The cognitive foundations of reading and arithmetic skills in 7- to 10-year-olds

A range of possible predictors of arithmetic and reading were assessed in a large sample (N=162) of children between ages 7 years 5 months and 10 years 4 months. A confirmatory factor analysis of the predictors revealed a good fit to a model consisting of four latent variables (verbal ability, nonverbal ability, search speed, and phonological memory) and two manifest variables (digit comparison and phoneme deletion). A path analysis showed that digit comparison and verbal ability were unique predictors of variations in arithmetic skills, whereas phoneme deletion and verbal ability were unique predictors of variations in reading skills. These results confirm earlier findings that phoneme deletion ability appears to be a critical foundation for learning to read (decode). In addition, variations in the speed of accessing numerical quantity information appear to be a critical foundation for the development of arithmetic skills.     

The Temporal Automated System for Taste Experiments (TASTE)

We describe a new, open flow device for presenting taste stimuli to human subjects under controlled conditions of timing. The device delivers each stimulus as a mist to the participant’s tongue through one of 16 nozzles attached to a linear slide. Software controls the position of the slide, the duration of the stimulus, and the duration of the pre- and poststimulus water rinses and records the responses of the participant. Temporal characteristics of this system make it especially applicable to studies on the role of attention in taste perception.     

Posthypnotic suggestion and the modulation of Stroop interference under cycloplegia

Recent data indicate that under a specific posthypnotic suggestion to circumvent reading, highly suggestible subjects successfully eliminated the Stroop interference effect. The present study examined whether an optical explanation (e.g., visual blurring or looking away) could account for this finding. Using cyclopentolate hydrochloride eye drops to pharmacologically prevent visual accommodation in all subjects, behavioral Stroop data were collected from six highly hypnotizables and six less suggestibles using an optical setup that guaranteed either sharply focused or blurred vision. The highly suggestibles performed the Stroop task when naturally vigilant, under posthypnotic suggestion not to read, and while visually blurred; the less suggestibles ran naturally vigilant, while looking away, and while visually blurred. Although visual accommodation was precluded for all subjects, posthypnotic suggestion effectively eliminated Stroop interference and was comparable to looking away in controls. These data strengthen the view that Stroop interference is neither robust nor inevitable and support the hypothesis that posthypnotic suggestion may exert a top-down influence on neural processing.     

Perceived health contributes to the attractiveness of facial symmetry, averageness, and sexual dimorphism

Symmetry, averageness, and sexual dimorphism (femininity in female faces, masculinity in male faces) are attractive in faces. Many have suggested that preferences for these traits may be adaptations for identifying healthy mates. If they are, then the traits should be honest indicators of health and their attractiveness should result from their healthy appearance. Much research has focused on whether these traits honestly signal health. Here we focused on whether the appeal of these traits results from their healthy appearance. Specifically, we tested whether the attractiveness of symmetry, averageness, and sexual dimorphism is reduced or eliminated when perceived health is controlled, in two large samples of Western faces and a large sample of Japanese faces. The appeal of symmetric faces was largely due to their healthy appearance, with most associations between symmetry and attractiveness eliminated when perceived health was controlled. A healthy appearance also contributed to the appeal of averageness and femininity in female faces and masculinity in male faces, although it did not fully explain their appeal. These results show that perceptions of attractiveness are sensitive to a healthy appearance, and are consistent with the hypothesis that preferences may be adaptations for mate choice.     

Tomboyism,Sexual Orientation,and Adult Gender Roles Among Israeli Women

The purpose of this study was to examine self-reported connections between sexual orientation (SO) and tomboyism in an Israeli sample. This study also focused on the connection between tomboyism and adult gender roles, and between gender roles and SO. A sample of 127 participants was solicited from lesbian organizations and from workplaces. Participants' SO was self-defined twice, using a forced choice and a Kinsey-type scale. Results revealed a connection between tomboyism and lesbianism. The overall level of tomboyism was lower then reported elsewhere. A relationship between tomboyism and gender roles emerged only for adolescence, and SO was only marginal related to gender roles. The definitions of tomboyism, cultural effects, Israeli society, adolescence gender roles, and bisexualism are discussed.     

Can sample-specific simulations help detect low base-rate taxonicity?

The authors examined the role of the sample-specific simulations (SSS; A. M. Ruscio & J. Ruscio, 2002; J. Ruscio & A. M. Ruscio, 2004) procedure in detecting low base-rate taxa that might otherwise prove elusive. The procedure preserved key distributional characteristics for moderate to high base-rate taxa, but it performed inadequately for low base-rate taxa, with low to moderate nuisance covariance, decreasing indicator validity, and increasing average nuisance covariance. Visual inspection of the curves produced by the SSS procedure, combined with the expectation that the inchworm test should produce a clear peak for low base-rate taxonic samples, led to inappropriate conclusions about the suitability of data. The authors speculate that examination of low base-rate taxa using SSS may require other algorithms for generating comparison distributions, consideration of the shape of the whole curve, and/or relaxation of the expectation that a clear peak will emerge with the inchworm test.