Fake news on Facebook: examining the impact of heuristic cues on perceived credibility and sharing intention

PurposeAs the epidemic of online fake news is causing major concerns in contexts such as politics and public health, the current study aimed to elucidate the effect of certain “heuristic cues,” or key contextual features, which may increase belief in the credibility and the subsequent sharing of online fake news.Design/methodology/approachThis study employed a 2 (news veracity: real vs fake) × 2 (social endorsements: low Facebook “likes” vs high Facebook “likes”) between-subjects experimental design (N = 239).FindingsThe analysis revealed that a high number of Facebook “likes” accompanying fake news increased the perceived credibility of the material compared to a low number of “likes.” In addition, the mediation results indicated that increased perceptions of news credibility may create a situation in which readers feel that it is necessary to cognitively elaborate on the information present in the news, and this active processing finally leads to sharing.Practical implicationsThe results from this study help explicate what drives increased belief and sharing of fake news and can aid in refining interventions aimed at combating fake news for both communities and organizations.Originality/valueThe current study expands upon existing literature, linking the use of social endorsements to perceived credibility of fake news and information, and sheds light on the causal mechanisms through which people make the decision to share news articles on social media.

The Fear to Move in a Crowded Environment. Poor Spatial Memory Related to Agoraphobic Disorder

Individuals with agoraphobia exhibit impaired exploratory activity when navigating unfamiliar environments. However, no studies have investigated the contribution of visuospatial working memory (VSWM) in these individuals’ ability to acquire and process spatial information while considering the use of egocentric and allocentric coordinates or environments with or without people. A total of 106 individuals (53 with agoraphobia and 53 controls) navigated in a virtual square to acquire spatial information that included the recognition of landmarks and the relationship between landmarks and themselves (egocentric coordinates) and independent of themselves (allocentric coordinates). Half of the participants in both groups navigated in a square without people, and half navigated in a crowded square. They completed a VSWM test in addition to tasks measuring landmark recognition and egocentric and allocentric judgements concerning the explored square. The results showed that individuals with agoraphobia had reduced working memory only when active processing of spatial elements was required, suggesting that they exhibit spatial difficulties particularly in complex spatial tasks requiring them to process information simultaneously. Specifically, VSWM deficits mediated the relationship between agoraphobia and performance in the allocentric judgements. The results are discussed considering the theoretical background of agoraphobia in order to provide useful elements for the early diagnosis of this disorder.

Niveles de lectura en preguntas de un libro de Fisiología: ¿cuál es su relevancia para la enseñanza?

The use of textbooks is common in basic science teaching practices; however, there is a tendency to use them automatically without identifying what kind of support students may need to read them, understand their content, and know what to do with the information. The objective of this paper is to present the analysis of the reading levels promoted by the questions of a Physiology text used by a university teacher and to reflect upon the importance of this type of approach for the teaching practices of the basic sciences. A qualitative descriptive methodology and the technique of content analysis were used to analyze the study questions of the selected book. The results show that in the unit analyzed questions that appeal to the creative level of reading predominate, which facilitates the use of information from the texts to interpret phenomena and, therefore, has a high complexity; in addition, there are questions of a literal type that, unlike the previous ones, require less active processing by the reader. This type of analysis makes it easier for the teacher of the course to identify the scope of what the textbook offers and what type of additional strategies should be included in their teaching practices so that their students achieve complex reading levels, which are fundamental for their performance in the academic environment.

Measuring spontaneous and automatic processing of magnitude and parity information of Arabic digits by frequency-tagging EEG

Arabic digits (1–9) are everywhere in our daily lives. These symbols convey various semantic information, and numerate adults can easily extract from them several numerical features such as magnitude and parity. Nonetheless, since most studies used active processing tasks to assess these properties, it remains unclear whether and to what degree the access to magnitude and especially to parity is automatic. Here we investigated with EEG whether spontaneous processing of magnitude or parity can be recorded in a frequency-tagging approach, in which participants are passively stimulated by fast visual sequences of Arabic digits. We assessed automatic magnitude processing by presenting a stream of frequent small digit numbers mixed with deviant large digits (and the reverse) with a sinusoidal contrast modulation at the frequency of 10 Hz. We used the same paradigm to investigate numerical parity processing, contrasting odd digits to even digits. We found significant brain responses at the frequency of the fluctuating change and its harmonics, recorded on electrodes encompassing right occipitoparietal regions, in both conditions. Our findings indicate that both magnitude and parity are spontaneously and unintentionally extracted from Arabic digits, which supports that they are salient semantic features deeply associated to digit symbols in long-term memory.

Dynamic switching between intrinsic and extrinsic mode networks as demands change from passive to active processing

In this study we report on the relationship between default and extrinsic mode networks across alternating brief periods of rest and active task processing. Three different visual tasks were used in a classic fMRI ON–OFF block design where task (ON) blocks alternated with equal periods of rest (OFF) blocks: mental rotation, working memory and mental arithmetic. We showed the existence of a generalized task-positive network, labelled the extrinsic mode network (EMN) that is anti-correlated with the default mode network (DMN) as processing demands shifted from rest to active processing. We then identified two key regions of interest (ROIs) in the supplementary motor area (SMA) and precuneus/posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) regions as hubs for the extrinsic and intrinsic networks, and extracted the time-course from these ROIs. The results showed a close to perfect anti-correlation for the SMA and Precuneus/PCC time-courses for ON- and OFF-blocks. We suggest the existence of two large-scale networks, an extrinsic mode network and an intrinsic mode network, which are up- and down-regulated as environmental demands change from active to passive processing.

Comparative analysis of the profitability of small and medium scale cassava and palm fruit processing in Abia State, Nigeria

This study was designed to comparatively examine the profitability of small and medium scale cassava and palm fruit processing in Abia State, Nigeria. Multi-stage sampling technique was adopted in selecting 50 cassava and 50 palm fruit processors to give total respondents of 100. Simple descriptive statistics such as means and percentages, cost and returns analysis and Z-test were adopted in analyzing the data. The socioeconomiccharacteristics of the processors showed that middle aged persons between 25 and 54 accounted for majority (70% and 60%) of the respondents for cassava and palm fruit processors respectively. Also majority (60% and 64%) of the respondents were female. The majority of the respondents (60% and 54%) of the cassava and palm fruit processors had at least secondary education implying that the processing business was dominated by literates/elites. Cassava processors gained monthly net returns of N308,000 as against N 227,000 realized by palm fruit processors, indicating that cassava processing is more profitable than palm fruit processing. In view of its contribution to this paper, the following are recommended: a re-establishment of active processing firms which are income-spinning ventures; on the macro-level, government should discourage the exportation of competing products which has a multiplier effect on the operations of the firms and as such protect them from harsh competitions capable of weakening their profit performances. Key words: This study was designed to comparatively examine the profitability of small and medium scale

APLIKASI BAFFLED CHANNEL SEBAGAI ALTERNATIF OPTIMASI PENGOLAHAN KUALITAS AIR

ABSTRAK Air limpasan (runoff) pada area pertambangan terbuka umumnya memiliki tingkat kekeruhan yang tinggi dan/atau bersifat asam, sehingga memerlukan pengolahan sebelum memasuki badan air penerima. Pengolahan aktif merupakan metode yang efektif untuk diterapkan, dimana terdapat tahapan pengadukan cepat yang bertujuan salah satunya untuk pencampuran bahan kimia. Studi pustaka ini bertujuan melihat potensi pengaplikasian pengadukan hidrolis menggunakan baffled channel untuk meningkatkan efektivitas. Konfigurasi kolam harus terdiri dari dua bagian atau lebih agar proses dapat berjalan, kolam atenuasi di bagian hulu dan kolam hilir yang dapat berbentuk kolam labirin, meandering. Baffled channel dapat diposisikan pada saluran keluaran (outlet) dari kolam atenuasi. Sebuah pengadukan cepat akan berhasil ketika terpenuhinya gradien kecepatan pengadukan (G) dan waktu detensi (td) yang dipersyaratkan. Parameter yang dapat direkayasa untuk mencapai persyaratan tersebut adalah jumlah sekat (n) yang terdapat di sepanjang saluran. Kalkulasi jumlah sekat yang dibutuhkan harus dapat memenuhi parameter pengadukan pada setiap rentang debit minimum dan maksimum. Tercapainya kriteria pengadukan akan meningkatkan efektivitas tahapan pengolahan selanjutnya. Kata kunci : Pengadukan, baffled channel ABSTRACT Runoff in open pit areas commonly contain high levels of turbidity and/or low level of pH, its requiring processing before entering the environment. Active processing is an effective method to be applied, where there is rapid mixing stage aim to blend chemical substances. The purpose of this literature study is to see potential of applications the hydraulic mixing using baffled channel to increase effectiveness. The configuration of the pond must be consist of two or more compartments in order to the process run well, attenuation pond at the upstream and at downstream pond that can be labyrinth pond or meandering. The baffled channel can be positioned at outlet channel from the attenuation pond. A rapid mix will successful when required gradient of velocity (G) and the detention time (dt) are reached. The parameter can be engineered to meet these requirements are the amount of baffled along the channel. Number of partition needed should be able to meet the wedge parameters at minimum and maximum discharge range. Attaining criteria will increase the effectiveness of the next processing stage. Keywords: mixing, baffled channel

Dynamic switching between intrinsic and extrinsic mode networks as demands change from passive to active processing

We here report on the relationship between default and extrinsic mode networks across alternating brief periods of rest and active task processing. We used three different visual tasks: mental rotation, working memory and mental arithmetic in a classic fMRI ON-OFF block design where task (ON) blocks alternated with equal periods of rest (OFF) blocks. By analysing data in two ways, using an ON-OFF contrast, we showed the existence of a generalized task-positive network, labelled the extrinsic mode network (EMN) which was anti-correlated with the default mode network (DMN) as processing demands shifted from rest to active processing. We then identified two key regions of interest (ROIs) in the SMA and Precuneus/PCC regions as hubs for the extrinsic and intrinsic networks, and extracted the time-course from these ROIs. The results showed a close to perfect correlations for the SMA and Precuneus/PCC time-courses for ON-respective OFF-blocks. We suggest the existence of two large-scale networks, an extrinsic mode network and an intrinsic mode network, respectively, which are up- and down-regulated as environmental demands change from active to passive processing.

Spontaneous and automatic processing of magnitude and parity information of Arabic digits: A frequency-tagging EEG study

Arabic digits (1-9) are everywhere in our daily lives. These symbols convey various semantic information, and numerate adults can easily extract from them several numerical features such as magnitude and parity. Nonetheless, since most studies used active processing tasks to assess these properties, it remains unclear whether and to what degree the access to magnitude and especially to parity is automatic. Here we investigated with EEG whether spontaneous processing of magnitude or parity can be recorded in a frequency-tagging approach, in which participants are passively stimulated by fast visual sequences of Arabic digits. We assessed automatic magnitude processing by presenting a stream of frequent small digit numbers mixed with deviant large digits (and the reverse) with a sinusoidal contrast modulation at the frequency of 10 Hz. We used the same paradigm to investigate numerical parity processing, contrasting odd digits to even digits. We found significant brain responses at the frequency of the fluctuating change and its harmonics, recorded on electrodes encompassing right occipitoparietal regions, in both conditions. Our findings indicate that both magnitude and parity are spontaneously and unintentionally extracted from Arabic digits, which supports that they are salient semantic features deeply associated to digit symbols in long-term memory.