The asymptotic bias of minimum trace factor analysis, with applications to the greatest lower bound to reliability

In theory, the greatest lower bound (g.l.b.) to reliability is the best possible lower bound to the reliability based on single test administration. Yet the practical use of the g.l.b. has been severely hindered by sampling bias problems. It is well known that the g.l.b. based on small samples (even a sample of one thousand subjects is not generally enough) may severely overestimate the population value, and statistical treatment of the bias has been badly missing. The only results obtained so far are concerned with the asymptotic variance of the g.l.b. and of its numerator (the maximum possible error variance of a test), based on first order derivatives and the asumption of multivariate normality. The present paper extends these results by offering explicit expressions for the second order derivatives. This yields a closed form expression for the asymptotic bias of both the g.l.b. and its numerator, under the assumptions that the rank of the reduced covariance matrix is at or above the Ledermann bound, and that the nonnegativity constraints on the diagonal elements of the matrix of unique variances are inactive. It is also shown that, when the reduced rank is at its highest possible value (i.e., the number of variables minus one), the numerator of the g.l.b. is asymptotically unbiased, and the asymptotic bias of the g.l.b. is negative. The latter results are contrary to common belief, but apply only to cases where the number of variables is small. The asymptotic results are illustrated by numerical examples.This research was supported by grant DMI-9713878 from the National Science Foundation.     

害羞者对模糊情境信息的解释偏向

以模糊情境句子和形容词为刺激材料,分别采用文本材料范式和改编的词汇情境联接范式,对害羞者的延时解释和即时解释偏向特点进行探讨。结果发现：害羞者对模糊情境信息不仅缺乏积极的即时解释偏向特点,而且也缺乏积极的延时解释偏向特点;害羞者未表现出消极的即时和延时解释偏向特点。研究表明害羞者可能是社交焦虑的前期阶段,对害羞者的干预可以通过引导其积极的解释偏向的方式来实现。     

社会规范的跨文化比较

对中、日、美三国的社会规范进行了比较研究。被试为北京1434人,大阪608人,洛杉矶1409人。在3方共同研讨基础上编制了统一的调查问卷,共67个项目。采用SPSS 10.0软件对结果进行了多元统计、解析。结果表明：（1）三国国民的社会规范的基本维度是一致的,包括伦理道德、价值取向、法律规章和社会习俗4个维度。其中,伦理道德和价值取向组成内控规范,法律规章和社会习俗组成外控规范。（2）中日两国的社会规范都是以内控规范为主,外控规范为辅。中国人在内控规范中,以伦理道德为主,价值取向为次;在外控规范中,法律规章为主,社会习俗为辅。而日本人的内控规范中却以价值取向为主,伦理道德为辅。（3）美国人的社会规范以外控为主,内控为辅。在外控的两大维度中,法律规章为主,社会习俗为次;在内控规范中,以价值取向为主,伦理道德为辅。尽管三国之间有着相同的规范维度,但组成各规范维度的具体规范,既有超越特定文化的共同规范,又存在着依存于特定文化的特殊规范。社会规范的文化差异是导致管理冲突的根本原因。     

权力感对社会排斥下自我关注的调节作用

采用实验法探讨在回忆和现实排斥情境下,不同社会排斥类型对大学生外显和内隐自我关注的影响及权力感的调节作用。实验1初步证实在两种排斥情境下,与拒绝型相比,忽视型被试的外显和内隐自我关注水平较高。实验2进一步证实权力感在忽视型对外显自我关注的影响中具有调节作用。结果表明,忽视型社会排斥威胁功效需要进而引发个体提高自我关注水平;情境因素对社会排斥产生的影响相同。     

Changes in motor synergies for tracking movement and responses to perturbations depend on task-irrelevant dimension constraints

We investigated the changes in the motor synergies of target-tracking movements of hands and the responses to perturbation when the dimensionalities of target positions were changed. We used uncontrolled manifold (UCM) analyses to quantify the motor synergies. The target was changed from one to two dimensions, and the direction orthogonal to the movement direction was switched from task-irrelevant directions to task-relevant directions. The movement direction was task-relevant in both task conditions. Hence, we evaluated the effects of constraints on the redundant dimensions on movement tracking. Moreover, we could compare the two types of responses to the same directional perturbations in one- and two-dimensional target tasks. In the one-dimensional target task, the perturbation along the movement direction and the orthogonal direction were task-relevant and -irrelevant perturbations, respectively. In the two-dimensional target task, the both perturbations were task-relevant perturbations. The results of the experiments showed that the variabilities of the hand positions in the two-dimensional target-tracking task decreased, but the variances of the joint angles did not significantly change. For the task-irrelevant perturbations, the variances of the joint angles within the UCM that did not affect hand position (UCM component) increased. For the task-relevant perturbations, the UCM component tended to increase when the available UCM was large. These results suggest that humans discriminate whether the perturbations were task-relevant or -irrelevant and then adjust the responses of the joints by utilizing the available UCM.     

Two-dimensional Langevin approach to the human stabilogram

Two-dimensional Langevin equation is considered as a model of the center of pressure (COP) random walk at quiet standing condition. The matrix of the mean square displacement describes quantitatively the COP random walk. Twenty-six young subjects were included in the study. Elements of the matrix of the mean square displacement derived from experimental data are well approximated by theoretical expressions derived from the Langevin equation, in the short-term regime. We have studied statistical properties of the COP displacements. Non-Gaussian behaviour of the displacements is indicated by the characteristic functions. New coordinate system constituted and utilised by the postural control system (PCS) was found for every subject. This new coordinate system is turned with respect to the system defined by the anatomy of the body. In this new coordinate system the matrix of the mean square displacement takes the form close to diagonal. The status of PCS in this new coordinate system can be quantified by the elements of the diffusion matrix, which are the measure of the stochastic activity of that system, rotation angle of new coordinate system and the friction coefficient. We have applied this analysis to examine how the visual inputs affect the PCS. We have found that the stochastic activity of the PCS increases after exclusion of the visual inputs. We have also shown that the visual system does not affect the friction coefficient. Furthermore, we have found that orientation of the new coordinate system chosen by PCS at included visual inputs differs from the orientation at excluded visual inputs.     

《周易正义》之编撰

唐代为五经撰正义,为注疏统一之始。清儒服膺汉学,主翔实,故于《正义》多所讥诋,讥其虚浮。然唐时,儒玄合流,既已蔚为风气,孔氏《周易正义》之所以以形上学为纲纪者,亦非无故。此外,《周易正义》释义先以辅嗣为本,旁引汉魏南北朝诸说以供参证,有驳有断、有议有辩,与《书》《诗》《札记》诸疏之参据旧疏、杂出众手者不同。具体而言,《周易正义》调融南北,荟萃诸家,故用王而不固于王;参以玄言,故义理架构颇与老庄相通;渐染于浮屠,故排佛而用佛;发明义例、考辨意旨,自下新义,故有学术价值可言,尤宋人疑古开新之先导,非株守一先生说者可比。     

Collective fields of consciousness in the golden age

The present essay is a concise form of results obtained during many decades of research in the primeval foundations of collective social and consciousness fields. We point out that a yet unknown type of forces existed in the Golden Age, which we termed collective force. In the Golden Age mankind lived in communities which had a full unity. The communal life developed its collective forms, of which the most significant are the development of human speech, of language, share of work and the development of the communal fests. The law determining the primeval origins of mind is the cosmic law of interactions. It defines the substance of the Universe and the ways of its existence and activity. A detailed analysis is presented on the nature of the interaction there. One consequence of this fundamental principle is the general prevalence of the principle of mutuality, which plays a basic role in the understanding of the unfolding and degeneration of consciousness. The principle of mutuality determines the changes of every level of life. The laws of the generation of consciousness in the ages of evolution toward Homo and the Golden Age are analysed. Evidences were found proving the historical reality of the Golden Age, surviving in the traditions of mankind in every part of the world, and its overthrow before the Flood, which resulted in the dethronement of the primeval mind, the human consciousness of the Golden Age and the subsequent— and necessary—emergence of the superficial, rational mind.

Starting from the consideration that our mind is the imprint of history, we have recognised the phenomenon of the dual mind, the somewhat antagonistic duality of human consciousness. We think we have succeeded in solving the riddle of the dual mind and determining its substance. Our dual mind, consisting of the ‘upper’ or rational mind and the ‘underlying mind’, is the product of the two fundamental ages of mankind, that of the Golden Age and that of power domination. Therefore it reflects the duality of our history.     

热手谬误？赌徒谬误？ ——随机序列知觉中近因效应的格式塔现象研究

通过两个实验来探讨随机序列中的近因效应。在实验1中,采用传统实验范式,让被试进行一系列的抛掷硬币结果的猜测并给予反馈,结果发现：（1）在最近连续几次硬币呈现的结果不同时,人们通常把各个结果分别作为独立的单元来看待,大部分情况下做出随机性的预期;（2）在最近连续几次硬币呈现的结果相同时,人们通常把连续几次相同的结果作为一个认知单元来看待,在最近猜测对错两种情况下分别出现了截然相反的两种近因效应。当最近1次猜对时,对下一结果的预期出现正近因效应即热手谬误,但是最近几次连续猜对时谬误减少乃至消失;当最近1次猜错时,对下一结果的预期出现负近因效应即赌徒谬误,并且最近几次连续猜错时负近因效应并未受到太大影响。实验2在实验1范式的基础上,把硬币抛掷的结果人为分组,发现被试对每一组的第一个结果做出预期时,实验1中的各种效应均消失,该现象支持关于随机序列知觉的“格式塔理论”。     

Suicide in the U.S. Army: epidemiological and periodic aspects

An overview of suicide in the U.S. Army is presented in two sections: (1) the epidemiology of U.S. Army suicides, based on biennium reports, and (2) the temporal aspects of those suicides compared with the data for the United States as a whole. A brief historical review documents some of the changes in contemporary military suicide rates compared to those of the past century. The cycles in the number of suicides by day of the week, day of the month, and the month of the year for the U.S. Army are computed and contrasted with those reported for the U.S. resident population.     

Good Advice

Advice is interesting because it is a relationship that is built upon two asymmetries. Advice concerns what the advisee ought to do. For that reason, considerations of autonomy suggest that the advisee has a greater claim on what matters in deliberation. However, the advisor is wiser than the advisee. That suggests that the advisor has a greater insight into what matters in deliberation. These are the asymmetry of autonomy and the asymmetry of wisdom. To account for both, I argue for informed subjectivism. Informed subjectivism is the view that the quality of advice is determined by the likelihood that the advisee would consistently prefer acting on the advice to not acting the advice. The theory captures the asymmetry of autonomy by making the quality of advice based on the advisee’s judgment. It captures the asymmetry of wisdom by making the relevant judgments of the advisee be ones that are informed by experience.     

The Relationship Between Personal Values and the Perception of the Corporation's Code of Ethics

Most major corporations have instituted codes of ethics to encourage ethical behavior. However, recent studies suggest that these codes are not always effective. One reason that the codes might be ineffective is because the values represented in the code do not correspond with the employee's personal values. The more the code represents values that the individual agrees with, the more positively the employee may view the document. In turn, when the code is viewed positively, transgressions of the code will be viewed negatively. In the present study, employees of a large petrochemical company responded to a survey which solicited their personal values, their perception of the company's values, and their perception of the values behind the organization's code of ethics. In line with the hypothesis, the more similar the values of the code were to the person's values, the more favorable was the evaluation of the code. Similarly the more favorable the evaluation, the more violations of the code were perceived as immoral.     

内在父亲:理论及其意义

内在父亲是指子女对父亲的内在的、主观的体验,由象征性父亲、内化的父亲体验和父亲意象三成分构成。本文综合回顾内在父亲三成分的理论实质及其与相关心理学理论的关系,在此基础上探讨这一理论的临床意义、家庭意义和社会意义。最后对内在父亲理论的实证研究、跨文化研究、临床干预实践与研究等进行思考和展望。     

Assessment of proneness to distraction: English adaptation and validation of the Attention-Related Driving Errors Scale (ARDES) and cross-cultural equivalence

Prior research developed the Attention-Related Driving Errors Scale (ARDES), a 19-item questionnaire aimed at evaluating the drivers’ predisposition to attentional error, and also provided validity evidence of ARDES measures across two countries: Argentina and Spain. In the current work we adapt the Spanish version of the ARDES to the English language and the culture, traffic regulations and driving habits of the UK, and then provide new evidence of the cross-cultural equivalence of the scale. First, an improved forward and backward translation design was used to translate the Spanish ARDES into English. A committee-approach review process was also performed during the translation phase to guarantee that the English ARDES was the most appropriate to reflect the language, culture, traffic regulations and driving habits of the UK. Second, the adapted questionnaire was tested on 301 British drivers to inspect its psychometric properties and study the relationships between the ARDES-UK and different socio-demographic variables. In agreement with the previous literature, the results of the factor analysis confirmed a single factor and accounting for 33.84% of the variance. Cronbach’s alpha was equal to .89. The observed pattern of relationships of the scores and the different socio-demographic variables was consistent with previous evidence and support the validity of the adapted questionnaire. For example, the ARDES-UK scores were significantly different between drivers reporting and not reporting traffic accidents with material damage. To conclude with, the translation design and the resulting psychometric suggest the validity of ARDES-UK measures for evaluating the British drivers’ predisposition to attentional error. In addition, the evidence in the current work supports the hypothesis of the cross-cultural stability of the scale across Spain and the UK.     

Some Characteristics of EMG Patterns During Locomotion

Myoelectric signals from several muscles of the lower limb were studied under various speed and stride length conditions. The main purpose was to determine invariant and variant features among these myoelectric patterns. A pattern recognition algorithm was used to analyze these activity patterns. Within-condition analysis revealed some common features among the EMG patterns. This suggests that the nervous system does not have to generate all the muscle activity patterns, only the common features that can, in appropriate combination, produce the necessary activity patterns. From the across condition analysis, the following rules emerged. First, both phasic component and magnitude (d.c. level) of the muscle activity patterns have to be modulated to meet the demands imposed by the various conditions. Second, the variability in the proximal muscle activity patterns across conditions are higher than the distal muscle activity patterns. Within each group, the extensor muscles and double-jointed muscles show greater variability than the flexor muscles and single-jointed muscles. And finally, the changes in the average value (d.c. level) of the muscle activity patterns across conditions are not uniform but show muscle and task specificity. For example, within the speed condition, the increase in d.c. level of the extensors with speed of locomotion show a proximal to distal trend. Based on these results, a conceptual model for the human locomotor control process is proposed.     

To catch a thief with a recognition test: The model and some empirical results

The purpose of the present paper is to describe a new technique and a mathematical model--called the "Catch model"--for identifying a face previously seen (i.e., the target face). Both the technique and the model were developed on the basis of the general approach of information processing used with respect to human memory. Subjects were presented with a pair of test faces on each trial. Neither of the test faces was the target face. Their task was to choose from the two test faces the one most similar to the target face. The data furnished by the subjects were used to reconstruct the target face in the following way: At each trial the differentiating values, such as a long nose and blue eyes, of the test face chosen by the subject were recorded. These values were the ones that accounted for the difference between the two test faces. Over the whole run of the test trials, the differentiating values were associated with various frequencies of occurrence. The target face was reconstructed by selecting the differentiating values having the highest frequency of occurrence. Only one differentiating value per facial dimension such as a nose and eyes could be selected. Thus, given that the facial dimension of the nose has three different values consisting of the long, short, and wide varieties of nose, the value chosen would be the one associated with the highest frequency of occurrence. Mathematical derivations show that, given different variations of the proposed technique, the target face will be detected. These derivations were supported by the results of three experiments.     

Perceived warmth and skin temperature as functions of the duration and level of thermal irradiation!

This study examined the correlations among the degree of perceived warmth. the level and duration of irradiant flux. and the thermal response of the skin. For any constant duration. perceived warmth grew as a power function of the difference between the irradiant flux of the stimulus and the flux that approximates the absolute threshold for warmth. The exponent of the power function was about 0.87 for the shortest durations (2—6 sec). but rose to 1.04 for the longest duration of exposure (12 sec). For any constant level of flux. perceived warmth changed only slightly with duration. In contrast, superficial skin temperature. and inferred temperatures of deeper layers of the skin, rose continuously and markedly with duration. Neither the change in tissue temperature. nor the rate of change of tissue temperature, nor thermal gradient correlated consistently with level of perceived warmth. The change in the difference between the temperature 0.2 mm and that 1.0 mm below the skin surface provided a fairly good but not perfect correlate to perceived warmth. The findings suggest the possibility that sensory adaptation at the site of the receptor system mediating warmth could act in such a way as nearly to offset the effect of rising skin temperature with increased duration ofstimulation.     

Depth as an Extra Spatial Dimension and its Implications for Cosmology and Gravity Theory

I develop the idea that there exists a special dimension of depth, or of scale. The depth dimension is physically real and extends from the bottom micro-level to the ultimate macro-level of the Universe. The depth dimension, or the scales axis, complements the standard three spatial dimensions. I discuss the tentative qualities of the depth dimension and the universal arrangement of matter along this dimension. I suggest that all matter in the Universe, at least in the present cosmological epoch, is in joint downward motion along the depth dimension. The joint downward motion manifests itself in the universal contraction of matter. The opposite direction of motion, upward the dimension, would cause the expansion of matter. The contraction of matter is a primary factor, whereas the shrinking of space in the vicinity of matter is a derivative phenomenon. The observed expansion of the Universe is explained by the fact that celestial bodies become smaller due to matter contraction, while the overall space remains predominantly intact. Thus, relative to the contracting material bodies, the total span of cosmic space appears to be becoming vaster. I attempt to explain how the contraction of matter engenders the effect of universal gravity. I use over thirty animated and graphical color visualizations in the text to make the explanation of the proposed ideas more lucid.     

Les vicissitudes du préjudice d’agrément

The fate of the loss of amenity has always been related to the right of recourse of the third-party payers against the person in charge of the damage. The loss of amenity has been recognized by Law of the 27 December 1973. It was at that time that it was excluded from the recourse of the third-party payers. It was not the case of the physiological injuries which had always been submitted to the recourse of the third-party payers. At first, these injuries had included the disorders in the conditions of existence. But in 2005, the Dintilhac nomenclature adopted a restrictive conception of the loss of amenity. This damage is now defined as the impossibility to practice regularly a specific activity of sport or leisure. In addition, the Law of 21 December 2006 imposed on third-party payers to exercise their action only on pecuniary damage. The physiological injuries were therefore excluded from this action. The strict definition of loss of amenity is both adopted in Civil Law and Social law. But in these two areas, the analysis of the judicial practice reveals that it is undermined the right for the full repair of the victims under their loss of amenity. Accordingly, the question of the opportunity to widen once more the definition of the loss of amenity arises today.     

声旁语音信息对形声字加工的影响——来自眼动研究的证据

与拼音文字不同, 汉字是形义结合更紧密的文字, 因此语音信息在语义通达中的作用一直是汉语加工研究中存在争议的问题。形声字作为汉字的主体(80%), 其声旁在一定程度上提供了字的语音信息, 本文通过两项眼动研究考察了左右结构和上下结构形声字的声旁语音信息对形声字加工的影响。结果发现, 当声旁在右或声旁在下时, 省前与略后条件没有显著差异, 甚至出现差异的逆转, 也就是说当略后的笔画中包含声旁时, 亚词汇层面的声旁语音信息会影响到“笔画顺序效应”, 实验结果说明声旁的语音信息对形声字的加工起到重要作用。