Are imaging and lesioning convergent methods for assessing functional specialisation?: investigations using an artificial neural network

This article presents an investigation of the relationship between lesioning and neuroimaging methods of assessing functional specialisation, using synthetic brain imaging (SBI) and lesioning of a connectionist network of past-tense formation. The model comprised two processing ‘routes’: one was a direct route between layers of input and output units, while the other, indirect, route featured an intermediate layer of processing units. Emergent specialisation within the network was assessed (1) by lesioning either the direct or indirect route and measuring past-tense performance for regular and irregular verbs, and (2) by measuring functional activation in each route when processing each verb type (SBI). SBI and lesioning approaches failed to converge when network activation was summed over each route in our SBI approach. Examination of individual network solutions suggested that the verb types might be using the indirect route differently in terms of the pattern of activation across the route, rather than in terms of gross activation. A subsequent SBI analysis compared patterns of activation in the indirect route and confirmed that these patterns were more similar between regular-type verbs than between regular and irregular verbs. As the spatial and temporal resolution of neuroimaging techniques improves, the results of this investigation suggest that the key to finding functional specialisation will be to distinguish local coding differences across behaviours that are the results of developmental processes. Other analyses suggest that lesioning data may be limited because, with increasing damage, they reveal the resting activations of a computational system rather than a computational specialisation per se.     

The effect of predictive history on the learning of sub-sequence contingencies

Two experiments demonstrated that the prior predictive history of a cue governs the extent to which that cue engages in sequence learning. Using a serial reaction time task, we manipulated the predictiveness of the stimulus locations (cues) with respect to the location of the stimulus on the next trial (outcome), such that half of the cues were good predictors of their outcomes, whilst the other half were poorer predictors. Following this, all cues were then paired with novel outcomes. Learning about those cues that were previously established as good predictors proceeded more rapidly than learning for those cues previously established as poor predictors. When the simple recurrent network is modified to include a variable associability parameter, the effects are easily modelled.     

Editorial to the special issue Neuronus

Did you visit the Neuronus conferences in the years 2012 and 2013 in Kraków? If not, then you certainly should have a close examination of this special issue including this introduction to at least have a glimpse of an idea of the highly interesting topics in the field of cognitive neuroscience that were presented at these conferences. If you were there, it is for sure a good choice to focus on this special issue as well, first to refresh your minds (we know our memories are far from perfect), but especially to see what happened with research of the presenters at these conferences.     

网络环境下医患关系的新变化及其改善对策

从正反两方面详细剖析了网络环境的发展给医患关系带来的影响,并分析了医患关系产生的新变化,针对这些影响和变化,提出培养适应网络时代的医务工作者、利用好网络环境双刃剑、不断完善网络医疗信息环境建设、借助网络媒体促进和谐医患关系等改善网络环境下医患关系的策略.     

Perceptions of Submissiveness: Implications for Victimization

Some researchers have suggested that a precondition of affective submissiveness may increase the likelihood of female victimization in sexual assault, whereas others have suggested that criminal offenders use perceptions of vulnerability when selecting a victim. In this study, based on American college students, men (decoders) rated videotaped women (encoders) dominant versus submissive using a semantic differential instrument. Cue evaluators analyzed the body language and appearance of the videotaped women using a Likert instrument. The results suggest that (a) men form differentiated perceptions of dominant versus submissive women, (b) such perceptions substantially rely on nonverbal cues, (c) dominant and submissive women display visually different behaviors and appearances, and (d) men tend to select submissive females for exploitation.     

Attachment-dissociation network: some thoughts about a modern complex theory

The paper revises the complex theory in the light of modern infant research, neurosciences and object relation theory. The author takes up Jean Knox's idea to understand complexes as analogies to the internal working models of attachment theory. The author proposes to understand complexes as dissociated sub-networks out of the network structure of the psyche; these sub-networks contain the internal working models, the characteristic affects and unconscious expectation phantasies. With this network model one can try to understand severe defensive organizations in some patients as a pathological organization of different complexes. This is illustrated by a clinical example.     

A network approach for distinguishing ethical issues in research and development

In this paper we report on our experiences with using network analysis to discern and analyse ethical issues in research into, and the development of, a new wastewater treatment technology. Using network analysis, we preliminarily interpreted some of our observations in a Group Decision Room (GDR) session where we invited important stakeholders to think about the risks of this new technology. We show how a network approach is useful for understanding the observations, and suggests some relevant ethical issues. We argue that a network approach is also useful for ethical analysis of issues in other fields of research and development. The abandoning of the overarching rationality assumption, which is central to network approaches, does not have to lead to ethical relativism.     

情境模型建构过程中空间信息的作用探讨

本研究采用扇效应技术来进一步探讨空间信息在情境模型建构过程当中的作用。共分为两个分实验。实验1通过在材料中使用同样具有可“移动性”的物体概念（例如快餐车）来探讨“可移动性”是否是“[人]在[大场所]”材料范式下观察不到信息整合的根本原因。实验2将材料中的“大场所”地点替换为“中场所”地点,来进一步探讨空间信息在情境模型建构过程中的作用特点。结果表明“人的可移动性”不是“[人]在[大场所]”材料范式下观察不到信息整合的原因并且在不受个体背景知识衰减的情况下．空间信息对情境模型建构的影响作用强于主人公信息的影响作用。