Cross-modal Semantic Relationships Guide Spontaneous Orienting in Real-life Scenes

In real-world scenes, the different objects and events available to our senses are interconnected within a rich web of semantic associations. These semantic links help parse information and make sense of the environment. For example, during goal-directed attention, characteristic everyday life object sounds help speed up visual search for these objects in natural and dynamic environments. However, it is not known whether semantic correspondences also play a role under spontaneous observation. Here, we investigated this question addressing whether crossmodal semantic congruence can drive spontaneous, overt visual attention in free-viewing conditions. We used eye-tracking whilst participants (N=45) viewed video clips of realistic complex scenes presented alongside sounds of varying semantic congruency with objects within the videos. We found that characteristic sounds increased the probability of looking, the number of fixations, and the total dwell time on the semantically corresponding visual objects, in comparison to when the same scenes were presented with semantically neutral sounds or just with background noise only. Our results suggest that crossmodal semantic congruence has an impact on spontaneous gaze and eye movements, and therefore on how attention samples information in a free viewing paradigm. Our findings extend beyond known effects of object-based crossmodal interactions with simple stimuli and shed new light upon how audio-visual semantically congruent relationships play out in everyday life scenarios.

Semantic Congruence Drives Long-Term Memory and Similarly Affects Neural Retrieval Dynamics in Young and Older Adults

Learning novel information can be promoted if it is congruent with already stored knowledge. This so-called semantic congruence effect has been broadly studied in healthy young adults with a focus on neural encoding mechanisms. However, the impacts on retrieval, and possible impairments during healthy aging, which is typically associated with changes in declarative long-term memory, remain unclear. To investigate these issues, we used a previously established paradigm in healthy young and older humans with a focus on the neural activity at a final retrieval stage as measured with electroencephalography (EEG). In both age groups, semantic congruence at encoding enhanced subsequent long-term recognition memory of words. Compatible with this observation, semantic congruence led to differences in event-related potentials (ERPs) at retrieval, and this effect was not modulated by age. Specifically, congruence modulated old/new ERPs at a fronto-central (Fz) and left parietal (P3) electrode in a late (400–600 ms) time window, which has previously been associated with recognition memory processes. Importantly, ERPs to old items also correlated with the positive effect of semantic congruence on long-term memory independent of age. Together, our findings suggest that semantic congruence drives subsequent recognition memory across the lifespan through changes in neural retrieval processes.

Crossmodal Semantic Congruence Interacts with Object Contextual Consistency in Complex Visual Scenes to Enhance Short-Term Memory Performance

Object sounds can enhance the attentional selection and perceptual processing of semantically-related visual stimuli. However, it is currently unknown whether crossmodal semantic congruence also affects the post-perceptual stages of information processing, such as short-term memory (STM), and whether this effect is modulated by the object consistency with the background visual scene. In two experiments, participants viewed everyday visual scenes for 500 ms while listening to an object sound, which could either be semantically related to the object that served as the STM target at retrieval or not. This defined crossmodal semantically cued vs. uncued targets. The target was either in- or out-of-context with respect to the background visual scene. After a maintenance period of 2000 ms, the target was presented in isolation against a neutral background, in either the same or different spatial position as in the original scene. The participants judged the same vs. different position of the object and then provided a confidence judgment concerning the certainty of their response. The results revealed greater accuracy when judging the spatial position of targets paired with a semantically congruent object sound at encoding. This crossmodal facilitatory effect was modulated by whether the target object was in- or out-of-context with respect to the background scene, with out-of-context targets reducing the facilitatory effect of object sounds. Overall, these findings suggest that the presence of the object sound at encoding facilitated the selection and processing of the semantically related visual stimuli, but this effect depends on the semantic configuration of the visual scene.

PHONEMIC AND PERCENTAGES :A PHONATIC STUDY IN AL-TAKATHUR SURAH

In this research, we try to show a part of Phonological miracles in the Qur’an by taking the voices numbers and its phonetic syllables into consideration by adopting percentages as a criterion that does not affected by the length or shortness of the verse, and discovering lexical, morphological, grammatical and semantic congruence at the morphological level. It was clear that it is impossible to come up with any other word, form, or syntax. Because every change in the above will definitely lead to a change in the percentage of votes or the percentage of phonemic syllables, and therefore we will not get the surprising Percentages contained in the surah that matched its contextual connotations and harmonized with the linguistic levels in which it was mentioned

Assessing students’ errors in mathematical translation: From symbolic to verbal and graphic representations

Translation skills are very important possessed by students, but currently, there are still many students who have difficulty in translating between representations. The purpose of this study is to analyze students' errors in translating from symbolic representations to verbal and graphic representations. This research was descriptive study with qualitative approach. Tests are given to junior high school students. From the results of data analysis, it is obtained that in translating from symbolic to verbal forms (problems in daily life) that are following the given system of equations, students are still unable to make representations correctly. When students are asked to translate into graphical form, students are still unable to draw complete graphs and errors made by students are misinterpretation and implementation errors, so they cannot maintain the semantic congruence between source representation and target representation. Based on this, it is necessary to make a learning plan that can improve students’ ability to translate between representations.

O desenvolvimento do pensamento algébrico segundo Raymond Duval: o papel da congruência semântica na elaboração discente de problemas aditivosThe development of algebraic thinking: the role of semantic congruence in students’ elaboration of additive problems

ResumoEste artigo apresenta os resultados de uma investigação voltada para o papel da congruência semântica na elaboração de problemas aditivos por alunos, à luz das ideias de Raymond Duval, relacionadas ao desenvolvimento do pensamento algébrico. A pesquisa foi realizada a partir da aplicação de um instrumento de coleta de dados a noventa e quatro alunos do sétimo, oitavo e nono anos de escolas públicas, com o objetivo de analisar a manifestação do fenômeno da congruência semântica na atividade de elaboração de problemas. Neste artigo, apresentamos uma análise das respostas dos alunos para uma questão que solicita a elaboração de problemas. Os problemas elaborados pelos alunos apresentam a estrutura do campo conceitual de problemas aditivos de Gérard Vergnaud. Os resultados encontrados evidenciaram que a essa proposta, além de apresentar contribuições para o desenvolvimento do pensamento algébrico, enfrenta o fenômeno da congruência semântica, que não pode ser ignorado. Para elaborar problemas, conforme a proposta de Duval, é preciso levar em consideração o fenômeno da congruência semântica, que se reflete diretamente na designação das relações algébricas oriundas dos encaminhamentos das soluções dos problemas.Palavras-chave: Pensamento algébrico, Álgebra, Ideias de Duval.AbstractThis article presents the results of an investigation focused on the role of semantic congruence in students' elaboration of addictive problems, in the light of Raymond Duval’s ideas, related to the development of algebraic thinking. The research was carried out from the application of a data collection instrument to ninety-four students from the seventh, eighth, and ninth grades of public schools, aiming to analyze the manifestation of the phenomenon of semantic congruence in the activity of elaboration problems. In this article, we present an analysis of the students' answers to a question that requests the elaboration of problems. The problems that the students elaborate present the structure of Gérard Vergnaud’s conceptual field of additive problems. The results showed that this proposal, besides contributing to the development of algebraic thinking, faces the phenomenon of semantic congruence, which cannot be ignored. To elaborate problems, according to Duval’s proposal, it is necessary to consider the phenomenon of semantic congruence, which is directly reflected in the designation of algebraic relations arising from the forwarding of solutions to problems.Keywords: Algebraic thinking; Algebra, Duval’s ideas.ResumenEste artículo presenta los resultados de una investigación centrada en el papel de la congruencia semántica en la elaboración de problemas adictivos por parte de los estudiantes, a la luz de las ideas de Raymond Duval, relacionadas con el desarrollo del pensamiento algebraico. La investigación se llevó a cabo a partir de la aplicación de un instrumento de recolección de datos a noventa y cuatro estudiantes de los grados séptimo, octavo y noveno de escuelas públicas, con el objetivo de analizar la manifestación del fenómeno de la congruencia semántica en la actividad de elaborar problemas. En este artículo presentamos un análisis de las respuestas de los estudiantes a una pregunta que solicita dicha elaboración. Los problemas que los alumnos engendran presentan la estructura del campo conceptual de problemas aditivos de Gérard Vergnaud. Los resultados mostraron que esta propuesta, además de contribuir al desarrollo del pensamiento algebraico, enfrenta el fenómeno de la congruencia semántica, que no puede ser ignorado. Para elaborar problemas, de acuerdo con la propuesta de Duval, es necesario considerar el fenómeno de la congruencia semántica, que se refleja directamente en la designación de relaciones algebraicas que surgen del avance de soluciones a problemas.Palabras clave: Pensamiento algebraico, Álgebra, Ideas de Duval.

Not so automatic: Task relevance and perceptual load modulate cross-modal semantic congruence effects on spatial orienting

Recent studies show that cross-modal semantic congruence plays a role in spatial attention orienting and visual search. However, the extent to which these cross-modal semantic relationships attract attention automatically is still unclear. At present the outcomes of different studies have been inconsistent. Variations in task-relevance of the cross-modal stimuli (from explicitly needed, to completely irrelevant) and the amount of perceptual load may account for the mixed results of previous experiments. In the present study, we addressed the effects of audio-visual semantic congruence on visuo-spatial attention across variations in task relevance and perceptual load. We used visual search amongst images of common objects paired with characteristic object sounds (e.g., guitar image and chord sound). We found that audio-visual semantic congruence speeded visual search times when the cross-modal objects are task relevant, or when they are irrelevant but presented under low perceptual load. Instead, when perceptual load is high, sounds fail to attract attention towards the congruent visual images. These results lead us to conclude that object-based crossmodal congruence does not attract attention automatically and requires some top-down processing.