Peripheral spatial cues modulate spatial congruency effects: Analysing the “locus” of the cueing modulation

The spatial Stroop effect (slower left/right responses to left/right pointing arrows when they appear at spatially incongruent than at congruent locations) has often been used to examine the processing of irrelevant spatial information. We present data from two experiments in which the magnitude of such location-based interference is drastically reduced when the location of the arrow is precued by a spatial noninformative cue. The main aim of the present study was to clarify whether such modulation takes place at perceptual or at response-related stages of processing. First, we manipulated the spatial compatibility between the direction of the arrow and the location of the response so that each subject would respond with spatially compatible vs. incompatible key presses for each half of the experiment. We found that such manipulation did not have any effect on the standard reduction of the congruency effect by peripheral cues. In a second experiment, subjects made left/right key presses to directional arrows pointing bottom/up, which could appear equally often at left/right/bottom/up locations. In cued trials, we found a reduction of the congruency effect on the vertical axis (stimulus location-direction congruency), whereas congruency was unaffected by cueing in targets presented on the horizontal axis (stimulus-response location congruency). According to these results, we conclude that spatial noninformative cues modulate spatial Stroop interference by reducing the conflict between stimulus dimensions at perceptual- rather than motor-related stages of processing.     

The topography of high-order human object areas

Cortical topography is one of the most fundamental organizing principles of cortical areas. One such topography - eccentricity mapping - is present even in high-order, ventral stream visual areas. Within these areas, different object categories have specific eccentricity biases. In particular, faces, letters and words appear to be associated with central visual-field bias, whereas buildings are associated with a peripheral one. We propose that resolution needs are an important factor in organizing object representations: objects whose recognition depends on analysis of fine detail will be associated with central-biased representations, whereas objects whose recognition entails large-scale integration will be more peripherally biased.     

Grounding nonexistence

ABSTRACT

Contingent negative existentials give rise to a notorious paradox. I formulate a version in terms of metaphysical grounding: nonexistence can't be fundamental, but nothing can ground it. I then argue for a new kind of solution, expanding on work by Kit Fine. The key idea is that negative existentials are contingently zero-grounded – that is to say, they are grounded, but not by anything, and only in the right conditions. If this is correct, it follows that grounding cannot be an internal relation, and that no complete account of reality can be purely fundamental.     

Immigration and Occupational Mobility of Native Workers in Spain. A Gender Perspective

This paper studies the economic effect of immigration on native working conditions, focusing on the impact of the inflow of immigrant labour on occupational mobility among native workers. Basing on a gender-segmented labour market, we propose an extension of the model presented by Peri and Sparber American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 1(3), 135-169, (2009). The model controls for gender and time in order to check for potential differences in immigration effects associated with gender or immigrant length of residence. This research reveals the existence of such differences, by showing that female immigrant inflow has a greater positive short-term impact on occupational mobility among female unskilled native workers. In addition, the long-term study discloses a slight occupational assimilation of male immigrants towards employment patterns of male native workers and a permanent confinement of female immigrants in a few “niche jobs”.     

Predictive model for early math skills based on structural equations

Early math skills are determined by higher cognitive processes that are particularly important for acquiring and developing skills during a child's early education. Such processes could be a critical target for identifying students at risk for math learning difficulties. Few studies have considered the use of a structural equation method to rationalize these relations. Participating in this study were 207 preschool students ages 59 to 72 months, 108 boys and 99 girls. Performance with respect to early math skills, early literacy, general intelligence, working memory, and short‐term memory was assessed. A structural equation model explaining 64.3% of the variance in early math skills was applied. Early literacy exhibited the highest statistical significance (β = 0.443, p < 0.05), followed by intelligence (β = 0.286, p < 0.05), working memory (β = 0.220, p < 0.05), and short‐term memory (β = 0.213, p < 0.05). Correlations between the independent variables were also significant (p < 0.05). According to the results, cognitive variables should be included in remedial intervention programs.