Spectral Characteristics of EEG during Active Emotional Musical Performance

The research on neural correlates of intentional emotion communication by the music performer is still limited. In this study, we attempted to evaluate EEG patterns recorded from musicians who were instructed to perform a simple piano score while manipulating their manner of play to express specific contrasting emotions and self-rate the emotion they reflected on the scales of arousal and valence. In the emotional playing task, participants were instructed to improvise variations in a manner by which the targeted emotion is communicated. In contrast, in the neutral playing task, participants were asked to play the same piece precisely as written to obtain data for control over general patterns of motor and sensory activation during playing. The spectral analysis of the signal was applied as an initial step to be able to connect findings to the wider field of music-emotion research. The experimental contrast of emotional playing vs. neutral playing was employed to probe brain activity patterns differentially involved in distinct emotional states. The tasks of emotional and neutral playing differed considerably with respect to the state of intended-to-transfer emotion arousal and valence levels. The EEG activity differences were observed between distressed/excited and neutral/depressed/relaxed playing.

Rebuilding sustainable place through the embodied image of the peranakan chinese house: Study of Kidang Mas in Lasem, Indonesia through Juhani Pallasmaa’s perspective

This article is grown from a dialogue between Mr. Rudi’s childhood story as the sixth generation of Kidang Mas and the phenomenological perspective of Juhani Pallasmaa. Phenomenology by Pallasmaa is a powerful research strategy that is well suited for exploring the image within the Peranakan house of Kidang Mas. The strategy is expected to build a better understanding of the value of the Peranakan house. Pallasmaa’s perspective also proposes the “hands” to grasp the experiences through verbal sources turning into a concrete image. Verbal sources obtained from flowing and in-depth interviews supported by sensory activation, which engendered various fascinating and memorable childhood stories and activated all human senses. While the concrete images are conveyed through pictures based on the three most favorite childhood memory activities. The drawings were done using a pencil on paper. It is expected to elevate the sense of attachment of homeowners, local people, and visitors to the place which caused appreciation to the embodiment of Peranakan houses in Lasem as heritage buildings. This article gives another understanding of “rebuilding” sustainable place through the embodied image of Peranakan house in Lasem. The article also serves as a medium for disseminating knowledge about one of the Indonesian cultures to the wider audience.

State-Dependent Synchrony and Functional Connectivity in the Primary and Secondary Whisker Somatosensory Cortices

Synchronized activity plays an important role in sensory coding and memory and is a hallmark of functional network connectivity. However, the effect of sensory activation on synchronization and cortical functional connectivity is largely unknown. In this study, we investigated the effect of whisker activation on synchronization and functional connectivity of the primary (wS1) and secondary (wS2) whisker somatosensory cortices at the single-cell level. The results showed that during the spontaneous pre-stimulus state, neurons tended to be functionally connected with nearby neurons which shared similar tuning characteristics. Whisker activation using either ramp-and-hold stimulation or artificial whisking against sandpaper has significantly reduced the average overall pairwise synchronization and functional connectivity within the wS1 barrel and wS2 cortices. Whisker stimulation disconnected approximately a third of neuronal pairs that were functionally connected during the unstimulated state. Nearby neurons with congruent tuning properties were more likely to remain functionally connected during whisker activation. The findings of this study indicated that cortical somatosensory networks are organized in non-random small world networks composed of neurons sharing relatively similar tuning properties. Sensory whisker activation intensifies these properties and further subdivides the cortical network into smaller more functionally uniform subnetworks, which possibly serve to increase the computational capacity of the network.

PARADIGMA KONTEMPORER SISTEM PEMBELAJARAN AL QUR’AN PADA ANAK USIA DINI DI LEMBAGA TAHSIN QUR’AN KAUQOY PRIVATE

Al-Qur’an sebagai kalamullah mengandung asas pengajaran karena mencakup ajaran-ajaran Islam yang menata kehidupan kaum muslimin dalam segala aspek di dunia dan akhirat. Pemahaman al-Qur’an terutama bagi anak harus dimulai sejak dini melalui kegiatan membaca dan menulis yang dilanjutkan dengan memahami ajaran agama Islam secara bertahap. Namun faktanya, sistem pembelajaran Al Qur’an terutama bagi anak usia dini masih monoton dan kurang menarik karena masih menerapkan paradigma pembelajaran yang berpusat pada pengajar. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mendeskripsikan sistem pembelajaran al-Qur’an di lembaga Tahsin Qur’an Ka’Uqoy Private dengan jenis penelitian kualitatif deskriptif dan menggunakan teknik pengumpulan data observasi, wawancara, serta dokumentasi. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa sistem pembelajaran al-Qur’an di lembaga Tahsin Qur’an Ka’Uqoy menerapkan paradigma konstruksionisme dengan hanya menggunakan satu peraga yaitu alat indera melalui ragam interaksi dengan lingkungan sekitarnya seperti melihat, mendengar, menyentuh, dan merasakannya. Melalui pengaktifan indrawi, seorang anak bisa membangun gambaran dalam dunia belajarnya. Lembaga ini telah mencetak pengajar yang mampu mengajarkan Al-Qur’an dengan mudah untuk difahami terutama bagi anak usia dini dengan cara ikut terlibat langsung dalam mencerna, mengolah, mengalami, memahami, merasakan dan mempraktikkan isi kandungan Al-Qur’an dengan fun learning sehingga para anak usia dini lebih mudah dalam menangkap ilmu Al-Qur’an dan menerimanya dengan senang hati. Al-Qur'an as kalamullah contains teaching principles because it includes Islamic teachings that organize the lives of Muslims in all aspects. Understanding the Qur'an, especially for children, must start early through reading and writing activities which are continued by gradually understanding the teachings of Islam. However, the fact is that the learning system of the Qur'an, especially for early childhood, is still monotonous and less interesting because it still applies a teacher-centered learning paradigm. This study aims to describe the al-Qur'an learning system in the Tahsin Qur'an ka'Uqoy Private institution with a descriptive qualitative research that uses some data collection techniques. The results showed that the al-Qur'an learning system in the tahsin Qur'an ka'Uqoy institution applies the constructionism paradigm by using only an instrument namely the senses through various interactions with the surrounding environment such as seeing, hearing, touching, and feeling it. Through sensory activation, a child can build a picture in the world of learning. This institution has produced teachers who are able to teach the Qur'an easily to be understood, especially for early childhood by being directly involved in digesting, processing, experiencing, understanding, tasting and practicing the contents of the Al- The Qur'an with fun learning so that early childhood can more easily grasp the knowledge of the Qur'an.

Continuity within somatosensory cortical map shapes the integration of optogenetic input

The topographic organization of sensory cortices is a prominent feature, but its functional role remains unclear. Particularly, how activity is integrated within a cortical area depending on its topography is unknown. Here, we trained mice expressing channelrhodopsin in cortical excitatory neurons to track a bar photostimulation that rotated smoothly over the primary somatosensory cortex (S1). When photostimulation was aimed at vS1, the area which contains a contiguous representation of the whisker array at the periphery, mice could learn to discriminate angular positions of the bar to obtain a reward. In contrast, they could not learn the task when the photostimulation was aimed at the representation of the trunk and legs in S1, where neighboring zones represent distant peripheral body parts, introducing discontinuities. Mice demonstrated anticipation of reward availability, specifically when cortical topography enabled to predict future sensory activation. These results are particularly helpful for designing efficient cortical sensory neuroprostheses.

Neural, functional, and aesthetic impacts of spatially heterogeneous flicker: A potential role of natural flicker

Spatially heterogeneous flicker, characterized by probabilistic and locally independent luminance modulations, abounds in nature. It is generated by flames, water surfaces, rustling leaves, and so on, and it is pleasant to the senses. It affords spatiotemporal multistability that allows sensory activation conforming to the biases of the visual system, thereby generating the perception of spontaneous motion and likely facilitating the calibration of motion detectors. One may thus hypothesize that spatially heterogeneous flicker might potentially provide restoring stimuli to the visual system that engage fluent (requiring minimal top-down control) and self-calibrating processes. Here, we present some converging behavioral and electrophysiological evidence consistent with this idea. Spatially heterogeneous (multistable) flicker (relative to controls matched in temporal statistics) reduced posterior EEG (electroencephalography) beta power implicated in long-range neural interactions that impose top-down influences on sensory processing. Further, the degree of spatiotemporal multistability, the amount of posterior beta-power reduction, and the aesthetic responses to flicker were closely associated. These results are consistent with the idea that the pleasantness of natural flicker may derive from its spatiotemporal multistability that affords fluent and self-calibrating visual processing.

V1 microcircuit dynamics: altered signal propagation suggests intracortical origins for adaptation in response to visual repetition

Repetitive visual stimulation profoundly changes sensory processing in the primary visual cortex (V1). We show how the associated adaptive changes are linked to an altered flow of synaptic activation across the V1 laminar microcircuit. Using repeated visual stimulation, we recorded layer-specific responses in V1 of two fixating monkeys. We found that repetition-related spiking suppression was most pronounced outside granular V1 layers that receive the main retinogeniculate input. This repetition-related response suppression was robust to alternating stimuli between the eyes, in line with the notion that repetition-related adaptation is predominantly of cortical origin. Most importantly, current source density (CSD) analysis, which provides an estimate of local net depolarization, revealed that synaptic processing during repeated stimulation was most profoundly affected within supragranular layers, which harbor the bulk of cortico-cortical connections. Direct comparison of the temporal evolution of laminar CSD and spiking activity showed that stimulus repetition first affected supragranular synaptic currents, which translated into a reduction of stimulus-evoked spiking across layers. Together, these results suggest that repetition induces an altered state of intracortical processing that underpins visual adaptation. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Our survival depends on our brains rapidly adapting to ever changing environments. A well-studied form of adaptation occurs whenever we encounter the same or similar stimuli repeatedly. We show that this repetition-related adaptation is supported by systematic changes in the flow of sensory activation across the laminar cortical microcircuitry of primary visual cortex. These results demonstrate how adaptation impacts neuronal interactions across cortical circuits.

An embodied approach to consumer experiences: the Hollister brandscape

Purpose This paper aims to use embodied theory to analyze consumer experience in a retail brandscape, Hollister Co. By taking a holistic, embodied approach, this study reveals how individual consumers interact with such retail environments in corporeal, instinctive and sensual ways. Design/methodology/approach The primary source of data was 97 subjective personal introspective accounts undertaken with the target age group for the store. These were supplemented with in-depth interviews with consumers, managers and employees of Hollister. Findings The authors offer a conceptualization of consumers’ embodied experience, which they term The Immersive Somascape Experience. This identifies four key touch points that evoke the Hollister store experience – each of which reveals how the body is affected by particular relational and material specificities. These are sensory activation, brand materialities, corporeal relationality and (dis)orientation. These may lead to consumer emplacement. Research limitations/implications The authors propose that taking an “intelligible embodiment” approach to consumer experiences in retail contexts provides a deeper, more holistic understanding of the embodied processes involved. They also suggest that more anthropological, body-grounded studies are needed for the unique insights they provide. Finally, they note that there is growing consumer demand for experiences, which, they argue, points to the need for more research from an embodied experience perspective in our field. Practical implications The study reveals the perils and pitfalls of adopting a sensory marketing perspective. It also offers insights into how the body leads in retail brandscapes, addressing a lack in such approaches in the current retailing literature and suggesting that embodied, experiential aspects of branding are increasingly pertinent in retailing in light of the continued growth of on-line shopping. Originality/value Overall, the study shows how an embodied approach challenges the dominance of mind and representation over body and materiality, suggesting an “intelligible embodiment” lens offers unique insights into consumers’ embodied experiences in retail environments.

Locomotor-related V3 interneurons initiate and coordinate muscles spasms after spinal cord injury

Spinal cord injury leads to a devastating loss of motor function and yet is accompanied by a paradoxical emergence of muscle spasms, which often involve complex muscle activation patterns across multiple joints, reciprocal muscle timing, and rhythmic clonus. We investigated the hypothesis that spasms are a manifestation of partially recovered function in spinal central pattern-generating (CPG) circuits that normally coordinate complex postural and locomotor functions. We focused on the commissural propriospinal V3 neurons that coordinate interlimb movements during locomotion and examined mice with a chronic spinal transection. When the V3 neurons were optogenetically activated with a light pulse, a complex coordinated pattern of motoneuron activity was evoked with reciprocal, crossed, and intersegmental activity. In these same mice, brief sensory stimulation evoked spasms with a complex pattern of activity very similar to that evoked by light, and the timing of these spasms was readily reset by activation of V3 neurons. Given that V3 neurons receive abundant sensory input, these results suggest that sensory activation of V3 neurons is alone sufficient to generate spasms. Indeed, when we silenced V3 neurons optogenetically, sensory evoked spasms were inhibited. Also, inhibiting general CPG activity by blocking N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptors inhibited V3 evoked activity and associated spasms, whereas NMDA application did the opposite. Furthermore, overwhelming the V3 neurons with repeated optogenetic stimulation inhibited subsequent sensory evoked spasms, both in vivo and in vitro. Taken together, these results demonstrate that spasms are generated in part by sensory activation of V3 neurons and associated CPG circuits. NEW & NOTEWORTHY We investigated whether locomotor-related excitatory interneurons (V3) play a role in coordinating muscle spasm activity after spinal cord injury (SCI). Unexpectedly, we found that these neurons not only coordinate reciprocal motor activity but are critical for initiating spasms, as well. More generally, these results suggest that V3 neurons are important in initiating and coordinating motor output after SCI and thus provide a promising target for restoring residual motor function.