Our results suggest that such neural changes may represent neural origins for tinnitus or consequences of tinnitus and its associations.

No abstract

This work was conducted to study the plasticity of superior (SCP) and middle (MCP) cerebellar peduncles in musicians. The cerebellum is well known to support several musically relevant motor, sensory and cognitive functions. Previous studies reported increased cerebellar volume and grey matter (GM) density in musicians. Here, we report on plasticity of white matter (WM) of the cerebellum. Our cohort included 10/10 gender and handedness-matched musicians and controls. Using diffusion tensor imaging, fibre tractography of SCP and MCP was performed. The fractional anisotropy (FA), number of streamlines and volume of streamlines of SCP/MCP were compared between groups. Automatic measurements of GM and WM volumes of the right/left cerebellar hemispheres were also compared. Musicians have significantly increased right SCP volume (p = 0.02) and number of streamlines (p = 0.001), right MCP volume (p = 0.004) and total WM volume of the right cerebellum (p = 0.003). There were no significant differences in right MCP number of streamlines, left SCP/MCP volume and number of streamlines, SCP/MCP FA values, GM volume of the right cerebellum and GM/WM volumes of the left cerebellum. We propose that increased volume and number of streamlines of the right cerebellar peduncles represent use-dependent structural adaptation to increased sensorimotor and cognitive functional demands on the musician's cerebellum.

Background and objective: The faculty members' perceptions regarding Blackboard as the pedagogical management tool plays a vital role in learning and teaching process. Aim: To survey the perceptions of faculty members towards utilizing Blackboard in the teaching system at Hafr Al-Batin University. Methods: Design: Quantitative descriptive design was utilized depending on online surveys. Setting: The study was conducted in all Colleges of Hafr Al-Batin University. Participants: 174 faculty members from different colleges at the University of Hafr Al-Batin. Tools: Questionnaire consisted of two parts; the first includes the faculty demographic information and the second describes faculty perception in four sections; usefulness, enjoyment, satisfaction, and challenges. Results: The study demonstrated that perceived "usefulness" and "enjoyment" were the most highly mean scores. Conclusions: The faculty members have a positive attitude towards the implementation of the Blackboard system. Recommendations: A great need for training of both faculty members and students in the Blackboard system regularly.