A cognitive neuroscience perspective on insight as a memory process: encoding the solution

This is one of two chapters on "A cognitive neuroscience perspective on insight as a memory process" to be published in the "Routledge International Handbook of Creative Cognition" by L. J. Ball & F. Valleé-Tourangeau (Eds.). While the previous chapter discussed the role of long-term memory for solving problems by insight [https://psyarxiv.com/zv4dk], the current chapter focuses on the role of insight problem solving for long-term memory formation. Insight in problem solving has long been assumed to facilitate memory formation for the problem and its solution. Here, we discuss cognitive, affective, and neurocognitive candidate mechanisms that may underlie learning in insight problem solving. We conclude that insight appears to combine several beneficial effects that each on their own have been found to facilitate long-term memory formation: the generation effect, subjective importance of the discovery of the solution, intrinsic reward, schema congruence, and level-of-processing. A distributed set of brain regions is identified that is associated with these processes. On the one hand, the more affective response related to pleasure, surprise, and novelty detection is linked to amygdala, ventral striatum, and dopaminergic midbrain activity, supporting an important role of reward learning. On the other hand, insight as completing a schema is associated with prior knowledge dependent and medial prefrontal cortex mediated memory formation. Thus, learning by insight may reflect a fast route to cortical memory representations. However, many open questions remain, which we explicitly point out during this review.

A cognitive neuroscience perspective on insight as a memory process: Searching for the solution.

What are the cognitive and brain processes that lead to an insight? This is one of two chapters on "A cognitive neuroscience perspective on insight as a memory process" to be published in the "Routledge International Handbook of Creative Cognition" by L. J. Ball & F. Valleé-Tourangeau (Eds.). In this chapter, we will describe the insight solution process from a neurocognitive perspective. Inspired by cognitive theories, we translate some of insight's main cognitive subprocesses (problem representation, search, representational change, solution) into related neurocognitive ones and summarize them in a descriptive framework. Those described processes focus primarily on verbal insight and are explained using the remote associates task. In this task, the solver is provided with several problem elements (e.g. drop, coat, summer) and needs to find the (remotely related) target that matches those cues (e.g., rain). In a nutshell, insight is the consequence of a problem-solving process where the target is encoded in long-term memory but cannot be retrieved at first because the relationship between the problem elements and the target is unknown, precluding a simple memory search. Upon problem display, the problem elements and a whole network of associated concepts are automatically activated in long-term memory in distinct areas of the brain representing those concepts (=problem representation). Insight is assumed to occur when automatic processes suddenly activate the target after control processes associated with inferior frontal gyrus and anterior cingulate cortex activation manage to overcome prior knowledge and/or perceptual constraints by revising the current activation pattern (=representational change). The next chapter (https://psyarxiv.com/bevjm) will focus on the role of insight problem solving for long-term memory formation.

A Random walk down the Dhaka Stock Exchange lane

Market efficiency has always been a matter of keen interest to the researchers of finance. Since the advancement of this concept, researchers are consistently investigating the market efficiency of different financial markets. Bangladesh, being one of the emerging economies, has also attracted the attention of many researchers. The researchers have investigated the realities regarding the market efficiency of both the stock exchanges of the country. Most of their investigations reveal that the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) are inefficient. This research, however, did not stop at revisiting market efficiency alone. Whether the return series follows a long-memory process, has also been tested. Besides, non-parametric tests have also been conducted to confirm the results of the parametric tests and vice versa. It generated a more reliable estimate of market efficiency for the period under study. Results of the Autoregressive Fractionally Integrated Moving Average (ARFIMA) model confirm that the return series does not follow a long memory process, and any shock in the system will eventually vanish. The findings of other tests (the run test, the Augmented Dickey-Fuller (ADF) test, the Kwiatkowski–Phillips–Schmidt–Shin (KPSS) test, and the Kolmogorov-Smirnov (K-S) test) suggest that the return series of the DSE are time-series stationary, non-normal, and do not follow a random walk. Given these results, we must echo the prior researchers to conclude that the stock market of Bangladesh is not efficient for the period of 2015 to 2020. These findings add new knowledge to the existing knowledge pool about market efficiency and long memory of the stock market of Bangladesh.

Evaluation of Nootropic Activity of Leaf Extract of Anacardium occidentale L.

One of the plants that have been used for enthno medicinal purposes in traditional civilization is Anacardium occidentale L. of the family Anacardiaceae is native to Brazil also found in tropical countries such as Malaysia and India commonly known as cashew. The purpose of this study is to determine the in-vitro and in-vivo cognitive effects of an ethanolic leaf extract of the herb Anacardium occidentale on albino rats. Orally the ethanolic extract was administered in two doses (100 mg/kg and 400 mg/kg). The Elevated Plus maze and Y-maze showed statistically significant improvement in the memory process. The estimation of acetylcholinesterase enzyme in rats brain also shows improvement in the memory process by reducing acetylcholinesterase activity. Disorders related to cognition are one of the major health problems and increasing day by day especially affecting the elder individual. There is no proper medication for the impairment of memory. The study reveals that the ethanolic extract of the leaf of Anacardium occidentale has dose-dependent memory-enhancing performance. Synthetic drugs have a lot of side effects, whereas drugs belongs to natural substances have least side effect compared to synthetic one, which has gained a lots of importance. These studies need to be documented effectively. Research findings were contributed to meet the future needs in general healthcare, research, and conservation of endangered species and may give a lead to the discovery of newer drugs.

Conditioning and Associative Learning

Associative learning is the process whereby humans and other animals learn the predictive relationship between cues in their environment. This process underlies simple forms of learning from rewards, such as classical and operant conditioning. In this chapter, we introduce the basics of associative learning and discuss the role that memory processes play in the establishment and maintenance of this learning. We then discuss the role that associative learning plays in human memory, including through paired associate learning, the enhancement of memory by reward, and the formation of episodic memories. Finally, we illustrate how the memory process influences choice in decision-making, where associative learning allows people to learn the values of different options. We conclude with some suggestions about how models of associative learning, memory, and choice can be integrated into a single theoretical framework.

Memory Model for Morphological Semantics of Visual Stimuli Using Sparse Distributed Representation

Recent achievements on CNN (convolutional neural networks) and DNN (deep neural networks) researches provide a lot of practical applications on computer vision area. However, these approaches require construction of huge size of training data for learning process. This paper tries to find a way for continual learning which does not require prior high-cost training data construction by imitating a biological memory model. We employ SDR (sparse distributed representation) for information processing and semantic memory model, which is known as a representation model of firing patterns on neurons in neocortex area. This paper proposes a novel memory model to reflect remembrance of morphological semantics of visual input stimuli. The proposed memory model considers both memory process and recall process separately. First, memory process converts input visual stimuli to sparse distributed representation, and in this process, morphological semantic of input visual stimuli can be preserved. Next, recall process can be considered by comparing sparse distributed representation of new input visual stimulus and remembered sparse distributed representations. Superposition of sparse distributed representation is used to measure similarities. Experimental results using 10,000 images in MNIST (Modified National Institute of Standards and Technology) and Fashion-MNIST data sets show that the sparse distributed representation of the proposed model efficiently keeps morphological semantic of the input visual stimuli.

Spatial Recognition Memory: Differential Brain Strategic Activation According to Sex

Human spatial memory research has significantly progressed since the development of computerized tasks, with many studies examining sex-related performances. However, few studies explore the underlying electrophysiological correlates according to sex. In this study event-related potentials were compared between male and female participants during the performance of an allocentric spatial recognition task. Twenty-nine university students took part in the research. Results showed that while general performance was similar in both sexes, the brain of males and females displayed a differential activation. Males showed increased N200 modulation than females in the three phases of memory process (encoding, maintenance, and retrieval). Meanwhile females showed increased activation of P300 in the three phases of memory process compared to males. In addition, females exhibited more negative slow wave (NSW) activity during the encoding phase. These differences are discussed in terms of attentional control and the allocation of attentional resources during spatial processing. Our findings demonstrate that sex modulates the resources recruited to performed this spatial task.

The Importance of Cognitive Styles: Dependence and Field Independence (DIC) in the Memory Process

It is in the framework of a cognition orientation, or theory of information processing, that we seek the theoretical models that can best support us in the analysis of human cognitive functioning, specifically in the tasks of learning and problem solving.

Recall Referendum sebagai Alternatif Proses Penggantian Antarwaktu Lembaga Legislatif di Indonesia

This article aims to provide democratic ideas related to the Intertemporal Replacement process and to find out about its less democratic practices so far. The research method used in this article is a normative juridical research method, with a statutory, case and conceptual approach. The purpose of this discussion is to analyze a memory process which is more democratic and more appropriate for application in Indonesia and to identify recall practices in Indonesia. The result of this study is that the recall process given to political parties only makes the recall instrument a tool for political parties in controlling their members in the legislative body as well as to scare their members who are against the policies of political parties. Things like this certainly hinder the development of democracy in the institutional system in Indonesia. This is shown from several recall cases which only for reasons contrary to political parties then expel their members from membership in the legislature. To change this practice, in this study, an interim replacement mechanism with a referendum recall process was initiated to involve the people in the process of dismissing members of the legislature so as to maintain the interests of political parties to remain democratic and prevent interim replacements from being used as weapons to frighten legislators. With the recall of the referendum, the people will be fully involved in the recall process so that the process becomes more transparent and democratic.