The Semantics of Natural Objects and Tools in the Brain: A Combined Behavioral and MEG Study

Current literature supports the notion that the recognition of objects, when visually presented, is sub-served by neural structures different from those responsible for the semantic processing of their nouns. However, embodiment foresees that processing observed objects and their verbal labels should share similar neural mechanisms. In a combined behavioral and MEG study, we compared the modulation of motor responses and cortical rhythms during the processing of graspable natural objects and tools, either verbally or pictorially presented. Our findings demonstrate that conveying meaning to an observed object or processing its noun similarly modulates both motor responses and cortical rhythms; being natural graspable objects and tools differently represented in the brain, they affect in a different manner both behavioral and MEG findings, independent of presentation modality. These results provide experimental evidence that neural substrates responsible for conveying meaning to objects overlap with those where the object is represented, thus supporting an embodied view of semantic processing.

Participant Vocabulary Use and Selection Differences in Serial Versus Parallel Presentation of Product Reaction Cards

This study looks at the effects on users’ choices when presented with Product Reaction Cards (PRC) in parallel and sequential order. Participants were given brief tasks on two websites and presented with PRC in parallel or sequential order to describe their sentiments. We found that participants selected 25% more words in the sequential condition, including the selection of more positive words (23%). However, the sequential condition took on average 5 minutes longer to complete word selection. Therefore, it is important to understand that the PRC presentation modality can affect the quantity and the choice of vocabulary used by participants.

EXPRESS: Effects of Presentation Modality and Duration on Children’s Strategy Use: A Study in Computational Estimation

Two experiments were run to determine how presentation modality and duration influence children’s arithmetic performance and strategy selection. Third and fourth graders were asked to find estimates for two-digit addition problems (e.g., 52 + 39). Children were tested in three conditions: (1) time-unlimited visual, (2) time-limited visual, or (3) time-limited auditory conditions. Moreover, we assessed children’s working-memory updating and arithmetic fluency. Children were told which strategy to use on each problem to assess arithmetic performance while executing strategies, in Experiment 1, and were asked to choose the best strategy of three available strategies to assess strategy selection, in Experiment 2. Presentation modality influenced strategy execution (i.e., children were faster and more accurate in problems under visual than auditory conditions) but only in children with low updating abilities. In contrast, presentation modality had no effect on children’s strategy selection. Presentation duration had an effect on both strategy execution and strategy selection with time-limited presentation leading to a decline in children’s performance. Interestingly, specifically in children with low updating abilities, time-limited presentation led to poorer performance. Hence, efficient updating seemed to compensate for detrimental effects of auditory in comparison to visual and time-limited in comparison to time-unlimited presentation. These findings have important implications for determining conditions under which children execute strategies most efficiently and select the best strategy on each problem most often, as well as for understanding mechanisms underlying strategic behaviour.

Car Crash Speed Estimates Not Biased by Leading Questions

Individuals’ recollections of events have been shown to be susceptible to external factors, especially when it comes to speed estimations. This study explored the impact of perceptually disfluent presentations and presentation modalities of car crashes on observers’ estimations of speed, in addition to the testing the currently accepted effect of leading questions on the same. Participants viewed videos or images of car crashes, presented in higher or lower visual quality, and reported how fast the vehicles were traveling when they “made contact” or “smashed into” each other. Results showed that neither question phrasing, visual quality, nor presentation modality of car crashes affected speed estimates. Individuals who believe cars to travel at higher speeds, however, in general estimated higher speeds when viewing car crash images, especially when presented in lower visual quality. These findings suggest that a combination of external factors may influence event recall depending on individual’s pre-existing beliefs about car speeds, and should be considered prior to obtaining eyewitness accounts.

Analysis of sex differences in the clinical presentation, management and prognosis of infective endocarditis in Spain

IntroductionSex-dependent differences of infective endocarditis (IE) have been reported. Women suffer from IE less frequently than men and tend to present more severe manifestations. Our objective was to analyse the sex-based differences of IE in the clinical presentation, treatment, and prognosis.Material and methodsWe analysed the sex differences in the clinical presentation, modality of treatment and prognosis of IE in a national-level multicentric cohort between 2008 and 2018. All data were prospectively recorded by the GAMES cohort (Spanish Collaboration on Endocarditis).ResultsA total of 3451 patients were included, of whom 1105 were women (32.0%). Women were older than men (mean age, 68.4 vs 64.5). The most frequently affected valves were the aortic valve in men (50.6%) and mitral valve in women (48.7%). Staphylococcus aureus aetiology was more frequent in women (30.1% vs 23.1%; p<0.001).Surgery was performed in 38.3% of women and 50% of men. After propensity score (PS) matching for age and estimated surgical risk (European System for Cardiac Operative Risk Evaluation II (EuroSCORE II)), the analysis of the matched cohorts revealed that women were less likely to undergo surgery (OR 0.74; 95% CI 0.59 to 0.91; p=0.05).The observed overall in-hospital mortality was 32.8% in women and 25.7% in men (OR for the mortality of female sex 1.41; 95% CI 1.21 to 1.65; p<0.001). This statistical difference was not modified after adjusting for all possible confounders.ConclusionsFemale sex was an independent factor related to mortality after adjusting for confounders. In addition, women were less frequently referred for surgical treatment.

Characterizing Underlying Cognitive Components of ADHD Presentations and Co-morbid Diagnoses: A Diffusion Decision Model Analysis

Objective: To Explore whether subtypes and comorbidities of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) induce distinct biases in cognitive components involved in information processing. Method: Performance on the Integrated Visual and Auditory Continuous Performance Test (IVA-CPT) was compared between 150 children (aged 7 to 10) with ADHD, grouped by DSM-5 presentation (ADHD-C, ADHD-I) or co-morbid diagnoses (anxiety, oppositional defiant disorder [ODD], both, neither), and 60 children without ADHD. Diffusion decision modeling decomposed performance into cognitive components. Results: Children with ADHD had poorer information integration than controls. Children with ADHD-C were more sensitive to changes in presentation modality (auditory/visual) than those with ADHD-I and controls. Above and beyond these results, children with ADHD+anxiety+ODD had larger increases in response biases when targets became frequent than children with ADHD-only or with ADHD and one comorbidity. Conclusion: ADHD presentations and comorbidities have distinct cognitive characteristics quantifiable using DDM and IVA-CPT. We discuss implications for tailored cognitive-behavioral therapy.

Technology On Trial: Facilitative And Prejudicial Effects Of Computer-Generated Animations On Jurors' Legal Judgments

The recent emergence of electronic courtrooms (i.e., courtrooms that are equipped with advanced digital technologies) has generated novel ways to present evidence to jurors. Computer-generated animations, which recreate or illustrate the alleged sequence of events in a crime, are increasingly being used by lawyers to present testimonial evidence to jurors. The current study used a 3 (modality: oral vs. static visual vs. animation) x 2 (congruence: incongruent vs. congruent) between-subjects design to investigate whether presentation modality and evidence congruence affect jurors’ ability to properly evaluate evidence and render ‘accurate’ verdicts. In a laboratory setting, mock jurors (N = 238) read a transcript from a fictitious second-degree murder trial. Participants read testimony from eight witnesses, and heard the oral testimony of the defendant with a static visual aid, a computer-generated animation, or no visual aid. Results demonstrated that mock jurors were more likely to acquit the defendant when his testimony was illustrated with a computer-generated animation compared to a static visual aid or with no additional aid. Research in this area can inform the development of evidentiary regulations which adequately govern the admissibility of computer-generated animations in the courtroom, so as ensure that they are used in a way that maintains a defendant’s right to a fair trial. Keywords: computer-generated evidence, computer animations, legal decision-making, information processing, electronic courtrooms

Technology On Trial: Facilitative And Prejudicial Effects Of Computer-Generated Animations On Jurors' Legal Judgments

The recent emergence of electronic courtrooms (i.e., courtrooms that are equipped with advanced digital technologies) has generated novel ways to present evidence to jurors. Computer-generated animations, which recreate or illustrate the alleged sequence of events in a crime, are increasingly being used by lawyers to present testimonial evidence to jurors. The current study used a 3 (modality: oral vs. static visual vs. animation) x 2 (congruence: incongruent vs. congruent) between-subjects design to investigate whether presentation modality and evidence congruence affect jurors’ ability to properly evaluate evidence and render ‘accurate’ verdicts. In a laboratory setting, mock jurors (N = 238) read a transcript from a fictitious second-degree murder trial. Participants read testimony from eight witnesses, and heard the oral testimony of the defendant with a static visual aid, a computer-generated animation, or no visual aid. Results demonstrated that mock jurors were more likely to acquit the defendant when his testimony was illustrated with a computer-generated animation compared to a static visual aid or with no additional aid. Research in this area can inform the development of evidentiary regulations which adequately govern the admissibility of computer-generated animations in the courtroom, so as ensure that they are used in a way that maintains a defendant’s right to a fair trial. Keywords: computer-generated evidence, computer animations, legal decision-making, information processing, electronic courtrooms

Characterizing underlying cognitive components of ADHD presentations and co-morbid diagnoses – A diffusion decision model analysis

Objective. To Explore whether subtypes and comorbidities of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) induce distinct biases in cognitive components involved in information processing. Method. Performance on the Integrated Visual and Auditory Continuous Performance Test (IVA-CPT) was compared between 150 children (aged 7-10 years) with ADHD, grouped by DSM-5 presentation (ADHD-C, ADHD-I) or co-morbid diagnoses (anxiety, oppositional defiant disorder [ODD], both, neither), and 60 children without ADHD. Diffusion decision modeling decomposed performance into cognitive components. Results. Children with ADHD had poorer information integration than controls. Children with ADHD-C were more sensitive to changes in presentation modality (auditory/visual) than those with ADHD-I and controls. Above and beyond these results, children with ADHD+anxiety+ODD had larger increases in response biases when targets became frequent than children with ADHD-only or one comorbidity. Conclusion. ADHD presentations and comorbidities have distinct cognitive characteristics quantifiable using DDM and IVA-CPT. We discuss implications for tailored cognitive-behavioral therapy.