comprehensive assessment of the threat landscape between 2013 and the present. The project focuses on federal charges that involve communicated threats against public officials working in the following sectors: education, elected office and elections, health care, and law enforcement/ military. In addition to conducting trend analyses, the research team has combed through tens of thousands of court documents to identify characteristics related to the incident, perpetrators, and victims
Bridging Oral and Systemic Health: Exploring Pathogenesis, Biomarkers, and Diagnostic Innovations in Periodontal Disease
Full text linkPurpose
This narrative review explores the multifaceted links between periodontal diseases (gingivitis and periodontitis) and systemic health conditions, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, adverse pregnancy outcomes, Alzheimer’s disease, cancers, rheumatoid arthritis, and respiratory infections. It aims to synthesize evidence on how local oral infections exert systemic effects and evaluate the potential of diagnostic technologies to monitor these interactions. Methods
This narrative review synthesizes current scientific literature on periodontal disease pathogenesis, focusing on key pathogens (e.g., Porphyromonas gingivalis, Fusobacterium nucleatum) and their roles in driving local and systemic inflammation via virulence factors and microbial dysbiosis. It examines biomarker-based diagnostic approaches (e.g., IL-1β, TNF-α, microbial DNA) in saliva, blood, and gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) and evaluates current and emerging diagnostic tools (e.g., ELISA, PCR, lateral flow assays, biosensors, microfluidics). Results
The review highlights that periodontal pathogens contribute to systemic disease through complex mechanisms including persistent inflammation (driven by cytokines like IL-1β, TNF-α), endotoxemia (via LPS, noting pathogen-specific structural variations impacting immune response), molecular mimicry, and immune modulation. Current diagnostic methods provide valuable information but often face limitations in speed, portability, and multiplexing capability needed for comprehensive point-of-care assessment. Emerging technologies, particularly multiplex platforms integrating biosensors or microfluidics, demonstrate significant potential for rapid, user-friendly analysis of multiple biomarkers, facilitating earlier detection and personalized risk stratification, especially in high-risk populations. Conclusion
Periodontal diseases significantly impact systemic health via intricate microbial and inflammatory pathways. The complexity of these interactions necessitates moving beyond conventional diagnostics towards integrated, advanced technologies. Implementing rapid, multiplex biomarker detection platforms within a multidisciplinary healthcare framework holds the potential to revolutionize early detection of linked conditions, improve personalized management strategies, and ultimately reduce the systemic burden of periodontal disease
Is There Really a Difference? A Comparison of In-Person and Online Qualitative Interviews
Full text linkDuring the 2020 worldwide lockdowns due to COVID-19, qualitative researchers were restricted to online communication (e.g., Zoom) to gather qualitative interview data. Since that time, qualitative researchers have increasingly transitioned from conducting interviews primarily in person to conducting interviews using online communication technologies such as Zoom, but little is known about how interview approaches may impact the interview experience or data quality. This study explores differences between face-to-face (FTF) and online (Zoom) interviewing approaches, data quality, and interviewee perceptions of rapport, empathy, and conversational involvement. Participants were assigned to an interview condition (FTF or Zoom) and randomly assigned to one of two qualitative interviewers. The interview topic was mental health communication. After the interview was completed, participants completed a post-interview survey measuring perceptions of interviewer empathy, rapport, and conversational involvement. The results revealed statistically significant differences between interview conditions and participants’ perceptions of empathy and rapport. Perceptions of rapport and empathy were rated highly for both interview approaches, but significantly higher in FTF when compared to Zoom for a subset of the sample. There were no statistical differences between the FTF and Zoom approaches when considering conversational involvement or data quality
Ecological Influences on Informal Property Rights: Experimental Evidence
No full textThis paper explores the possibility that informal property right systems evolve unique features as a function of the characteristics of the resources over which they are established. We develop an experimental environment that allows us to test this hypothesis by comparing the emergence of property in (virtual) land when resource yields are either high- or low-variance and renewable or non-renewable. Previous research suggests that high-variance resources may lead to relatively insecure claims to property. Intuition suggests that this may be amplified when those resources are renewable. The experiments confirm that informal property rights adapt to resource characteristics in a manner largely consistent with these predictions