Triarchic theories of intelligence: Aristotle and Sternberg.

Aristotle's triarchic theory of intelligence prefigures, but apparently does not serve directly as a source for, Sternberg's comparable contemporary theory. The indepently derived similarities in their gross structure lend weight to some triarchic view. Sternberg's analytical, practical, and creative intelligences closely resemble Aristotle's theoretical, practical, and productive excellences of intelligence. Each comparable component incorporates significantly related ideas. Disparities may be attributed to a variety of differences in the aims, methods, and resources of Aristotle's and Sternberg's inquiries. This is not the first time in the history of psychology that roughly parallel investigations have yielded comparable theories, but it is surely among the most temporally disjoined.

Age-related neuropsychological deficits in Down's syndrome.

Down's syndrome (DS) has been suggested as a high-risk condition for Dementia Alzheimer's type (DAT). In the present study, neuropsychological variables were assessed in 165 DS subjects and 163 matched mentally retarded controls. Overall, DS subjects had lower scores for orientation, digit span, visual memory, object-naming, and general knowledge, as well as more "released" reflexes. Impairments were most evident in DS subjects greater than 50 years old. These findings provide further support for an association between aging and DAT in Down's syndrome. Methodological issues and areas for future research are discussed.

Testicular atrophy in the spontaneously diabetic BB Wistar rat.

Complete gross and microscopic postmortem examinations were performed on 100 BB Wistar diabetic rats, 27 BB Wistar nondiabetic siblings, and 41 Wistar rats, and the incidence of testicular lesions was tabulated. Testicular atrophy was the predominant finding in all three groups of rats, but atrophy occurred at a much younger age in the diabetic rats. There was a strong relationship between the duration of diabetes and the presence of atrophy, which was stronger than the relationship between age and atrophy. The testicular atrophy observed in the diabetic rats was morphologically similar to the senile testicular atrophy in the nondiabetic rats. Histologic findings that were associated with increasing severity of atrophy were multinucleated giant cells in the lumens of seminiferous tubules, increased interstitial connective tissue, Leydig cell hyperplasia, and thickening of the tunica albuginea. Testicular atrophy has also been reported in human diabetics. Therefore, the BB Wistar rat may be a useful model for investigating this aspect of diabetes mellitus.