Contrast of hemispheric lateralization for oro-facial movements between learned attention-getting sounds and species-typical vocalizations in chimpanzees: Extension in a second colony

Studies involving oro-facial asymmetries in nonhuman primates have largely demonstrated a right hemispheric dominance for communicative signals and conveyance of emotional information. A recent study on chimpanzee reported the first evidence of significant left-hemispheric dominance when using attention-getting sounds and rightward bias for species-typical vocalizations (Losin, Russell, Freeman, Meguerditchian, Hopkins & Fitch, 2008). The current study sought to extend the findings from Losin et al. (2008) with additional oro-facial assessment in a new colony of chimpanzees. When combining the two populations, the results indicated a consistent leftward bias for attention-getting sounds and a right lateralization for species-typical vocalizations. Collectively, the results suggest that both voluntary-controlled oro-facial and gestural communication might share the same left-hemispheric specialization and might have coevolved into a single integrated system present in a common hominid ancestor.     

On-the-spot study of pedestrian crashes on Brazilian Federal District rural highways crossing urban areas

Knowledge of the factors that contribute to pedestrian crashes is fundamental to the design of engineering, enforcement and education measures to decrease the number and severity of these crashes. To identify the factors that contribute to pedestrian crashes on rural highways crossing urban areas in the Federal District, Brazil, an investigatory procedure was developed. The procedure was implemented by the Federal District Road Department (DER–DF) for a period of 6 months. This study presents the investigatory method and the results. Data analysis indicated the importance of conducting detailed studies of the factors that contribute to pedestrian crashes. The main contributory factors identified are presented and discussed.     

Theologians Wanted! Some Reflections about the Creation/Evolution Debate

I plead here in favor of more frequent recourse to and input from theologians, in debates about the creationist crisis, not only in order to develop new aspects of theology concerning creation, but also to undertake a real theological diagnosis of this crisis. The task of theology is not simply to write catechisms or Summae, but it is much more to do with incompleteness, light and shade. Theologians must confront themselves with reality—like secular theology at the seventeenth century, but also natural theologies—without forgetting to pose limits: absolute power of God, reality of the evil, scientific discoveries that are negative for theology, etc. Theology is a work of revelation (apocalypse).     

Diagnostic colours contribute to the early stages of scene categorization: Behavioural and neurophysiological evidence

We examined the effects of colour cues on the express categorization of natural scenes. Using a go/no-go paradigm sensitive to fast recognition processes, we measured early event-related potential (ERP) correlates of scene categorization to elucidate the processing stage at which colour contributes to scene recognition. Observers were presented with scenes belonging to four colour-diagnostic categories (desert, forest, canyon and coastline). Scenes were presented in one of three forms: Diagnostically coloured, nondiagnostically coloured, or greyscale images. In a verification task, observers were instructed to respond whenever the presented stimulus matched a previously presented category name. Reaction times and accuracy were optimal when the stimuli were presented as their original diagnostically coloured version, followed by their greyscale version, and lastly by their nondiagostically coloured version. These effects were mirrored in the early (i.e., 150 ms following stimulus onset) ERP frontal correlates. Their onset was delayed for greyscale scenes compared to diagnostically coloured scenes, and for nondiagnostically coloured scenes compared to the other two conditions. Frontal ERP amplitudes also decreased for greyscale and nondiagnostically coloured scenes. Together, the results suggest that diagnostic colours are part of the scene gist responsible for express scene categorization.     

Working Memory in Children Predicts Performance on a Gambling Task

ABSTRACT. The authors investigated whether working memory (WM) plays a significant role in the development of decision making in children, operationalized by the Children's Gambling Task (CGT). A total of 105 children aged 6–7, 8–9, and 10–11 years old carried out the CGT. Children aged 6–7 years old were found to have a lower performance than older children, which shows that the CGT is sensitive to participant's age. The hypothesis that WM plays a significant role in decision making was then tested following two approaches: (a) an experimental approach, comparing between groups the performance on the CGT in a control condition (the CGT only was administered) to that in a double task condition (participants had to carry out a recall task in addition to the CGT); (b) an interindividual approach, probing the relationship between CGT performance and performance on tasks measuring WM efficiency. The between-groups approach evidenced a better performance in the control group. Moreover, the interindividual approach showed that the higher the participants’ WM efficiency was, the higher their performance in the CGT was. Taken together, these two approaches yield converging results that support the hypothesis that WM plays a significant role in decision making in children.     

Information Integration in an Area Judgment Task: Effect of Aids on Children's Perceptual Judgments

This study was designed to examine the cognitive processes involved in perceptual judgments of area with the methodology and concepts of Anderson's (1981) information integration theory. The Area = Height + Width rule, which Anderson and Cuneo (1978) showed to be operant in children's judgments, can in fact cover two different processes. Children may make a height judgment and then a length judgment and apply an additive integration operation to both. Alternatively, children may base themselves on the figure outline and estimate total length directly as a function of the distance scanned. Similarly, the multiplicatory integration pattern can result either from applying a multiplicatory operation to separate estimates or from visual exploration of the area bounded by the figure. In the present experiment, the characteristics of the areas of the test figures were modified (perimeter marking, rows of Xs covering the area, etc.) to elicit additive or multiplicatory integration patterns as a function of condition. The findings demonstrate that the second interpretation of both rules is more likely.     

Obstacle Crossing Differences Between Blind and Blindfolded Subjects After Haptic Exploration

Little is known about the ability of blind people to cross obstacles after they have explored haptically their size and position. Long-term absence of vision may affect spatial cognition in the blind while their extensive experience with the use of haptic information for guidance may lead to compensation strategies. Seven blind and 7 sighted participants (with vision available and blindfolded) walked along a flat pathway and crossed an obstacle after a haptic exploration. Blind and blindfolded subjects used different strategies to cross the obstacle. After the first 20 trials the blindfolded subjects reduced the distance between the foot and the obstacle at the toe-off instant, while the blind behaved as the subjects with full vision. Blind and blindfolded participants showed larger foot clearance than participants with vision. At foot landing the hip was more behind the foot in the blindfolded condition, while there were no differences between the blind and the vision conditions. For several parameters of the obstacle crossing task, blind people were more similar to subjects with full vision indicating that the blind subjects were able to compensate for the lack of vision.     

Perceived Men’s Feminization and Attitudes Toward Homosexuality: Heterosexual Men’s Reactions to the Decline of the Anti-Femininity Norm of Masculinity

Sex Roles - One of the central dimensions of traditional masculinity is men’s renunciation of the feminine (i.e., the anti-femininity norm), and men’s endorsement of this norm...     

Evidence of rapid recovery from perceptual odor adaptation using a new stimulus paradigm

By attenuating neural and perceptual responses to sustained stimulation, adaptation enhances the detection of new, transient stimuli. Disadaptation serves a similarly important role as a temporal filter for chemoreceptor cells, producing rapid recovery of sensitivity upon termination of the adapting odorant. Previous research from our laboratory indicated that a rapid form of odor adaptation can be measured using a novel, simultaneous-odorant paradigm. In the present study, we extended the earlier method by measuring recovery from adaptation. Perceptual odor adaptation was measured by estimating psychophysical detection thresholds in a group of college-aged student volunteers (N = 20; 12 females, eight males) for a self-adapting odorant, vanilla extract. To induce adaptation, the time between the onset of the adapting odorant and the onset of the target odorant was systematically varied. By first quantifying adaptation, recovery of sensitivity could therefore be investigated by using different time points following the termination of the adapting odorant. Consistent with our previous work, thresholds estimated in the presence of the simultaneous adapting odorant were significantly increased, reflecting a decrease in sensitivity due to adaptation. Conversely, approximately 100 ms following termination of the adapting stimulus (the briefest delay tested), sensitivity began to rapidly recover. Nevertheless, some residual adaptation was evident at the longest offset delay of 500 ms. These findings suggest that the recovery from adaptation proceeds at least as rapidly as the onset of adaptation, a finding that is consistent with physiological evidence from olfactory receptors. These data also suggest the effectiveness of this new odorant paradigm in characterizing the temporal characteristics underlying these critical olfactory mechanisms.