Assessment of information content in visual signal: analysis of optical flow fractal complexity

We make a first attempt at distinguishing an information-carrying visual signal by comparing visual characteristics of American Sign Language to everyday human motion, to identify what clues might be available in one but not in the other. The comparison indicated significantly higher fractal complexity in sign language across tested frequency bands (0.01–15?Hz), as compared to everyday motion. A comparison of our results with other work showing high fractal complexity in the speech signal allows us to suggest the underlying properties of linguistic signals which allow babies to “tune into” a specific channel, or modality, during language acquisition.     

过度担忧和广泛性焦虑障碍与rCBF关系的SPECT脑显像研究

目的：探查过度担忧者和GAD病人的r CBF变化,更好地了解导致病理性焦虑和GAD的神经病理生理学基础。方法：回顾性分析18例过度担忧者和61例GAD病人SPECT脑显像的结果。GAD患者再按病程分为3个亚组。计算各组患者特定脑区r CBF损伤的百分比及损伤的脑区数。结果：12例（66.7%）过度担忧者可见前额叶、基底节、扣带回、颞叶和枕叶r CBF增加（11例）和/或减少（9例）。58例（95.1%）GAD患者可见r CBF减少,主要累及中和下前额叶、中和下颞叶、前扣带、海马旁回、基底节和丘脑。大多数GAD患者累及的主要脑区等于或大于3个。GAD病人的r CBF损伤和病程之间存在一定的相关性。结论：结果支持GAD患者r CBF的变化是一个与担忧和焦虑等心理和情绪改变密切相关的慢性和渐进的过程。GAD的局部脑功能障碍是病理性焦虑产生的先决条件,并出现在局部脑结构异常之前。     

Teamwork and flow proneness mitigate the negative effect of excess challenge on flow state

Flow theory postulates that flow experience is the most intense under high-challenge/high-skill conditions, whereas an excess of challenge is aversive. This study explores potential moderators that may offset the negative impact of overly high challenge on flow state. The literature suggests that a situational factor, teamwork, and a dispositional factor, flow proneness, may moderate the relationship between challenge and flow state. We tested these moderators with Hong Kong Chinese students whose optimal condition for experiencing flow was biased toward low-challenge/high-skill. A total of 128 participants played puzzles in three challenge levels both alone and in pairs. Although challenge level was negatively associated with flow state, dyadic (team) game (compared with solitary game) and flow proneness mitigated the negative relationship between challenge and flow state. These findings shed light on factors that promote enjoyment in challenging activities even among people in cultures that are prudent about challenges.     

From Daily Life to Philosophy

Abstract: This article argues that the little everyday things of life often provide excellent entries into the intellectual problems of academic philosophy. This is illustrated with an analysis of four small stories taken from daily life in which people are in agony because they do not know what to do. It is argued that the crucial question in these stories is a philosophical question—not a closed request for empirical or formal information but an open question about how best to conceive of human experience. A discussion follows of the merits and shortcomings of transcendentalism as an attempt by philosophers to make progress. It is argued that reformulating questions is what philosophers can do to contribute to people's comfort in life. This is illustrated with an argument showing that in the small stories discussed the question of what to do should be reformulated as the question of who to be.     

Accessing the Eternal: Dreaming "The Dreaming" and Ceremonial Performance

Australian Aboriginal cosmology is centered on The Dreaming, which has an eternal nature. It has been referred to as “everywhen” to articulate its timelessness. Starting with the assumption that “waking” reality is only one type of experienced reality, we investigate the concept of timelessness as it pertains to the Aboriginal worldview. We begin by questioning whether in fact “Dreaming” is an appropriate translation of a complex Aboriginal concept, then discuss whether there is any relationship between dreaming and The Dreaming. We then discuss Aboriginal ceremonial performance, during which actors are said to become Dreaming Ancestors, using as a frame of reference the “flow” experience explicated by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi together with Alfred Schutz's “mutual tuning‐in relationship.”     

脑动静脉畸形手术前后血流灌注的TCD研究

对脑AVM患者手术前后进行TCD检查以及激光多普勒监测,以探讨脑AVM患者血流动力学指标与手术后局部脑皮层血流量指标变化的相关性,从而为预测正常灌注压突破综合征提供依据。结果显示AVM患者高流量组与低流量组之间手术后rCBF值存在显著差异(P0.05),并且不同流量AVM供血动脉的血流动力学指标差异性于手术后消失。因此,通过对AVM患者手术前后TCD监测,有助于为预测术后局部脑皮层血流量变化提供依据。     

Comparing the Effects of Loving-Kindness Meditation (LKM), Music and LKM Plus Music on Psychological Well-Being

Loving-kindness meditation (LKM), a meditative practice directing caring feelings toward self and others, is a popular, evidence-base approach to increasing well-being. Music listening is also a popular form of emotion regulation used to enhance well-being. This interdisciplinary study evaluated a novel intervention called Convergence—combining LKM with accompanying classical guitar music—and its effects on adults’ well-being, mindfulness, compassion and self-compassion outcomes. Convergence was compared to active control groups LKM-only and Music-only regarding their relative effectiveness in improving these outcomes. Participants (N?=?78; aged 18 to 69?years; 90% females; recruited from the general public) were assigned to either the Convergence, LKM-only, or Music-only condition. Each condition received a 2-hour workshop, involving psychoeducation, three prerecorded meditations, and group enquiry and discussion. Participants were assessed at pre-program, post-program, and 4-week follow-up. Findings revealed that Convergence, LKM-only and Music-only were equally effective interventions, producing improvements in dependent variables with small effect sizes. There was no additive effect of the components when delivered together as Convergence. Significant correlations were found between the amount of home practice, and mindfulness and self-compassion at follow-up. LKM, music listening and Convergence all provide brief, evidence-based alternatives for improving well-being. Practical and theoretical implications are provided, as well as recommendations for future research.     

动态系统累积变量判断中的关联启发式

关联启发式是指在累积变量判断中, 将存量与流量建立正相关关系, 认为存量变化特征与流量变化特征具有相似性而导致判断偏差的思维模式。在多特征交互及简单动态系统任务判断中, 关联启发式偏差以不同形式的S-F错误表现出来。作为一种内生性的、顽固的思维模式, 对于关联启发式的心理机制提出了客体偏差、特征替代、不充分调整等多种观点解释。影响关联启发式的个体因素和情境因素的研究结果不尽一致。由于关联启发式偏差直接影响人对复杂系统的可持续性决策和行动, 减少偏差策略的研究也已实现起步。本文系统总结和分析了关联启发式研究的发展脉络, 针对澄清关联启发式的发生机制、系统考察关联启发式的影响因素及其相互作用、丰富和深化关联启发式的研究范式、开发减少关联启发式的有效途径等方面, 提出了深化研究的方向和思路。     

The influence of a pedestrian countdown display on pedestrian behavior at signalized pedestrian crossings

Pedestrian behavior has been a subject of surveys carried out at two signalized pedestrian crossings, in the city of Doboj (BIH, Republic of Srpska). The analysis is made on the basis of video recordings, and includes behavior at pedestrian crossings, in various conditions (two locations, different vehicle flows, with or without a countdown display). The analysis also includes the distribution of illegal crossings (at the pedestrian red light) of different categories of pedestrians (gender, age), before and after the installation of a pedestrian countdown display, at two different pedestrian crossings. The results of the study have shown that a countdown display reduces statistically significantly the total number of violators, regardless of its location and traffic flow. However, this reduction is not the same at various categories of pedestrians (male, female, elderly, young people). The influence of the display has been particularly dominant at the pedestrian crossing located outside the centre of the city, with the smaller intensity of traffic. Children pedestrians do not accept the behavior in accordance with the countdown display in case of a reduced intensity of traffic, at a pedestrian crossing located in the backstreet. A countdown display does not statistically significantly change the distribution form of the number of offences during the red light for pedestrians, regardless of the pedestrian environment. However, there is a statistically significant difference in certain intervals (during the first and last 4 s) in the total distribution, as well as in the categories (female pedestrians, children). A countdown display does not reduce the overall number of “slow” pedestrians, but the impact on certain categories of “slow” pedestrians (gender/children), as well as on pedestrian violators, per age categories, varies depending on the location and traffic flow at an intersection.     

Personality related traits as predictors of music practice: Underlying environmental and genetic influences

Little is known about reasons for individual differences in practice behavior – why do some individuals practice more than others? Here we explore personality related traits such as openness, motivation and flow proneness as well as IQ as potential predictors of music practice. Using a large Swedish twin cohort of more than 10,500 individuals we also estimated genetic and environmental influences underlying such associations. Significant associations with music practice were found for IQ, intrinsic motivation, music flow, and openness. With all predictors in the same model (including sex and age) we could explain about 25% of variance in music practice. However, IQ and intrinsic motivation became non-significant in the full model, with music specific flow being the strongest predictor of music practice. Multivariate genetic modeling with the two remaining significant predictors (openness and music flow) and music practice suggested that the associations between the variables were largely due to shared genetic influences with some additional non-shared environmental influences. Our findings suggest that common genes may influence both music practicing behavior and traits related to artistic interests and musical enjoyment (flow).