Priming by numb3r5 does not involve top-down feedback.

Using the same–different task, Perea, Du?abeitia, Pollatsek, and Carreiras (2009) showed that digits resembling letters (“leet digits”; e.g., 1 = I, 4 = A) primed pseudoword strings (e.g., V35Z3D–VESZED), but letters resembling digits (“leet letters”) did not prime digit strings (e.g., 9ES7E2–935732), and suggested that this is due to top-down feedback available for letter, but not digit, strings. Here we show that (a) single letters show as much leet priming as 3-letter words (Experiment 1); (b) leet priming is equally robust for digit strings and pseudowords when the string is 4 items long but not when 6 items long (Experiment 2); and (c) with 6-item strings, orthotactically illegal letter strings (e.g., OIAUEQ) behave just like digit strings (Experiment 3). These results indicate that the asymmetry in leet priming is not due to top-down feedback available selectively for letter strings. We offer an alternative explanation based on the Bayesian reader account of masked priming proposed by Norris and Kinoshita (2008), and the role played by the orthotactic knowledge used to extend the functional capacity of visual working memory involved in performing the same–different task. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interactive Effects of Numerical Surface Form and Operand Parity in Cognitive Arithmetic.

In Experiment 1, adults (n = 48) performed simple addition, multiplication, and parity (i.e., odd-even) comparisons on pairs of Arabic digits or English number words. For addition and comparison, but not multiplication, response time increased with the number of odd operands. For addition, but not comparison, this parity effect was greater for words than for digits. In Experiment 2, adults (n = 50) solved simple addition problems in digit and word format and reported their strategies (i.e., retrieval or procedures). Procedural strategies were used more for odd than even addends and much more for word than digit problems. The results indicate that problem encoding and answer retrieval processes for cognitive arithmetic are interactive rather than strictly additive stages. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A generalized fraction: An entity smaller than one on the mental number line.

The representation of fractions in long-term memory (LTM) was investigated by examining the automatic processing of such numbers in a physical comparison task, and their intentional processing in a numerical comparison task. The size congruity effect (SiCE) served as a marker of automatic processing and consequently as an indicator of the access to the primitives of numerical representation in LTM. Mixed pairs composed of a natural number and a fraction showed both a SiCE and a distance effect. The SiCE for mixed pairs was stable across relative sizes of natural numbers compared to the fraction digits (Experiment 4). However, comparing pairs of fractions revealed a strong influence of fractional components: An inverse SiCE was found for pairs of unit fractions (Experiment 1), while no SiCE was found for pairs of non-unit fractions (Experiments 2–3). This leads to the conclusions that: (1) there are no unique representations of distinct fraction values in LTM, and (2) there is a representation of a “generalized fraction” as an “entity smaller than one” that emerges from the notational structure common to all fractions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Context-dependent semantic priming in number naming.

Previous research has shown that time to name single-digit Arabic numbers is about 15 ms slower when naming trials are interleaved with simple multiplication (e.g., state product of 2 × 3) than when naming digits is interleaved with magnitude comparison (e.g., state larger; 2 ↑ 3). To explain this phenomenon, J. I. D. Campbell and A. W. S. Metcalfe (2008) proposed that the comparison context enables both semantic and asemantic pathways for digit naming but that number-fact retrieval inhibits the semantic route and slows digit naming relative to the comparison context. To test this hypothesis, the authors modified the naming context paradigm by introducing a semantic priming manipulation. They replicated the digit-naming response time advantage for comparison relative to the multiplication context and observed semantic priming only in the comparison context. In comparison blocks, digit naming was 8 ms faster immediately after naming near digit primes (±1) compared to far primes (≥3), but in multiplication blocks there was no priming. The results reinforce the theory that number-fact retrieval can inhibit the semantic route for digit naming (L. Cohen & S. Dehaene, 1995) and thereby reconfigure the cognitive architecture for naming digits. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Across-notation automatic numerical processing.

In this article, the authors explored the existence of across-notation automatic numerical processing using size comparison and same-different paradigms. Participants were Arabic speakers, who used 2 sets of numerical symbols--Arabic and Indian. They were presented with number pairs in the same notation (Arabic or Indian) or in different ones (Arabic and Indian). In the size comparison paradigm, 2 digits differing both numerically and physically were compared on the physical dimension. Nevertheless, there was evidence that participants automatically processed the irrelevant numerical dimension in different notation pairs. In the same-different paradigm, 2 digits were presented either in the same or in different notations. Participants had to indicate whether the 2 digits were physically the same. The results again showed evidence for the automatic processing of numerical magnitude for pairs in different notations. Findings of both experiments suggest that numbers in different notations are automatically translated into a common representation of magnitude, in line with M. McCloskey's (1992) abstract representation model. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Failure to control prepotent pathways in early stage dementia of the Alzheimer's type: Evidence from dichotic listening.

The authors examined the right ear advantage in a dichotic listening task in healthy aging and very mild and mild stages of Alzheimer's disease. Subjects were simultaneously presented 3 pairs of digits to the left and right ears (e.g., left ear: 4, 3, 1; right ear: 9, 2, 5) for immediate ordered recall. Four lists of triads were presented, varying in presentation rate between digit pairs within a triad (0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0 s). Results indicated that the very mild and mild Alzheimer's groups showed a larger right ear advantage in free recall compared with the healthy controls, indicating a tendency to respond to the prepotent left hemisphere pathway for language processing. Also, the right ear advantage and proportion of switches made during recall were correlated with psychometric measures of frontal lobe function in the mild Alzheimer's group but not in the very mild or healthy control groups. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

On the temporal dynamics of digit comparison processes.

The authors studied the temporal dynamics of digit comparison processes by presenting the digits with a stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA) of 0, 70, 140, or 210 ms. Experiment 1 used the standard complete paired comparison design that confounds numerical and probabilistic information in the digit presented first. The results showed large effects of SOA that differed characteristically for different digit pairs. These results changed considerably in Experiment 2, using a design that removed any probabilistic contingencies. Experiment 3 examined a form of congruity effect related to the temporal order of the digits. The authors formulated and compared to the data 2 models that differed in their assumptions about the loci of digit-specific and SOA-specific effects: Either the participants use partial numerical advance information to prepare for the suggested response, or they start to process numerical information only after both digits are presented. When probabilistic contingencies were removed, the data favored the latter model. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The one that does, leads: Action relations influence the perceived temporal order of graspable objects.

Perception and action are influenced by the “possibilities for action” in the environment. Neuropsychological studies (e.g., Riddoch, Humphreys, Edwards, Baker, & Willson, 2003) have demonstrated that objects that are perceived to be interacting (e.g., a corkscrew going toward the top of a wine bottle) are perceptually integrated into a functional unit, facilitating report of both objects. In addition, patients with parietal damage tend to report the “active” item of the pair (the corkscrew in the above example) when the objects are positioned for action, overriding their spatial bias toward the ipsilesional side. Using a temporal order judgment task we show for the first time that normal viewers judge that active objects appear earlier when they are positioned correctly for action. This effect is not dependent on a learned relationship between objects, or on the active object being integrated at a perceptual level with the object it is paired with. The data suggest that actions afforded by a correctly positioned active object permeate normal perceptual judgments. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Bridging the gap: Transitive associations between items presented in similar temporal contexts.

In episodic memory tasks, associations are formed between items presented close together in time. The temporal context model (TCM) hypothesizes that this contiguity effect is a consequence of shared temporal context rather than temporal proximity per se. Using double-function lists of paired associates (e.g., A–B, B–C) presented in a random order, the authors examined associations between items that were not presented close together in time but that were presented in similar temporal contexts. After learning, across-pair associations fell off with distance in the list, as if subjects had integrated the pairs into a coherent memory structure. Within-pair associations (e.g., A–B) were strongly asymmetric favoring forward transitions; across-pair associations (e.g., A–C) showed no evidence of asymmetry. While this pattern of results presented a stern challenge for a heteroassociative mediated chaining model, TCM provided an excellent fit to the data. These findings suggest that contiguity effects in episodic memory do not reflect direct associations between items but rather a process of binding, encoding, and retrieval of a gradually changing representation of temporal context. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The differential association between change request qualities and resistance, problem resolution, and relationship satisfaction.

Although research supports the negative sequelae of the “demand/withdrawal” pattern, research is scant on the impact of “nondemanding” change requests (e.g., specific, increasing, “we” requests). We hypothesize that such change requests will be associated with less partner withdrawal/resistance, better problem resolution, and greater relationship satisfaction. Seventy-two conversations between couples who were recruited through random digit dialing were coded for change request qualities. Results indicate that wife specific and “we” requests led to less husband resistance, and husband increasing and “we” requests led to less wife resistance. Greater percentages of wife and husband specific and “we” requests were related to better problem resolution in the conversation, and greater percentages of wife specific and “we” requests were related to greater wife satisfaction. Research and clinical implications are detailed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Echoic memory processes in good and poor readers.

Conducted 4 experiments to determine whether echoic memory plays a role in differences between good and poor readers. In Exp I, with 9 poor (mean age 11.05 yrs) and 9 good (mean age 10.9 yrs) readers, and Exp II, with 12 poor (mean age 10.85 yrs) and 12 good (mean age 10.7 yrs) readers, a suffix procedure was used in which the S was read a list of digits with either a tone control or the word go appended to the list. For lists that exceeded the length of the Ss' memory span by 1 digit (i.e., that avoided ceiling effects), poor readers showed a larger decrement in the suffix condition than did good readers. In Exp III, with 14 poor (mean age 10.64 yrs) and 14 good (mean age 10.83 yrs) readers, Ss shadowed words presented to 1 ear at a rate determined to give 75–85% shadowing accuracy. The item presented to the nonattended ear were words and an occasional digit. At various intervals after the presentation of the digit, a light signaled that the S was to cease shadowing and attempt to recall any digit that had occurred in the nonattended ear recently. Whereas good and poor readers recalled the digit equally if tested immediately after presentation, poor readers showed a faster decline in recall of the digit as retention interval increased. In Exp IV, using Ss from Exp II, bursts of white noise were separated by 9–400 msec of silence, and the S was to say whether there were 1 or 2 sounds presented. There were no differences in detectability functions for good and poor readers. (39 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Dissolved Oxygen-Stat Titration Respirometry: Principle of Operation and Validation

A method is presented to assess oxygen uptake rates which operates at constant dissolved oxygen concentration (DO). This method involves DO-stat titrations by controlled addition of a diluted H2O2 solution to a batch volume of activated sludge. The titrant flow rate is proportional to the biomass respiration rate, while the mass of H2O2 added is proportional to the oxidized organics. Classical batch respirometries (with and without gas flow, i.e., “open” and “closed”) were compared to the DO-stat technique using first NaSO2 as reducing chemical and then respiring aerobic biomass. An excellent correlation was found among estimates of oxygen consumption rate and short term yield coefficient by the three techniques. Inhibition by H2O2 was found to be negligible for biomass concentration as volatile suspended solids of ≥ 1.5–2 g?/L.     

Counting backwards produces systematic errors.

59 undergraduates rapidly counting backwards made 2 types of systematic errors. They missed repeated digits (e.g., 77) and decade numbers (e.g., 80). The percentage of repeated-digit errors increased and the percentage of decade-number errors decreased when S said only the digits comprising a given number (e.g., "three-four" instead of "thirty-four"). This pattern of errors is explained in terms of the short-term memory processes involved in counting. (10 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Top-down controlled, delayed selection in the attentional blink.

In a previous study, it was shown that the attentional blink (AB)--the failure to recall the 2nd of 2 visual targets (T1 and T2) presented within 500 ms in rapid serial visual presentation--is reduced when T2 is preceded by a distractor that shares a feature with T2 (e.g., color; Nieuwenstein, Chun, van der Lubbe & Hooge, 2005). Here, this cuing effect is shown to be contingent on attentional set. For example, a red distractor letter preceding a green digit T2 is an effective cue when the task is to look for red and green digits, but the same red cue is relatively ineffective when the task is to look for only green digits or when the color of T2 is not specified. It is also shown that cuing is not interrupted by a distractor intervening between the cue and T2. These findings provide evidence for a contingent, delayed selection account of the AB. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

When benefits outweigh costs: Reconsidering “automatic” phonological recoding when reading aloud.

Skilled readers are slower to read aloud exception words (e.g., PINT) than regular words (e.g., MINT). In the case of exception words, sublexical knowledge competes with the correct pronunciation driven by lexical knowledge, whereas no such competition occurs for regular words. The dominant view is that the cost of this “regularity” effect is evidence that sublexical spelling-sound conversion is impossible to prevent (i.e., is “automatic”). This view has become so reified that the field rarely questions it. However, the results of simulations from the most successful computational models on the table suggest that the claim of “automatic” sublexical phonological recoding is premature given that there is also a benefit conferred by sublexical processing. Taken together with evidence from skilled readers that sublexical phonological recoding can be stopped, we suggest that the field is too narrowly focused when it asserts that sublexical phonological recoding is “automatic” and that a broader, more nuanced and contextually driven approach provides a more useful framework. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Why is word recognition impaired by disorientation while the identification of single letters is not?

Past research has shown that speed of identifying single letters or digits is largely indifferent to orientation, whereas the recognition of single words or connected text is markedly disrupted by disorientation. In a series of four experiments, we attempted to reconcile these findings. The results suggest that disorientation does not impair the identification of the characters but disrupts the perception of their spatial arrangement. When spatial order information is critical for distinguishing between different stimuli, disorientation is disruptive because some rectification process is required to restore order information. Utilizing the similarity between the letter B and the number 13, we found strong effects of orientation when a stimulus was interpreted as the two-digit number 13 but not when interpreted as the single letter B. This, however, occurred only when the set of numbers to be classified included permutations of the same digits. Odd–even decisions on single-digit and two-digit numbers (Experiment 3) yielded strong effects of stimulus orientation for order-dependent numbers (e.g., 32), weaker effects for order-independent numbers (e.g., 24), and none for repeated-digit (e.g., 22) or single-digit numbers. Classification time for two-letter Hebrew words evidenced strong effects of orientation for words that differed only in letter order but much weaker effects for words that had no letters in common, even when these were embedded within some words that did (Experiment 4). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Multiplication by eye and by ear for Chinese-speaking and English-speaking adults.

Under two conditions, 32 English-speaking and 32 Chinese-speaking adults solved single-digit multiplication problems. In one condition, problems were presented as visual digits (e.g., 8×9). In the other condition, problems were presented as auditory number words in the participant's first language (e.g., /eit/ /taimz/ /nain/). Chinese-speaking adults made proportionately more operand-intrusion errors (e.g., 4×8=24) than English-speaking adults. Both groups made more operand-intrusion errors with auditory than with visual presentation. These findings are similar to those found when participants solve problems presented as visual number words (e.g., eight×nine), suggesting that in both cases the activation of phonological codes interferes with processing. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Effects of Practice on Mnemonic Encodings Involving Prior Knowledge and Semantic Memory: Reply to Rickard and Bajic (2003).

T. C. Rickard and D. Bajic's (2003; see record 2003-09575-023) finding of a transition to unmediated retrieval of paired associates after retrieval practice is reconciled with R. J. Crutcher and K. A. Ericsson's (2000; see record 2000-05419-014) finding of a continued linkage to keyword mediators after extended retrieval of vocabulary pairs. The discrepant findings are attributed to differences between the respective paradigms. The task of learning a large number of Spanish-English pairs using mediators that rely on preexisting phonological similarity and semantic associations is contrasted to the task of memorizing a small number of arbitrarily paired color words and digits (e.g., GREEN-5) that rely on mediating associations (e.g., GREEN-F and F-5) learned in the same session. These qualitative differences in encoding between the studies arc proposed to lead to differential consequences of continued practice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Naming two-digit Arabic numerals: Evidence from masked priming studies.

The authors investigated how 2-digit Arabic numerals are named by looking at the effects of masked primes on the naming latencies. Target numerals were named faster when prime and target shared a digit at the same position (e.g., the target 28 primed by 18 and 21). In contrast, naming latencies were slower when prime and target shared 1 or 2 digits at noncorresponding places (e.g., the target 28 primed by 82, 86, or 72). Subsequent experiments showed that these priming effects were situated at the level of the verbal production of the Arabic numerals. The data point to a nonsemantically mediated route from visual input to verbal output in the naming of 2-digit Arabic numerals. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)