In the past, research in interlanguage pragmatics has primarily explained the differences between native speakers’ (NS) and non-native speakers’ (NNS) pragmatic performance based on cross-cultural and linguistic differences. Very few researchers have considered learners’ pragmatic performance based on second language comprehension. In this study, we will examine learners’ pragmatic performance using request strategies. The results of this study reveal that there is a proficiency effect for interpreting request speech acts at different levels of directness. We propose that learners’ processing strategies and capacities are important factors to consider when examining learners’ pragmatic performance.

Opioid regulation of reproduction has been widely studied. However, the role of opioid receptor-like 1 receptor (NOP; also referred to as ORL-1 and OP4) and its endogenous ligand orphanin FQ/ nociceptin (OFQ/N) have received less attention despite their extensive distribution throughout nuclei of the limbic-hypothalamic system, a circuit that regulates reproductive behavior in the female rat. Significantly, the expression of both receptor and ligand is regulated in a number of these nuclei by estradiol and progesterone. Activation of NOP in the ventromedial nucleus of the hypothalamus (VMH) of estradiol-primed nonreceptive female rats facilitates lordosis. NOP's are also expressed in the medial preoptic nucleus (MPN), however, its roles in reproductive behavior have not been studied. The present experiments examined the role of NOP in the regulation of lordosis in the MPN and tested whether endogenous OFQ/N in the MPN and VMH mediates reproductive behavior. Activation of NOP by microinfusion of OFQ/N in the MPN facilitated lordosis in estradiol-primed sexually nonreceptive female rats. Passive immunoneutralization of OFQ/N in either the MPN or the VMH reduced lordosis in estradiol-primed females, but had no effect on lordosis in estradiol + progesterone primed sexually receptive rats. These studies suggest that OFQ/N has a central role in estradiol-only induced sexual receptivity, and that progesterone appears to involve additional circuits that mediate estradiol + progesterone sexual receptivity.

King. Combination unilateral amygdaloid and ventromedial hypothalamic lesions: evidence for a feeding pathway. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 288: R702-R707, 2005; doi:10.1152/ajpregu.00460.2004.-Previous studies have reported hyperphagia and obesity in female rats with bilateral lesions of the most posterodorsal part of the amygdala. In rats with unilateral posterodorsal amygdaloid lesions, a dense pattern of anterograde degeneration appears in the ipsilateral ventromedial hypothalamus, but not the contralateral nucleus. In the present study, female rats with unilateral ventromedial hypothalamic lesions or sham lesions were given either sham lesions or unilateral lesions of the posterodorsal amygdala (PDA) 20 days later. Unilateral lesions of the ventromedial hypothalamus resulted in hyperphagia and excessive weight gain. Subsequent amygdaloid lesions that were contralateral to the initial hypothalamic lesions resulted in hyperphagia and additional excessive weight gains, but amygdaloid lesions ipsilateral to the initial hypothalamic lesions did not. It is concluded that the effects of the two lesions on body weight are not additive and that the PDA and ventromedial hypothalamus are part of the same ipsilateral pathway regulating feeding behavior and body weight regulation. ventromedial hypothalamus; amygdala; stria terminalis; feeding behavior; body weight LESIONS OF THE MOST POSTERODORSAL part of the amygdala result in hyperphagia and excessive weight gain in rats (42). Female rats with bilateral lesions typically gain 50 -80 g in 20 days, and gains of as much as 100 g in 20 days have been observed (15,16,18,20,21). The obesity syndrome resembles that which follows lesions of the ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH) in many respects. For example, the weight gains are greater in female rats than in male rats (23), and the animals are hyperinsulinemic even when food restricted (16) and do not respond appropriately to caloric challenges (24).Excessive weight gains have been produced with small lesions limited exclusively to the posterodorsal medial amygdaloid nucleus and the intra-amygdaloid bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (42). Examination of anterograde degeneration by the amino-cupric silver method in the brains of rats given unilateral posterodorsal amygdala (PDA) lesions revealed a dense pattern of degenerating terminals in areas that have previously been shown to be involved in various aspects of feeding behavior and/or body weight regulation (17). Particularly dense staining was observed in the VMH ipsilateral to the PDA lesion, but not in the contralateral VMH. There was little to no staining in the paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus.The pattern of anterograde degeneration observed after unilateral PDA lesions suggests an ipsilateral pathway mediating feeding behavior and body weight regulation. The major pathway between the PDA and VMH is the stria terminalis (5, 6, 39), and after unilateral PDA lesions there is dense degeneration in the dorsal component and medial part of the ventral componen...

Home-based Learning (HBL) can promote self-directed learning. However, teachers and parents must nurture and equip children with the necessary skills to be independent, self-directed learners. This article explores the challenges that students, parents, and teachers face in HBL, and examines the types of support children, parents, and teachers need to enhance the effectiveness of HBL.

Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per respo gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of inforr-* collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Washington Headqua Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington, VA 22202-4302, and Rockbursts produce seismic signals that are similar to those associated with near surface earthquakes and explosions. Some o: the methods developed for source mechanism studies also encompass imaging techniques appropriate for nuclear event verification, and, as a result, have implications for the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT). Past experiments have demonstrated a clear relationship between Barkhausen Noise (BN) and stress in pipeline steel samples. Stress can affect the nature of the pinning sites at domain boundaries which in turn plays a role in the way that domain walls move and cause BN pulses. We have conducted experiments to detect a relationship between BN and stress in magnetite-rich rocks. These experiments were performed by applying uniaxial loading from 4500N to 55000N to cylindrical core samples of magnetite-rich rocks obtained from the Stillwater Complex in Montana. A pick-up coil was used to detect the BN pulses and an electromagnet was used to magnetize the samples. BN pulses were recorded during a specified time interval for each increment of loading. The pick-up coil was positioned to be near magnetite-rich regions of the sample. We have observed a linear increase in the number of BN pulses with increased loading. Ongoing research is focused on refining the experimental procedure to increase the bandwidth of recording and eliminate possible sources of noise in the experiments. The results of this study might help us to understand the nature of the remagnetization that often accompanies large-scale tectonic events. Moreover, this study could lead to a method of nondestructive testing to determine state of stress at mine walls. MQOQttO I5(j SUMMARY The basis for this research is that rockbursts produce seismic signals that are similar to those associated with near surface earthquakes and explosions. A complete understanding of source mechanisms is necessary for the correct identification of these events. Some of the methods developed for source mechanism studies also encompass imaging techniques appropriate for nuclear event verification, and, as a result, have implications for the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT). SUBJECT TERMSPCI/Atlantic Scientific INSAR software was purchased last fall for elevation change detection at a rockburst site using radar interferometry. We have been familiarizing ourselves with this software and radar remote sensing. Images have recently been acquired that cover the site of a large rockburst.The air wave can interfere with the rock wave in Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) transillumination experiments making it difficult to pick the rock wave first arrivals in mines. This was particularly a problem at small t...