Sample records for face inversion effect

  1. A Face Inversion Effect without a Face

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brandman, Talia; Yovel, Galit

    2012-01-01

    Numerous studies have attributed the face inversion effect (FIE) to configural processing of internal facial features in upright but not inverted faces. Recent findings suggest that face mechanisms can be activated by faceless stimuli presented in the context of a body. Here we asked whether faceless stimuli with or without body context may induce…

  2. Developmental origins of the face inversion effect.

    PubMed

    Cashon, Cara H; Holt, Nicholas A

    2015-01-01

    A hallmark of adults' expertise for faces is that they are better at recognizing, discriminating, and processing upright faces compared to inverted faces. We investigate the developmental origins of "the face inversion effect" by reviewing research on infants' perception of upright and inverted faces during the first year of life. We review the effects of inversion on infants' face preference, recognition, processing (holistic and second-order configural), and scanning as well as face-related neural responses. Particular attention is paid to the developmental patterns that emerge within and across these areas of face perception. We conclude that the developmental origins of the inversion effect begin in the first few months of life and grow stronger over the first year, culminating in effects that are commonly thought to indicate adult-like expertise. We posit that by the end of the first year, infants' face-processing system has become specialized to upright faces and a foundation for adults' upright-face expertise has been established. Developmental mechanisms that may facilitate the emergence of this upright-face specialization are discussed, including the roles that physical and social development may play in upright faces' becoming more meaningful to infants during the first year. © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  3. The Effects of Face Inversion and Face Race on the P100 ERP.

    PubMed

    Colombatto, Clara; McCarthy, Gregory

    2017-04-01

    Research about the neural basis of face recognition has investigated the timing and anatomical substrates of different stages of face processing. Scalp-recorded ERP studies of face processing have focused on the N170, an ERP with a peak latency of ∼170 msec that has long been associated with the initial structural encoding of faces. However, several studies have reported earlier ERP differences related to faces, suggesting that face-specific processes might occur before N170. Here, we examined the influence of face inversion and face race on the timing of face-sensitive scalp-recorded ERPs by examining neural responses to upright and inverted line-drawn and luminance-matched white and black faces in a sample of white participants. We found that the P100 ERP evoked by inverted faces was significantly larger than that evoked by upright faces. Although this inversion effect was statistically significant at 100 msec, the inverted-upright ERP difference peaked at 138 msec, suggesting that it might represent an activity in neural sources that overlap with P100. Inverse modeling of the inversion effect difference waveform suggested possible neural sources in pericalcarine extrastriate visual cortex and lateral occipito-temporal cortex. We also found that the inversion effect difference wave was larger for white faces. These results are consistent with behavioral evidence that individuals process the faces of their own races more configurally than faces of other races. Taken together, the inversion and race effects observed in the current study suggest that configuration influences face processing by at least 100 msec.

  4. Face-Evoked Steady-State Visual Potentials: Effects of Presentation Rate and Face Inversion

    PubMed Central

    Gruss, L. Forest; Wieser, Matthias J.; Schweinberger, Stefan R.; Keil, Andreas

    2012-01-01

    Face processing can be explored using electrophysiological methods. Research with event-related potentials has demonstrated the so-called face inversion effect, in which the N170 component is enhanced in amplitude and latency to inverted, compared to upright, faces. The present study explored the extent to which repetitive lower-level visual cortical engagement, reflected in flicker steady-state visual evoked potentials (ssVEPs), shows similar amplitude enhancement to face inversion. We also asked if inversion-related ssVEP modulation would be dependent on the stimulation rate at which upright and inverted faces were flickered. To this end, multiple tagging frequencies were used (5, 10, 15, and 20 Hz) across two studies (n = 21, n = 18). Results showed that amplitude enhancement of the ssVEP for inverted faces was found solely at higher stimulation frequencies (15 and 20 Hz). By contrast, lower frequency ssVEPs did not show this inversion effect. These findings suggest that stimulation frequency affects the sensitivity of ssVEPs to face inversion. PMID:23205009

  5. The role of experience-based perceptual learning in the face inversion effect.

    PubMed

    Civile, Ciro; Obhi, Sukhvinder S; McLaren, I P L

    2018-04-03

    Perceptual learning of the type we consider here is a consequence of experience with a class of stimuli. It amounts to an enhanced ability to discriminate between stimuli. We argue that it contributes to the ability to distinguish between faces and recognize individuals, and in particular contributes to the face inversion effect (better recognition performance for upright vs inverted faces). Previously, we have shown that experience with a prototype defined category of checkerboards leads to perceptual learning, that this produces an inversion effect, and that this effect can be disrupted by Anodal tDCS to Fp3 during pre-exposure. If we can demonstrate that the same tDCS manipulation also disrupts the inversion effect for faces, then this will strengthen the claim that perceptual learning contributes to that effect. The important question, then, is whether this tDCS procedure would significantly reduce the inversion effect for faces; stimuli that we have lifelong expertise with and for which perceptual learning has already occurred. Consequently, in the experiment reported here we investigated the effects of anodal tDCS at Fp3 during an old/new recognition task for upright and inverted faces. Our results show that stimulation significantly reduced the face inversion effect compared to controls. The effect was one of reducing recognition performance for upright faces. This result is the first to show that tDCS affects perceptual learning that has already occurred, disrupting individuals' ability to recognize upright faces. It provides further support for our account of perceptual learning and its role as a key factor in face recognition. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. A Qualitative Impairment in Face Perception in Alzheimer's Disease: Evidence from a Reduced Face Inversion Effect.

    PubMed

    Lavallée, Marie Maxime; Gandini, Delphine; Rouleau, Isabelle; Vallet, Guillaume T; Joannette, Maude; Kergoat, Marie-Jeanne; Busigny, Thomas; Rossion, Bruno; Joubert, Sven

    2016-01-01

    Prevalent face recognition difficulties in Alzheimer's disease (AD) have typically been attributed to the underlying episodic and semantic memory impairment. The aim of the current study was to determine if AD patients are also impaired at the perceptual level for faces, more specifically at extracting a visual representation of an individual face. To address this question, we investigated the matching of simultaneously presented individual faces and of other nonface familiar shapes (cars), at both upright and inverted orientation, in a group of mild AD patients and in a group of healthy older controls matched for age and education. AD patients showed a reduced inversion effect (i.e., larger performance for upright than inverted stimuli) for faces, but not for cars, both in terms of error rates and response times. While healthy participants showed a much larger decrease in performance for faces than for cars with inversion, the inversion effect did not differ significantly for faces and cars in AD. This abnormal inversion effect for faces was observed in a large subset of individual patients with AD. These results suggest that AD patients have deficits in higher-level visual processes, more specifically at perceiving individual faces, a function that relies on holistic representations specific to upright face stimuli. These deficits, combined with their memory impairment, may contribute to the difficulties in recognizing familiar people that are often reported in patients suffering from the disease and by their caregivers.

  7. Chinese Characters Elicit Face-Like N170 Inversion Effects

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wang, Man-Ying; Kuo, Bo-Cheng; Cheng, Shih-Kuen

    2011-01-01

    Recognition of both faces and Chinese characters is commonly believed to rely on configural information. While faces typically exhibit behavioral and N170 inversion effects that differ from non-face stimuli (Rossion, Joyce, Cottrell, & Tarr, 2003), the current study examined whether a similar reliance on configural processing may result in similar…

  8. Attention Misplaced: The Role of Diagnostic Features in the Face-Inversion Effect

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hills, Peter J.; Ross, David A.; Lewis, Michael B.

    2011-01-01

    Inversion disproportionately impairs recognition of face stimuli compared to nonface stimuli arguably due to the holistic manner in which faces are processed. A qualification is put forward in which the first point fixated on is different for upright and inverted faces and this carries some of the face-inversion effect. Three experiments explored…

  9. The effect of inversion on face recognition in adults with autism spectrum disorder.

    PubMed

    Hedley, Darren; Brewer, Neil; Young, Robyn

    2015-05-01

    Face identity recognition has widely been shown to be impaired in individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). In this study we examined the influence of inversion on face recognition in 26 adults with ASD and 33 age and IQ matched controls. Participants completed a recognition test comprising upright and inverted faces. Participants with ASD performed worse than controls on the recognition task but did not show an advantage for inverted face recognition. Both groups directed more visual attention to the eye than the mouth region and gaze patterns were not found to be associated with recognition performance. These results provide evidence of a normal effect of inversion on face recognition in adults with ASD.

  10. Face inversion effects in autism: a combined looking time and pupillometric study.

    PubMed

    Falck-Ytter, Terje

    2008-10-01

    Previous research has found that in typically developing individuals, behavioral performance declines and electrophysiological brain responses are altered when the face is inverted. Such effects are generally attributed to disruption of configural information. Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have been found to show less pronounced inversion effects, a result in line with the view that featural processing of faces is enhanced in ASD. No study has determined if, or how, such local bias is reflected in the eye movements used in face observation. In this eye tracking study, looking time and pupil dilation were investigated during the presentation of upright and inverted faces in preschool children with ASD and typically developing preschoolers. On average, both children with ASD and typically developing children looked less at the face and the eye areas during inverted presentations than during upright presentations. Nevertheless, individuals with ASD had a stronger tendency than typically developing children to look at the same face features during upright and inverted presentations, which is suggestive of a local bias. Pupil dilation, reflecting increased processing load, was larger for inverted than upright faces in the ASD group only, and pupillary inversion effects were stronger in ASD than in typically developing children.

  11. Getting to the Bottom of Face Processing. Species-Specific Inversion Effects for Faces and Behinds in Humans and Chimpanzees (Pan Troglodytes).

    PubMed

    Kret, Mariska E; Tomonaga, Masaki

    2016-01-01

    For social species such as primates, the recognition of conspecifics is crucial for their survival. As demonstrated by the 'face inversion effect', humans are experts in recognizing faces and unlike objects, recognize their identity by processing it configurally. The human face, with its distinct features such as eye-whites, eyebrows, red lips and cheeks signals emotions, intentions, health and sexual attraction and, as we will show here, shares important features with the primate behind. Chimpanzee females show a swelling and reddening of the anogenital region around the time of ovulation. This provides an important socio-sexual signal for group members, who can identify individuals by their behinds. We hypothesized that chimpanzees process behinds configurally in a way humans process faces. In four different delayed matching-to-sample tasks with upright and inverted body parts, we show that humans demonstrate a face, but not a behind inversion effect and that chimpanzees show a behind, but no clear face inversion effect. The findings suggest an evolutionary shift in socio-sexual signalling function from behinds to faces, two hairless, symmetrical and attractive body parts, which might have attuned the human brain to process faces, and the human face to become more behind-like.

  12. Effect of Visual Experience on Face Processing: A Developmental Study of Inversion and Non-Native Effects

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sangrigoli, Sandy; de Schonen, Scania

    2004-01-01

    In adults, three phenomena are taken to demonstrate an experience effect on face recognition: an inversion effect, a non-native face effect (so-called "other-race" effect) and their interaction. It is crucial for our understanding of the developmental perception mechanisms of object processing to discover when these effects are present in…

  13. The Effect of Inversion on 3- to 5-Year-Olds' Recognition of Face and Nonface Visual Objects

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Picozzi, Marta; Cassia, Viola Macchi; Turati, Chiara; Vescovo, Elena

    2009-01-01

    This study compared the effect of stimulus inversion on 3- to 5-year-olds' recognition of faces and two nonface object categories matched with faces for a number of attributes: shoes (Experiment 1) and frontal images of cars (Experiments 2 and 3). The inversion effect was present for faces but not shoes at 3 years of age (Experiment 1). Analogous…

  14. Face inversion increases attractiveness.

    PubMed

    Leder, Helmut; Goller, Juergen; Forster, Michael; Schlageter, Lena; Paul, Matthew A

    2017-07-01

    Assessing facial attractiveness is a ubiquitous, inherent, and hard-wired phenomenon in everyday interactions. As such, it has highly adapted to the default way that faces are typically processed: viewing faces in upright orientation. By inverting faces, we can disrupt this default mode, and study how facial attractiveness is assessed. Faces, rotated at 90 (tilting to either side) and 180°, were rated on attractiveness and distinctiveness scales. For both orientations, we found that faces were rated more attractive and less distinctive than upright faces. Importantly, these effects were more pronounced for faces rated low in upright orientation, and smaller for highly attractive faces. In other words, the less attractive a face was, the more it gained in attractiveness by inversion or rotation. Based on these findings, we argue that facial attractiveness assessments might not rely on the presence of attractive facial characteristics, but on the absence of distinctive, unattractive characteristics. These unattractive characteristics are potentially weighed against an individual, attractive prototype in assessing facial attractiveness. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  15. Face inversion decreased information about facial identity and expression in face-responsive neurons in macaque area TE.

    PubMed

    Sugase-Miyamoto, Yasuko; Matsumoto, Narihisa; Ohyama, Kaoru; Kawano, Kenji

    2014-09-10

    To investigate the effect of face inversion and thatcherization (eye inversion) on temporal processing stages of facial information, single neuron activities in the temporal cortex (area TE) of two rhesus monkeys were recorded. Test stimuli were colored pictures of monkey faces (four with four different expressions), human faces (three with four different expressions), and geometric shapes. Modifications were made in each face-picture, and its four variations were used as stimuli: upright original, inverted original, upright thatcherized, and inverted thatcherized faces. A total of 119 neurons responded to at least one of the upright original facial stimuli. A majority of the neurons (71%) showed activity modulations depending on upright and inverted presentations, and a lesser number of neurons (13%) showed activity modulations depending on original and thatcherized face conditions. In the case of face inversion, information about the fine category (facial identity and expression) decreased, whereas information about the global category (monkey vs human vs shape) was retained for both the original and thatcherized faces. Principal component analysis on the neuronal population responses revealed that the global categorization occurred regardless of the face inversion and that the inverted faces were represented near the upright faces in the principal component analysis space. By contrast, the face inversion decreased the ability to represent human facial identity and monkey facial expression. Thus, the neuronal population represented inverted faces as faces but failed to represent the identity and expression of the inverted faces, indicating that the neuronal representation in area TE cause the perceptual effect of face inversion. Copyright © 2014 the authors 0270-6474/14/3412457-13$15.00/0.

  16. The effect of face inversion for neurons inside and outside fMRI-defined face-selective cortical regions

    PubMed Central

    Van Belle, Goedele; Vanduffel, Wim; Rossion, Bruno; Vogels, Rufin

    2014-01-01

    It is widely believed that face processing in the primate brain occurs in a network of category-selective cortical regions. Combined functional MRI (fMRI)-single-cell recording studies in macaques have identified high concentrations of neurons that respond more to faces than objects within face-selective patches. However, cells with a preference for faces over objects are also found scattered throughout inferior temporal (IT) cortex, raising the question whether face-selective cells inside and outside of the face patches differ functionally. Here, we compare the properties of face-selective cells inside and outside of face-selective patches in the IT cortex by means of an image manipulation that reliably disrupts behavior toward face processing: inversion. We recorded IT neurons from two fMRI-defined face-patches (ML and AL) and a region outside of the face patches (herein labeled OUT) during upright and inverted face stimulation. Overall, turning faces upside down reduced the firing rate of face-selective cells. However, there were differences among the recording regions. First, the reduced neuronal response for inverted faces was independent of stimulus position, relative to fixation, in the face-selective patches (ML and AL) only. Additionally, the effect of inversion for face-selective cells in ML, but not those in AL or OUT, was impervious to whether the neurons were initially searched for using upright or inverted stimuli. Collectively, these results show that face-selective cells differ in their functional characteristics depending on their anatomicofunctional location, suggesting that upright faces are preferably coded by face-selective cells inside but not outside of the fMRI-defined face-selective regions of the posterior IT cortex. PMID:25520434

  17. Individual Differences in (Non-Visual) Processing Style Predict the Face Inversion Effect

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wyer, Natalie A.; Martin, Douglas; Pickup, Tracey; Macrae, C. Neil

    2012-01-01

    Recent research suggests that individuals with relatively weak global precedence (i.e., a smaller propensity to view visual stimuli in a configural manner) show a reduced face inversion effect (FIE). Coupled with such findings, a number of recent studies have demonstrated links between an advantage for feature-based processing and the presentation…

  18. Combined Effects of Inversion and Feature Removal on N170 Responses Elicited by Faces and Car Fronts

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kloth, Nadine; Itier, Roxane J.; Schweinberger, Stefan R.

    2013-01-01

    The face-sensitive N170 is typically enhanced for inverted compared to upright faces. Itier, Alain, Sedore, and McIntosh (2007) recently suggested that this N170 inversion effect is mainly driven by the eye region which becomes salient when the face configuration is disrupted. Here we tested whether similar effects could be observed with non-face…

  19. A ''Voice Inversion Effect?''

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bedard, Catherine; Belin, Pascal

    2004-01-01

    Voice is the carrier of speech but is also an ''auditory face'' rich in information on the speaker's identity and affective state. Three experiments explored the possibility of a ''voice inversion effect,'' by analogy to the classical ''face inversion effect,'' which could support the hypothesis of a voice-specific module. Experiment 1 consisted…

  20. Spatio-temporal dynamics and laterality effects of face inversion, feature presence and configuration, and face outline

    PubMed Central

    Marinkovic, Ksenija; Courtney, Maureen G.; Witzel, Thomas; Dale, Anders M.; Halgren, Eric

    2014-01-01

    Although a crucial role of the fusiform gyrus (FG) in face processing has been demonstrated with a variety of methods, converging evidence suggests that face processing involves an interactive and overlapping processing cascade in distributed brain areas. Here we examine the spatio-temporal stages and their functional tuning to face inversion, presence and configuration of inner features, and face contour in healthy subjects during passive viewing. Anatomically-constrained magnetoencephalography (aMEG) combines high-density whole-head MEG recordings and distributed source modeling with high-resolution structural MRI. Each person's reconstructed cortical surface served to constrain noise-normalized minimum norm inverse source estimates. The earliest activity was estimated to the occipital cortex at ~100 ms after stimulus onset and was sensitive to an initial coarse level visual analysis. Activity in the right-lateralized ventral temporal area (inclusive of the FG) peaked at ~160 ms and was largest to inverted faces. Images containing facial features in the veridical and rearranged configuration irrespective of the facial outline elicited intermediate level activity. The M160 stage may provide structural representations necessary for downstream distributed areas to process identity and emotional expression. However, inverted faces additionally engaged the left ventral temporal area at ~180 ms and were uniquely subserved by bilateral processing. This observation is consistent with the dual route model and spared processing of inverted faces in prosopagnosia. The subsequent deflection, peaking at ~240 ms in the anterior temporal areas bilaterally, was largest to normal, upright faces. It may reflect initial engagement of the distributed network subserving individuation and familiarity. These results support dynamic models suggesting that processing of unfamiliar faces in the absence of a cognitive task is subserved by a distributed and interactive neural circuit. PMID

  1. The Effect of Inversion on Face Recognition in Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hedley, Darren; Brewer, Neil; Young, Robyn

    2015-01-01

    Face identity recognition has widely been shown to be impaired in individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). In this study we examined the influence of inversion on face recognition in 26 adults with ASD and 33 age and IQ matched controls. Participants completed a recognition test comprising upright and inverted faces. Participants with ASD…

  2. Integrating conventional and inverse representation for face recognition.

    PubMed

    Xu, Yong; Li, Xuelong; Yang, Jian; Lai, Zhihui; Zhang, David

    2014-10-01

    Representation-based classification methods are all constructed on the basis of the conventional representation, which first expresses the test sample as a linear combination of the training samples and then exploits the deviation between the test sample and the expression result of every class to perform classification. However, this deviation does not always well reflect the difference between the test sample and each class. With this paper, we propose a novel representation-based classification method for face recognition. This method integrates conventional and the inverse representation-based classification for better recognizing the face. It first produces conventional representation of the test sample, i.e., uses a linear combination of the training samples to represent the test sample. Then it obtains the inverse representation, i.e., provides an approximation representation of each training sample of a subject by exploiting the test sample and training samples of the other subjects. Finally, the proposed method exploits the conventional and inverse representation to generate two kinds of scores of the test sample with respect to each class and combines them to recognize the face. The paper shows the theoretical foundation and rationale of the proposed method. Moreover, this paper for the first time shows that a basic nature of the human face, i.e., the symmetry of the face can be exploited to generate new training and test samples. As these new samples really reflect some possible appearance of the face, the use of them will enable us to obtain higher accuracy. The experiments show that the proposed conventional and inverse representation-based linear regression classification (CIRLRC), an improvement to linear regression classification (LRC), can obtain very high accuracy and greatly outperforms the naive LRC and other state-of-the-art conventional representation based face recognition methods. The accuracy of CIRLRC can be 10% greater than that of LRC.

  3. Combined effects of inversion and feature removal on N170 responses elicited by faces and car fronts

    PubMed Central

    Kloth, Nadine; Itier, Roxane J.; Schweinberger, Stefan R.

    2014-01-01

    The face-sensitive N170 is typically enhanced for inverted compared to upright faces. Itier, Alain, Sedore, and McIntosh (2007) recently suggested that this N170 inversion effect is mainly driven by the eye region which becomes salient when the face configuration is disrupted. Here we tested whether similar effects could be observed with non-face objects that are structurally similar to faces in terms of possessing a homogeneous within-class first-order feature configuration. We presented upright and inverted pictures of intact car fronts, car fronts without lights, and isolated lights, in addition to analogous face conditions. Upright cars elicited substantial N170 responses of similar amplitude to those evoked by upright faces. In strong contrast to face conditions however, the car-elicited N170 was mainly driven by the global shape rather than the presence or absence of lights, and was dramatically reduced for isolated lights. Overall, our data confirm a differential influence of the eye region in upright and inverted faces. Results for car fronts do not suggest similar interactive encoding of eye-like features and configuration for non-face objects, even when these objects possess a similar feature configuration as faces. PMID:23485023

  4. An inverse dynamics approach to face animation.

    PubMed

    Pitermann, M; Munhall, K G

    2001-09-01

    Muscle-based models of the human face produce high quality animation but rely on recorded muscle activity signals or synthetic muscle signals that are often derived by trial and error. This paper presents a dynamic inversion of a muscle-based model (Lucero and Munhall, 1999) that permits the animation to be created from kinematic recordings of facial movements. Using a nonlinear optimizer (Powell's algorithm), the inversion produces a muscle activity set for seven muscles in the lower face that minimize the root mean square error between kinematic data recorded with OPTOTRAK and the corresponding nodes of the modeled facial mesh. This inverted muscle activity is then used to animate the facial model. In three tests of the inversion, strong correlations were observed for kinematics produced from synthetic muscle activity, for OPTOTRAK kinematics recorded from a talker for whom the facial model is morphologically adapted and finally for another talker with the model morphology adapted to a different individual. The correspondence between the animation kinematics and the three-dimensional OPTOTRAK data are very good and the animation is of high quality. Because the kinematic to electromyography (EMG) inversion is ill posed, there is no relation between the actual EMG and the inverted EMG. The overall redundancy of the motor system means that many different EMG patterns can produce the same kinematic output.

  5. Do neural correlates of face expertise vary with task demands? Event-related potential correlates of own- and other-race face inversion

    PubMed Central

    Wiese, Holger

    2013-01-01

    We are typically more accurate at remembering own- than other-race faces. This “own-race bias” has been suggested to result from enhanced expertise with and more efficient perceptual processing of own-race than other-race faces. In line with this idea, the N170, an event-related potential correlate of face perception, has been repeatedly found to be larger for other-race faces. Other studies, however, found no difference in N170 amplitude for faces from diverse ethnic groups. The present study tested whether these seemingly incongruent findings can be explained by varying task demands. European participants were presented with upright and inverted European and Asian faces (as well as European and Asian houses), and asked to either indicate the ethnicity or the orientation of the stimuli. Larger N170s for other-race faces were observed in the ethnicity but not in the orientation task, suggesting that the necessity to process facial category information is a minimum prerequisite for the occurrence of the effect. In addition, N170 inversion effects, with larger amplitudes for inverted relative to upright stimuli, were more pronounced for own- relative to other-race faces in both tasks. Overall, the present findings suggest that the occurrence of ethnicity effects in N170 for upright faces depends on the amount of facial detail required for the task at hand. At the same time, the larger inversion effects for own- than other-race faces occur independent of task and may reflect the fine-tuning of perceptual processing to faces of maximum expertise. PMID:24399955

  6. Combined effects of inversion and feature removal on N170 responses elicited by faces and car fronts.

    PubMed

    Kloth, Nadine; Itier, Roxane J; Schweinberger, Stefan R

    2013-04-01

    The face-sensitive N170 is typically enhanced for inverted compared to upright faces. Itier, Alain, Sedore, and McIntosh (2007) recently suggested that this N170 inversion effect is mainly driven by the eye region which becomes salient when the face configuration is disrupted. Here we tested whether similar effects could be observed with non-face objects that are structurally similar to faces in terms of possessing a homogeneous within-class first-order feature configuration. We presented upright and inverted pictures of intact car fronts, car fronts without lights, and isolated lights, in addition to analogous face conditions. Upright cars elicited substantial N170 responses of similar amplitude to those evoked by upright faces. In strong contrast to face conditions however, the car-elicited N170 was mainly driven by the global shape rather than the presence or absence of lights, and was dramatically reduced for isolated lights. Overall, our data confirm a differential influence of the eye region in upright and inverted faces. Results for car fronts do not suggest similar interactive encoding of eye-like features and configuration for non-face objects, even when these objects possess a similar feature configuration as faces. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. Discrimination of human and dog faces and inversion responses in domestic dogs (Canis familiaris).

    PubMed

    Racca, Anaïs; Amadei, Eleonora; Ligout, Séverine; Guo, Kun; Meints, Kerstin; Mills, Daniel

    2010-05-01

    Although domestic dogs can respond to many facial cues displayed by other dogs and humans, it remains unclear whether they can differentiate individual dogs or humans based on facial cues alone and, if so, whether they would demonstrate the face inversion effect, a behavioural hallmark commonly used in primates to differentiate face processing from object processing. In this study, we first established the applicability of the visual paired comparison (VPC or preferential looking) procedure for dogs using a simple object discrimination task with 2D pictures. The animals demonstrated a clear looking preference for novel objects when simultaneously presented with prior-exposed familiar objects. We then adopted this VPC procedure to assess their face discrimination and inversion responses. Dogs showed a deviation from random behaviour, indicating discrimination capability when inspecting upright dog faces, human faces and object images; but the pattern of viewing preference was dependent upon image category. They directed longer viewing time at novel (vs. familiar) human faces and objects, but not at dog faces, instead, a longer viewing time at familiar (vs. novel) dog faces was observed. No significant looking preference was detected for inverted images regardless of image category. Our results indicate that domestic dogs can use facial cues alone to differentiate individual dogs and humans and that they exhibit a non-specific inversion response. In addition, the discrimination response by dogs of human and dog faces appears to differ with the type of face involved.

  8. Face Inversion Disproportionately Impairs the Perception of Vertical but Not Horizontal Relations between Features

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Goffaux, Valerie; Rossion, Bruno

    2007-01-01

    Upside-down inversion disrupts the processing of spatial relations between the features of a face, while largely preserving local feature analysis. However, recent studies on face inversion failed to observe a clear dissociation between relational and featural processing. To resolve these discrepancies and clarify how inversion affects face…

  9. Brain regions sensitive to the face inversion effect: a functional magnetic resonance imaging study in humans.

    PubMed

    Leube, Dirk T; Yoon, Hyo Woon; Rapp, Alexander; Erb, Michael; Grodd, Wolfgang; Bartels, Mathias; Kircher, Tilo T J

    2003-05-22

    Perception of upright faces relies on configural processing. Therefore recognition of inverted, compared to upright faces is impaired. In a functional magnetic resonance imaging experiment we investigated the neural correlate of a face inversion task. Thirteen healthy subjects were presented with a equal number of upright and inverted faces alternating with a low level baseline with an upright and inverted picture of an abstract symbol. Brain activation was calculated for upright minus inverted faces. For this differential contrast, we found a signal change in the right superior temporal sulcus and right insula. Configural properties are processed in a network comprising right superior temporal and insular cortex.

  10. The Effects of Face Inversion on the Perception of Long-Range and Local Spatial Relations in Eye and Mouth Configuration

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sekunova, Alla; Barton, Jason J. S.

    2008-01-01

    A recent study hypothesized a configurational anisotropy in the face inversion effect, with vertical relations more difficult to process. However, another difference in the stimuli of that report was that the vertical but not horizontal shifts lacked local spatial references. Difficulty processing long-range spatial relations might also be…

  11. Inversion and contrast polarity reversal affect both encoding and recognition processes of unfamiliar faces: a repetition study using ERPs.

    PubMed

    Itier, Roxane J; Taylor, Margot J

    2002-02-01

    Using ERPs in a face recognition task, we investigated whether inversion and contrast reversal, which seem to disrupt different aspects of face configuration, differentially affected encoding and memory for faces. Upright, inverted, and negative (contrast-reversed) unknown faces were either immediately repeated (0-lag) or repeated after 1 intervening face (1-lag). The encoding condition (new) consisted of the first presentation of items correctly recognized in the two repeated conditions. 0-lag faces were recognized better and faster than 1-lag faces. Inverted and negative pictures elicited longer reaction times, lower hit rates, and higher false alarm rates than upright faces. ERP analyses revealed that negative and inverted faces affected both early (encoding) and late (recognition) stages of face processing. Early components (N170, VPP) were delayed and enhanced by both inversion and contrast reversal which also affected P1 and P2 components. Amplitudes were higher for inverted faces at frontal and parietal sites from 350 to 600 ms. Priming effects were seen at encoding stages, revealed by shorter latencies and smaller amplitudes of N170 for repeated stimuli, which did not differ depending on face type. Repeated faces yielded more positive amplitudes than new faces from 250 to 450 ms frontally and from 400 to 600 ms parietally. However, ERP differences revealed that the magnitude of this repetition effect was smaller for negative and inverted than upright faces at 0-lag but not at 1-lag condition. Thus, face encoding and recognition processes were affected by inversion and contrast-reversal differently.

  12. Environmental Inversion Effects in Face Perception

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Davidenko, Nicolas; Flusberg, Stephen J.

    2012-01-01

    Visual processing is highly sensitive to stimulus orientation; for example, face perception is drastically worse when faces are oriented inverted vs. upright. However, stimulus orientation must be established in relation to a particular reference frame, and in most studies, several reference frames are conflated. Which reference frame(s) matter in…

  13. Face Inversion Disproportionately Disrupts Sensitivity to Vertical over Horizontal Changes in Eye Position

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Crookes, Kate; Hayward, William G.

    2012-01-01

    Presenting a face inverted (upside down) disrupts perceptual sensitivity to the spacing between the features. Recently, it has been shown that this disruption is greater for vertical than horizontal changes in eye position. One explanation for this effect proposed that inversion disrupts the processing of long-range (e.g., eye-to-mouth distance)…

  14. The Idea Is Good, but…: Failure to Replicate Associations of Oxytocinergic Polymorphisms with Face-Inversion in the N170

    PubMed Central

    Munk, Aisha J. L.; Hermann, Andrea; El Shazly, Jasmin; Grant, Phillip; Hennig, Jürgen

    2016-01-01

    Background In event-related potentials, the N170 manifests itself especially in reaction to faces. In the healthy population, face-inversion leads to stronger negative amplitudes and prolonged latencies of the N170, effects not being present in patients with autism-spectrum-disorder (ASD). ASD has frequently been associated with differences in oxytocinergic neurotransmission. This ERP-study aimed to investigate the face-inversion effect in association with oxytocinergic candidate genes. It was expected that risk-allele-carriers of the oxytocin-receptor-gene-polymorphism (rs53576) and of CD38 (rs379863) responded similar to upright and inverted faces as persons with ASD. Additionally, reactions to different facial emotional expressions were studied. As there have been difficulties with replications of those molecular genetic association studies, we aimed to replicate our findings in a second study. Method Seventy-two male subjects in the first-, and seventy-eight young male subjects in the replication-study conducted a face-inversion-paradigm, while recording EEG. DNA was extracted from buccal cells. Results Results revealed stronger N170-amplitudes and longer latencies in reaction to inverted faces in comparison to upright ones. Furthermore, effects of emotion on N170 were evident. Those effects were present in the first and in the second study. Whereas we found molecular-genetic associations of oxytocinergic polymorphisms with the N170 in the first study, we failed to do so in the replication sample. Conclusion Results indicate that a deeper theoretical understanding of this research-field is needed, in order to generate possible explanations for these findings. Results, furthermore, support the hypotheses that success of reproducibility is correlated with strength of lower original p-values and larger effect sizes in the original study. PMID:27015428

  15. How inverse solver technologies can support die face development and process planning in the automotive industry

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Huhn, Stefan; Peeling, Derek; Burkart, Maximilian

    2017-10-01

    With the availability of die face design tools and incremental solver technologies to provide detailed forming feasibility results in a timely fashion, the use of inverse solver technologies and resulting process improvements during the product development process of stamped parts often is underestimated. This paper presents some applications of inverse technologies that are currently used in the automotive industry to streamline the product development process and greatly increase the quality of a developed process and the resulting product. The first focus is on the so-called target strain technology. Application examples will show how inverse forming analysis can be applied to support the process engineer during the development of a die face geometry for Class `A' panels. The drawing process is greatly affected by the die face design and the process designer has to ensure that the resulting drawn panel will meet specific requirements regarding surface quality and a minimum strain distribution to ensure dent resistance. The target strain technology provides almost immediate feedback to the process engineer during the die face design process if a specific change of the die face design will help to achieve these specific requirements or will be counterproductive. The paper will further show how an optimization of the material flow can be achieved through the use of a newly developed technology called Sculptured Die Face (SDF). The die face generation in SDF is more suited to be used in optimization loops than any other conventional die face design technology based on cross section design. A second focus in this paper is on the use of inverse solver technologies for secondary forming operations. The paper will show how the application of inverse technology can be used to accurately and quickly develop trim lines on simple as well as on complex support geometries.

  16. Face inversion and acquired prosopagnosia reduce the size of the perceptual field of view.

    PubMed

    Van Belle, Goedele; Lefèvre, Philippe; Rossion, Bruno

    2015-03-01

    Using a gaze-contingent morphing approach, we asked human observers to choose one of two faces that best matched the identity of a target face: one face corresponded to the reference face's fixated part only (e.g., one eye), the other corresponded to the unfixated area of the reference face. The face corresponding to the fixated part was selected significantly more frequently in the inverted than in the upright orientation. This observation provides evidence that face inversion reduces an observer's perceptual field of view, even when both upright and inverted faces are displayed at full view and there is no performance difference between these conditions. It rules out an account of the drop of performance for inverted faces--one of the most robust effects in experimental psychology--in terms of a mere difference in local processing efficiency. A brain-damaged patient with pure prosopagnosia, viewing only upright faces, systematically selected the face corresponding to the fixated part, as if her perceptual field was reduced relative to normal observers. Altogether, these observations indicate that the absence of visual knowledge reduces the perceptual field of view, supporting an indirect view of visual perception. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  17. The perception of (naked only) bodies and faceless heads relies on holistic processing: Evidence from the inversion effect.

    PubMed

    Bonemei, Rob; Costantino, Andrea I; Battistel, Ilenia; Rivolta, Davide

    2018-05-01

    Faces and bodies are more difficult to perceive when presented inverted than when presented upright (i.e., stimulus inversion effect), an effect that has been attributed to the disruption of holistic processing. The features that can trigger holistic processing in faces and bodies, however, still remain elusive. In this study, using a sequential matching task, we tested whether stimulus inversion affects various categories of visual stimuli: faces, faceless heads, faceless heads in body context, headless bodies naked, whole bodies naked, headless bodies clothed, and whole bodies clothed. Both accuracy and inversion efficiency score results show inversion effects for all categories but for clothed bodies (with and without heads). In addition, the magnitude of the inversion effect for face, naked body, and faceless heads was similar. Our findings demonstrate that the perception of faces, faceless heads, and naked bodies relies on holistic processing. Clothed bodies (with and without heads), on the other side, may trigger clothes-sensitive rather than body-sensitive perceptual mechanisms. © 2017 The British Psychological Society.

  18. The Promiscuity of [beta]-Strand Pairing Allows for Rational Design of [beta]-Sheet Face Inversion

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Makabe, Koki; Koide, Shohei

    2009-06-17

    Recent studies suggest the dominant role of main-chain H-bond formation in specifying {beta}-sheet topology. Its essentially sequence-independent nature implies a large degree of freedom in designing {beta}-sheet-based nanomaterials. Here we show rational design of {beta}-sheet face inversions by incremental deletions of {beta}-strands from the single-layer {beta}-sheet of Borrelia outer surface protein A. We show that a {beta}-sheet structure can be maintained when a large number of native contacts are removed and that one can design large-scale conformational transitions of a {beta}-sheet such as face inversion by exploiting the promiscuity of strand-strand interactions. High-resolution X-ray crystal structures confirmed the success ofmore » the design and supported the importance of main-chain H-bonds in determining {beta}-sheet topology. This work suggests a simple but effective strategy for designing and controlling nanomaterials based on {beta}-rich peptide self-assemblies.« less

  19. Effects of configural processing on the perceptual spatial resolution for face features.

    PubMed

    Namdar, Gal; Avidan, Galia; Ganel, Tzvi

    2015-11-01

    Configural processing governs human perception across various domains, including face perception. An established marker of configural face perception is the face inversion effect, in which performance is typically better for upright compared to inverted faces. In two experiments, we tested whether configural processing could influence basic visual abilities such as perceptual spatial resolution (i.e., the ability to detect spatial visual changes). Face-related perceptual spatial resolution was assessed by measuring the just noticeable difference (JND) to subtle positional changes between specific features in upright and inverted faces. The results revealed robust inversion effect for spatial sensitivity to configural-based changes, such as the distance between the mouth and the nose, or the distance between the eyes and the nose. Critically, spatial resolution for face features within the region of the eyes (e.g., the interocular distance between the eyes) was not affected by inversion, suggesting that the eye region operates as a separate 'gestalt' unit which is relatively immune to manipulations that would normally hamper configural processing. Together these findings suggest that face orientation modulates fundamental psychophysical abilities including spatial resolution. Furthermore, they indicate that classic psychophysical methods can be used as a valid measure of configural face processing. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Famous face recognition, face matching, and extraversion.

    PubMed

    Lander, Karen; Poyarekar, Siddhi

    2015-01-01

    It has been previously established that extraverts who are skilled at interpersonal interaction perform significantly better than introverts on a face-specific recognition memory task. In our experiment we further investigate the relationship between extraversion and face recognition, focusing on famous face recognition and face matching. Results indicate that more extraverted individuals perform significantly better on an upright famous face recognition task and show significantly larger face inversion effects. However, our results did not find an effect of extraversion on face matching or inverted famous face recognition.

  1. The shape of facial features and the spacing among them generate similar inversion effects: a reply to Rossion (2008).

    PubMed

    Yovel, Galit

    2009-11-01

    It is often argued that picture-plane face inversion impairs discrimination of the spacing among face features to a greater extent than the identity of the facial features. However, several recent studies have reported similar inversion effects for both types of face manipulations. In a recent review, Rossion (2008) claimed that similar inversion effects for spacing and features are due to methodological and conceptual shortcomings and that data still support the idea that inversion impairs the discrimination of features less than that of the spacing among them. Here I will claim that when facial features differ primarily in shape, the effect of inversion on features is not smaller than the one on spacing. It is when color/contrast information is added to facial features that the inversion effect on features decreases. This obvious observation accounts for the discrepancy in the literature and suggests that the large inversion effect that was found for features that differ in shape is not a methodological artifact. These findings together with other data that are discussed are consistent with the idea that the shape of facial features and the spacing among them are integrated rather than dissociated in the holistic representation of faces.

  2. Familiarity facilitates feature-based face processing.

    PubMed

    Visconti di Oleggio Castello, Matteo; Wheeler, Kelsey G; Cipolli, Carlo; Gobbini, M Ida

    2017-01-01

    Recognition of personally familiar faces is remarkably efficient, effortless and robust. We asked if feature-based face processing facilitates detection of familiar faces by testing the effect of face inversion on a visual search task for familiar and unfamiliar faces. Because face inversion disrupts configural and holistic face processing, we hypothesized that inversion would diminish the familiarity advantage to the extent that it is mediated by such processing. Subjects detected personally familiar and stranger target faces in arrays of two, four, or six face images. Subjects showed significant facilitation of personally familiar face detection for both upright and inverted faces. The effect of familiarity on target absent trials, which involved only rejection of unfamiliar face distractors, suggests that familiarity facilitates rejection of unfamiliar distractors as well as detection of familiar targets. The preserved familiarity effect for inverted faces suggests that facilitation of face detection afforded by familiarity reflects mostly feature-based processes.

  3. Face perception in high-functioning autistic adults: evidence for superior processing of face parts, not for a configural face-processing deficit.

    PubMed

    Lahaie, A; Mottron, L; Arguin, M; Berthiaume, C; Jemel, B; Saumier, D

    2006-01-01

    Configural processing in autism was studied in Experiment 1 by using the face inversion effect. A normal inversion effect was observed in the participants with autism, suggesting intact configural face processing. A priming paradigm using partial or complete faces served in Experiment 2 to assess both local and configural face processing. Overall, normal priming effects were found in participants with autism, irrespective of whether the partial face primes were intuitive face parts (i.e., eyes, nose, etc.) or arbitrary segments. An exception, however, was that participants with autism showed magnified priming with single face parts relative to typically developing control participants. The present findings argue for intact configural processing in autism along with an enhanced processing for individual face parts. The face-processing peculiarities known to characterize autism are discussed on the basis of these results and past congruent results with nonsocial stimuli.

  4. Faces in Context: Does Face Perception Depend on the Orientation of the Visual Scene?

    PubMed

    Taubert, Jessica; van Golde, Celine; Verstraten, Frans A J

    2016-10-01

    The mechanisms held responsible for familiar face recognition are thought to be orientation dependent; inverted faces are more difficult to recognize than their upright counterparts. Although this effect of inversion has been investigated extensively, researchers have typically sliced faces from photographs and presented them in isolation. As such, it is not known whether the perceived orientation of a face is inherited from the visual scene in which it appears. Here, we address this question by measuring performance in a simultaneous same-different task while manipulating both the orientation of the faces and the scene. We found that the face inversion effect survived scene inversion. Nonetheless, an improvement in performance when the scene was upside down suggests that sensitivity to identity increased when the faces were more easily segmented from the scene. Thus, while these data identify congruency with the visual environment as a contributing factor in recognition performance, they imply different mechanisms operate on upright and inverted faces. © The Author(s) 2016.

  5. Super-recognizers: people with extraordinary face recognition ability.

    PubMed

    Russell, Richard; Duchaine, Brad; Nakayama, Ken

    2009-04-01

    We tested 4 people who claimed to have significantly better than ordinary face recognition ability. Exceptional ability was confirmed in each case. On two very different tests of face recognition, all 4 experimental subjects performed beyond the range of control subject performance. They also scored significantly better than average on a perceptual discrimination test with faces. This effect was larger with upright than with inverted faces, and the 4 subjects showed a larger "inversion effect" than did control subjects, who in turn showed a larger inversion effect than did developmental prosopagnosics. This result indicates an association between face recognition ability and the magnitude of the inversion effect. Overall, these "super-recognizers" are about as good at face recognition and perception as developmental prosopagnosics are bad. Our findings demonstrate the existence of people with exceptionally good face recognition ability and show that the range of face recognition and face perception ability is wider than has been previously acknowledged.

  6. Super-recognizers: People with extraordinary face recognition ability

    PubMed Central

    Russell, Richard; Duchaine, Brad; Nakayama, Ken

    2014-01-01

    We tested four people who claimed to have significantly better than ordinary face recognition ability. Exceptional ability was confirmed in each case. On two very different tests of face recognition, all four experimental subjects performed beyond the range of control subject performance. They also scored significantly better than average on a perceptual discrimination test with faces. This effect was larger with upright than inverted faces, and the four subjects showed a larger ‘inversion effect’ than control subjects, who in turn showed a larger inversion effect than developmental prosopagnosics. This indicates an association between face recognition ability and the magnitude of the inversion effect. Overall, these ‘super-recognizers’ are about as good at face recognition and perception as developmental prosopagnosics are bad. Our findings demonstrate the existence of people with exceptionally good face recognition ability, and show that the range of face recognition and face perception ability is wider than previously acknowledged. PMID:19293090

  7. Losing face: impaired discrimination of featural and configural information in the mouth region of an inverted face.

    PubMed

    Tanaka, James W; Kaiser, Martha D; Hagen, Simen; Pierce, Lara J

    2014-05-01

    Given that all faces share the same set of features-two eyes, a nose, and a mouth-that are arranged in similar configuration, recognition of a specific face must depend on our ability to discern subtle differences in its featural and configural properties. An enduring question in the face-processing literature is whether featural or configural information plays a larger role in the recognition process. To address this question, the face dimensions task was designed, in which the featural and configural properties in the upper (eye) and lower (mouth) regions of a face were parametrically and independently manipulated. In a same-different task, two faces were sequentially presented and tested in their upright or in their inverted orientation. Inversion disrupted the perception of featural size (Exp. 1), featural shape (Exp. 2), and configural changes in the mouth region, but it had relatively little effect on the discrimination of featural size and shape and configural differences in the eye region. Inversion had little effect on the perception of information in the top and bottom halves of houses (Exp. 3), suggesting that the lower-half impairment was specific to faces. Spatial cueing to the mouth region eliminated the inversion effect (Exp. 4), suggesting that participants have a bias to attend to the eye region of an inverted face. The collective findings from these experiments suggest that inversion does not differentially impair featural or configural face perceptions, but rather impairs the perception of information in the mouth region of the face.

  8. It's All in Your Head: Why Is the Body Inversion Effect Abolished for Headless Bodies?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Yovel, Galit; Pelc, Tatiana; Lubetzky, Ida

    2010-01-01

    It has been recently argued that human bodies are processed by a specialized processing mechanism. Central evidence was that body inversion reduces recognition abilities (body inversion effect; BIE) as much as it does for faces, but more than for other objects. Here we showed that the BIE is markedly reduced for headless bodies and examined the…

  9. Inversion effect in the visual processing of Chinese character: an fMRI study.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Jizheng; Liu, Jiangang; Li, Jun; Liang, Jimin; Feng, Lu; Ai, Lin; Tian, Jie

    2010-07-05

    Chinese people engage long-term processing of characters. It has been demonstrated that the presented orientation affects the perception of several types of stimuli when people have possessed expertise with them, e.g. face, body, and scene. However, the influence of inversion on the neural mechanism of Chinese character processing has not been sufficiently discussed. In the present study, a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) experiment is performed to examine the effect of inversion on Chinese character processing, which employs Chinese character, face and house as stimuli. The region of interest analysis demonstrates inversion leads to neural response increases for Chinese character in left fusiform character-preferential area, bilateral fusiform object-preferential area and bilateral occipital object-preferential area, and such inversion-caused changes in the response pattern of characters processing are highly similar to those of faces processing but quiet different from those of houses processing. Whole brain analysis reveals the upright characters recruit several language regions for phonology and semantic processing, however, the inverted characters activated extensive regions related to the visual information processing. Our findings reveal a shift from the character-preferential processing route to the generic object processing steam within visual cortex when the characters are inverted, and suggest that different mechanisms may underlie the upright and the inverted Chinese character, respectively. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Face-space: A unifying concept in face recognition research.

    PubMed

    Valentine, Tim; Lewis, Michael B; Hills, Peter J

    2016-10-01

    The concept of a multidimensional psychological space, in which faces can be represented according to their perceived properties, is fundamental to the modern theorist in face processing. Yet the idea was not clearly expressed until 1991. The background that led to the development of face-space is explained, and its continuing influence on theories of face processing is discussed. Research that has explored the properties of the face-space and sought to understand caricature, including facial adaptation paradigms, is reviewed. Face-space as a theoretical framework for understanding the effect of ethnicity and the development of face recognition is evaluated. Finally, two applications of face-space in the forensic setting are discussed. From initially being presented as a model to explain distinctiveness, inversion, and the effect of ethnicity, face-space has become a central pillar in many aspects of face processing. It is currently being developed to help us understand adaptation effects with faces. While being in principle a simple concept, face-space has shaped, and continues to shape, our understanding of face perception.

  11. Second-order relational face processing is applied to faces of different race and photographic contrast.

    PubMed

    Matheson, H E; Bilsbury, T G; McMullen, P A

    2012-03-01

    A large body of research suggests that faces are processed by a specialized mechanism within the human visual system. This specialized mechanism is made up of subprocesses (Maurer, LeGrand, & Mondloch, 2002). One subprocess, called second- order relational processing, analyzes the metric distances between face parts. Importantly, it is well established that other-race faces and contrast-reversed faces are associated with impaired performance on numerous face processing tasks. Here, we investigated the specificity of second-order relational processing by testing how this process is applied to faces of different race and photographic contrast. Participants completed a feature displacement discrimination task, directly measuring the sensitivity to second-order relations between face parts. Across three experiments we show that, despite absolute differences in sensitivity in some conditions, inversion impaired performance in all conditions. The presence of robust inversion effects for all faces suggests that second-order relational processing can be applied to faces of different race and photographic contrast.

  12. From face processing to face recognition: Comparing three different processing levels.

    PubMed

    Besson, G; Barragan-Jason, G; Thorpe, S J; Fabre-Thorpe, M; Puma, S; Ceccaldi, M; Barbeau, E J

    2017-01-01

    levels as reflected by the face inversion effects. Furthermore, they underline how verifying that a face is from a target person and detecting a face as familiar - both often referred to as "Face Recognition" - in fact differs. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  13. The faces of development: a review of early face processing over childhood.

    PubMed

    Taylor, M J; Batty, M; Itier, R J

    2004-10-01

    The understanding of the adult proficiency in recognizing and extracting information from faces is still limited despite the number of studies over the last decade. Our knowledge on the development of these capacities is even more restricted, as only a handful of such studies exist. Here we present a combined reanalysis of four ERP studies in children from 4 to 15 years of age and adults (n = 424, across the studies), which investigated face processing in implicit and explicit tasks. We restricted these analyses to what was common across studies: early ERP components and upright face processing across all four studies and the inversion effect, investigated in three of the studies. These data demonstrated that processing faces implicates very rapid neural activity, even in young children--at the P1 component--with protracted age-related change in both P1 and N170, that were sensitive to the different task demands. Inversion produced latency and amplitude effects on the P1 from the youngest group, but on N170 only starting in mid childhood. These developmental data suggest that there are functionally different sources of the P1 and N170, related to the processing of different aspects of faces.

  14. Face and body perception in schizophrenia: a configural processing deficit?

    PubMed

    Soria Bauser, Denise; Thoma, Patrizia; Aizenberg, Victoria; Brüne, Martin; Juckel, Georg; Daum, Irene

    2012-01-30

    Face and body perception rely on common processing mechanisms and activate similar but not identical brain networks. Patients with schizophrenia show impaired face perception, and the present study addressed for the first time body perception in this group. Seventeen patients diagnosed with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder were compared to 17 healthy controls on standardized tests assessing basic face perception skills (identity discrimination, memory for faces, recognition of facial affect). A matching-to-sample task including emotional and neutral faces, bodies and cars either in an upright or in an inverted position was administered to assess potential category-specific performance deficits and impairments of configural processing. Relative to healthy controls, schizophrenia patients showed poorer performance on the tasks assessing face perception skills. In the matching-to-sample task, they also responded more slowly and less accurately than controls, regardless of the stimulus category. Accuracy analysis showed significant inversion effects for faces and bodies across groups, reflecting configural processing mechanisms; however reaction time analysis indicated evidence of reduced inversion effects regardless of category in schizophrenia patients. The magnitude of the inversion effects was not related to clinical symptoms. Overall, the data point towards reduced configural processing, not only for faces but also for bodies and cars in individuals with schizophrenia. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  15. The Influences of Face Inversion and Facial Expression on Sensitivity to Eye Contact in High-Functioning Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorders

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vida, Mark D.; Maurer, Daphne; Calder, Andrew J.; Rhodes, Gillian; Walsh, Jennifer A.; Pachai, Matthew V.; Rutherford, M. D.

    2013-01-01

    We examined the influences of face inversion and facial expression on sensitivity to eye contact in high-functioning adults with and without an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Participants judged the direction of gaze of angry, fearful, and neutral faces. In the typical group only, the range of directions of gaze leading to the perception of eye…

  16. "Blindsight" and subjective awareness of fearful faces: Inversion reverses the deficits in fear perception associated with core psychopathic traits.

    PubMed

    Oliver, Lindsay D; Mao, Alexander; Mitchell, Derek G V

    2015-01-01

    Though emotional faces preferentially reach awareness, the present study utilised both objective and subjective indices of awareness to determine whether they enhance subjective awareness and "blindsight". Under continuous flash suppression, participants localised a disgusted, fearful or neutral face (objective index), and rated their confidence (subjective index). Psychopathic traits were also measured to investigate their influence on emotion perception. As predicted, fear increased localisation accuracy, subjective awareness and "blindsight" of upright faces. Coldhearted traits were inversely related to subjective awareness, but not "blindsight", of upright fearful faces. In a follow-up experiment using inverted faces, increased localisation accuracy and awareness, but not "blindsight", were observed for fear. Surprisingly, awareness of inverted fearful faces was positively correlated with coldheartedness. These results suggest that emotion enhances both pre-conscious processing and the qualitative experience of awareness, but that pre-conscious and conscious processing of emotional faces rely on at least partially dissociable cognitive mechanisms.

  17. Phasic alertness enhances processing of face and non-face stimuli in congenital prosopagnosia.

    PubMed

    Tanzer, Michal; Weinbach, Noam; Mardo, Elite; Henik, Avishai; Avidan, Galia

    2016-08-01

    Congenital prosopagnosia (CP) is a severe face processing impairment that occurs in the absence of any obvious brain damage and has often been associated with a more general deficit in deriving holistic relations between facial features or even between non-face shape dimensions. Here we further characterized this deficit and examined a potential way to ameliorate it. To this end we manipulated phasic alertness using alerting cues previously shown to modulate attention and enhance global processing of visual stimuli in normal observers. Specifically, we first examined whether individuals with CP, similarly to controls, would show greater global processing when exposed to an alerting cue in the context of a non-facial task (Navon global/local task). We then explored the effect of an alerting cue on face processing (upright/inverted face discrimination). Confirming previous findings, in the absence of alerting cues, controls showed a typical global bias in the Navon task and an inversion effect indexing holistic processing in the upright/inverted task, while CP failed to show these effects. Critically, when alerting cues preceded the experimental trials, both groups showed enhanced global interference and a larger inversion effect. These results suggest that phasic alertness may modulate visual processing and consequently, affect global/holistic perception. Hence, these findings further reinforce the notion that global/holistic processing may serve as a possible mechanism underlying the face processing deficit in CP. Moreover, they imply a possible route for enhancing face processing in individuals with CP and thus shed new light on potential amelioration of this disorder. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  18. On Response Bias in the Face Congruency Effect for Internal and External Features

    PubMed Central

    Meinhardt, Günter; Meinhardt-Injac, Bozana; Persike, Malte

    2017-01-01

    Some years ago Cheung et al. (2008) proposed the complete design (CD) for measuring the failure of selective attention in composite objects. Since the CD is a fully balanced design, analysis of response bias may reveal potential effects of the experimental manipulation, the stimulus material, and/or attributes of the observers. Here we used the CD to prove whether external features modulate perception of internal features with the context congruency paradigm (Nachson et al., 1995; Meinhardt-Injac et al., 2010) in a larger sample of N = 303 subjects. We found a large congruency effect (Cohen's d = 1.78), which was attenuated by face inversion (d = 1.32). The congruency relation also strongly modulated response bias. In incongruent trials the proportion of “different” responses was much larger than in congruent trials (d = 0.79), which was again attenuated by face inversion (d = 0.43). Because in incongruent trials the wholes formed by integrating external and internal features are always different, while in congruent trials same and different wholes occur with the same frequency, a congruency related bias effect is expected from holistic integration. Our results suggest two behavioral markers of holistic processing in the context congruency paradigm: a performance advantage in congruent compared to incongruent trials, and a tendency toward more “different” responses in incongruent, compared to congruent trials. Since the results for both markers differed only quantitatively in upright and inverted presentation, our findings indicate no change of the face processing mode by picture plane rotation. A potential transfer to the composite face paradigm is discussed. PMID:29089880

  19. Deep and shallow encoding effects on face recognition: an ERP study.

    PubMed

    Marzi, Tessa; Viggiano, Maria Pia

    2010-12-01

    Event related potentials (ERPs) were employed to investigate whether and when brain activity related to face recognition varies according to the processing level undertaken at encoding. Recognition was assessed when preceded by a "shallow" (orientation judgement) or by a "deep" study task (occupation judgement). Moreover, we included a further manipulation by presenting at encoding faces either in the upright or inverted orientation. As expected, deeply encoded faces were recognized more accurately and more quickly with respect to shallowly encoded faces. The ERP showed three main findings: i) as witnessed by more positive-going potentials for deeply encoded faces, at early and later processing stage, face recognition was influenced by the processing strategy adopted during encoding; ii) structural encoding, indexed by the N170, turned out to be "cognitively penetrable" showing repetition priming effects for deeply encoded faces; iii) face inversion, by disrupting configural processing during encoding, influenced memory related processes for deeply encoded faces and impaired the recognition of faces shallowly processed. The present study adds weight to the concept that the depth of processing during memory encoding affects retrieval. We found that successful retrieval following deep encoding involved both familiarity- and recollection-related processes showing from 500 ms a fronto-parietal distribution, whereas shallow encoding affected only earlier processing stages reflecting perceptual priming. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  20. Disordered high-frequency oscillation in face processing in schizophrenia patients

    PubMed Central

    Liu, Miaomiao; Pei, Guangying; Peng, Yinuo; Wang, Changming; Yan, Tianyi; Wu, Jinglong

    2018-01-01

    Abstract Schizophrenia is a complex disorder characterized by marked social dysfunctions, but the neural mechanism underlying this deficit is unknown. To investigate whether face-specific perceptual processes are influenced in schizophrenia patients, both face detection and configural analysis were assessed in normal individuals and schizophrenia patients by recording electroencephalogram (EEG) data. Here, a face processing model was built based on the frequency oscillations, and the evoked power (theta, alpha, and beta bands) and the induced power (gamma bands) were recorded while the subjects passively viewed face and nonface images presented in upright and inverted orientations. The healthy adults showed a significant face-specific effect in the alpha, beta, and gamma bands, and an inversion effect was observed in the gamma band in the occipital lobe and right temporal lobe. Importantly, the schizophrenia patients showed face-specific deficits in the low-frequency beta and gamma bands, and the face inversion effect in the gamma band was absent from the occipital lobe. All these results revealed face-specific processing in patients due to the disorder of high-frequency EEG, providing additional evidence to enrich future studies investigating neural mechanisms and serving as a marked diagnostic basis. PMID:29419668

  1. The Effects of Inversion and Familiarity on Face versus Body Cues to Person Recognition

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Robbins, Rachel A.; Coltheart, Max

    2012-01-01

    Extensive research has focused on face recognition, and much is known about this topic. However, much of this work seems to be based on an assumption that faces are the most important aspect of person recognition. Here we test this assumption in two experiments. We show that when viewers are forced to choose, they "do" use the face more than the…

  2. Erasing the face after-effect.

    PubMed

    Kiani, Ghazaleh; Davies-Thompson, Jodie; Barton, Jason J S

    2014-10-24

    Perceptual after-effects decay over time at a rate that depends on several factors, such as the duration of adaptation and the duration of the test stimuli. Whether this decay is accelerated by exposure to other faces after adaptation is not known. Our goal was to determine if the appearance of other faces during a delay period after adaptation affected the face identity after-effect. In the first experiment we investigated whether, in the perception of ambiguous stimuli created by morphing between two faces, the repulsive after-effects from adaptation to one face were reduced by brief presentation of the second face in a delay period. We found no effect; however, this may have been confounded by a small attractive after-effect from the interference face. In the second experiment, the interference stimuli were faces unrelated to those used as adaptation stimuli, and we examined after-effects at three different delay periods. This showed a decline in after-effects as the time since adaptation increased, and an enhancement of this decline by the presentation of intervening faces. An exponential model estimated that the intervening faces caused an 85% reduction in the time constant of the after-effect decay. In conclusion, we confirm that face after-effects decline rapidly after adaptation and that exposure to other faces hastens the re-setting of the system. Crown Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  3. The Effects of Face Expertise Training on the Behavioral Performance and Brain Activity of Adults with High Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorders

    PubMed Central

    Webb, Sara Jane; Jones, Emily; Merkle, Kristen; Kamara, Dana; Bavaro, Joshua; Aylward, Elizabeth; Dawson, Geraldine

    2013-01-01

    The effect of expertise training with faces was studied in adults with ASD who showed initial impairment in face recognition. Participants were randomly assigned to a computerized training program involving either faces or houses. Pre- and post-testing included standardized and experimental measures of behavior and event-related brain potentials (ERPs), as well as interviews after training. After training, all participants met behavioral criteria for expertise with the specific stimuli on which they received training. Scores on standardized measures improved after training for both groups, but only the face training group showed an increased face inversion effect behaviorally and electrophysiological changes to faces in the P100 component. These findings suggest that individuals with ASD can gain expertise in face processing through training. PMID:21484517

  4. The Caledonian face test: A new test of face discrimination.

    PubMed

    Logan, Andrew J; Wilkinson, Frances; Wilson, Hugh R; Gordon, Gael E; Loffler, Gunter

    2016-02-01

    This study aimed to develop a clinical test of face perception which is applicable to a wide range of patients and can capture normal variability. The Caledonian face test utilises synthetic faces which combine simplicity with sufficient realism to permit individual identification. Face discrimination thresholds (i.e. minimum difference between faces required for accurate discrimination) were determined in an "odd-one-out" task. The difference between faces was controlled by an adaptive QUEST procedure. A broad range of face discrimination sensitivity was determined from a group (N=52) of young adults (mean 5.75%; SD 1.18; range 3.33-8.84%). The test is fast (3-4 min), repeatable (test-re-test r(2)=0.795) and demonstrates a significant inversion effect. The potential to identify impairments of face discrimination was evaluated by testing LM who reported a lifelong difficulty with face perception. While LM's impairment for two established face tests was close to the criterion for significance (Z-scores of -2.20 and -2.27) for the Caledonian face test, her Z-score was -7.26, implying a more than threefold higher sensitivity. The new face test provides a quantifiable and repeatable assessment of face discrimination ability. The enhanced sensitivity suggests that the Caledonian face test may be capable of detecting more subtle impairments of face perception than available tests. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Inverse target- and cue-priming effects of masked stimuli.

    PubMed

    Mattler, Uwe

    2007-02-01

    The processing of a visual target that follows a briefly presented prime stimulus can be facilitated if prime and target stimuli are similar. In contrast to these positive priming effects, inverse priming effects (or negative compatibility effects) have been found when a mask follows prime stimuli before the target stimulus is presented: Responses are facilitated after dissimilar primes. Previous studies on inverse priming effects examined target-priming effects, which arise when the prime and the target stimuli share features that are critical for the response decision. In contrast, 3 experiments of the present study demonstrate inverse priming effects in a nonmotor cue-priming paradigm. Inverse cue-priming effects exhibited time courses comparable to inverse target-priming effects. Results suggest that inverse priming effects do not arise from specific processes of the response system but follow from operations that are more general.

  6. From upright to upside-down presentation: A spatio-temporal ERP study of the parametric effect of rotation on face and house processing

    PubMed Central

    Jemel, Boutheina; Coutya, Julie; Langer, Caroline; Roy, Sylvain

    2009-01-01

    Background While there is a general agreement that picture-plane inversion is more detrimental to face processing than to other seemingly complex visual objects, the origin of this effect is still largely debatable. Here, we address the question of whether face inversion reflects a quantitative or a qualitative change in processing mode by investigating the pattern of event-related potential (ERP) response changes with picture plane rotation of face and house pictures. Thorough analyses of topographical (Scalp Current Density maps, SCD) and dipole source modeling were also conducted. Results We find that whilst stimulus orientation affected in a similar fashion participants' response latencies to make face and house decisions, only the ERPs in the N170 latency range were modulated by picture plane rotation of faces. The pattern of N170 amplitude and latency enhancement to misrotated faces displayed a curvilinear shape with an almost linear increase for rotations from 0° to 90° and a dip at 112.5° up to 180° rotations. A similar discontinuity function was also described for SCD occipito-temporal and temporal current foci with no topographic distribution changes, suggesting that upright and misrotated faces activated similar brain sources. This was confirmed by dipole source analyses showing the involvement of bilateral sources in the fusiform and middle occipital gyri, the activity of which was differentially affected by face rotation. Conclusion Our N170 findings provide support for both the quantitative and qualitative accounts for face rotation effects. Although the qualitative explanation predicted the curvilinear shape of N170 modulations by face misrotations, topographical and source modeling findings suggest that the same brain regions, and thus the same mechanisms, are probably at work when processing upright and rotated faces. Taken collectively, our results indicate that the same processing mechanisms may be involved across the whole range of face

  7. From upright to upside-down presentation: a spatio-temporal ERP study of the parametric effect of rotation on face and house processing.

    PubMed

    Jemel, Boutheina; Coutya, Julie; Langer, Caroline; Roy, Sylvain

    2009-08-19

    While there is a general agreement that picture-plane inversion is more detrimental to face processing than to other seemingly complex visual objects, the origin of this effect is still largely debatable. Here, we address the question of whether face inversion reflects a quantitative or a qualitative change in processing mode by investigating the pattern of event-related potential (ERP) response changes with picture plane rotation of face and house pictures. Thorough analyses of topographical (Scalp Current Density maps, SCD) and dipole source modeling were also conducted. We find that whilst stimulus orientation affected in a similar fashion participants' response latencies to make face and house decisions, only the ERPs in the N170 latency range were modulated by picture plane rotation of faces. The pattern of N170 amplitude and latency enhancement to misrotated faces displayed a curvilinear shape with an almost linear increase for rotations from 0 degrees to 90 degrees and a dip at 112.5 degrees up to 180 degrees rotations. A similar discontinuity function was also described for SCD occipito-temporal and temporal current foci with no topographic distribution changes, suggesting that upright and misrotated faces activated similar brain sources. This was confirmed by dipole source analyses showing the involvement of bilateral sources in the fusiform and middle occipital gyri, the activity of which was differentially affected by face rotation. Our N170 findings provide support for both the quantitative and qualitative accounts for face rotation effects. Although the qualitative explanation predicted the curvilinear shape of N170 modulations by face misrotations, topographical and source modeling findings suggest that the same brain regions, and thus the same mechanisms, are probably at work when processing upright and rotated faces. Taken collectively, our results indicate that the same processing mechanisms may be involved across the whole range of face

  8. Face perception is tuned to horizontal orientation in the N170 time window.

    PubMed

    Jacques, Corentin; Schiltz, Christine; Goffaux, Valerie

    2014-02-07

    The specificity of face perception is thought to reside both in its dramatic vulnerability to picture-plane inversion and its strong reliance on horizontally oriented image content. Here we asked when in the visual processing stream face-specific perception is tuned to horizontal information. We measured the behavioral performance and scalp event-related potentials (ERP) when participants viewed upright and inverted images of faces and cars (and natural scenes) that were phase-randomized in a narrow orientation band centered either on vertical or horizontal orientation. For faces, the magnitude of the inversion effect (IE) on behavioral discrimination performance was significantly reduced for horizontally randomized compared to vertically or nonrandomized images, confirming the importance of horizontal information for the recruitment of face-specific processing. Inversion affected the processing of nonrandomized and vertically randomized faces early, in the N170 time window. In contrast, the magnitude of the N170 IE was much smaller for horizontally randomized faces. The present research indicates that the early face-specific neural representations are preferentially tuned to horizontal information and offers new perspectives for a description of the visual information feeding face-specific perception.

  9. The effects of facial color and inversion on the N170 event-related potential (ERP) component.

    PubMed

    Minami, T; Nakajima, K; Changvisommid, L; Nakauchi, S

    2015-12-17

    Faces are important for social interaction because much can be perceived from facial details, including a person's race, age, and mood. Recent studies have shown that both configural (e.g. face shape and inversion) and surface information (e.g. surface color and reflectance properties) are important for face perception. Therefore, the present study examined the effects of facial color and inverted face properties on event-related potential (ERP) responses, particularly the N170 component. Stimuli consisted of natural and bluish-colored faces. Faces were presented in both upright and upside down orientations. An ANOVA was used to analyze N170 amplitudes and verify the effects of the main independent variables. Analysis of N170 amplitude revealed the significant interactions between stimulus orientation and color. Subsequent analysis indicated that N170 was larger for bluish-colored faces than natural-colored faces, and N170 to natural-colored faces was larger in response to inverted stimulus as compared to upright stimulus. Additionally, a multivariate pattern analysis (MVPA) investigated face-processing dynamics without any prior assumptions. Results distinguished, above chance, both facial color and orientation from single-trial electroencephalogram (EEG) signals. Decoding performance for color classification of inverted faces was significantly diminished as compared to an upright orientation. This suggests that processing orientation is predominant over facial color. Taken together, the present findings elucidate the temporal and spatial distribution of orientation and color processing during face processing. Copyright © 2015 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Inverse Doppler Effects in Broadband Acoustic Metamaterials

    PubMed Central

    Zhai, S. L.; Zhao, X. P.; Liu, S.; Shen, F. L.; Li, L. L.; Luo, C. R.

    2016-01-01

    The Doppler effect refers to the change in frequency of a wave source as a consequence of the relative motion between the source and an observer. Veselago theoretically predicted that materials with negative refractions can induce inverse Doppler effects. With the development of metamaterials, inverse Doppler effects have been extensively investigated. However, the ideal material parameters prescribed by these metamaterial design approaches are complex and also challenging to obtain experimentally. Here, we demonstrated a method of designing and experimentally characterising arbitrary broadband acoustic metamaterials. These omni-directional, double-negative, acoustic metamaterials are constructed with ‘flute-like’ acoustic meta-cluster sets with seven double meta-molecules; these metamaterials also overcome the limitations of broadband negative bulk modulus and mass density to provide a region of negative refraction and inverse Doppler effects. It was also shown that inverse Doppler effects can be detected in a flute, which has been popular for thousands of years in Asia and Europe. PMID:27578317

  11. Inverse Doppler Effects in Broadband Acoustic Metamaterials

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhai, S. L.; Zhao, X. P.; Liu, S.; Shen, F. L.; Li, L. L.; Luo, C. R.

    2016-08-01

    The Doppler effect refers to the change in frequency of a wave source as a consequence of the relative motion between the source and an observer. Veselago theoretically predicted that materials with negative refractions can induce inverse Doppler effects. With the development of metamaterials, inverse Doppler effects have been extensively investigated. However, the ideal material parameters prescribed by these metamaterial design approaches are complex and also challenging to obtain experimentally. Here, we demonstrated a method of designing and experimentally characterising arbitrary broadband acoustic metamaterials. These omni-directional, double-negative, acoustic metamaterials are constructed with ‘flute-like’ acoustic meta-cluster sets with seven double meta-molecules; these metamaterials also overcome the limitations of broadband negative bulk modulus and mass density to provide a region of negative refraction and inverse Doppler effects. It was also shown that inverse Doppler effects can be detected in a flute, which has been popular for thousands of years in Asia and Europe.

  12. Neurocognitive mechanisms behind emotional attention: Inverse effects of anodal tDCS over the left and right DLPFC on gaze disengagement from emotional faces.

    PubMed

    Sanchez-Lopez, Alvaro; Vanderhasselt, Marie-Anne; Allaert, Jens; Baeken, Chris; De Raedt, Rudi

    2018-06-01

    Attention to relevant emotional information in the environment is an important process related to vulnerability and resilience for mood and anxiety disorders. In the present study, the effects of left and right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (i.e., DLPFC) stimulation on attentional mechanisms of emotional processing were tested and contrasted. A sample of 54 healthy participants received 20 min of active and sham anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (i.e., tDCS) either of the left (n = 27) or of the right DLPFC (n = 27) on two separate days. The anode electrode was placed over the left or the right DLPFC, the cathode over the corresponding contra lateral supraorbital area. After each neurostimulation session, participants completed an eye-tracking task assessing direct processes of attentional engagement towards and attentional disengagement away from emotional faces (happy, disgusted, and sad expressions). Compared to sham, active tDCS over the left DLPFC led to faster gaze disengagement, whereas active tDCS over the right DLPFC led to slower gaze disengagement from emotional faces. Between-group comparisons showed that such inverse change patterns were significantly different and generalized for all types of emotion. Our findings support a lateralized role of left and right DLPFC activity in enhancing/worsening the top-down regulation of emotional attention processing. These results support the rationale of new therapies for affective disorders aimed to increase the activation of the left over the right DLPFC in combination with attentional control training, and identify specific target attention mechanisms to be trained.

  13. Brain Activity Related to the Judgment of Face-Likeness: Correlation between EEG and Face-Like Evaluation.

    PubMed

    Nihei, Yuji; Minami, Tetsuto; Nakauchi, Shigeki

    2018-01-01

    Faces represent important information for social communication, because social information, such as face-color, expression, and gender, is obtained from faces. Therefore, individuals' tend to find faces unconsciously, even in objects. Why is face-likeness perceived in non-face objects? Previous event-related potential (ERP) studies showed that the P1 component (early visual processing), the N170 component (face detection), and the N250 component (personal detection) reflect the neural processing of faces. Inverted faces were reported to enhance the amplitude and delay the latency of P1 and N170. To investigate face-likeness processing in the brain, we explored the face-related components of the ERP through a face-like evaluation task using natural faces, cars, insects, and Arcimboldo paintings presented upright or inverted. We found a significant correlation between the inversion effect index and face-like scores in P1 in both hemispheres and in N170 in the right hemisphere. These results suggest that judgment of face-likeness occurs in a relatively early stage of face processing.

  14. Brain Activity Related to the Judgment of Face-Likeness: Correlation between EEG and Face-Like Evaluation

    PubMed Central

    Nihei, Yuji; Minami, Tetsuto; Nakauchi, Shigeki

    2018-01-01

    Faces represent important information for social communication, because social information, such as face-color, expression, and gender, is obtained from faces. Therefore, individuals' tend to find faces unconsciously, even in objects. Why is face-likeness perceived in non-face objects? Previous event-related potential (ERP) studies showed that the P1 component (early visual processing), the N170 component (face detection), and the N250 component (personal detection) reflect the neural processing of faces. Inverted faces were reported to enhance the amplitude and delay the latency of P1 and N170. To investigate face-likeness processing in the brain, we explored the face-related components of the ERP through a face-like evaluation task using natural faces, cars, insects, and Arcimboldo paintings presented upright or inverted. We found a significant correlation between the inversion effect index and face-like scores in P1 in both hemispheres and in N170 in the right hemisphere. These results suggest that judgment of face-likeness occurs in a relatively early stage of face processing. PMID:29503612

  15. Face ethnicity and measurement reliability affect face recognition performance in developmental prosopagnosia: evidence from the Cambridge Face Memory Test-Australian.

    PubMed

    McKone, Elinor; Hall, Ashleigh; Pidcock, Madeleine; Palermo, Romina; Wilkinson, Ross B; Rivolta, Davide; Yovel, Galit; Davis, Joshua M; O'Connor, Kirsty B

    2011-03-01

    The Cambridge Face Memory Test (CFMT, Duchaine & Nakayama, 2006) provides a validated format for testing novel face learning and has been a crucial instrument in the diagnosis of developmental prosopagnosia. Yet, some individuals who report everyday face recognition symptoms consistent with prosopagnosia, and are impaired on famous face tasks, perform normally on the CFMT. Possible reasons include measurement error, CFMT assessment of memory only at short delays, and a face set whose ethnicity is matched to only some Caucasian groups. We develop the "CFMT-Australian" (CFMT-Aus), which complements the CFMT-original by using ethnicity better matched to a different European subpopulation. Results confirm reliability (.88) and validity (convergent, divergent using cars, inversion effects). We show that face ethnicity within a race has subtle but clear effects on face processing even in normal participants (includes cross-over interaction for face ethnicity by perceiver country of origin in distinctiveness ratings). We show that CFMT-Aus clarifies diagnosis of prosopagnosia in 6 previously ambiguous cases. In 3 cases, this appears due to the better ethnic match to prosopagnosics. We also show that face memory at short (<3-min), 20-min, and 24-hr delays taps overlapping processes in normal participants. There is some suggestion that a form of prosopagnosia may exist that is long delay only and/or reflects failure to benefit from face repetition. © 2011 Psychology Press, an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an Informa business

  16. Effects of inverting contour and features on processing for static and dynamic face perception: an MEG study.

    PubMed

    Miki, Kensaku; Takeshima, Yasuyuki; Watanabe, Shoko; Honda, Yukiko; Kakigi, Ryusuke

    2011-04-06

    We investigated the effects of inverting facial contour (hair and chin) and features (eyes, nose and mouth) on processing for static and dynamic face perception using magnetoencephalography (MEG). We used apparent motion, in which the first stimulus (S1) was replaced by a second stimulus (S2) with no interstimulus interval and subjects perceived visual motion, and presented three conditions as follows: (1) U&U: Upright contour and Upright features, (2) U&I: Upright contour and Inverted features, and (3) I&I: Inverted contour and Inverted features. In static face perception (S1 onset), the peak latency of the fusiform area's activity, which was related to static face perception, was significantly longer for U&I and I&I than for U&U in the right hemisphere and for U&I than for U&U and I&I in the left. In dynamic face perception (S2 onset), the strength (moment) of the occipitotemporal area's activity, which was related to dynamic face perception, was significantly larger for I&I than for U&U and U&I in the right hemisphere, but not the left. These results can be summarized as follows: (1) in static face perception, the activity of the right fusiform area was more affected by the inversion of features while that of the left fusiform area was more affected by the disruption of the spatial relation between the contour and features, and (2) in dynamic face perception, the activity of the right occipitotemporal area was affected by the inversion of the facial contour. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  17. Outlining face processing skills of portrait artists: Perceptual experience with faces predicts performance.

    PubMed

    Devue, Christel; Barsics, Catherine

    2016-10-01

    Most humans seem to demonstrate astonishingly high levels of skill in face processing if one considers the sophisticated level of fine-tuned discrimination that face recognition requires. However, numerous studies now indicate that the ability to process faces is not as fundamental as once thought and that performance can range from despairingly poor to extraordinarily high across people. Here we studied people who are super specialists of faces, namely portrait artists, to examine how their specific visual experience with faces relates to a range of face processing skills (perceptual discrimination, short- and longer term recognition). Artists show better perceptual discrimination and, to some extent, recognition of newly learned faces than controls. They are also more accurate on other perceptual tasks (i.e., involving non-face stimuli or mental rotation). By contrast, artists do not display an advantage compared to controls on longer term face recognition (i.e., famous faces) nor on person recognition from other sensorial modalities (i.e., voices). Finally, the face inversion effect exists in artists and controls and is not modulated by artistic practice. Advantages in face processing for artists thus seem to closely mirror perceptual and visual short term memory skills involved in portraiture. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  18. The complex duration perception of emotional faces: effects of face direction.

    PubMed

    Kliegl, Katrin M; Limbrecht-Ecklundt, Kerstin; Dürr, Lea; Traue, Harald C; Huckauf, Anke

    2015-01-01

    The perceived duration of emotional face stimuli strongly depends on the expressed emotion. But, emotional faces also differ regarding a number of other features like gaze, face direction, or sex. Usually, these features have been controlled by only using pictures of female models with straight gaze and face direction. Doi and Shinohara (2009) reported that an overestimation of angry faces could only be found when the model's gaze was oriented toward the observer. We aimed at replicating this effect for face direction. Moreover, we explored the effect of face direction on the duration perception sad faces. Controlling for the sex of the face model and the participant, female and male participants rated the duration of neutral, angry, and sad face stimuli of both sexes photographed from different perspectives in a bisection task. In line with current findings, we report a significant overestimation of angry compared to neutral face stimuli that was modulated by face direction. Moreover, the perceived duration of sad face stimuli did not differ from that of neutral faces and was not influenced by face direction. Furthermore, we found that faces of the opposite sex appeared to last longer than those of the same sex. This outcome is discussed with regards to stimulus parameters like the induced arousal, social relevance, and an evolutionary context.

  19. Normal composite face effects in developmental prosopagnosia.

    PubMed

    Biotti, Federica; Wu, Esther; Yang, Hua; Jiahui, Guo; Duchaine, Bradley; Cook, Richard

    2017-10-01

    Upright face perception is thought to involve holistic processing, whereby local features are integrated into a unified whole. Consistent with this view, the top half of one face appears to fuse perceptually with the bottom half of another, when aligned spatially and presented upright. This 'composite face effect' reveals a tendency to integrate information from disparate regions when faces are presented canonically. In recent years, the relationship between susceptibility to the composite effect and face recognition ability has received extensive attention both in participants with normal face recognition and participants with developmental prosopagnosia. Previous results suggest that individuals with developmental prosopagnosia may show reduced susceptibility to the effect suggestive of diminished holistic face processing. Here we describe two studies that examine whether developmental prosopagnosia is associated with reduced composite face effects. Despite using independent samples of developmental prosopagnosics and different composite procedures, we find no evidence for reduced composite face effects. The experiments yielded similar results; highly significant composite effects in both prosopagnosic groups that were similar in magnitude to the effects found in participants with normal face processing. The composite face effects exhibited by both samples and the controls were greatly diminished when stimulus arrangements were inverted. Our finding that the whole-face binding process indexed by the composite effect is intact in developmental prosopagnosia indicates that other factors are responsible for developmental prosopagnosia. These results are also inconsistent with suggestions that susceptibility to the composite face effect and face recognition ability are tightly linked. While the holistic process revealed by the composite face effect may be necessary for typical face perception, it is not sufficient; individual differences in face recognition ability

  20. Artificial faces are harder to remember

    PubMed Central

    Balas, Benjamin; Pacella, Jonathan

    2015-01-01

    Observers interact with artificial faces in a range of different settings and in many cases must remember and identify computer-generated faces. In general, however, most adults have heavily biased experience favoring real faces over synthetic faces. It is well known that face recognition abilities are affected by experience such that faces belonging to “out-groups” defined by race or age are more poorly remembered and harder to discriminate from one another than faces belonging to the “in-group.” Here, we examine the extent to which artificial faces form an “out-group” in this sense when other perceptual categories are matched. We rendered synthetic faces using photographs of real human faces and compared performance in a memory task and a discrimination task across real and artificial versions of the same faces. We found that real faces were easier to remember, but only slightly more discriminable than artificial faces. Artificial faces were also equally susceptible to the well-known face inversion effect, suggesting that while these patterns are still processed by the human visual system in a face-like manner, artificial appearance does compromise the efficiency of face processing. PMID:26195852

  1. Semisupervised kernel marginal Fisher analysis for face recognition.

    PubMed

    Wang, Ziqiang; Sun, Xia; Sun, Lijun; Huang, Yuchun

    2013-01-01

    Dimensionality reduction is a key problem in face recognition due to the high-dimensionality of face image. To effectively cope with this problem, a novel dimensionality reduction algorithm called semisupervised kernel marginal Fisher analysis (SKMFA) for face recognition is proposed in this paper. SKMFA can make use of both labelled and unlabeled samples to learn the projection matrix for nonlinear dimensionality reduction. Meanwhile, it can successfully avoid the singularity problem by not calculating the matrix inverse. In addition, in order to make the nonlinear structure captured by the data-dependent kernel consistent with the intrinsic manifold structure, a manifold adaptive nonparameter kernel is incorporated into the learning process of SKMFA. Experimental results on three face image databases demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed algorithm.

  2. The effect of face patch microstimulation on perception of faces and objects.

    PubMed

    Moeller, Sebastian; Crapse, Trinity; Chang, Le; Tsao, Doris Y

    2017-05-01

    What is the range of stimuli encoded by face-selective regions of the brain? We asked how electrical microstimulation of face patches in macaque inferotemporal cortex affects perception of faces and objects. We found that microstimulation strongly distorted face percepts and that this effect depended on precise targeting to the center of face patches. While microstimulation had no effect on the percept of many non-face objects, it did affect the percept of some, including non-face objects whose shape is consistent with a face (for example, apples) as well as somewhat facelike abstract images (for example, cartoon houses). Microstimulation even perturbed the percept of certain objects that did not activate the stimulated face patch at all. Overall, these results indicate that representation of facial identity is localized to face patches, but activity in these patches can also affect perception of face-compatible non-face objects, including objects normally represented in other parts of inferotemporal cortex.

  3. Holistic Processing of Faces as Measured by the Thatcher Illusion Is Intact in Autism Spectrum Disorders

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cleary, Laura; Brady, Nuala; Fitzgerald, Michael; Gallagher, Louise

    2015-01-01

    Impaired face perception in autism spectrum disorders is thought to reflect a perceptual style characterized by componential rather than configural processing of faces. This study investigated face processing in adolescents with autism spectrum disorders using the Thatcher illusion, a perceptual phenomenon exhibiting "inversion effects"…

  4. Inverse Faraday Effect Revisited

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mendonça, J. T.; Ali, S.; Davies, J. R.

    2010-11-01

    The inverse Faraday effect is usually associated with circularly polarized laser beams. However, it was recently shown that it can also occur for linearly polarized radiation [1]. The quasi-static axial magnetic field by a laser beam propagating in plasma can be calculated by considering both the spin and the orbital angular momenta of the laser pulse. A net spin is present when the radiation is circularly polarized and a net orbital angular momentum is present if there is any deviation from perfect rotational symmetry. This orbital angular momentum has recently been discussed in the plasma context [2], and can give an additional contribution to the axial magnetic field, thus enhancing or reducing the inverse Faraday effect. As a result, this effect that is usually attributed to circular polarization can also be excited by linearly polarized radiation, if the incident laser propagates in a Laguerre-Gauss mode carrying a finite amount of orbital angular momentum.[4pt] [1] S. ALi, J.R. Davies and J.T. Mendonca, Phys. Rev. Lett., 105, 035001 (2010).[0pt] [2] J. T. Mendonca, B. Thidé, and H. Then, Phys. Rev. Lett. 102, 185005 (2009).

  5. The Cambridge Face Memory Test for Children (CFMT-C): a new tool for measuring face recognition skills in childhood.

    PubMed

    Croydon, Abigail; Pimperton, Hannah; Ewing, Louise; Duchaine, Brad C; Pellicano, Elizabeth

    2014-09-01

    Face recognition ability follows a lengthy developmental course, not reaching maturity until well into adulthood. Valid and reliable assessments of face recognition memory ability are necessary to examine patterns of ability and disability in face processing, yet there is a dearth of such assessments for children. We modified a well-known test of face memory in adults, the Cambridge Face Memory Test (Duchaine & Nakayama, 2006, Neuropsychologia, 44, 576-585), to make it developmentally appropriate for children. To establish its utility, we administered either the upright or inverted versions of the computerised Cambridge Face Memory Test - Children (CFMT-C) to 401 children aged between 5 and 12 years. Our results show that the CFMT-C is sufficiently sensitive to demonstrate age-related gains in the recognition of unfamiliar upright and inverted faces, does not suffer from ceiling or floor effects, generates robust inversion effects, and is capable of detecting difficulties in face memory in children diagnosed with autism. Together, these findings indicate that the CFMT-C constitutes a new valid assessment tool for children's face recognition skills. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. Neural and cognitive face-selective markers: An integrative review.

    PubMed

    Yovel, Galit

    2016-03-01

    Faces elicit robust and selective neural responses in the primate brain. These neural responses have been investigated with functional MRI and EEG in numerous studies, which have reported face-selective activations in the occipital-temporal cortex and an electrophysiological face-selective response that peaks 170 ms after stimulus onset at occipital-temporal sites. Evidence for face-selective processes has also been consistently reported in cognitive studies, which investigated the face inversion effect, the composite face effect and the left visual field (LVF) superiority. These cognitive effects indicate that the perceptual representation that we generate for faces differs from the representation that is generated for inverted faces or non-face objects. In this review, I will show that the fMRI and ERP face-selective responses are strongly associated with these three well-established behavioral face-selective measures. I will further review studies that examined the relationship between fMRI and EEG face-selective measures suggesting that they are strongly linked. Taken together these studies imply that a holistic representation of a face is generated at 170 ms after stimulus onset over the right hemisphere. These findings, which reveal a strong link between the various and complementary cognitive and neural measures of face processing, allow to characterize where, when and how faces are represented during the first 200 ms of face processing. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. Detection of emotional faces: salient physical features guide effective visual search.

    PubMed

    Calvo, Manuel G; Nummenmaa, Lauri

    2008-08-01

    In this study, the authors investigated how salient visual features capture attention and facilitate detection of emotional facial expressions. In a visual search task, a target emotional face (happy, disgusted, fearful, angry, sad, or surprised) was presented in an array of neutral faces. Faster detection of happy and, to a lesser extent, surprised and disgusted faces was found both under upright and inverted display conditions. Inversion slowed down the detection of these faces less than that of others (fearful, angry, and sad). Accordingly, the detection advantage involves processing of featural rather than configural information. The facial features responsible for the detection advantage are located in the mouth rather than the eye region. Computationally modeled visual saliency predicted both attentional orienting and detection. Saliency was greatest for the faces (happy) and regions (mouth) that were fixated earlier and detected faster, and there was close correspondence between the onset of the modeled saliency peak and the time at which observers initially fixated the faces. The authors conclude that visual saliency of specific facial features--especially the smiling mouth--is responsible for facilitated initial orienting, which thus shortens detection. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2008 APA, all rights reserved).

  8. The Cambridge Car Memory Test: a task matched in format to the Cambridge Face Memory Test, with norms, reliability, sex differences, dissociations from face memory, and expertise effects.

    PubMed

    Dennett, Hugh W; McKone, Elinor; Tavashmi, Raka; Hall, Ashleigh; Pidcock, Madeleine; Edwards, Mark; Duchaine, Bradley

    2012-06-01

    Many research questions require a within-class object recognition task matched for general cognitive requirements with a face recognition task. If the object task also has high internal reliability, it can improve accuracy and power in group analyses (e.g., mean inversion effects for faces vs. objects), individual-difference studies (e.g., correlations between certain perceptual abilities and face/object recognition), and case studies in neuropsychology (e.g., whether a prosopagnosic shows a face-specific or object-general deficit). Here, we present such a task. Our Cambridge Car Memory Test (CCMT) was matched in format to the established Cambridge Face Memory Test, requiring recognition of exemplars across view and lighting change. We tested 153 young adults (93 female). Results showed high reliability (Cronbach's alpha = .84) and a range of scores suitable both for normal-range individual-difference studies and, potentially, for diagnosis of impairment. The mean for males was much higher than the mean for females. We demonstrate independence between face memory and car memory (dissociation based on sex, plus a modest correlation between the two), including where participants have high relative expertise with cars. We also show that expertise with real car makes and models of the era used in the test significantly predicts CCMT performance. Surprisingly, however, regression analyses imply that there is an effect of sex per se on the CCMT that is not attributable to a stereotypical male advantage in car expertise.

  9. Dissociated neural basis of two behavioral hallmarks of holistic face processing: The whole-part effect and composite-face effect.

    PubMed

    Li, Jin; Huang, Lijie; Song, Yiying; Liu, Jia

    2017-07-28

    It has been long proposed that our extraordinary face recognition ability stems from holistic face processing. Two widely-used behavioral hallmarks of holistic face processing are the whole-part effect (WPE) and composite-face effect (CFE). However, it remains unknown whether these two effects reflect similar or different aspects of holistic face processing. Here we investigated this question by examining whether the WPE and CFE involved shared or distinct neural substrates in a large sample of participants (N=200). We found that the WPE and CFE showed hemispheric dissociation in the fusiform face area (FFA), that is, the WPE was correlated with face selectivity in the left FFA, while the CFE was correlated with face selectivity in the right FFA. Further, the correlation between the WPE and face selectivity was largely driven by the FFA response to faces, whereas the association between the CFE and face selectivity resulted from suppressed response to objects in the right FFA. Finally, we also observed dissociated correlation patterns of the WPE and CFE in other face-selective regions and across the whole brain. These results suggest that the WPE and CFE may reflect different aspects of holistic face processing, which shed new light on the behavioral dissociations of these two effects demonstrated in literature. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Beyond U-Shaped Development in Infants' Processing of Faces: An Information-Processing Account

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cashon, Cara H.; Cohen, Leslie B.

    2004-01-01

    The development of the "inversion" effect in face processing was examined in infants 3 to 6 months of age by testing their integration of the internal and external features of upright and inverted faces using a variation of the "switch" visual habituation paradigm. When combined with previous findings showing that 7-month-olds use integrative…

  11. On the facilitative effects of face motion on face recognition and its development

    PubMed Central

    Xiao, Naiqi G.; Perrotta, Steve; Quinn, Paul C.; Wang, Zhe; Sun, Yu-Hao P.; Lee, Kang

    2014-01-01

    For the past century, researchers have extensively studied human face processing and its development. These studies have advanced our understanding of not only face processing, but also visual processing in general. However, most of what we know about face processing was investigated using static face images as stimuli. Therefore, an important question arises: to what extent does our understanding of static face processing generalize to face processing in real-life contexts in which faces are mostly moving? The present article addresses this question by examining recent studies on moving face processing to uncover the influence of facial movements on face processing and its development. First, we describe evidence on the facilitative effects of facial movements on face recognition and two related theoretical hypotheses: the supplementary information hypothesis and the representation enhancement hypothesis. We then highlight several recent studies suggesting that facial movements optimize face processing by activating specific face processing strategies that accommodate to task requirements. Lastly, we review the influence of facial movements on the development of face processing in the first year of life. We focus on infants' sensitivity to facial movements and explore the facilitative effects of facial movements on infants' face recognition performance. We conclude by outlining several future directions to investigate moving face processing and emphasize the importance of including dynamic aspects of facial information to further understand face processing in real-life contexts. PMID:25009517

  12. Does Face Inversion Change Spatial Frequency Tuning?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Willenbockel, Verena; Fiset, Daniel; Chauvin, Alan; Blais, Caroline; Arguin, Martin; Tanaka, James W.; Bub, Daniel N.; Gosselin, Frederic

    2010-01-01

    The authors examined spatial frequency (SF) tuning of upright and inverted face identification using an SF variant of the Bubbles technique (F. Gosselin & P. G. Schyns, 2001). In Experiment 1, they validated the SF Bubbles technique in a plaid detection task. In Experiments 2a-c, the SFs used for identifying upright and inverted inner facial…

  13. The Impact of Early Bilingualism on Face Recognition Processes.

    PubMed

    Kandel, Sonia; Burfin, Sabine; Méary, David; Ruiz-Tada, Elisa; Costa, Albert; Pascalis, Olivier

    2016-01-01

    Early linguistic experience has an impact on the way we decode audiovisual speech in face-to-face communication. The present study examined whether differences in visual speech decoding could be linked to a broader difference in face processing. To identify a phoneme we have to do an analysis of the speaker's face to focus on the relevant cues for speech decoding (e.g., locating the mouth with respect to the eyes). Face recognition processes were investigated through two classic effects in face recognition studies: the Other-Race Effect (ORE) and the Inversion Effect. Bilingual and monolingual participants did a face recognition task with Caucasian faces (own race), Chinese faces (other race), and cars that were presented in an Upright or Inverted position. The results revealed that monolinguals exhibited the classic ORE. Bilinguals did not. Overall, bilinguals were slower than monolinguals. These results suggest that bilinguals' face processing abilities differ from monolinguals'. Early exposure to more than one language may lead to a perceptual organization that goes beyond language processing and could extend to face analysis. We hypothesize that these differences could be due to the fact that bilinguals focus on different parts of the face than monolinguals, making them more efficient in other race face processing but slower. However, more studies using eye-tracking techniques are necessary to confirm this explanation.

  14. Effectiveness of link prediction for face-to-face behavioral networks.

    PubMed

    Tsugawa, Sho; Ohsaki, Hiroyuki

    2013-01-01

    Research on link prediction for social networks has been actively pursued. In link prediction for a given social network obtained from time-windowed observation, new link formation in the network is predicted from the topology of the obtained network. In contrast, recent advances in sensing technology have made it possible to obtain face-to-face behavioral networks, which are social networks representing face-to-face interactions among people. However, the effectiveness of link prediction techniques for face-to-face behavioral networks has not yet been explored in depth. To clarify this point, here we investigate the accuracy of conventional link prediction techniques for networks obtained from the history of face-to-face interactions among participants at an academic conference. Our findings were (1) that conventional link prediction techniques predict new link formation with a precision of 0.30-0.45 and a recall of 0.10-0.20, (2) that prolonged observation of social networks often degrades the prediction accuracy, (3) that the proposed decaying weight method leads to higher prediction accuracy than can be achieved by observing all records of communication and simply using them unmodified, and (4) that the prediction accuracy for face-to-face behavioral networks is relatively high compared to that for non-social networks, but not as high as for other types of social networks.

  15. Effectiveness of Link Prediction for Face-to-Face Behavioral Networks

    PubMed Central

    Tsugawa, Sho; Ohsaki, Hiroyuki

    2013-01-01

    Research on link prediction for social networks has been actively pursued. In link prediction for a given social network obtained from time-windowed observation, new link formation in the network is predicted from the topology of the obtained network. In contrast, recent advances in sensing technology have made it possible to obtain face-to-face behavioral networks, which are social networks representing face-to-face interactions among people. However, the effectiveness of link prediction techniques for face-to-face behavioral networks has not yet been explored in depth. To clarify this point, here we investigate the accuracy of conventional link prediction techniques for networks obtained from the history of face-to-face interactions among participants at an academic conference. Our findings were (1) that conventional link prediction techniques predict new link formation with a precision of 0.30–0.45 and a recall of 0.10–0.20, (2) that prolonged observation of social networks often degrades the prediction accuracy, (3) that the proposed decaying weight method leads to higher prediction accuracy than can be achieved by observing all records of communication and simply using them unmodified, and (4) that the prediction accuracy for face-to-face behavioral networks is relatively high compared to that for non-social networks, but not as high as for other types of social networks. PMID:24339956

  16. Face likeability mediates the memory-enhancing effect of face attractiveness in young but not older adults.

    PubMed

    Lin, Tian; Lendry, Reesa; Ebner, Natalie C

    2016-11-01

    Evidence of effects of face attractiveness on memory is mixed and little is known about the underlying mechanisms of this relationship. Previous work suggests a possible mediating role of affective responding to faces (i.e., face likeability) on the relationship between face attractiveness and memory. Age-related change in social motivation may reduce the relevance of face attractiveness in older adults, with downstream effects on memory. In the present study, 50 young and 51 older participants were presented with face-trait pairs. Faces varied in attractiveness. Participants then completed a face-trait associative recognition memory task and provided likeability ratings for each face. There was a memory-enhancing effect of face attractiveness in young (but not older) participants, which was partially mediated by face likeability. In addition, more attractive and less attractive (compared to moderately attractive) faces were more likely remembered by both young and older participants. This quadratic effect of face attractiveness on memory was not mediated by face likeability. Findings are discussed in the context of motivational influences on memory that vary with age.

  17. The Influence of Flankers on Race Categorization of Faces

    PubMed Central

    Sun, Hsin-Mei; Balas, Benjamin

    2012-01-01

    Context affects multiple cognitive and perceptual processes. In the present study, we asked how the context of a set of faces affected the perception of a target face’s race in two distinct tasks. In Experiments 1 and 2, participants categorized target faces according to perceived racial category (Black or White). In Experiment 1, the target face was presented alone, or with Black or White flanker faces. The orientation of flanker faces was also manipulated to investigate how face inversion effect interacts with the influences of flanker faces on the target face. The results showed that participants were more likely to categorize the target face as White when it was surrounded by inverted White faces (an assimilation effect). Experiment 2 further examined how different aspects of the visual context affect the perception of the target face by manipulating flanker faces’ shape and pigmentation as well as their orientation. The results showed that flanker faces’ shape and pigmentation affected the perception of the target face differently. While shape elicited a contrast effect, pigmentation appeared to be assimilative. These novel findings suggest that the perceived race of a face is modulated by the appearance of other faces and their distinct shape and pigmentation properties. However, the contrast and assimilation effects elicited by flanker faces’ shape and pigmentation may be specific to race categorization, since the same stimuli used in a delayed matching task (Experiment 3) revealed that flanker pigmentation induced a contrast effect on the perception of target pigmentation. PMID:22825930

  18. Ultrafast magnetic vortex core switching driven by the topological inverse Faraday effect.

    PubMed

    Taguchi, Katsuhisa; Ohe, Jun-ichiro; Tatara, Gen

    2012-09-21

    We present a theoretical discovery of an unconventional mechanism of inverse Faraday effect which acts selectively on topological magnetic structures. The effect, topological inverse Faraday effect, is induced by the spin Berry's phase of the magnetic structure when a circularly polarized light is applied. Thus a spin-orbit interaction is not necessary unlike that in the conventional inverse Faraday effect. We demonstrate by numerical simulation that topological inverse Faraday effect realizes ultrafast switching of a magnetic vortex within a switching time of 150 ps without magnetic field.

  19. Identity-Specific Face Adaptation Effects: Evidence for Abstractive Face Representations

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hole, Graham

    2011-01-01

    The effects of selective adaptation on familiar face perception were examined. After prolonged exposure to photographs of a celebrity, participants saw a series of ambiguous morphs that were varying mixtures between the face of that person and a different celebrity. Participants judged fewer of the morphs to resemble the celebrity to which they…

  20. Face format at encoding affects the other-race effect in face memory.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Mintao; Hayward, William G; Bülthoff, Isabelle

    2014-08-07

    Memory of own-race faces is generally better than memory of other-races faces. This other-race effect (ORE) in face memory has been attributed to differences in contact, holistic processing, and motivation to individuate faces. Since most studies demonstrate the ORE with participants learning and recognizing static, single-view faces, it remains unclear whether the ORE can be generalized to different face learning conditions. Using an old/new recognition task, we tested whether face format at encoding modulates the ORE. The results showed a significant ORE when participants learned static, single-view faces (Experiment 1). In contrast, the ORE disappeared when participants learned rigidly moving faces (Experiment 2). Moreover, learning faces displayed from four discrete views produced the same results as learning rigidly moving faces (Experiment 3). Contact with other-race faces was correlated with the magnitude of the ORE. Nonetheless, the absence of the ORE in Experiments 2 and 3 cannot be readily explained by either more frequent contact with other-race faces or stronger motivation to individuate them. These results demonstrate that the ORE is sensitive to face format at encoding, supporting the hypothesis that relative involvement of holistic and featural processing at encoding mediates the ORE observed in face memory. © 2014 ARVO.

  1. Familiarity enhances visual working memory for faces.

    PubMed

    Jackson, Margaret C; Raymond, Jane E

    2008-06-01

    Although it is intuitive that familiarity with complex visual objects should aid their preservation in visual working memory (WM), empirical evidence for this is lacking. This study used a conventional change-detection procedure to assess visual WM for unfamiliar and famous faces in healthy adults. Across experiments, faces were upright or inverted and a low- or high-load concurrent verbal WM task was administered to suppress contribution from verbal WM. Even with a high verbal memory load, visual WM performance was significantly better and capacity estimated as significantly greater for famous versus unfamiliar faces. Face inversion abolished this effect. Thus, neither strategic, explicit support from verbal WM nor low-level feature processing easily accounts for the observed benefit of high familiarity for visual WM. These results demonstrate that storage of items in visual WM can be enhanced if robust visual representations of them already exist in long-term memory.

  2. Holistic face representation is highly orientation-specific.

    PubMed

    Rosenthal, Gideon; Levakov, Gidon; Avidan, Galia

    2017-09-29

    It has long been argued that face processing requires disproportionate reliance on holistic processing (HP), relative to that required for nonface object recognition. Nevertheless, whether the holistic nature of face perception is achieved via a unique internal representation or by the employment of an automated attention mechanism is still debated. Previous studies had used the face inversion effect (FIE), a unique face-processing marker, or the face composite task, a gold standard paradigm measuring holistic processing, to examine the validity of these two different hypotheses, with some studies combining the two paradigms. However, the results of such studies remain inconclusive, particularly pertaining to the issue of the two proposed HP mechanisms-an internal representation as opposed to an automated attention mechanism. Here, using the complete composite paradigm design, we aimed to examine whether face rotation yields a nonlinear or a linear drop in HP, thus supporting an account that face processing is based either on an orientation-dependent internal representation or on automated attention. Our results reveal that even a relatively small perturbation in face orientation (30 deg away from upright) already causes a sharp decline in HP. These findings support the face internal representation hypothesis and the notion that the holistic processing of faces is highly orientation-specific.

  3. Perception and Processing of Faces in the Human Brain Is Tuned to Typical Feature Locations

    PubMed Central

    Schwarzkopf, D. Samuel; Alvarez, Ivan; Lawson, Rebecca P.; Henriksson, Linda; Kriegeskorte, Nikolaus; Rees, Geraint

    2016-01-01

    Faces are salient social stimuli whose features attract a stereotypical pattern of fixations. The implications of this gaze behavior for perception and brain activity are largely unknown. Here, we characterize and quantify a retinotopic bias implied by typical gaze behavior toward faces, which leads to eyes and mouth appearing most often in the upper and lower visual field, respectively. We found that the adult human visual system is tuned to these contingencies. In two recognition experiments, recognition performance for isolated face parts was better when they were presented at typical, rather than reversed, visual field locations. The recognition cost of reversed locations was equal to ∼60% of that for whole face inversion in the same sample. Similarly, an fMRI experiment showed that patterns of activity evoked by eye and mouth stimuli in the right inferior occipital gyrus could be separated with significantly higher accuracy when these features were presented at typical, rather than reversed, visual field locations. Our findings demonstrate that human face perception is determined not only by the local position of features within a face context, but by whether features appear at the typical retinotopic location given normal gaze behavior. Such location sensitivity may reflect fine-tuning of category-specific visual processing to retinal input statistics. Our findings further suggest that retinotopic heterogeneity might play a role for face inversion effects and for the understanding of conditions affecting gaze behavior toward faces, such as autism spectrum disorders and congenital prosopagnosia. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Faces attract our attention and trigger stereotypical patterns of visual fixations, concentrating on inner features, like eyes and mouth. Here we show that the visual system represents face features better when they are shown at retinal positions where they typically fall during natural vision. When facial features were shown at typical (rather

  4. Differences between perception of human faces and body shapes: evidence from the composite illusion.

    PubMed

    Soria Bauser, Denise A; Suchan, Boris; Daum, Irene

    2011-01-01

    The present study aimed to investigate whether human body forms--like human faces--undergo holistic processing. Evidence for holistic face processing comes from the face composite effect: two identical top halves of a face are perceived as being different if they are presented with different bottom parts. This effect disappears if both bottom halves are shifted laterally (misaligned) or if the stimulus is rotated by 180°. We investigated whether comparable composite effects are observed for human faces and human body forms. Matching of upright faces was more accurate and faster for misaligned compared to aligned presentations. By contrast, there were no processing differences between aligned and misaligned bodies. An inversion effect emerged, with better recognition performance for upright compared to inverted bodies but not faces. The present findings provide evidence for the assumption that holistic processing--investigated with the composite illusion--is not involved in the perception of human body forms. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Chromosomal inversion differences correlate with range overlap in passerine birds.

    PubMed

    Hooper, Daniel M; Price, Trevor D

    2017-10-01

    Chromosomal inversions evolve frequently but the reasons for this remain unclear. We used cytological descriptions of 411 species of passerine birds to identify large pericentric inversion differences between species, based on the position of the centromere. Within 81 small clades comprising 284 of the species, we found 319 differences on the 9 largest autosomes combined, 56 on the Z chromosome, and 55 on the W chromosome. We also identified inversions present within 32 species. Using a new fossil-calibrated phylogeny, we examined the phylogenetic, demographic and genomic context in which these inversions have evolved. The number of inversion differences between closely related species is consistently predicted by whether the ranges of species overlap, even when time is controlled for as far as is possible. Fixation rates vary across the autosomes, but inversions are more likely to be fixed on the Z chromosome than the average autosome. Variable mutagenic input alone (estimated by chromosome size, map length, GC content or repeat density) cannot explain the differences between chromosomes in the number of inversions fixed. Together, these results support a model in which inversions increase because of their effects on recombination suppression in the face of hybridization. Other factors associated with hybridization may also contribute, including the possibility that inversions contain incompatibility alleles, making taxa less likely to collapse following secondary contact.

  6. The inverse skin effect in the Z-pinch and plasma focus

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Usenko, P. L., E-mail: otd4@expd.vniief.ru; Gaganov, V. V.

    The inverse skin effect and its influence on the dynamics of high-current Z-pinch and plasma focus discharges in deuterium are analyzed. It is shown that the second compression responsible for the major fraction of the neutron yield can be interpreted as a result of the inverse skin effect resulting in the axial concentration of the longitudinal current density and the appearance of a reversed current in the outer layers of plasma pinches. Possible conditions leading to the enhancement of the inverse skin effect and accessible for experimental verification by modern diagnostics are formulated.

  7. Task effects, performance levels, features, configurations, and holistic face processing: A reply to Rossion

    PubMed Central

    Riesenhuber, Maximilian; Wolff, Brian S.

    2009-01-01

    Summary A recent article in Acta Psychologica (“Picture-plane inversion leads to qualitative changes of face perception” by B. Rossion, 2008) criticized several aspects of an earlier paper of ours (Riesenhuber et al., “Face processing in humans is compatible with a simple shape-based model of vision”, Proc Biol Sci, 2004). We here address Rossion’s criticisms and correct some misunderstandings. To frame the discussion, we first review our previously presented computational model of face recognition in cortex (Jiang et al., “Evaluation of a shape-based model of human face discrimination using fMRI and behavioral techniques”, Neuron, 2006) that provides a concrete biologically plausible computational substrate for holistic coding, namely a neural representation learned for upright faces, in the spirit of the original simple-to-complex hierarchical model of vision by Hubel and Wiesel. We show that Rossion’s and others’ data support the model, and that there is actually a convergence of views on the mechanisms underlying face recognition, in particular regarding holistic processing. PMID:19665104

  8. The other-race effect in face learning: Using naturalistic images to investigate face ethnicity effects in a learning paradigm.

    PubMed

    Hayward, William G; Favelle, Simone K; Oxner, Matt; Chu, Ming Hon; Lam, Sze Man

    2017-05-01

    The other-race effect in face identification has been reported in many situations and by many different ethnicities, yet it remains poorly understood. One reason for this lack of clarity may be a limitation in the methodologies that have been used to test it. Experiments typically use an old-new recognition task to demonstrate the existence of the other-race effect, but such tasks are susceptible to different social and perceptual influences, particularly in terms of the extent to which all faces are equally individuated at study. In this paper we report an experiment in which we used a face learning methodology to measure the other-race effect. We obtained naturalistic photographs of Chinese and Caucasian individuals, which allowed us to test the ability of participants to generalize their learning to new ecologically valid exemplars of a face identity. We show a strong own-race advantage in face learning, such that participants required many fewer trials to learn names of own-race individuals than those of other-race individuals and were better able to identify learned own-race individuals in novel naturalistic stimuli. Since our methodology requires individuation of all faces, and generalization over large image changes, our finding of an other-race effect can be attributed to a specific deficit in the sensitivity of perceptual and memory processes to other-race faces.

  9. Anisotropy effects on 3D waveform inversion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Stekl, I.; Warner, M.; Umpleby, A.

    2010-12-01

    misinterpretation of results. However if correct physics is used results agree with correct model. Our algorithm is relatively affordable and runs on standard pc clusters in acceptable time. Refferences: H. Ben Hadj Ali, S. Operto and J. Virieux. Velocity model building by 3D frequency-domain full-waveform inversion of wide-aperture seismic data, Geophysics (Special issue: Velocity Model Building), 73(6), P. VE101-VE117 (2008). L. Sirgue, O.I. Barkved, J. Dellinger, J. Etgen, U. Albertin, J.H. Kommedal, Full waveform inversion: the next leap forward in imaging at Valhall, First Brake April 2010 - Issue 4 - Volume 28 M. Warner, I. Stekl, A. Umpleby, Efficient and Effective 3D Wavefield Tomography, 70th EAGE Conference & Exhibition (2008)

  10. The Inversion Effect for Chinese Characters is Modulated by Radical Organization.

    PubMed

    Luo, Canhuang; Chen, Wei; Zhang, Ye

    2017-06-01

    In studies of visual object recognition, strong inversion effects accompany the acquisition of expertise and imply the involvement of configural processing. Chinese literacy results in sensitivity to the orthography of Chinese characters. While there is some evidence that this orthographic sensitivity results in an inversion effect, and thus involves configural processing, that processing might depend on exact orthographic properties. Chinese character recognition is believed to involve a hierarchical process, involving at least two lower levels of representation: strokes and radicals. Radicals are grouped into characters according to certain types of structure, i.e. left-right structure, top-bottom structure, or simple characters with only one radical by itself. These types of radical structures vary in both familiarity, and in hierarchical level (compound versus simple characters). In this study, we investigate whether the hierarchical-level or familiarity of radical-structure has an impact on the magnitude of the inversion effect. Participants were asked to do a matching task on pairs of either upright or inverted characters with all the types of structure. Inversion effects were measured based on both reaction time and response sensitivity. While an inversion effect was observed in all 3 conditions, the magnitude of the inversion effect varied with radical structure, being significantly larger for the most familiar type of structure: characters consisting of 2 radicals organized from left to right. These findings indicate that character recognition involves extraction of configural structure as well as radical processing which play different roles in the processing of compound characters and simple characters.

  11. Natural Experience Modulates the Processing of Older Adult Faces in Young Adults and 3-Year-Old Children

    PubMed Central

    Proietti, Valentina; Pisacane, Antonella; Macchi Cassia, Viola

    2013-01-01

    Just like other face dimensions, age influences the way faces are processed by adults as well as by children. However, it remains unclear under what conditions exactly such influence occurs at both ages, in that there is some mixed evidence concerning the presence of a systematic processing advantage for peer faces (own-age bias) across the lifespan. Inconsistency in the results may stem from the fact that the individual’s face representation adapts to represent the most predominant age traits of the faces present in the environment, which is reflective of the individual’s specific living conditions and social experience. In the current study we investigated the processing of younger and older adult faces in two groups of adults (Experiment 1) and two groups of 3-year-old children (Experiment 2) who accumulated different amounts of experience with elderly people. Contact with elderly adults influenced the extent to which both adult and child participants showed greater discrimination abilities and stronger sensitivity to configural/featural cues in younger versus older adult faces, as measured by the size of the inversion effect. In children, the size of the inversion effect for older adult faces was also significantly correlated with the amount of contact with elderly people. These results show that, in both adults and children, visual experience with older adult faces can tune perceptual processing strategies to the point of abolishing the discrimination disadvantage that participants typically manifest for those faces in comparison to younger adult faces. PMID:23460867

  12. Social presence and the composite face effect.

    PubMed

    Garcia-Marques, Teresa; Fernandes, Alexandre; Fonseca, Ricardo; Prada, Marilia

    2015-06-01

    A robust finding in social psychology research is that performance is modulated by the social nature of a given context, promoting social inhibition or facilitation effects. In the present experiment, we examined if and how social presence impacts holistic face perception processes by asking participants, in the presence of others and alone, to perform the composite face task. Results suggest that completing the task in the presence of others (i.e., mere co-action) is associated with better performance in face recognition (less bias and higher discrimination between presented and non-presented targets) and with a reduction in the composite face effect. These results make clear that social presence impact on the composite face effect does not occur because presence increases reliance on holistic processing as a "dominant" well-learned response, but instead, because it increases monitoring of the interference produced by automatic response. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  13. Efficient search for a face by chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes).

    PubMed

    Tomonaga, Masaki; Imura, Tomoko

    2015-07-16

    The face is quite an important stimulus category for human and nonhuman primates in their social lives. Recent advances in comparative-cognitive research clearly indicate that chimpanzees and humans process faces in a special manner; that is, using holistic or configural processing. Both species exhibit the face-inversion effect in which the inverted presentation of a face deteriorates their perception and recognition. Furthermore, recent studies have shown that humans detect human faces among non-facial objects rapidly. We report that chimpanzees detected chimpanzee faces among non-facial objects quite efficiently. This efficient search was not limited to own-species faces. They also found human adult and baby faces--but not monkey faces--efficiently. Additional testing showed that a front-view face was more readily detected than a profile, suggesting the important role of eye-to-eye contact. Chimpanzees also detected a photograph of a banana as efficiently as a face, but a further examination clearly indicated that the banana was detected mainly due to a low-level feature (i.e., color). Efficient face detection was hampered by an inverted presentation, suggesting that configural processing of faces is a critical element of efficient face detection in both species. This conclusion was supported by a simple simulation experiment using the saliency model.

  14. Efficient search for a face by chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes)

    PubMed Central

    Tomonaga, Masaki; Imura, Tomoko

    2015-01-01

    The face is quite an important stimulus category for human and nonhuman primates in their social lives. Recent advances in comparative-cognitive research clearly indicate that chimpanzees and humans process faces in a special manner; that is, using holistic or configural processing. Both species exhibit the face-inversion effect in which the inverted presentation of a face deteriorates their perception and recognition. Furthermore, recent studies have shown that humans detect human faces among non-facial objects rapidly. We report that chimpanzees detected chimpanzee faces among non-facial objects quite efficiently. This efficient search was not limited to own-species faces. They also found human adult and baby faces-but not monkey faces-efficiently. Additional testing showed that a front-view face was more readily detected than a profile, suggesting the important role of eye-to-eye contact. Chimpanzees also detected a photograph of a banana as efficiently as a face, but a further examination clearly indicated that the banana was detected mainly due to a low-level feature (i.e., color). Efficient face detection was hampered by an inverted presentation, suggesting that configural processing of faces is a critical element of efficient face detection in both species. This conclusion was supported by a simple simulation experiment using the saliency model. PMID:26180944

  15. The Inversion Effect for Chinese Characters Is Modulated by Radical Organization

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Luo, Canhuang; Chen, Wei; Zhang, Ye

    2017-01-01

    In studies of visual object recognition, strong inversion effects accompany the acquisition of expertise and imply the involvement of configural processing. Chinese literacy results in sensitivity to the orthography of Chinese characters. While there is some evidence that this orthographic sensitivity results in an inversion effect, and thus…

  16. Effects of Inversions on Within- and Between-Species Recombination and Divergence

    PubMed Central

    Stevison, Laurie S.; Hoehn, Kenneth B.; Noor, Mohamed A. F.

    2011-01-01

    Chromosomal inversions disrupt recombination in heterozygotes by both reducing crossing-over within inverted regions and increasing it elsewhere in the genome. The reduction of recombination in inverted regions facilitates the maintenance of hybridizing species, as outlined by various models of chromosomal speciation. We present a comprehensive comparison of the effects of inversions on recombination rates and on nucleotide divergence. Within an inversion differentiating Drosophila pseudoobscura and Drosophila persimilis, we detected one double recombinant among 9,739 progeny from F1 hybrids screened, consistent with published double-crossover frequencies observed within species. Despite similar rates of exchange within and between species, we found no sequence-based evidence of ongoing gene exchange between species within this inversion, but significant exchange was inferred within species. We also observed greater differentiation at regions near inversion breakpoints between species versus within species. Moreover, we observed strong “interchromosomal effect” (higher recombination in inversion heterozygotes between species) with up to 9-fold higher recombination rates along collinear segments of chromosome two in hybrids. Further, we observed that regions most susceptible to changes in recombination rates corresponded to regions with lower recombination rates in homokaryotypes. Finally, we showed that interspecies nucleotide divergence is lower in regions with greater increases in recombination rate, potentially resulting from greater interspecies exchange. Overall, we have identified several similarities and differences between inversions segregating within versus between species in their effects on recombination and divergence. We conclude that these differences are most likely due to lower frequency of heterokaryotypes and to fitness consequences from the accumulation of various incompatibilities between species. Additionally, we have identified possible

  17. Explaining Sad People's Memory Advantage for Faces.

    PubMed

    Hills, Peter J; Marquardt, Zoe; Young, Isabel; Goodenough, Imogen

    2017-01-01

    Sad people recognize faces more accurately than happy people (Hills et al., 2011). We devised four hypotheses for this finding that are tested between in the current study. The four hypotheses are: (1) sad people engage in more expert processing associated with face processing; (2) sad people are motivated to be more accurate than happy people in an attempt to repair their mood; (3) sad people have a defocused attentional strategy that allows more information about a face to be encoded; and (4) sad people scan more of the face than happy people leading to more facial features to be encoded. In Experiment 1, we found that dysphoria (sad mood often associated with depression) was not correlated with the face-inversion effect (a measure of expert processing) nor with response times but was correlated with defocused attention and recognition accuracy. Experiment 2 established that dysphoric participants detected changes made to more facial features than happy participants. In Experiment 3, using eye-tracking we found that sad-induced participants sampled more of the face whilst avoiding the eyes. Experiment 4 showed that sad-induced people demonstrated a smaller own-ethnicity bias. These results indicate that sad people show different attentional allocation to faces than happy and neutral people.

  18. Effects of Online/Face-to-Face Professional Development on College Faculty Perceptions of Disabilities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Buss, Jennifer

    2015-01-01

    This study was designed to assess the effects of participating in a professional development model that include a face-to-face and online module components. To measure the participants' self-reported knowledge and attitude before and after the professional development would provide information about possible effects of the professional…

  19. Race coding and the other-race effect in face recognition.

    PubMed

    Rhodes, Gillian; Locke, Vance; Ewing, Louise; Evangelista, Emma

    2009-01-01

    Other-race faces are generally recognised more poorly than own-race faces. According to Levin's influential race-coding hypothesis, this other-race recognition deficit results from spontaneous coding of race-specifying information, at the expense of individuating information, in other-race faces. Therefore, requiring participants to code race-specifying information for all faces should eliminate the other-race effect by reducing recognition of own-race faces to the level of other-race faces. We tested this prediction in two experiments. Race coding was induced by requiring participants to rate study faces on race typicality (experiment 1) or to categorise them by race (experiment 2). Neither manipulation reduced the other-race effect, providing no support for the race-coding hypothesis. Instead, race-coding instructions marginally increased the other-race effect in experiment 1 and had no effect in experiment 2. These results do not support the race-coding hypothesis. Surprisingly, a control task of rating the attractiveness of study faces increased the other-race effect, indicating that deeper encoding of faces does not necessarily reduce the effect (experiment 1). Finally, the normally robust other-race effect was absent when participants were instructed to individuate other-race faces (experiment 2). We suggest that poorer recognition of other-race faces may reflect reduced perceptual expertise with such faces and perhaps reduced motivation to individuate them.

  20. Context effects in the processing of familiar faces.

    PubMed

    Brennen, T; Bruce, V

    1991-01-01

    In this paper we report five experiments that investigate the influence of prime faces upon the speed with which familiar faces are recognized and named. Previously, priming had been reported when the prime and target faces were closely associated, e.g., Prince Charles and Princess Diana (Bruce & Valentine, 1986). In Experiment 1 we show that there is a reliable effect of relatedness on a double-familiarity decision, even when the faces are only categorically related, e.g., Kirk Douglas and Clint Eastwood. Then it was shown that such an effect emerges only on a double decision task (Experiments 2 and 3). Experiment 4 showed that on a primed naming task, faces preceded by a categorically related prime were responded to more quickly than those preceded by an unrelated prime, and the effect was due to inhibition. Experiment 5 replicated this effect and also showed that when associatively related primes were used, a facilitatory, and not an inhibitory, effect is found. It is argued that the facilitation of associative priming arises at an earlier locus than the inhibition of categorial priming.

  1. Exploring the Williams syndrome face-processing debate: the importance of building developmental trajectories.

    PubMed

    Karmiloff-Smith, Annette; Thomas, Michael; Annaz, Dagmara; Humphreys, Kate; Ewing, Sandra; Brace, Nicola; Duuren, Mike; Pike, Graham; Grice, Sarah; Campbell, Ruth

    2004-10-01

    Face processing in Williams syndrome (WS) has been a topic of heated debate over the past decade. Initial claims about a normally developing ('intact') face-processing module were challenged by data suggesting that individuals with WS used a different balance of cognitive processes from controls, even when their behavioural scores fell within the normal range. Measurement of evoked brain potentials also point to atypical processes. However, two recent studies have claimed that people with WS process faces exactly like normal controls. In this paper, we examine the details of this continuing debate on the basis of three new face-processing experiments. In particular, for two of our experiments we built task-specific full developmental trajectories from childhood to adolescence/adulthood and plotted the WS data on these trajectories. The first experiment used photos of real faces. While it revealed broadly equivalent accuracy across groups, the WS participants were worse at configural processing when faces were upright and less sensitive than controls to face inversion. In Experiment 2, measuring face processing in a storybook context, the face inversion effect emerged clearly in controls but only weakly in the WS developmental trajectory. Unlike the controls, the Benton Face Recognition Test and the Pattern Construction results were not correlated in WS, highlighting the different developmental patterns in the two groups. Again in contrast to the controls, Experiment 3 with schematic faces and non-face stimuli revealed a configural-processing deficit in WS both with respect to their chronological age (CA) and to their level of performance on the Benton. These findings point to both delay and deviance in WS face processing and illustrate how vital it is to build developmental trajectories for each specific task.

  2. Explaining Sad People’s Memory Advantage for Faces

    PubMed Central

    Hills, Peter J.; Marquardt, Zoe; Young, Isabel; Goodenough, Imogen

    2017-01-01

    Sad people recognize faces more accurately than happy people (Hills et al., 2011). We devised four hypotheses for this finding that are tested between in the current study. The four hypotheses are: (1) sad people engage in more expert processing associated with face processing; (2) sad people are motivated to be more accurate than happy people in an attempt to repair their mood; (3) sad people have a defocused attentional strategy that allows more information about a face to be encoded; and (4) sad people scan more of the face than happy people leading to more facial features to be encoded. In Experiment 1, we found that dysphoria (sad mood often associated with depression) was not correlated with the face-inversion effect (a measure of expert processing) nor with response times but was correlated with defocused attention and recognition accuracy. Experiment 2 established that dysphoric participants detected changes made to more facial features than happy participants. In Experiment 3, using eye-tracking we found that sad-induced participants sampled more of the face whilst avoiding the eyes. Experiment 4 showed that sad-induced people demonstrated a smaller own-ethnicity bias. These results indicate that sad people show different attentional allocation to faces than happy and neutral people. PMID:28261138

  3. Inverse Edelstein effect induced by magnon-phonon coupling

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xu, Mingran; Puebla, Jorge; Auvray, Florent; Rana, Bivas; Kondou, Kouta; Otani, Yoshichika

    2018-05-01

    We demonstrate a spin to charge current conversion via magnon-phonon coupling and an inverse Edelstein effect on the hybrid device Ni/Cu (Ag )/Bi 2O3 . The generation of spin current (Js≈108A/m2 ) due to magnon-phonon coupling reveals the viability of acoustic spin pumping as a mechanism for the development of spintronic devices. A full in-plane magnetic field angle dependence of the power absorption and a combination of longitudinal and transverse voltage detection reveals the symmetric and asymmetric components of the inverse Edelstein effect voltage induced by Rayleigh-type surface acoustic waves. While the symmetric components are well studied, asymmetric components still need to be explored. We assign the asymmetric contributions to the interference between longitudinal and shear waves and an anisotropic charge distribution in our hybrid device.

  4. Quantum Effects in Inverse Opal Structures

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bleiweiss, Michael; Datta, Timir; Lungu, Anca; Yin, Ming; Iqbal, Zafar; Palm, Eric; Brandt, Bruce

    2002-03-01

    Properties of bismuth inverse opals and carbon opal replicas were studied. The bismuth nanostructures were fabricated by pressure infiltration into porous artificial opal, while the carbon opal replicas were created via CVD. These structures form a regular three-dimensional network in which the bismuth and carbon regions percolate in all directions between the close packed spheres of SiO_2. The sizes of the conducting regions are of the order of tens of nanometers. Static susceptibility of the bismuth inverse opal showed clear deHaas-vanAlphen oscillations. Transport measurements, including Hall, were done using standard ac four and six probe techniques in fields up to 17 T* and temperatures between 4.2 and 200 K. Observations of Shubnikov-deHaas oscillations in magnetoresistance, one-dimensional weak localization, quantum Hall and other effects will be discussed. *Performed at the National High Magnetic Field Lab (NHMFL) FSU, Tallahassee, FL. This work was partially supported by grants from DARPA-nanothermoelectrics, NASA-EPSCOR and the USC nanocenter.

  5. Effects of face feature and contour crowding in facial expression adaptation.

    PubMed

    Liu, Pan; Montaser-Kouhsari, Leila; Xu, Hong

    2014-12-01

    Prolonged exposure to a visual stimulus, such as a happy face, biases the perception of subsequently presented neutral face toward sad perception, the known face adaptation. Face adaptation is affected by visibility or awareness of the adapting face. However, whether it is affected by discriminability of the adapting face is largely unknown. In the current study, we used crowding to manipulate discriminability of the adapting face and test its effect on face adaptation. Instead of presenting flanking faces near the target face, we shortened the distance between facial features (internal feature crowding), and reduced the size of face contour (external contour crowding), to introduce crowding. We are interested in whether internal feature crowding or external contour crowding is more effective in inducing crowding effect in our first experiment. We found that combining internal feature and external contour crowding, but not either of them alone, induced significant crowding effect. In Experiment 2, we went on further to investigate its effect on adaptation. We found that both internal feature crowding and external contour crowding reduced its facial expression aftereffect (FEA) significantly. However, we did not find a significant correlation between discriminability of the adapting face and its FEA. Interestingly, we found a significant correlation between discriminabilities of the adapting and test faces. Experiment 3 found that the reduced adaptation aftereffect in combined crowding by the external face contour and the internal facial features cannot be decomposed into the effects from the face contour and facial features linearly. It thus suggested a nonlinear integration between facial features and face contour in face adaptation.

  6. Face-to-face: Perceived personal relevance amplifies face processing

    PubMed Central

    Pittig, Andre; Schupp, Harald T.; Alpers, Georg W.

    2017-01-01

    Abstract The human face conveys emotional and social information, but it is not well understood how these two aspects influence face perception. In order to model a group situation, two faces displaying happy, neutral or angry expressions were presented. Importantly, faces were either facing the observer, or they were presented in profile view directed towards, or looking away from each other. In Experiment 1 (n = 64), face pairs were rated regarding perceived relevance, wish-to-interact, and displayed interactivity, as well as valence and arousal. All variables revealed main effects of facial expression (emotional > neutral), face orientation (facing observer > towards > away) and interactions showed that evaluation of emotional faces strongly varies with their orientation. Experiment 2 (n = 33) examined the temporal dynamics of perceptual-attentional processing of these face constellations with event-related potentials. Processing of emotional and neutral faces differed significantly in N170 amplitudes, early posterior negativity (EPN), and sustained positive potentials. Importantly, selective emotional face processing varied as a function of face orientation, indicating early emotion-specific (N170, EPN) and late threat-specific effects (LPP, sustained positivity). Taken together, perceived personal relevance to the observer—conveyed by facial expression and face direction—amplifies emotional face processing within triadic group situations. PMID:28158672

  7. Face-to-face: Perceived personal relevance amplifies face processing.

    PubMed

    Bublatzky, Florian; Pittig, Andre; Schupp, Harald T; Alpers, Georg W

    2017-05-01

    The human face conveys emotional and social information, but it is not well understood how these two aspects influence face perception. In order to model a group situation, two faces displaying happy, neutral or angry expressions were presented. Importantly, faces were either facing the observer, or they were presented in profile view directed towards, or looking away from each other. In Experiment 1 (n = 64), face pairs were rated regarding perceived relevance, wish-to-interact, and displayed interactivity, as well as valence and arousal. All variables revealed main effects of facial expression (emotional > neutral), face orientation (facing observer > towards > away) and interactions showed that evaluation of emotional faces strongly varies with their orientation. Experiment 2 (n = 33) examined the temporal dynamics of perceptual-attentional processing of these face constellations with event-related potentials. Processing of emotional and neutral faces differed significantly in N170 amplitudes, early posterior negativity (EPN), and sustained positive potentials. Importantly, selective emotional face processing varied as a function of face orientation, indicating early emotion-specific (N170, EPN) and late threat-specific effects (LPP, sustained positivity). Taken together, perceived personal relevance to the observer-conveyed by facial expression and face direction-amplifies emotional face processing within triadic group situations. © The Author (2017). Published by Oxford University Press.

  8. Directed forgetting: differential effects on typical and distinctive faces.

    PubMed

    Metzger, Mitchell M

    2011-01-01

    Directed forgetting (DF) occurs when stimuli presented during the study phase are followed by "forget" and "remember" cues. On a subsequent memory test, poor memory is observed for stimuli followed by the forget cues, compared to stimuli followed by the remember cues. Although DF is most commonly observed with verbal tasks, the present study extended intentional forgetting research for nonverbal stimuli and examined whether faces were susceptible to DF. Results confirmed that the presentation of a forget cue significantly reduced recognition for faces, as compared to faces followed by a remember cue. Additionally, a well-established finding in face recognition is that distinctive faces are better remembered than typical faces, and Experiment 2 assessed whether face appearance influenced the degree of DF. Results indicate that the DF effect observed in Experiment 1 was replicated in Experiment 2 and that the effect was more pronounced for those faces that were typical in appearance.

  9. Modulation of the composite face effect by unintended emotion cues.

    PubMed

    Gray, Katie L H; Murphy, Jennifer; Marsh, Jade E; Cook, Richard

    2017-04-01

    When upper and lower regions from different emotionless faces are aligned to form a facial composite, observers 'fuse' the two halves together, perceptually. The illusory distortion induced by task-irrelevant ('distractor') halves hinders participants' judgements about task-relevant ('target') halves. This composite-face effect reveals a tendency to integrate feature information from disparate regions of intact upright faces, consistent with theories of holistic face processing. However, observers frequently perceive emotion in ostensibly neutral faces, contrary to the intentions of experimenters. This study sought to determine whether this 'perceived emotion' influences the composite-face effect. In our first experiment, we confirmed that the composite effect grows stronger as the strength of distractor emotion increased. Critically, effects of distractor emotion were induced by weak emotion intensities, and were incidental insofar as emotion cues hindered image matching, not emotion labelling per se . In Experiment 2, we found a correlation between the presence of perceived emotion in a set of ostensibly neutral distractor regions sourced from commonly used face databases, and the strength of illusory distortion they induced. In Experiment 3, participants completed a sequential matching composite task in which half of the distractor regions were rated high and low for perceived emotion, respectively. Significantly stronger composite effects were induced by the high-emotion distractor halves. These convergent results suggest that perceived emotion increases the strength of the composite-face effect induced by supposedly emotionless faces. These findings have important implications for the study of holistic face processing in typical and atypical populations.

  10. Effective Connectivity from Early Visual Cortex to Posterior Occipitotemporal Face Areas Supports Face Selectivity and Predicts Developmental Prosopagnosia

    PubMed Central

    Garrido, Lucia; Driver, Jon; Dolan, Raymond J.; Duchaine, Bradley C.; Furl, Nicholas

    2016-01-01

    Face processing is mediated by interactions between functional areas in the occipital and temporal lobe, and the fusiform face area (FFA) and anterior temporal lobe play key roles in the recognition of facial identity. Individuals with developmental prosopagnosia (DP), a lifelong face recognition impairment, have been shown to have structural and functional neuronal alterations in these areas. The present study investigated how face selectivity is generated in participants with normal face processing, and how functional abnormalities associated with DP, arise as a function of network connectivity. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging and dynamic causal modeling, we examined effective connectivity in normal participants by assessing network models that include early visual cortex (EVC) and face-selective areas and then investigated the integrity of this connectivity in participants with DP. Results showed that a feedforward architecture from EVC to the occipital face area, EVC to FFA, and EVC to posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTS) best explained how face selectivity arises in both controls and participants with DP. In this architecture, the DP group showed reduced connection strengths on feedforward connections carrying face information from EVC to FFA and EVC to pSTS. These altered network dynamics in DP contribute to the diminished face selectivity in the posterior occipitotemporal areas affected in DP. These findings suggest a novel view on the relevance of feedforward projection from EVC to posterior occipitotemporal face areas in generating cortical face selectivity and differences in face recognition ability. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Areas of the human brain showing enhanced activation to faces compared to other objects or places have been extensively studied. However, the factors leading to this face selectively have remained mostly unknown. We show that effective connectivity from early visual cortex to posterior occipitotemporal face areas gives

  11. Alzheimer's disease: the amyloid hypothesis and the Inverse Warburg effect

    PubMed Central

    Demetrius, Lloyd A.; Magistretti, Pierre J.; Pellerin, Luc

    2014-01-01

    Epidemiological and biochemical studies show that the sporadic forms of Alzheimer's disease (AD) are characterized by the following hallmarks: (a) An exponential increase with age; (b) Selective neuronal vulnerability; (c) Inverse cancer comorbidity. The present article appeals to these hallmarks to evaluate and contrast two competing models of AD: the amyloid hypothesis (a neuron-centric mechanism) and the Inverse Warburg hypothesis (a neuron-astrocytic mechanism). We show that these three hallmarks of AD conflict with the amyloid hypothesis, but are consistent with the Inverse Warburg hypothesis, a bioenergetic model which postulates that AD is the result of a cascade of three events—mitochondrial dysregulation, metabolic reprogramming (the Inverse Warburg effect), and natural selection. We also provide an explanation for the failures of the clinical trials based on amyloid immunization, and we propose a new class of therapeutic strategies consistent with the neuroenergetic selection model. PMID:25642192

  12. Face identity recognition in autism spectrum disorders: a review of behavioral studies.

    PubMed

    Weigelt, Sarah; Koldewyn, Kami; Kanwisher, Nancy

    2012-03-01

    Face recognition--the ability to recognize a person from their facial appearance--is essential for normal social interaction. Face recognition deficits have been implicated in the most common disorder of social interaction: autism. Here we ask: is face identity recognition in fact impaired in people with autism? Reviewing behavioral studies we find no strong evidence for a qualitative difference in how facial identity is processed between those with and without autism: markers of typical face identity recognition, such as the face inversion effect, seem to be present in people with autism. However, quantitatively--i.e., how well facial identity is remembered or discriminated--people with autism perform worse than typical individuals. This impairment is particularly clear in face memory and in face perception tasks in which a delay intervenes between sample and test, and less so in tasks with no memory demand. Although some evidence suggests that this deficit may be specific to faces, further evidence on this question is necessary. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. Glued to Which Face? Attentional Priority Effect of Female Babyface and Male Mature Face.

    PubMed

    Zheng, Wenwen; Luo, Ting; Hu, Chuan-Peng; Peng, Kaiping

    2018-01-01

    A more babyfaced individual is perceived as more child-like and this impression from babyface, as known as babyface effect, has an impact on social life among various age groups. In this study, the influence of babyfaces on visual selective attention was tested by cognitive task, demonstrating that the female babyface and male mature face would draw participants' attention so that they take their eyes off more slowly. In Experiment 1, a detection task was applied to test the influence of babyfaces on visual selective attention. In this experiment, a babyface and a mature face with the same gender were presented simultaneously with a letter on one of them. The reaction time was shorter when the target letter was overlaid with a female babyface or male mature face, suggesting an attention capture effect. To explore how this competition influenced by attentional resources, we conducted Experiment 2 with a spatial cueing paradigm and controlled the attentional resources by cueing validity and inter-stimulus interval. In this task, the female babyface and male mature face prolonged responses to the spatially separated targets under the condition of an invalid and long interval pre-cue. This observation replicated the result of Experiment 1. This indicates that the female babyface and male mature face glued visual selective attention once attentional resources were directed to them. To further investigate the subliminal influence from a babyface, we used continuous flash suppression paradigm in Experiment 3. The results, again, showed the advantage of the female babyfaces and male mature faces: they broke the suppression faster than other faces. Our results provide primary evidence that the female babyfaces and male mature faces can reliably glue the visual selective attention, both supra- and sub-liminally.

  14. Glued to Which Face? Attentional Priority Effect of Female Babyface and Male Mature Face

    PubMed Central

    Zheng, Wenwen; Luo, Ting; Hu, Chuan-Peng; Peng, Kaiping

    2018-01-01

    A more babyfaced individual is perceived as more child-like and this impression from babyface, as known as babyface effect, has an impact on social life among various age groups. In this study, the influence of babyfaces on visual selective attention was tested by cognitive task, demonstrating that the female babyface and male mature face would draw participants’ attention so that they take their eyes off more slowly. In Experiment 1, a detection task was applied to test the influence of babyfaces on visual selective attention. In this experiment, a babyface and a mature face with the same gender were presented simultaneously with a letter on one of them. The reaction time was shorter when the target letter was overlaid with a female babyface or male mature face, suggesting an attention capture effect. To explore how this competition influenced by attentional resources, we conducted Experiment 2 with a spatial cueing paradigm and controlled the attentional resources by cueing validity and inter-stimulus interval. In this task, the female babyface and male mature face prolonged responses to the spatially separated targets under the condition of an invalid and long interval pre-cue. This observation replicated the result of Experiment 1. This indicates that the female babyface and male mature face glued visual selective attention once attentional resources were directed to them. To further investigate the subliminal influence from a babyface, we used continuous flash suppression paradigm in Experiment 3. The results, again, showed the advantage of the female babyfaces and male mature faces: they broke the suppression faster than other faces. Our results provide primary evidence that the female babyfaces and male mature faces can reliably glue the visual selective attention, both supra- and sub-liminally. PMID:29559946

  15. Effects of shoot inversion on stem structure in Pharbitis nil

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Prasad, T. K.; Sack, F. D.; Cline, M. G.

    1988-01-01

    The effects of shoot inversion on stem structure over 72 hr were investigated in Pharbitis nil by analyzing cell number, cell length, and the cross sectional areas of cells, tissues, and regions. An increase in stem diameter can be attributed to an increase in both cell number and cross sectional area of pith (primarily) and vascular tissue (secondarily). Qualitative observations of cell wall thickness in the light microscope did not reveal any significant effects of shoot inversion on this parameter. The inhibition of shoot elongation was accompanied by a significant decrease in cell length in the pith. The results are generally consistent with an ethylene effect on cell dimensions, especially in the pith.

  16. Inverse Target- and Cue-Priming Effects of Masked Stimuli

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mattler, Uwe

    2007-01-01

    The processing of a visual target that follows a briefly presented prime stimulus can be facilitated if prime and target stimuli are similar. In contrast to these positive priming effects, inverse priming effects (or negative compatibility effects) have been found when a mask follows prime stimuli before the target stimulus is presented: Responses…

  17. Monkeys and Humans Share a Common Computation for Face/Voice Integration

    PubMed Central

    Chandrasekaran, Chandramouli; Lemus, Luis; Trubanova, Andrea; Gondan, Matthias; Ghazanfar, Asif A.

    2011-01-01

    Speech production involves the movement of the mouth and other regions of the face resulting in visual motion cues. These visual cues enhance intelligibility and detection of auditory speech. As such, face-to-face speech is fundamentally a multisensory phenomenon. If speech is fundamentally multisensory, it should be reflected in the evolution of vocal communication: similar behavioral effects should be observed in other primates. Old World monkeys share with humans vocal production biomechanics and communicate face-to-face with vocalizations. It is unknown, however, if they, too, combine faces and voices to enhance their perception of vocalizations. We show that they do: monkeys combine faces and voices in noisy environments to enhance their detection of vocalizations. Their behavior parallels that of humans performing an identical task. We explored what common computational mechanism(s) could explain the pattern of results we observed across species. Standard explanations or models such as the principle of inverse effectiveness and a “race” model failed to account for their behavior patterns. Conversely, a “superposition model”, positing the linear summation of activity patterns in response to visual and auditory components of vocalizations, served as a straightforward but powerful explanatory mechanism for the observed behaviors in both species. As such, it represents a putative homologous mechanism for integrating faces and voices across primates. PMID:21998576

  18. Inverse grading and hydraulic equivalence in grain-flow deposits

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Sallenger, A. H.

    1979-01-01

    Inversely graded grain-flow deposits are characterized by a hydraulic equivalence that differs from that based on settling velocities or entrainment. Dispersive equivalence, derived from the dispersive pressure hypothesis on how inverse grading develops, was found to agree reasonably well with observed relationships between grain sizes and densities in grain-flow deposits. Furthermore, observed relationships in deposits formed in subaerial and subaqueous environments were found to be independent of fluid density as is required by dispersive equivalence. The results suggest that dispersive pressure controls the development of the inverse grading common to beach foreshore laminations, slip-face foreset strata, the basal parts of some coarse-grained turbidites, and other diverse deposits.

  19. Neural processing of high and low spatial frequency information in faces changes across development: qualitative changes in face processing during adolescence.

    PubMed

    Peters, Judith C; Vlamings, Petra; Kemner, Chantal

    2013-05-01

    Face perception in adults depends on skilled processing of interattribute distances ('configural' processing), which is disrupted for faces presented in inverted orientation (face inversion effect or FIE). Children are not proficient in configural processing, and this might relate to an underlying immaturity to use facial information in low spatial frequency (SF) ranges, which capture the coarse information needed for configural processing. We hypothesized that during adolescence a shift from use of high to low SF information takes place. Therefore, we studied the influence of SF content on neural face processing in groups of children (9-10 years), adolescents (14-15 years) and young adults (21-29 years) by measuring event-related potentials (ERPs) to upright and inverted faces which varied in SF content. Results revealed that children show a neural FIE in early processing stages (i.e. P1; generated in early visual areas), suggesting a superficial, global facial analysis. In contrast, ERPs of adults revealed an FIE at later processing stages (i.e. N170; generated in face-selective, higher visual areas). Interestingly, adolescents showed FIEs in both processing stages, suggesting a hybrid developmental stage. Furthermore, adolescents and adults showed FIEs for stimuli containing low SF information, whereas such effects were driven by both low and high SF information in children. These results indicate that face processing has a protracted maturational course into adolescence, and is dependent on changes in SF processing. During adolescence, sensitivity to configural cues is developed, which aids the fast and holistic processing that is so special for faces. © 2013 Federation of European Neuroscience Societies and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  20. The effect of face eccentricity on the perception of gaze direction.

    PubMed

    Todorović, Dejan

    2009-01-01

    The perception of a looker's gaze direction depends not only on iris eccentricity (the position of the looker's irises within the sclera) but also on the orientation of the lookers' head. One among several potential cues of head orientation is face eccentricity, the position of the inner features of the face (eyes, nose, mouth) within the head contour, as viewed by the observer. For natural faces this cue is confounded with many other head-orientation cues, but in schematic faces it can be studied in isolation. Salient novel illustrations of the effectiveness of face eccentricity are 'Necker faces', which involve equal iris eccentricities but multiple perceived gaze directions. In four experiments, iris and face eccentricity in schematic faces were manipulated, revealing strong and consistent effects of face eccentricity on perceived gaze direction, with different types of tasks. An additional experiment confirmed the 'Mona Lisa' effect with this type of stimuli. Face eccentricity most likely acted as a simple but robust cue of head turn. A simple computational account of combined effects of cues of eye and head turn on perceived gaze direction is presented, including a formal condition for the perception of direct gaze. An account of the 'Mona Lisa' effect is presented.

  1. Super-recognition in development: A case study of an adolescent with extraordinary face recognition skills.

    PubMed

    Bennetts, Rachel J; Mole, Joseph; Bate, Sarah

    2017-09-01

    Face recognition abilities vary widely. While face recognition deficits have been reported in children, it is unclear whether superior face recognition skills can be encountered during development. This paper presents O.B., a 14-year-old female with extraordinary face recognition skills: a "super-recognizer" (SR). O.B. demonstrated exceptional face-processing skills across multiple tasks, with a level of performance that is comparable to adult SRs. Her superior abilities appear to be specific to face identity: She showed an exaggerated face inversion effect and her superior abilities did not extend to object processing or non-identity aspects of face recognition. Finally, an eye-movement task demonstrated that O.B. spent more time than controls examining the nose - a pattern previously reported in adult SRs. O.B. is therefore particularly skilled at extracting and using identity-specific facial cues, indicating that face and object recognition are dissociable during development, and that super recognition can be detected in adolescence.

  2. A retrospective analysis of the effect of discussion in teleconference and face-to-face scientific peer-review panels

    PubMed Central

    Carpenter, Afton S; Sullivan, Joanne H; Deshmukh, Arati; Glisson, Scott R; Gallo, Stephen A

    2015-01-01

    Objective With the use of teleconferencing for grant peer-review panels increasing, further studies are necessary to determine the efficacy of the teleconference setting compared to the traditional onsite/face-to-face setting. The objective of this analysis was to examine the effects of discussion, namely changes in application scoring premeeting and postdiscussion, in these settings. We also investigated other parameters, including the magnitude of score shifts and application discussion time in face-to-face and teleconference review settings. Design The investigation involved a retrospective, quantitative analysis of premeeting and postdiscussion scores and discussion times for teleconference and face-to-face review panels. The analysis included 260 and 212 application score data points and 212 and 171 discussion time data points for the face-to-face and teleconference settings, respectively. Results The effect of discussion was found to be small, on average, in both settings. However, discussion was found to be important for at least 10% of applications, regardless of setting, with these applications moving over a potential funding line in either direction (fundable to unfundable or vice versa). Small differences were uncovered relating to the effect of discussion between settings, including a decrease in the magnitude of the effect in the teleconference panels as compared to face-to-face. Discussion time (despite teleconferences having shorter discussions) was observed to have little influence on the magnitude of the effect of discussion. Additionally, panel discussion was found to often result in a poorer score (as opposed to an improvement) when compared to reviewer premeeting scores. This was true regardless of setting or assigned reviewer type (primary or secondary reviewer). Conclusions Subtle differences were observed between settings, potentially due to reduced engagement in teleconferences. Overall, further research is required on the psychology of

  3. A retrospective analysis of the effect of discussion in teleconference and face-to-face scientific peer-review panels.

    PubMed

    Carpenter, Afton S; Sullivan, Joanne H; Deshmukh, Arati; Glisson, Scott R; Gallo, Stephen A

    2015-09-08

    With the use of teleconferencing for grant peer-review panels increasing, further studies are necessary to determine the efficacy of the teleconference setting compared to the traditional onsite/face-to-face setting. The objective of this analysis was to examine the effects of discussion, namely changes in application scoring premeeting and postdiscussion, in these settings. We also investigated other parameters, including the magnitude of score shifts and application discussion time in face-to-face and teleconference review settings. The investigation involved a retrospective, quantitative analysis of premeeting and postdiscussion scores and discussion times for teleconference and face-to-face review panels. The analysis included 260 and 212 application score data points and 212 and 171 discussion time data points for the face-to-face and teleconference settings, respectively. The effect of discussion was found to be small, on average, in both settings. However, discussion was found to be important for at least 10% of applications, regardless of setting, with these applications moving over a potential funding line in either direction (fundable to unfundable or vice versa). Small differences were uncovered relating to the effect of discussion between settings, including a decrease in the magnitude of the effect in the teleconference panels as compared to face-to-face. Discussion time (despite teleconferences having shorter discussions) was observed to have little influence on the magnitude of the effect of discussion. Additionally, panel discussion was found to often result in a poorer score (as opposed to an improvement) when compared to reviewer premeeting scores. This was true regardless of setting or assigned reviewer type (primary or secondary reviewer). Subtle differences were observed between settings, potentially due to reduced engagement in teleconferences. Overall, further research is required on the psychology of decision-making, team performance and

  4. A regional composite-face effect for species-specific recognition: Upper and lower halves play different roles in holistic processing of monkey faces.

    PubMed

    Wang, Zhe; Quinn, Paul C; Jin, Haiyang; Sun, Yu-Hao P; Tanaka, James W; Pascalis, Olivier; Lee, Kang

    2018-04-25

    Using a composite-face paradigm, we examined the holistic processing induced by Asian faces, Caucasian faces, and monkey faces with human Asian participants in two experiments. In Experiment 1, participants were asked to judge whether the upper halves of two faces successively presented were the same or different. A composite-face effect was found for Asian faces and Caucasian faces, but not for monkey faces. In Experiment 2, participants were asked to judge whether the lower halves of the two faces successively presented were the same or different. A composite-face effect was found for monkey faces as well as for Asian faces and Caucasian faces. Collectively, these results reveal that own-species (i.e., own-race and other-race) faces engage holistic processing in both upper and lower halves of the face, but other-species (i.e., monkey) faces engage holistic processing only when participants are asked to match the lower halves of the face. The findings are discussed in the context of a region-based holistic processing account for the species-specific effect in face recognition. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Cost-Utility and Cost-Effectiveness Analyses of Face-to-Face Versus Telephone-Based Nonpharmacologic Multidisciplinary Treatments for Patients With Generalized Osteoarthritis.

    PubMed

    Cuperus, Nienke; van den Hout, Wilbert B; Hoogeboom, Thomas J; van den Hoogen, Frank H J; Vliet Vlieland, Thea P M; van den Ende, Cornelia H M

    2016-04-01

    To evaluate, from a societal perspective, the cost utility and cost effectiveness of a nonpharmacologic face-to-face treatment program compared with a telephone-based treatment program for patients with generalized osteoarthritis (GOA). An economic evaluation was carried out alongside a randomized clinical trial involving 147 patients with GOA. Program costs were estimated from time registrations. One-year medical and nonmedical costs were estimated using cost questionnaires. Quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) were estimated using the EuroQol (EQ) classification system, EQ rating scale, and the Short Form 6D (SF-6D). Daily function was measured using the Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ) disability index (DI). Cost and QALY/effect differences were analyzed using multilevel regression analysis and cost-effectiveness acceptability curves. Medical costs of the face-to-face treatment and telephone-based treatment were estimated at €387 and €252, respectively. The difference in total societal costs was nonsignificantly in favor of the face-to-face program (difference €708; 95% confidence interval [95% CI] -€5,058, €3,642). QALYs were similar for both groups according to the EQ, but were significantly in favor of the face-to-face group, according to the SF-6D (difference 0.022 [95% CI 0.000, 0.045]). Daily function was similar according to the HAQ DI. Since both societal costs and QALYs/effects were in favor of the face-to-face program, the economic assessment favored this program, regardless of society's willingness to pay. There was a 65-90% chance that the face-to-face program had better cost utility and a 60-70% chance of being cost effective. This economic evaluation from a societal perspective showed that a nonpharmacologic, face-to-face treatment program for patients with GOA was likely to be cost effective, relative to a telephone-based program. © 2016, American College of Rheumatology.

  6. Neural mechanisms underlying the effects of face-based affective signals on memory for faces: a tentative model

    PubMed Central

    Tsukiura, Takashi

    2012-01-01

    In our daily lives, we form some impressions of other people. Although those impressions are affected by many factors, face-based affective signals such as facial expression, facial attractiveness, or trustworthiness are important. Previous psychological studies have demonstrated the impact of facial impressions on remembering other people, but little is known about the neural mechanisms underlying this psychological process. The purpose of this article is to review recent functional MRI (fMRI) studies to investigate the effects of face-based affective signals including facial expression, facial attractiveness, and trustworthiness on memory for faces, and to propose a tentative concept for understanding this affective-cognitive interaction. On the basis of the aforementioned research, three brain regions are potentially involved in the processing of face-based affective signals. The first candidate is the amygdala, where activity is generally modulated by both affectively positive and negative signals from faces. Activity in the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), as the second candidate, increases as a function of perceived positive signals from faces; whereas activity in the insular cortex, as the third candidate, reflects a function of face-based negative signals. In addition, neuroscientific studies have reported that the three regions are functionally connected to the memory-related hippocampal regions. These findings suggest that the effects of face-based affective signals on memory for faces could be modulated by interactions between the regions associated with the processing of face-based affective signals and the hippocampus as a memory-related region. PMID:22837740

  7. Effectiveness and acceptance of web-based learning compared to traditional face-to-face learning for performance nutrition education.

    PubMed

    Margolis, Lee M; Grediagin, Ann; Koenig, Chad; Sanders, LesLee F

    2009-10-01

    The objective of this study was to assess the effectiveness and acceptance of Web-based (WB) versus face-to-face (FF) lecturing. There were 48 soldiers stationed at Fort Bragg, NC who completed the study, participating in either a Web-based or face-to-face lecture on nutrition for performance. The lecture was 30 minutes long. Participants completed a prequiz and survey before the lecture and a postquiz and survey at its conclusion. Results showed there was no difference in the effectiveness of the two mediums on the basis of postquiz scores (Web-based group = 75.68; face-to-face group = 73.27; p = 0.436). Change in scores from pre to post also showed no difference between the two groups (p = 0.375). Assessing the acceptance of the two teaching mediums, there was no significant difference reported, except for the instructor's ability to answer questions (p = 0.05). The conclusion of this study is that Web-based learning can be an effective and acceptable tool for registered dietitians to educate soldiers on nutrition for performance.

  8. Anomalous cooling and heating - the Mpemba effect and its inverse

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lu, Zhiyue; Raz, Oren

    Under certain conditions, it takes a shorter time to cool a hot object than to cool the same object initiated at a lower temperature. This counter-intuitive phenomenon - the 'Mpemba Effect'\\x9D, has been observed in a variety of systems. So far, no generic mechanism was suggested to explain this effect. In the theoretical framework of non-equilibrium thermodynamics, we construct a model to describe this effect and illustrates the fundamental principles behind it. In addition, we predict and demonstrate an inverse Mpemba effect: it can take a shorter time to heat a cold object than a warmer one. We derive sufficient conditions for the occurrences of both the forward and the inverse Mpemba effects, and suggest experiments to further study the non-equilibrium nature of these effects. Z.L. acknowledges financial support from the NSF under Grant DMR-1206971. O.R. acknowledges financial support from the James S. McDonnell Foundation.

  9. Tolerance to spatial-relational transformations in unfamiliar faces: A further challenge to a configural processing account of identity recognition.

    PubMed

    Lorenzino, Martina; Caminati, Martina; Caudek, Corrado

    2018-05-25

    One of the most important questions in face perception research is to understand what information is extracted from a face in order to recognize its identity. Recognition of facial identity has been attributed to a special sensitivity to "configural" information. However, recent studies have challenged the configural account by showing that participants are poor in discriminating variations of metric distances among facial features, especially for familiar as opposed to unfamiliar faces, whereas a configural account predicts the opposite. We aimed to extend these previous results by examining classes of unfamiliar faces with which we have different levels of expertise. We hypothesized an inverse relation between sensitivity to configural information and expertise with a given class of faces, but only for neutral expressions. By first matching perceptual discriminability, we measured tolerance to subtle configural transformations with same-race (SR) versus other-race (OR) faces, and with upright versus upside-down faces. Consistently with our predictions, we found a lower sensitivity to at-threshold configural changes for SR compared to OR faces. We also found that, for our stimuli, the face inversion effect disappeared for neutral but not for emotional faces - a result that can also be attributed to a lower sensitivity to configural transformations for faces presented in a more familiar orientation. The present findings question a purely configural account of face processing and suggest that the role of spatial-relational information in face processing varies according to the functional demands of the task and to the characteristics of the stimuli. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  10. The Effect of Self-Referential Expectation on Emotional Face Processing

    PubMed Central

    McKendrick, Mel; Butler, Stephen H.; Grealy, Madeleine A.

    2016-01-01

    The role of self-relevance has been somewhat neglected in static face processing paradigms but may be important in understanding how emotional faces impact on attention, cognition and affect. The aim of the current study was to investigate the effect of self-relevant primes on processing emotional composite faces. Sentence primes created an expectation of the emotion of the face before sad, happy, neutral or composite face photos were viewed. Eye movements were recorded and subsequent responses measured the cognitive and affective impact of the emotion expressed. Results indicated that primes did not guide attention, but impacted on judgments of valence intensity and self-esteem ratings. Negative self-relevant primes led to the most negative self-esteem ratings, although the effect of the prime was qualified by salient facial features. Self-relevant expectations about the emotion of a face and subsequent attention to a face that is congruent with these expectations strengthened the affective impact of viewing the face. PMID:27175487

  11. The Effect of Self-Referential Expectation on Emotional Face Processing.

    PubMed

    McKendrick, Mel; Butler, Stephen H; Grealy, Madeleine A

    2016-01-01

    The role of self-relevance has been somewhat neglected in static face processing paradigms but may be important in understanding how emotional faces impact on attention, cognition and affect. The aim of the current study was to investigate the effect of self-relevant primes on processing emotional composite faces. Sentence primes created an expectation of the emotion of the face before sad, happy, neutral or composite face photos were viewed. Eye movements were recorded and subsequent responses measured the cognitive and affective impact of the emotion expressed. Results indicated that primes did not guide attention, but impacted on judgments of valence intensity and self-esteem ratings. Negative self-relevant primes led to the most negative self-esteem ratings, although the effect of the prime was qualified by salient facial features. Self-relevant expectations about the emotion of a face and subsequent attention to a face that is congruent with these expectations strengthened the affective impact of viewing the face.

  12. Memory for faces: the effect of facial appearance and the context in which the face is encountered.

    PubMed

    Mattarozzi, Katia; Todorov, Alexander; Codispoti, Maurizio

    2015-03-01

    We investigated the effects of appearance of emotionally neutral faces and the context in which the faces are encountered on incidental face memory. To approximate real-life situations as closely as possible, faces were embedded in a newspaper article, with a headline that specified an action performed by the person pictured. We found that facial appearance affected memory so that faces perceived as trustworthy or untrustworthy were remembered better than neutral ones. Furthermore, the memory of untrustworthy faces was slightly better than that of trustworthy faces. The emotional context of encoding affected the details of face memory. Faces encountered in a neutral context were more likely to be recognized as only familiar. In contrast, emotionally relevant contexts of encoding, whether pleasant or unpleasant, increased the likelihood of remembering semantic and even episodic details associated with faces. These findings suggest that facial appearance (i.e., perceived trustworthiness) affects face memory. Moreover, the findings support prior evidence that the engagement of emotion processing during memory encoding increases the likelihood that events are not only recognized but also remembered.

  13. Holistic processing and reliance on global viewing strategies in older adults' face perception.

    PubMed

    Meinhardt-Injac, Bozana; Persike, Malte; Meinhardt, Günter

    2014-09-01

    There is increasing evidence that face recognition might be impaired in older adults, but it is unclear whether the impairment is truly perceptual, and face specific. In order to address this question we compared performance in same/different matching tasks with face and non-face objects (watches) among young (mean age 23.7) and older adults (mean age 70.4) using a context congruency paradigm (Meinhardt-Injac, Persike & Meinhardt, 2010, Meinhardt-Injac, Persike and Meinhardt, 2011a). Older adults were less accurate than young adults with both object classes, while face matching was notably impaired. Effects of context congruency and inversion, measured as the hallmarks of holistic processing, were equally strong in both age groups, and were found only for faces, but not for watches. The face specific decline in older adults revealed deficits in handling internal facial features, while young adults matched external and internal features equally well. Comparison with non-face stimuli showed that this decline was face specific, and did not concern processing of object features in general. Taken together, the results indicate no age-related decline in the capabilities to process faces holistically. Rather, strong holistic effects, combined with a loss of precision in handling internal features indicate that older adults rely on global viewing strategies for faces. At the same time, access to the exact properties of inner face details becomes restricted. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  14. Inverting faces elicits sensitivity to race on the N170 component: a cross-cultural study.

    PubMed

    Vizioli, Luca; Foreman, Kay; Rousselet, Guillaume A; Caldara, Roberto

    2010-01-29

    Human beings are natural experts at processing faces, with some notable exceptions. Same-race faces are better recognized than other-race faces: the so-called other-race effect (ORE). Inverting faces impairs recognition more than for any other inverted visual object: the so-called face inversion effect (FIE). Interestingly, the FIE is stronger for same- compared to other-race faces. At the electrophysiological level, inverted faces elicit consistently delayed and often larger N170 compared to upright faces. However, whether the N170 component is sensitive to race is still a matter of ongoing debate. Here we investigated the N170 sensitivity to race in the framework of the FIE. We recorded EEG from Western Caucasian and East Asian observers while presented with Western Caucasian, East Asian and African American faces in upright and inverted orientations. To control for potential confounds in the EEG signal that might be evoked by the intrinsic and salient differences in the low-level properties of faces from different races, we normalized their amplitude-spectra, luminance and contrast. No differences on the N170 were observed for upright faces. Critically, inverted same-race faces lead to greater recognition impairment and elicited larger N170 amplitudes compared to inverted other-race faces. Our results indicate a finer-grained neural tuning for same-race faces at early stages of processing in both groups of observers.

  15. Italian normative data and validation of two neuropsychological tests of face recognition: Benton Facial Recognition Test and Cambridge Face Memory Test.

    PubMed

    Albonico, Andrea; Malaspina, Manuela; Daini, Roberta

    2017-09-01

    The Benton Facial Recognition Test (BFRT) and Cambridge Face Memory Test (CFMT) are two of the most common tests used to assess face discrimination and recognition abilities and to identify individuals with prosopagnosia. However, recent studies highlighted that participant-stimulus match ethnicity, as much as gender, has to be taken into account in interpreting results from these tests. Here, in order to obtain more appropriate normative data for an Italian sample, the CFMT and BFRT were administered to a large cohort of young adults. We found that scores from the BFRT are not affected by participants' gender and are only slightly affected by participant-stimulus ethnicity match, whereas both these factors seem to influence the scores of the CFMT. Moreover, the inclusion of a sample of individuals with suspected face recognition impairment allowed us to show that the use of more appropriate normative data can increase the BFRT efficacy in identifying individuals with face discrimination impairments; by contrast, the efficacy of the CFMT in classifying individuals with a face recognition deficit was confirmed. Finally, our data show that the lack of inversion effect (the difference between the total score of the upright and inverted versions of the CFMT) could be used as further index to assess congenital prosopagnosia. Overall, our results confirm the importance of having norms derived from controls with a similar experience of faces as the "potential" prosopagnosic individuals when assessing face recognition abilities.

  16. The Effects of Web-Based and Face-to-Face Discussion on Computer Engineering Majors' Performance on the Karnaugh Map

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hung, Yen-Chu

    2011-01-01

    This study investigates the different effects of web-based and face-to-face discussion on computer engineering majors' performance using the Karnaugh map in digital logic design. Pretest and posttest scores for two treatment groups (web-based discussion and face-to-face discussion) and a control group were compared and subjected to covariance…

  17. Behavioral and neural evidence of increased attention to the bottom half of the face in deaf signers

    PubMed Central

    Mitchell, Teresa V.; Letourneau, Susan M.; Maslin, Melissa T.

    2013-01-01

    Purpose This study examined the effects of deafness and sign language use on the distribution of attention across the top and bottom halves of faces. Methods In a composite face task, congenitally deaf signers and typically hearing controls made same/different judgments of the top or bottom halves of faces presented with the halves aligned or spatially misaligned, while event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded. Results Both groups were more accurate when judging misaligned than aligned faces, which indicates holistic face processing. Misalignment affected all ERP components examined, with effects on the N170 resembling those of face inversion. Hearing adults were similarly accurate when judging the top and bottom halves of the faces, but deaf signers were more accurate when attending to the bottom than the top. Attending to the top elicited faster P1 and N170 latencies for both groups; within the deaf group, this effect was greatest for individuals who produced the highest accuracies when attending to the top. Conclusions These findings dovetail with previous research by providing behavioral and neural evidence of increased attention to the bottom half of the face in deaf signers, and by documenting that these effects generalize to a speeded task, in the absence of gaze shifts, with neutral facial expressions. PMID:23142816

  18. Behavioral and neural evidence of increased attention to the bottom half of the face in deaf signers.

    PubMed

    Mitchell, Teresa V; Letourneau, Susan M; Maslin, Melissa C T

    2013-01-01

    This study examined the effects of deafness and sign language use on the distribution of attention across the top and bottom halves of faces. In a composite face task, congenitally deaf signers and typically hearing controls made same/different judgments of the top or bottom halves of faces presented with the halves aligned or spatially misaligned, while event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded. Both groups were more accurate when judging misaligned than aligned faces, which indicates holistic face processing. Misalignment affected all ERP components examined, with effects on the N170 resembling those of face inversion. Hearing adults were similarly accurate when judging the top and bottom halves of the faces, but deaf signers were more accurate when attending to the bottom than the top. Attending to the top elicited faster P1 and N170 latencies for both groups; within the deaf group, this effect was greatest for individuals who produced the highest accuracies when attending to the top. These findings dovetail with previous research by providing behavioral and neural evidence of increased attention to the bottom half of the face in deaf signers, and by documenting that these effects generalize to a speeded task, in the absence of gaze shifts, with neutral facial expressions.

  19. Teleconference versus Face-to-Face Scientific Peer Review of Grant Application: Effects on Review Outcomes

    PubMed Central

    Gallo, Stephen A.; Carpenter, Afton S.; Glisson, Scott R.

    2013-01-01

    Teleconferencing as a setting for scientific peer review is an attractive option for funding agencies, given the substantial environmental and cost savings. Despite this, there is a paucity of published data validating teleconference-based peer review compared to the face-to-face process. Our aim was to conduct a retrospective analysis of scientific peer review data to investigate whether review setting has an effect on review process and outcome measures. We analyzed reviewer scoring data from a research program that had recently modified the review setting from face-to-face to a teleconference format with minimal changes to the overall review procedures. This analysis included approximately 1600 applications over a 4-year period: two years of face-to-face panel meetings compared to two years of teleconference meetings. The average overall scientific merit scores, score distribution, standard deviations and reviewer inter-rater reliability statistics were measured, as well as reviewer demographics and length of time discussing applications. The data indicate that few differences are evident between face-to-face and teleconference settings with regard to average overall scientific merit score, scoring distribution, standard deviation, reviewer demographics or inter-rater reliability. However, some difference was found in the discussion time. These findings suggest that most review outcome measures are unaffected by review setting, which would support the trend of using teleconference reviews rather than face-to-face meetings. However, further studies are needed to assess any correlations among discussion time, application funding and the productivity of funded research projects. PMID:23951223

  20. Teleconference versus face-to-face scientific peer review of grant application: effects on review outcomes.

    PubMed

    Gallo, Stephen A; Carpenter, Afton S; Glisson, Scott R

    2013-01-01

    Teleconferencing as a setting for scientific peer review is an attractive option for funding agencies, given the substantial environmental and cost savings. Despite this, there is a paucity of published data validating teleconference-based peer review compared to the face-to-face process. Our aim was to conduct a retrospective analysis of scientific peer review data to investigate whether review setting has an effect on review process and outcome measures. We analyzed reviewer scoring data from a research program that had recently modified the review setting from face-to-face to a teleconference format with minimal changes to the overall review procedures. This analysis included approximately 1600 applications over a 4-year period: two years of face-to-face panel meetings compared to two years of teleconference meetings. The average overall scientific merit scores, score distribution, standard deviations and reviewer inter-rater reliability statistics were measured, as well as reviewer demographics and length of time discussing applications. The data indicate that few differences are evident between face-to-face and teleconference settings with regard to average overall scientific merit score, scoring distribution, standard deviation, reviewer demographics or inter-rater reliability. However, some difference was found in the discussion time. These findings suggest that most review outcome measures are unaffected by review setting, which would support the trend of using teleconference reviews rather than face-to-face meetings. However, further studies are needed to assess any correlations among discussion time, application funding and the productivity of funded research projects.

  1. Workflows for Full Waveform Inversions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Boehm, Christian; Krischer, Lion; Afanasiev, Michael; van Driel, Martin; May, Dave A.; Rietmann, Max; Fichtner, Andreas

    2017-04-01

    Despite many theoretical advances and the increasing availability of high-performance computing clusters, full seismic waveform inversions still face considerable challenges regarding data and workflow management. While the community has access to solvers which can harness modern heterogeneous computing architectures, the computational bottleneck has fallen to these often manpower-bounded issues that need to be overcome to facilitate further progress. Modern inversions involve huge amounts of data and require a tight integration between numerical PDE solvers, data acquisition and processing systems, nonlinear optimization libraries, and job orchestration frameworks. To this end we created a set of libraries and applications revolving around Salvus (http://salvus.io), a novel software package designed to solve large-scale full waveform inverse problems. This presentation focuses on solving passive source seismic full waveform inversions from local to global scales with Salvus. We discuss (i) design choices for the aforementioned components required for full waveform modeling and inversion, (ii) their implementation in the Salvus framework, and (iii) how it is all tied together by a usable workflow system. We combine state-of-the-art algorithms ranging from high-order finite-element solutions of the wave equation to quasi-Newton optimization algorithms using trust-region methods that can handle inexact derivatives. All is steered by an automated interactive graph-based workflow framework capable of orchestrating all necessary pieces. This naturally facilitates the creation of new Earth models and hopefully sparks new scientific insights. Additionally, and even more importantly, it enhances reproducibility and reliability of the final results.

  2. Effects of crustal layering on source parameter inversion from coseismic geodetic data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Amoruso, A.; Crescentini, L.; Fidani, C.

    2004-10-01

    We study the effect of a superficial layer overlying a half-space on the surface displacements caused by uniform slipping of a dip-slip normal rectangular fault. We compute static coseismic displacements using a 3-D analytical code for different characteristics of the layered medium, different fault geometries and different configurations of bench marks to simulate different kinds of geodetic data (GPS, Synthetic Aperture Radar, and levellings). We perform both joint and separate inversions of the three components of synthetic displacement without constraining fault parameters, apart from strike and rake, and using a non-linear global inversion technique under the assumption of homogeneous half-space. Differences between synthetic displacements computed in the presence of the superficial soft layer and in a homogeneous half-space do not show a simple regular behaviour, even if a few features can be identified. Consequently, also retrieved parameters of the homogeneous equivalent fault obtained by unconstrained inversion of surface displacements do not show a simple regular behaviour. We point out that the presence of a superficial layer may lead to misestimating several fault parameters both using joint and separate inversions of the three components of synthetic displacement and that the effects of the presence of the superficial layer can change whether all fault parameters are left free in the inversions or not. In the inversion of any kind of coseismic geodetic data, fault size and slip can be largely misestimated, but the product (fault length) × (fault width) × slip, which is proportional to the seismic moment for a given rigidity modulus, is often well determined (within a few per cent). Because inversion of coseismic geodetic data assuming a layered medium is impracticable, we suggest that only a case-to-case study involving some kind of recursive determination of fault parameters through data correction seems to give the proper approach when layering is

  3. Six-month-old infants' perception of the hollow face illusion: evidence for a general convexity bias.

    PubMed

    Corrow, Sherryse L; Mathison, Jordan; Granrud, Carl E; Yonas, Albert

    2014-01-01

    Corrow, Granrud, Mathison, and Yonas (2011, Perception, 40, 1376-1383) found evidence that 6-month-old infants perceive the hollow face illusion. In the present study we asked whether 6-month-old infants perceive illusory depth reversal for a nonface object and whether infants' perception of the hollow face illusion is affected by mask orientation inversion. In experiment 1 infants viewed a concave bowl, and their reaches were recorded under monocular and binocular viewing conditions. Infants reached to the bowl as if it were convex significantly more often in the monocular than in the binocular viewing condition. These results suggest that infants perceive illusory depth reversal with a nonface stimulus and that the infant visual system has a bias to perceive objects as convex. Infants in experiment 2 viewed a concave face-like mask in upright and inverted orientations. Infants reached to the display as if it were convex more in the monocular than in the binocular condition; however, mask orientation had no effect on reaching. Previous findings that adults' perception of the hollow face illusion is affected by mask orientation inversion have been interpreted as evidence of stored-knowledge influences on perception. However, we found no evidence of such influences in infants, suggesting that their perception of this illusion may not be affected by stored knowledge, and that perceived depth reversal is not face-specific in infants.

  4. Effects of adaptive refinement on the inverse EEG solution

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Weinstein, David M.; Johnson, Christopher R.; Schmidt, John A.

    1995-10-01

    One of the fundamental problems in electroencephalography can be characterized by an inverse problem. Given a subset of electrostatic potentials measured on the surface of the scalp and the geometry and conductivity properties within the head, calculate the current vectors and potential fields within the cerebrum. Mathematically the generalized EEG problem can be stated as solving Poisson's equation of electrical conduction for the primary current sources. The resulting problem is mathematically ill-posed i.e., the solution does not depend continuously on the data, such that small errors in the measurement of the voltages on the scalp can yield unbounded errors in the solution, and, for the general treatment of a solution of Poisson's equation, the solution is non-unique. However, if accurate solutions the general treatment of a solution of Poisson's equation, the solution is non-unique. However, if accurate solutions to such problems could be obtained, neurologists would gain noninvasive accesss to patient-specific cortical activity. Access to such data would ultimately increase the number of patients who could be effectively treated for pathological cortical conditions such as temporal lobe epilepsy. In this paper, we present the effects of spatial adaptive refinement on the inverse EEG problem and show that the use of adaptive methods allow for significantly better estimates of electric and potential fileds within the brain through an inverse procedure. To test these methods, we have constructed several finite element head models from magneteic resonance images of a patient. The finite element meshes ranged in size from 2724 nodes and 12,812 elements to 5224 nodes and 29,135 tetrahedral elements, depending on the level of discretization. We show that an adaptive meshing algorithm minimizes the error in the forward problem due to spatial discretization and thus increases the accuracy of the inverse solution.

  5. Global shape information increases but color information decreases the composite face effect.

    PubMed

    Retter, Talia L; Rossion, Bruno

    2015-01-01

    The separation of visual shape and surface information may be useful for understanding holistic face perception--that is, the perception of a face as a single unit (Jiang, Blanz, & Rossion, 2011, Visual Cognition, 19, 1003-1034). A widely used measure of holistic face perception is the composite face effect (CFE), in which identical top face halves appear different when aligned with bottom face halves from different identities. In the present study the influences of global face shape (ie contour of the face) and color information on the CFE are investigated, with the hypothesis that global face shape supports but color impairs holistic face perception as measured in this paradigm. In experiment 1 the CFE is significantly increased when face stimuli possess natural global shape information than when cropped to a generic (ie oval) global shape; this effect is not found when the stimuli are presented inverted. In experiment 2 the CFE is significantly decreased when face stimuli are presented with color information than when presented in grayscale. These findings indicate that grayscale stimuli maintaining natural global face shape information provide the most adept measure of holistic face perception in the behavioral composite face paradigm. More generally, they show that reducing different types of information diagnostic for individual face perception can have opposite effects on the CFE, illustrating the functional dissociation between shape and surface information in face perception.

  6. The fusiform face area: a cortical region specialized for the perception of faces

    PubMed Central

    Kanwisher, Nancy; Yovel, Galit

    2006-01-01

    face perception, by addressing (and rebutting) five of the most widely discussed alternatives to this hypothesis. In §4, we consider recent findings that are beginning to provide clues into the computations conducted in the FFA and the nature of the representations the FFA extracts from faces. We argue that the FFA is engaged both in detecting faces and in extracting the necessary perceptual information to recognize them, and that the properties of the FFA mirror previously identified behavioural signatures of face-specific processing (e.g. the face-inversion effect). Section 5 asks how the computations and representations in the FFA differ from those occurring in other nearby regions of cortex that respond strongly to faces and objects. The evidence indicates clear functional dissociations between these regions, demonstrating that the FFA shows not only functional specificity but also area specificity. We end by speculating in §6 on some of the broader questions raised by current research on the FFA, including the developmental origins of this region and the question of whether faces are unique versus whether similarly specialized mechanisms also exist for other domains of high-level perception and cognition. PMID:17118927

  7. Differential involvement of episodic and face representations in ERP repetition effects.

    PubMed

    Jemel, Boutheina; Calabria, Marco; Delvenne, Jean-François; Crommelinck, Marc; Bruyer, Raymond

    2003-03-03

    The purpose of this study was to disentangle the contribution of episodic-perceptual from pre-existing memory representations of faces to repetition effects. ERPs were recorded to first and second presentations of same and different photos of famous and unfamiliar faces, in an incidental task where occasional non-targets had to be detected. Repetition of same and different photos of famous faces resulted in an N400 amplitude decrement. No such N400 repetition-induced attenuation was observed for unfamiliar faces. In addition, repetition of same photos of faces, and not different ones, gave rise to an early ERP repetition effect (starting at approximately 350 ms) with an occipito-temporal scalp distribution. Together, these results suggest that repetition effects depend on two temporally and may be neuro-functionally distinct loci, episode-based representation and face recognition units stored in long-term memory.

  8. Connectivity: A Framework for Understanding Effective Language Teaching in Face-to-Face and Online Learning Communities

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Senior, Rose

    2010-01-01

    This is an exploratory paper that uses the construct of connectivity to examine the nature of effective language teaching and learning in both face-to-face and online learning environments. Broader in scope than Siemens' notion of connectivism, the term connectivity accommodates both transmission approaches to teaching and learning and social…

  9. The Effect of Flow Velocity on Waveform Inversion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lee, D.; Shin, S.; Chung, W.; Ha, J.; Lim, Y.; Kim, S.

    2017-12-01

    The waveform inversion is a velocity modeling technique that reconstructs accurate subsurface physical properties. Therefore, using the model in its final, updated version, we generated data identical to modeled data. Flow velocity, like several other factors, affects observed data in seismic exploration. Despite this, there is insufficient research on its relationship with waveform inversion. In this study, the generated synthetic data considering flow velocity was factored in waveform inversion and the influence of flow velocity in waveform inversion was analyzed. Measuring the flow velocity generally requires additional equipment. However, for situations where only seismic data was available, flow velocity was calculated by fixed-point iteration method using direct wave in observed data. Further, a new waveform inversion was proposed, which can be applied to the calculated flow velocity. We used a wave equation, which can work with the flow velocities used in the study by Käser and Dumbser. Further, we enhanced the efficiency of computation by applying the back-propagation method. To verify the proposed algorithm, six different data sets were generated using the Marmousi2 model; each of these data sets used different flow velocities in the range 0-50, i.e., 0, 2, 5, 10, 25, and 50. Thereafter, the inversion results from these data sets along with the results without the use of flow velocity were compared and analyzed. In this study, we analyzed the results of waveform inversion after flow velocity has been factored in. It was demonstrated that the waveform inversion is not affected significantly when the flow velocity is of smaller value. However, when the flow velocity has a large value, factoring it in the waveform inversion produces superior results. This research was supported by the Basic Research Project(17-3312, 17-3313) of the Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources(KIGAM) funded by the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning of Korea.

  10. Angle-domain inverse scattering migration/inversion in isotropic media

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Wuqun; Mao, Weijian; Li, Xuelei; Ouyang, Wei; Liang, Quan

    2018-07-01

    The classical seismic asymptotic inversion can be transformed into a problem of inversion of generalized Radon transform (GRT). In such methods, the combined parameters are linearly attached to the scattered wave-field by Born approximation and recovered by applying an inverse GRT operator to the scattered wave-field data. Typical GRT-style true-amplitude inversion procedure contains an amplitude compensation process after the weighted migration via dividing an illumination associated matrix whose elements are integrals of scattering angles. It is intuitional to some extent that performs the generalized linear inversion and the inversion of GRT together by this process for direct inversion. However, it is imprecise to carry out such operation when the illumination at the image point is limited, which easily leads to the inaccuracy and instability of the matrix. This paper formulates the GRT true-amplitude inversion framework in an angle-domain version, which naturally degrades the external integral term related to the illumination in the conventional case. We solve the linearized integral equation for combined parameters of different fixed scattering angle values. With this step, we obtain high-quality angle-domain common-image gathers (CIGs) in the migration loop which provide correct amplitude-versus-angle (AVA) behavior and reasonable illumination range for subsurface image points. Then we deal with the over-determined problem to solve each parameter in the combination by a standard optimization operation. The angle-domain GRT inversion method keeps away from calculating the inaccurate and unstable illumination matrix. Compared with the conventional method, the angle-domain method can obtain more accurate amplitude information and wider amplitude-preserved range. Several model tests demonstrate the effectiveness and practicability.

  11. Effect of survey mode on response patterns: comparison of face-to-face and self-administered modes in health surveys.

    PubMed

    Christensen, Anne Illemann; Ekholm, Ola; Glümer, Charlotte; Juel, Knud

    2014-04-01

    While face-to-face interviews are considered the gold standard of survey modes, self-administered questionnaires are often preferred for cost and convenience. This article examines response patterns in two general population health surveys carried out by face-to-face interview and self-administered questionnaire, respectively. Data derives from a health interview survey in the Region of Southern Denmark (face-to-face interview) and The Danish Health and Morbidity Survey 2010 (self-administered questionnaire). Identical questions were used in both surveys. Data on all individuals were obtained from administrative registers and linked to survey data at individual level. Multiple logistic regression analyses were used to examine the effect of survey mode on response patterns. The non-response rate was higher in the self-administered survey (37.9%) than in the face-to-face interview survey (23.7%). Marital status, ethnic background and highest completed education were associated with non-response in both modes. Furthermore, sex and age were associated with non-response in the self-administered mode. No significant mode effects were observed for indicators related to use of health services, but significant mode effects were observed for indicators related to self-reported health-related quality of life, health behaviour, social relations and morbidity (long-standing illness). The same factors were generally associated with non-response in both modes. Indicators based on factual questions with simple answers categories were overall more comparable according to mode than indicators based on questions that involved more subjective assessments. Other measures such as efficiency and cost-effectiveness of the mode should also be considered when determining the most appropriate form of data collection.

  12. Seeing the world topsy-turvy: The primary role of kinematics in biological motion inversion effects.

    PubMed

    Fitzgerald, Sue-Anne; Brooks, Anna; van der Zwan, Rick; Blair, Duncan

    2014-01-01

    Physical inversion of whole or partial human body representations typically has catastrophic consequences on the observer's ability to perform visual processing tasks. Explanations usually focus on the effects of inversion on the visual system's ability to exploit configural or structural relationships, but more recently have also implicated motion or kinematic cue processing. Here, we systematically tested the role of both on perceptions of sex from upright and inverted point-light walkers. Our data suggest that inversion results in systematic degradations of the processing of kinematic cues. Specifically and intriguingly, they reveal sex-based kinematic differences: Kinematics characteristic of females generally are resistant to inversion effects, while those of males drive systematic sex misperceptions. Implications of the findings are discussed.

  13. Beneficial effects of verbalization and visual distinctiveness on remembering and knowing faces.

    PubMed

    Brown, Charity; Lloyd-Jones, Toby J

    2006-03-01

    We examined the effect of verbally describing faces upon visual memory. In particular, we examined the locus of the facilitative effects of verbalization by manipulating the visual distinctiveness ofthe to-be-remembered faces and using the remember/know procedure as a measure of recognition performance (i.e., remember vs. know judgments). Participants were exposed to distinctive faces intermixed with typical faces and described (or not, in the control condition) each face following its presentation. Subsequently, the participants discriminated the original faces from distinctive and typical distractors in a yes/no recognition decision and made remember/know judgments. Distinctive faces elicited better discrimination performance than did typical faces. Furthermore, for both typical and distinctive faces, better discrimination performance was obtained in the description than in the control condition. Finally, these effects were evident for both recollection- and familiarity-based recognition decisions. We argue that verbalization and visual distinctiveness independently benefit face recognition, and we discuss these findings in terms of the nature of verbalization and the role of recollective and familiarity-based processes in recognition.

  14. Understanding gender bias in face recognition: effects of divided attention at encoding.

    PubMed

    Palmer, Matthew A; Brewer, Neil; Horry, Ruth

    2013-03-01

    Prior research has demonstrated a female own-gender bias in face recognition, with females better at recognizing female faces than male faces. We explored the basis for this effect by examining the effect of divided attention during encoding on females' and males' recognition of female and male faces. For female participants, divided attention impaired recognition performance for female faces to a greater extent than male faces in a face recognition paradigm (Study 1; N=113) and an eyewitness identification paradigm (Study 2; N=502). Analysis of remember-know judgments (Study 2) indicated that divided attention at encoding selectively reduced female participants' recollection of female faces at test. For male participants, divided attention selectively reduced recognition performance (and recollection) for male stimuli in Study 2, but had similar effects on recognition of male and female faces in Study 1. Overall, the results suggest that attention at encoding contributes to the female own-gender bias by facilitating the later recollection of female faces. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  15. Effectiveness of online and face-to-face fatigue self-management programmes for adults with neurological conditions.

    PubMed

    Ghahari, Setareh; Packer, Tanya

    2012-01-01

    To evaluate effectiveness of a face-to-face and an online fatigue self-management programme and to compare these to two control groups (information-only and no-intervention) in a sample of adults (n = 115) with neurological conditions reporting extreme fatigue. Non-equivalent pre-test post-test control group design using the Fatigue Impact Scale, Personal Wellbeing Index and Activity Card Sort as primary outcome measures. Participants in the two intervention groups and the information-only group showed clinically significant improvements in fatigue over time (p < 0.05). When compared to the no-intervention group, face-to-face participants showed significantly greater improvement in overall and cognitive fatigue, while participants in the online group showed significant improvement in self-efficacy and stress. Participation in either the online or face-to-face programme appears to result in improved self-management, however, with different potency depending on outcomes. The improvement in the online information only group further complicates the understanding of the results. With few other comparisons of online and face-to-face self-management protocols available, further research is needed to understand differential impacts which may be related to the delivery format, the rural versus urban split of participants or other unknown factors.

  16. AUTISTIC TRAITS INFLUENCE GAZE-ORIENTED ATTENTION TO HAPPY BUT NOT FEARFUL FACES

    PubMed Central

    Lassalle, Amandine; Itier, Roxane J.

    2017-01-01

    The relationship between autistic traits and gaze-oriented attention to fearful and happy faces was investigated at the behavioral and neuronal levels. Upright and inverted dynamic face stimuli were used in a gaze-cueing paradigm while ERPs were recorded. Participants responded faster to gazed-at than to non-gazed-at targets and this Gaze Orienting Effect (GOE) diminished with inversion, suggesting it relies on facial configuration. It was also larger for fearful than happy faces but only in participants with high Autism Quotient (AQ) scores. While the GOE to fearful faces was of similar magnitude regardless of AQ scores, a diminished GOE to happy faces was found in participants with high AQ scores. At the ERP level, a congruency effect on target-elicited P1 component reflected enhanced visual processing of gazed-at targets. In addition, cue-triggered early directing attention negativity and anterior directing attention negativity reflected, respectively, attention orienting and attention holding at gazed-at locations. These neural markers of spatial attention orienting were not modulated by emotion and were not found in participants with high AQ scores. Together these findings suggest that autistic traits influence attention orienting to gaze and its modulation by social emotions such as happiness. PMID:25222883

  17. Inverse spin Hall effect by spin injection

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liu, S. Y.; Horing, Norman J. M.; Lei, X. L.

    2007-09-01

    Motivated by a recent experiment [S. O. Valenzuela and M. Tinkham, Nature (London) 442, 176 (2006)], the authors present a quantitative microscopic theory to investigate the inverse spin-Hall effect with spin injection into aluminum considering both intrinsic and extrinsic spin-orbit couplings using the orthogonalized-plane-wave method. Their theoretical results are in good agreement with the experimental data. It is also clear that the magnitude of the anomalous Hall resistivity is mainly due to contributions from extrinsic skew scattering.

  18. Reciprocal Altruism: The Effect of Self-Esteem and Anticipation of Face-to-Face Interaction on Reciprocation.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gregor, Gary L.; Conner, Hubert

    The study attempts to measure the effects of self-esteem and face-to-face interaction on a person's giving behavior (altruism). Seventy-two introductory psychology students were paired on a task which required that one of each pair become "indebted" to the other. Their roles were then reversed, and data was collected to see if the…

  19. Perceptual dehumanization of faces is activated by norm violations and facilitates norm enforcement.

    PubMed

    Fincher, Katrina M; Tetlock, Philip E

    2016-02-01

    This article uses methods drawn from perceptual psychology to answer a basic social psychological question: Do people process the faces of norm violators differently from those of others--and, if so, what is the functional significance? Seven studies suggest that people process these faces different and the differential processing makes it easier to punish norm violators. Studies 1 and 2 use a recognition-recall paradigm that manipulated facial-inversion and spatial frequency to show that people rely upon face-typical processing less when they perceive norm violators' faces. Study 3 uses a facial composite task to demonstrate that the effect is actor dependent, not action dependent, and to suggest that configural processing is the mechanism of perceptual change. Studies 4 and 5 use offset faces to show that configural processing is only attenuated when they belong to perpetrators who are culpable. Studies 6 and 7 show that people find it easier to punish inverted faces and harder to punish faces displayed in low spatial frequency. Taken together, these data suggest a bidirectional flow of causality between lower-order perceptual and higher-order cognitive processes in norm enforcement. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved.

  20. Effects of anisotropy on the two-dimensional inversion procedure

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Heise, Wiebke; Pous, Jaume

    2001-12-01

    In this paper we show some of the effects that appear in magnetotelluric measurements over 2-D anisotropic structures, and propose a procedure to recover the anisotropy using 2-D inversion algorithms for isotropic models. First, we see how anisotropy affects the usual interpretation steps: dimensionality analysis and 2-D inversion. Two models containing general 2-D azimuthal anisotropic features were chosen to illustrate this approach: an anisotropic block and an anisotropic layer, both forming part of general 2-D models. In addition, a third model with dipping anisotropy was studied. For each model we examined the influence of various anisotropy strikes and resistivity contrasts on the dimensionality analysis and on the behaviour of the induction arrows. We found that, when the anisotropy ratio is higher than five, even if the strike is frequency-dependent it is possible to decide on a direction close to the direction of anisotropy. Then, if the data are rotated to this angle, a 2-D inversion reproduces the anisotropy reasonably well by means of macro-anisotropy. This strategy was tested on field data where anisotropy had been previously recognized.

  1. Seeing the world topsy-turvy: The primary role of kinematics in biological motion inversion effects

    PubMed Central

    Fitzgerald, Sue-Anne; Brooks, Anna; van der Zwan, Rick; Blair, Duncan

    2014-01-01

    Physical inversion of whole or partial human body representations typically has catastrophic consequences on the observer's ability to perform visual processing tasks. Explanations usually focus on the effects of inversion on the visual system's ability to exploit configural or structural relationships, but more recently have also implicated motion or kinematic cue processing. Here, we systematically tested the role of both on perceptions of sex from upright and inverted point-light walkers. Our data suggest that inversion results in systematic degradations of the processing of kinematic cues. Specifically and intriguingly, they reveal sex-based kinematic differences: Kinematics characteristic of females generally are resistant to inversion effects, while those of males drive systematic sex misperceptions. Implications of the findings are discussed. PMID:25469217

  2. Face Aging Effect Simulation Using Hidden Factor Analysis Joint Sparse Representation.

    PubMed

    Yang, Hongyu; Huang, Di; Wang, Yunhong; Wang, Heng; Tang, Yuanyan

    2016-06-01

    Face aging simulation has received rising investigations nowadays, whereas it still remains a challenge to generate convincing and natural age-progressed face images. In this paper, we present a novel approach to such an issue using hidden factor analysis joint sparse representation. In contrast to the majority of tasks in the literature that integrally handle the facial texture, the proposed aging approach separately models the person-specific facial properties that tend to be stable in a relatively long period and the age-specific clues that gradually change over time. It then transforms the age component to a target age group via sparse reconstruction, yielding aging effects, which is finally combined with the identity component to achieve the aged face. Experiments are carried out on three face aging databases, and the results achieved clearly demonstrate the effectiveness and robustness of the proposed method in rendering a face with aging effects. In addition, a series of evaluations prove its validity with respect to identity preservation and aging effect generation.

  3. A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Blended Versus Face-to-Face Delivery of Evidence-Based Medicine to Medical Students.

    PubMed

    Maloney, Stephen; Nicklen, Peter; Rivers, George; Foo, Jonathan; Ooi, Ying Ying; Reeves, Scott; Walsh, Kieran; Ilic, Dragan

    2015-07-21

    Blended learning describes a combination of teaching methods, often utilizing digital technologies. Research suggests that learner outcomes can be improved through some blended learning formats. However, the cost-effectiveness of delivering blended learning is unclear. This study aimed to determine the cost-effectiveness of a face-to-face learning and blended learning approach for evidence-based medicine training within a medical program. The economic evaluation was conducted as part of a randomized controlled trial (RCT) comparing the evidence-based medicine (EBM) competency of medical students who participated in two different modes of education delivery. In the traditional face-to-face method, students received ten 2-hour classes. In the blended learning approach, students received the same total face-to-face hours but with different activities and additional online and mobile learning. Online activities utilized YouTube and a library guide indexing electronic databases, guides, and books. Mobile learning involved self-directed interactions with patients in their regular clinical placements. The attribution and differentiation of costs between the interventions within the RCT was measured in conjunction with measured outcomes of effectiveness. An incremental cost-effectiveness ratio was calculated comparing the ongoing operation costs of each method with the level of EBM proficiency achieved. Present value analysis was used to calculate the break-even point considering the transition cost and the difference in ongoing operation cost. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio indicated that it costs 24% less to educate a student to the same level of EBM competency via the blended learning approach used in the study, when excluding transition costs. The sunk cost of approximately AUD $40,000 to transition to the blended model exceeds any savings from using the approach within the first year of its implementation; however, a break-even point is achieved within its

  4. A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Blended Versus Face-to-Face Delivery of Evidence-Based Medicine to Medical Students

    PubMed Central

    Nicklen, Peter; Rivers, George; Foo, Jonathan; Ooi, Ying Ying; Reeves, Scott; Walsh, Kieran; Ilic, Dragan

    2015-01-01

    Background Blended learning describes a combination of teaching methods, often utilizing digital technologies. Research suggests that learner outcomes can be improved through some blended learning formats. However, the cost-effectiveness of delivering blended learning is unclear. Objective This study aimed to determine the cost-effectiveness of a face-to-face learning and blended learning approach for evidence-based medicine training within a medical program. Methods The economic evaluation was conducted as part of a randomized controlled trial (RCT) comparing the evidence-based medicine (EBM) competency of medical students who participated in two different modes of education delivery. In the traditional face-to-face method, students received ten 2-hour classes. In the blended learning approach, students received the same total face-to-face hours but with different activities and additional online and mobile learning. Online activities utilized YouTube and a library guide indexing electronic databases, guides, and books. Mobile learning involved self-directed interactions with patients in their regular clinical placements. The attribution and differentiation of costs between the interventions within the RCT was measured in conjunction with measured outcomes of effectiveness. An incremental cost-effectiveness ratio was calculated comparing the ongoing operation costs of each method with the level of EBM proficiency achieved. Present value analysis was used to calculate the break-even point considering the transition cost and the difference in ongoing operation cost. Results The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio indicated that it costs 24% less to educate a student to the same level of EBM competency via the blended learning approach used in the study, when excluding transition costs. The sunk cost of approximately AUD $40,000 to transition to the blended model exceeds any savings from using the approach within the first year of its implementation; however, a

  5. A novel BCI based on ERP components sensitive to configural processing of human faces.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Yu; Zhao, Qibin; Jin, Jing; Wang, Xingyu; Cichocki, Andrzej

    2012-04-01

    This study introduces a novel brain-computer interface (BCI) based on an oddball paradigm using stimuli of facial images with loss of configural face information (e.g., inversion of face). To the best of our knowledge, till now the configural processing of human faces has not been applied to BCI but widely studied in cognitive neuroscience research. Our experiments confirm that the face-sensitive event-related potential (ERP) components N170 and vertex positive potential (VPP) have reflected early structural encoding of faces and can be modulated by the configural processing of faces. With the proposed novel paradigm, we investigate the effects of ERP components N170, VPP and P300 on target detection for BCI. An eight-class BCI platform is developed to analyze ERPs and evaluate the target detection performance using linear discriminant analysis without complicated feature extraction processing. The online classification accuracy of 88.7% and information transfer rate of 38.7 bits min(-1) using stimuli of inverted faces with only single trial suggest that the proposed paradigm based on the configural processing of faces is very promising for visual stimuli-driven BCI applications.

  6. A novel BCI based on ERP components sensitive to configural processing of human faces

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Yu; Zhao, Qibin; Jing, Jin; Wang, Xingyu; Cichocki, Andrzej

    2012-04-01

    This study introduces a novel brain-computer interface (BCI) based on an oddball paradigm using stimuli of facial images with loss of configural face information (e.g., inversion of face). To the best of our knowledge, till now the configural processing of human faces has not been applied to BCI but widely studied in cognitive neuroscience research. Our experiments confirm that the face-sensitive event-related potential (ERP) components N170 and vertex positive potential (VPP) have reflected early structural encoding of faces and can be modulated by the configural processing of faces. With the proposed novel paradigm, we investigate the effects of ERP components N170, VPP and P300 on target detection for BCI. An eight-class BCI platform is developed to analyze ERPs and evaluate the target detection performance using linear discriminant analysis without complicated feature extraction processing. The online classification accuracy of 88.7% and information transfer rate of 38.7 bits min-1 using stimuli of inverted faces with only single trial suggest that the proposed paradigm based on the configural processing of faces is very promising for visual stimuli-driven BCI applications.

  7. Meet The Simpsons: top-down effects in face learning.

    PubMed

    Bonner, Lesley; Burton, A Mike; Jenkins, Rob; McNeill, Allan; Vicki, Bruce

    2003-01-01

    We examined whether prior knowledge of a person affects the visual processes involved in learning a face. In two experiments, subjects were taught to associate human faces with characters they knew (from the TV show The Simpsons) or characters they did not (novel names). In each experiment, knowledge of the character predicted performance in a recognition memory test, relying only on old/new confidence ratings. In experiment 1, we established the technique and showed that there is a face-learning advantage for known people, even when face items are counterbalanced for familiarity across the experiment. In experiment 2 we replicated the effect in a setting which discouraged subjects from attending more to known than unknown people, and eliminated any visual association between face stimuli and a character from The Simpsons. We conclude that prior knowledge about a person can enhance learning of a new face.

  8. Inverse Faraday effect driven by radiation friction

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liseykina, T. V.; Popruzhenko, S. V.; Macchi, A.

    2016-07-01

    A collective, macroscopic signature to detect radiation friction in laser-plasma experiments is proposed. In the interaction of superintense circularly polarized laser pulses with high density targets, the effective dissipation due to radiative losses allows the absorption of electromagnetic angular momentum, which in turn leads to the generation of a quasistatic axial magnetic field. This peculiar ‘inverse Faraday effect’ is investigated by analytical modeling and three-dimensional simulations, showing that multi-gigagauss magnetic fields may be generated at laser intensities \\gt {10}23 {{{W}}{{cm}}}-2.

  9. A theory of the inverse magnetoelectric effect in layered magnetostrictive-piezoelectric structures

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Filippov, D. A.; Radchenko, G. S.; Firsova, T. O.; Galkina, T. A.

    2017-05-01

    A theory of the inverse magnetoelectric effect in layered structures has been presented. The theory is based on solving the equations of elastodynamics and electrostatics separately for the magnetostrictive and piezoelectric phases, taking into account the conditions at the interface between the phases. Expressions for the coefficient of inverse magnetoelectric conversion through the parameters characterizing the magnetostrictive and piezoelectric phases have been obtained. Theoretical dependences of the inverse magnetoelectric conversion coefficient on the frequency of the alternating-current electric field for the three-layer PZT-Ni-PZT structure and the two-layer terfenol- D-PZT structure have been calculated. The results of the calculations are in good agreement with the experimental data.

  10. Effect of inversion layer at iron pyrite surface on photovoltaic device

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Uchiyama, Shunsuke; Ishikawa, Yasuaki; Uraoka, Yukiharu

    2018-03-01

    Iron pyrite has great potential as a thin-film solar cell material because it has high optical absorption, low cost, and is earth-abundant. However, previously reported iron pyrite solar cells showed poor photovoltaic characteristics. Here, we have numerically simulated its photovoltaic characteristics and band structures by utilizing a two-dimensional (2D) device simulator, ATLAS, to evaluate the effects of an inversion layer at the surface and a high density of deep donor defect states in the bulk. We found that previous device structures did not consider the inversion layer at the surface region of iron pyrite, which made it difficult to obtain the conversion efficiency. Therefore, we remodeled the device structure and suggested that removing the inversion layer and reducing the density of deep donor defect states would lead to a high conversion efficiency of iron pyrite solar cells.

  11. The amygdala is involved in affective priming effect for fearful faces.

    PubMed

    Yang, J; Cao, Z; Xu, X; Chen, G

    2012-10-01

    The object of this study was to investigate whether the amygdala is involved in affective priming effect after stimuli are encoded unconsciously and consciously. During the encoding phase, each masked face (fearful or neutral) was presented to participants six times for 17ms each, using a backward masking paradigm. During the retrieval phase, participants made a fearful/neutral judgment for each face. Half of the faces had the same valence as that seen during encoding (congruent condition) and the other half did not (incongruent condition). Participants were divided into unaware and aware groups based on their subjective and objective awareness assessments. The fMRI results showed that during encoding, the amygdala elicited stronger activation for fearful faces than neutral faces but differed in the hemisphere according to the awareness level. During retrieval, the amygdala showed a significant repetition priming effect, with the congruent faces producing less activation than the incongruent faces, especially for fearful faces. These data suggest that the amygdala is important in unconscious retrieving of memories for emotional faces whether they are encoded consciously or unconsciously. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. Magnetic topology of Co-based inverse opal-like structures

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Grigoryeva, N. A.; Mistonov, A. A.; Napolskii, K. S.; Sapoletova, N. A.; Eliseev, A. A.; Bouwman, W.; Byelov, D. V.; Petukhov, A. V.; Chernyshov, D. Yu.; Eckerlebe, H.; Vasilieva, A. V.; Grigoriev, S. V.

    2011-08-01

    The magnetic and structural properties of a cobalt inverse opal-like crystal have been studied by a combination of complementary techniques ranging from polarized neutron scattering and superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) magnetometry to x-ray diffraction. Microradian small-angle x-ray diffraction shows that the inverse opal-like structure (OLS) synthesized by the electrochemical method fully duplicates the three-dimensional net of voids of the template artificial opal. The inverse OLS has a face-centered cubic (fcc) structure with a lattice constant of 640±10 nm and with a clear tendency to a random hexagonal close-packed structure along the [111] axes. Wide-angle x-ray powder diffraction shows that the atomic cobalt structure is described by coexistence of 95% hexagonal close-packed and 5% fcc phases. The SQUID measurements demonstrate that the inverse OLS film possesses easy-plane magnetization geometry with a coercive field of 14.0 ± 0.5 mT at room temperature. The detailed picture of the transformation of the magnetic structure under an in-plane applied field was detected with the help of small-angle diffraction of polarized neutrons. In the demagnetized state the magnetic system consists of randomly oriented magnetic domains. A complex magnetic structure appears upon application of the magnetic field, with nonhomogeneous distribution of magnetization density within the unit element of the OLS. This distribution is determined by the combined effect of the easy-plane geometry of the film and the crystallographic geometry of the opal-like structure with respect to the applied field direction.

  13. The effects of distinctiveness on memory and metamemory for face-name associations.

    PubMed

    Watier, Nicholas; Collin, Charles

    2012-01-01

    We examined the influence of face and name distinctiveness on memory and metamemory for face-name associations. Four types of monitoring judgements were solicited during encoding and retrieval of face-name pairs that contained distinct or typical faces (Experiment 1) or names (Experiment 2). The beneficial effects of distinctiveness on associative memory were symmetrical between faces and names, such that relative to their typical counterparts, distinct faces enhanced memory for names, and distinct names enhanced memory for faces. These effects were also apparent in metamemory. Estimates of prospective and retrospective memory performance were greater for face-name associations that contained a distinct face or name compared with a typical face or name, regardless of whether the distinct item was a cue or target. Moreover, the predictive validity of prospective monitoring improved with name distinctiveness, whereas the predictive validity of retrospective monitoring improved with facial distinctiveness. Our results indicate that distinctiveness affects not only the strength of the association between a face and a name, but also the ability to monitor that association.

  14. Effects of Cyberprogram 2.0 on "face-to-face" bullying, cyberbullying, and empathy.

    PubMed

    Garaigordobil, Maite; Martínez-Valderrey, Vanesa

    2015-01-01

    The considerable prevalence of cyberbullying and its noxious effects on all those concerned reveals the need for programs to prevent and/or intervene in this type of violence. The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of Cyberprogram 2.0 on "face-to-face" bullying, cyberbullying, and empathy. A sample of 176 adolescents of the Basque Country (Spain), aged between 13 and 15 years, who studied Compulsory Secondary Education, was used. Of them, 93 were randomly assigned to the experimental condition, and 83 to the control condition. The study used a pretest-posttest repeated measures design with a control group. Before and after the program, two assessment instruments were administered. The results confirmed that the program significantly stimulated: (a) a decrease in the amount of bullying and cyberbullying behaviors suffered and/or carried out (level of victimization, perpetration, aggressive-victimization); and (b) an increase in the capacity for empathy. The study provides evidence of the effectiveness of Cyberprogram 2.0 to prevent and reduce bullying and cyberbullying. The discussion analyzes aspects of the program that may account for the significant intervention effects.

  15. Global precedence effects account for individual differences in both face and object recognition performance.

    PubMed

    Gerlach, Christian; Starrfelt, Randi

    2018-03-20

    There has been an increase in studies adopting an individual difference approach to examine visual cognition and in particular in studies trying to relate face recognition performance with measures of holistic processing (the face composite effect and the part-whole effect). In the present study we examine whether global precedence effects, measured by means of non-face stimuli in Navon's paradigm, can also account for individual differences in face recognition and, if so, whether the effect is of similar magnitude for faces and objects. We find evidence that global precedence effects facilitate both face and object recognition, and to a similar extent. Our results suggest that both face and object recognition are characterized by a coarse-to-fine temporal dynamic, where global shape information is derived prior to local shape information, and that the efficiency of face and object recognition is related to the magnitude of the global precedence effect.

  16. Longitudinal Proximity Effect, Lateral Inverse Proximity Effect, and Nonequilibrium Superconductivity in Transition-edge Sensors

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Sadleir, John E.

    2010-01-01

    We have recently shown that normal-metal/superconductor (N/S) bilayer TESs (superconducting Transition-Edge Sensors) exhibit weak-link behavior. Our measurements were explained in terms of a longitudinal proximity effect model in which superconducting order from the higher transition temperature leads is induced into the TES bilayer plane over remarkably long distances (up to 290 micron). Here we extend our understanding to include TESs with added noise-mitigating normal-metal structures (N structures). We explain our results of an effect converse to the longitudinal proximity effect (LoPE), the lateral inverse proximity effect (LaiPE), for which the order parameter in the N/S bilayer is reduced due to the neighboring N structures. We present resistance and critical current measurements as a function of temperature and magnetic field taken on square Mo/Au bilayer TESs with lengths ranging from 8 to 130 micron with and without added N structures. We observe the inverse proximity effect on the bilayer over in-plane distances many tens of microns and find the transition shifts to lower temperature scale approximately as the inverse square of the in-plane N-structure separation distance, without appreciable broadening of the transition width. We find TESs with added Au structures exhibit weak-link behavior as evidenced by exponential temperature dependence of the critical current and Josephson-like oscillations of the critical current with applied magnetic field. We also present evidence for nonequilbrium superconductivity and estimate a quasiparticle lifetime of 1.8 x 10(exp -10) s for the bilayer. The LoPE model is also used to explain the increased conductivity at temperatures above the bilayer's steep resistive transition

  17. Longitudinal Proximity Effect, Lateral Inverse Proximity Effect, and Nonequilibrium Superconductivity in Transition-Edge Sensors

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Sadleir, John E.

    2010-01-01

    We have recently shown that normal-metal/superconductor (N /S) bilayer TESs (superconducting Transition-Edge Sensors) exhibit weak-link behavior. Our measurements were explained in terms of a longitudinal proximity effect model in which superconducting order from the higher transition temperature leads is induced into the TES bilayer plane over remarkably long distances (up to 290 micron). Here we extend our understanding to include TESs with added noise-mitigating normal-metal structures (N structures). We explain our results in terms of an effect converse to the longitudinal proximity effect (LoPE), the lateral inverse proximity effect (LaiPE), for which the order parameter in the N /S bilayer is reduced due to the neighboring N structures. We present resistance and critical current measurements as a function of temperature and magnetic field taken on square Mo/Au bilayer TESs with lengths ranging from 8 to 130 micron with and without added N structures. We observe the inverse proximity effect on the bilayer over in-plane distances many tens of microns and find the transition shifts to lower temperatures scale approximately as the inverse square of the in-plane N-structure separation distance, without appreciable broadening of the transition width. We find TESs with added Au structures exhibit weak-link behavior as evidenced by exponential temperature dependence of the critical current and Josephson-like oscillations of the critical current with applied magnetic field. We also present evidence for nonequilbrium superconductivity and estimate a quasiparticle lifetime of 1.8 x 10(exp -10) s for the bilayer. The LoPE model is also used to explain the increased conductivity at temperatures above the bilayer's steep resistive transition.

  18. Face processing among twins with and without autism: social correlates and twin concordance.

    PubMed

    Neuhaus, Emily; Kresse, Anna; Faja, Susan; Bernier, Raphael A; Webb, Sara Jane

    2016-01-01

    Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has a strong heritable basis, as evidenced by twin concordance rates. Within ASD, symptom domains may arise via independent genetic contributions, with varying heritabilities and genetic mechanisms. In this article, we explore social functioning in the form of (i) electrophysiological and behavioral measures of face processing (P1 and N170) and (ii) social behavior among child and adolescent twins with (N = 52) and without ASD (N = 66). Twins without ASD had better holistic face processing and face memory, faster P1 responses and greater sensitivity to the effects of facial inversion on P1. In contrast, N170 responses to faces were similar across diagnosis, with more negative amplitudes for faces vs non-face images. Across the sample, stronger social skills and fewer social difficulties were associated with faster P1 and N170 responses to upright faces, and better face memory. Twins were highly correlated within pairs across most measures, but correlations were significantly stronger for monozygotic vs dizygotic pairs on N170 latency and social problems. We suggest common developmental influences across twins for face processing and social behavior, but highlight (i) neural speed of face processing and (ii) social difficulties as important avenues in the search for genetic underpinnings in ASD. © The Author (2015). Published by Oxford University Press. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  19. Aging effects on selective attention-related electroencephalographic patterns during face encoding.

    PubMed

    Deiber, M-P; Rodriguez, C; Jaques, D; Missonnier, P; Emch, J; Millet, P; Gold, G; Giannakopoulos, P; Ibañez, V

    2010-11-24

    Previous electrophysiological studies revealed that human faces elicit an early visual event-related potential (ERP) within the occipito-temporal cortex, the N170 component. Although face perception has been proposed to rely on automatic processing, the impact of selective attention on N170 remains controversial both in young and elderly individuals. Using early visual ERP and alpha power analysis, we assessed the influence of aging on selective attention to faces during delayed-recognition tasks for face and letter stimuli, examining 36 elderly and 20 young adults with preserved cognition. Face recognition performance worsened with age. Aging induced a latency delay of the N1 component for faces and letters, as well as of the face N170 component. Contrasting with letters, ignored faces elicited larger N1 and N170 components than attended faces in both age groups. This counterintuitive attention effect on face processing persisted when scenes replaced letters. In contrast with young, elderly subjects failed to suppress irrelevant letters when attending faces. Whereas attended stimuli induced a parietal alpha band desynchronization within 300-1000 ms post-stimulus with bilateral-to-right distribution for faces and left lateralization for letters, ignored and passively viewed stimuli elicited a central alpha synchronization larger on the right hemisphere. Aging delayed the latency of this alpha synchronization for both face and letter stimuli, and reduced its amplitude for ignored letters. These results suggest that due to their social relevance, human faces may cause paradoxical attention effects on early visual ERP components, but they still undergo classical top-down control as a function of endogenous selective attention. Aging does not affect the face bottom-up alerting mechanism but reduces the top-down suppression of distracting letters, possibly impinging upon face recognition, and more generally delays the top-down suppression of task-irrelevant information

  20. Structural aspects of face recognition and the other-race effect.

    PubMed

    O'Toole, A J; Deffenbacher, K A; Valentin, D; Abdi, H

    1994-03-01

    The other-race effect was examined in a series of experiments and simulations that looked at the relationships among observer ratings of typicality, familiarity, attractiveness, memorability, and the performance variables of d' and criterion. Experiment 1 replicated the other-race effect with our Caucasian and Japanese stimuli for both Caucasian and Asian observers. In Experiment 2, we collected ratings from Caucasian observers on the faces used in the recognition task. A Varimax-rotated principal components analysis on the rating and performance data for the Caucasian faces replicated Vokey and Read's (1992) finding that typicality is composed of two orthogonal components, dissociable via their independent relationships to: (1) attractiveness and familiarity ratings and (2) memorability ratings. For Japanese faces, however, we found that typicality was related only to memorability. Where performance measures were concerned, two additional principal components dominated by criterion and by d' emerged for Caucasian faces. For the Japanese faces, however, the performance measures of d' and criterion merged into a single component that represented a second component of typicality, one orthogonal to the memorability-dominated component. A measure of face representation quality extracted from an autoassociative neural network trained with a majority of Caucasian faces and a minority of Japanese faces was incorporated into the principal components analysis. For both Caucasian and Japanese faces, the neural network measure related both to memorability ratings and to human accuracy measures. Combined, the human data and simulation results indicate that the memorability component of typicality may be related to small, local, distinctive features, whereas the attractiveness/familiarity component may be more related to the global, shape-based properties of the face.

  1. Effects of spatial frequency content on classification of face gender and expression.

    PubMed

    Aguado, Luis; Serrano-Pedraza, Ignacio; Rodríguez, Sonia; Román, Francisco J

    2010-11-01

    The role of different spatial frequency bands on face gender and expression categorization was studied in three experiments. Accuracy and reaction time were measured for unfiltered, low-pass (cut-off frequency of 1 cycle/deg) and high-pass (cutoff frequency of 3 cycles/deg) filtered faces. Filtered and unfiltered faces were equated in root-mean-squared contrast. For low-pass filtered faces reaction times were higher than unfiltered and high-pass filtered faces in both categorization tasks. In the expression task, these results were obtained with expressive faces presented in isolation (Experiment 1) and also with neutral-expressive dynamic sequences where each expressive face was preceded by a briefly presented neutral version of the same face (Experiment 2). For high-pass filtered faces different effects were observed on gender and expression categorization. While both speed and accuracy of gender categorization were reduced comparing to unfiltered faces, the efficiency of expression classification remained similar. Finally, we found no differences between expressive and non expressive faces in the effects of spatial frequency filtering on gender categorization (Experiment 3). These results show a common role of information from the high spatial frequency band in the categorization of face gender and expression.

  2. Cost-effectiveness of blended vs. face-to-face cognitive behavioural therapy for severe anxiety disorders: study protocol of a randomized controlled trial.

    PubMed

    Romijn, Geke; Riper, Heleen; Kok, Robin; Donker, Tara; Goorden, Maartje; van Roijen, Leona Hakkaart; Kooistra, Lisa; van Balkom, Anton; Koning, Jeroen

    2015-12-12

    Anxiety disorders are among the most prevalent psychiatric conditions, and are associated with poor quality of life and substantial economic burden. Cognitive behavioural therapy is an effective treatment to reduce anxiety symptoms, but is also costly and labour intensive. Cost-effectiveness could possibly be improved by delivering cognitive behavioural therapy in a blended format, where face-to-face sessions are partially replaced by online sessions. The aim of this trial is to determine the cost-effectiveness of blended cognitive behavioural therapy for adults with anxiety disorders, i.e. panic disorder, social phobia or generalized anxiety disorder, in specialized mental health care settings compared to face-to-face cognitive behavioural therapy. In this paper, we present the study protocol. It is hypothesized that blended cognitive behavioural therapy for anxiety disorders is clinically as effective as face-to-face cognitive behavioural therapy, but that intervention costs may be reduced. We thus hypothesize that blended cognitive behavioural therapy is more cost-effective than face-to-face cognitive behavioural therapy. In a randomised controlled equivalence trial 156 patients will be included (n = 78 in blended cognitive behavioural therapy, n = 78 in face-to-face cognitive behavioural therapy) based on a power of 0.80, calculated by using a formula to estimate the power of a cost-effectiveness analysis: [Formula: see text]. Measurements will take place at baseline, midway treatment (7 weeks), immediately after treatment (15 weeks) and 12-month follow-up. At baseline a diagnostic interview will be administered. Primary clinical outcomes are changes in anxiety symptom severity as measured with the Beck Anxiety Inventory. An incremental cost-effectiveness ratio will be calculated to obtain the costs per quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) measured by the EQ-5D (5-level version). Health-economic outcomes will be explored from a societal and health care

  3. Contact and other-race effects in configural and component processing of faces.

    PubMed

    Rhodes, Gillian; Ewing, Louise; Hayward, William G; Maurer, Daphne; Mondloch, Catherine J; Tanaka, James W

    2009-11-01

    Other-race faces are generally recognized more poorly than own-race faces. There has been a long-standing interest in the extent to which differences in contact contribute to this other-race effect (ORE). Here, we examined the effect of contact on two distinct aspects of face memory, memory for configuration and for components, both of which are better for own-race than other-race faces. Configural and component memory were measured using recognition memory tests with intact study faces and blurred (isolates memory for configuration) and scrambled (isolates memory for components) test faces, respectively. Our participants were a large group of ethnically Chinese individuals who had resided in Australia for varying lengths of time, from a few weeks to 26 years. We found that time in a Western country significantly (negatively) predicted the size of the ORE for configural, but not component, memory. There was also a trend for earlier age of arrival to predict smaller OREs in configural, but not component, memory. These results suggest that memory for configural information in other-race faces improves with experience with such faces. However, as found for recognition memory generally, the contact effects were small, indicating that other factors must play a substantial role in cross-race differences in face memory.

  4. Alcoholism and Dampened Temporal Limbic Activation to Emotional Faces

    PubMed Central

    Marinkovic, Ksenija; Oscar-Berman, Marlene; Urban, Trinity; O’Reilly, Cara E.; Howard, Julie A.; Sawyer, Kayle; Harris, Gordon J.

    2013-01-01

    Background Excessive chronic drinking is accompanied by a broad spectrum of emotional changes ranging from apathy and emotional flatness to deficits in comprehending emotional information, but their neural bases are poorly understood. Methods Emotional abnormalities associated with alcoholism were examined with functional magnetic resonance imaging in abstinent long-term alcoholic men in comparison to healthy demographically matched controls. Participants were presented with emotionally valenced words and photographs of faces during deep (semantic) and shallow (perceptual) encoding tasks followed by recognition. Results Overall, faces evoked stronger activation than words, with the expected material-specific laterality (left hemisphere for words, and right for faces) and depth of processing effects. However, whereas control participants showed stronger activation in the amygdala and hippocampus when viewing faces with emotional (relative to neutral) expressions, the alcoholics responded in an undifferentiated manner to all facial expressions. In the alcoholic participants, amygdala activity was inversely correlated with an increase in lateral prefrontal activity as a function of their behavioral deficits. Prefrontal modulation of emotional function as a compensation for the blunted amygdala activity during a socially relevant face appraisal task is in agreement with a distributed network engagement during emotional face processing. Conclusions Deficient activation of amygdala and hippocampus may underlie impaired processing of emotional faces associated with long-term alcoholism and may be a part of the wide array of behavioral problems including disinhibition, concurring with previously documented interpersonal difficulties in this population. Furthermore, the results suggest that alcoholics may rely on prefrontal rather than temporal limbic areas in order to compensate for reduced limbic responsivity and to maintain behavioral adequacy when faced with emotionally

  5. Alcoholism and dampened temporal limbic activation to emotional faces.

    PubMed

    Marinkovic, Ksenija; Oscar-Berman, Marlene; Urban, Trinity; O'Reilly, Cara E; Howard, Julie A; Sawyer, Kayle; Harris, Gordon J

    2009-11-01

    Excessive chronic drinking is accompanied by a broad spectrum of emotional changes ranging from apathy and emotional flatness to deficits in comprehending emotional information, but their neural bases are poorly understood. Emotional abnormalities associated with alcoholism were examined with functional magnetic resonance imaging in abstinent long-term alcoholic men in comparison to healthy demographically matched controls. Participants were presented with emotionally valenced words and photographs of faces during deep (semantic) and shallow (perceptual) encoding tasks followed by recognition. Overall, faces evoked stronger activation than words, with the expected material-specific laterality (left hemisphere for words, and right for faces) and depth of processing effects. However, whereas control participants showed stronger activation in the amygdala and hippocampus when viewing faces with emotional (relative to neutral) expressions, the alcoholics responded in an undifferentiated manner to all facial expressions. In the alcoholic participants, amygdala activity was inversely correlated with an increase in lateral prefrontal activity as a function of their behavioral deficits. Prefrontal modulation of emotional function as a compensation for the blunted amygdala activity during a socially relevant face appraisal task is in agreement with a distributed network engagement during emotional face processing. Deficient activation of amygdala and hippocampus may underlie impaired processing of emotional faces associated with long-term alcoholism and may be a part of the wide array of behavioral problems including disinhibition, concurring with previously documented interpersonal difficulties in this population. Furthermore, the results suggest that alcoholics may rely on prefrontal rather than temporal limbic areas in order to compensate for reduced limbic responsivity and to maintain behavioral adequacy when faced with emotionally or socially challenging situations.

  6. Nonequilibrium thermodynamics of the Markovian Mpemba effect and its inverse

    PubMed Central

    Raz, Oren

    2017-01-01

    Under certain conditions, it takes a shorter time to cool a hot system than to cool the same system initiated at a lower temperature. This phenomenon—the “Mpemba effect”—was first observed in water and has recently been reported in other systems. Whereas several detail-dependent explanations were suggested for some of these observations, no common underlying mechanism is known. Using the theoretical framework of nonequilibrium thermodynamics, we present a widely applicable mechanism for a similar effect, the Markovian Mpemba effect, derive a sufficient condition for its appearance, and demonstrate it explicitly in three paradigmatic systems: the Ising model, diffusion dynamics, and a three-state system. In addition, we predict an inverse Markovian Mpemba effect in heating: Under proper conditions, a cold system can heat up faster than the same system initiated at a higher temperature. We numerically demonstrate that this inverse effect is expected in a 1D antiferromagnet nearest-neighbors interacting Ising chain in the presence of an external magnetic field. Our results shed light on the mechanism behind anomalous heating and cooling and suggest that it should be possible to observe these in a variety of systems. PMID:28461467

  7. Origin of anomalous inverse notch effect in bulk metallic glasses

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pan, J.; Zhou, H. F.; Wang, Z. T.; Li, Y.; Gao, H. J.

    2015-11-01

    Understanding notch-related failure is crucial for the design of reliable engineering structures. However, substantial controversies exist in the literature on the notch effect in bulk metallic glasses (BMGs), and the underlying physical mechanism responsible for the apparent confusion is still poorly understood. Here we investigate the physical origin of an inverse notch effect in a Zr-based metallic glass, where the tensile strength of the material is dramatically enhanced, rather than decreased (as expected from the stress concentration point of view), by introduction of a notch. Our experiments and molecular dynamics simulations show that the seemingly anomalous inverse notch effect is in fact caused by a transition in failure mechanism from shear banding at the notch tip to cavitation and void coalescence. Based on our theoretical analysis, the transition occurs as the stress triaxiality in the notched sample exceeds a material-dependent threshold value. Our results fill the gap in the current understanding of BMG strength and failure mechanism by resolving the conflicts on notch effects and may inspire re-interpretation of previous reports on BMG fracture toughness where pre-existing notches were routinely adopted.

  8. The effect of age on memory for emotional faces.

    PubMed

    Grady, Cheryl L; Hongwanishkul, Donaya; Keightley, Michelle; Lee, Wendy; Hasher, Lynn

    2007-05-01

    Prior studies of emotion suggest that young adults should have enhanced memory for negative faces and that this enhancement should be reduced in older adults. Several studies have not shown these effects but were conducted with procedures different from those used with other emotional stimuli. In this study, researchers examined age differences in recognition of faces with emotional or neutral expressions, using trial-unique stimuli, as is typically done with other types of emotional stimuli. They also assessed the influence of personality traits and mood on memory. Enhanced recognition for negative faces was found in young adults but not in older adults. Recognition of faces was not influenced by mood or personality traits in young adults, but lower levels of extraversion and better emotional sensitivity predicted better negative face memory in older adults. These results suggest that negative expressions enhance memory for faces in young adults, as negative valence enhances memory for words and scenes. This enhancement is absent in older adults, but memory for emotional faces is modulated in older adults by personality traits that are relevant to emotional processing. (c) 2007 APA, all rights reserved

  9. Individual differences and the effect of face configuration information in the McGurk effect.

    PubMed

    Ujiie, Yuta; Asai, Tomohisa; Wakabayashi, Akio

    2018-04-01

    The McGurk effect, which denotes the influence of visual information on audiovisual speech perception, is less frequently observed in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) compared to those without it; the reason for this remains unclear. Several studies have suggested that facial configuration context might play a role in this difference. More specifically, people with ASD show a local processing bias for faces-that is, they process global face information to a lesser extent. This study examined the role of facial configuration context in the McGurk effect in 46 healthy students. Adopting an analogue approach using the Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ), we sought to determine whether this facial configuration context is crucial to previously observed reductions in the McGurk effect in people with ASD. Lip-reading and audiovisual syllable identification tasks were assessed via presentation of upright normal, inverted normal, upright Thatcher-type, and inverted Thatcher-type faces. When the Thatcher-type face was presented, perceivers were found to be sensitive to the misoriented facial characteristics, causing them to perceive a weaker McGurk effect than when the normal face was presented (this is known as the McThatcher effect). Additionally, the McGurk effect was weaker in individuals with high AQ scores than in those with low AQ scores in the incongruent audiovisual condition, regardless of their ability to read lips or process facial configuration contexts. Our findings, therefore, do not support the assumption that individuals with ASD show a weaker McGurk effect due to a difficulty in processing facial configuration context.

  10. Adaptation to faces and voices: unimodal, cross-modal, and sex-specific effects.

    PubMed

    Little, Anthony C; Feinberg, David R; Debruine, Lisa M; Jones, Benedict C

    2013-11-01

    Exposure, or adaptation, to faces or voices biases perceptions of subsequent stimuli, for example, causing faces to appear more normal than they would be otherwise if they are similar to the previously presented stimuli. Studies also suggest that there may be cross-modal adaptation between sound and vision, although the evidence is inconsistent. We examined adaptation effects within and across voices and faces and also tested whether adaptation crosses between male and female stimuli. We exposed participants to sex-typical or sex-atypical stimuli and measured the perceived normality of subsequent stimuli. Exposure to female faces or voices altered perceptions of subsequent female stimuli, and these adaptation effects crossed modality; exposure to voices influenced judgments of faces, and vice versa. We also found that exposure to female stimuli did not influence perception of subsequent male stimuli. Our data demonstrate that recent experience of faces and voices changes subsequent perception and that mental representations of faces and voices may not be modality dependent. Both unimodal and cross-modal adaptation effects appear to be relatively sex-specific.

  11. Inverse opal with an ultraviolet photonic gap

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ni, Peigen; Cheng, Bingying; Zhang, Daozhong

    2002-03-01

    Photonic crystals composed of TiO2 and air voids fabricated by the template method exhibit an ultraviolet photonic stop band (˜380 nm) in the Γ-L direction. Scanning electron microscopy images show that the inverse opal possesses face-centered-cubic symmetry with a lattice constant of 240 nm. The transmission spectra show that the change in transmittance is one order of magnitude in the gap, which is in accord with the reflection spectrum.

  12. Relation between facial affect recognition and configural face processing in antipsychotic-free schizophrenia.

    PubMed

    Fakra, Eric; Jouve, Elisabeth; Guillaume, Fabrice; Azorin, Jean-Michel; Blin, Olivier

    2015-03-01

    Deficit in facial affect recognition is a well-documented impairment in schizophrenia, closely connected to social outcome. This deficit could be related to psychopathology, but also to a broader dysfunction in processing facial information. In addition, patients with schizophrenia inadequately use configural information-a type of processing that relies on spatial relationships between facial features. To date, no study has specifically examined the link between symptoms and misuse of configural information in the deficit in facial affect recognition. Unmedicated schizophrenia patients (n = 30) and matched healthy controls (n = 30) performed a facial affect recognition task and a face inversion task, which tests aptitude to rely on configural information. In patients, regressions were carried out between facial affect recognition, symptom dimensions and inversion effect. Patients, compared with controls, showed a deficit in facial affect recognition and a lower inversion effect. Negative symptoms and lower inversion effect could account for 41.2% of the variance in facial affect recognition. This study confirms the presence of a deficit in facial affect recognition, and also of dysfunctional manipulation in configural information in antipsychotic-free patients. Negative symptoms and poor processing of configural information explained a substantial part of the deficient recognition of facial affect. We speculate that this deficit may be caused by several factors, among which independently stand psychopathology and failure in correctly manipulating configural information. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved.

  13. How Negative Social Bias Affects Memory for Faces: An Electrical Neuroimaging Study

    PubMed Central

    Proverbio, Alice Mado; La Mastra, Francesca; Zani, Alberto

    2016-01-01

    During social interactions, we make inferences about people’s personal characteristics based on their appearance. These inferences form a potential prejudice that can positively or negatively bias our interaction with them. Not much is known about the effects of negative bias on face perception and the ability to recognize people faces. This ability was investigated by recording event-related potentials (ERPs) from 128 sites in 16 volunteers. In the first session (encoding), they viewed 200 faces associated with a short fictional story that described anecdotal positive or negative characteristics about each person. In the second session (recognition), they underwent an old/new memory test, in which they had to distinguish 100 new faces from the previously shown faces. ERP data relative to the encoding phase showed a larger anterior negativity in response to negatively (vs. positively) biased faces, indicating an additional processing of faces with unpleasant social traits. In the recognition task, ERPs recorded in response to new faces elicited a larger FN400 than to old faces, and to positive than negative faces. Additionally, old faces elicited a larger Old-New parietal response than new faces, in the form of an enlarged late positive (LPC) component. An inverse solution SwLORETA (450–550 ms) indicated that remembering old faces was associated with the activation of right superior frontal gyrus (SFG), left medial temporal gyrus, and right fusiform gyrus. Only negatively connoted faces strongly activated the limbic and parahippocampal areas and the left SFG. A dissociation was found between familiarity (modulated by negative bias) and recollection (distinguishing old from new faces). PMID:27655327

  14. Adaptation effects to attractiveness of face photographs and art portraits are domain-specific

    PubMed Central

    Hayn-Leichsenring, Gregor U.; Kloth, Nadine; Schweinberger, Stefan R.; Redies, Christoph

    2013-01-01

    We studied the neural coding of facial attractiveness by investigating effects of adaptation to attractive and unattractive human faces on the perceived attractiveness of veridical human face pictures (Experiment 1) and art portraits (Experiment 2). Experiment 1 revealed a clear pattern of contrastive aftereffects. Relative to a pre-adaptation baseline, the perceived attractiveness of faces was increased after adaptation to unattractive faces, and was decreased after adaptation to attractive faces. Experiment 2 revealed similar aftereffects when art portraits rather than face photographs were used as adaptors and test stimuli, suggesting that effects of adaptation to attractiveness are not restricted to facial photographs. Additionally, we found similar aftereffects in art portraits for beauty, another aesthetic feature that, unlike attractiveness, relates to the properties of the image (rather than to the face displayed). Importantly, Experiment 3 showed that aftereffects were abolished when adaptors were art portraits and face photographs were test stimuli. These results suggest that adaptation to facial attractiveness elicits aftereffects in the perception of subsequently presented faces, for both face photographs and art portraits, and that these effects do not cross image domains. PMID:24349690

  15. Effective one-dimensional approach to the source reconstruction problem of three-dimensional inverse optoacoustics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Stritzel, J.; Melchert, O.; Wollweber, M.; Roth, B.

    2017-09-01

    The direct problem of optoacoustic signal generation in biological media consists of solving an inhomogeneous three-dimensional (3D) wave equation for an initial acoustic stress profile. In contrast, the more defiant inverse problem requires the reconstruction of the initial stress profile from a proper set of observed signals. In this article, we consider an effectively 1D approach, based on the assumption of a Gaussian transverse irradiation source profile and plane acoustic waves, in which the effects of acoustic diffraction are described in terms of a linear integral equation. The respective inverse problem along the beam axis can be cast into a Volterra integral equation of the second kind for which we explore here efficient numerical schemes in order to reconstruct initial stress profiles from observed signals, constituting a methodical progress of computational aspects of optoacoustics. In this regard, we explore the validity as well as the limits of the inversion scheme via numerical experiments, with parameters geared toward actual optoacoustic problem instances. The considered inversion input consists of synthetic data, obtained in terms of the effectively 1D approach, and, more generally, a solution of the 3D optoacoustic wave equation. Finally, we also analyze the effect of noise and different detector-to-sample distances on the optoacoustic signal and the reconstructed pressure profiles.

  16. Breakeven, cost benefit, cost effectiveness, and willingness to pay for web-based versus face-to-face education delivery for health professionals.

    PubMed

    Maloney, Stephen; Haas, Romi; Keating, Jenny L; Molloy, Elizabeth; Jolly, Brian; Sims, Jane; Morgan, Prue; Haines, Terry

    2012-04-02

    The introduction of Web-based education and open universities has seen an increase in access to professional development within the health professional education marketplace. Economic efficiencies of Web-based education and traditional face-to-face educational approaches have not been compared under randomized controlled trial conditions. To compare costs and effects of Web-based and face-to-face short courses in falls prevention education for health professionals. We designed two short courses to improve the clinical performance of health professionals in exercise prescription for falls prevention. One was developed for delivery in face-to-face mode and the other for online learning. Data were collected on learning outcomes including participation, satisfaction, knowledge acquisition, and change in practice, and combined with costs, savings, and benefits, to enable a break-even analysis from the perspective of the provider, cost-effectiveness analysis from the perspective of the health service, and cost-benefit analysis from the perspective of the participant. Face-to-face and Web-based delivery modalities produced comparable outcomes for participation, satisfaction, knowledge acquisition, and change in practice. Break-even analysis identified the Web-based educational approach to be robustly superior to face-to-face education, requiring a lower number of enrollments for the program to reach its break-even point. Cost-effectiveness analyses from the perspective of the health service and cost-benefit analysis from the perspective of the participant favored face-to-face education, although the outcomes were contingent on the sensitivity analysis applied (eg, the fee structure used). The Web-based educational approach was clearly more efficient from the perspective of the education provider. In the presence of relatively equivocal results for comparisons from other stakeholder perspectives, it is likely that providers would prefer to deliver education via a Web

  17. Breakeven, Cost Benefit, Cost Effectiveness, and Willingness to Pay for Web-Based Versus Face-to-Face Education Delivery for Health Professionals

    PubMed Central

    Haas, Romi; Keating, Jenny L; Molloy, Elizabeth; Jolly, Brian; Sims, Jane; Morgan, Prue; Haines, Terry

    2012-01-01

    Background The introduction of Web-based education and open universities has seen an increase in access to professional development within the health professional education marketplace. Economic efficiencies of Web-based education and traditional face-to-face educational approaches have not been compared under randomized controlled trial conditions. Objective To compare costs and effects of Web-based and face-to-face short courses in falls prevention education for health professionals. Methods We designed two short courses to improve the clinical performance of health professionals in exercise prescription for falls prevention. One was developed for delivery in face-to-face mode and the other for online learning. Data were collected on learning outcomes including participation, satisfaction, knowledge acquisition, and change in practice, and combined with costs, savings, and benefits, to enable a break-even analysis from the perspective of the provider, cost-effectiveness analysis from the perspective of the health service, and cost-benefit analysis from the perspective of the participant. Results Face-to-face and Web-based delivery modalities produced comparable outcomes for participation, satisfaction, knowledge acquisition, and change in practice. Break-even analysis identified the Web-based educational approach to be robustly superior to face-to-face education, requiring a lower number of enrollments for the program to reach its break-even point. Cost-effectiveness analyses from the perspective of the health service and cost-benefit analysis from the perspective of the participant favored face-to-face education, although the outcomes were contingent on the sensitivity analysis applied (eg, the fee structure used). Conclusions The Web-based educational approach was clearly more efficient from the perspective of the education provider. In the presence of relatively equivocal results for comparisons from other stakeholder perspectives, it is likely that providers

  18. The other face of the other-race effect: An fMRI investigation of the other-race face categorization advantage

    PubMed Central

    Feng, Lu; Liu, Jiangang; Wang, Zhe; Li, Jun; Li, Ling; Ge, Liezhong; Tian, Jie; Lee, Kang

    2011-01-01

    The present study was the first to use the functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) methodology to investigate the neural correlates of race categorization of own- and other-race faces. We found that Chinese participants categorized the race of Caucasian faces more accurately and faster than that of Chinese faces, replicating the robust effect of the other-race categorization advantage. Regions of interest (ROI) analyses revealed greater neural activations when participants were categorizing own-race faces than other-race faces in the bilateral ventral occipito-temporal cortex (VOT) such as the fusiform face areas (FFA) and the occipital face areas (OFA). Within the left FFA, there was also a significant negative correlation between the behavioral difference of own- and other-race face categorization accuracy and the activation difference between categorizing own- and other-race faces. Whole brain analyses showed that categorizing own-race faces induced greater activations in the right medial frontal cortex (MFC) and right inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) than categorizing other-race faces. Psychophysiological interaction (PPI) analyses revealed that the frontal cortical regions interacted more strongly with the posterior VOT during the categorization of own-race faces than that of other-race faces. Overall, our findings suggest that relative to the categorization of other-race faces, more cortical resources are engaged during the categorization of own-race faces with which we have a higher level of processing expertise. This increased involvement of cortical neural sources perhaps serves to provide more in-depth processing of own-race faces (such as individuation), which in turn paradoxically results in the behavioral other-race categorization advantage. PMID:21971308

  19. Catalytic-site design for inverse heavy-enzyme isotope effects in human purine nucleoside phosphorylase

    PubMed Central

    Harijan, Rajesh K.; Zoi, Ioanna; Antoniou, Dimitri; Schwartz, Steven D.; Schramm, Vern L.

    2017-01-01

    Heavy-enzyme isotope effects (15N-, 13C-, and 2H-labeled protein) explore mass-dependent vibrational modes linked to catalysis. Transition path-sampling (TPS) calculations have predicted femtosecond dynamic coupling at the catalytic site of human purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP). Coupling is observed in heavy PNPs, where slowed barrier crossing caused a normal heavy-enzyme isotope effect (kchem light/kchem heavy > 1.0). We used TPS to design mutant F159Y PNP, predicted to improve barrier crossing for heavy F159Y PNP, an attempt to generate a rare inverse heavy-enzyme isotope effect (kchem light/kchem heavy < 1.0). Steady-state kinetic comparison of light and heavy native PNPs to light and heavy F159Y PNPs revealed similar kinetic properties. Pre–steady-state chemistry was slowed 32-fold in F159Y PNP. Pre–steady-state chemistry compared heavy and light native and F159Y PNPs and found a normal heavy-enzyme isotope effect of 1.31 for native PNP and an inverse effect of 0.75 for F159Y PNP. Increased isotopic mass in F159Y PNP causes more efficient transition state formation. Independent validation of the inverse isotope effect for heavy F159Y PNP came from commitment to catalysis experiments. Most heavy enzymes demonstrate normal heavy-enzyme isotope effects, and F159Y PNP is a rare example of an inverse effect. Crystal structures and TPS dynamics of native and F159Y PNPs explore the catalytic-site geometry associated with these catalytic changes. Experimental validation of TPS predictions for barrier crossing establishes the connection of rapid protein dynamics and vibrational coupling to enzymatic transition state passage. PMID:28584087

  20. Electrocaloric effect in BaTiO3 at all three ferroelectric transitions: Anisotropy and inverse caloric effects

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Marathe, Madhura; Renggli, Damian; Sanlialp, Mehmet; Karabasov, Maksim O.; Shvartsman, Vladimir V.; Lupascu, Doru C.; Grünebohm, Anna; Ederer, Claude

    2017-07-01

    We study the electrocaloric (EC) effect in bulk BaTiO3 (BTO) using molecular dynamics simulations of a first principles-based effective Hamiltonian, combined with direct measurements of the adiabatic EC temperature change in BTO single crystals. We examine in particular the dependence of the EC effect on the direction of the applied electric field at all three ferroelectric transitions, and we show that the EC response is strongly anisotropic. Most strikingly, an inverse caloric effect, i.e., a temperature increase under field removal, can be observed at both ferroelectric-ferroelectric transitions for certain orientations of the applied field. Using the generalized Clausius-Clapeyron equation, we show that the inverse effect occurs exactly for those cases where the field orientation favors the higher temperature/higher entropy phase. Our simulations show that temperature changes of around 1 K can, in principle, be obtained at the tetragonal-orthorhombic transition close to room temperature, even for small applied fields, provided that the applied field is strong enough to drive the system across the first-order transition line. Our direct EC measurements for BTO single crystals at the cubic-tetragonal and at the tetragonal-orthorhombic transitions are in good qualitative agreement with our theoretical predictions, and in particular confirm the occurrence of an inverse EC effect at the tetragonal-orthorhombic transition for electric fields applied along the [001] pseudocubic direction.

  1. Multi-scale signed envelope inversion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chen, Guo-Xin; Wu, Ru-Shan; Wang, Yu-Qing; Chen, Sheng-Chang

    2018-06-01

    Envelope inversion based on modulation signal mode was proposed to reconstruct large-scale structures of underground media. In order to solve the shortcomings of conventional envelope inversion, multi-scale envelope inversion was proposed using new envelope Fréchet derivative and multi-scale inversion strategy to invert strong contrast models. In multi-scale envelope inversion, amplitude demodulation was used to extract the low frequency information from envelope data. However, only to use amplitude demodulation method will cause the loss of wavefield polarity information, thus increasing the possibility of inversion to obtain multiple solutions. In this paper we proposed a new demodulation method which can contain both the amplitude and polarity information of the envelope data. Then we introduced this demodulation method into multi-scale envelope inversion, and proposed a new misfit functional: multi-scale signed envelope inversion. In the numerical tests, we applied the new inversion method to the salt layer model and SEG/EAGE 2-D Salt model using low-cut source (frequency components below 4 Hz were truncated). The results of numerical test demonstrated the effectiveness of this method.

  2. The First Time Ever I Saw Your Feet: Inversion Effect in Newborns' Sensitivity to Biological Motion

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bardi, Lara; Regolin, Lucia; Simion, Francesca

    2014-01-01

    Inversion effect in biological motion perception has been recently attributed to an innate sensitivity of the visual system to the gravity-dependent dynamic of the motion. However, the specific cues that determine the inversion effect in naïve subjects were never investigated. In the present study, we have assessed the contribution of the local…

  3. Effect of Interviewer's Eyeglasses on Compliance with a Face-to-Face Survey Request and Perception of the Interviewer

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Guéguen, Nicolas; Martin, Angélique

    2017-01-01

    Several studies have shown that people photographed wearing eyeglasses were perceived more positively as to intelligence and honesty. However, the effect of wearing glasses on behavior and in real face-to-face relationships has never been examined. In two studies, interviewers wearing or not wearing eyeglasses were instructed to ask people in the…

  4. The other-race effect does not apply to infant faces: An ERP attentional study.

    PubMed

    Proverbio, Alice Mado; De Gabriele, Valeria

    2017-03-29

    It is known that paedomorphic characteristics, called "baby schema" by Lorenz, trigger an orienting response in adults, are judged as attractive and stimulate parental care. On the other hand, it is known that ethnicity may influence face encoding, with an advantage in recognizing faces of their own ethnicity (called own-race effect). Some have argued that this effect holds also for infant faces, which conflicts with the "baby schema" phenomenon. The aim of the study was to investigate the possible presence of the own-race effect on infant vs. adult face processing. Seventeen Caucasian students participated to the study. Their EEG/ERPs were recorded as they watched 400 pictures of adult and infant faces of different ethnicity (half Caucasian, half non-Caucasian), and subsequently responded to a target orientation. The behavioral results showed that responses were faster when the target was preceded by a child face, which enhanced the arousal level, regardless of ethnicity. The electrophysiological results showed an enhanced anterior N2 response to infant than adult faces, and a lack of ORE effect only for infant faces. Overall, the data indicate that baby faces automatically attract the adult viewer's attention and that face ethnicity has no effect on this innate response. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Inversion channel diamond metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor with normally off characteristics.

    PubMed

    Matsumoto, Tsubasa; Kato, Hiromitsu; Oyama, Kazuhiro; Makino, Toshiharu; Ogura, Masahiko; Takeuchi, Daisuke; Inokuma, Takao; Tokuda, Norio; Yamasaki, Satoshi

    2016-08-22

    We fabricated inversion channel diamond metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs) with normally off characteristics. At present, Si MOSFETs and insulated gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs) with inversion channels are widely used because of their high controllability of electric power and high tolerance. Although a diamond semiconductor is considered to be a material with a strong potential for application in next-generation power devices, diamond MOSFETs with an inversion channel have not yet been reported. We precisely controlled the MOS interface for diamond by wet annealing and fabricated p-channel and planar-type MOSFETs with phosphorus-doped n-type body on diamond (111) substrate. The gate oxide of Al2O3 was deposited onto the n-type diamond body by atomic layer deposition at 300 °C. The drain current was controlled by the negative gate voltage, indicating that an inversion channel with a p-type character was formed at a high-quality n-type diamond body/Al2O3 interface. The maximum drain current density and the field-effect mobility of a diamond MOSFET with a gate electrode length of 5 μm were 1.6 mA/mm and 8.0 cm(2)/Vs, respectively, at room temperature.

  6. Effectiveness of integrating case studies in online and face-to-face instruction of pathophysiology: a comparative study.

    PubMed

    Saleh, Suha M; Asi, Yara M; Hamed, Kastro M

    2013-06-01

    Due to growing demand from students and facilitated by innovations in educational technology, institutions of higher learning are increasingly offering online courses. Subjects in the hard sciences, such as pathophysiology, have traditionally been taught in the face-to-face format, but growing demand for preclinical science courses has compelled educators to incorporate online components into their classes to promote comprehension. Learning tools such as case studies are being integrated into such courses to aid in student interaction, engagement, and critical thinking skills. Careful assessment of pedagogical techniques is essential; hence, this study aimed to evaluate and compare student perceptions of the use of case studies in face-to-face and fully online pathophysiology classes. A series of case studies was incorporated into the curriculum of a pathophysiology class for both class modes (online and face to face). At the end of the semester, students filled out a survey assessing the effectiveness of the case studies. Both groups offered positive responses about the incorporation of case studies in the curriculum of the pathophysiology class. This study supports the argument that with proper use of innovative teaching tools, such as case studies, online pathophysiology classes can foster a sense of community and interaction that is typically only seen with face-to-face classes, based on student responses. Students also indicated that regardless of class teaching modality, use of case studies facilitates student learning and comprehension as well as prepares them for their future careers in health fields.

  7. Meta-analytic review of the development of face discrimination in infancy: Face race, face gender, infant age, and methodology moderate face discrimination.

    PubMed

    Sugden, Nicole A; Marquis, Alexandra R

    2017-11-01

    Infants show facility for discriminating between individual faces within hours of birth. Over the first year of life, infants' face discrimination shows continued improvement with familiar face types, such as own-race faces, but not with unfamiliar face types, like other-race faces. The goal of this meta-analytic review is to provide an effect size for infants' face discrimination ability overall, with own-race faces, and with other-race faces within the first year of life, how this differs with age, and how it is influenced by task methodology. Inclusion criteria were (a) infant participants aged 0 to 12 months, (b) completing a human own- or other-race face discrimination task, (c) with discrimination being determined by infant looking. Our analysis included 30 works (165 samples, 1,926 participants participated in 2,623 tasks). The effect size for infants' face discrimination was small, 6.53% greater than chance (i.e., equal looking to the novel and familiar). There was a significant difference in discrimination by race, overall (own-race, 8.18%; other-race, 3.18%) and between ages (own-race: 0- to 4.5-month-olds, 7.32%; 5- to 7.5-month-olds, 9.17%; and 8- to 12-month-olds, 7.68%; other-race: 0- to 4.5-month-olds, 6.12%; 5- to 7.5-month-olds, 3.70%; and 8- to 12-month-olds, 2.79%). Multilevel linear (mixed-effects) models were used to predict face discrimination; infants' capacity to discriminate faces is sensitive to face characteristics including race, gender, and emotion as well as the methods used, including task timing, coding method, and visual angle. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

  8. Atypical development of configural face recognition in children with autism, Down syndrome and Williams syndrome.

    PubMed

    Dimitriou, D; Leonard, H C; Karmiloff-Smith, A; Johnson, M H; Thomas, M S C

    2015-05-01

    Configural processing in face recognition is a sensitivity to the spacing between facial features. It has been argued both that its presence represents a high level of expertise in face recognition, and also that it is a developmentally vulnerable process. We report a cross-syndrome investigation of the development of configural face recognition in school-aged children with autism, Down syndrome and Williams syndrome compared with a typically developing comparison group. Cross-sectional trajectory analyses were used to compare configural and featural face recognition utilising the 'Jane faces' task. Trajectories were constructed linking featural and configural performance either to chronological age or to different measures of mental age (receptive vocabulary, visuospatial construction), as well as the Benton face recognition task. An emergent inversion effect across age for detecting configural but not featural changes in faces was established as the marker of typical development. Children from clinical groups displayed atypical profiles that differed across all groups. We discuss the implications for the nature of face processing within the respective developmental disorders, and how the cross-sectional syndrome comparison informs the constraints that shape the typical development of face recognition. © 2014 MENCAP and International Association of the Scientific Study of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  9. Recombination rate predicts inversion size in Diptera.

    PubMed Central

    Cáceres, M; Barbadilla, A; Ruiz, A

    1999-01-01

    Most species of the Drosophila genus and other Diptera are polymorphic for paracentric inversions. A common observation is that successful inversions are of intermediate size. We test here the hypothesis that the selected property is the recombination length of inversions, not their physical length. If so, physical length of successful inversions should be negatively correlated with recombination rate across species. This prediction was tested by a comprehensive statistical analysis of inversion size and recombination map length in 12 Diptera species for which appropriate data are available. We found that (1) there is a wide variation in recombination map length among species; (2) physical length of successful inversions varies greatly among species and is inversely correlated with the species recombination map length; and (3) neither the among-species variation in inversion length nor the correlation are observed in unsuccessful inversions. The clear differences between successful and unsuccessful inversions point to natural selection as the most likely explanation for our results. Presumably the selective advantage of an inversion increases with its length, but so does its detrimental effect on fertility due to double crossovers. Our analysis provides the strongest and most extensive evidence in favor of the notion that the adaptive value of inversions stems from their effect on recombination. PMID:10471710

  10. Visual short-term memory load modulates the early attention and perception of task-irrelevant emotional faces

    PubMed Central

    Yang, Ping; Wang, Min; Jin, Zhenlan; Li, Ling

    2015-01-01

    The ability to focus on task-relevant information, while suppressing distraction, is critical for human cognition and behavior. Using a delayed-match-to-sample (DMS) task, we investigated the effects of emotional face distractors (positive, negative, and neutral faces) on early and late phases of visual short-term memory (VSTM) maintenance intervals, using low and high VSTM loads. Behavioral results showed decreased accuracy and delayed reaction times (RTs) for high vs. low VSTM load. Event-related potentials (ERPs) showed enhanced frontal N1 and occipital P1 amplitudes for negative faces vs. neutral or positive faces, implying rapid attentional alerting effects and early perceptual processing of negative distractors. However, high VSTM load appeared to inhibit face processing in general, showing decreased N1 amplitudes and delayed P1 latencies. An inverse correlation between the N1 activation difference (high-load minus low-load) and RT costs (high-load minus low-load) was found at left frontal areas when viewing negative distractors, suggesting that the greater the inhibition the lower the RT cost for negative faces. Emotional interference effect was not found in the late VSTM-related parietal P300, frontal positive slow wave (PSW) and occipital negative slow wave (NSW) components. In general, our findings suggest that the VSTM load modulates the early attention and perception of emotional distractors. PMID:26388763

  11. On the inverse Magnus effect for flow past a rotating cylinder

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    John, Benzi; Gu, Xiao-Jun; Barber, Robert W.; Emerson, David R.

    2016-11-01

    Flow past a rotating cylinder has been investigated using the direct simulation Monte Carlo method. The study focuses on the occurrence of the inverse Magnus effect under subsonic flow conditions. In particular, the variations in the coefficients of lift and drag have been investigated as a function of the Knudsen and Reynolds numbers. Additionally, a temperature sensitivity study has been carried out to assess the influence of the wall temperature on the computed aerodynamic coefficients. It has been found that both the Reynolds number and the cylinder wall temperature significantly affect the drag as well as the onset of lift inversion in the transition flow regime.

  12. Inverse Kinetic and Equilibrium Isotope Effects on Self-Assembly and Supramolecular Chirality of Porphyrin J-Aggregates.

    PubMed

    Zagami, Roberto; Romeo, Andrea; Castriciano, Maria A; Monsù Scolaro, Luigi

    2017-01-01

    When mixtures of D 2 O/DCl are used to foster the self-assembly formation of TPPS 4 porphyrin J-aggregates in aqueous solutions, an inverse kinetic isotope effect of 0.4 and an inverse equilibrium isotope effect of 0.6 are clearly detected. Most importantly, the addition of at least 10 % D 2 O causes an inversion in the handedness of the final chiral J-aggregates, thus evidencing an important role of deuterium in driving the enantiomeric excess in the scalemic mixture of such supramolecular assemblies. © 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  13. Power effects on implicit prejudice and stereotyping: The role of intergroup face processing.

    PubMed

    Schmid, Petra C; Amodio, David M

    2017-04-01

    Power is thought to increase discrimination toward subordinate groups, yet its effect on different forms of implicit bias remains unclear. We tested whether power enhances implicit racial stereotyping, in addition to implicit prejudice (i.e., evaluative associations), and examined the effect of power on the automatic processing of faces during implicit tasks. Study 1 showed that manipulated high power increased both forms of implicit bias, relative to low power. Using a neural index of visual face processing (the N170 component of the ERP), Study 2 revealed that power affected the encoding of White ingroup vs. Black outgroup faces. Whereas high power increased the relative processing of outgroup faces during evaluative judgments in the prejudice task, it decreased the relative processing of outgroup faces during stereotype trait judgments. An indirect effect of power on implicit prejudice through enhanced processing of outgroup versus ingroup faces suggested a potential link between face processing and implicit bias. Together, these findings demonstrate that power can affect implicit prejudice and stereotyping as well as early processing of racial ingroup and outgroup faces.

  14. Some effects of alcohol and eye movements on cross-race face learning.

    PubMed

    Harvey, Alistair J

    2014-01-01

    This study examines the impact of acute alcohol intoxication on visual scanning in cross-race face learning. The eye movements of a group of white British participants were recorded as they encoded a series of own-and different-race faces, under alcohol and placebo conditions. Intoxication reduced the rate and extent of visual scanning during face encoding, reorienting the focus of foveal attention away from the eyes and towards the nose. Differences in encoding eye movements also varied between own-and different-race face conditions as a function of alcohol. Fixations to both face types were less frequent and more lingering following intoxication, but in the placebo condition this was only the case for different-race faces. While reducing visual scanning, however, alcohol had no adverse effect on memory, only encoding restrictions associated with sober different-race face processing led to poorer recognition. These results support perceptual expertise accounts of own-race face processing, but suggest the adverse effects of alcohol on face learning published previously are not caused by foveal encoding restrictions. The implications of these findings for alcohol myopia theory are discussed.

  15. Multiparameter elastic full waveform inversion with facies-based constraints

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Zhen-dong; Alkhalifah, Tariq; Naeini, Ehsan Zabihi; Sun, Bingbing

    2018-06-01

    Full waveform inversion (FWI) incorporates all the data characteristics to estimate the parameters described by the assumed physics of the subsurface. However, current efforts to utilize FWI beyond improved acoustic imaging, like in reservoir delineation, faces inherent challenges related to the limited resolution and the potential trade-off between the elastic model parameters. Some anisotropic parameters are insufficiently updated because of their minor contributions to the surface collected data. Adding rock physics constraints to the inversion helps mitigate such limited sensitivity, but current approaches to add such constraints are based on including them as a priori knowledge mostly valid around the well or as a global constraint for the whole area. Since similar rock formations inside the Earth admit consistent elastic properties and relative values of elasticity and anisotropy parameters (this enables us to define them as a seismic facies), utilizing such localized facies information in FWI can improve the resolution of inverted parameters. We propose a novel approach to use facies-based constraints in both isotropic and anisotropic elastic FWI. We invert for such facies using Bayesian theory and update them at each iteration of the inversion using both the inverted models and a priori information. We take the uncertainties of the estimated parameters (approximated by radiation patterns) into consideration and improve the quality of estimated facies maps. Four numerical examples corresponding to different acquisition, physical assumptions and model circumstances are used to verify the effectiveness of the proposed method.

  16. A Joint Method of Envelope Inversion Combined with Hybrid-domain Full Waveform Inversion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    CUI, C.; Hou, W.

    2017-12-01

    Full waveform inversion (FWI) aims to construct high-precision subsurface models by fully using the information in seismic records, including amplitude, travel time, phase and so on. However, high non-linearity and the absence of low frequency information in seismic data lead to the well-known cycle skipping problem and make inversion easily fall into local minima. In addition, those 3D inversion methods that are based on acoustic approximation ignore the elastic effects in real seismic field, and make inversion harder. As a result, the accuracy of final inversion results highly relies on the quality of initial model. In order to improve stability and quality of inversion results, multi-scale inversion that reconstructs subsurface model from low to high frequency are applied. But, the absence of very low frequencies (< 3Hz) in field data is still bottleneck in the FWI. By extracting ultra low-frequency data from field data, envelope inversion is able to recover low wavenumber model with a demodulation operator (envelope operator), though the low frequency data does not really exist in field data. To improve the efficiency and viability of the inversion, in this study, we proposed a joint method of envelope inversion combined with hybrid-domain FWI. First, we developed 3D elastic envelope inversion, and the misfit function and the corresponding gradient operator were derived. Then we performed hybrid-domain FWI with envelope inversion result as initial model which provides low wavenumber component of model. Here, forward modeling is implemented in the time domain and inversion in the frequency domain. To accelerate the inversion, we adopt CPU/GPU heterogeneous computing techniques. There were two levels of parallelism. In the first level, the inversion tasks are decomposed and assigned to each computation node by shot number. In the second level, GPU multithreaded programming is used for the computation tasks in each node, including forward modeling, envelope

  17. Dustfall Effect on Hyperspectral Inversion of Chlorophyll Content - a Laboratory Experiment

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chen, Yuteng; Ma, Baodong; Li, Xuexin; Zhang, Song; Wu, Lixin

    2018-04-01

    Dust pollution is serious in many areas of China. It is of great significance to estimate chlorophyll content of vegetation accurately by hyperspectral remote sensing for assessing the vegetation growth status and monitoring the ecological environment in dusty areas. By using selected vegetation indices including Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer Terrestrial Chlorophyll Index (MTCI) Double Difference Index (DD) and Red Edge Position Index (REP), chlorophyll inversion models were built to study the accuracy of hyperspectral inversion of chlorophyll content based on a laboratory experiment. The results show that: (1) REP exponential model has the most stable accuracy for inversion of chlorophyll content in dusty environment. When dustfall amount is less than 80 g/m2, the inversion accuracy based on REP is stable with the variation of dustfall amount. When dustfall amount is greater than 80 g/m2, the inversion accuracy is slightly fluctuation. (2) Inversion accuracy of DD is worst among three models. (3) MTCI logarithm model has high inversion accuracy when dustfall amount is less than 80 g/m2; When dustfall amount is greater than 80 g/m2, inversion accuracy decreases regularly and inversion accuracy of modified MTCI (mMTCI) increases significantly. The results provide experimental basis and theoretical reference for hyperspectral remote sensing inversion of chlorophyll content.

  18. A new wavelet transform to sparsely represent cortical current densities for EEG/MEG inverse problems.

    PubMed

    Liao, Ke; Zhu, Min; Ding, Lei

    2013-08-01

    The present study investigated the use of transform sparseness of cortical current density on human brain surface to improve electroencephalography/magnetoencephalography (EEG/MEG) inverse solutions. Transform sparseness was assessed by evaluating compressibility of cortical current densities in transform domains. To do that, a structure compression method from computer graphics was first adopted to compress cortical surface structure, either regular or irregular, into hierarchical multi-resolution meshes. Then, a new face-based wavelet method based on generated multi-resolution meshes was proposed to compress current density functions defined on cortical surfaces. Twelve cortical surface models were built by three EEG/MEG softwares and their structural compressibility was evaluated and compared by the proposed method. Monte Carlo simulations were implemented to evaluate the performance of the proposed wavelet method in compressing various cortical current density distributions as compared to other two available vertex-based wavelet methods. The present results indicate that the face-based wavelet method can achieve higher transform sparseness than vertex-based wavelet methods. Furthermore, basis functions from the face-based wavelet method have lower coherence against typical EEG and MEG measurement systems than vertex-based wavelet methods. Both high transform sparseness and low coherent measurements suggest that the proposed face-based wavelet method can improve the performance of L1-norm regularized EEG/MEG inverse solutions, which was further demonstrated in simulations and experimental setups using MEG data. Thus, this new transform on complicated cortical structure is promising to significantly advance EEG/MEG inverse source imaging technologies. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. The Effects of Prior Exposure on Face Processing in Younger and Older Adults

    PubMed Central

    Heisz, Jennifer J.; Ryan, Jennifer D.

    2011-01-01

    Older adults differ from their younger counterparts in the way they view faces. We assessed whether older adults can use past experience to mitigate these typical face-processing differences; that is, we examined whether there are age-related differences in the use of memory to support current processing. Eye movements of older and younger adults were monitored as they viewed faces that varied in the type/amount of prior exposure. Prior exposure was manipulated by including famous and novel faces, and by presenting faces up to five times. We expected that older adults may have difficulty quickly establishing new representations to aid in the processing of recently presented faces, but would be able to invoke face representations that have been stored in memory long ago to aid in the processing of famous faces. Indeed, younger adults displayed effects of recent exposure with a decrease in the total fixations to the faces and a gradual increase in the proportion of fixations to the eyes. These effects of recent exposure were largely absent in older adults. In contrast, the effect of fame, revealed by a subtle increase in fixations to the inner features of famous compared to non-famous faces, was similar for younger and older adults. Our results suggest that older adults’ current processing can benefit from lifetime experience, however the full benefit of recent experience on face processing is not realized in older adults. PMID:22007169

  20. Expertise for upright faces improves the precision but not the capacity of visual working memory.

    PubMed

    Lorenc, Elizabeth S; Pratte, Michael S; Angeloni, Christopher F; Tong, Frank

    2014-10-01

    Considerable research has focused on how basic visual features are maintained in working memory, but little is currently known about the precision or capacity of visual working memory for complex objects. How precisely can an object be remembered, and to what extent might familiarity or perceptual expertise contribute to working memory performance? To address these questions, we developed a set of computer-generated face stimuli that varied continuously along the dimensions of age and gender, and we probed participants' memories using a method-of-adjustment reporting procedure. This paradigm allowed us to separately estimate the precision and capacity of working memory for individual faces, on the basis of the assumptions of a discrete capacity model, and to assess the impact of face inversion on memory performance. We found that observers could maintain up to four to five items on average, with equally good memory capacity for upright and upside-down faces. In contrast, memory precision was significantly impaired by face inversion at every set size tested. Our results demonstrate that the precision of visual working memory for a complex stimulus is not strictly fixed but, instead, can be modified by learning and experience. We find that perceptual expertise for upright faces leads to significant improvements in visual precision, without modifying the capacity of working memory.

  1. Is the Thatcher Illusion Modulated by Face Familiarity? Evidence from an Eye Tracking Study

    PubMed Central

    2016-01-01

    Thompson (1980) first detected and described the Thatcher Illusion, where participants instantly perceive an upright face with inverted eyes and mouth as grotesque, but fail to do so when the same face is inverted. One prominent but controversial explanation is that the processing of configural information is disrupted in inverted faces. Studies investigating the Thatcher Illusion either used famous faces or non-famous faces. Highly familiar faces were often thought to be processed in a pronounced configural mode, so they seem ideal candidates to be tested in one Thatcher study against unfamiliar faces–but this has never been addressed so far. In our study, participants evaluated 16 famous and 16 non-famous faces for their grotesqueness. We tested whether familiarity (famous/non-famous faces) modulates reaction times, correctness of grotesqueness assessments (accuracy), and eye movement patterns for the factors orientation (upright/inverted) and Thatcherisation (Thatcherised/non-Thatcherised). On a behavioural level, familiarity effects were only observable via face inversion (higher accuracy and sensitivity for famous compared to non-famous faces) but not via Thatcherisation. Regarding eye movements, however, Thatcherisation influenced the scanning of famous and non-famous faces, for instance, in scanning the mouth region of the presented faces (higher number, duration and dwell time of fixations for famous compared to non-famous faces if Thatcherised). Altogether, famous faces seem to be processed in a more elaborate, more expertise-based way than non-famous faces, whereas non-famous, inverted faces seem to cause difficulties in accurate and sensitive processing. Results are further discussed in the face of existing studies of familiar vs. unfamiliar face processing. PMID:27776145

  2. Importance of the Inverted Control in Measuring Holistic Face Processing with the Composite Effect and Part-Whole Effect

    PubMed Central

    McKone, Elinor; Davies, Anne Aimola; Darke, Hayley; Crookes, Kate; Wickramariyaratne, Tushara; Zappia, Stephanie; Fiorentini, Chiara; Favelle, Simone; Broughton, Mary; Fernando, Dinusha

    2013-01-01

    Holistic coding for faces is shown in several illusions that demonstrate integration of the percept across the entire face. The illusions occur upright but, crucially, not inverted. Converting the illusions into experimental tasks that measure their strength – and thus index degree of holistic coding – is often considered straightforward yet in fact relies on a hidden assumption, namely that there is no contribution to the experimental measure from secondary cognitive factors. For the composite effect, a relevant secondary factor is size of the “spotlight” of visuospatial attention. The composite task assumes this spotlight can be easily restricted to the target half (e.g., top-half) of the compound face stimulus. Yet, if this assumption were not true then a large spotlight, in the absence of holistic perception, could produce a false composite effect, present even for inverted faces and contributing partially to the score for upright faces. We review evidence that various factors can influence spotlight size: race/culture (Asians often prefer a more global distribution of attention than Caucasians); sex (females can be more global); appearance of the join or gap between face halves; and location of the eyes, which typically attract attention. Results from five experiments then show inverted faces can sometimes produce large false composite effects, and imply that whether this happens or not depends on complex interactions between causal factors. We also report, for both identity and expression, that only top-half face targets (containing eyes) produce valid composite measures. A sixth experiment demonstrates an example of a false inverted part-whole effect, where encoding-specificity is the secondary cognitive factor. We conclude the inverted face control should be tested in all composite and part-whole studies, and an effect for upright faces should be interpreted as a pure measure of holistic processing only when the experimental design produces no

  3. Face aging effect simulation model based on multilayer representation and shearlet transform

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Yuancheng; Li, Yan

    2017-09-01

    In order to extract detailed facial features, we build a face aging effect simulation model based on multilayer representation and shearlet transform. The face is divided into three layers: the global layer of the face, the local features layer, and texture layer, which separately establishes the aging model. First, the training samples are classified according to different age groups, and we use active appearance model (AAM) at the global level to obtain facial features. The regression equations of shape and texture with age are obtained by fitting the support vector machine regression, which is based on the radial basis function. We use AAM to simulate the aging of facial organs. Then, for the texture detail layer, we acquire the significant high-frequency characteristic components of the face by using the multiscale shearlet transform. Finally, we get the last simulated aging images of the human face by the fusion algorithm. Experiments are carried out on the FG-NET dataset, and the experimental results show that the simulated face images have less differences from the original image and have a good face aging simulation effect.

  4. Inversed Vernier effect based single-mode laser emission in coupled microdisks

    PubMed Central

    Li, Meng; Zhang, Nan; Wang, Kaiyang; Li, Jiankai; Xiao, Shumin; Song, Qinghai

    2015-01-01

    Recently, on-chip single-mode laser emissions in coupled microdisks have attracted considerable research attention due to their wide applications. While most of single-mode lasers in coupled microdisks or microrings have been qualitatively explained by either Vernier effect or inversed Vernier effect, none of them have been experimentally confirmed. Here, we studied the mechanism of single-mode laser operation in coupled microdisks. We found that the mode numbers had been significantly reduced to nearly single-mode within a large pumping power range from threshold to gain saturation. The detail laser spectra showed that the largest gain and the first lasing peak were mainly generated by one disk and the laser intensity was proportional to the wavelength detuning of two set of modes. The corresponding theoretical analysis showed that the experimental observations were dominated by internal coupling within one cavity, which was similar to the recently explored inversed Vernier effect in two coupled microrings. We believe our finding will be important for understanding the previous experimental findings and the development of on-chip single-mode laser. PMID:26330218

  5. Sequential effects in judgements of attractiveness: the influences of face race and sex.

    PubMed

    Kramer, Robin S S; Jones, Alex L; Sharma, Dinkar

    2013-01-01

    In perceptual decision-making, a person's response on a given trial is influenced by their response on the immediately preceding trial. This sequential effect was initially demonstrated in psychophysical tasks, but has now been found in more complex, real-world judgements. The similarity of the current and previous stimuli determines the nature of the effect, with more similar items producing assimilation in judgements, while less similarity can cause a contrast effect. Previous research found assimilation in ratings of facial attractiveness, and here, we investigated whether this effect is influenced by the social categories of the faces presented. Over three experiments, participants rated the attractiveness of own- (White) and other-race (Chinese) faces of both sexes that appeared successively. Through blocking trials by race (Experiment 1), sex (Experiment 2), or both dimensions (Experiment 3), we could examine how sequential judgements were altered by the salience of different social categories in face sequences. For sequences that varied in sex alone, own-race faces showed significantly less opposite-sex assimilation (male and female faces perceived as dissimilar), while other-race faces showed equal assimilation for opposite- and same-sex sequences (male and female faces were not differentiated). For sequences that varied in race alone, categorisation by race resulted in no opposite-race assimilation for either sex of face (White and Chinese faces perceived as dissimilar). For sequences that varied in both race and sex, same-category assimilation was significantly greater than opposite-category. Our results suggest that the race of a face represents a superordinate category relative to sex. These findings demonstrate the importance of social categories when considering sequential judgements of faces, and also highlight a novel approach for investigating how multiple social dimensions interact during decision-making.

  6. Sequential Effects in Judgements of Attractiveness: The Influences of Face Race and Sex

    PubMed Central

    Kramer, Robin S. S.; Jones, Alex L.; Sharma, Dinkar

    2013-01-01

    In perceptual decision-making, a person’s response on a given trial is influenced by their response on the immediately preceding trial. This sequential effect was initially demonstrated in psychophysical tasks, but has now been found in more complex, real-world judgements. The similarity of the current and previous stimuli determines the nature of the effect, with more similar items producing assimilation in judgements, while less similarity can cause a contrast effect. Previous research found assimilation in ratings of facial attractiveness, and here, we investigated whether this effect is influenced by the social categories of the faces presented. Over three experiments, participants rated the attractiveness of own- (White) and other-race (Chinese) faces of both sexes that appeared successively. Through blocking trials by race (Experiment 1), sex (Experiment 2), or both dimensions (Experiment 3), we could examine how sequential judgements were altered by the salience of different social categories in face sequences. For sequences that varied in sex alone, own-race faces showed significantly less opposite-sex assimilation (male and female faces perceived as dissimilar), while other-race faces showed equal assimilation for opposite- and same-sex sequences (male and female faces were not differentiated). For sequences that varied in race alone, categorisation by race resulted in no opposite-race assimilation for either sex of face (White and Chinese faces perceived as dissimilar). For sequences that varied in both race and sex, same-category assimilation was significantly greater than opposite-category. Our results suggest that the race of a face represents a superordinate category relative to sex. These findings demonstrate the importance of social categories when considering sequential judgements of faces, and also highlight a novel approach for investigating how multiple social dimensions interact during decision-making. PMID:24349226

  7. Neural correlates of the eye dominance effect in human face perception: the left-visual-field superiority for faces revisited.

    PubMed

    Jung, Wookyoung; Kang, Joong-Gu; Jeon, Hyeonjin; Shim, Miseon; Sun Kim, Ji; Leem, Hyun-Sung; Lee, Seung-Hwan

    2017-08-01

    Faces are processed best when they are presented in the left visual field (LVF), a phenomenon known as LVF superiority. Although one eye contributes more when perceiving faces, it is unclear how the dominant eye (DE), the eye we unconsciously use when performing a monocular task, affects face processing. Here, we examined the influence of the DE on the LVF superiority for faces using event-related potentials. Twenty left-eye-dominant (LDE group) and 23 right-eye-dominant (RDE group) participants performed the experiments. Face stimuli were randomly presented in the LVF or right visual field (RVF). The RDE group exhibited significantly larger N170 amplitudes compared with the LDE group. Faces presented in the LVF elicited N170 amplitudes that were significantly more negative in the RDE group than they were in the LDE group, whereas the amplitudes elicited by stimuli presented in the RVF were equivalent between the groups. The LVF superiority was maintained in the RDE group but not in the LDE group. Our results provide the first neural evidence of the DE's effects on the LVF superiority for faces. We propose that the RDE may be more biologically specialized for face processing. © The Author (2017). Published by Oxford University Press.

  8. Neural correlates of the eye dominance effect in human face perception: the left-visual-field superiority for faces revisited

    PubMed Central

    Jung, Wookyoung; Kang, Joong-Gu; Jeon, Hyeonjin; Shim, Miseon; Sun Kim, Ji; Leem, Hyun-Sung

    2017-01-01

    Abstract Faces are processed best when they are presented in the left visual field (LVF), a phenomenon known as LVF superiority. Although one eye contributes more when perceiving faces, it is unclear how the dominant eye (DE), the eye we unconsciously use when performing a monocular task, affects face processing. Here, we examined the influence of the DE on the LVF superiority for faces using event-related potentials. Twenty left-eye-dominant (LDE group) and 23 right-eye-dominant (RDE group) participants performed the experiments. Face stimuli were randomly presented in the LVF or right visual field (RVF). The RDE group exhibited significantly larger N170 amplitudes compared with the LDE group. Faces presented in the LVF elicited N170 amplitudes that were significantly more negative in the RDE group than they were in the LDE group, whereas the amplitudes elicited by stimuli presented in the RVF were equivalent between the groups. The LVF superiority was maintained in the RDE group but not in the LDE group. Our results provide the first neural evidence of the DE’s effects on the LVF superiority for faces. We propose that the RDE may be more biologically specialized for face processing. PMID:28379584

  9. Effects of induced stress on seismic forward modelling and inversion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tromp, Jeroen; Trampert, Jeannot

    2018-05-01

    We demonstrate how effects of induced stress may be incorporated in seismic modelling and inversion. Our approach is motivated by the accommodation of pre-stress in global seismology. Induced stress modifies both the equation of motion and the constitutive relationship. The theory predicts that induced pressure linearly affects the unstressed isotropic moduli with a slope determined by their adiabatic pressure derivatives. The induced deviatoric stress produces anisotropic compressional and shear wave speeds; the latter result in shear wave splitting. For forward modelling purposes, we determine the weak form of the equation of motion under induced stress. In the context of the inverse problem, we determine induced stress sensitivity kernels, which may be used for adjoint tomography. The theory is illustrated by considering 2-D propagation of SH waves and related Fréchet derivatives based on a spectral-element method.

  10. Inverse scattering theory: Inverse scattering series method for one dimensional non-compact support potential

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Yao, Jie, E-mail: yjie2@uh.edu; Lesage, Anne-Cécile; Hussain, Fazle

    2014-12-15

    The reversion of the Born-Neumann series of the Lippmann-Schwinger equation is one of the standard ways to solve the inverse acoustic scattering problem. One limitation of the current inversion methods based on the reversion of the Born-Neumann series is that the velocity potential should have compact support. However, this assumption cannot be satisfied in certain cases, especially in seismic inversion. Based on the idea of distorted wave scattering, we explore an inverse scattering method for velocity potentials without compact support. The strategy is to decompose the actual medium as a known single interface reference medium, which has the same asymptoticmore » form as the actual medium and a perturbative scattering potential with compact support. After introducing the method to calculate the Green’s function for the known reference potential, the inverse scattering series and Volterra inverse scattering series are derived for the perturbative potential. Analytical and numerical examples demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of this method. Besides, to ensure stability of the numerical computation, the Lanczos averaging method is employed as a filter to reduce the Gibbs oscillations for the truncated discrete inverse Fourier transform of each order. Our method provides a rigorous mathematical framework for inverse acoustic scattering with a non-compact support velocity potential.« less

  11. Shades of Emotion: What the Addition of Sunglasses or Masks to Faces Reveals about the Development of Facial Expression Processing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Roberson, Debi; Kikutani, Mariko; Doge, Paula; Whitaker, Lydia; Majid, Asifa

    2012-01-01

    Three studies investigated developmental changes in facial expression processing, between 3 years-of-age and adulthood. For adults and older children, the addition of sunglasses to upright faces caused an equivalent decrement in performance to face inversion. However, younger children showed "better" classification of expressions of faces wearing…

  12. Restoring effects of oxytocin on the attentional preference for faces in autism.

    PubMed

    Kanat, M; Spenthof, I; Riedel, A; van Elst, L T; Heinrichs, M; Domes, G

    2017-04-18

    Reduced attentional preference for faces and symptoms of social anxiety are common in autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). The neuropeptide oxytocin triggers anxiolytic functions and enhances eye gaze, facial emotion recognition and neural correlates of face processing in ASD. Here we investigated whether a single dose of oxytocin increases attention to faces in ASD. As a secondary question, we explored the influence of social anxiety on these effects. We tested for oxytocin's effects on attention to neutral faces as compared to houses in a sample of 29 autistic individuals and 30 control participants using a dot-probe paradigm with two different presentation times (100 or 500 ms). A single dose of 24 IU oxytocin was administered in a randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled, cross-over design. Under placebo, ASD individuals paid less attention to faces presented for 500 ms than did controls. Oxytocin administration increased the allocation of attention toward faces in ASD to a level observed in controls. Secondary analyses revealed that these oxytocin effects primarily occurred in ASD individuals with high levels of social anxiety who were characterized by attentional avoidance of faces under placebo. Our results confirm a positive influence of intranasal oxytocin on social attention processes in ASD. Further, they suggest that oxytocin may in particular restore the attentional preference for facial information in ASD individuals with high social anxiety. We conclude that oxytocin's anxiolytic properties may partially account for its positive effects on socio-cognitive functioning in ASD, such as enhanced eye gaze and facial emotion recognition.

  13. Restoring effects of oxytocin on the attentional preference for faces in autism

    PubMed Central

    Kanat, M; Spenthof, I; Riedel, A; van Elst, L T; Heinrichs, M; Domes, G

    2017-01-01

    Reduced attentional preference for faces and symptoms of social anxiety are common in autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). The neuropeptide oxytocin triggers anxiolytic functions and enhances eye gaze, facial emotion recognition and neural correlates of face processing in ASD. Here we investigated whether a single dose of oxytocin increases attention to faces in ASD. As a secondary question, we explored the influence of social anxiety on these effects. We tested for oxytocin's effects on attention to neutral faces as compared to houses in a sample of 29 autistic individuals and 30 control participants using a dot-probe paradigm with two different presentation times (100 or 500 ms). A single dose of 24 IU oxytocin was administered in a randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled, cross-over design. Under placebo, ASD individuals paid less attention to faces presented for 500 ms than did controls. Oxytocin administration increased the allocation of attention toward faces in ASD to a level observed in controls. Secondary analyses revealed that these oxytocin effects primarily occurred in ASD individuals with high levels of social anxiety who were characterized by attentional avoidance of faces under placebo. Our results confirm a positive influence of intranasal oxytocin on social attention processes in ASD. Further, they suggest that oxytocin may in particular restore the attentional preference for facial information in ASD individuals with high social anxiety. We conclude that oxytocin's anxiolytic properties may partially account for its positive effects on socio-cognitive functioning in ASD, such as enhanced eye gaze and facial emotion recognition. PMID:28418399

  14. When ottoman is easier than chair: an inverse frequency effect in jargon aphasia.

    PubMed

    Marshall, J; Pring, T; Chiat, S; Robson, J

    2001-02-01

    This paper presents evidence of an inverse frequency effect in jargon aphasia. The subject (JP) showed a pre-disposition for low frequency word production on a range of tasks, including picture naming, sentence completion and naming in categories. Her real word errors were also striking, in that these tended to be lower in frequency than the target. Reading data suggested that the inverse frequency effect was present only when production was semantically mediated. It was therefore hypothesised that the effect was at least partly due to the semantic characteristics of low frequency items. Some support for this was obtained from a comprehension task showing that JP's understanding of low frequency terms, which she often produced as errors, was superior to her understanding of high frequency terms. Possible explanations for these findings are considered.

  15. Double inverse-weighted estimation of cumulative treatment effects under nonproportional hazards and dependent censoring.

    PubMed

    Schaubel, Douglas E; Wei, Guanghui

    2011-03-01

    In medical studies of time-to-event data, nonproportional hazards and dependent censoring are very common issues when estimating the treatment effect. A traditional method for dealing with time-dependent treatment effects is to model the time-dependence parametrically. Limitations of this approach include the difficulty to verify the correctness of the specified functional form and the fact that, in the presence of a treatment effect that varies over time, investigators are usually interested in the cumulative as opposed to instantaneous treatment effect. In many applications, censoring time is not independent of event time. Therefore, we propose methods for estimating the cumulative treatment effect in the presence of nonproportional hazards and dependent censoring. Three measures are proposed, including the ratio of cumulative hazards, relative risk, and difference in restricted mean lifetime. For each measure, we propose a double inverse-weighted estimator, constructed by first using inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) to balance the treatment-specific covariate distributions, then using inverse probability of censoring weighting (IPCW) to overcome the dependent censoring. The proposed estimators are shown to be consistent and asymptotically normal. We study their finite-sample properties through simulation. The proposed methods are used to compare kidney wait-list mortality by race. © 2010, The International Biometric Society.

  16. Synchronization of spin-transfer torque oscillators by spin pumping, inverse spin Hall, and spin Hall effects

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Elyasi, Mehrdad; Bhatia, Charanjit S.; Yang, Hyunsoo, E-mail: eleyang@nus.edu.sg

    2015-02-14

    We have proposed a method to synchronize multiple spin-transfer torque oscillators based on spin pumping, inverse spin Hall, and spin Hall effects. The proposed oscillator system consists of a series of nano-magnets in junction with a normal metal with high spin-orbit coupling, and an accumulative feedback loop. We conduct simulations to demonstrate the effect of modulated charge currents in the normal metal due to spin pumping from each nano-magnet. We show that the interplay between the spin Hall effect and inverse spin Hall effect results in synchronization of the nano-magnets.

  17. Implicit self-other discrimination affects the interplay between multisensory affordances of mental representations of faces.

    PubMed

    Zeugin, David; Arfa, Norhan; Notter, Michael; Murray, Micah M; Ionta, Silvio

    2017-08-30

    Face recognition is an apparently straightforward but, in fact, complex ability, encompassing the activation of at least visual and somatosensory representations. Understanding how identity shapes the interplay between these face-related affordances could clarify the mechanisms of self-other discrimination. To this aim, we exploited the so-called "face inversion effect" (FIE), a specific bias in the mental rotation of face images (of other people): with respect to inanimate objects, face images require longer time to be mentally rotated from the upside-down. Via the FIE, which suggests the activation of somatosensory mechanisms, we assessed identity-related changes in the interplay between visual and somatosensory affordances between self- and other-face representations. Methodologically, to avoid the potential interference of the somatosensory feedback associated with musculoskeletal movements, we introduced the tracking of gaze direction to record participants' response. Response times from twenty healthy participants showed the larger FIE for self- than other-faces, suggesting that the impact of somatosensory affordances on mental representation of faces varies according to identity. The present study lays the foundations of a quantifiable method to implicitly assess self-other discrimination, with possible translational benefits for early diagnosis of face processing disturbances (e.g. prosopagnosia), and for neurophysiological studies on self-other discrimination in ethological settings. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  18. Opposite effects on facial morphology due to gene dosage sensitivity.

    PubMed

    Hammond, Peter; McKee, Shane; Suttie, Michael; Allanson, Judith; Cobben, Jan-Maarten; Maas, Saskia M; Quarrell, Oliver; Smith, Ann C M; Lewis, Suzanne; Tassabehji, May; Sisodiya, Sanjay; Mattina, Teresa; Hennekam, Raoul

    2014-09-01

    Sequencing technology is increasingly demonstrating the impact of genomic copy number variation (CNV) on phenotypes. Opposing variation in growth, head size, cognition and behaviour is known to result from deletions and reciprocal duplications of some genomic regions. We propose normative inversion of face shape, opposing difference from a matched norm, as a basis for investigating the effects of gene dosage on craniofacial development. We use dense surface modelling techniques to match any face (or part of a face) to a facial norm of unaffected individuals of matched age, sex and ethnicity and then we reverse the individual's face shape differences from the matched norm to produce the normative inversion. We demonstrate for five genomic regions, 4p16.3, 7q11.23, 11p15, 16p13.3 and 17p11.2, that such inversion for individuals with a duplication or (epi)-mutation produces facial forms remarkably similar to those associated with a deletion or opposite (epi-)mutation of the same region, and vice versa. The ability to visualise and quantify face shape effects of gene dosage is of major benefit for determining whether a CNV is the cause of the phenotype of an individual and for predicting reciprocal consequences. It enables face shape to be used as a relatively simple and inexpensive functional analysis of the gene(s) involved.

  19. The cross-race effect in face recognition memory by bicultural individuals.

    PubMed

    Marsh, Benjamin U; Pezdek, Kathy; Ozery, Daphna Hausman

    2016-09-01

    Social-cognitive models of the cross-race effect (CRE) generally specify that cross-race faces are automatically categorized as an out-group, and that different encoding processes are then applied to same-race and cross-race faces, resulting in better recognition memory for same-race faces. We examined whether cultural priming moderates the cognitive categorization of cross-race faces. In Experiment 1, monoracial Latino-Americans, considered to have a bicultural self, were primed to focus on either a Latino or American cultural self and then viewed Latino and White faces. Latino-Americans primed as Latino exhibited higher recognition accuracy (A') for Latino than White faces; those primed as American exhibited higher recognition accuracy for White than Latino faces. In Experiment 2, as predicted, prime condition did not moderate the CRE in European-Americans. These results suggest that for monoracial biculturals, priming either of their cultural identities influences the encoding processes applied to same- and cross-race faces, thereby moderating the CRE. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  20. Own-Group Face Recognition Bias: The Effects of Location and Reputation

    PubMed Central

    Yan, Linlin; Wang, Zhe; Huang, Jianling; Sun, Yu-Hao P.; Judges, Rebecca A.; Xiao, Naiqi G.; Lee, Kang

    2017-01-01

    In the present study, we examined whether social categorization based on university affiliation can induce an advantage in recognizing faces. Moreover, we investigated how the reputation or location of the university affected face recognition performance using an old/new paradigm. We assigned five different university labels to the faces: participants’ own university and four other universities. Among the four other university labels, we manipulated the academic reputation and geographical location of these universities relative to the participants’ own university. The results showed that an own-group face recognition bias emerged for faces with own-university labels comparing to those with other-university labels. Furthermore, we found a robust own-group face recognition bias only when the other university was located in a different city far away from participants’ own university. Interestingly, we failed to find the influence of university reputation on own-group face recognition bias. These results suggest that categorizing a face as a member of one’s own university is sufficient to enhance recognition accuracy and the location will play a more important role in the effect of social categorization on face recognition than reputation. The results provide insight into the role of motivational factors underlying the university membership in face perception. PMID:29066989

  1. Effect of distracting faces on visual selective attention in the monkey.

    PubMed

    Landman, Rogier; Sharma, Jitendra; Sur, Mriganka; Desimone, Robert

    2014-12-16

    In primates, visual stimuli with social and emotional content tend to attract attention. Attention might be captured through rapid, automatic, subcortical processing or guided by slower, more voluntary cortical processing. Here we examined whether irrelevant faces with varied emotional expressions interfere with a covert attention task in macaque monkeys. In the task, the monkeys monitored a target grating in the periphery for a subtle color change while ignoring distracters that included faces appearing elsewhere on the screen. The onset time of distracter faces before the target change, as well as their spatial proximity to the target, was varied from trial to trial. The presence of faces, especially faces with emotional expressions interfered with the task, indicating a competition for attentional resources between the task and the face stimuli. However, this interference was significant only when faces were presented for greater than 200 ms. Emotional faces also affected saccade velocity and reduced pupillary reflex. Our results indicate that the attraction of attention by emotional faces in the monkey takes a considerable amount of processing time, possibly involving cortical-subcortical interactions. Intranasal application of the hormone oxytocin ameliorated the interfering effects of faces. Together these results provide evidence for slow modulation of attention by emotional distracters, which likely involves oxytocinergic brain circuits.

  2. Face distinctiveness and delayed testing: differential effects on performance and confidence.

    PubMed

    Metzger, Mitchell M

    2006-04-01

    The author investigated the effect of delayed testing on participants' memory for distinctive and typical faces. Participants viewed distinctive and typical faces and were then tested for recognition immediately or after a delay of 3, 6, or 12 weeks. Consistent with prior research, analysis of measure of sensitivity (d') showed that participants performed better on distinctive rather than typical faces, and memory performance declined with longer retention intervals between study and testing. Furthermore, the superior performance on distinctive faces had vanished by the 12-week test. Contrary to d' data, however, an analysis of confidence scores indicated that participants were still significantly more confident on trials depicting distinctive faces, even with a 12-week delay between study and recognition testing.

  3. Inverse relaxation effect of azo-dye molecules: The role of the film anisotropy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sehnem, A. L.; Faita, F. L.; Cabrera, F. C.; Job, A. E.; Bechtold, I. H.

    2013-11-01

    We investigated the effect generally treated in the literature as inverse relaxation, which is related to an increase in the birefringence of azopolymer films after the inscription laser is turned off. The results demonstrate that films prepared with the casting method on anisotropic substrates induce a preferential organization of the polymeric chains. Inverse relaxation is evidenced only when the photo-alignment of the azo groups is induced parallel to the orientation of the polymeric chains. Thus, it is possible to enhance the optical storage in these systems with appropriate alignment methods.

  4. Dissociation between the behavioural and electrophysiological effects of the face and body composite illusions.

    PubMed

    Soria Bauser, Denise A; Schriewer, Elisabeth; Suchan, Boris

    2015-08-01

    Several studies have reported similarities between perceptual processes underlying face and body perception, particularly emphasizing the importance of configural processes. Differences between the perception of faces and the perception of bodies were observed by means of a manipulation targeting a specific subtype of configural processing: the composite illusion. The composite face illusion describes the fact that two identical top halves of a face are perceived as being different if they are presented with different bottom parts. This effect disappears, if both halves are laterally shifted. Crucially, the effect of misalignment is not observed for bodies. This study aimed to further explore differences in the time course of face and body perception by using the composite effect. The present results replicated behavioural effects illustrating that misalignment affects the perception of faces but not bodies. Thus, face but not body perception relies on holistic processing. However, differences in the time course of the processing of both stimulus categories emerged at the N170 and P200. The pattern of the behavioural data seemed to be related to the P200. Thus, the present data indicate that holistic processes associated with the effect of misalignment might occur 200 ms after stimulus onset. © 2014 The British Psychological Society.

  5. The inverse electroencephalography pipeline

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Weinstein, David Michael

    The inverse electroencephalography (EEG) problem is defined as determining which regions of the brain are active based on remote measurements recorded with scalp EEG electrodes. An accurate solution to this problem would benefit both fundamental neuroscience research and clinical neuroscience applications. However, constructing accurate patient-specific inverse EEG solutions requires complex modeling, simulation, and visualization algorithms, and to date only a few systems have been developed that provide such capabilities. In this dissertation, a computational system for generating and investigating patient-specific inverse EEG solutions is introduced, and the requirements for each stage of this Inverse EEG Pipeline are defined and discussed. While the requirements of many of the stages are satisfied with existing algorithms, others have motivated research into novel modeling and simulation methods. The principal technical results of this work include novel surface-based volume modeling techniques, an efficient construction for the EEG lead field, and the Open Source release of the Inverse EEG Pipeline software for use by the bioelectric field research community. In this work, the Inverse EEG Pipeline is applied to three research problems in neurology: comparing focal and distributed source imaging algorithms; separating measurements into independent activation components for multifocal epilepsy; and localizing the cortical activity that produces the P300 effect in schizophrenia.

  6. The subliminal affective priming effects of faces displaying various levels of arousal: an ERP study.

    PubMed

    Li, Tian-Tian; Lu, Yong

    2014-11-07

    This study on the subliminal affective priming effects of faces displaying various levels of arousal employed event-related potentials (ERPs). The participants were asked to rate the arousal of ambiguous medium-arousing faces that were preceded by high- or low-arousing priming faces presented subliminally. The results revealed that the participants exhibited arousal-consistent variation in their arousal level ratings of the probe faces exclusively in the negative prime condition. Compared with high-arousing faces, the low-arousing faces tended to elicit greater late positive component (LPC, 450-660ms) and greater N400 (330-450ms) potentials. These findings support the following conclusions: (1) the effect of subliminal affective priming of faces can be detected in the affective arousal dimension; (2) valence may influence the subliminal affective priming effect of the arousal dimension of emotional stimuli; and (3) the subliminal affective priming effect of face arousal occurs when the prime stimulus affects late-stage processing of the probe. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. Gaze cueing by pareidolia faces.

    PubMed

    Takahashi, Kohske; Watanabe, Katsumi

    2013-01-01

    Visual images that are not faces are sometimes perceived as faces (the pareidolia phenomenon). While the pareidolia phenomenon provides people with a strong impression that a face is present, it is unclear how deeply pareidolia faces are processed as faces. In the present study, we examined whether a shift in spatial attention would be produced by gaze cueing of face-like objects. A robust cueing effect was observed when the face-like objects were perceived as faces. The magnitude of the cueing effect was comparable between the face-like objects and a cartoon face. However, the cueing effect was eliminated when the observer did not perceive the objects as faces. These results demonstrated that pareidolia faces do more than give the impression of the presence of faces; indeed, they trigger an additional face-specific attentional process.

  8. Gaze cueing by pareidolia faces

    PubMed Central

    Takahashi, Kohske; Watanabe, Katsumi

    2013-01-01

    Visual images that are not faces are sometimes perceived as faces (the pareidolia phenomenon). While the pareidolia phenomenon provides people with a strong impression that a face is present, it is unclear how deeply pareidolia faces are processed as faces. In the present study, we examined whether a shift in spatial attention would be produced by gaze cueing of face-like objects. A robust cueing effect was observed when the face-like objects were perceived as faces. The magnitude of the cueing effect was comparable between the face-like objects and a cartoon face. However, the cueing effect was eliminated when the observer did not perceive the objects as faces. These results demonstrated that pareidolia faces do more than give the impression of the presence of faces; indeed, they trigger an additional face-specific attentional process. PMID:25165505

  9. Integrated aquitard-aquifer flow with a mixed-type well-face boundary and skin effect

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Feng, Qinggao; Zhan, Hongbin

    2016-03-01

    A general analytical model describing groundwater flow to a partially penetrating well pumped at a constant rate in a leaky confined aquifer is developed. The model incorporates the effects of aquitard storage, aquifer anisotropy, wellbore storage and a finite well skin by treating the aquitard leakage as an aquitard-aquifer interface flow problem, and considers the well-face as a mixed-type or non-uniform flux (NUF) rather than a uniform flux (UF) boundary condition, which is novel. The solution is obtained using the Laplace transform coupled with separation of variables and discretization methods, followed by the numerical inverse Laplace transform. Moreover, the solution unifies some cases for flow to a partially penetrating well in a leaky confined aquifer including Perina and Lee (2006), Feng and Zhan (2015) and Hunt (2005) or confined aquifer including Chiu et al. (2007), Yang et al. (2006) and Hantush (1964). The newly developed NUF solution is compared with the UF solution. The NUF drawdown is larger than the UF drawdown at early time, while the NUF drawdown is smaller than the UF drawdown at intermediate and late times. The non-uniform flux along the well-face has significant impact on drawdown in the skin zone, while the UF solution can completely replace the NUF solution at a radial distance from the pumped well equaling to or greater than the aquifer thickness. The NUF and UF drawdowns for no skin case are remarkably smaller than that for the positive skin case and larger than that for the negative skin case. A thicker well skin results in a smaller drawdown in the skin zone.

  10. Holistic processing, contact, and the other-race effect in face recognition.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Mintao; Hayward, William G; Bülthoff, Isabelle

    2014-12-01

    Face recognition, holistic processing, and processing of configural and featural facial information are known to be influenced by face race, with better performance for own- than other-race faces. However, whether these various other-race effects (OREs) arise from the same underlying mechanisms or from different processes remains unclear. The present study addressed this question by measuring the OREs in a set of face recognition tasks, and testing whether these OREs are correlated with each other. Participants performed different tasks probing (1) face recognition, (2) holistic processing, (3) processing of configural information, and (4) processing of featural information for both own- and other-race faces. Their contact with other-race people was also assessed with a questionnaire. The results show significant OREs in tasks testing face memory and processing of configural information, but not in tasks testing either holistic processing or processing of featural information. Importantly, there was no cross-task correlation between any of the measured OREs. Moreover, the level of other-race contact predicted only the OREs obtained in tasks testing face memory and processing of configural information. These results indicate that these various cross-race differences originate from different aspects of face processing, in contrary to the view that the ORE in face recognition is due to cross-race differences in terms of holistic processing. Copyright © 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  11. How Well Do Computer-Generated Faces Tap Face Expertise?

    PubMed

    Crookes, Kate; Ewing, Louise; Gildenhuys, Ju-Dith; Kloth, Nadine; Hayward, William G; Oxner, Matt; Pond, Stephen; Rhodes, Gillian

    2015-01-01

    The use of computer-generated (CG) stimuli in face processing research is proliferating due to the ease with which faces can be generated, standardised and manipulated. However there has been surprisingly little research into whether CG faces are processed in the same way as photographs of real faces. The present study assessed how well CG faces tap face identity expertise by investigating whether two indicators of face expertise are reduced for CG faces when compared to face photographs. These indicators were accuracy for identification of own-race faces and the other-race effect (ORE)-the well-established finding that own-race faces are recognised more accurately than other-race faces. In Experiment 1 Caucasian and Asian participants completed a recognition memory task for own- and other-race real and CG faces. Overall accuracy for own-race faces was dramatically reduced for CG compared to real faces and the ORE was significantly and substantially attenuated for CG faces. Experiment 2 investigated perceptual discrimination for own- and other-race real and CG faces with Caucasian and Asian participants. Here again, accuracy for own-race faces was significantly reduced for CG compared to real faces. However the ORE was not affected by format. Together these results signal that CG faces of the type tested here do not fully tap face expertise. Technological advancement may, in the future, produce CG faces that are equivalent to real photographs. Until then caution is advised when interpreting results obtained using CG faces.

  12. Solving geosteering inverse problems by stochastic Hybrid Monte Carlo method

    DOE PAGES

    Shen, Qiuyang; Wu, Xuqing; Chen, Jiefu; ...

    2017-11-20

    The inverse problems arise in almost all fields of science where the real-world parameters are extracted from a set of measured data. The geosteering inversion plays an essential role in the accurate prediction of oncoming strata as well as a reliable guidance to adjust the borehole position on the fly to reach one or more geological targets. This mathematical treatment is not easy to solve, which requires finding an optimum solution among a large solution space, especially when the problem is non-linear and non-convex. Nowadays, a new generation of logging-while-drilling (LWD) tools has emerged on the market. The so-called azimuthalmore » resistivity LWD tools have azimuthal sensitivity and a large depth of investigation. Hence, the associated inverse problems become much more difficult since the earth model to be inverted will have more detailed structures. The conventional deterministic methods are incapable to solve such a complicated inverse problem, where they suffer from the local minimum trap. Alternatively, stochastic optimizations are in general better at finding global optimal solutions and handling uncertainty quantification. In this article, we investigate the Hybrid Monte Carlo (HMC) based statistical inversion approach and suggest that HMC based inference is more efficient in dealing with the increased complexity and uncertainty faced by the geosteering problems.« less

  13. Human inversions and their functional consequences

    PubMed Central

    Puig, Marta; Casillas, Sònia; Villatoro, Sergi

    2015-01-01

    Polymorphic inversions are a type of structural variants that are difficult to analyze owing to their balanced nature and the location of breakpoints within complex repeated regions. So far, only a handful of inversions have been studied in detail in humans and current knowledge about their possible functional effects is still limited. However, inversions have been related to phenotypic changes and adaptation in multiple species. In this review, we summarize the evidences of the functional impact of inversions in the human genome. First, given that inversions have been shown to inhibit recombination in heterokaryotes, chromosomes displaying different orientation are expected to evolve independently and this may lead to distinct gene-expression patterns. Second, inversions have a role as disease-causing mutations both by directly affecting gene structure or regulation in different ways, and by predisposing to other secondary arrangements in the offspring of inversion carriers. Finally, several inversions show signals of being selected during human evolution. These findings illustrate the potential of inversions to have phenotypic consequences also in humans and emphasize the importance of their inclusion in genome-wide association studies. PMID:25998059

  14. Optimal faces for gender and expression: a new technique for measuring dynamic templates used in face perception.

    PubMed

    Poirier, Frédéric J A M; Faubert, Jocelyn

    2012-06-22

    Facial expressions are important for human communications. Face perception studies often measure the impact of major degradation (e.g., noise, inversion, short presentations, masking, alterations) on natural expression recognition performance. Here, we introduce a novel face perception technique using rich and undegraded stimuli. Participants modified faces to create optimal representations of given expressions. Using sliders, participants adjusted 53 face components (including 37 dynamic) including head, eye, eyebrows, mouth, and nose shape and position. Data was collected from six participants and 10 conditions (six emotions + pain + gender + neutral). Some expressions had unique features (e.g., frown for anger, upward-curved mouth for happiness), whereas others had shared features (e.g., open eyes and mouth for surprise and fear). Happiness was different from other emotions. Surprise was different from other emotions except fear. Weighted sum morphing provides acceptable stimuli for gender-neutral and dynamic stimuli. Many features were correlated, including (1) head size with internal feature sizes as related to gender, (2) internal feature scaling, and (3) eyebrow height and eye openness as related to surprise and fear. These findings demonstrate the method's validity for measuring the optimal facial expressions, which we argue is a more direct measure of their internal representations.

  15. Subliminal Face Emotion Processing: A Comparison of Fearful and Disgusted Faces.

    PubMed

    Khalid, Shah; Ansorge, Ulrich

    2017-01-01

    Prior research has provided evidence for (1) subcortical processing of subliminal facial expressions of emotion and (2) for the emotion-specificity of these processes. Here, we investigated if this is also true for the processing of the subliminal facial display of disgust. In Experiment 1, we used differently filtered masked prime faces portraying emotionally neutral or disgusted expressions presented prior to clearly visible target faces to test if the masked primes exerted an influence on target processing nonetheless. Whereas we found evidence for subliminal face congruence or priming effects, in particular, reverse priming by low spatial frequencies disgusted face primes, we did not find any support for a subcortical origin of the effect. In Experiment 2, we compared the influence of subliminal disgusted faces with that of subliminal fearful faces and demonstrated a behavioral performance difference between the two, pointing to an emotion-specific processing of the disgusted facial expressions. In both experiments, we also tested for the dependence of the subliminal emotional face processing on spatial attention - with mixed results, suggesting an attention-independence in Experiment 1 but not in Experiment 2 -, and we found perfect masking of the face primes - that is, proof of the subliminality of the prime faces. Based on our findings, we speculate that subliminal facial expressions of disgust could afford easy avoidance of these faces. This could be a unique effect of disgusted faces as compared to other emotional facial displays, at least under the conditions studied here.

  16. Weighting by Inverse Variance or by Sample Size in Random-Effects Meta-Analysis

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Marin-Martinez, Fulgencio; Sanchez-Meca, Julio

    2010-01-01

    Most of the statistical procedures in meta-analysis are based on the estimation of average effect sizes from a set of primary studies. The optimal weight for averaging a set of independent effect sizes is the inverse variance of each effect size, but in practice these weights have to be estimated, being affected by sampling error. When assuming a…

  17. Stochastic Gabor reflectivity and acoustic impedance inversion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hariri Naghadeh, Diako; Morley, Christopher Keith; Ferguson, Angus John

    2018-02-01

    To delineate subsurface lithology to estimate petrophysical properties of a reservoir, it is possible to use acoustic impedance (AI) which is the result of seismic inversion. To change amplitude to AI, removal of wavelet effects from the seismic signal in order to get a reflection series, and subsequently transforming those reflections to AI, is vital. To carry out seismic inversion correctly it is important to not assume that the seismic signal is stationary. However, all stationary deconvolution methods are designed following that assumption. To increase temporal resolution and interpretation ability, amplitude compensation and phase correction are inevitable. Those are pitfalls of stationary reflectivity inversion. Although stationary reflectivity inversion methods are trying to estimate reflectivity series, because of incorrect assumptions their estimations will not be correct, but may be useful. Trying to convert those reflection series to AI, also merging with the low frequency initial model, can help us. The aim of this study was to apply non-stationary deconvolution to eliminate time variant wavelet effects from the signal and to convert the estimated reflection series to the absolute AI by getting bias from well logs. To carry out this aim, stochastic Gabor inversion in the time domain was used. The Gabor transform derived the signal’s time-frequency analysis and estimated wavelet properties from different windows. Dealing with different time windows gave an ability to create a time-variant kernel matrix, which was used to remove matrix effects from seismic data. The result was a reflection series that does not follow the stationary assumption. The subsequent step was to convert those reflections to AI using well information. Synthetic and real data sets were used to show the ability of the introduced method. The results highlight that the time cost to get seismic inversion is negligible related to general Gabor inversion in the frequency domain. Also

  18. Telemedicine versus face to face patient care: effects on professional practice and health care outcomes.

    PubMed

    Currell, R; Urquhart, C; Wainwright, P; Lewis, R

    2000-01-01

    Telemedicine is the use of telecommunications technology for medical diagnosis and patient care. From its beginnings telemedicine has been used in a variety of health care fields, although widespread interest among healthcare providers has only now become apparent with the development of more sophisticated technology. To assess the effects of telemedicine as an alternative to face-to-face patient care. We searched the Effective Practice and Organisation of Care Group's specialised register, The Cochrane Library, MEDLINE (1966-August 1999), EMBASE (to 1996), Cinahl (to August 1999), Inspec (to August 1996), Healthstar (1983-1996), OCLC, Sigle (to 1999), Assia, SCI (1981-1997), SSCI (1981-1997), DHSS-Data. We hand searched the Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare (1995-1999), Telemedicine Journal (1995-1999) and reference lists of articles. We also hand searched conference proceedings and contacted experts in countries identified as having an interest in telemedicine. Randomised trials, controlled before and after studies and interrupted time series comparing telemedicine with face-to-face patient care. The participants were qualified health professionals and patients receiving care through telemedicine. Two reviewers independently assessed trial quality and extracted data. Seven trials involving more than 800 people were included. One trial was concerned with telemedicine in the emergency department, one with video-consultations between primary health care and the hospital outpatients department, and the remainder were concerned with the provision of home care or patient self-monitoring of chronic disease. The studies appeared to be well conducted, although patient numbers were small in all but one. Although none of the studies showed any detrimental effects from the interventions, neither did they show unequivocal benefits and the findings did not constitute evidence of the safety of telemedicine. None of the studies included formal economic analysis. All the

  19. A Comparison of Two Native American Navigator Formats: Face-to-Face and Telephone

    PubMed Central

    Dignan, Mark B.; Burhansstipanov, Linda; Hariton, Judy; Harjo, Lisa; Rattler, Jerri; Lee, Rose; Mason, Mondi

    2012-01-01

    The study was designed to test the relative effectiveness of a Navigator intervention delivered face-to-face or by telephone to urban Native American women. The effectiveness of the intervention was evaluated using a design that included a pretest, random assignment to face-to-face or telephone group, and posttest. The Social Cognitive Theory-based intervention was a tailored education program developed to address individual risk factors for breast cancer. At posttest, self-reported mammograms in the past year increased from 29% to 41.3% in the telephone group and from 34.4%: to 45.2% in the face-to-face group. There was no difference in change from pretest to posttest between the telephone and face-to-face groups. Navigators can be effective in increasing adherence to recommendations for screening mammography among urban American Indian women. PMID:16327748

  20. Toward a unified model of face and object recognition in the human visual system

    PubMed Central

    Wallis, Guy

    2013-01-01

    Our understanding of the mechanisms and neural substrates underlying visual recognition has made considerable progress over the past 30 years. During this period, accumulating evidence has led many scientists to conclude that objects and faces are recognised in fundamentally distinct ways, and in fundamentally distinct cortical areas. In the psychological literature, in particular, this dissociation has led to a palpable disconnect between theories of how we process and represent the two classes of object. This paper follows a trend in part of the recognition literature to try to reconcile what we know about these two forms of recognition by considering the effects of learning. Taking a widely accepted, self-organizing model of object recognition, this paper explains how such a system is affected by repeated exposure to specific stimulus classes. In so doing, it explains how many aspects of recognition generally regarded as unusual to faces (holistic processing, configural processing, sensitivity to inversion, the other-race effect, the prototype effect, etc.) are emergent properties of category-specific learning within such a system. Overall, the paper describes how a single model of recognition learning can and does produce the seemingly very different types of representation associated with faces and objects. PMID:23966963

  1. Faces forming traces: neurophysiological correlates of learning naturally distinctive and caricatured faces.

    PubMed

    Schulz, Claudia; Kaufmann, Jürgen M; Kurt, Alexander; Schweinberger, Stefan R

    2012-10-15

    Distinctive faces are easier to learn and recognise than typical faces. We investigated effects of natural vs. artificial distinctiveness on performance and neural correlates of face learning. Spatial caricatures of initially non-distinctive faces were created such that their rated distinctiveness matched a set of naturally distinctive faces. During learning, we presented naturally distinctive, caricatured, and non-distinctive faces for later recognition among novel faces, using different images of the same identities at learning and test. For learned faces, an advantage in performance was observed for naturally distinctive and caricatured over non-distinctive faces, with larger benefits for naturally distinctive faces. Distinctive and caricatured faces elicited more negative occipitotemporal ERPs (P200, N250) and larger centroparietal positivity (LPC) during learning. At test, earliest distinctiveness effects were again seen in the P200. In line with recent research, N250 and LPC were larger for learned than for novel faces overall. Importantly, whereas left hemispheric N250 was increased for learned naturally distinctive faces, right hemispheric N250 responded particularly to caricatured novel faces. We conclude that natural distinctiveness induces benefits to face recognition beyond those induced by exaggeration of a face's idiosyncratic shape, and that the left hemisphere in particular may mediate recognition across different images. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. Face-Likeness and Image Variability Drive Responses in Human Face-Selective Ventral Regions

    PubMed Central

    Davidenko, Nicolas; Remus, David A.; Grill-Spector, Kalanit

    2012-01-01

    The human ventral visual stream contains regions that respond selectively to faces over objects. However, it is unknown whether responses in these regions correlate with how face-like stimuli appear. Here, we use parameterized face silhouettes to manipulate the perceived face-likeness of stimuli and measure responses in face- and object-selective ventral regions with high-resolution fMRI. We first use “concentric hyper-sphere” (CH) sampling to define face silhouettes at different distances from the prototype face. Observers rate the stimuli as progressively more face-like the closer they are to the prototype face. Paradoxically, responses in both face- and object-selective regions decrease as face-likeness ratings increase. Because CH sampling produces blocks of stimuli whose variability is negatively correlated with face-likeness, this effect may be driven by more adaptation during high face-likeness (low-variability) blocks than during low face-likeness (high-variability) blocks. We tested this hypothesis by measuring responses to matched-variability (MV) blocks of stimuli with similar face-likeness ratings as with CH sampling. Critically, under MV sampling, we find a face-specific effect: responses in face-selective regions gradually increase with perceived face-likeness, but responses in object-selective regions are unchanged. Our studies provide novel evidence that face-selective responses correlate with the perceived face-likeness of stimuli, but this effect is revealed only when image variability is controlled across conditions. Finally, our data show that variability is a powerful factor that drives responses across the ventral stream. This indicates that controlling variability across conditions should be a critical tool in future neuroimaging studies of face and object representation. PMID:21823208

  3. A specialized face-processing model inspired by the organization of monkey face patches explains several face-specific phenomena observed in humans.

    PubMed

    Farzmahdi, Amirhossein; Rajaei, Karim; Ghodrati, Masoud; Ebrahimpour, Reza; Khaligh-Razavi, Seyed-Mahdi

    2016-04-26

    Converging reports indicate that face images are processed through specialized neural networks in the brain -i.e. face patches in monkeys and the fusiform face area (FFA) in humans. These studies were designed to find out how faces are processed in visual system compared to other objects. Yet, the underlying mechanism of face processing is not completely revealed. Here, we show that a hierarchical computational model, inspired by electrophysiological evidence on face processing in primates, is able to generate representational properties similar to those observed in monkey face patches (posterior, middle and anterior patches). Since the most important goal of sensory neuroscience is linking the neural responses with behavioral outputs, we test whether the proposed model, which is designed to account for neural responses in monkey face patches, is also able to predict well-documented behavioral face phenomena observed in humans. We show that the proposed model satisfies several cognitive face effects such as: composite face effect and the idea of canonical face views. Our model provides insights about the underlying computations that transfer visual information from posterior to anterior face patches.

  4. Emergency face-mask removal effectiveness: a comparison of traditional and nontraditional football helmet face-mask attachment systems.

    PubMed

    Swartz, Erik E; Belmore, Keith; Decoster, Laura C; Armstrong, Charles W

    2010-01-01

    Football helmet face-mask attachment design changes might affect the effectiveness of face-mask removal. To compare the efficiency of face-mask removal between newly designed and traditional football helmets. Controlled laboratory study. Applied biomechanics laboratory. Twenty-five certified athletic trainers. The independent variable was face-mask attachment system on 5 levels: (1) Revolution IQ with Quick Release (QR), (2) Revolution IQ with Quick Release hardware altered (QRAlt), (3) traditional (Trad), (4) traditional with hardware altered (TradAlt), and (5) ION 4D (ION). Participants removed face masks using a cordless screwdriver with a back-up cutting tool or only the cutting tool for the ION. Investigators altered face-mask hardware to unexpectedly challenge participants during removal for traditional and Revolution IQ helmets. Participants completed each condition twice in random order and were blinded to hardware alteration. Removal success, removal time, helmet motion, and rating of perceived exertion (RPE). Time and 3-dimensional helmet motion were recorded. If the face mask remained attached at 3 minutes, the trial was categorized as unsuccessful. Participants rated each trial for level of difficulty (RPE). We used repeated-measures analyses of variance (α  =  .05) with follow-up comparisons to test for differences. Removal success was 100% (48 of 48) for QR, Trad, and ION; 97.9% (47 of 48) for TradAlt; and 72.9% (35 of 48) for QRAlt. Differences in time for face-mask removal were detected (F(4,20)  =  48.87, P  =  .001), with times ranging from 33.96 ± 14.14 seconds for QR to 99.22 ± 20.53 seconds for QRAlt. Differences were found in range of motion during face-mask removal (F(4,20)  =  16.25, P  =  .001), with range of motion from 10.10° ± 3.07° for QR to 16.91° ± 5.36° for TradAlt. Differences also were detected in RPE during face-mask removal (F(4,20)  =  43.20, P  =  .001), with participants reporting average

  5. Emergency Face-Mask Removal Effectiveness: A Comparison of Traditional and Nontraditional Football Helmet Face-Mask Attachment Systems

    PubMed Central

    Swartz, Erik E.; Belmore, Keith; Decoster, Laura C.; Armstrong, Charles W.

    2010-01-01

    Abstract Context: Football helmet face-mask attachment design changes might affect the effectiveness of face-mask removal. Objective: To compare the efficiency of face-mask removal between newly designed and traditional football helmets. Design: Controlled laboratory study. Setting: Applied biomechanics laboratory. Participants: Twenty-five certified athletic trainers. Intervention(s): The independent variable was face-mask attachment system on 5 levels: (1) Revolution IQ with Quick Release (QR), (2) Revolution IQ with Quick Release hardware altered (QRAlt), (3) traditional (Trad), (4) traditional with hardware altered (TradAlt), and (5) ION 4D (ION). Participants removed face masks using a cordless screwdriver with a back-up cutting tool or only the cutting tool for the ION. Investigators altered face-mask hardware to unexpectedly challenge participants during removal for traditional and Revolution IQ helmets. Participants completed each condition twice in random order and were blinded to hardware alteration. Main Outcome Measure(s): Removal success, removal time, helmet motion, and rating of perceived exertion (RPE). Time and 3-dimensional helmet motion were recorded. If the face mask remained attached at 3 minutes, the trial was categorized as unsuccessful. Participants rated each trial for level of difficulty (RPE). We used repeated-measures analyses of variance (α  =  .05) with follow-up comparisons to test for differences. Results: Removal success was 100% (48 of 48) for QR, Trad, and ION; 97.9% (47 of 48) for TradAlt; and 72.9% (35 of 48) for QRAlt. Differences in time for face-mask removal were detected (F4,20  =  48.87, P  =  .001), with times ranging from 33.96 ± 14.14 seconds for QR to 99.22 ± 20.53 seconds for QRAlt. Differences were found in range of motion during face-mask removal (F4,20  =  16.25, P  =  .001), with range of motion from 10.10° ± 3.07° for QR to 16.91° ± 5.36° for TradAlt. Differences also were detected

  6. Face to Face Communications in Space

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Cohen, Malcolm M.; Davon, Bonnie P. (Technical Monitor)

    1999-01-01

    It has been reported that human face-to-face communications in space are compromised by facial edema, variations in the orientations of speakers and listeners, and background noises that are encountered in the shuttle and in space stations. To date, nearly all reports have been anecdotal or subjective, in the form of post-flight interviews or questionnaires; objective and quantitative data are generally lacking. Although it is acknowledged that efficient face-to-face communications are essential for astronauts to work safely and effectively, specific ways in which the space environment interferes with non-linguistic communication cues are poorly documented. Because we have only a partial understanding of how non-linguistic communication cues may change with mission duration, it is critically important to obtain objective data, and to evaluate these cues under well-controlled experimental conditions.

  7. Face-specific impairment in holistic perception following focal lesion of the right anterior temporal lobe.

    PubMed

    Busigny, Thomas; Van Belle, Goedele; Jemel, Boutheina; Hosein, Anthony; Joubert, Sven; Rossion, Bruno

    2014-04-01

    Recent studies have provided solid evidence for pure cases of prosopagnosia following brain damage. The patients reported so far have posterior lesions encompassing either or both the right inferior occipital cortex and fusiform gyrus, and exhibit a critical impairment in generating a sufficiently detailed holistic percept to individualize faces. Here, we extended these observations to include the prosopagnosic patient LR (Bukach, Bub, Gauthier, & Tarr, 2006), whose damage is restricted to the anterior region of the right temporal lobe. First, we report that LR is able to discriminate parametrically defined individual exemplars of nonface object categories as accurately and quickly as typical observers, which suggests that the visual similarity account of prosopagnosia does not explain his impairments. Then, we show that LR does not present with the typical face inversion effect, whole-part advantage, or composite face effect and, therefore, has impaired holistic perception of individual faces. Moreover, the patient is more impaired at matching faces when the facial part he fixates is masked than when it is selectively revealed by means of gaze contingency. Altogether these observations support the view that the nature of the critical face impairment does not differ qualitatively across patients with acquired prosopagnosia, regardless of the localization of brain damage: all these patients appear to be impaired to some extent at what constitutes the heart of our visual expertise with faces, namely holistic perception at a sufficiently fine-grained level of resolution to discriminate exemplars of the face class efficiently. This conclusion raises issues regarding the existing criteria for diagnosis/classification of patients as cases of apperceptive or associative prosopagnosia. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  8. Subliminal Face Emotion Processing: A Comparison of Fearful and Disgusted Faces

    PubMed Central

    Khalid, Shah; Ansorge, Ulrich

    2017-01-01

    Prior research has provided evidence for (1) subcortical processing of subliminal facial expressions of emotion and (2) for the emotion-specificity of these processes. Here, we investigated if this is also true for the processing of the subliminal facial display of disgust. In Experiment 1, we used differently filtered masked prime faces portraying emotionally neutral or disgusted expressions presented prior to clearly visible target faces to test if the masked primes exerted an influence on target processing nonetheless. Whereas we found evidence for subliminal face congruence or priming effects, in particular, reverse priming by low spatial frequencies disgusted face primes, we did not find any support for a subcortical origin of the effect. In Experiment 2, we compared the influence of subliminal disgusted faces with that of subliminal fearful faces and demonstrated a behavioral performance difference between the two, pointing to an emotion-specific processing of the disgusted facial expressions. In both experiments, we also tested for the dependence of the subliminal emotional face processing on spatial attention – with mixed results, suggesting an attention-independence in Experiment 1 but not in Experiment 2 –, and we found perfect masking of the face primes – that is, proof of the subliminality of the prime faces. Based on our findings, we speculate that subliminal facial expressions of disgust could afford easy avoidance of these faces. This could be a unique effect of disgusted faces as compared to other emotional facial displays, at least under the conditions studied here. PMID:28680413

  9. Effects of facial color on the subliminal processing of fearful faces.

    PubMed

    Nakajima, K; Minami, T; Nakauchi, S

    2015-12-03

    Recent studies have suggested that both configural information, such as face shape, and surface information is important for face perception. In particular, facial color is sufficiently suggestive of emotional states, as in the phrases: "flushed with anger" and "pale with fear." However, few studies have examined the relationship between facial color and emotional expression. On the other hand, event-related potential (ERP) studies have shown that emotional expressions, such as fear, are processed unconsciously. In this study, we examined how facial color modulated the supraliminal and subliminal processing of fearful faces. We recorded electroencephalograms while participants performed a facial emotion identification task involving masked target faces exhibiting facial expressions (fearful or neutral) and colors (natural or bluish). The results indicated that there was a significant interaction between facial expression and color for the latency of the N170 component. Subsequent analyses revealed that the bluish-colored faces increased the latency effect of facial expressions compared to the natural-colored faces, indicating that the bluish color modulated the processing of fearful expressions. We conclude that the unconscious processing of fearful faces is affected by facial color. Copyright © 2015 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Sensitivity analyses of acoustic impedance inversion with full-waveform inversion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yao, Gang; da Silva, Nuno V.; Wu, Di

    2018-04-01

    Acoustic impedance estimation has a significant importance to seismic exploration. In this paper, we use full-waveform inversion to recover the impedance from seismic data, and analyze the sensitivity of the acoustic impedance with respect to the source-receiver offset of seismic data and to the initial velocity model. We parameterize the acoustic wave equation with velocity and impedance, and demonstrate three key aspects of acoustic impedance inversion. First, short-offset data are most suitable for acoustic impedance inversion. Second, acoustic impedance inversion is more compatible with the data generated by density contrasts than velocity contrasts. Finally, acoustic impedance inversion requires the starting velocity model to be very accurate for achieving a high-quality inversion. Based upon these observations, we propose a workflow for acoustic impedance inversion as: (1) building a background velocity model with travel-time tomography or reflection waveform inversion; (2) recovering the intermediate wavelength components of the velocity model with full-waveform inversion constrained by Gardner’s relation; (3) inverting the high-resolution acoustic impedance model with short-offset data through full-waveform inversion. We verify this workflow by the synthetic tests based on the Marmousi model.

  11. An Effective Method for Inversion of Elastic Impedance for Shallow Sediments and Its Application to Gas Hydrate-Bearing Sediments

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Lee, Myung W.

    2006-01-01

    Elastic properties of gas hydrate-bearing sediments (GHBS) are important for identifying and quantifying gas hydrate as well as discriminating the effects of free gas on velocity from that due to overpressure. Elastic properties of GHBS sediments can be estimated from elastic inversion using the elastic impedance. The accuracy of elastic inversion can be increased by using the predicted S-wave velocity (Vs) in the parameter k, which is k = (Vs / Vp)2. However, when Vs is less than about 0.6 kilometer per second, the inversion is inaccurate, partly because of the difficulty in accurately predicting low S-wave velocities and partly because of the large error associated with small k values. A new formula that leads to estimates of only the high-frequency part of velocity is proposed by decomposing Vs into low- and high-frequency parts. This new inversion formula is applied to a variety of well logs, and the results demonstrate its effectiveness for all ranges of Vs as long as the deviation of Vs from the low-frequency part of Vs is small. For GHBS, the deviation of Vs from the low-frequency part of Vs can be large for moderate to high gas hydrate saturations. Therefore, the new formula is not effective for elastic inversion for GHBS unless the gas hydrate effect is incorporated into the low-frequency part of Vs. For inversion of GHBS with Vs greater than about 0.6 kilometer per second, the original formulation is preferable.

  12. Effects of visual expertise on a novel eye-size illusion: Implications for holistic face processing

    PubMed Central

    Fu, Genyue; Dong, Yan; Quinn, Paul C.; Xiao, Wen S.; Wang, Qiandong; Chen, Guowei; Pascalis, Olivier; Lee, Kang

    2015-01-01

    The present study examined the effect of visual experience on the magnitude of a novel eye-size illusion: when the size of a face’s frame is increased or decreased but eye size is unchanged, observers judge the size of the eyes to be different from that in the original face frame. In the current study, we asked Chinese and Caucasian participants to judge eye size in different pairs of faces and measured the magnitude of the illusion when the faces were own- or other-age (adult vs. infant faces) and when the faces were own- or other-race (Chinese vs. Caucasian faces). We found an other-age effect and an other-race effect with the eye-size illusion: The illusion was more pronounced with own-race and own-age faces than with other-race and other-age faces. These findings taken together suggest that visual experience with faces influences the magnitude of this novel illusion. Extensive experience with certain face categories strengthens the illusion in the context of these categories, but lack of it reduces the magnitude of the illusion. Our results further imply that holistic processing may play an important role in engendering the eye-size illusion. PMID:26048685

  13. Neural correlates of cognitive aging during the perception of facial age: the role of relatively distant and local texture information

    PubMed Central

    Komes, Jessica; Schweinberger, Stefan R.; Wiese, Holger

    2015-01-01

    Previous event-related potential (ERP) research revealed that older relative to younger adults show reduced inversion effects in the N170 (with more negative amplitudes for inverted than upright faces), suggestive of impairments in face perception. However, as these studies used young to middle-aged faces only, this finding may reflect preferential processing of own- relative to other-age faces rather than age-related decline. We conducted an ERP study in which young and older participants categorized young and old upright or inverted faces by age. Stimuli were presented either unfiltered or low-pass filtered at 30, 20, or 10 cycles per image (CPI). Response times revealed larger inversion effects, with slower responses for inverted faces, for young faces in young participants. Older participants did not show a corresponding effect. ERPs yielded a trend toward reduced N170 inversion effects in older relative to younger adults independent of face age. Moreover, larger inversion effects for young relative to old faces were detected, and filtering resulted in smaller N170 amplitudes. The reduced N170 inversion effect in older adults may reflect age-related changes in neural correlates of face perception. A smaller N170 inversion effect for old faces may indicate that facial changes with age hamper early face perception stages. PMID:26441790

  14. Inverse spin Hall effect in a closed loop circuit

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Omori, Y.; Auvray, F.; Wakamura, T.

    We present measurements of inverse spin Hall effects (ISHEs), in which the conversion of a spin current into a charge current via the ISHE is detected not as a voltage in a standard open circuit but directly as the charge current generated in a closed loop. The method is applied to the ISHEs of Bi-doped Cu and Pt. The derived expression of ISHE for the loop structure can relate the charge current flowing into the loop to the spin Hall angle of the SHE material and the resistance of the loop.

  15. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging to explore the flashed face distortion effect.

    PubMed

    Wen, Tanya; Kung, Chun-Chia

    2014-10-27

    The flashed face distortion (FFD) effect was coined by Tangen, Murphy, and Thompson (2011) in their second-place winner of the 2012 Best Illusion of the Year Contest. The FFD arises when people view various eye-aligned faces that are sequentially flashed in the visual periphery, and gradually the faces appear to be deformed and grotesque. In this functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study, participants were presented with four conditions: (a) one face pair changing only its illumination; (b) two and (c) three alternating face pairs; and (d) nonrepeated face pairs. Participants rated the magnitude of each illusion immediately after each block. Results showed that the receptive region of the early visual cortex (V1-V4), and category-selective areas such as the fusiform face area (FFA) and occipital face area (OFA), responded proportionally to the participants' rated FFD strength. A random-effects voxelwise analysis further revealed positively correlated areas (including the medial and superolateral frontal areas) and negatively correlated areas (including the precuneus, postcentral gyrus, right insula, and bilateral middle frontal gyri) with respect to participants' ratings. Time series correlations among these nine ROIs (four positive and five negative) indicated that most participants showed a clustering of the two separate ROI types. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) also demonstrated the segregation of the positive and negative ROIs; additionally, two subsystems were identified within the negative ROIs. These results suggest that the FFD is mediated by at least two networks: one that is likely responsible for perception and another that is likely responsible for subjective feelings and engagement. © 2014 ARVO.

  16. Comparative investigation of the effectiveness of face-to-face verbal training and educational pamphlets on readiness of patients before undergoing non-emergency surgeries

    PubMed Central

    Noorian, Cobra; Aein, Fereshteh

    2015-01-01

    Background: The thought of having a surgery can be stressful for everyone. Providing the necessary information to the patient can help both the patient and the treatment team. This study was conducted to compare the effectiveness of face-to-face verbal training and educational pamphlets on the readiness of patients for undergoing non-emergency surgeries. Materials and Methods: The study was a before–after randomized clinical trial. 90 patients scheduled to undergo non-emergency surgery who referred to Shahrekord Ayatollah Kashani Hospital in 2013 were distributed randomly and gradually into two experimental groups (group of face-to-face verbal training and group of educational pamphlet) and one control group. Dependent variable of the study was pre-surgery readiness. Data analysis was carried out by using SPSS statistical software. Statistical analysis were analysis of variance (ANOVA) and correlation test. Results: Results showed that the mean scores of pre-surgery readiness in both interventional groups were significantly higher than that in the control group after the intervention (P < 0.05). However, there was no significant difference between the two experimental groups (P > 0.05). Conclusions: Each of the methods of face-to-face verbal education and using the pamphlet could be equally effective in improving the readiness of the patients undergoing surgery. Therefore, in environments where the health care providers are facing with the pressure of work and lack of sufficient time for face-to-face verbal training, suitable educational pamphlets can be used to provide the necessary information to patients and prepare them for surgery. PMID:26097859

  17. Comparative investigation of the effectiveness of face-to-face verbal training and educational pamphlets on readiness of patients before undergoing non-emergency surgeries.

    PubMed

    Noorian, Cobra; Aein, Fereshteh

    2015-01-01

    The thought of having a surgery can be stressful for everyone. Providing the necessary information to the patient can help both the patient and the treatment team. This study was conducted to compare the effectiveness of face-to-face verbal training and educational pamphlets on the readiness of patients for undergoing non-emergency surgeries. The study was a before-after randomized clinical trial. 90 patients scheduled to undergo non-emergency surgery who referred to Shahrekord Ayatollah Kashani Hospital in 2013 were distributed randomly and gradually into two experimental groups (group of face-to-face verbal training and group of educational pamphlet) and one control group. Dependent variable of the study was pre-surgery readiness. Data analysis was carried out by using SPSS statistical software. Statistical analysis were analysis of variance (ANOVA) and correlation test. Results showed that the mean scores of pre-surgery readiness in both interventional groups were significantly higher than that in the control group after the intervention (P < 0.05). However, there was no significant difference between the two experimental groups (P > 0.05). Each of the methods of face-to-face verbal education and using the pamphlet could be equally effective in improving the readiness of the patients undergoing surgery. Therefore, in environments where the health care providers are facing with the pressure of work and lack of sufficient time for face-to-face verbal training, suitable educational pamphlets can be used to provide the necessary information to patients and prepare them for surgery.

  18. Effects of color information on face processing using event-related potentials and gamma oscillations.

    PubMed

    Minami, T; Goto, K; Kitazaki, M; Nakauchi, S

    2011-03-10

    In humans, face configuration, contour and color may affect face perception, which is important for social interactions. This study aimed to determine the effect of color information on face perception by measuring event-related potentials (ERPs) during the presentation of natural- and bluish-colored faces. Our results demonstrated that the amplitude of the N170 event-related potential, which correlates strongly with face processing, was higher in response to a bluish-colored face than to a natural-colored face. However, gamma-band activity was insensitive to the deviation from a natural face color. These results indicated that color information affects the N170 associated with a face detection mechanism, which suggests that face color is important for face detection. Copyright © 2011 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Comparative Effectiveness and Student Choice for Online and Face-to-Face Classwork

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Nemetz, Patricia Louise; Eager, Wendy M.; Limpaphayom, Wanthanee

    2017-01-01

    The authors examined learning and task choices made by students when the same interactive course design was used online and face-to-face. A survey was administered in an operations management course covering both conceptual and quantitative topics. Course grades were compared and correlations were measured to determine relevant relationships.…

  20. A specialized face-processing model inspired by the organization of monkey face patches explains several face-specific phenomena observed in humans

    PubMed Central

    Farzmahdi, Amirhossein; Rajaei, Karim; Ghodrati, Masoud; Ebrahimpour, Reza; Khaligh-Razavi, Seyed-Mahdi

    2016-01-01

    Converging reports indicate that face images are processed through specialized neural networks in the brain –i.e. face patches in monkeys and the fusiform face area (FFA) in humans. These studies were designed to find out how faces are processed in visual system compared to other objects. Yet, the underlying mechanism of face processing is not completely revealed. Here, we show that a hierarchical computational model, inspired by electrophysiological evidence on face processing in primates, is able to generate representational properties similar to those observed in monkey face patches (posterior, middle and anterior patches). Since the most important goal of sensory neuroscience is linking the neural responses with behavioral outputs, we test whether the proposed model, which is designed to account for neural responses in monkey face patches, is also able to predict well-documented behavioral face phenomena observed in humans. We show that the proposed model satisfies several cognitive face effects such as: composite face effect and the idea of canonical face views. Our model provides insights about the underlying computations that transfer visual information from posterior to anterior face patches. PMID:27113635

  1. Early sensitivity for eyes within faces: a new neuronal account of holistic and featural processing

    PubMed Central

    Nemrodov, Dan; Anderson, Thomas; Preston, Frank F.; Itier, Roxane J.

    2017-01-01

    Eyes are central to face processing however their role in early face encoding as reflected by the N170 ERP component is unclear. Using eye tracking to enforce fixation on specific facial features, we found that the N170 was larger for fixation on the eyes compared to fixation on the forehead, nasion, nose or mouth, which all yielded similar amplitudes. This eye sensitivity was seen in both upright and inverted faces and was lost in eyeless faces, demonstrating it was due to the presence of eyes at fovea. Upright eyeless faces elicited largest N170 at nose fixation. Importantly, the N170 face inversion effect (FIE) was strongly attenuated in eyeless faces when fixation was on the eyes but was less attenuated for nose fixation and was normal when fixation was on the mouth. These results suggest the impact of eye removal on the N170 FIE is a function of the angular distance between the fixated feature and the eye location. We propose the Lateral Inhibition, Face Template and Eye Detector based (LIFTED) model which accounts for all the present N170 results including the FIE and its interaction with eye removal. Although eyes elicit the largest N170 response, reflecting the activity of an eye detector, the processing of upright faces is holistic and entails an inhibitory mechanism from neurons coding parafoveal information onto neurons coding foveal information. The LIFTED model provides a neuronal account of holistic and featural processing involved in upright and inverted faces and offers precise predictions for further testing. PMID:24768932

  2. The cerebral correlates of subliminal emotions: an eleoencephalographic study with emotional hybrid faces.

    PubMed

    Prete, Giulia; Capotosto, Paolo; Zappasodi, Filippo; Laeng, Bruno; Tommasi, Luca

    2015-12-01

    In a high-resolution electroencephalographic study, participants evaluated the friendliness level of upright and inverted 'hybrid faces', i.e. facial photos containing a subliminal emotional core in the low spatial frequencies (< 6 cycles/image), superimposed on a neutral expression in the rest of the spatial frequencies. Upright happy and angry faces were judged as more friendly or less friendly than neutral faces, respectively. We observed the time course of cerebral correlates of these stimuli with event-related potentials (ERPs), confirming that hybrid faces elicited the posterior emotion-related and face-related components (P1, N170 and P2), previously shown to be engaged by non-subliminal emotional stimuli. In addition, these components were stronger in the right hemisphere and were both enhanced and delayed by face inversion. A frontal positivity (210-300 ms) was stronger for emotional than for neutral faces, and for upright than for inverted faces. Hence, hybrid faces represent an original approach in the study of subliminal emotions, which appears promising for investigating their electrophysiological correlates. © 2015 Federation of European Neuroscience Societies and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  3. Inverse spin Hall and spin rectification effects in NiFe/FeMn exchange-biased thin films

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Garcia, W. J. S.; Seeger, R. L.; da Silva, R. B.; Harres, A.

    2017-11-01

    Materials presenting high spin-orbit coupling are able to convert spin currents in charge currents. The phenomenon, known as inverse spin Hall effect, promises to revolutionize spintronic technology enabling the electrical detection of spin currents. It has been observed in a variety of systems, usually non-magnetic metals. We study the voltage emerging in exchange biased Ta/NiFe/FeMn/Ta thin films near the ferromagnetic resonance. Measured signals are related to both inverse spin Hall and spin rectification effects, and two distinct protocols were employed to separate their contributions.The curve shift due to the exchange bias effect may enable high frequency applications without an external applied magnetic field.

  4. Atmospheric inversion for cost effective quantification of city CO2 emissions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wu, L.; Broquet, G.; Ciais, P.; Bellassen, V.; Vogel, F.; Chevallier, F.; Xueref-Remy, I.; Wang, Y.

    2015-11-01

    Cities, currently covering only a very small portion (< 3 %) of the world's land surface, directly release to the atmosphere about 44 % of global energy-related CO2, and are associated with 71-76 % of CO2 emissions from global final energy use. Although many cities have set voluntary climate plans, their CO2 emissions are not evaluated by Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) procedures that play a key role for market- or policy-based mitigation actions. Here we propose a monitoring tool that could support the development of such procedures at the city scale. It is based on an atmospheric inversion method that exploits inventory data and continuous atmospheric CO2 concentration measurements from a network of stations within and around cities to estimate city CO2 emissions. We examine the cost-effectiveness and the performance of such a tool. The instruments presently used to measure CO2 concentrations at research stations are expensive. However, cheaper sensors are currently developed and should be useable for the monitoring of CO2 emissions from a megacity in the near-term. Our assessment of the inversion method is thus based on the use of several types of hypothetical networks, with a range of numbers of sensors sampling at 25 m a.g.l. The study case for this assessment is the monitoring of the emissions of the Paris metropolitan area (~ 12 million inhabitants and 11.4 Tg C emitted in 2010) during the month of January 2011. The performance of the inversion is evaluated in terms of uncertainties in the estimates of total and sectoral CO2 emissions. These uncertainties are compared to a notional ambitious target to diagnose annual total city emissions with an uncertainty of 5 % (2-sigma). We find that, with 10 stations only, which is the typical size of current pilot networks that are deployed in some cities, the uncertainty for the 1-month total city CO2 emissions is significantly reduced by the inversion by ~ 42 % but still corresponds to an annual

  5. Reassessing the 3/4 view effect in face recognition.

    PubMed

    Liu, Chang Hong; Chaudhuri, Avi

    2002-02-01

    It is generally accepted that unfamiliar faces are better recognized if presented in 3/4 view. A common interpretation of this result is that the 3/4 view represents a canonical view for faces. This article presents a critical review of this claim. Two kinds of advantage, in which a 3/4 view either generalizes better to a different view or produces better recognition in the same view, are discussed. Our analysis of the literature shows that the first effect almost invariably depended on different amounts of angular rotation that was present between learning and test views. The advantage usually vanished when angular rotation was equalized between conditions. Reports in favor of the second effect are scant and can be countered by studies reporting negative findings. To clarify this ambiguity, we conducted a recognition experiment. Subjects were trained and tested on the same three views (full-face, 3/4 and profile). The results showed no difference between the three view conditions. Our analysis of the literature, along with the new results, shows that the evidence for a 3/4 view advantage in both categories is weak at best. We suggest that a better predictor of performance for recognition in different views is the angular difference between learning and test views. For recognition in the same view, there may be a wide range of views whose effectiveness is comparable to the 3/4 view.

  6. Priming global and local processing of composite faces: revisiting the processing-bias effect on face perception.

    PubMed

    Gao, Zaifeng; Flevaris, Anastasia V; Robertson, Lynn C; Bentin, Shlomo

    2011-07-01

    We used the composite-face illusion and Navon stimuli to determine the consequences of priming local or global processing on subsequent face recognition. The composite-face illusion reflects the difficulty of ignoring the task-irrelevant half-face while attending the task-relevant half if the half-faces in the composite are aligned. On each trial, participants first matched two Navon stimuli, attending to either the global or the local level, and then matched the upper halves of two composite faces presented sequentially. Global processing of Navon stimuli increased the sensitivity to incongruence between the upper and the lower halves of the composite face, relative to a baseline in which the composite faces were not primed. Local processing of Navon stimuli did not influence the sensitivity to incongruence. Although incongruence induced a bias toward different responses, this bias was not modulated by priming. We conclude that global processing of Navon stimuli augments holistic processing of the face.

  7. Face familiarity promotes stable identity recognition: exploring face perception using serial dependence

    PubMed Central

    Kok, Rebecca; Van der Burg, Erik; Rhodes, Gillian; Alais, David

    2017-01-01

    Studies suggest that familiar faces are processed in a manner distinct from unfamiliar faces and that familiarity with a face confers an advantage in identity recognition. Our visual system seems to capitalize on experience to build stable face representations that are impervious to variation in retinal input that may occur due to changes in lighting, viewpoint, viewing distance, eye movements, etc. Emerging evidence also suggests that our visual system maintains a continuous perception of a face's identity from one moment to the next despite the retinal input variations through serial dependence. This study investigates whether interactions occur between face familiarity and serial dependence. In two experiments, participants used a continuous scale to rate attractiveness of unfamiliar and familiar faces (either experimentally learned or famous) presented in rapid sequences. Both experiments revealed robust inter-trial effects in which attractiveness ratings for a given face depended on the preceding face's attractiveness. This inter-trial attractiveness effect was most pronounced for unfamiliar faces. Indeed, when participants were familiar with a given face, attractiveness ratings showed significantly less serial dependence. These results represent the first evidence that familiar faces can resist the temporal integration seen in sequential dependencies and highlight the importance of familiarity to visual cognition. PMID:28405355

  8. Spontaneous Water Oxidation at Hematite (α-Fe2O3) Crystal Faces

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Chatman, Shawn ME; Zarzycki, Piotr P.; Rosso, Kevin M.

    2015-01-28

    Hematite (α-Fe2O3) persists as a promising candidate for photoelectrochemical water splitting but a slow oxygen evolution reaction (OER) at its surfaces remains a limitation. Here we extend a series of studies that examine pH-dependent surface potentials and electron transfer properties of effectively perfect low-index crystal faces of hematite in contact with simple electrolyte. Zero resistance amperometry was performed in a two electrode configuration to quantify spontaneous dark current between hematite crystal face pairs (001)/(012), (001)/(113), and (012)/(113) at pH 3. Exponentially decaying currents initially of up to 200 nA were reported between faces over four minute experiments. Fourth order ZRAmore » kinetics indicated rate limitation by the OER for current that flows between (001)/(012) and (001)/(113) face pairs, with the (012) and (113) faces serving as the anodes when paired with (001). The cathodic partner reaction is reductive dissolution of the (001) face, converting surface Fe3+ to solubilized aqueous Fe2+, at a rate maintained by the OER at the anode. In contrast, OER rate limitation does not manifest for the (012)/(113) pair. The uniqueness of the (001) face is established in terms of a faster intrinsic ability to accept the protons required for the reductive dissolution reaction. OER rate limitation inversely may thus arise from sluggish kinetics of hematite surfaces to dispense with the protons that accompany the four-electron OER. The results are explained in terms of semi-quantitative energy band diagrams. The finding may be useful as a consideration for tailoring the design of polycrystalline hematite photoanodes that present multiple terminations to the interface with electrolyte.« less

  9. The effect of face-to-face teaching on student knowledge and satisfaction in an undergraduate neuroanatomy course.

    PubMed

    Whillier, Stephney; Lystad, Reidar P

    2013-01-01

    The total number of anatomy teaching hours has declined in medical courses worldwide. Conversely, face-to-face teaching in undergraduate neuroanatomy at Macquarie University increased by 50% in 2011. Our aim was to investigate whether this influenced student performance and overall satisfaction with the course. One hundred eighty-one students consented to participate in this study. A questionnaire was administered to rate the course, and final grades from the old and new unit cohorts were compared. The old and new unit cohorts did not differ in their final grades (P = 0.249). However, the new unit cohort rated their knowledge of the material higher compared to the old unit cohort (P = 0.013), and reported higher levels of satisfaction with the course (P < 0.001). In an era in which teaching time for anatomy has been reduced at tertiary institutions, and there is much lamenting of the effect this will have, there is a paucity of literature on whether the decrease really influences neuroanatomical knowledge. This is the first study, to the best of our knowledge, to show that an increase in total face-to-face teaching hours does not improve student grades, but does increase student satisfaction with the course. © 2012 American Association of Anatomists.

  10. Face Adaptation Effects: Reviewing the Impact of Adapting Information, Time, and Transfer

    PubMed Central

    Strobach, Tilo; Carbon, Claus-Christian

    2013-01-01

    The ability to adapt is essential to live and survive in an ever-changing environment such as the human ecosystem. Here we review the literature on adaptation effects of face stimuli to give an overview of existing findings in this area, highlight gaps in its research literature, initiate new directions in face adaptation research, and help to design future adaptation studies. Furthermore, this review should lead to better understanding of the processing characteristics as well as the mental representations of face-relevant information. The review systematizes studies at a behavioral level in respect of a framework which includes three dimensions representing the major characteristics of studies in this field of research. These dimensions comprise (1) the specificity of adapting face information, e.g., identity, gender, or age aspects of the material to be adapted to (2) aspects of timing (e.g., the sustainability of adaptation effects) and (3) transfer relations between face images presented during adaptation and adaptation tests (e.g., images of the same or different identities). The review concludes with options for how to combine findings across different dimensions to demonstrate the relevance of our framework for future studies. PMID:23760550

  11. CSAMT Data Processing with Source Effect and Static Corrections, Application of Occam's Inversion, and Its Application in Geothermal System

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hamdi, H.; Qausar, A. M.; Srigutomo, W.

    2016-08-01

    Controlled source audio-frequency magnetotellurics (CSAMT) is a frequency-domain electromagnetic sounding technique which uses a fixed grounded dipole as an artificial signal source. Measurement of CSAMT with finite distance between transmitter and receiver caused a complex wave. The shifted of the electric field due to the static effect caused elevated resistivity curve up or down and affects the result of measurement. The objective of this study was to obtain data that have been corrected for source and static effects as to have the same characteristic as MT data which are assumed to exhibit plane wave properties. Corrected CSAMT data were inverted to reveal subsurface resistivity model. Source effect correction method was applied to eliminate the effect of the signal source and static effect was corrected by using spatial filtering technique. Inversion method that used in this study is the Occam's 2D Inversion. The results of inversion produces smooth models with a small misfit value, it means the model can describe subsurface conditions well. Based on the result of inversion was predicted measurement area is rock that has high permeability values with rich hot fluid.

  12. Attention-Orienting and Attention-Holding Effects of Faces on 4- to 8-Month-Old Infants

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    DeNicola, Christopher A.; Holt, Nicholas A.; Lambert, Amy J.; Cashon, Cara H.

    2013-01-01

    Attention-orienting and attention-holding effects of faces were investigated in a sample of 64 children, aged 4 to 8 months old. A visual preference task was used, in which pairs of faces and toys were presented in eight 10-second trials. Effects of age and sitting-ability were examined. Attention-orienting toward faces was measured using the…

  13. Characterizing the impact of model error in hydrologic time series recovery inverse problems

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Hansen, Scott K.; He, Jiachuan; Vesselinov, Velimir V.

    Hydrologic models are commonly over-smoothed relative to reality, owing to computational limitations and to the difficulty of obtaining accurate high-resolution information. When used in an inversion context, such models may introduce systematic biases which cannot be encapsulated by an unbiased “observation noise” term of the type assumed by standard regularization theory and typical Bayesian formulations. Despite its importance, model error is difficult to encapsulate systematically and is often neglected. In this paper, model error is considered for an important class of inverse problems that includes interpretation of hydraulic transients and contaminant source history inference: reconstruction of a time series thatmore » has been convolved against a transfer function (i.e., impulse response) that is only approximately known. Using established harmonic theory along with two results established here regarding triangular Toeplitz matrices, upper and lower error bounds are derived for the effect of systematic model error on time series recovery for both well-determined and over-determined inverse problems. It is seen that use of additional measurement locations does not improve expected performance in the face of model error. A Monte Carlo study of a realistic hydraulic reconstruction problem is presented, and the lower error bound is seen informative about expected behavior. Finally, a possible diagnostic criterion for blind transfer function characterization is also uncovered.« less

  14. Characterizing the impact of model error in hydrologic time series recovery inverse problems

    DOE PAGES

    Hansen, Scott K.; He, Jiachuan; Vesselinov, Velimir V.

    2017-10-28

    Hydrologic models are commonly over-smoothed relative to reality, owing to computational limitations and to the difficulty of obtaining accurate high-resolution information. When used in an inversion context, such models may introduce systematic biases which cannot be encapsulated by an unbiased “observation noise” term of the type assumed by standard regularization theory and typical Bayesian formulations. Despite its importance, model error is difficult to encapsulate systematically and is often neglected. In this paper, model error is considered for an important class of inverse problems that includes interpretation of hydraulic transients and contaminant source history inference: reconstruction of a time series thatmore » has been convolved against a transfer function (i.e., impulse response) that is only approximately known. Using established harmonic theory along with two results established here regarding triangular Toeplitz matrices, upper and lower error bounds are derived for the effect of systematic model error on time series recovery for both well-determined and over-determined inverse problems. It is seen that use of additional measurement locations does not improve expected performance in the face of model error. A Monte Carlo study of a realistic hydraulic reconstruction problem is presented, and the lower error bound is seen informative about expected behavior. Finally, a possible diagnostic criterion for blind transfer function characterization is also uncovered.« less

  15. Neural Mechanisms of Context Effects on Face Recognition: Automatic Binding and Context Shift Decrements

    PubMed Central

    Hayes, Scott M.; Baena, Elsa; Truong, Trong-Kha; Cabeza, Roberto

    2011-01-01

    Although people do not normally try to remember associations between faces and physical contexts, these associations are established automatically, as indicated by the difficulty of recognizing familiar faces in different contexts (“butcher-on-the-bus” phenomenon). The present functional MRI (fMRI) study investigated the automatic binding of faces and scenes. In the Face-Face (F-F) condition, faces were presented alone during both encoding and retrieval, whereas in the Face/Scene-Face (FS-F) condition, they were presented overlaid on scenes during encoding but alone during retrieval (context change). Although participants were instructed to focus only on the faces during both encoding and retrieval, recognition performance was worse in the FS-F than the F-F condition (“context shift decrement”—CSD), confirming automatic face-scene binding during encoding. This binding was mediated by the hippocampus as indicated by greater subsequent memory effects (remembered > forgotten) in this region for the FS-F than the F-F condition. Scene memory was mediated by the right parahippocampal cortex, which was reactivated during successful retrieval when the faces were associated with a scene during encoding (FS-F condition). Analyses using the CSD as a regressor yielded a clear hemispheric asymmetry in medial temporal lobe activity during encoding: left hippocampal and parahippocampal activity was associated with a smaller CSD, indicating more flexible memory representations immune to context changes, whereas right hippocampal/rhinal activity was associated with a larger CSD, indicating less flexible representations sensitive to context change. Taken together, the results clarify the neural mechanisms of context effects on face recognition. PMID:19925208

  16. Online or Face to Face? A Comparison of Two Methods of Training Professionals

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dillon, Kristin; Dworkin, Jodi; Gengler, Colleen; Olson, Kathleen

    2008-01-01

    Online courses offer benefits over face-to-face courses such as accessibility, affordability, and flexibility. Literature assessing the effectiveness of face-to-face and online courses is growing, but findings remain inconclusive. This study compared evaluations completed by professionals who had taken a research update short course either face to…

  17. Salt-induced effects on natural and inverse DPPC lipid membranes: Molecular dynamics simulation.

    PubMed

    Rezaei Sani, Seyed Mojtaba; Akhavan, Mojdeh; Jalili, Seifollah

    2018-08-01

    Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of a dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) bilayer and its neutral inverse-phosphocholine equivalent (DPCPe) were performed to find salt-induced effects on their surface structure and the nature of ion-lipid interactions. We found that the area per lipid is not considerably affected by the inversion, but the deuterium order parameter of carbon atoms in the region of carbonyl carbons changes dramatically. MD simulations indicate that Ca 2+ ions can bind to the surface of both DPPC and DPCPe membranes, but K + ions do not bind to them. In the case of Na + , however, the ions can bind to natural lipids but not to the inverse ones. Also, our results demonstrate that the hydration level of CPe bilayers is substantially lower than PC bilayers and the averaged orientation of water dipoles in the region of CPe headgroups is effectively inverted compared to PC lipids. This might be important in the interaction of the bilayer with its biological environment. Furthermore, it was found for the CPe bilayers that the enhanced peaks of the electrostatic potential profiles shift further away from the bilayer center relative to those of PC bilayers. This behavior makes the penetration of cations into the bilayer more difficult and possibly explains the experimentally observed enhanced release rates of anionic compounds in the CPe membrane. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  18. A causal relationship between face-patch activity and face-detection behavior.

    PubMed

    Sadagopan, Srivatsun; Zarco, Wilbert; Freiwald, Winrich A

    2017-04-04

    The primate brain contains distinct areas densely populated by face-selective neurons. One of these, face-patch ML, contains neurons selective for contrast relationships between face parts. Such contrast-relationships can serve as powerful heuristics for face detection. However, it is unknown whether neurons with such selectivity actually support face-detection behavior. Here, we devised a naturalistic face-detection task and combined it with fMRI-guided pharmacological inactivation of ML to test whether ML is of critical importance for real-world face detection. We found that inactivation of ML impairs face detection. The effect was anatomically specific, as inactivation of areas outside ML did not affect face detection, and it was categorically specific, as inactivation of ML impaired face detection while sparing body and object detection. These results establish that ML function is crucial for detection of faces in natural scenes, performing a critical first step on which other face processing operations can build.

  19. The effect of encoding strategy on the neural correlates of memory for faces.

    PubMed

    Bernstein, Lori J; Beig, Sania; Siegenthaler, Amy L; Grady, Cheryl L

    2002-01-01

    Encoding and recognition of unfamiliar faces in young adults were examined using positron emission tomography to determine whether different encoding strategies would lead to encoding/retrieval differences in brain activity. Three types of encoding were compared: a 'deep' task (judging pleasantness/unpleasantness), a 'shallow' task (judging right/left orientation), and an intentional learning task in which subjects were instructed to learn the faces for a subsequent memory test but were not provided with a specific strategy. Memory for all faces was tested with an old/new recognition test. A modest behavioral effect was obtained, with deeply-encoded faces being recognized more accurately than shallowly-encoded or intentionally-learned faces. Regardless of encoding strategy, encoding activated a primarily ventral system including bilateral temporal and fusiform regions and left prefrontal cortices, whereas recognition activated a primarily dorsal set of regions including right prefrontal and parietal areas. Within encoding, the type of strategy produced different brain activity patterns, with deep encoding being characterized by left amygdala and left anterior cingulate activation. There was no effect of encoding strategy on brain activity during the recognition conditions. Posterior fusiform gyrus activation was related to better recognition accuracy in those conditions encouraging perceptual strategies, whereas activity in left frontal and temporal areas correlated with better performance during the 'deep' condition. Results highlight three important aspects of face memory: (1) the effect of encoding strategy was seen only at encoding and not at recognition; (2) left inferior prefrontal cortex was engaged during encoding of faces regardless of strategy; and (3) differential activity in fusiform gyrus was found, suggesting that activity in this area is not only a result of automatic face processing but is modulated by controlled processes.

  20. Postencoding cognitive processes in the cross-race effect: Categorization and individuation during face recognition.

    PubMed

    Ho, Michael R; Pezdek, Kathy

    2016-06-01

    The cross-race effect (CRE) describes the finding that same-race faces are recognized more accurately than cross-race faces. According to social-cognitive theories of the CRE, processes of categorization and individuation at encoding account for differential recognition of same- and cross-race faces. Recent face memory research has suggested that similar but distinct categorization and individuation processes also occur postencoding, at recognition. Using a divided-attention paradigm, in Experiments 1A and 1B we tested and confirmed the hypothesis that distinct postencoding categorization and individuation processes occur during the recognition of same- and cross-race faces. Specifically, postencoding configural divided-attention tasks impaired recognition accuracy more for same-race than for cross-race faces; on the other hand, for White (but not Black) participants, postencoding featural divided-attention tasks impaired recognition accuracy more for cross-race than for same-race faces. A social categorization paradigm used in Experiments 2A and 2B tested the hypothesis that the postencoding in-group or out-group social orientation to faces affects categorization and individuation processes during the recognition of same-race and cross-race faces. Postencoding out-group orientation to faces resulted in categorization for White but not for Black participants. This was evidenced by White participants' impaired recognition accuracy for same-race but not for cross-race out-group faces. Postencoding in-group orientation to faces had no effect on recognition accuracy for either same-race or cross-race faces. The results of Experiments 2A and 2B suggest that this social orientation facilitates White but not Black participants' individuation and categorization processes at recognition. Models of recognition memory for same-race and cross-race faces need to account for processing differences that occur at both encoding and recognition.

  1. Plasmon mediated inverse Faraday effect in a graphene-dielectric-metal structure.

    PubMed

    Bychkov, Igor V; Kuzmin, Dmitry A; Tolkachev, Valentine A; Plaksin, Pavel S; Shavrov, Vladimir G

    2018-01-01

    This Letter shows the features of inverse Faraday effect (IFE) in a graphene-dielectric-metal (GDM) structure. The constants of propagation and attenuation of the surface plasmon-polariton modes are calculated. The effective magnetic field induced by surface plasmon modes in the dielectric due to the IFE is estimated to reach above 1 tesla. The possibility to control the distribution of the magnetic field by chemical potential of graphene is shown. The concept of strain-driven control of the IFE in the structure has been proposed and investigated.

  2. The Effects of Health Education through Face To Face Teaching and Educational Movies, on Suburban Women in Childbearing Age.

    PubMed

    Vameghi, R; Mohammad, K; Karimloo, M; Soleimani, F; Sajedi, F

    2010-01-01

    The aim of the study was to compare the effects of 'face-to-face education' and 'educational movies' on 'knowledge' and 'practice' of women of child-bearing-age, in terms of health-care during pregnancy and during infancy in a suburban region near Tehran City, Iran. In this quasi-experimental study, the sample included 873 married women. Questionnaires for knowledge and practice assessment were designed. The women were assigned to three groups: control (group I), face-to-face education (group II), and educational movie (group III). Knowledge questionnaires were completed before and immediately after intervention. Practice questionnaires were completed before and three months after intervention. Both questionnaires consisted of two types of questions: type A (concerning infant care issues) and type B (concerning prenatal health care). There was a significant difference in post-test knowledge between groups I and II and between groups I and III, but not between groups II and III. In terms of post-test practice, the changes were determined for every individual question, and significantly, better results were seen in group II, especially concerning type B questions. Face to face education lead to better practice than educational movies. In addition, significantly better practice occurred regarding child health care issues rather than prenatal issues in both groups. Realistic and tangible issues, those easy to practice, and with little or no economical burden imposed on the family, progressed from the knowledge state to the practice state more successfully in both groups.

  3. Effects of Face-to-Face and Computer-Mediated Constructive Controversy on Social Interdependence, Motivation, and Achievement

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Roseth, Cary J.; Saltarelli, Andy J.; Glass, Chris R.

    2011-01-01

    Cooperative learning capitalizes on the relational processes by which peers promote learning, yet it remains unclear whether these processes operate similarly in face-to-face and online settings. This study addresses this issue by comparing face-to-face and computer-mediated versions of "constructive controversy", a cooperative learning procedure…

  4. The effect of high-top and low-top shoes on ankle inversion kinematics and muscle activation in landing on a tilted surface.

    PubMed

    Fu, Weijie; Fang, Ying; Liu, Yu; Hou, Jianfu

    2014-02-18

    There is still uncertainty concerning the beneficial effects of shoe collar height for ankle sprain prevention and very few data are available in the literature regarding the effect of high-top and low-top shoes on muscle responses during landing. The purpose of this study was to quantify the effect of high-top and low-top shoes on ankle inversion kinematics and pre-landing EMG activation of ankle evertor muscles during landing on a tilted surface. Thirteen physical education students landed on four types of surfaces wearing either high-top shoes (HS) or low-top shoes (LS). The four conditions were 15° inversion, 30° inversion, combined 25° inversion + 10° plantar flexion, and combined 25° inversion + 20° plantar flexion. Ankle inversion kinematics and EMG data of the tibialis anterior (TA), peroneus longus (PL), and peroneus brevis (PB) muscles were measured simultaneously. A 2 × 4 (shoe × surface) repeated measures ANOVA was performed to examine the effect of shoe and landing surfaces on ankle inversion and EMG responses. No significant differences were observed between the various types of shoes in the maximum ankle inversion angle, the ankle inversion range of motion, and the maximum ankle inversion angular velocity after foot contact for all conditions. However, the onset time of TA and PB muscles was significantly later wearing HS compared to LS for the 15° inversion condition. Meanwhile, the mean amplitude of the integrated EMG from the 50 ms prior to contact (aEMGpre) of TA was significantly lower with HS compared to LS for the 15° inversion condition and the combined 25° inversion + 20° plantarflexion condition. Similarly, the aEMGpre when wearing HS compared to LS also showed a 37.2% decrease in PL and a 31.0% decrease in PB for the combined 25° inversion + 20° plantarflexion condition and the 15° inversion condition, respectively. These findings provide preliminary evidence suggesting that wearing high-top shoes

  5. Fitness consequences of polymorphic inversions in the zebra finch genome.

    PubMed

    Knief, Ulrich; Hemmrich-Stanisak, Georg; Wittig, Michael; Franke, Andre; Griffith, Simon C; Kempenaers, Bart; Forstmeier, Wolfgang

    2016-09-29

    Inversion polymorphisms constitute an evolutionary puzzle: they should increase embryo mortality in heterokaryotypic individuals but still they are widespread in some taxa. Some insect species have evolved mechanisms to reduce the cost of embryo mortality but humans have not. In birds, a detailed analysis is missing although intraspecific inversion polymorphisms are regarded as common. In Australian zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata), two polymorphic inversions are known cytogenetically and we set out to detect these two and potentially additional inversions using genomic tools and study their effects on embryo mortality and other fitness-related and morphological traits. Using whole-genome SNP data, we screened 948 wild zebra finches for polymorphic inversions and describe four large (12-63 Mb) intraspecific inversion polymorphisms with allele frequencies close to 50 %. Using additional data from 5229 birds and 9764 eggs from wild and three captive zebra finch populations, we show that only the largest inversions increase embryo mortality in heterokaryotypic males, with surprisingly small effect sizes. We test for a heterozygote advantage on other fitness components but find no evidence for heterosis for any of the inversions. Yet, we find strong additive effects on several morphological traits. The mechanism that has carried the derived inversion haplotypes to such high allele frequencies remains elusive. It appears that selection has effectively minimized the costs associated with inversions in zebra finches. The highly skewed distribution of recombination events towards the chromosome ends in zebra finches and other estrildid species may function to minimize crossovers in the inverted regions.

  6. The face-specific proportion congruency effect: social stimuli as contextual cues.

    PubMed

    Jiménez-Moya, Gloria; Rodríguez-Bailón, Rosa; Lupiáñez, Juan

    2018-06-18

    Previous research shows that larger interference is observed in contexts associated with a high proportion of congruent trials than in those associated with a low proportion of congruent trials. Given that one of the most relevant contexts for human beings is social context, researchers have recently explored the possibility that social stimuli could also work as contextual cues for the allocation of attentional control. In fact, it has been shown that individuals use social categories (i.e., men and women) as cues to allocate attentional control. In this work, we go further by showing that individual faces (instead of the social categories they belong to) associated with a high proportion of congruent trials can also lead to larger interference effects compared to individual faces predicting a relatively low proportion of congruent trials. Furthermore, we show that faces associated with a high proportion of congruent trials are more positively evaluated than faces associated with a high proportion of incongruent trials. These results demonstrate that unique human faces are potential contextual cues than can be employed to apply cognitive control when performing an automatic task.

  7. Neutron irradiation effects on plasma facing materials

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Barabash, V.; Federici, G.; Rödig, M.; Snead, L. L.; Wu, C. H.

    2000-12-01

    This paper reviews the effects of neutron irradiation on thermal and mechanical properties and bulk tritium retention of armour materials (beryllium, tungsten and carbon). For each material, the main properties affected by neutron irradiation are described and the specific tests of neutron irradiated armour materials under thermal shock and disruption conditions are summarized. Based on current knowledge, the expected thermal and structural performance of neutron irradiated armour materials in the ITER plasma facing components are analysed.

  8. Combined Effects of Gaze and Orientation of Faces on Person Judgments in Social Situations

    PubMed Central

    Kaisler, Raphaela E.; Leder, Helmut

    2017-01-01

    In social situations, faces of others can vary simultaneously in gaze and orientation. How these variations affect different kinds of social judgments, such as attractiveness or trustworthiness, is only partly understood. Therefore, we studied how different gaze directions, head angles, but also levels of facial attractiveness affect perceived attractiveness and trustworthiness. We always presented pairs of faces – either two average attractive faces or a highly attractive together with a less attractive face. We also varied gaze and head angles showing faces in three different orientations, front, three-quarter and profile view. In Experiment 1 (N = 62), participants rated averted gaze in three-quarter views as more attractive than in front and profile views, and evaluated faces with direct gaze in front views as most trustworthy. Moreover, faces that were being looked at by another face were seen as more attractive. Independent of the head orientation or gaze direction, highly attractive faces were rated as more attractive and more trustworthy. In Experiment 2 (N = 54), we found that the three-quarter advantage vanished when the second face was blurred during judgments, which demonstrates the importance of the presence of another person-as in a triadic social situation-as well as the importance of their visible gaze. The findings emphasize that social evaluations such as trustworthiness are unaffected by the esthetic advantage of three-quarter views of two average attractive faces, and that the effect of a faces’ attractiveness is more powerful than the more subtle effects of gaze and orientations. PMID:28275364

  9. Effective Connectivity Reveals Largely Independent Parallel Networks of Face and Body Patches.

    PubMed

    Premereur, Elsie; Taubert, Jessica; Janssen, Peter; Vogels, Rufin; Vanduffel, Wim

    2016-12-19

    The primate brain processes objects in the ventral visual pathway. One object category, faces, is processed in a hierarchical network of interconnected areas along this pathway. It remains unknown whether such an interconnected network is specific for faces or whether there are similar networks for other object classes. For example, the primate inferotemporal cortex also contains a set of body-selective patches, adjacent to the face-selective patches, but it is not known whether these body-selective patches form a similar discretely connected network or whether cross-talk exists between the face- and body-processing systems. To address these questions, we combined fMRI with electrical microstimulation to determine the effective connectivity of fMRI-defined face and body patches. We found that microstimulation of face patches caused increased fMRI activation throughout the face-processing system; microstimulation of the body patches gave similar results restricted to the body-processing system. Critically, our results revealed largely segregated connectivity patterns for the body and face patches. These results suggest that face and body patches form two interconnected hierarchical networks that are largely separated within the monkey inferotemporal cortex. Only a restricted number of voxels were activated by stimulation of both the body and face patches. The latter regions may be important for the integration of face and body information. Our findings are not only essential to advance our understanding of the neural circuits that enable social cognition, but they also provide further insights into the organizing principles of the inferotemporal cortex. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. A Robust Method of Measuring Other-Race and Other-Ethnicity Effects: The Cambridge Face Memory Test Format

    PubMed Central

    McKone, Elinor; Stokes, Sacha; Liu, Jia; Cohan, Sarah; Fiorentini, Chiara; Pidcock, Madeleine; Yovel, Galit; Broughton, Mary; Pelleg, Michel

    2012-01-01

    Other-race and other-ethnicity effects on face memory have remained a topic of consistent research interest over several decades, across fields including face perception, social psychology, and forensic psychology (eyewitness testimony). Here we demonstrate that the Cambridge Face Memory Test format provides a robust method for measuring these effects. Testing the Cambridge Face Memory Test original version (CFMT-original; European-ancestry faces from Boston USA) and a new Cambridge Face Memory Test Chinese (CFMT-Chinese), with European and Asian observers, we report a race-of-face by race-of-observer interaction that was highly significant despite modest sample size and despite observers who had quite high exposure to the other race. We attribute this to high statistical power arising from the very high internal reliability of the tasks. This power also allows us to demonstrate a much smaller within-race other ethnicity effect, based on differences in European physiognomy between Boston faces/observers and Australian faces/observers (using the CFMT-Australian). PMID:23118912

  11. A comparison of the effectiveness of a game informed online learning activity and face to face teaching in increasing knowledge about managing aggression in health settings.

    PubMed

    McKenzie, Karen

    2013-12-01

    The present study compared the impact of face to face teaching with a short online game informed learning activity on health participants' knowledge about, and confidence in, managing aggressive situations. Both forms of teaching resulted in a significant increase in participants' knowledge and confidence. Face to face training led to significantly greater increases in knowledge but was equivalent in terms of confidence. Both forms of teaching were rated positively, but face to face teaching received significantly higher ratings than the online activity. The study suggests that short online game informed learning activities may offer an effective alternative for health professional training where face to face training is not possible. Further research is needed on the longer term impact of both types of training on practice.

  12. The Effects of Prediction on the Perception for Own-Race and Other-Race Faces

    PubMed Central

    Ran, Guangming; Zhang, Qi; Chen, Xu; Pan, Yangu

    2014-01-01

    Human beings do not passively perceive important social features about others such as race and age in social interactions. Instead, it is proposed that humans might continuously generate predictions about these social features based on prior similar experiences. Pre-awareness of racial information conveyed by others' faces enables individuals to act in “culturally appropriate” ways, which is useful for interpersonal relations in different ethnicity groups. However, little is known about the effects of prediction on the perception for own-race and other-race faces. Here, we addressed this issue using high temporal resolution event-related potential techniques. In total, data from 24 participants (13 women and 11 men) were analyzed. It was found that the N170 amplitudes elicited by other-race faces, but not own-race faces, were significantly smaller in the predictable condition compared to the unpredictable condition, reflecting a switch to holistic processing of other-race faces when those faces were predictable. In this respect, top-down prediction about face race might contribute to the elimination of the other-race effect (one face recognition impairment). Furthermore, smaller P300 amplitudes were observed for the predictable than for unpredictable conditions, which suggested that the prediction of race reduced the neural responses of human brains. PMID:25422892

  13. Learning, Interactional, and Motivational Outcomes in One-to-One Synchronous Computer-Mediated versus Face-to-Face Tutoring

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Siler, Stephanie Ann; VanLehn, Kurt

    2009-01-01

    Face-to-face (FTF) human-human tutoring has ranked among the most effective forms of instruction. However, because computer-mediated (CM) tutoring is becoming increasingly common, it is instructive to evaluate its effectiveness relative to face-to-face tutoring. Does the lack of spoken, face-to-face interaction affect learning gains and…

  14. Damage identification using inverse methods.

    PubMed

    Friswell, Michael I

    2007-02-15

    This paper gives an overview of the use of inverse methods in damage detection and location, using measured vibration data. Inverse problems require the use of a model and the identification of uncertain parameters of this model. Damage is often local in nature and although the effect of the loss of stiffness may require only a small number of parameters, the lack of knowledge of the location means that a large number of candidate parameters must be included. This paper discusses a number of problems that exist with this approach to health monitoring, including modelling error, environmental effects, damage localization and regularization.

  15. Holistic integration of gaze cues in visual face and body perception: Evidence from the composite design.

    PubMed

    Vrancken, Leia; Germeys, Filip; Verfaillie, Karl

    2017-01-01

    A considerable amount of research on identity recognition and emotion identification with the composite design points to the holistic processing of these aspects in faces and bodies. In this paradigm, the interference from a nonattended face half on the perception of the attended half is taken as evidence for holistic processing (i.e., a composite effect). Far less research, however, has been dedicated to the concept of gaze. Nonetheless, gaze perception is a substantial component of face and body perception, and holds critical information for everyday communicative interactions. Furthermore, the ability of human observers to detect direct versus averted eye gaze is effortless, perhaps similar to identity perception and emotion recognition. However, the hypothesis of holistic perception of eye gaze has never been tested directly. Research on gaze perception with the composite design could facilitate further systematic comparison with other aspects of face and body perception that have been investigated using the composite design (i.e., identity and emotion). In the present research, a composite design was administered to assess holistic processing of gaze cues in faces (Experiment 1) and bodies (Experiment 2). Results confirmed that eye and head orientation (Experiment 1A) and head and body orientation (Experiment 2A) are integrated in a holistic manner. However, the composite effect was not completely disrupted by inversion (Experiments 1B and 2B), a finding that will be discussed together with implications for future research.

  16. The effects of social anxiety on emotional face discrimination and its modulation by mouth salience.

    PubMed

    du Rocher, Andrew R; Pickering, Alan D

    2018-05-21

    People high in social anxiety experience fear of social situations due to the likelihood of social evaluation. Whereas happy faces are generally processed very quickly, this effect is impaired by high social anxiety. Mouth regions are implicated during emotional face processing, therefore differences in mouth salience might affect how social anxiety relates to emotional face discrimination. We designed an emotional facial expression recognition task to reveal how varying levels of sub-clinical social anxiety (measured by questionnaire) related to the discrimination of happy and fearful faces, and of happy and angry faces. We also categorised the facial expressions by the salience of the mouth region (i.e. high [open mouth] vs. low [closed mouth]). In a sample of 90 participants higher social anxiety (relative to lower social anxiety) was associated with a reduced happy face reaction time advantage. However, this effect was mainly driven by the faces with less salient closed mouths. Our results are consistent with theories of anxiety that incorporate an oversensitive valence evaluation system.

  17. Effects of an Online Learning Community on Active and Reflective Learners' Learning Performance and Attitudes in a Face-to-Face Undergraduate Course

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zhan, Zehui; Xu, Fuyin; Ye, Huiwen

    2011-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of an Online Learning Community (OLC) on active and reflective learners' learning performance and attitude in a face-to-face undergraduate digital design course. 814 freshmen in an introductory digital design course were randomly assigned to one of two treatments: one offered students an OLC,…

  18. The Use of Computer-Mediated Communication To Enhance Subsequent Face-to-Face Discussions.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dietz-Uhler, Beth; Bishop-Clark, Cathy

    2001-01-01

    Describes a study of undergraduate students that assessed the effects of synchronous (Internet chat) and asynchronous (Internet discussion board) computer-mediated communication on subsequent face-to-face discussions. Results showed that face-to-face discussions preceded by computer-mediated communication were perceived to be more enjoyable.…

  19. Electrophysiological evidence for parts and wholes in visual face memory.

    PubMed

    Towler, John; Eimer, Martin

    2016-10-01

    It is often assumed that upright faces are represented in a holistic fashion, while representations of inverted faces are essentially part-based. To assess this hypothesis, we recorded event-related potentials (ERPs) during a sequential face identity matching task where successively presented pairs of upright or inverted faces were either identical or differed with respect to their internal features, their external features, or both. Participants' task was to report on each trial whether the face pair was identical or different. To track the activation of visual face memory representations, we measured N250r components that emerge over posterior face-selective regions during the activation of visual face memory representations by a successful identity match. N250r components to full identity repetitions were smaller and emerged later for inverted as compared to upright faces, demonstrating that image inversion impairs face identity matching processes. For upright faces, N250r components were also elicited by partial repetitions of external or internal features, which suggest that the underlying identity matching processes are not exclusively based on non-decomposable holistic representations. However, the N250r to full identity repetitions was super-additive (i.e., larger than the sum of the two N250r components to partial repetitions of external or internal features) for upright faces, demonstrating that holistic representations were involved in identity matching processes. For inverted faces, N250r components to full and partial identity repetitions were strictly additive, indicating that the identity matching of external and internal features operated in an entirely part-based fashion. These results provide new electrophysiological evidence for qualitative differences between representations of upright and inverted faces in the occipital-temporal face processing system. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Test-retest reliability of effective connectivity in the face perception network.

    PubMed

    Frässle, Stefan; Paulus, Frieder Michel; Krach, Sören; Jansen, Andreas

    2016-02-01

    Computational approaches have great potential for moving neuroscience toward mechanistic models of the functional integration among brain regions. Dynamic causal modeling (DCM) offers a promising framework for inferring the effective connectivity among brain regions and thus unraveling the neural mechanisms of both normal cognitive function and psychiatric disorders. While the benefit of such approaches depends heavily on their reliability, systematic analyses of the within-subject stability are rare. Here, we present a thorough investigation of the test-retest reliability of an fMRI paradigm for DCM analysis dedicated to unraveling intra- and interhemispheric integration among the core regions of the face perception network. First, we examined the reliability of face-specific BOLD activity in 25 healthy volunteers, who performed a face perception paradigm in two separate sessions. We found good to excellent reliability of BOLD activity within the DCM-relevant regions. Second, we assessed the stability of effective connectivity among these regions by analyzing the reliability of Bayesian model selection and model parameter estimation in DCM. Reliability was excellent for the negative free energy and good for model parameter estimation, when restricting the analysis to parameters with substantial effect sizes. Third, even when the experiment was shortened, reliability of BOLD activity and DCM results dropped only slightly as a function of the length of the experiment. This suggests that the face perception paradigm presented here provides reliable estimates for both conventional activation and effective connectivity measures. We conclude this paper with an outlook on potential clinical applications of the paradigm for studying psychiatric disorders. Hum Brain Mapp 37:730-744, 2016. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  1. Supplemental Instruction Online: As Effective as the Traditional Face-to-Face Model?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hizer, Suzanne E.; Schultz, P. W.; Bray, Richard

    2017-02-01

    Supplemental Instruction (SI) is a well-recognized model of academic assistance with a history of empirical evidence demonstrating increases in student grades and decreases in failure rates across many higher education institutions. However, as college students become more accustomed to learning in online venues, what is not known is whether an SI program offered online could benefit students similarly to SI sessions that occur in face-to-face settings. The in-person (traditional) SI program at California State University San Marcos has demonstrated increases in grades and lower fail rates for courses being supported in science and math. Students enrolled in four biology courses who participated in online SI received increases in academic performance similar to the students in the courses who attended traditional SI. Both the online and traditional SI participating students had higher course grades and lower fail rates as compared to students who did not participate in either form of SI. Self-selection, as measured by past cumulative college grade point average, did not differ between students who attended either form of SI or who did not attend. Student perceptions of online SI were generally positive and appeared to offer an alternative path to receive this valuable academic assistance for some students. Overall, results are promising that the highly effective traditional model can be translated to an online environment.

  2. Acoustic and elastic waveform inversion best practices

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Modrak, Ryan T.

    Reaching the global minimum of a waveform misfit function requires careful choices about the nonlinear optimization, preconditioning and regularization methods underlying an inversion. Because waveform inversion problems are susceptible to erratic convergence, one or two test cases are not enough to reliably inform such decisions. We identify best practices instead using two global, one regional and four near-surface acoustic test problems. To obtain meaningful quantitative comparisons, we carry out hundreds acoustic inversions, varying one aspect of the implementation at a time. Comparing nonlinear optimization algorithms, we find that L-BFGS provides computational savings over nonlinear conjugate gradient methods in a wide variety of test cases. Comparing preconditioners, we show that a new diagonal scaling derived from the adjoint of the forward operator provides better performance than two conventional preconditioning schemes. Comparing regularization strategies, we find that projection, convolution, Tikhonov regularization, and total variation regularization are effective in different contexts. Besides these issues, reliability and efficiency in waveform inversion depend on close numerical attention and care. Implementation details have a strong effect on computational cost, regardless of the chosen material parameterization or nonlinear optimization algorithm. Building on the acoustic inversion results, we carry out elastic experiments with four test problems, three objective functions, and four material parameterizations. The choice of parameterization for isotropic elastic media is found to be more complicated than previous studies suggests, with "wavespeed-like'' parameters performing well with phase-based objective functions and Lame parameters performing well with amplitude-based objective functions. Reliability and efficiency can be even harder to achieve in transversely isotropic elastic inversions because rotation angle parameters describing fast

  3. On the inverse Magnus effect in free molecular flow

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Weidman, Patrick D.; Herczynski, Andrzej

    2004-02-01

    A Newton-inspired particle interaction model is introduced to compute the sideways force on spinning projectiles translating through a rarefied gas. The simple model reproduces the inverse Magnus force on a sphere reported by Borg, Söderholm and Essén [Phys. Fluids 15, 736 (2003)] using probability theory. Further analyses given for cylinders and parallelepipeds of rectangular and regular polygon section point to a universal law for this class of geometric shapes: when the inverse Magnus force is steady, it is proportional to one-half the mass M of gas displaced by the body.

  4. Reflection full-waveform inversion using a modified phase misfit function

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cui, Chao; Huang, Jian-Ping; Li, Zhen-Chun; Liao, Wen-Yuan; Guan, Zhe

    2017-09-01

    Reflection full-waveform inversion (RFWI) updates the low- and highwavenumber components, and yields more accurate initial models compared with conventional full-waveform inversion (FWI). However, there is strong nonlinearity in conventional RFWI because of the lack of low-frequency data and the complexity of the amplitude. The separation of phase and amplitude information makes RFWI more linear. Traditional phase-calculation methods face severe phase wrapping. To solve this problem, we propose a modified phase-calculation method that uses the phase-envelope data to obtain the pseudo phase information. Then, we establish a pseudophase-information-based objective function for RFWI, with the corresponding source and gradient terms. Numerical tests verify that the proposed calculation method using the phase-envelope data guarantees the stability and accuracy of the phase information and the convergence of the objective function. The application on a portion of the Sigsbee2A model and comparison with inversion results of the improved RFWI and conventional FWI methods verify that the pseudophase-based RFWI produces a highly accurate and efficient velocity model. Moreover, the proposed method is robust to noise and high frequency.

  5. Unanticipated ankle inversions are significantly different from anticipated ankle inversions during drop landings: overcoming anticipation bias.

    PubMed

    Dicus, Jeremy R; Seegmiller, Jeff G

    2012-05-01

    Few ankle inversion studies have taken anticipation bias into account or collected data with an experimental design that mimics actual injury mechanisms. Twenty-three participants performed randomized single-leg vertical drop landings from 20 cm. Subjects were blinded to the landing surface (a flat force plate or 30° inversion wedge on the force plate). After each trial, participants reported whether they anticipated the landing surface. Participant responses were validated with EMG data. The protocol was repeated until four anticipated and four unanticipated landings onto the inversion wedge were recorded. Results revealed a significant main effect for landing condition. Normalized vertical ground reaction force (% body weights), maximum ankle inversion (degrees), inversion velocity (degrees/second), and time from contact to peak muscle activation (seconds) were significantly greater in unanticipated landings, and the time from peak muscle activation to maximum VGRF (second) was shorter. Unanticipated landings presented different muscle activation patterns than landings onto anticipated surfaces, which calls into question the usefulness of clinical studies that have not controlled for anticipation bias.

  6. The Effect of Common Inversion Polymorphisms In(2L)t and In(3R)Mo on Patterns of Transcriptional Variation in Drosophila melanogaster.

    PubMed

    Lavington, Erik; Kern, Andrew D

    2017-11-06

    Chromosomal inversions are a ubiquitous feature of genetic variation. Theoretical models describe several mechanisms by which inversions can drive adaptation and be maintained as polymorphisms. While inversions have been shown previously to be under selection, or contain genetic variation under selection, the specific phenotypic consequences of inversions leading to their maintenance remain unclear. Here we use genomic sequence and expression data from the Drosophila Genetic Reference Panel (DGRP) to explore the effects of two cosmopolitan inversions, In ( 2L ) t and In ( 3R ) Mo , on patterns of transcriptional variation. We demonstrate that each inversion has a significant effect on transcript abundance for hundreds of genes across the genome. Inversion-affected loci (IAL) appear both within inversions as well as on unlinked chromosomes. Importantly, IAL do not appear to be influenced by the previously reported genome-wide expression correlation structure. We found that five genes involved with sterol uptake, four of which are Niemann-Pick Type 2 orthologs, are upregulated in flies with In ( 3R ) Mo but do not have SNPs in linkage disequilibrium (LD) with the inversion. We speculate that this upregulation is driven by genetic variation in mod ( mdg4 ) that is in LD with In ( 3R ) Mo We find that there is little evidence for a regional or position effect of inversions on gene expression at the chromosomal level, but do find evidence for the distal breakpoint of In ( 3R ) Mo interrupting one gene and possibly disassociating the two flanking genes from regulatory elements. Copyright © 2017 Lavington and Kern.

  7. The Effect of Common Inversion Polymorphisms In(2L)t and In(3R)Mo on Patterns of Transcriptional Variation in Drosophila melanogaster

    PubMed Central

    Lavington, Erik; Kern, Andrew D.

    2017-01-01

    Chromosomal inversions are a ubiquitous feature of genetic variation. Theoretical models describe several mechanisms by which inversions can drive adaptation and be maintained as polymorphisms. While inversions have been shown previously to be under selection, or contain genetic variation under selection, the specific phenotypic consequences of inversions leading to their maintenance remain unclear. Here we use genomic sequence and expression data from the Drosophila Genetic Reference Panel (DGRP) to explore the effects of two cosmopolitan inversions, In(2L)t and In(3R)Mo, on patterns of transcriptional variation. We demonstrate that each inversion has a significant effect on transcript abundance for hundreds of genes across the genome. Inversion-affected loci (IAL) appear both within inversions as well as on unlinked chromosomes. Importantly, IAL do not appear to be influenced by the previously reported genome-wide expression correlation structure. We found that five genes involved with sterol uptake, four of which are Niemann-Pick Type 2 orthologs, are upregulated in flies with In(3R)Mo but do not have SNPs in linkage disequilibrium (LD) with the inversion. We speculate that this upregulation is driven by genetic variation in mod(mdg4) that is in LD with In(3R)Mo. We find that there is little evidence for a regional or position effect of inversions on gene expression at the chromosomal level, but do find evidence for the distal breakpoint of In(3R)Mo interrupting one gene and possibly disassociating the two flanking genes from regulatory elements. PMID:28916647

  8. Cortical Thickness in Fusiform Face Area Predicts Face and Object Recognition Performance

    PubMed Central

    McGugin, Rankin W.; Van Gulick, Ana E.; Gauthier, Isabel

    2016-01-01

    The fusiform face area (FFA) is defined by its selectivity for faces. Several studies have shown that the response of FFA to non-face objects can predict behavioral performance for these objects. However, one possible account is that experts pay more attention to objects in their domain of expertise, driving signals up. Here we show an effect of expertise with non-face objects in FFA that cannot be explained by differential attention to objects of expertise. We explore the relationship between cortical thickness of FFA and face and object recognition using the Cambridge Face Memory Test and Vanderbilt Expertise Test, respectively. We measured cortical thickness in functionally-defined regions in a group of men who evidenced functional expertise effects for cars in FFA. Performance with faces and objects together accounted for approximately 40% of the variance in cortical thickness of several FFA patches. While subjects with a thicker FFA cortex performed better with vehicles, those with a thinner FFA cortex performed better with faces and living objects. The results point to a domain-general role of FFA in object perception and reveal an interesting double dissociation that does not contrast faces and objects, but rather living and non-living objects. PMID:26439272

  9. Superconducting gravity gradiometer and a test of inverse square law

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Moody, M. V.; Paik, Ho Jung

    1989-01-01

    The equivalence principle prohibits the distinction of gravity from acceleration by a local measurement. However, by making a differential measurement of acceleration over a baseline, platform accelerations can be cancelled and gravity gradients detected. In an in-line superconducting gravity gradiometer, this differencing is accomplished with two spring-mass accelerometers in which the proof masses are confined to motion in a single degree of freedom and are coupled together by superconducting circuits. Platform motions appear as common mode accelerations and are cancelled by adjusting the ratio of two persistent currents in the sensing circuit. The sensing circuit is connected to a commercial SQUID amplifier to sense changes in the persistent currents generated by differential accelerations, i.e., gravity gradients. A three-axis gravity gradiometer is formed by mounting six accelerometers on the faces of a precision cube, with the accelerometers on opposite faces of the cube forming one of three in-line gradiometers. A dedicated satellite mission for mapping the earth's gravity field is an important one. Additional scientific goals are a test of the inverse square law to a part in 10(exp 10) at 100 km, and a test of the Lense-Thirring effect by detecting the relativistic gravity magnetic terms in the gravity gradient tensor for the earth.

  10. Application of a stochastic inverse to the geophysical inverse problem

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Jordan, T. H.; Minster, J. B.

    1972-01-01

    The inverse problem for gross earth data can be reduced to an undertermined linear system of integral equations of the first kind. A theory is discussed for computing particular solutions to this linear system based on the stochastic inverse theory presented by Franklin. The stochastic inverse is derived and related to the generalized inverse of Penrose and Moore. A Backus-Gilbert type tradeoff curve is constructed for the problem of estimating the solution to the linear system in the presence of noise. It is shown that the stochastic inverse represents an optimal point on this tradeoff curve. A useful form of the solution autocorrelation operator as a member of a one-parameter family of smoothing operators is derived.

  11. Origin and effective reduction of inversion domains in aluminum nitride grown by a sublimation method

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shigetoh, Keisuke; Horibuchi, Kayo; Nakamura, Daisuke

    2017-11-01

    Owing to the large differences in the chemical properties between Al and N polarities in aluminum nitride (AlN), the choice of the polar direction for crystal growth strongly affects not only the quality but also the shape (facet formation) of the grown crystal. In particular, N-polar (0 0 0 -1) has been considered to be a more preferable direction than Al-polar (0 0 0 1) for sublimation growth because compared to Al-polar (0 0 0 1), N-polar (0 0 0 -1) exhibits better stability at high growth rate (high supersaturation) conditions and enables easier lateral enlargement of the crystal. However, some critical growth conditions induce polarity inversion and hinder stable N-polar growth. Furthermore, the origin of the polarity inversion in AlN growth by the sublimation method is still unclear. To ensure stable N-polar growth without polarity inversion, the formation mechanism of the inversion domain during AlN sublimation growth must be elucidated. Therefore, herein, we demonstrate homoepitaxial growth on an N-polar seed and carefully investigate the obtained crystal that shows polarity inversion. Annular bright-field scanning transmission electron microscopy reveals that polarity is completely converted to the Al polarity via the formation of a 30 nm thick mixed polar layer (MPL) just above the seed. Moreover, three-dimensional atom probe tomography shows the segregation of the oxygen impurities in the MPL with a high concentration of about 3 atom%. Finally, by avoiding the incorporation of oxygen impurity into the crystal at the initial stage of the growth, we demonstrate an effective reduction (seven orders of magnitude) of the inversion domain boundary formation.

  12. Finding a face in the crowd: testing the anger superiority effect in Asperger Syndrome.

    PubMed

    Ashwin, Chris; Wheelwright, Sally; Baron-Cohen, Simon

    2006-06-01

    Social threat captures attention and is processed rapidly and efficiently, with many lines of research showing involvement of the amygdala. Visual search paradigms looking at social threat have shown angry faces 'pop-out' in a crowd, compared to happy faces. Autism and Asperger Syndrome (AS) are neurodevelopmental conditions characterised by social deficits, abnormal face processing, and amygdala dysfunction. We tested adults with high-functioning autism (HFA) and AS using a facial visual search paradigm with schematic neutral and emotional faces. We found, contrary to predictions, that people with HFA/AS performed similarly to controls in many conditions. However, the effect was reduced in the HFA/AS group when using widely varying crowd sizes and when faces were inverted, suggesting a difference in face-processing style may be evident even with simple schematic faces. We conclude there are intact threat detection mechanisms in AS, under simple and predictable conditions, but that like other face-perception tasks, the visual search of threat faces task reveals atypical face-processing in HFA/AS.

  13. Inversions

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Brown, Malcolm

    2009-01-01

    Inversions are fascinating phenomena. They are reversals of the normal or expected order. They occur across a wide variety of contexts. What do inversions have to do with learning spaces? The author suggests that they are a useful metaphor for the process that is unfolding in higher education with respect to education. On the basis of…

  14. Startling similarity: Effects of facial self-resemblance and familiarity on the processing of emotional faces

    PubMed Central

    Larra, Mauro F.; Merz, Martina U.; Schächinger, Hartmut

    2017-01-01

    Facial self-resemblance has been associated with positive emotional evaluations, but this effect may be biased by self-face familiarity. Here we report two experiments utilizing startle modulation to investigate how the processing of facial expressions of emotion is affected by subtle resemblance to the self as well as to familiar faces. Participants of the first experiment (I) (N = 39) were presented with morphed faces showing happy, neutral, and fearful expressions which were manipulated to resemble either their own or unknown faces. At SOAs of either 300 ms or 3500–4500 ms after picture onset, startle responses were elicited by binaural bursts of white noise (50 ms, 105 dB), and recorded at the orbicularis oculi via EMG. Manual reaction time was measured in a simple emotion discrimination paradigm. Pictures preceding noise bursts by short SOA inhibited startle (prepulse inhibition, PPI). Both affective modulation and PPI of startle in response to emotional faces was altered by physical similarity to the self. As indexed both by relative facilitation of startle and faster manual responses, self-resemblance apparently induced deeper processing of facial affect, particularly in happy faces. Experiment II (N = 54) produced similar findings using morphs of famous faces, yet showed no impact of mere familiarity on PPI effects (or response time, either). The results are discussed with respect to differential (presumably pre-attentive) effects of self-specific vs. familiar information in face processing. PMID:29216226

  15. Multidimensional NMR inversion without Kronecker products: Multilinear inversion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Medellín, David; Ravi, Vivek R.; Torres-Verdín, Carlos

    2016-08-01

    Multidimensional NMR inversion using Kronecker products poses several challenges. First, kernel compression is only possible when the kernel matrices are separable, and in recent years, there has been an increasing interest in NMR sequences with non-separable kernels. Second, in three or more dimensions, the singular value decomposition is not unique; therefore kernel compression is not well-defined for higher dimensions. Without kernel compression, the Kronecker product yields matrices that require large amounts of memory, making the inversion intractable for personal computers. Finally, incorporating arbitrary regularization terms is not possible using the Lawson-Hanson (LH) or the Butler-Reeds-Dawson (BRD) algorithms. We develop a minimization-based inversion method that circumvents the above problems by using multilinear forms to perform multidimensional NMR inversion without using kernel compression or Kronecker products. The new method is memory efficient, requiring less than 0.1% of the memory required by the LH or BRD methods. It can also be extended to arbitrary dimensions and adapted to include non-separable kernels, linear constraints, and arbitrary regularization terms. Additionally, it is easy to implement because only a cost function and its first derivative are required to perform the inversion.

  16. Holistic face training enhances face processing in developmental prosopagnosia

    PubMed Central

    Cohan, Sarah; Nakayama, Ken

    2014-01-01

    Prosopagnosia has largely been regarded as an untreatable disorder. However, recent case studies using cognitive training have shown that it is possible to enhance face recognition abilities in individuals with developmental prosopagnosia. Our goal was to determine if this approach could be effective in a larger population of developmental prosopagnosics. We trained 24 developmental prosopagnosics using a 3-week online face-training program targeting holistic face processing. Twelve subjects with developmental prosopagnosia were assessed before and after training, and the other 12 were assessed before and after a waiting period, they then performed the training, and were then assessed again. The assessments included measures of front-view face discrimination, face discrimination with view-point changes, measures of holistic face processing, and a 5-day diary to quantify potential real-world improvements. Compared with the waiting period, developmental prosopagnosics showed moderate but significant overall training-related improvements on measures of front-view face discrimination. Those who reached the more difficult levels of training (‘better’ trainees) showed the strongest improvements in front-view face discrimination and showed significantly increased holistic face processing to the point of being similar to that of unimpaired control subjects. Despite challenges in characterizing developmental prosopagnosics’ everyday face recognition and potential biases in self-report, results also showed modest but consistent self-reported diary improvements. In summary, we demonstrate that by using cognitive training that targets holistic processing, it is possible to enhance face perception across a group of developmental prosopagnosics and further suggest that those who improved the most on the training task received the greatest benefits. PMID:24691394

  17. The effects of core-reflected waves on finite fault inversions with teleseismic body wave data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Qian, Yunyi; Ni, Sidao; Wei, Shengji; Almeida, Rafael; Zhang, Han

    2017-11-01

    Teleseismic body waves are essential for imaging rupture processes of large earthquakes. Earthquake source parameters are usually characterized by waveform analyses such as finite fault inversions using only turning (direct) P and SH waves without considering the reflected phases from the core-mantle boundary (CMB). However, core-reflected waves such as ScS usually have amplitudes comparable to direct S waves due to the total reflection from the CMB and might interfere with the S waves used for inversion, especially at large epicentral distances for long duration earthquakes. In order to understand how core-reflected waves affect teleseismic body wave inversion results, we develop a procedure named Multitel3 to compute Green's functions that contain turning waves (direct P, pP, sP, direct S, sS and reverberations in the crust) and core-reflected waves (PcP, pPcP, sPcP, ScS, sScS and associated reflected phases from the CMB). This ray-based method can efficiently generate synthetic seismograms for turning and core-reflected waves independently, with the flexibility to take into account the 3-D Earth structure effect on the timing between these phases. The performance of this approach is assessed through a series of numerical inversion tests on synthetic waveforms of the 2008 Mw7.9 Wenchuan earthquake and the 2015 Mw7.8 Nepal earthquake. We also compare this improved method with the turning-wave only inversions and explore the stability of the new procedure when there are uncertainties in a priori information (such as fault geometry and epicentre location) or arrival time of core-reflected phases. Finally, a finite fault inversion of the 2005 Mw8.7 Nias-Simeulue earthquake is carried out using the improved Green's functions. Using enhanced Green's functions yields better inversion results as expected. While the finite source inversion with conventional P and SH waves is able to recover large-scale characteristics of the earthquake source, by adding PcP and ScS phases

  18. Developmental Changes in Cross-Situational Word Learning: The Inverse Effect of Initial Accuracy

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fitneva, Stanka A.; Christiansen, Morten H.

    2017-01-01

    Intuitively, the accuracy of initial word-referent mappings should be positively correlated with the outcome of learning. Yet recent evidence suggests an inverse effect of initial accuracy in adults, whereby greater accuracy of initial mappings is associated with poorer outcomes in a cross-situational learning task. Here, we examine the impact of…

  19. The modulatory effect of semantic familiarity on the audiovisual integration of face-name pairs.

    PubMed

    Li, Yuanqing; Wang, Fangyi; Huang, Biao; Yang, Wanqun; Yu, Tianyou; Talsma, Durk

    2016-12-01

    To recognize individuals, the brain often integrates audiovisual information from familiar or unfamiliar faces, voices, and auditory names. To date, the effects of the semantic familiarity of stimuli on audiovisual integration remain unknown. In this functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study, we used familiar/unfamiliar facial images, auditory names, and audiovisual face-name pairs as stimuli to determine the influence of semantic familiarity on audiovisual integration. First, we performed a general linear model analysis using fMRI data and found that audiovisual integration occurred for familiar congruent and unfamiliar face-name pairs but not for familiar incongruent pairs. Second, we decoded the familiarity categories of the stimuli (familiar vs. unfamiliar) from the fMRI data and calculated the reproducibility indices of the brain patterns that corresponded to familiar and unfamiliar stimuli. The decoding accuracy rate was significantly higher for familiar congruent versus unfamiliar face-name pairs (83.2%) than for familiar versus unfamiliar faces (63.9%) and for familiar versus unfamiliar names (60.4%). This increase in decoding accuracy was not observed for familiar incongruent versus unfamiliar pairs. Furthermore, compared with the brain patterns associated with facial images or auditory names, the reproducibility index was significantly improved for the brain patterns of familiar congruent face-name pairs but not those of familiar incongruent or unfamiliar pairs. Our results indicate the modulatory effect that semantic familiarity has on audiovisual integration. Specifically, neural representations were enhanced for familiar congruent face-name pairs compared with visual-only faces and auditory-only names, whereas this enhancement effect was not observed for familiar incongruent or unfamiliar pairs. Hum Brain Mapp 37:4333-4348, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  20. Effect of Telephone-Administered vs Face-to-face Cognitive Behavioral Therapy on Adherence to Therapy and Depression Outcomes Among Primary Care Patients

    PubMed Central

    Mohr, David C.; Ho, Joyce; Duffecy, Jenna; Reifler, Douglas; Sokol, Lesile; Burns, Nichelle Nicole; Jin, Ling; Siddique, Juned

    2013-01-01

    Context Primary care is the most common site for the treatment of depression. Most depressed patients prefer psychotherapy over antidepressant medications, but access barriers are believed to prevent engagement in and completion of treatment. The telephone has been investigated as a treatment delivery medium to overcome access barriers, but little is known about its efficacy compared with face-to-face treatment delivery. Objective To examine whether telephone-administered cognitive behavioral therapy (T-CBT) reduces attrition and is not inferior to face-to-face CBT in treating depression among primary care patients. Design, Setting, and Participants A randomized controlled trial of 325 Chicago-area primary care patients with major depressive disorder, recruited from November 2007 to December 2010. Interventions Eighteen sessions of T-CBT or face-to-face CBT. Main Outcome Measures The primary outcome was attrition (completion vs non-completion) at posttreatment (week 18). Secondary outcomes included masked interviewer-rated depression with the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (Ham-D) and self-reported depression with the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). Results Significantly fewer participants discontinued T-CBT (n=34; 20.9%) compared with face-to-face CBT (n=53; 32.7%; P=.02). Patients showed significant improvement in depression across both treatments (P<.001). There were no significant treatment differences at posttreatment between T-CBT and face-to-face CBT on the Ham-D (P=.22) or the PHQ-9 (P=.89). The intention-to-treat posttreatment effect size on the Ham-D was d=0.14 (90% CI,-0.05 to 0.33), and for the PHQ-9 it was d=−0.02 (90% CI,-0.20 to 0.17). Both results were within the inferiority margin of d=0.41, indicating that T-CBT was not inferior to face-to-face CBT. Although participants remained significantly less depressed at 6-month follow-up relative to baseline (P<.001), participants receiving face-to-face CBT weresignificantly less depressed than

  1. Effective connectivities of cortical regions for top-down face processing: A Dynamic Causal Modeling study

    PubMed Central

    Li, Jun; Liu, Jiangang; Liang, Jimin; Zhang, Hongchuan; Zhao, Jizheng; Rieth, Cory A.; Huber, David E.; Li, Wu; Shi, Guangming; Ai, Lin; Tian, Jie; Lee, Kang

    2013-01-01

    To study top-down face processing, the present study used an experimental paradigm in which participants detected non-existent faces in pure noise images. Conventional BOLD signal analysis identified three regions involved in this illusory face detection. These regions included the left orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) in addition to the right fusiform face area (FFA) and right occipital face area (OFA), both of which were previously known to be involved in both top-down and bottom-up processing of faces. We used Dynamic Causal Modeling (DCM) and Bayesian model selection to further analyze the data, revealing both intrinsic and modulatory effective connectivities among these three cortical regions. Specifically, our results support the claim that the orbitofrontal cortex plays a crucial role in the top-down processing of faces by regulating the activities of the occipital face area, and the occipital face area in turn detects the illusory face features in the visual stimuli and then provides this information to the fusiform face area for further analysis. PMID:20423709

  2. The Breakup of Temperature Inversions In Steep Valleys

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Colette, A.; Street, R.

    The purpose of this research is to model and provide a better understanding of tem- perature inversions breakup in steep valleys. The Advanced Regional Prediction Sys- tem (ARPS), a three-dimensional, compressible, and non-hydrostatic modeling tool developed by the Center for Analysis and Prediction of Storms at the University of Oklahoma was used. Many field studies indicate that the evolution of the convective and inversion layers are strongly dependant on the surrounding topography. In relatively open valleys, the convective boundary layer usually grows from the bottom of the valley while in steeper cases, the upslope morning winds affects the dynamic of the mixing layer resulting in the destruction of the inversion from its bottom and its top (see Whiteman 1980). ARPS allows one to perform accurate simulation of such situations. First, written in terrain following coordinates, it handles steep topographies; then its extensive radi- ation and surface flux packages provide a good treatment of land related processes. Moreover, ARPS accounts for the incidence angle of sunrays, differencing the ex- posed and non-exposed mountain slopes. However, it neglects the topographic shade which can delay the sunrise of a hour or more in steep valleys. A new subroutine described by Colette etal. 2002 is thus used to compute the projected shade on the surrounding topography. Simulations of temperature inversion breakup for various two-dimensional valleys are presented. The time scale of evolution of the mixing layer is in good agreement with field studies and, as expected, the convective boundary layer shows an asymmetry between east and west facing slopes. The different patterns of inversion breakup doc- umented by Whiteman are also reproduced. These simulations of idealized cases give a better understanding of inversion breakup in steep valleys. Our code is now being applied to a real case: the study of a peculiar wind, la Ora del Garda, caused by the interaction between a

  3. The effects of a culturally gender-specifying peripheral cue (headscarf) on the categorization of faces by gender.

    PubMed

    Megreya, Ahmed M

    2015-06-01

    Faces convey a wealth of cues that influence social categorizations and subsequent cognition and behavior. This study examined the effects of wearing a headscarf on face categorization by gender using Egyptian observers who have an extensive exposure with headscarf-framed female faces. A typical headscarf (worn by females) enhanced perceived femininity whereas an atypical headscarf (worn by males) reduced perceived masculinity. Regardless of whether the faces were presented briefly, or until participants responded, the typical headscarf had no effect on categorizing female faces but the atypical headscarf greatly slowed down categorizing male faces. However, a typical headscarf advantage was noticed when the atypical headscarf condition was removed. In addition, both typical and atypical headscarf effects were greatly strengthened when faces were presented as negatives. These data provide support to the dynamic continuity account of social categorization that suggests a competition among multiple simultaneous representations until a construal is stabilized. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  4. Gender-based prototype formation in face recognition.

    PubMed

    Baudouin, Jean-Yves; Brochard, Renaud

    2011-07-01

    The role of gender categories in prototype formation during face recognition was investigated in 2 experiments. The participants were asked to learn individual faces and then to recognize them. During recognition, individual faces were mixed with faces, which were blended faces of same or different genders. The results of the 2 experiments showed that blended faces made with learned individual faces were recognized, even though they had never been seen before. In Experiment 1, this effect was stronger when faces belonged to the same gender category (same-sex blended faces), but it also emerged across gender categories (cross-sex blended faces). Experiment 2 further showed that this prototype effect was not affected by the presentation order for same-sex blended faces: The effect was equally strong when the faces were presented one after the other during learning or alternated with faces of the opposite gender. By contrast, the prototype effect across gender categories was highly sensitive to the temporal proximity of the faces blended into the blended faces and almost disappeared when other faces were intermixed. These results indicate that distinct neural populations code for female and male faces. However, the formation of a facial representation can also be mediated by both neural populations. The implications for face-space properties and face-encoding processes are discussed.

  5. Comparison of Face-to-Face and Web Surveys on the Topic of Homosexual Rights.

    PubMed

    Liu, Mingnan; Wang, Yichen

    2016-06-01

    Although academic research on homosexuality relies heavily on survey data, there has been limited study of the survey method of asking relevant questions. This study examines the effect of survey mode on responses to questions about homosexual rights. We find significant mode effects among heterosexual respondents, who are more likely to support equal access to employment, military service, adoption, and marriage for homosexual people in face-to-face surveys than in Web surveys. They are also more likely to choose to not respond when face-to-face than online. Homosexual respondents do not show mode effects for either substantive responses or item nonresponse rate.

  6. The effects of one-time inversion tillage on soil physical properties after long-term reduced tillage

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kuhwald, Michael; Augustin, Katja; Duttmann, Rainer

    2017-04-01

    The positive effects of reduced tillage on soil stability and on various soil functions such as infiltrability or saturated hydraulic conductivity are known in general. However, long-term employment of conservation tillage can increase weed pressure, damage by mice and soil compaction. Thus, the application of one-time inversion tillage (occasional or strategic tillage) is customarily used as a method for overcoming these drawbacks. Hitherto, the effects of one-time inversion tillage on soil physical properties have not been investigated. This study focuses on analysing whether the improved soil physical properties derived by long-term reduced tillage remain after one-time inversion tillage by mouldboard plough. The study was carried out in a 5.5 ha field in the southern part of Lower Saxony, Germany. Since 1996, this field has been subdivided into three plots, one managed conventionally by using a mouldboard plough (CT), while in the others a chisel plough (RT1) and a disk harrow (RT2) were employed. In October 2014, the entire field was ploughed by mouldboard plough to a depth of 30 cm. During the following year, four field studies were conducted to analyse the effects of this one-time inversion tillage on volumetric soil water content, bulk density, saturated hydraulic conductivity and infiltration rate. Additionally, penetration resistance measurements taken across the entire field were interpolated by kriging to analyse the spatial distribution of soil characteristics. The surveys of RT1 and RT2 were compared with CT and with analyses conducted before the one-time inversion tillage. This study shows that positive effects of long-term conservation tillage on several soil physical characteristics still remain after one-time mouldboard ploughing. Throughout the entire cropping season, the topsoil tilled under former conservation tillage practices revealed significantly higher (p < 0.05) values of saturated hydraulic conductivities and infiltration rates compared

  7. Lost in Translation: Adapting a Face-to-Face Course Into an Online Learning Experience.

    PubMed

    Kenzig, Melissa J

    2015-09-01

    Online education has grown dramatically over the past decade. Instructors who teach face-to-face courses are being called on to adapt their courses to the online environment. Many instructors do not have sufficient training to be able to effectively move courses to an online format. This commentary discusses the growth of online learning, common challenges faced by instructors adapting courses from face-to-face to online, and best practices for translating face-to-face courses into online learning opportunities. © 2015 Society for Public Health Education.

  8. Highlights from a Literature Review Prepared for the Face to Face Research Project

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    National Literacy Trust, 2010

    2010-01-01

    Between March 2009 and March 2011, Talk To Your Baby has been engaged in a research project, under the title of Face to Face, to identify key messages for parents and carers in relation to communicating with babies and young children, and has examined the most effective ways to promote these messages to parents and carers. The Face to Face project…

  9. Effects of Synchronicity and Belongingness on Face-to-Face and Computer-Mediated Constructive Controversy

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Saltarelli, Andy J.; Roseth, Cary J.

    2014-01-01

    Adapting face-to-face (FTF) pedagogies to online settings raises boundary questions about the contextual conditions in which the same instructional method stimulates different outcomes. We address this issue by examining FTF and computer-mediated communication (CMC) versions of constructive controversy, a cooperative learning procedure involving…

  10. On the dosimetric effect and reduction of inverse consistency and transitivity errors in deformable image registration for dose accumulation

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Bender, Edward T.; Hardcastle, Nicholas; Tome, Wolfgang A.

    2012-01-15

    Purpose: Deformable image registration (DIR) is necessary for accurate dose accumulation between multiple radiotherapy image sets. DIR algorithms can suffer from inverse and transitivity inconsistencies. When using deformation vector fields (DVFs) that exhibit inverse-inconsistency and are nontransitive, dose accumulation on a given image set via different image pathways will lead to different accumulated doses. The purpose of this study was to investigate the dosimetric effect of and propose a postprocessing solution to reduce inverse consistency and transitivity errors. Methods: Four MVCT images and four phases of a lung 4DCT, each with an associated calculated dose, were selected for analysis. DVFsmore » between all four images in each data set were created using the Fast Symmetric Demons algorithm. Dose was accumulated on the fourth image in each set using DIR via two different image pathways. The two accumulated doses on the fourth image were compared. The inverse consistency and transitivity errors in the DVFs were then reduced. The dose accumulation was repeated using the processed DVFs, the results of which were compared with the accumulated dose from the original DVFs. To evaluate the influence of the postprocessing technique on DVF accuracy, the original and processed DVF accuracy was evaluated on the lung 4DCT data on which anatomical landmarks had been identified by an expert. Results: Dose accumulation to the same image via different image pathways resulted in two different accumulated dose results. After the inverse consistency errors were reduced, the difference between the accumulated doses diminished. The difference was further reduced after reducing the transitivity errors. The postprocessing technique had minimal effect on the accuracy of the DVF for the lung 4DCT images. Conclusions: This study shows that inverse consistency and transitivity errors in DIR have a significant dosimetric effect in dose accumulation; Depending on the image pathway

  11. The other-race effect does not rely on memory: Evidence from a matching task.

    PubMed

    Megreya, Ahmed M; White, David; Burton, A Mike

    2011-08-01

    Viewers are typically better at remembering faces from their own race than from other races; however, it is not yet established whether this effect is due to memorial or perceptual processes. In this study, UK and Egyptian viewers were given a simultaneous face-matching task, in which the target faces were presented upright or upside down. As with previous research using face memory tasks, participants were worse at matching other-race faces than own-race faces and showed a stronger face inversion effect for own-race faces. However, subjects' performance on own and other-race faces was highly correlated. These data provide strong evidence that difficulty in perceptual encoding of unfamiliar faces contributes substantially to the other-race effect and that accounts based entirely on memory cannot capture the full data. Implications for forensic settings are also discussed.

  12. Newborn preference for a new face vs. a previously seen communicative or motionless face.

    PubMed

    Cecchini, Marco; Baroni, Eleonora; Di Vito, Cinzia; Piccolo, Federica; Lai, Carlo

    2011-06-01

    Newborn infants prefer to look at a new face compared to a known face (still-face). This effect does not happen with the mother-face. The newborns could be attracted by the mother-face because, unlike the still-face, it confirms an expectation of communication. Fifty newborns were video-recorded. Sixteen of them were recruited in the final sample: nine were exposed to a communicative face and seven to a still-face. All the 16 newborns were successively exposed to two preference-tasks where a new face was compared with the known face. Only newborns previously exposed to a still-face preferred to look at a new face instead of the known face. The results suggest that the newborns are able to build a dynamic representation of faces. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  13. Weak encoding of faces predicts socially influenced judgments of facial attractiveness.

    PubMed

    Schnuerch, Robert; Koppehele-Gossel, Judith; Gibbons, Henning

    2015-01-01

    Conforming to the majority can be seen as a heuristic type of judgment, as it allows the individual to easily choose the most accurate or most socially acceptable type of behavior. People who process the currently to-be-judged items in a superficial, heuristic way should tend to conform to group judgment more than people processing these items in a systematic and elaborate way. We investigated this hypothesis using electroencephalography (EEG), analyzing whether the strength of neural encoding of faces was related to the tendency to adopt a group's evaluative judgments regarding these faces. As expected, we found that the amplitude of the N170, a specific neural correlate of face encoding, was inversely related to conformity across participants: The weaker the faces were encoded, the more the majority response regarding the faces' attractiveness was adopted instead of relying on the actual qualities of the faces. Applying neurophysiological methodology, we thus provide support for previous claims, based on behavioral data and theorizing, that social conformity is a heuristic type of judgment. We propose that weak encoding of judgment-relevant information is a typical, possibly even necessary, precursor of socially adjusted judgments, irrespective of one's current motivational goal (i.e., to be accurate or accepted).

  14. Periodic order and defects in Ni-based inverse opal-like crystals on the mesoscopic and atomic scale

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chumakova, A. V.; Valkovskiy, G. A.; Mistonov, A. A.; Dyadkin, V. A.; Grigoryeva, N. A.; Sapoletova, N. A.; Napolskii, K. S.; Eliseev, A. A.; Petukhov, A. V.; Grigoriev, S. V.

    2014-10-01

    The structure of inverse opal crystals based on nickel was probed on the mesoscopic and atomic levels by a set of complementary techniques such as scanning electron microscopy and synchrotron microradian and wide-angle diffraction. The microradian diffraction revealed the mesoscopic-scale face-centered-cubic (fcc) ordering of spherical voids in the inverse opal-like structure with unit cell dimension of 750±10nm. The diffuse scattering data were used to map defects in the fcc structure as a function of the number of layers in the Ni inverse opal-like structure. The average lateral size of mesoscopic domains is found to be independent of the number of layers. 3D reconstruction of the reciprocal space for the inverse opal crystals with different thickness provided an indirect study of original opal templates in a depth-resolved way. The microstructure and thermal response of the framework of the porous inverse opal crystal was examined using wide-angle powder x-ray diffraction. This artificial porous structure is built from nickel crystallites possessing stacking faults and dislocations peculiar for the nickel thin films.

  15. Neonatal face-to-face interactions promote later social behaviour in infant rhesus monkeys

    PubMed Central

    Dettmer, Amanda M.; Kaburu, Stefano S. K.; Simpson, Elizabeth A.; Paukner, Annika; Sclafani, Valentina; Byers, Kristen L.; Murphy, Ashley M.; Miller, Michelle; Marquez, Neal; Miller, Grace M.; Suomi, Stephen J.; Ferrari, Pier F.

    2016-01-01

    In primates, including humans, mothers engage in face-to-face interactions with their infants, with frequencies varying both within and across species. However, the impact of this variation in face-to-face interactions on infant social development is unclear. Here we report that infant monkeys (Macaca mulatta) who engaged in more neonatal face-to-face interactions with mothers have increased social interactions at 2 and 5 months. In a controlled experiment, we show that this effect is not due to physical contact alone: monkeys randomly assigned to receive additional neonatal face-to-face interactions (mutual gaze and intermittent lip-smacking) with human caregivers display increased social interest at 2 months, compared with monkeys who received only additional handling. These studies suggest that face-to-face interactions from birth promote young primate social interest and competency. PMID:27300086

  16. Own- and other-race face identity recognition in children: the effects of pose and feature composition.

    PubMed

    Anzures, Gizelle; Kelly, David J; Pascalis, Olivier; Quinn, Paul C; Slater, Alan M; de Viviés, Xavier; Lee, Kang

    2014-02-01

    We used a matching-to-sample task and manipulated facial pose and feature composition to examine the other-race effect (ORE) in face identity recognition between 5 and 10 years of age. Overall, the present findings provide a genuine measure of own- and other-race face identity recognition in children that is independent of photographic and image processing. The current study also confirms the presence of an ORE in children as young as 5 years of age using a recognition paradigm that is sensitive to their developing cognitive abilities. In addition, the present findings show that with age, increasing experience with familiar classes of own-race faces and further lack of experience with unfamiliar classes of other-race faces serves to maintain the ORE between 5 and 10 years of age rather than exacerbate the effect. All age groups also showed a differential effect of stimulus facial pose in their recognition of the internal regions of own- and other-race faces. Own-race inner faces were remembered best when three-quarter poses were used during familiarization and frontal poses were used during the recognition test. In contrast, other-race inner faces were remembered best when frontal poses were used during familiarization and three-quarter poses were used during the recognition test. Thus, children encode and/or retrieve own- and other-race faces from memory in qualitatively different ways.

  17. Own- and other-race face identity recognition in children: The effects of pose and feature composition

    PubMed Central

    Anzures, Gizelle; Kelly, David J.; Pascalis, Olivier; Quinn, Paul C.; Slater, Alan M.; de Viviés, Xavier; Lee, Kang

    2013-01-01

    We used a matching-to-sample task and manipulated facial pose and feature composition to examine the other-race effect (ORE) in face identity recognition between 5 and 10 years of age. Overall, the present findings provide a genuine measure of own- and other-race face identity recognition in children that is independent of photographic and image processing. The present study also confirms the presence of an ORE in children as young as 5 years of age using a recognition paradigm that is sensitive to their developing cognitive abilities. In addition, the present findings show that with age, increasing experience with familiar classes of own-race faces and further lack of experience with unfamiliar classes of other-race faces serves to maintain the ORE between 5 to 10 years of age rather than exacerbate the effect. All age groups also showed a differential effect of stimulus facial pose in their recognition of the internal regions of own- and other-race faces. Own-race inner faces were remembered best when three-quarter poses were used during familiarization and frontal poses were used during the recognition test. In contrast, other-race inner faces were remembered best when frontal poses were used during familiarization and three-quarter poses were used during the recognition test. Thus, children encode and/or retrieve own- and other-race faces from memory in qualitatively different ways. PMID:23731287

  18. Is the N170 for faces cognitively penetrable? Evidence from repetition priming of Mooney faces of familiar and unfamiliar persons.

    PubMed

    Jemel, Boutheina; Pisani, Michèle; Calabria, Marco; Crommelinck, Marc; Bruyer, Raymond

    2003-07-01

    Impoverished images of faces, two-tone Mooney faces, severely impair the ability to recognize to whom the face pertains. However, previously seeing the corresponding face in a clear format helps fame-judgments to Mooney faces. In the present experiment, we sought to demonstrate that enhancement in the perceptual encoding of Mooney faces results from top-down effects, due to previous activation of familiar face representation. Event-related potentials (ERPs) were obtained for target Mooney images of familiar and unfamiliar faces preceded by clear pictures portraying either the same photo (same photo prime), or a different photo of the same person (different photo prime) or a new unfamiliar face (no-prime). In agreement with previous findings the use of primes was effective in enhancing the recognition of familiar faces in Mooney images; this priming effect was larger in the same than in different photo priming condition. ERP data revealed that the amplitude of the N170 face-sensitive component was smaller when elicited by familiar than by unfamiliar face targets, and for familiar face targets primed by the same than by different photos (a graded priming effect). Because the priming effect was restricted to familiar faces and occurred at the peak of the N170, we suggest that the early perceptual stage of face processing is likely to be penetrable by the top-down effect due to the activation of face representations within the face recognition system.

  19. Visual adaptation and face perception.

    PubMed

    Webster, Michael A; MacLeod, Donald I A

    2011-06-12

    The appearance of faces can be strongly affected by the characteristics of faces viewed previously. These perceptual after-effects reflect processes of sensory adaptation that are found throughout the visual system, but which have been considered only relatively recently in the context of higher level perceptual judgements. In this review, we explore the consequences of adaptation for human face perception, and the implications of adaptation for understanding the neural-coding schemes underlying the visual representation of faces. The properties of face after-effects suggest that they, in part, reflect response changes at high and possibly face-specific levels of visual processing. Yet, the form of the after-effects and the norm-based codes that they point to show many parallels with the adaptations and functional organization that are thought to underlie the encoding of perceptual attributes like colour. The nature and basis for human colour vision have been studied extensively, and we draw on ideas and principles that have been developed to account for norms and normalization in colour vision to consider potential similarities and differences in the representation and adaptation of faces.

  20. Holistic Face Processing Is Mature at 4 Years of Age: Evidence from the Composite Face Effect

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    de Heering, Adelaide; Houthuys, Sarah; Rossion, Bruno

    2007-01-01

    Although it is acknowledged that adults integrate features into a representation of the whole face, there is still some disagreement about the onset and developmental course of holistic face processing. We tested adults and children from 4 to 6 years of age with the same paradigm measuring holistic face processing through an adaptation of the…

  1. The Effects of Mothers' Past Infant-Holding Preferences on Their Adult Children's Face Processing Lateralisation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vervloed, Mathijs P. J.; Hendriks, Angelique W.; van den Eijnde, Esther

    2011-01-01

    Face processing development is negatively affected when infants have not been exposed to faces for some time because of congenital cataract blocking all vision (Le Grand, Mondloch, Maurer, & Brent, 2001). It is not clear, however, whether more subtle differences in face exposure may also have an influence. The present study looked at the effect of…

  2. [Effects of a non-face-to-face behavioral intervention on poor sleepers and factors affecting improvement of sleep].

    PubMed

    Amamoto, Yuko; Adachi, Yoshiko; Kunituka, Kouko; Kumagai, Shuzo

    2010-03-01

    The purposes of this study were 1) to re-examine effects obtained from previous research of a non-face-to-face behavioral intervention in poorer sleepers and 2) to examine the factors impacting on improvement of sleep. The subjects were 178 poor sleepers who participated in an intervention for sleep improvement. The educational procedures comprised a minimal behavioral self-help package for one month that featured self- learning and self- monitoring of practical target habits for change. It was non face-to-face program conducted by only one member of staff. Subjects were asked to answer a questionnaire before and after the intervention. To reexamine the effects of this program found in our previous research, 9 sleep indices, sleep quality, and sleep-related behaviors were compared between before and after intervention. The sleep indices were total sleep time, sleep onset latency, sleep efficiency etc. Subjects were divided into an improvement group (n = 63) and a non-improvement group (n = 115) using a cutoff value for average change in sleep onset latency and sleep efficiency. After comparison of sleep and behavior between the two groups, logistic regression analysis was conducted to select parameters affecting improvement with this program. Total sleep time was significantly increased from 5.7 h to 6.1 h, sleep onset time decreased 18 minutes, and sleep efficiency improved 5.6 points. With 8 of 9 sleep-related behaviors, the proportion of subjects having an undesirable habit significantly decreased. The mean total number of desirable habit' changes was 2.63 in the improvement group and significantly higher than the 2.06 in the non-improvement group. Logistic regression analysis demonstrated that large sleep onset latency at baseline and beginning of regular exercise significantly affected the improvement of sleep in the subjects, after adjusting for all other parameters. The effects revealed by our previous research were reconfirmed. It is suggested that this

  3. Laterally constrained inversion for CSAMT data interpretation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Ruo; Yin, Changchun; Wang, Miaoyue; Di, Qingyun

    2015-10-01

    Laterally constrained inversion (LCI) has been successfully applied to the inversion of dc resistivity, TEM and airborne EM data. However, it hasn't been yet applied to the interpretation of controlled-source audio-frequency magnetotelluric (CSAMT) data. In this paper, we apply the LCI method for CSAMT data inversion by preconditioning the Jacobian matrix. We apply a weighting matrix to Jacobian to balance the sensitivity of model parameters, so that the resolution with respect to different model parameters becomes more uniform. Numerical experiments confirm that this can improve the convergence of the inversion. We first invert a synthetic dataset with and without noise to investigate the effect of LCI applications to CSAMT data, for the noise free data, the results show that the LCI method can recover the true model better compared to the traditional single-station inversion; and for the noisy data, the true model is recovered even with a noise level of 8%, indicating that LCI inversions are to some extent noise insensitive. Then, we re-invert two CSAMT datasets collected respectively in a watershed and a coal mine area in Northern China and compare our results with those from previous inversions. The comparison with the previous inversion in a coal mine shows that LCI method delivers smoother layer interfaces that well correlate to seismic data, while comparison with a global searching algorithm of simulated annealing (SA) in a watershed shows that though both methods deliver very similar good results, however, LCI algorithm presented in this paper runs much faster. The inversion results for the coal mine CSAMT survey show that a conductive water-bearing zone that was not revealed by the previous inversions has been identified by the LCI. This further demonstrates that the method presented in this paper works for CSAMT data inversion.

  4. Comparing face-to-face, synchronous, and asynchronous learning: postgraduate dental resident preferences.

    PubMed

    Kunin, Marc; Julliard, Kell N; Rodriguez, Tobias E

    2014-06-01

    The Department of Dental Medicine of Lutheran Medical Center has developed an asynchronous online curriculum consisting of prerecorded PowerPoint presentations with audio explanations. The focus of this study was to evaluate if the new asynchronous format satisfied the educational needs of the residents compared to traditional lecture (face-to-face) and synchronous (distance learning) formats. Lectures were delivered to 219 dental residents employing face-to-face and synchronous formats, as well as the new asynchronous format; 169 (77 percent) participated in the study. Outcomes were assessed with pretests, posttests, and individual lecture surveys. Results found the residents preferred face-to-face and asynchronous formats to the synchronous format in terms of effectiveness and clarity of presentations. This preference was directly related to the residents' perception of how well the technology worked in each format. The residents also rated the quality of student-instructor and student-student interactions in the synchronous and asynchronous formats significantly higher after taking the lecture series than they did before taking it. However, they rated the face-to-face format as significantly more conducive to student-instructor and student-student interaction. While the study found technology had a major impact on the efficacy of this curricular model, the results suggest that the asynchronous format can be an effective way to teach a postgraduate course.

  5. Trustworthy-Looking Face Meets Brown Eyes

    PubMed Central

    Kleisner, Karel; Priplatova, Lenka; Frost, Peter; Flegr, Jaroslav

    2013-01-01

    We tested whether eye color influences perception of trustworthiness. Facial photographs of 40 female and 40 male students were rated for perceived trustworthiness. Eye color had a significant effect, the brown-eyed faces being perceived as more trustworthy than the blue-eyed ones. Geometric morphometrics, however, revealed significant correlations between eye color and face shape. Thus, face shape likewise had a significant effect on perceived trustworthiness but only for male faces, the effect for female faces not being significant. To determine whether perception of trustworthiness was being influenced primarily by eye color or by face shape, we recolored the eyes on the same male facial photos and repeated the test procedure. Eye color now had no effect on perceived trustworthiness. We concluded that although the brown-eyed faces were perceived as more trustworthy than the blue-eyed ones, it was not brown eye color per se that caused the stronger perception of trustworthiness but rather the facial features associated with brown eyes. PMID:23326406

  6. Effects of acute psychosocial stress on neural activity to emotional and neutral faces in a face recognition memory paradigm.

    PubMed

    Li, Shijia; Weerda, Riklef; Milde, Christopher; Wolf, Oliver T; Thiel, Christiane M

    2014-12-01

    Previous studies have shown that acute psychosocial stress impairs recognition of declarative memory and that emotional material is especially sensitive to this effect. Animal studies suggest a central role of the amygdala which modulates memory processes in hippocampus, prefrontal cortex and other brain areas. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate neural correlates of stress-induced modulation of emotional recognition memory in humans. Twenty-seven healthy, right-handed, non-smoker male volunteers performed an emotional face recognition task. During encoding, participants were presented with 50 fearful and 50 neutral faces. One hour later, they underwent either a stress (Trier Social Stress Test) or a control procedure outside the scanner which was followed immediately by the recognition session inside the scanner, where participants had to discriminate between 100 old and 50 new faces. Stress increased salivary cortisol, blood pressure and pulse, and decreased the mood of participants but did not impact recognition memory. BOLD data during recognition revealed a stress condition by emotion interaction in the left inferior frontal gyrus and right hippocampus which was due to a stress-induced increase of neural activity to fearful and a decrease to neutral faces. Functional connectivity analyses revealed a stress-induced increase in coupling between the right amygdala and the right fusiform gyrus, when processing fearful as compared to neutral faces. Our results provide evidence that acute psychosocial stress affects medial temporal and frontal brain areas differentially for neutral and emotional items, with a stress-induced privileged processing of emotional stimuli.

  7. Effects of Age, Task Performance, and Structural Brain Development on Face Processing

    PubMed Central

    Cohen Kadosh, Kathrin; Johnson, Mark H; Dick, Frederic; Cohen Kadosh, Roi; Blakemore, Sarah-Jayne

    2013-01-01

    In this combined structural and functional MRI developmental study, we tested 48 participants aged 7–37 years on 3 simple face-processing tasks (identity, expression, and gaze task), which were designed to yield very similar performance levels across the entire age range. The same participants then carried out 3 more difficult out-of-scanner tasks, which provided in-depth measures of changes in performance. For our analysis we adopted a novel, systematic approach that allowed us to differentiate age- from performance-related changes in the BOLD response in the 3 tasks, and compared these effects to concomitant changes in brain structure. The processing of all face aspects activated the core face-network across the age range, as well as additional and partially separable regions. Small task-specific activations in posterior regions were found to increase with age and were distinct from more widespread activations that varied as a function of individual task performance (but not of age). Our results demonstrate that activity during face-processing changes with age, and these effects are still observed when controlling for changes associated with differences in task performance. Moreover, we found that changes in white and gray matter volume were associated with changes in activation with age and performance in the out-of-scanner tasks. PMID:22661406

  8. Pleasant and unpleasant odour-face combinations influence face and odour perception: An event-related potential study.

    PubMed

    Cook, Stephanie; Kokmotou, Katerina; Soto, Vicente; Fallon, Nicholas; Tyson-Carr, John; Thomas, Anna; Giesbrecht, Timo; Field, Matt; Stancak, Andrej

    2017-08-30

    Odours alter evaluations of concurrent visual stimuli. However, neural mechanisms underlying the effects of congruent and incongruent odours on facial expression perception are not clear. Moreover, the influence of emotional faces on odour perception is not established. We investigated the effects of one pleasant and one unpleasant odour paired with happy and disgusted faces, on subjective ratings and ERP responses to faces. Participants rated the pleasantness of happy and disgusted faces that appeared during 3s pleasant or unpleasant odour pulses, or without odour. Odour pleasantness and intensity ratings were recorded in each trial. EEG was recorded continuously using a 128-channel system. Happy and disgusted faces paired with pleasant and unpleasant odour were rated as more or less pleasant, respectively, compared to the same faces presented in the other odour conditions. Odours were rated as more pleasant when paired with happy faces, and unpleasant odour was rated more intense when paired with disgusted faces. Unpleasant odour paired with disgusted faces also decreased inspiration. Odour-face interactions were evident in the N200 and N400 components. Our results reveal bi-directional effects of odours and faces, and suggest that odour-face interactions may be represented in ERP components. Pairings of unpleasant odour and disgusted faces resulted in stronger hedonic ratings, ERP changes, increased odour intensity ratings and respiratory adjustment. This finding likely represents heightened adaptive responses to multimodal unpleasant stimuli, prompting appropriate behaviour in the presence of danger. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  9. Repetition Blindness for Faces: A Comparison of Face Identity, Expression, and Gender Judgments.

    PubMed

    Murphy, Karen; Ward, Zoe

    2017-01-01

    Repetition blindness (RB) refers to the impairment in reporting two identical targets within a rapid serial visual presentation stream. While numerous studies have demonstrated RB for words and picture of objects, very few studies have examined RB for faces. This study extended this research by examining RB when the two faces were complete repeats (same emotion and identity), identity repeats (same individual, different emotion), and emotion repeats (different individual, same emotion) for identity, gender, and expression judgment tasks. Complete RB and identity RB effects were evident for all three judgment tasks. Emotion RB was only evident for the expression and gender judgments. Complete RB effects were larger than emotion or identity RB effects across all judgment tasks. For the expression judgments, there was more emotion than identity RB. The identity RB effect was larger than the emotion RB effect for the gender judgments. Cross task comparisons revealed larger complete RB effects for the expression and gender judgments than the identity decisions. There was a larger emotion RB effect for the expression than gender judgments and the identity RB effect was larger for the gender than for the identity and expression judgments. These results indicate that while faces are subject to RB, this is affected by the type of repeated information and relevance of the facial characteristic to the judgment decision. This study provides further support for the operation of separate processing mechanisms for face gender, emotion, and identity information within models of face recognition.

  10. Repetition Blindness for Faces: A Comparison of Face Identity, Expression, and Gender Judgments

    PubMed Central

    Murphy, Karen; Ward, Zoe

    2017-01-01

    Repetition blindness (RB) refers to the impairment in reporting two identical targets within a rapid serial visual presentation stream. While numerous studies have demonstrated RB for words and picture of objects, very few studies have examined RB for faces. This study extended this research by examining RB when the two faces were complete repeats (same emotion and identity), identity repeats (same individual, different emotion), and emotion repeats (different individual, same emotion) for identity, gender, and expression judgment tasks. Complete RB and identity RB effects were evident for all three judgment tasks. Emotion RB was only evident for the expression and gender judgments. Complete RB effects were larger than emotion or identity RB effects across all judgment tasks. For the expression judgments, there was more emotion than identity RB. The identity RB effect was larger than the emotion RB effect for the gender judgments. Cross task comparisons revealed larger complete RB effects for the expression and gender judgments than the identity decisions. There was a larger emotion RB effect for the expression than gender judgments and the identity RB effect was larger for the gender than for the identity and expression judgments. These results indicate that while faces are subject to RB, this is affected by the type of repeated information and relevance of the facial characteristic to the judgment decision. This study provides further support for the operation of separate processing mechanisms for face gender, emotion, and identity information within models of face recognition. PMID:29038663

  11. [Research of clinic and laboratory of face acupuncture effect and the exploration of their afferent pathways].

    PubMed

    Zhang, S; Tang, Z; Wu, Z; Li, L; Zhang, R

    1996-01-01

    This paper shows that face acupuncture point (Liver point through gallbladder point) has significant effect of promoting bile secretion on the patients of cholecystectomy and choledochotomy and drainage. Special different point is that face acupuncture stimulation has very obvious posteffect comparing with other three body acupuncture groups and this posteffect lasts more than fifty minuts. The results also show that the successful rate of face acupuncture anesthesia is better than body acupuncture anesthesia during the ligation of oviduct and subtotal gastrectomy. The above results are all analysed statistically and there is a very significant difference among them. During the research on domestic dog anesthesiaed by face acupuncture, the successful rate is 86.5%, moreover the analgesic effect of face acupuncture can be blocked by blocking bilateral postganglionic fibre of trigeminal ganglion with 2% procaine. The results imply that trigeminal ganglion is the main afferent way of stimulation information of face acupuncture.

  12. Performance of end-face seals with diametral tilt and coning - Hydrodynamic effects

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Sharoni, A.; Etsion, I.

    1979-01-01

    Hydrodynamic effects in end-face seals with diametral tilt and coning are analyzed. A closed-form solution for the axial separating force and the restoring and transverse moments is presented that covers the whole range from zero to full angular misalignment at various degrees of coning. Both low-pressure seals with cavitating flow and high-pressure seals with full fluid film are considered. The effect of coning is to reduce the axial force and the restoring and transverse moments compared to their magnitude in flat-face seals. Strong coupling between diametral tilt and transverse moment is demonstrated. This transverse moment which is entirely due to hydrodynamic effects can be the source of dynamic instability in the form of seal wobble.

  13. Preferences for Online and/or Face-to-Face Counseling among University Students in Malaysia

    PubMed Central

    Wong, Kah P.; Bonn, Gregory; Tam, Cai L.; Wong, Chee P.

    2018-01-01

    Increasingly, online counseling is considered to be a cost-effective and highly accessible method of providing basic counseling and mental health services. To examine the potential of online delivery as a way of increasing overall usage of services, this study looked at students’ attitudes toward and likelihood of using both online and/or face-to-face counseling. A survey was conducted with 409 students from six universities in Malaysia participating. Approximately 35% of participants reported that they would be likely to utilize online counseling services but would be unlikely to participate in face-to-face counseling. Based on these results, it is suggested that offering online counseling, in addition to face-to-face services, could be an effective way for many university counseling centers to increase the utilization of their services and thus better serve their communities. PMID:29445352

  14. Preferences for Online and/or Face-to-Face Counseling among University Students in Malaysia.

    PubMed

    Wong, Kah P; Bonn, Gregory; Tam, Cai L; Wong, Chee P

    2018-01-01

    Increasingly, online counseling is considered to be a cost-effective and highly accessible method of providing basic counseling and mental health services. To examine the potential of online delivery as a way of increasing overall usage of services, this study looked at students' attitudes toward and likelihood of using both online and/or face-to-face counseling. A survey was conducted with 409 students from six universities in Malaysia participating. Approximately 35% of participants reported that they would be likely to utilize online counseling services but would be unlikely to participate in face-to-face counseling. Based on these results, it is suggested that offering online counseling, in addition to face-to-face services, could be an effective way for many university counseling centers to increase the utilization of their services and thus better serve their communities.

  15. Confidence intervals for single-case effect size measures based on randomization test inversion.

    PubMed

    Michiels, Bart; Heyvaert, Mieke; Meulders, Ann; Onghena, Patrick

    2017-02-01

    In the current paper, we present a method to construct nonparametric confidence intervals (CIs) for single-case effect size measures in the context of various single-case designs. We use the relationship between a two-sided statistical hypothesis test at significance level α and a 100 (1 - α) % two-sided CI to construct CIs for any effect size measure θ that contain all point null hypothesis θ values that cannot be rejected by the hypothesis test at significance level α. This method of hypothesis test inversion (HTI) can be employed using a randomization test as the statistical hypothesis test in order to construct a nonparametric CI for θ. We will refer to this procedure as randomization test inversion (RTI). We illustrate RTI in a situation in which θ is the unstandardized and the standardized difference in means between two treatments in a completely randomized single-case design. Additionally, we demonstrate how RTI can be extended to other types of single-case designs. Finally, we discuss a few challenges for RTI as well as possibilities when using the method with other effect size measures, such as rank-based nonoverlap indices. Supplementary to this paper, we provide easy-to-use R code, which allows the user to construct nonparametric CIs according to the proposed method.

  16. Decision Accuracy in Computer-Mediated versus Face-to-Face Decision-Making Teams.

    PubMed

    Hedlund; Ilgen; Hollenbeck

    1998-10-01

    Changes in the way organizations are structured and advances in communication technologies are two factors that have altered the conditions under which group decisions are made. Decisions are increasingly made by teams that have a hierarchical structure and whose members have different areas of expertise. In addition, many decisions are no longer made via strictly face-to-face interaction. The present study examines the effects of two modes of communication (face-to-face or computer-mediated) on the accuracy of teams' decisions. The teams are characterized by a hierarchical structure and their members differ in expertise consistent with the framework outlined in the Multilevel Theory of team decision making presented by Hollenbeck, Ilgen, Sego, Hedlund, Major, and Phillips (1995). Sixty-four four-person teams worked for 3 h on a computer simulation interacting either face-to-face (FtF) or over a computer network. The communication mode had mixed effects on team processes in that members of FtF teams were better informed and made recommendations that were more predictive of the correct team decision, but leaders of CM teams were better able to differentiate staff members on the quality of their decisions. Controlling for the negative impact of FtF communication on staff member differentiation increased the beneficial effect of the FtF mode on overall decision making accuracy. Copyright 1998 Academic Press.

  17. Biological Applications of Extraordinary Electroconductance and Photovoltaic Effects in Inverse Extraordinary Optoconductance

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tran, Lauren Christine

    The Extraordinary Electroconductance (EEC) sensor has been previously demonstrated to have an electric field sensitivity of 3.05V/cm in a mesoscopic-scale structure fabricated at the center of a parallel plate capacitor. In this thesis, we demonstrate the first successful application of EEC sensors as electrochemical detectors of protein binding and biological molecule concentration. Using the avidin derivative, captavidin, in complex with the vitamin biotin, the change in four-point measured resistance with fluid protein concentration of bare EEC sensors was shown to increase by a factor of four in the presence of biomolecular binding as compared to baseline. Calculations for approximate field strengths introduced by a bound captavidin molecule are also presented. The development of Inverse-Extraordinary Optoconductance (I-EOC), an effect which occurs in nanoscale sensors, is also discussed. In the I-EOC effect, electron transport transitions from ballistic to diffusive with increasing light intensity. In these novel, room temperature optical detectors, the resistance is low at low light intensity and resistance increases by 9462% in a 250nm device mesa upon full illumination with a 5 mW HeNe laser. This is the inverse of bulk and mesoscopic device behavior, in which resistance decreases with increasing photon density.

  18. Resolution of VTI anisotropy with elastic full-waveform inversion: theory and basic numerical examples

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Podgornova, O.; Leaney, S.; Liang, L.

    2018-07-01

    Extracting medium properties from seismic data faces some limitations due to the finite frequency content of the data and restricted spatial positions of the sources and receivers. Some distributions of the medium properties make low impact on the data (including none). If these properties are used as the inversion parameters, then the inverse problem becomes overparametrized, leading to ambiguous results. We present an analysis of multiparameter resolution for the linearized inverse problem in the framework of elastic full-waveform inversion. We show that the spatial and multiparameter sensitivities are intertwined and non-sensitive properties are spatial distributions of some non-trivial combinations of the conventional elastic parameters. The analysis accounts for the Hessian information and frequency content of the data; it is semi-analytical (in some scenarios analytical), easy to interpret and enhances results of the widely used radiation pattern analysis. Single-type scattering is shown to have limited sensitivity, even for full-aperture data. Finite-frequency data lose multiparameter sensitivity at smooth and fine spatial scales. Also, we establish ways to quantify a spatial-multiparameter coupling and demonstrate that the theoretical predictions agree well with the numerical results.

  19. Navon letters affect face learning and face retrieval.

    PubMed

    Lewis, Michael B; Mills, Claire; Hills, Peter J; Weston, Nicola

    2009-01-01

    Identifying the local letters of a Navon letter (a large letter made up of smaller different letters) prior to recognition causes impairment in accuracy, while identifying the global letters of a Navon letter causes an enhancement in recognition accuracy (Macrae & Lewis, 2002). This effect may result from a transfer-inappropriate processing shift (TIPS) (Schooler, 2002). The present experiment extends research on the underlying mechanism of this effect by exploring this Navon effect on face learning as well as face recognition. The results of the two experiments revealed that when the Navon task used at retrieval was the same as that used at encoding then the performance accuracy is enhanced, whereas when the processing operations mismatch at retrieval and at encoding, this impairs recognition accuracy. These results provide support for the TIPS explanation of the Navon effect.

  20. anisotropic microseismic focal mechanism inversion by waveform imaging matching

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, L.; Chang, X.; Wang, Y.; Xue, Z.

    2016-12-01

    The focal mechanism is one of the most important parameters in source inversion, for both natural earthquakes and human-induced seismic events. It has been reported to be useful for understanding stress distribution and evaluating the fracturing effect. The conventional focal mechanism inversion method picks the first arrival waveform of P wave. This method assumes the source as a Double Couple (DC) type and the media isotropic, which is usually not the case for induced seismic focal mechanism inversion. For induced seismic events, the inappropriate source and media model in inversion processing, by introducing ambiguity or strong simulation errors, will seriously reduce the inversion effectiveness. First, the focal mechanism contains significant non-DC source type. Generally, the source contains three components: DC, isotropic (ISO) and the compensated linear vector dipole (CLVD), which makes focal mechanisms more complicated. Second, the anisotropy of media will affect travel time and waveform to generate inversion bias. The common way to describe focal mechanism inversion is based on moment tensor (MT) inversion which can be decomposed into the combination of DC, ISO and CLVD components. There are two ways to achieve MT inversion. The wave-field migration method is applied to achieve moment tensor imaging. This method can construct elements imaging of MT in 3D space without picking the first arrival, but the retrieved MT value is influenced by imaging resolution. The full waveform inversion is employed to retrieve MT. In this method, the source position and MT can be reconstructed simultaneously. However, this method needs vast numerical calculation. Moreover, the source position and MT also influence each other in the inversion process. In this paper, the waveform imaging matching (WIM) method is proposed, which combines source imaging with waveform inversion for seismic focal mechanism inversion. Our method uses the 3D tilted transverse isotropic (TTI) elastic

  1. Effects of Implied Motion and Facing Direction on Positional Preferences in Single-Object Pictures.

    PubMed

    Palmer, Stephen E; Langlois, Thomas A

    2017-07-01

    Palmer, Gardner, and Wickens studied aesthetic preferences for pictures of single objects and found a strong inward bias: Right-facing objects were preferred left-of-center and left-facing objects right-of-center. They found no effect of object motion (people and cars showed the same inward bias as chairs and teapots), but the objects were not depicted as moving. Here we measured analogous inward biases with objects depicted as moving with an implied direction and speed by having participants drag-and-drop target objects into the most aesthetically pleasing position. In Experiment 1, human figures were shown diving or falling while moving forward or backward. Aesthetic biases were evident for both inward-facing and inward-moving figures, but the motion-based bias dominated so strongly that backward divers or fallers were preferred moving inward but facing outward. Experiment 2 investigated implied speed effects using images of humans, horses, and cars moving at different speeds (e.g., standing, walking, trotting, and galloping horses). Inward motion or facing biases were again present, and differences in their magnitude due to speed were evident. Unexpectedly, faster moving objects were generally preferred closer to frame center than slower moving objects. These results are discussed in terms of the combined effects of prospective, future-oriented biases, and retrospective, past-oriented biases.

  2. Effects of intranasal oxytocin on the neural basis of face processing in autism spectrum disorder.

    PubMed

    Domes, Gregor; Heinrichs, Markus; Kumbier, Ekkehardt; Grossmann, Annette; Hauenstein, Karlheinz; Herpertz, Sabine C

    2013-08-01

    Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is associated with altered face processing and decreased activity in brain regions involved in face processing. The neuropeptide oxytocin has been shown to promote face processing and modulate brain activity in healthy adults. The present study examined the effects of oxytocin on the neural basis of face processing in adults with Asperger syndrome (AS). A group of 14 individuals with AS and a group of 14 neurotypical control participants performed a face-matching and a house-matching task during functional magnetic resonance imaging. The effects of a single dose of 24 IU intranasally administered oxytocin were tested in a randomized, placebo-controlled, within-subject, cross-over design. Under placebo, the AS group showed decreased activity in the right amygdala, fusiform gyrus, and inferior occipital gyrus compared with the control group during face processing. After oxytocin treatment, right amygdala activity to facial stimuli increased in the AS group. These findings indicate that oxytocin increases the saliency of social stimuli and in ASD and suggest that oxytocin might promote face processing and eye contact in individuals with ASD as prerequisites for neurotypical social interaction. Copyright © 2013 Society of Biological Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  3. Target-context unitization effect on the familiarity-related FN400: a face recognition exclusion task.

    PubMed

    Guillaume, Fabrice; Etienne, Yann

    2015-03-01

    Using two exclusion tasks, the present study examined how the ERP correlates of face recognition are affected by the nature of the information to be retrieved. Intrinsic (facial expression) and extrinsic (background scene) visual information were paired with face identity and constituted the exclusion criterion at test time. Although perceptual information had to be taken into account in both situations, the FN400 old-new effect was observed only for old target faces on the expression-exclusion task, whereas it was found for both old target and old non-target faces in the background-exclusion situation. These results reveal that the FN400, which is generally interpreted as a correlate of familiarity, was modulated by the retrieval of intra-item and intrinsic face information, but not by the retrieval of extrinsic information. The observed effects on the FN400 depended on the nature of the information to be retrieved and its relationship (unitization) to the recognition target. On the other hand, the parietal old-new effect (generally described as an ERP correlate of recollection) reflected the retrieval of both types of contextual features equivalently. The current findings are discussed in relation to recent controversies about the nature of the recognition processes reflected by the ERP correlates of face recognition. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  4. Perception and motivation in face recognition: a critical review of theories of the Cross-Race Effect.

    PubMed

    Young, Steven G; Hugenberg, Kurt; Bernstein, Michael J; Sacco, Donald F

    2012-05-01

    Although humans possess well-developed face processing expertise, face processing is nevertheless subject to a variety of biases. Perhaps the best known of these biases is the Cross-Race Effect--the tendency to have more accurate recognition for same-race than cross-race faces. The current work reviews the evidence for and provides a critical review of theories of the Cross-Race Effect, including perceptual expertise and social cognitive accounts of the bias. The authors conclude that recent hybrid models of the Cross-Race Effect, which combine elements of both perceptual expertise and social cognitive frameworks, provide an opportunity for theoretical synthesis and advancement not afforded by independent expertise or social cognitive models. Finally, the authors suggest future research directions intended to further develop a comprehensive and integrative understanding of biases in face recognition.

  5. Ionospheric Asymmetry Evaluation using Tomography to Assess the Effectiveness of Radio Occultation Data Inversion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shaikh, M. M.; Notarpietro, R.; Yin, P.; Nava, B.

    2013-12-01

    The Multi-Instrument Data Analysis System (MIDAS) algorithm is based on the oceanographic imaging techniques first applied to do the imaging of 2D slices of the ionosphere. The first version of MIDAS (version 1.0) was able to deal with any line-integral data such as GPS-ground or GPS-LEO differential-phase data or inverted ionograms. The current version extends tomography into four dimensional (lat, long, height and time) spatial-temporal mapping that combines all observations simultaneously in a single inversion with the minimum of a priori assumptions about the form of the ionospheric electron-concentration distribution. This work is an attempt to investigate the Radio Occultation (RO) data assimilation into MIDAS by assessing the ionospheric asymmetry and its impact on RO data inversion, when the Onion-peeling algorithm is used. Ionospheric RO data from COSMIC mission, specifically data collected during 24 September 2011 storm over mid-latitudes, has been used for the data assimilation. Using output electron density data from Midas (with/without RO assimilation) and ideal RO geometries, we tried to assess ionospheric asymmetry. It has been observed that the level of asymmetry was significantly increased when the storm was active. This was due to the increased ionization, which in turn produced large gradients along occulted ray path in the ionosphere. The presence of larger gradients was better observed when Midas was used with RO assimilated data. A very good correlation has been found between the evaluated asymmetry and errors related to the inversion products, when the inversion is performed considering standard techniques based on the assumption of spherical symmetry of the ionosphere. Errors are evaluated considering the peak electron density (NmF2) estimate and the Vertical TEC (VTEC) evaluation. This work highlights the importance of having a tool which should be able to state the effectiveness of Radio Occultation data inversion considering standard

  6. Visual adaptation and face perception

    PubMed Central

    Webster, Michael A.; MacLeod, Donald I. A.

    2011-01-01

    The appearance of faces can be strongly affected by the characteristics of faces viewed previously. These perceptual after-effects reflect processes of sensory adaptation that are found throughout the visual system, but which have been considered only relatively recently in the context of higher level perceptual judgements. In this review, we explore the consequences of adaptation for human face perception, and the implications of adaptation for understanding the neural-coding schemes underlying the visual representation of faces. The properties of face after-effects suggest that they, in part, reflect response changes at high and possibly face-specific levels of visual processing. Yet, the form of the after-effects and the norm-based codes that they point to show many parallels with the adaptations and functional organization that are thought to underlie the encoding of perceptual attributes like colour. The nature and basis for human colour vision have been studied extensively, and we draw on ideas and principles that have been developed to account for norms and normalization in colour vision to consider potential similarities and differences in the representation and adaptation of faces. PMID:21536555

  7. Perceptual asymmetry during free viewing of words and faces: The effect of context on recognition.

    PubMed

    Vakil, Eli; Liberman, Hadas

    2016-11-01

    There is ample evidence supporting the dissociation between the role of the left and right cerebral hemispheres in processing words and faces, respectively. Nevertheless, research has not yet studied the effect of perceptual asymmetry in memory context effect tasks using words and faces. Thus, the present study researches the advantages of presenting information in the right versus left hemispace and the effect of context on recognition when using faces compared to words presented in the right versus left hemispace. Participants (n=60) were assigned either to the group presented with pairs of words, or with pairs of faces. One stimulus in each pair was designated as the target (i.e., to be remembered) and the other served as context (i.e., to be ignored). Half of the targets were presented in the right hemispace, and half were presented in the left hemispace. As predicted, words were better recognized when presented in the right hemispace, while faces were better remembered when presented in the left hemispace. The most interesting finding is the influence of context on lateralized processing of words and pictures. That is, only when words or faces were presented in the left hemispace did contextual information affect target memory (though it yielded a different pattern of effect). Hence, the findings of the present study may be interpreted either as reflecting attentional bias to the left hemispace or structural differences between the hemispheres. Thus, cognitive processes and the content of the stimuli determine which hemisphere will be involved in processing contextual information. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  8. Experimental studies of MOS inversion and accumulation layers: Quantum mechanical effects and mobility

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chindalore, Gowrishankar L.

    The development of fast, multi-functional, and energy efficient integrated circuits, is made possible by aggressively scaling the gate lengths of the MOS devices into the sub-quarter micron regime. However, with the increasing cost of fabrication, there is a strong need for the development of reliable and accurate device simulation capabilities. The development of the theoretical models for simulators is guided by extensive experimental data, which enable an experimental verification of the models, and lead to a better understanding of the underlying physics. This dissertation presents the methodology and the results for one such experimental effort, where two important physical effects in the inversion layer and the accumulation layer of a MOS device, namely, the quantum mechanical (QM) effects and the carrier mobility are investigated. Accordingly, this dissertation has been divided into two parts, with the first part discussing the increase in the threshold voltage and the accumulation electrical oxide thickness due to QM effects. The second part discusses the methodology and the experimental results for the extraction of the majority carrier mobilities in the accumulation layers of a MOSFET. The continued scaling of the MOS gate length requires decreased gate oxide thickness (tox) and increased channel doping (NB) in order to improve device performance while suppressing the short- channel effects. The combination of the two result in large enough transverse electric fields to cause significant quantization of the carriers in the potential well at the Si/SiO2 interface. Hence, compared to the classical calculations (where the QM effects are ignored), the QM effects are found to lead to an increase in the experimental threshold voltage by approximately 100mV, and an overestimation of the physical oxide thickness by approximately 3-4A, in MOSFET devices with a gate oxide thickness and the doping level anticipated for technologies with sub-quarter micron gate

  9. Effectiveness and acceptability of face-to-face, blended and e-learning: a randomised trial of orthodontic undergraduates.

    PubMed

    Bains, M; Reynolds, P A; McDonald, F; Sherriff, M

    2011-05-01

    This study compared e-learning (EL), face-to-face learning (F2FL) and blended learning (BL) with respect to their effectiveness and student attitudes towards them. It also evaluated the effect of the order in which the components (EL and F2FL) of blended learning are delivered. This was a prospective cluster randomised trial comparing four parallel groups. Eight groups of fourth year dental undergraduate students were randomly allocated to one of four intervention groups: EL, F2FL, BL1 or BL2. These four groups were assessed for their baseline comparability of knowledge and skills. Each then received the same cephalometric tutorial but delivered by the allocated mode of learning. Effectiveness was immediately assessed with a MCQ which measured short-term recall of knowledge. Student attitudes were evaluated with a questionnaire followed by a focus group discussion. Ninety (57%) students completed the study. Pearson's chi-square test found no statistically significant difference between F2FL and BL; EL alone was less effective (P<0.05) for four MCQ questions but with no difference for the remaining six questions. Overall students were positive towards each learning modality, but a one-way analysis of variance found BL was the most and F2FL was the least accepted (P=0.002). EL was significantly (P=0.028) less preferred. The order of the components in BL had no significant effects. These results suggest that BL is more likely than either F2FL or EL alone, to be both effective and accepted when delivering cephalometric education to undergraduates. © 2011 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

  10. A social Bouba/Kiki effect: A bias for people whose names match their faces.

    PubMed

    Barton, David N; Halberstadt, Jamin

    2018-06-01

    The "bouba/kiki effect" is the robust tendency to associate rounded objects (vs. angular objects) with names that require rounding of the mouth to pronounce, and may reflect synesthesia-like mapping across perceptual modalities. Here we show for the first time a "social" bouba/kiki effect, such that experimental participants associate round names ("Bob," "Lou") with round-faced (vs. angular-faced) individuals. Moreover, consistent with a bias for expectancy-consistent information, we find that participants like targets with "matching" names, both when name-face fit is measured and when it is experimentally manipulated. Finally, we show that such bias could have important practical consequences: An analysis of voting data reveals that Senatorial candidates earn 10% more votes when their names fit their faces very well, versus very poorly. These and similar cross-modal congruencies suggest that social judgment involves not only amodal application of stored information (e.g., stereotypes) to new stimuli, but also integration of perceptual and bodily input.

  11. Reverse engineering the face space: Discovering the critical features for face identification.

    PubMed

    Abudarham, Naphtali; Yovel, Galit

    2016-01-01

    How do we identify people? What are the critical facial features that define an identity and determine whether two faces belong to the same person or different people? To answer these questions, we applied the face space framework, according to which faces are represented as points in a multidimensional feature space, such that face space distances are correlated with perceptual similarities between faces. In particular, we developed a novel method that allowed us to reveal the critical dimensions (i.e., critical features) of the face space. To that end, we constructed a concrete face space, which included 20 facial features of natural face images, and asked human observers to evaluate feature values (e.g., how thick are the lips). Next, we systematically and quantitatively changed facial features, and measured the perceptual effects of these manipulations. We found that critical features were those for which participants have high perceptual sensitivity (PS) for detecting differences across identities (e.g., which of two faces has thicker lips). Furthermore, these high PS features vary minimally across different views of the same identity, suggesting high PS features support face recognition across different images of the same face. The methods described here set an infrastructure for discovering the critical features of other face categories not studied here (e.g., Asians, familiar) as well as other aspects of face processing, such as attractiveness or trait inferences.

  12. The other-race and other-species effects in face perception – a subordinate-level analysis

    PubMed Central

    Dahl, Christoph D.; Rasch, Malte J.; Chen, Chien-Chung

    2014-01-01

    The ability of face discrimination is modulated by the frequency of exposure to a category of faces. In other words, lower discrimination performance was measured for infrequently encountered faces as opposed to frequently encountered ones. This phenomenon has been described in the literature: the own-race advantage, a benefit in processing own-race as opposed to the other-race faces, and the own-species advantage, a benefit in processing the conspecific type of faces as opposed to the heterospecific type. So far, the exact parameters that drive either of these two effects are not fully understood. In the following we present a full assessment of data in human participants describing the discrimination performances across two races (Asian and Caucasian) as well as a range of non-human primate faces (chimpanzee, Rhesus macaque and marmoset). We measured reaction times of Asian participants performing a delayed matching-to-sample task, and correlated the results with similarity estimates of facial configuration and face parts. We found faster discrimination of own-race above other-race/species faces. Further, we found a strong reliance on configural information in upright own-species/-race faces and on individual face parts in all inverted face classes, supporting the assumption of specialized processing for the face class of most frequent exposure. PMID:25285092

  13. Individual face-to-face tutorials: the value in nurse education.

    PubMed

    Nathan, Martina

    The individual, face-to-face tutorial is one means by which academic support can be provided to students in higher education. This mode of tutorial support has been deemed effective but it can be considered labour-intensive, which is a concern in the UK with the recession currently impacting on higher education institutions. Nevertheless, with increasing student fees come higher student expectations. With all UK pre-registration nursing study programmes at degree level and with the emphasis on widening access, students may require additional academic support to ensure success. This study aimed to examine the value of individual, face-to-face tutorials for academic support in nurse education. A descriptive and exploratory design was used, mixing qualitative and quantitative methods. The survey approach employed a web-based, self-completion questionnaire, which was distributed to lecturers and pre-registration student nurses in a UK university. Following analysis of the questionnaire results, students were invited to attend a group interview. Findings highlighted the importance of individual, face-to-face tutorials with qualitative data supplying detailed accounts regarding their value.

  14. Effects of a finite aperture on the Inverse Born Approximation

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Kogan, V.G.; Rose, J.H.

    1983-01-01

    One of the most important effects of complex part geometry is that the available entrance and exit angles for ultrasound are limited. We will present a study of the Inverse Born approximation in which we have data for incident (and exit) directions confined to a conical aperture. Modeling the direct problem by the Born Approximation, we obtained analytical results for (1) a weak spherical inclusion, and (2) a penny shaped crack (modeled by an oblate spheroid). General results are: (a) the value of the characteristic function ..gamma.. is constant in the interior of the flaw, but reduced in value; (b)more » the discontinuity at the boundary of the flaw occurs over the lighted portion of the flaw; (c) this discontinuity is contrasted by a region where ..gamma.. is negative; and (d) new non-physical discontinuities and non-analyticities appear in the reconstructed characteristic function. These general features also appear in numerical calculations which use as input strong scattering data from a spherical void and a flat penny shaped crack in Titanium. The numerical results can be straightforwardly interpreted in terms of the analytical calculation mentioned above, indicating that they will be useful in the study of realistic flaws. We conclude by discussing the stabilization of the aperture limited inversion problem and the removal of non-physical features in the reconstruction.« less

  15. Effective CO2 sequestration monitoring using joint inversion result of seismic and electromagnetic data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Noh, K.; Jeong, S.; Seol, S. J.; Byun, J.; Kwon, T.

    2015-12-01

    Man-made carbon dioxide (CO2) released into the atmosphere is a significant contributor to the greenhouse gas effect and related global warming. Sequestration of CO2 into saline aquifers has been proposed as one of the most practical options of all geological sequestration possibilities. During CO2 geological sequestration, monitoring is indispensable to delineate the change of CO2 saturation and migration of CO2 in the subsurface. Especially, monitoring of CO2 saturation in aquifers provides useful information for determining amount of injected CO2. Seismic inversion can provide the migration of CO2 plume with high resolution because velocity is reduced when CO2 replaces the pore fluid during CO2 injection. However, the estimation of CO2 saturation using the seismic method is difficult due to the lower sensitivity of the velocity to the saturation when the CO2 saturation up to 20%. On the other hand, marine controlled-source EM (mCSEM) inversion is sensitive to the resistivity changes resulting from variations in CO2 saturation, even though it has poor resolution than seismic method. In this study, we proposed an effective CO2 sequestration monitoring method using joint inversion of seismic and mCSEM data based on a cross-gradient constraint. The method was tested with realistic CO2 injection models in a deep brine aquifer beneath a shallow sea which is selected with consideration for the access convenience for the installation of source and receiver and an environmental safety. Resistivity images of CO2 plume by the proposed method for different CO2 injection stages have been significantly improved over those obtained from individual EM inversion. In addition, we could estimate a reliable CO2 saturation by rock physics model (RPM) using the P-wave velocity and the improved resistivity. The proposed method is a basis of three-dimensional estimation of reservoir parameters such as porosity and fluid saturation, and the method can be also applied for detecting a

  16. Interference between face and non-face domains of perceptual expertise: a replication and extension

    PubMed Central

    Curby, Kim M.; Gauthier, Isabel

    2014-01-01

    As car expertise increases, so does interference between the visual processing of faces and that of cars; this suggests performance trade-offs across domains of real-world expertise. Such interference between expert domains has been previously revealed in a relatively complex design, interleaving 2-back part-judgment task with faces and cars (Gauthier et al., 2003). However, the basis of this interference is unclear. Experiment 1A replicated the finding of interference between faces and cars, as a function of car expertise. Experiments 1B and 2 investigated the mechanisms underlying this effect by (1) providing baseline measures of performance and (2) assessing the specificity of this interference effect. Our findings support the presence of expertise-dependent interference between face and non-face domains of expertise. However, surprisingly, it is in the condition where faces are processed among cars with a disrupted configuration where expertise has a greater influence on faces. This finding highlights how expertise-related processing changes also occur for transformed objects of expertise and that such changes can also drive interference across domains of expertise. PMID:25346702

  17. Nation, Face, and Identity: An Initial Investigation of National Face in East Asia

    PubMed Central

    Chen, Rong; Hwang, Kwang-Kuo

    2016-01-01

    This research investigates a key concept in East Asia, face, and represents the first attempt to empirically examine the concept of face at the national level. Controlling for the level of national identification, Study 1 employed the scenario experiment method among samples of native Chinese and Taiwanese populations and revealed that national face exhibits patterns reverse of personal face. Using the experimental method, Study 2 replicated the findings of Study 1 and provided support for the different mechanisms underneath national face and personal face. Study 3 replicated the findings of Study 2 and additionally showed that national face exerts a significant inhibitory effect on face process. Findings are discussed in terms of possible implications for intergroup and international relations. Expanding on extant scholarship on face and across three studies with different experimental paradigms, this research turns our attention from face at the personal level to face at the national level by introducing the construct of national face and examining its manifestations in East Asia. The results advance our understanding of the psychological mechanism driving face concern in East Asia. They make a strong and unique case for the psychological existence of national face as an empirically distinct construct and an important psychological resource for East Asians. PMID:27774081

  18. Blending Face-to-Face and Internet-Based Interventions for the Treatment of Mental Disorders in Adults: Systematic Review

    PubMed Central

    Eichert, Hans-Christoph; Riper, Heleen

    2017-01-01

    Background Many studies have provided evidence for the effectiveness of Internet-based stand-alone interventions for mental disorders. A newer form of intervention combines the strengths of face-to-face (f2f) and Internet approaches (blended interventions). Objective The aim of this review was to provide an overview of (1) the different formats of blended treatments for adults, (2) the stage of treatment in which these are applied, (3) their objective in combining face-to-face and Internet-based approaches, and (4) their effectiveness. Methods Studies on blended concepts were identified through systematic searches in the MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Cochrane, and PubMed databases. Keywords included terms indicating face-to-face interventions (“inpatient,” “outpatient,” “face-to-face,” or “residential treatment”), which were combined with terms indicating Internet treatment (“internet,” “online,” or “web”) and terms indicating mental disorders (“mental health,” “depression,” “anxiety,” or “substance abuse”). We focused on three of the most common mental disorders (depression, anxiety, and substance abuse). Results We identified 64 publications describing 44 studies, 27 of which were randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Results suggest that, compared with stand-alone face-to-face therapy, blended therapy may save clinician time, lead to lower dropout rates and greater abstinence rates of patients with substance abuse, or help maintain initially achieved changes within psychotherapy in the long-term effects of inpatient therapy. However, there is a lack of comparative outcome studies investigating the superiority of the outcomes of blended treatments in comparison with classic face-to-face or Internet-based treatments, as well as of studies identifying the optimal ratio of face-to-face and Internet sessions. Conclusions Several studies have shown that, for common mental health disorders, blended interventions are feasible and can be

  19. Blending Face-to-Face and Internet-Based Interventions for the Treatment of Mental Disorders in Adults: Systematic Review.

    PubMed

    Erbe, Doris; Eichert, Hans-Christoph; Riper, Heleen; Ebert, David Daniel

    2017-09-15

    Many studies have provided evidence for the effectiveness of Internet-based stand-alone interventions for mental disorders. A newer form of intervention combines the strengths of face-to-face (f2f) and Internet approaches (blended interventions). The aim of this review was to provide an overview of (1) the different formats of blended treatments for adults, (2) the stage of treatment in which these are applied, (3) their objective in combining face-to-face and Internet-based approaches, and (4) their effectiveness. Studies on blended concepts were identified through systematic searches in the MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Cochrane, and PubMed databases. Keywords included terms indicating face-to-face interventions ("inpatient," "outpatient," "face-to-face," or "residential treatment"), which were combined with terms indicating Internet treatment ("internet," "online," or "web") and terms indicating mental disorders ("mental health," "depression," "anxiety," or "substance abuse"). We focused on three of the most common mental disorders (depression, anxiety, and substance abuse). We identified 64 publications describing 44 studies, 27 of which were randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Results suggest that, compared with stand-alone face-to-face therapy, blended therapy may save clinician time, lead to lower dropout rates and greater abstinence rates of patients with substance abuse, or help maintain initially achieved changes within psychotherapy in the long-term effects of inpatient therapy. However, there is a lack of comparative outcome studies investigating the superiority of the outcomes of blended treatments in comparison with classic face-to-face or Internet-based treatments, as well as of studies identifying the optimal ratio of face-to-face and Internet sessions. Several studies have shown that, for common mental health disorders, blended interventions are feasible and can be more effective compared with no treatment controls. However, more RCTs on effectiveness and

  20. Categorical and Coordinate Relations in Faces, or Fechner's Law and Face Space Instead?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McKone, Elinor; Aitkin, Alex; Edwards, Mark

    2005-01-01

    E. E. Cooper and T. J. Wojan (2000) applied the categorical-coordinate relations distinction to faces on the basis of a finding that two-eyes-up versus one-eye-up distortions had opposite effects in between-class (face normality) and within-class (face identity) tasks. However, Cooper and Wojan failed to match amount of metric change between their…

  1. Micro-seismic imaging using a source function independent full waveform inversion method

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Hanchen; Alkhalifah, Tariq

    2018-03-01

    At the heart of micro-seismic event measurements is the task to estimate the location of the source micro-seismic events, as well as their ignition times. The accuracy of locating the sources is highly dependent on the velocity model. On the other hand, the conventional micro-seismic source locating methods require, in many cases manual picking of traveltime arrivals, which do not only lead to manual effort and human interaction, but also prone to errors. Using full waveform inversion (FWI) to locate and image micro-seismic events allows for an automatic process (free of picking) that utilizes the full wavefield. However, full waveform inversion of micro-seismic events faces incredible nonlinearity due to the unknown source locations (space) and functions (time). We developed a source function independent full waveform inversion of micro-seismic events to invert for the source image, source function and the velocity model. It is based on convolving reference traces with these observed and modeled to mitigate the effect of an unknown source ignition time. The adjoint-state method is used to derive the gradient for the source image, source function and velocity updates. The extended image for the source wavelet in Z axis is extracted to check the accuracy of the inverted source image and velocity model. Also, angle gathers is calculated to assess the quality of the long wavelength component of the velocity model. By inverting for the source image, source wavelet and the velocity model simultaneously, the proposed method produces good estimates of the source location, ignition time and the background velocity for synthetic examples used here, like those corresponding to the Marmousi model and the SEG/EAGE overthrust model.

  2. Holistic processing for other-race faces in chinese participants occurs for upright but not inverted faces.

    PubMed

    Crookes, Kate; Favelle, Simone; Hayward, William G

    2013-01-01

    Recent evidence suggests stronger holistic processing for own-race faces may underlie the own-race advantage in face memory. In previous studies Caucasian participants have demonstrated larger holistic processing effects for Caucasian over Asian faces. However, Asian participants have consistently shown similar sized effects for both Asian and Caucasian faces. We investigated two proposed explanations for the holistic processing of other-race faces by Asian participants: (1) greater other-race exposure, (2) a general global processing bias. Holistic processing was tested using the part-whole task. Participants were living in predominantly own-race environments and other-race contact was evaluated. Despite reporting significantly greater contact with own-race than other-race people, Chinese participants displayed strong holistic processing for both Asian and Caucasian upright faces. In addition, Chinese participants showed no evidence of holistic processing for inverted faces arguing against a general global processing bias explanation. Caucasian participants, in line with previous studies, displayed stronger holistic processing for Caucasian than Asian upright faces. For inverted faces there were no race-of-face differences. These results are used to suggest that Asians may make more general use of face-specific mechanisms than Caucasians.

  3. Holistic Processing for Other-Race Faces in Chinese Participants Occurs for Upright but Not Inverted Faces

    PubMed Central

    Crookes, Kate; Favelle, Simone; Hayward, William G.

    2013-01-01

    Recent evidence suggests stronger holistic processing for own-race faces may underlie the own-race advantage in face memory. In previous studies Caucasian participants have demonstrated larger holistic processing effects for Caucasian over Asian faces. However, Asian participants have consistently shown similar sized effects for both Asian and Caucasian faces. We investigated two proposed explanations for the holistic processing of other-race faces by Asian participants: (1) greater other-race exposure, (2) a general global processing bias. Holistic processing was tested using the part-whole task. Participants were living in predominantly own-race environments and other-race contact was evaluated. Despite reporting significantly greater contact with own-race than other-race people, Chinese participants displayed strong holistic processing for both Asian and Caucasian upright faces. In addition, Chinese participants showed no evidence of holistic processing for inverted faces arguing against a general global processing bias explanation. Caucasian participants, in line with previous studies, displayed stronger holistic processing for Caucasian than Asian upright faces. For inverted faces there were no race-of-face differences. These results are used to suggest that Asians may make more general use of face-specific mechanisms than Caucasians. PMID:23386840

  4. Evaluating College Students' Evaluations of a Professor's Teaching Effectiveness across Time and Instruction Mode (Online vs. Face-to-Face) Using a Multilevel Growth Modeling Approach

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Carle, Adam C.

    2009-01-01

    Aims: Do college students' ratings of a professor's teaching effectiveness suggest that a professor's teaching improves with time? Does anything predict which instructors receive the highest ratings or improve the fastest? And, importantly, do the correlates of change differ across face-to-face and online courses? Methods: I used data from 10,392…

  5. Comparison of the BCI Performance between the Semitransparent Face Pattern and the Traditional Face Pattern.

    PubMed

    Cheng, Jiao; Jin, Jing; Wang, Xingyu

    2017-01-01

    Brain-computer interface (BCI) systems allow users to communicate with the external world by recognizing the brain activity without the assistance of the peripheral motor nervous system. P300-based BCI is one of the most common used BCI systems that can obtain high classification accuracy and information transfer rate (ITR). Face stimuli can result in large event-related potentials and improve the performance of P300-based BCI. However, previous studies on face stimuli focused mainly on the effect of various face types (i.e., face expression, face familiarity, and multifaces) on the BCI performance. Studies on the influence of face transparency differences are scarce. Therefore, we investigated the effect of semitransparent face pattern (STF-P) (the subject could see the target character when the stimuli were flashed) and traditional face pattern (F-P) (the subject could not see the target character when the stimuli were flashed) on the BCI performance from the transparency perspective. Results showed that STF-P obtained significantly higher classification accuracy and ITR than those of F-P ( p < 0.05).

  6. The comparison between intradermal injection of abobotulinumtoxinA and normal saline for face-lifting: a split-face randomized controlled trial.

    PubMed

    Wanitphakdeedecha, Rungsima; Ungaksornpairote, Chanida; Kaewkes, Arisa; Rojanavanich, Viboon; Phothong, Weeranut; Manuskiatti, Woraphong

    2016-12-01

    Botulinum toxin type A (BTA) has been approved for the treatment of strabismus, blepharospasm, muscle spasm, cervical dystonia, pain syndrome, glabella wrinkles, and severe primary axillary hyperhidrosis. Intradermal injection of BTA has been used off-label by many clinicians for the purpose of face-lifting effect. Few studies on onabotulinumtoxinA (ONA) demonstrated no clinical efficacy on face-lifting effect when comparing to normal saline solution (NSS). So far, there is no split-face comparison study on face-lifting effect of abobotulinumtoxinA (ABO). To determine the face-lifting effect of ABO intradermal injection and NSS. Twenty-two subjects with symmetrical faces on both facial expression and expressionless were randomly injected with ABO at 1:7 cc dilution (500 unit or one vial in 7 cc of NSS) on one side and NSS on the other side using intradermal injection technique. Standardized photographic documentation was obtained at baseline, and at 2 weeks after treatment. The face-lifting effect was graded by two blinded dermatologists using photographic comparison and rated by the patients. Side effects were also recorded at the end of the study. Face-lifting effect was demonstrated in 40.9% and 4.5% of patients with ABO and NSS, respectively. There was a statistically significant difference in face-lifting effect when comparing between ABO and NSS (P = 0.021). The face-lifting was reported in 50.0% of patients receiving ABO injection. The patients with oval-face shape tended to respond better with ABO (P = 0.046). The odd of face-lifting effect for patients aged younger than 32 was higher than patients aged older than 32 with the odds ratio of 7.9 and 95% confidence interval of 1.1-56.1. Facial asymmetry was found in 22.7% of subjects. This study demonstrated the face-lifting effect of ABO intradermal injection. Patients with oval-face shape and aged younger than 32 tended to respond better. Therefore, patient selection should be emphasized to improve efficacy

  7. Clinical knowledge-based inverse treatment planning

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yang, Yong; Xing, Lei

    2004-11-01

    Clinical IMRT treatment plans are currently made using dose-based optimization algorithms, which do not consider the nonlinear dose-volume effects for tumours and normal structures. The choice of structure specific importance factors represents an additional degree of freedom of the system and makes rigorous optimization intractable. The purpose of this work is to circumvent the two problems by developing a biologically more sensible yet clinically practical inverse planning framework. To implement this, the dose-volume status of a structure was characterized by using the effective volume in the voxel domain. A new objective function was constructed with the incorporation of the volumetric information of the system so that the figure of merit of a given IMRT plan depends not only on the dose deviation from the desired distribution but also the dose-volume status of the involved organs. The conventional importance factor of an organ was written into a product of two components: (i) a generic importance that parametrizes the relative importance of the organs in the ideal situation when the goals for all the organs are met; (ii) a dose-dependent factor that quantifies our level of clinical/dosimetric satisfaction for a given plan. The generic importance can be determined a priori, and in most circumstances, does not need adjustment, whereas the second one, which is responsible for the intractable behaviour of the trade-off seen in conventional inverse planning, was determined automatically. An inverse planning module based on the proposed formalism was implemented and applied to a prostate case and a head-neck case. A comparison with the conventional inverse planning technique indicated that, for the same target dose coverage, the critical structure sparing was substantially improved for both cases. The incorporation of clinical knowledge allows us to obtain better IMRT plans and makes it possible to auto-select the importance factors, greatly facilitating the inverse

  8. Tomographic inversion of time-domain resistivity and chargeability data for the investigation of landfills using a priori information.

    PubMed

    De Donno, Giorgio; Cardarelli, Ettore

    2017-01-01

    In this paper, we present a new code for the modelling and inversion of resistivity and chargeability data using a priori information to improve the accuracy of the reconstructed model for landfill. When a priori information is available in the study area, we can insert them by means of inequality constraints on the whole model or on a single layer or assigning weighting factors for enhancing anomalies elongated in the horizontal or vertical directions. However, when we have to face a multilayered scenario with numerous resistive to conductive transitions (the case of controlled landfills), the effective thickness of the layers can be biased. The presented code includes a model-tuning scheme, which is applied after the inversion of field data, where the inversion of the synthetic data is performed based on an initial guess, and the absolute difference between the field and synthetic inverted models is minimized. The reliability of the proposed approach has been supported in two real-world examples; we were able to identify an unauthorized landfill and to reconstruct the geometrical and physical layout of an old waste dump. The combined analysis of the resistivity and chargeability (normalised) models help us to remove ambiguity due to the presence of the waste mass. Nevertheless, the presence of certain layers can remain hidden without using a priori information, as demonstrated by a comparison of the constrained inversion with a standard inversion. The robustness of the above-cited method (using a priori information in combination with model tuning) has been validated with the cross-section from the construction plans, where the reconstructed model is in agreement with the original design. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. In infancy the timing of emergence of the other-race effect is dependent on face gender.

    PubMed

    Tham, Diana Su Yun; Bremner, J Gavin; Hay, Dennis

    2015-08-01

    Poorer recognition of other-race faces relative to own-race faces is well documented from late infancy to adulthood. Research has revealed an increase in the other-race effect (ORE) during the first year of life, but there is some disagreement regarding the age at which it emerges. Using cropped faces to eliminate discrimination based on external features, visual paired comparison and spontaneous visual preference measures were used to investigate the relationship between ORE and face gender at 3-4 and 8-9 months. Caucasian-White 3- to 4-month-olds' discrimination of Chinese, Malay, and Caucasian-White faces showed an own-race advantage for female faces alone whereas at 8-9 months the own-race advantage was general across gender. This developmental effect is accompanied by a preference for female over male faces at 4 months and no gender preference at 9 months. The pattern of recognition advantage and preference suggests that there is a shift from a female-based own-race recognition advantage to a general own-race recognition advantage, in keeping with a visual and social experience-based account of ORE. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  10. Compositional effects on the ignition of FACE gasolines [Compositional effects on the ignition of FACE gasoline fuels: experiments, surrogate fuel formulation, and chemical kinetic modeling

    DOE PAGES

    Sarathy, S. Mani; Kukkadapu, Goutham; Mehl, Marco; ...

    2016-05-08

    As regulatory measures for improved fuel economy and decreased emissions are pushing gasoline engine combustion technologies towards extreme conditions (i.e., boosted and intercooled intake with exhaust gas recirculation), fuel ignition characteristics become increasingly important for enabling stable operation. Here, this study explores the effects of chemical composition on the fundamental ignition behavior of gasoline fuels. Two well-characterized, high-octane, non-oxygenated FACE (Fuels for Advanced Combustion Engines) gasolines, FACE F and FACE G, having similar antiknock indices but different octane sensitivities and chemical compositions are studied. Ignition experiments were conducted in shock tubes and a rapid compression machine (RCM) at nominal pressuresmore » of 20 and 40 atm, equivalence ratios of 0.5 and 1.0, and temperatures ranging from 650 to 1270 K. Results at temperatures above 900 K indicate that ignition delay time is similar for these fuels. However, RCM measurements below 900 K demonstrate a stronger negative temperature coefficient behavior for FACE F gasoline having lower octane sensitivity. In addition, RCM pressure profiles under two-stage ignition conditions illustrate that the magnitude of low-temperature heat release (LTHR) increases with decreasing fuel octane sensitivity. However, intermediate-temperature heat release is shown to increase as fuel octane sensitivity increases. Various surrogate fuel mixtures were formulated to conduct chemical kinetic modeling, and complex multicomponent surrogate mixtures were shown to reproduce experimentally observed trends better than simpler two- and three-component mixtures composed of n-heptane, iso-octane, and toluene. Measurements in a Cooperative Fuels Research (CFR) engine demonstrated that the multicomponent surrogates accurately captured the antiknock quality of the FACE gasolines. Simulations were performed using multicomponent surrogates for FACE F and G to reveal the underlying

  11. Compositional effects on the ignition of FACE gasolines [Compositional effects on the ignition of FACE gasoline fuels: experiments, surrogate fuel formulation, and chemical kinetic modeling

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Sarathy, S. Mani; Kukkadapu, Goutham; Mehl, Marco

    As regulatory measures for improved fuel economy and decreased emissions are pushing gasoline engine combustion technologies towards extreme conditions (i.e., boosted and intercooled intake with exhaust gas recirculation), fuel ignition characteristics become increasingly important for enabling stable operation. Here, this study explores the effects of chemical composition on the fundamental ignition behavior of gasoline fuels. Two well-characterized, high-octane, non-oxygenated FACE (Fuels for Advanced Combustion Engines) gasolines, FACE F and FACE G, having similar antiknock indices but different octane sensitivities and chemical compositions are studied. Ignition experiments were conducted in shock tubes and a rapid compression machine (RCM) at nominal pressuresmore » of 20 and 40 atm, equivalence ratios of 0.5 and 1.0, and temperatures ranging from 650 to 1270 K. Results at temperatures above 900 K indicate that ignition delay time is similar for these fuels. However, RCM measurements below 900 K demonstrate a stronger negative temperature coefficient behavior for FACE F gasoline having lower octane sensitivity. In addition, RCM pressure profiles under two-stage ignition conditions illustrate that the magnitude of low-temperature heat release (LTHR) increases with decreasing fuel octane sensitivity. However, intermediate-temperature heat release is shown to increase as fuel octane sensitivity increases. Various surrogate fuel mixtures were formulated to conduct chemical kinetic modeling, and complex multicomponent surrogate mixtures were shown to reproduce experimentally observed trends better than simpler two- and three-component mixtures composed of n-heptane, iso-octane, and toluene. Measurements in a Cooperative Fuels Research (CFR) engine demonstrated that the multicomponent surrogates accurately captured the antiknock quality of the FACE gasolines. Simulations were performed using multicomponent surrogates for FACE F and G to reveal the underlying

  12. Acoustic Inversion in Optoacoustic Tomography: A Review

    PubMed Central

    Rosenthal, Amir; Ntziachristos, Vasilis; Razansky, Daniel

    2013-01-01

    Optoacoustic tomography enables volumetric imaging with optical contrast in biological tissue at depths beyond the optical mean free path by the use of optical excitation and acoustic detection. The hybrid nature of optoacoustic tomography gives rise to two distinct inverse problems: The optical inverse problem, related to the propagation of the excitation light in tissue, and the acoustic inverse problem, which deals with the propagation and detection of the generated acoustic waves. Since the two inverse problems have different physical underpinnings and are governed by different types of equations, they are often treated independently as unrelated problems. From an imaging standpoint, the acoustic inverse problem relates to forming an image from the measured acoustic data, whereas the optical inverse problem relates to quantifying the formed image. This review focuses on the acoustic aspects of optoacoustic tomography, specifically acoustic reconstruction algorithms and imaging-system practicalities. As these two aspects are intimately linked, and no silver bullet exists in the path towards high-performance imaging, we adopt a holistic approach in our review and discuss the many links between the two aspects. Four classes of reconstruction algorithms are reviewed: time-domain (so called back-projection) formulae, frequency-domain formulae, time-reversal algorithms, and model-based algorithms. These algorithms are discussed in the context of the various acoustic detectors and detection surfaces which are commonly used in experimental studies. We further discuss the effects of non-ideal imaging scenarios on the quality of reconstruction and review methods that can mitigate these effects. Namely, we consider the cases of finite detector aperture, limited-view tomography, spatial under-sampling of the acoustic signals, and acoustic heterogeneities and losses. PMID:24772060

  13. Effect of positive emotion on consolidation of memory for faces: the modulation of facial valence and facial gender.

    PubMed

    Wang, Bo

    2013-01-01

    Studies have shown that emotion elicited after learning enhances memory consolidation. However, no prior studies have used facial photos as stimuli. This study examined the effect of post-learning positive emotion on consolidation of memory for faces. During the learning participants viewed neutral, positive, or negative faces. Then they were assigned to a condition in which they either watched a 9-minute positive video clip, or a 9-minute neutral video. Then 30 minutes after the learning participants took a surprise memory test, in which they made "remember", "know", and "new" judgements. The findings are: (1) Positive emotion enhanced consolidation of recognition for negative male faces, but impaired consolidation of recognition for negative female faces; (2) For males, recognition for negative faces was equivalent to that for positive faces; for females, recognition for negative faces was better than that for positive faces. Our study provides the important evidence that effect of post-learning emotion on memory consolidation can extend to facial stimuli and such an effect can be modulated by facial valence and facial gender. The findings may shed light on establishing models concerning the influence of emotion on memory consolidation.

  14. Stepped Care Versus Direct Face-to-Face Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Social Anxiety Disorder and Panic Disorder: A Randomized Effectiveness Trial.

    PubMed

    Nordgreen, Tine; Haug, Thomas; Öst, Lars-Göran; Andersson, Gerhard; Carlbring, Per; Kvale, Gerd; Tangen, Tone; Heiervang, Einar; Havik, Odd E

    2016-03-01

    The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of a cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) stepped care model (psychoeducation, guided Internet treatment, and face-to-face CBT) compared with direct face-to-face (FtF) CBT. Patients with panic disorder or social anxiety disorder were randomized to either stepped care (n=85) or direct FtF CBT (n=88). Recovery was defined as meeting two of the following three criteria: loss of diagnosis, below cut-off for self-reported symptoms, and functional improvement. No significant differences in intention-to-treat recovery rates were identified between stepped care (40.0%) and direct FtF CBT (43.2%). The majority of the patients who recovered in the stepped care did so at the less therapist-demanding steps (26/34, 76.5%). Moderate to large within-groups effect sizes were identified at posttreatment and 1-year follow-up. The attrition rates were high: 41.2% in the stepped care condition and 27.3% in the direct FtF CBT condition. These findings indicate that the outcome of a stepped care model for anxiety disorders is comparable to that of direct FtF CBT. The rates of improvement at the two less therapist-demanding steps indicate that stepped care models might be useful for increasing patients' access to evidence-based psychological treatments for anxiety disorders. However, attrition in the stepped care condition was high, and research regarding the factors that can improve adherence should be prioritized. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  15. Subband Structure and Effective Mass in the Inversion Layer of a Strain Si-Based Alloy P-Type MOSFET.

    PubMed

    Chen, Kuan-Ting; Fan, Jun Wei; Chang, Shu-Tong; Lin, Chung-Yi

    2015-03-01

    In this paper, the subband structure and effective mass of an Si-based alloy inversion layer in a PMOSFET are studied theoretically. The strain condition considered in our calculations is the intrinsic strain resulting from growth of the silicon-carbon alloy on a (001) Si substrate and mechanical uniaxial stress. The quantum confinement effect resulting from the vertically effective electric field was incorporated into the k · p calculation. The distinct effective mass, such as the quantization effective mass and the density-of-states (DOS) effective mass, as well as the subband structure of the silicon-carbon alloy inversion layer for a PMOSFET under substrate strain and various effective electric field strengths, were all investigated. Ore results show that subband structure of relaxed silicon-carbon alloys with low carbon content are almost the same as silicon. We find that an external stress applied parallel to the channel direction can efficiently reduce the effective mass along the channel direction, thus producing hole mobility enhancement.

  16. Modeling Human Dynamics of Face-to-Face Interaction Networks

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Starnini, Michele; Baronchelli, Andrea; Pastor-Satorras, Romualdo

    2013-04-01

    Face-to-face interaction networks describe social interactions in human gatherings, and are the substrate for processes such as epidemic spreading and gossip propagation. The bursty nature of human behavior characterizes many aspects of empirical data, such as the distribution of conversation lengths, of conversations per person, or of interconversation times. Despite several recent attempts, a general theoretical understanding of the global picture emerging from data is still lacking. Here we present a simple model that reproduces quantitatively most of the relevant features of empirical face-to-face interaction networks. The model describes agents that perform a random walk in a two-dimensional space and are characterized by an attractiveness whose effect is to slow down the motion of people around them. The proposed framework sheds light on the dynamics of human interactions and can improve the modeling of dynamical processes taking place on the ensuing dynamical social networks.

  17. Encoding deficit during face processing within the right fusiform face area in schizophrenia.

    PubMed

    Walther, Sebastian; Federspiel, Andrea; Horn, Helge; Bianchi, Piero; Wiest, Roland; Wirth, Miranka; Strik, Werner; Müller, Thomas Jörg

    2009-06-30

    Face processing is crucial to social interaction, but is impaired in schizophrenia patients, who experience delays in face recognition, difficulties identifying others, and misperceptions of affective content. The right fusiform face area plays an important role in the early stages of human face processing and thus may be affected in schizophrenia. The aim of the study was therefore to investigate whether face processing deficits are related to dysfunctions of the right fusiform face area in schizophrenia patients compared with controls. In a rapid, event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) design, we investigated the encoding of new faces, as well as the recognition of newly learned, famous, and unfamiliar faces, in 13 schizophrenia patients and 21 healthy controls. We applied region of interest analysis to each individual's right fusiform face area and tested for group differences. Controls displayed higher blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) activation during the memorization of faces that were later successfully recognized. In schizophrenia patients, this effect was not observed. During the recognition task, schizophrenia patients exhibited lower BOLD responses, less accuracy, and longer reaction times to famous and unfamiliar faces. Our results support the hypothesis that impaired face processing in schizophrenia is related to early-stage deficits during the encoding and recognition of faces.

  18. Broadband focusing ultrasonic transducers based on dimpled LiNbO3 plate with inversion layer.

    PubMed

    Chen, Jin; Dai, Ji-Yan; Zhang, Chao; Zhang, Zhitian; Feng, Guanping

    2012-12-01

    A high-frequency broadband focusing transducer based on dimpled LiNbO(3) inversion layer plate has been fabricated and characterized. A spherical surface with a curvature radius of 6 mm is formed on the half-thickness LiNbO(3) inversion layer plate of Y36° cut orientation. The domain structure in the cross section is observed after a hydrofluoric acid etching process. For transducer fabrication, conductive epoxy is used as the backing material and polymer is deposited on the front face as the matching layer. The center frequency, bandwidth, and insertion loss of the focused transducer are measured to be 72 MHz, 136%, and -32 dB, respectively. The focused transducer has been successfully used for rabbit eyeball imaging and a better imaging capability compared with the planar transducer has been demonstrated. These promising results prove that the dimpled LiNbO(3) inversion layer plate has great potential for fabrication of high-frequency broadband focusing ultrasonic transducers.

  19. Neural synchronization during face-to-face communication.

    PubMed

    Jiang, Jing; Dai, Bohan; Peng, Danling; Zhu, Chaozhe; Liu, Li; Lu, Chunming

    2012-11-07

    Although the human brain may have evolutionarily adapted to face-to-face communication, other modes of communication, e.g., telephone and e-mail, increasingly dominate our modern daily life. This study examined the neural difference between face-to-face communication and other types of communication by simultaneously measuring two brains using a hyperscanning approach. The results showed a significant increase in the neural synchronization in the left inferior frontal cortex during a face-to-face dialog between partners but none during a back-to-back dialog, a face-to-face monologue, or a back-to-back monologue. Moreover, the neural synchronization between partners during the face-to-face dialog resulted primarily from the direct interactions between the partners, including multimodal sensory information integration and turn-taking behavior. The communicating behavior during the face-to-face dialog could be predicted accurately based on the neural synchronization level. These results suggest that face-to-face communication, particularly dialog, has special neural features that other types of communication do not have and that the neural synchronization between partners may underlie successful face-to-face communication.

  20. Do congenital prosopagnosia and the other-race effect affect the same face recognition mechanisms?

    PubMed Central

    Esins, Janina; Schultz, Johannes; Wallraven, Christian; Bülthoff, Isabelle

    2014-01-01

    Congenital prosopagnosia (CP), an innate impairment in recognizing faces, as well as the other-race effect (ORE), a disadvantage in recognizing faces of foreign races, both affect face recognition abilities. Are the same face processing mechanisms affected in both situations? To investigate this question, we tested three groups of 21 participants: German congenital prosopagnosics, South Korean participants and German controls on three different tasks involving faces and objects. First we tested all participants on the Cambridge Face Memory Test in which they had to recognize Caucasian target faces in a 3-alternative-forced-choice task. German controls performed better than Koreans who performed better than prosopagnosics. In the second experiment, participants rated the similarity of Caucasian faces that differed parametrically in either features or second-order relations (configuration). Prosopagnosics were less sensitive to configuration changes than both other groups. In addition, while all groups were more sensitive to changes in features than in configuration, this difference was smaller in Koreans. In the third experiment, participants had to learn exemplars of artificial objects, natural objects, and faces and recognize them among distractors of the same category. Here prosopagnosics performed worse than participants in the other two groups only when they were tested on face stimuli. In sum, Koreans and prosopagnosic participants differed from German controls in different ways in all tests. This suggests that German congenital prosopagnosics perceive Caucasian faces differently than do Korean participants. Importantly, our results suggest that different processing impairments underlie the ORE and CP. PMID:25324757

  1. FaceIt: face recognition from static and live video for law enforcement

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Atick, Joseph J.; Griffin, Paul M.; Redlich, A. N.

    1997-01-01

    Recent advances in image and pattern recognition technology- -especially face recognition--are leading to the development of a new generation of information systems of great value to the law enforcement community. With these systems it is now possible to pool and manage vast amounts of biometric intelligence such as face and finger print records and conduct computerized searches on them. We review one of the enabling technologies underlying these systems: the FaceIt face recognition engine; and discuss three applications that illustrate its benefits as a problem-solving technology and an efficient and cost effective investigative tool.

  2. The Face in the Crowd Effect Unconfounded: Happy Faces, Not Angry Faces, Are More Efficiently Detected in Single- and Multiple-Target Visual Search Tasks

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Becker, D. Vaughn; Anderson, Uriah S.; Mortensen, Chad R.; Neufeld, Samantha L.; Neel, Rebecca

    2011-01-01

    Is it easier to detect angry or happy facial expressions in crowds of faces? The present studies used several variations of the visual search task to assess whether people selectively attend to expressive faces. Contrary to widely cited studies (e.g., Ohman, Lundqvist, & Esteves, 2001) that suggest angry faces "pop out" of crowds, our review of…

  3. Making heads turn: the effect of familiarity and stimulus rotation on a gender-classification task.

    PubMed

    Stevenage, Sarah V; Osborne, Cara D

    2006-01-01

    Recent work has demonstrated that facial familiarity can moderate the influence of inversion when completing a configural processing task. Here, we examine whether familiarity interacts with intermediate angles of orientation in the same way that it interacts with inversion. Participants were asked to make a gender classification to familiar and unfamiliar faces shown at seven angles of orientation. Speed and accuracy of performance were assessed for stimuli presented (i) as whole faces and (ii) as internal features. When presented as whole faces, the task was easy, as revealed by ceiling levels of accuracy and no effect of familiarity or angle of rotation on response times. However, when stimuli were presented as internal features, an influence of facial familiarity was evident. Unfamiliar faces showed no increase in difficulty across angle of rotation, whereas familiar faces showed a marked increase in difficulty across angle, which was explained by significant linear and cubic trends in the data. Results were interpreted in terms of the benefit gained from a mental representation when face processing was impaired by stimulus rotation.

  4. Effect of familiarity and viewpoint on face recognition in chimpanzees

    PubMed Central

    Parr, Lisa A; Siebert, Erin; Taubert, Jessica

    2012-01-01

    Numerous studies have shown that familiarity strongly influences how well humans recognize faces. This is particularly true when faces are encountered across a change in viewpoint. In this situation, recognition may be accomplished by matching partial or incomplete information about a face to a stored representation of the known individual, whereas such representations are not available for unknown faces. Chimpanzees, our closest living relatives, share many of the same behavioral specializations for face processing as humans, but the influence of familiarity and viewpoint have never been compared in the same study. Here, we examined the ability of chimpanzees to match the faces of familiar and unfamiliar conspecifics in their frontal and 3/4 views using a computerized task. Results showed that, while chimpanzees were able to accurately match both familiar and unfamiliar faces in their frontal orientations, performance was significantly impaired only when unfamiliar faces were presented across a change in viewpoint. Therefore, like in humans, face processing in chimpanzees appears to be sensitive to individual familiarity. We propose that familiarization is a robust mechanism for strengthening the representation of faces and has been conserved in primates to achieve efficient individual recognition over a range of natural viewing conditions. PMID:22128558

  5. External and internal facial features modulate processing of vertical but not horizontal spatial relations.

    PubMed

    Meinhardt, Günter; Kurbel, David; Meinhardt-Injac, Bozana; Persike, Malte

    2018-03-22

    Some years ago an asymmetry was reported for the inversion effect for horizontal (H) and vertical (V) relational face manipulations (Goffaux & Rossion, 2007). Subsequent research examined whether a specific disruption of long-range relations underlies the H/V inversion asymmetry (Sekunova & Barton, 2008). Here, we tested how detection of changes in interocular distance (H) and eye height (V) depends on cardinal internal features and external feature surround. Results replicated the H/V inversion asymmetry. Moreover, we found very different face cue dependencies for both change types. Performance and inversion effects did not depend on the presence of other face cues for detecting H changes. In contrast, accuracy for detecting V changes strongly depended on internal and external features, showing cumulative improvement when more cues were added. Inversion effects were generally large, and larger with external feature surround. The cue independence in detecting H relational changes indicates specialized local processing tightly tuned to the eyes region, while the strong cue dependency in detecting V relational changes indicates a global mechanism of cue integration across different face regions. These findings suggest that the H/V asymmetry of the inversion effect rests on an H/V anisotropy of face cue dependency, since only the global V mechanism suffers from disruption of cue integration as the major effect of face inversion. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  6. Parameterizations for ensemble Kalman inversion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chada, Neil K.; Iglesias, Marco A.; Roininen, Lassi; Stuart, Andrew M.

    2018-05-01

    The use of ensemble methods to solve inverse problems is attractive because it is a derivative-free methodology which is also well-adapted to parallelization. In its basic iterative form the method produces an ensemble of solutions which lie in the linear span of the initial ensemble. Choice of the parameterization of the unknown field is thus a key component of the success of the method. We demonstrate how both geometric ideas and hierarchical ideas can be used to design effective parameterizations for a number of applied inverse problems arising in electrical impedance tomography, groundwater flow and source inversion. In particular we show how geometric ideas, including the level set method, can be used to reconstruct piecewise continuous fields, and we show how hierarchical methods can be used to learn key parameters in continuous fields, such as length-scales, resulting in improved reconstructions. Geometric and hierarchical ideas are combined in the level set method to find piecewise constant reconstructions with interfaces of unknown topology.

  7. Can Faces Prime a Language?

    PubMed

    Woumans, Evy; Martin, Clara D; Vanden Bulcke, Charlotte; Van Assche, Eva; Costa, Albert; Hartsuiker, Robert J; Duyck, Wouter

    2015-09-01

    Bilinguals have two languages that are activated in parallel. During speech production, one of these languages must be selected on the basis of some cue. The present study investigated whether the face of an interlocutor can serve as such a cue. Spanish-Catalan and Dutch-French bilinguals were first familiarized with certain faces, each of which was associated with only one language, during simulated Skype conversations. Afterward, these participants performed a language production task in which they generated words associated with the words produced by familiar and unfamiliar faces displayed on-screen. When responding to familiar faces, participants produced words faster if the faces were speaking the same language as in the previous Skype simulation than if the same faces were speaking a different language. Furthermore, this language priming effect disappeared when it became clear that the interlocutors were actually bilingual. These findings suggest that faces can prime a language, but their cuing effect disappears when it turns out that they are unreliable as language cues. © The Author(s) 2015.

  8. Training with Own-Race Faces Can Improve Processing of Other-Race Faces: Evidence from Developmental Prosopagnosia

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    DeGutis, Joseph; DeNicola, Cristopher; Zink, Tyler; McGlinchey, Regina; Milberg, William

    2011-01-01

    Faces of one's own race are discriminated and recognized more accurately than faces of an other race (other-race effect--ORE). Studies have employed several methods to enhance individuation and recognition of other-race faces and reduce the ORE, including intensive perceptual training with other-race faces and explicitly instructing participants…

  9. Is naming faces different from naming objects? Semantic interference in a face- and object-naming task.

    PubMed

    Marful, Alejandra; Paolieri, Daniela; Bajo, M Teresa

    2014-04-01

    A current debate regarding face and object naming concerns whether they are equally vulnerable to semantic interference. Although some studies have shown similar patterns of interference, others have revealed different effects for faces and objects. In Experiment 1, we compared face naming to object naming when exemplars were presented in a semantically homogeneous context (grouped by their category) or in a semantically heterogeneous context (mixed) across four cycles. The data revealed significant slowing for both face and object naming in the homogeneous context. This semantic interference was explained as being due to lexical competition from the conceptual activation of category members. When focusing on the first cycle, a facilitation effect for objects but not for faces appeared. This result permits us to explain the previously observed discrepancies between face and object naming. Experiment 2 was identical to Experiment 1, with the exception that half of the stimuli were presented as face/object names for reading. Semantic interference was present for both face and object naming, suggesting that faces and objects behave similarly during naming. Interestingly, during reading, semantic interference was observed for face names but not for object names. This pattern is consistent with previous assumptions proposing the activation of a person identity during face name reading.

  10. A randomized trial of face-to-face counselling versus telephone counselling versus bibliotherapy for occupational stress.

    PubMed

    Kilfedder, Catherine; Power, Kevin; Karatzias, Thanos; McCafferty, Aileen; Niven, Karen; Chouliara, Zoë; Galloway, Lisa; Sharp, Stephen

    2010-09-01

    The aim of the present study was to compare the effectiveness and acceptability of three interventions for occupational stress. A total of 90 National Health Service employees were randomized to face-to-face counselling or telephone counselling or bibliotherapy. Outcomes were assessed at post-intervention and 4-month follow-up. Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation (CORE), General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12), and Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10) were used to evaluate intervention outcomes. An intention-to-treat analyses was performed. Repeated measures analysis revealed significant time effects on all measures with the exception of CORE Risk. No significant group effects were detected on all outcome measures. No time by group significant interaction effects were detected on any of the outcome measures with the exception of CORE Functioning and GHQ total. With regard to acceptability of interventions, participants expressed a preference for face-to-face counselling over the other two modalities. Overall, it was concluded that the three intervention groups are equally effective. Given that bibliotherapy is the least costly of the three, results from the present study might be considered in relation to a stepped care approach to occupational stress management with bibliotherapy as the first line of intervention, followed by telephone and face-to-face counselling as required.

  11. Effects of Anticaricaturing vs. Caricaturing and Their Neural Correlates Elucidate a Role of Shape for Face Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Schulz, Claudia; Kaufmann, Jurgen M.; Walther, Lydia; Schweinberger, Stefan R.

    2012-01-01

    To assess the role of shape information for unfamiliar face learning, we investigated effects of photorealistic spatial anticaricaturing and caricaturing on later face recognition. We assessed behavioural performance and event-related brain potential (ERP) correlates of recognition, using different images of anticaricatures, veridical faces, or…

  12. Effect of telephone-administered vs face-to-face cognitive behavioral therapy on adherence to therapy and depression outcomes among primary care patients: a randomized trial.

    PubMed

    Mohr, David C; Ho, Joyce; Duffecy, Jenna; Reifler, Douglas; Sokol, Leslie; Burns, Michelle Nicole; Jin, Ling; Siddique, Juned

    2012-06-06

    Primary care is the most common site for the treatment of depression. Most depressed patients prefer psychotherapy over antidepressant medications, but access barriers are believed to prevent engagement in and completion of treatment. The telephone has been investigated as a treatment delivery medium to overcome access barriers, but little is known about its efficacy compared with face-to-face treatment delivery. To examine whether telephone-administered cognitive behavioral therapy (T-CBT) reduces attrition and is not inferior to face-to-face CBT in treating depression among primary care patients. A randomized controlled trial of 325 Chicago-area primary care patients with major depressive disorder, recruited from November 2007 to December 2010. Eighteen sessions of T-CBT or face-to-face CBT. The primary outcome was attrition (completion vs noncompletion) at posttreatment (week 18). Secondary outcomes included masked interviewer-rated depression with the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (Ham-D) and self-reported depression with the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). Significantly fewer participants discontinued T-CBT (n = 34; 20.9%) compared with face-to-face CBT (n = 53; 32.7%; P = .02). Patients showed significant improvement in depression across both treatments (P < .001). There were no significant treatment differences at posttreatment between T-CBT and face-to-face CBT on the Ham-D (P = .22) or the PHQ-9 (P = .89). The intention-to-treat posttreatment effect size on the Ham-D was d = 0.14 (90% CI, -0.05 to 0.33), and for the PHQ-9 it was d = -0.02 (90% CI, -0.20 to 0.17). Both results were within the inferiority margin of d = 0.41, indicating that T-CBT was not inferior to face-to-face CBT. Although participants remained significantly less depressed at 6-month follow-up relative to baseline (P < .001), participants receiving face-to-face CBT were significantly less depressed than those receiving T-CBT on the Ham-D (difference, 2.91; 95% CI, 1.20-4.63; P

  13. Happy faces are preferred regardless of familiarity--sad faces are preferred only when familiar.

    PubMed

    Liao, Hsin-I; Shimojo, Shinsuke; Yeh, Su-Ling

    2013-06-01

    Familiarity leads to preference (e.g., the mere exposure effect), yet it remains unknown whether it is objective familiarity, that is, repetitive exposure, or subjective familiarity that contributes to preference. In addition, it is unexplored whether and how different emotions influence familiarity-related preference. The authors investigated whether happy or sad faces are preferred or perceived as more familiar and whether this subjective familiarity judgment correlates with preference for different emotional faces. An emotional face--happy or sad--was paired with a neutral face, and participants rated the relative preference and familiarity of each of the paired faces. For preference judgment, happy faces were preferred and sad faces were less preferred, compared with neutral faces. For familiarity judgment, happy faces did not show any bias, but sad faces were perceived as less familiar than neutral faces. Item-by-item correlational analyses show preference for sad faces--but not happy faces--positively correlate with familiarity. These results suggest a direct link between positive emotion and preference, and argue at least partly against a common cause for familiarity and preference. Instead, facial expression of different emotional valence modulates the link between familiarity and preference.

  14. The time course of face processing: startle eyeblink response modulation by face gender and expression.

    PubMed

    Duval, Elizabeth R; Lovelace, Christopher T; Aarant, Justin; Filion, Diane L

    2013-12-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of both facial expression and face gender on startle eyeblink response patterns at varying lead intervals (300, 800, and 3500ms) indicative of attentional and emotional processes. We aimed to determine whether responses to affective faces map onto the Defense Cascade Model (Lang et al., 1997) to better understand the stages of processing during affective face viewing. At 300ms, there was an interaction between face expression and face gender with female happy and neutral faces and male angry faces producing inhibited startle. At 3500ms, there was a trend for facilitated startle during angry compared to neutral faces. These findings suggest that affective expressions are perceived differently in male and female faces, especially at short lead intervals. Future studies investigating face processing should take both face gender and expression into account. © 2013.

  15. Seismic stochastic inversion identify river channel sand body

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    He, Z.

    2015-12-01

    The technology of seismic inversion is regarded as one of the most important part of geophysics. By using the technology of seismic inversion and the theory of stochastic simulation, the concept of seismic stochastic inversion is proposed.Seismic stochastic inversion can play an significant role in the identifying river channel sand body. Accurate sand body description is a crucial parameter to measure oilfield development and oilfield stimulation during the middle and later periods. Besides, rational well spacing density is an essential condition for efficient production. Based on the geological knowledge of a certain oilfield, in line with the use of seismic stochastic inversion, the river channel sand body in the work area is identified. In this paper, firstly, the single river channel body from the composite river channel body is subdivided. Secondly, the distribution of river channel body is ascertained in order to ascertain the direction of rivers. Morever, the superimposed relationship among the sand body is analyzed, especially among the inter-well sand body. The last but not at the least, via the analysis of inversion results of first vacuating the wells and continuous infilling later, it is meeted the most needs well spacing density that can obtain the optimal inversion result. It would serve effective guidance for oilfield stimulation.

  16. The electrophysiological effects of the serotonin 1A receptor agonist buspirone in emotional face processing.

    PubMed

    Bernasconi, Fosco; Kometer, Michael; Pokorny, Thomas; Seifritz, Erich; Vollenweider, Franz X

    2015-04-01

    Emotional face processing is critically modulated by the serotonergic system, and serotonin (5-HT) receptor agonists impair emotional face processing. However, the specific contribution of the 5-HT1A receptor remains poorly understood. Here we investigated the spatiotemporal brain mechanisms underpinning the modulation of emotional face processing induced by buspirone, a partial 5-HT1A receptor agonist. In a psychophysical discrimination of emotional faces task, we observed that the discrimination fearful versus neutral faces were reduced, but not happy versus neutral faces. Electrical neuroimaging analyses were applied to visual evoked potentials elicited by emotional face images, after placebo and buspirone administration. Buspirone modulated response strength (i.e., global field power) in the interval 230-248ms after stimulus onset. Distributed source estimation over this time interval revealed that buspirone decreased the neural activity in the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex that was evoked by fearful faces. These results indicate temporal and valence-specific effects of buspirone on the neuronal correlates of emotional face processing. Furthermore, the reduced neural activity in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in response to fearful faces suggests a reduced attention to fearful faces. Collectively, these findings provide new insights into the role of 5-HT1A receptors in emotional face processing and have implications for affective disorders that are characterized by an increased attention to negative stimuli. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. and ECNP. All rights reserved.

  17. Mismatched expressions decrease face recognition and corresponding ERP old/new effects in schizophrenia.

    PubMed

    Guillaume, Fabrice; Guillem, François; Tiberghien, Guy; Stip, Emmanuel

    2012-09-01

    The objective was to investigate the electrophysiological (ERP) correlates of mismatched expression on face recognition in schizophrenia. Expression-change effects and associated ERPs were explored in patients with schizophrenia (n = 20) and paired comparison participants (n = 20) on a long-term face-recognition task. A facial-expression change decreased discriminability for patients with schizophrenia than for healthy participants. The patients' recognition deficit was accompanied by the absence of the midfrontal FN400 and late parietal ERP old/new effects in the mismatched-expression condition. By contrast, preserved midfrontal FN400 and late parietal ERP old/new effects were found in both groups in the unchanged-expression condition. Thus, the preserved parietal old/new effect previously observed in schizophrenia was no longer found here in the situation in which expression changes took place between the study and recognition phases. These findings suggest that, when they are not supposed to take the change of expression into account, the recognition deficit observed here in patients with schizophrenia resulted from an impairment in the mechanisms underlying the emergence, assessment, or utilization of familiarity--as indexed by the ERP old/new effects. In these natural conditions, the impact of the expression change on the implementation of retrieval processes offers new insight into schizophrenia-linked deficits in face recognition, with substantial phenomenological differences with respect to the emergence of familiarity.

  18. Electrical Stimulation over Bilateral Occipito-Temporal Regions Reduces N170 in the Right Hemisphere and the Composite Face Effect

    PubMed Central

    Yang, Li-Zhuang; Zhang, Wei; Shi, Bin; Yang, Zhiyu; Wei, Zhengde; Gu, Feng; Zhang, Jing; Cui, Guanbao; Liu, Ying; Zhou, Yifeng; Zhang, Xiaochu; Rao, Hengyi

    2014-01-01

    Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a non-invasive brain stimulation technique that can modulate cortical excitability. Although the clinical value of tDCS has been advocated, the potential of tDCS in cognitive rehabilitation of face processing deficits is less understood. Face processing has been associated with the occipito-temporal cortex (OT). The present study investigated whether face processing in healthy adults can be modulated by applying tDCS over the OT. Experiment 1 investigated whether tDCS can affect N170, a face-sensitive ERP component, with a face orientation judgment task. The N170 in the right hemisphere was reduced in active stimulation conditions compared with the sham stimulation condition for both upright faces and inverted faces. Experiment 2 further demonstrated that tDCS can modulate the composite face effect, a type of holistic processing that reflects the obligatory attention to all parts of a face. The composite face effect was reduced in active stimulation conditions compared with the sham stimulation condition. Additionally, the current polarity did not modulate the effect of tDCS in the two experiments. The present study demonstrates that N170 can be causally manipulated by stimulating the OT with weak currents. Furthermore, our study provides evidence that obligatory attention to all parts of a face can be affected by the commonly used tDCS parameter setting. PMID:25531112

  19. The Effect of Screen-to-Screen Versus Face-to-Face Consultation on Doctor-Patient Communication: An Experimental Study with Simulated Patients

    PubMed Central

    Tates, Kiek; Kanters, Saskia; Nieboer, Theodoor E; Gerritse, Maria BE

    2017-01-01

    Background Despite the emergence of Web-based patient-provider contact, it is still unclear how the quality of Web-based doctor-patient interactions differs from face-to-face interactions. Objective This study aimed to examine (1) the impact of a consultation medium on doctors’ and patients’ communicative behavior in terms of information exchange, interpersonal relationship building, and shared decision making and (2) the mediating role of doctors’ and patients’ communicative behavior on satisfaction with both types of consultation medium. Methods Doctor-patient consultations on pelvic organ prolapse were simulated, both in a face-to-face and in a screen-to-screen (video) setting. Twelve medical interns and 6 simulated patients prepared 4 different written scenarios and were randomized to perform a total of 48 consultations. Effects of the consultations were measured by questionnaires that participants filled out directly after the consultation. Results With respect to patient-related outcomes, satisfaction, perceived information exchange, interpersonal relationship building, and perceived shared decision making showed no significant differences between face-to-face and screen-to-screen consultations. Patients’ attitude toward Web-based communication (b=−.249, P=.02 and patients’ perceived time and attention (b=.271, P=.03) significantly predicted patients’ perceived interpersonal relationship building. Patients’ perceived shared decision making was positively related to their satisfaction with the consultation (b=.254, P=.005). Overall, patients experienced significantly greater shared decision making with a female doctor (mean 4.21, SD 0.49) than with a male doctor (mean 3.66 [SD 0.73]; b=.401, P=.009). Doctor-related outcomes showed no significant differences in satisfaction, perceived information exchange, interpersonal relationship building, and perceived shared decision making between the conditions. There was a positive relationship between

  20. Genome‐wide tests for introgression between cactophilic Drosophila implicate a role of inversions during speciation

    PubMed Central

    Lohse, Konrad; Clarke, Magnus; Ritchie, Michael G.; Etges, William J.

    2015-01-01

    Models of speciation‐with‐gene‐flow have shown that the reduction in recombination between alternative chromosome arrangements can facilitate the fixation of locally adaptive genes in the face of gene flow and contribute to speciation. However, it has proven frustratingly difficult to show empirically that inversions have reduced gene flow and arose during or shortly after the onset of species divergence rather than represent ancestral polymorphisms. Here, we present an analysis of whole genome data from a pair of cactophilic fruit flies, Drosophila mojavensis and D. arizonae, which are reproductively isolated in the wild and differ by several large inversions on three chromosomes. We found an increase in divergence at rearranged compared to colinear chromosomes. Using the density of divergent sites in short sequence blocks we fit a series of explicit models of species divergence in which gene flow is restricted to an initial period after divergence and may differ between colinear and rearranged parts of the genome. These analyses show that D. mojavensis and D. arizonae have experienced postdivergence gene flow that ceased around 270 KY ago and was significantly reduced in chromosomes with fixed inversions. Moreover, we show that these inversions most likely originated around the time of species divergence which is compatible with theoretical models that posit a role of inversions in speciation with gene flow. PMID:25824653

  1. Site Distribution and Aliasing Effects in the Inversion for Load Coefficients and Geocenter Motion from GPS Data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Wu, Xiaoping; Argus, Donald F.; Heflin, Michael B.; Ivins, Erik R.; Webb, Frank H.

    2002-01-01

    Precise GPS measurements of elastic relative site displacements due to surface mass loading offer important constraints on global surface mass transport. We investigate effects of site distribution and aliasing by higher-degree (n greater than or equal 2) loading terms on inversion of GPS data for n = 1 load coefficients and geocenter motion. Covariance and simulation analyses are conducted to assess the sensitivity of the inversion to aliasing and mismodeling errors and possible uncertainties in the n = 1 load coefficient determination. We found that the use of center-of-figure approximation in the inverse formulation could cause 10- 15% errors in the inverted load coefficients. n = 1 load estimates may be contaminated significantly by unknown higher-degree terms, depending on the load scenario and the GPS site distribution. The uncertainty in n = 1 zonal load estimate is at the level of 80 - 95% for two load scenarios.

  2. Adaptive divergence in the monkey flower Mimulus guttatus is maintained by a chromosomal inversion

    PubMed Central

    Twyford, Alex D.; Friedman, Jannice

    2015-01-01

    Organisms exhibit an incredible diversity of life history strategies as adaptive responses to environmental variation. The establishment of novel life history strategies involves multilocus polymorphisms, which will be challenging to establish in the face of gene flow and recombination. Theory predicts that adaptive allelic combinations may be maintained and spread if they occur in genomic regions of reduced recombination, such as chromosomal inversion polymorphisms, yet empirical support for this prediction is lacking. Here, we use genomic data to investigate the evolution of divergent adaptive ecotypes of the yellow monkey flower Mimulus guttatus. We show that a large chromosomal inversion polymorphism is the major region of divergence between geographically widespread annual and perennial ecotypes. In contrast, ∼40,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms in collinear regions of the genome show no signal of life history, revealing genomic patterns of diversity have been shaped by localized homogenizing gene flow and large‐scale Pleistocene range expansion. Our results provide evidence for an inversion capturing and protecting loci involved in local adaptation, while also explaining how adaptive divergence can occur with gene flow. PMID:25879251

  3. Start Position Strongly Influences Fixation Patterns during Face Processing: Difficulties with Eye Movements as a Measure of Information Use

    PubMed Central

    Arizpe, Joseph; Kravitz, Dwight J.; Yovel, Galit; Baker, Chris I.

    2012-01-01

    Fixation patterns are thought to reflect cognitive processing and, thus, index the most informative stimulus features for task performance. During face recognition, initial fixations to the center of the nose have been taken to indicate this location is optimal for information extraction. However, the use of fixations as a marker for information use rests on the assumption that fixation patterns are predominantly determined by stimulus and task, despite the fact that fixations are also influenced by visuo-motor factors. Here, we tested the effect of starting position on fixation patterns during a face recognition task with upright and inverted faces. While we observed differences in fixations between upright and inverted faces, likely reflecting differences in cognitive processing, there was also a strong effect of start position. Over the first five saccades, fixation patterns across start positions were only coarsely similar, with most fixations around the eyes. Importantly, however, the precise fixation pattern was highly dependent on start position with a strong tendency toward facial features furthest from the start position. For example, the often-reported tendency toward the left over right eye was reversed for the left starting position. Further, delayed initial saccades for central versus peripheral start positions suggest greater information processing prior to the initial saccade, highlighting the experimental bias introduced by the commonly used center start position. Finally, the precise effect of face inversion on fixation patterns was also dependent on start position. These results demonstrate the importance of a non-stimulus, non-task factor in determining fixation patterns. The patterns observed likely reflect a complex combination of visuo-motor effects and simple sampling strategies as well as cognitive factors. These different factors are very difficult to tease apart and therefore great caution must be applied when interpreting absolute

  4. Childhood fever management program for Korean pediatric nurses: A comparison between blended and face-to-face learning method.

    PubMed

    Jeong, Yong Sun; Kim, Jin Sun

    2014-01-01

    A blended learning can be a useful learning strategy to improve the quality of fever and fever management education for pediatric nurses. This study compared the effects of a blended and face-to-face learning program on pediatric nurses' childhood fever management, using theory of planned behavior. A nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest design was used. A fever management education program using blended learning (combining face-to-face and online learning components) was offered to 30 pediatric nurses, and 29 pediatric nurses received face-to-face education. Learning outcomes did not significantly differ between the two groups. However, learners' satisfaction was higher for the blended learning program than the face-to-face learning program. A blended learning pediatric fever management program was as effective as a traditional face-to-face learning program. Therefore, a blended learning pediatric fever management-learning program could be a useful and flexible learning method for pediatric nurses.

  5. Mutual friends' social support and self-disclosure in face-to-face and instant messenger communication.

    PubMed

    Trepte, Sabine; Masur, Philipp K; Scharkow, Michael

    2018-01-01

    In the present study, we investigated long-term effects of self-disclosure on social support in face-to-face and instant messenger (IM) communication between mutual friends. Using a representative sample of 583 German IM users, we explored whether self-disclosure and positive experiences with regard to social support would dynamically interact in the form of a reinforcing spiral across three measurement occasions. If mutual friends self-disclose today, will they receive more social support 6 months later? In turn, will this affect their willingness to self-disclose another 6 months later? We further analyzed spill-over effects from face-to-face to IM communication and vice versa. We found that self-disclosure predicted social support and vice versa in IM communication, but not in face-to-face communication. In light of these results, the impact of IM communication on how individuals maneuver friendships through the interplay between self-disclosure and social support are discussed.

  6. Differential effects of object-based attention on evoked potentials to fearful and disgusted faces.

    PubMed

    Santos, Isabel M; Iglesias, Jaime; Olivares, Ela I; Young, Andrew W

    2008-04-01

    Event-related potentials (ERPs) were used to investigate the role of attention on the processing of facial expressions of fear and disgust. Stimuli consisted of overlapping pictures of a face and a house. Participants had to monitor repetitions of faces or houses, in separate blocks of trials, so that object-based attention was manipulated while spatial attention was kept constant. Faces varied in expression and could be either fearful or neutral (in the fear condition) or disgusted or neutral (in the disgust condition). When attending to faces, participants were required to signal repetitions of the same person, with the facial expressions being completely irrelevant to the task. Different effects of selective attention and different patterns of brain activity were observed for faces with fear and disgust expressions. Results indicated that the perception of fear from faces is gated by selective attention at early latencies, whereas a sustained positivity for fearful faces compared to neutral faces emerged around 160ms at central-parietal sites, independent of selective attention. In the case of disgust, ERP differences began only around 160ms after stimulus onset, and only after 480ms was the perception of disgust modulated by attention allocation. Results are interpreted in terms of different neural mechanisms for the perception of fear and disgust and related to the functional significance of these two emotions for the survival of the organism.

  7. High effective inverse dynamics modelling for dual-arm robot

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shen, Haoyu; Liu, Yanli; Wu, Hongtao

    2018-05-01

    To deal with the problem of inverse dynamics modelling for dual arm robot, a recursive inverse dynamics modelling method based on decoupled natural orthogonal complement is presented. In this model, the concepts and methods of Decoupled Natural Orthogonal Complement matrices are used to eliminate the constraint forces in the Newton-Euler kinematic equations, and the screws is used to express the kinematic and dynamics variables. On this basis, the paper has developed a special simulation program with symbol software of Mathematica and conducted a simulation research on the a dual-arm robot. Simulation results show that the proposed method based on decoupled natural orthogonal complement can save an enormous amount of CPU time that was spent in computing compared with the recursive Newton-Euler kinematic equations and the results is correct and reasonable, which can verify the reliability and efficiency of the method.

  8. Time-reversal and Bayesian inversion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Debski, Wojciech

    2017-04-01

    Probabilistic inversion technique is superior to the classical optimization-based approach in all but one aspects. It requires quite exhaustive computations which prohibit its use in huge size inverse problems like global seismic tomography or waveform inversion to name a few. The advantages of the approach are, however, so appealing that there is an ongoing continuous afford to make the large inverse task as mentioned above manageable with the probabilistic inverse approach. One of the perspective possibility to achieve this goal relays on exploring the internal symmetry of the seismological modeling problems in hand - a time reversal and reciprocity invariance. This two basic properties of the elastic wave equation when incorporating into the probabilistic inversion schemata open a new horizons for Bayesian inversion. In this presentation we discuss the time reversal symmetry property, its mathematical aspects and propose how to combine it with the probabilistic inverse theory into a compact, fast inversion algorithm. We illustrate the proposed idea with the newly developed location algorithm TRMLOC and discuss its efficiency when applied to mining induced seismic data.

  9. An Advanced Cardiovascular Pharmacotherapy Course Blending Online and Face-to-Face Instruction

    PubMed Central

    2009-01-01

    Objective To assess the effectiveness of online instruction in a cardiology pharmacotherapy elective. Design Eight drug-focused lectures and 6 introductory presentations were added to a cardiology pharmacotherapy course. Students completed an online quiz after each online drug-focused lecture and scores were compared to quizzes taken at the beginning and end of the course, as well as on a cardiology advanced pharmacy practice experience (APPE). For online introductory presentations, students completed a quiz at the beginning of the next face-to-face session. A survey was conducted at the end of the course to obtain student feedback. Assessment Compared to baseline scores, student learning was demonstrated after online drug-focused lectures by higher quiz scores attained immediately after completing the lecture, at the end of the course, and at the beginning of the APPE. Furthermore, students performed better on quizzes at the beginning of face-to-face sessions if they first completed an online introductory presentation. Students expressed strong support for the online components of the course. Conclusions A blended learning environment with online and face-to-face instruction is an effective way to teach a cardiology pharmacotherapy elective. The online component of this course was well received by students, improved student preparation before attending class, and appeared to enhance long-term cardiovascular drug knowledge. PMID:19564994

  10. Inversion of time-domain induced polarization data based on time-lapse concept

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kim, Bitnarae; Nam, Myung Jin; Kim, Hee Joon

    2018-05-01

    Induced polarization (IP) surveys, measuring overvoltage phenomena of the medium, are widely and increasingly performed not only for exploration of mineral resources but also for engineering applications. Among several IP survey methods such as time-domain, frequency-domain and spectral IP surveys, this study introduces a noble inversion method for time-domain IP data to recover the chargeability structure of target medium. The inversion method employs the concept of 4D inversion of time-lapse resistivity data sets, considering the fact that measured voltage in time-domain IP survey is distorted by IP effects to increase from the instantaneous voltage measured at the moment the source current injection starts. Even though the increase is saturated very fast, we can consider the saturated and instantaneous voltages as a time-lapse data set. The 4D inversion method is one of the most powerful method for inverting time-lapse resistivity data sets. Using the developed IP inversion algorithm, we invert not only synthetic but also field IP data to show the effectiveness of the proposed method by comparing the recovered chargeability models with those from linear inversion that was used for the inversion of the field data in a previous study. Numerical results confirm that the proposed inversion method generates reliable chargeability models even though the anomalous bodies have large IP effects.

  11. Modeling Cooperation in an Address-Register-Based Telephone/Face-to-Face Survey

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lipps, Oliver

    2016-01-01

    I analyze the effects of household sociodemography, interviewer performance in the current survey, and fieldwork characteristics on cooperation in a central telephone survey, where households with no publicly listed landline number receive face-to-face visits. Using the 2013 refreshment sample of the Swiss Household Panel, I employ…

  12. The effects of mothers' past infant-holding preferences on their adult children's face processing lateralisation.

    PubMed

    Vervloed, Mathijs P J; Hendriks, Angélique W; van den Eijnde, Esther

    2011-04-01

    Face processing development is negatively affected when infants have not been exposed to faces for some time because of congenital cataract blocking all vision (Le Grand, Mondloch, Maurer, & Brent, 2001). It is not clear, however, whether more subtle differences in face exposure may also have an influence. The present study looked at the effect of the mother's preferred side of holding an infant, on her adult child's face processing lateralisation. Adults with a mother who had a left-arm preference for holding infants were compared with adults with a mother who had a right-arm holding preference. All participants were right-handed and had been exclusively bottle-fed during infancy. The participants were presented with two chimeric faces tests, one involving emotion and the other one gender. The left-arm held individuals showed a normal left-bias on the chimeric face tests, whereas the right-arm held individuals a significantly decreased left-bias. The results might suggest that reduced exposure to high quality emotional information on faces in infancy results in diminished right-hemisphere lateralisation for face processing. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  13. Emotional face expression modulates occipital-frontal effective connectivity during memory formation in a bottom-up fashion.

    PubMed

    Xiu, Daiming; Geiger, Maximilian J; Klaver, Peter

    2015-01-01

    This study investigated the role of bottom-up and top-down neural mechanisms in the processing of emotional face expression during memory formation. Functional brain imaging data was acquired during incidental learning of positive ("happy"), neutral and negative ("angry" or "fearful") faces. Dynamic Causal Modeling (DCM) was applied on the functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data to characterize effective connectivity within a brain network involving face perception (inferior occipital gyrus and fusiform gyrus) and successful memory formation related areas (hippocampus, superior parietal lobule, amygdala, and orbitofrontal cortex). The bottom-up models assumed processing of emotional face expression along feed forward pathways to the orbitofrontal cortex. The top-down models assumed that the orbitofrontal cortex processed emotional valence and mediated connections to the hippocampus. A subsequent recognition memory test showed an effect of negative emotion on the response bias, but not on memory performance. Our DCM findings showed that the bottom-up model family of effective connectivity best explained the data across all subjects and specified that emotion affected most bottom-up connections to the orbitofrontal cortex, especially from the occipital visual cortex and superior parietal lobule. Of those pathways to the orbitofrontal cortex the connection from the inferior occipital gyrus correlated with memory performance independently of valence. We suggest that bottom-up neural mechanisms support effects of emotional face expression and memory formation in a parallel and partially overlapping fashion.

  14. Expertise Effects in Face-Selective Areas are Robust to Clutter and Diverted Attention, but not to Competition

    PubMed Central

    McGugin, Rankin Williams; Van Gulick, Ana E.; Tamber-Rosenau, Benjamin J.; Ross, David A.; Gauthier, Isabel

    2015-01-01

    Expertise effects for nonface objects in face-selective brain areas may reflect stable aspects of neuronal selectivity that determine how observers perceive objects. However, bottom-up (e.g., clutter from irrelevant objects) and top-down manipulations (e.g., attentional selection) can influence activity, affecting the link between category selectivity and individual performance. We test the prediction that individual differences expressed as neural expertise effects for cars in face-selective areas are sufficiently stable to survive clutter and manipulations of attention. Additionally, behavioral work and work using event related potentials suggest that expertise effects may not survive competition; we investigate this using functional magnetic resonance imaging. Subjects varying in expertise with cars made 1-back decisions about cars, faces, and objects in displays containing one or 2 objects, with only one category attended. Univariate analyses suggest car expertise effects are robust to clutter, dampened by reducing attention to cars, but nonetheless more robust to manipulations of attention than competition. While univariate expertise effects are severely abolished by competition between cars and faces, multivariate analyses reveal new information related to car expertise. These results demonstrate that signals in face-selective areas predict expertise effects for nonface objects in a variety of conditions, although individual differences may be expressed in different dependent measures depending on task and instructions. PMID:24682187

  15. Interactions among the effects of head orientation, emotional expression, and physical attractiveness on face preferences.

    PubMed

    Main, Julie C; DeBruine, Lisa M; Little, Anthony C; Jones, Benedict C

    2010-01-01

    Previous studies have shown that preferences for direct versus averted gaze are modulated by emotional expressions and physical attractiveness. For example, preferences for direct gaze are stronger when judging happy or physically attractive faces than when judging disgusted or physically unattractive faces. Here we show that preferences for front versus three-quarter views of faces, in which gaze direction was always congruent with head orientation, are also modulated by emotional expressions and physical attractiveness; participants demonstrated preferences for front views of faces over three-quarter views of faces when judging the attractiveness of happy, physically attractive individuals, but not when judging the attractiveness of relatively unattractive individuals or those with disgusted expressions. Moreover, further analyses indicated that these interactions did not simply reflect differential perceptions of the intensity of the emotional expressions shown in each condition. Collectively, these findings present novel evidence that the effect of the direction of the attention of others on attractiveness judgments is modulated by cues to the physical attractiveness and emotional state of the depicted individual, potentially reflecting psychological adaptations for efficient allocation of social effort. These data also present the first behavioural evidence that the effect of the direction of the attention of others on attractiveness judgments reflects viewer-referenced, rather than face-referenced, coding and/or processing of gaze direction.

  16. Intelligent inversion method for pre-stack seismic big data based on MapReduce

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yan, Xuesong; Zhu, Zhixin; Wu, Qinghua

    2018-01-01

    Seismic exploration is a method of oil exploration that uses seismic information; that is, according to the inversion of seismic information, the useful information of the reservoir parameters can be obtained to carry out exploration effectively. Pre-stack data are characterised by a large amount of data, abundant information, and so on, and according to its inversion, the abundant information of the reservoir parameters can be obtained. Owing to the large amount of pre-stack seismic data, existing single-machine environments have not been able to meet the computational needs of the huge amount of data; thus, the development of a method with a high efficiency and the speed to solve the inversion problem of pre-stack seismic data is urgently needed. The optimisation of the elastic parameters by using a genetic algorithm easily falls into a local optimum, which results in a non-obvious inversion effect, especially for the optimisation effect of the density. Therefore, an intelligent optimisation algorithm is proposed in this paper and used for the elastic parameter inversion of pre-stack seismic data. This algorithm improves the population initialisation strategy by using the Gardner formula and the genetic operation of the algorithm, and the improved algorithm obtains better inversion results when carrying out a model test with logging data. All of the elastic parameters obtained by inversion and the logging curve of theoretical model are fitted well, which effectively improves the inversion precision of the density. This algorithm was implemented with a MapReduce model to solve the seismic big data inversion problem. The experimental results show that the parallel model can effectively reduce the running time of the algorithm.

  17. Efficacy of face-to-face versus self-guided treatments for disordered gambling: A meta-analysis.

    PubMed

    Goslar, Martina; Leibetseder, Max; Muench, Hannah M; Hofmann, Stefan G; Laireiter, Anton-Rupert

    2017-06-01

    Background and aims In the light of growing traditional and novel forms of gambling, the treatment of disordered gambling is gaining increasing importance and practical relevance. Most studies have examined face-to-face treatments. Although trials implementing self-guided treatments have recently been conducted, these options have not yet been systematically examined. The primary objective of this meta-analysis, therefore, was to analyze the efficacy of all types of psychological face-to-face and self-guided treatments. Methods A multilevel literature search yielded 27 randomized controlled studies totaling 3,879 participants to provide a comprehensive comparative evaluation of the short- and long-term efficacies of face-to-face and self-guided treatments for disordered gambling. Results As expected, the results revealed significantly higher effect sizes for face-to-face treatments (16 studies with Hedges's g ranging from 0.67 to 1.15) as compared with self-guided treatments (11 studies with Hedges's g ranging from 0.12 to 0.30) regarding the reduction of problematic gambling behavior. The intensity of treatment moderated the therapy effect, particularly for self-guided treatments. Discussion and Conclusions The results of this meta-analysis favor face-to-face treatments over self-guided treatments for the reduction of disordered gambling. Although the findings broaden the scope of knowledge about psychological treatment modalities for disordered gambling, further research is needed to identify the reasons for these differences with the goal to optimize the treatment for this disabling condition.

  18. Estimating uncertainty of Full Waveform Inversion with Ensemble-based methods

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Thurin, J.; Brossier, R.; Métivier, L.

    2017-12-01

    Uncertainty estimation is one key feature of tomographic applications for robust interpretation. However, this information is often missing in the frame of large scale linearized inversions, and only the results at convergence are shown, despite the ill-posed nature of the problem. This issue is common in the Full Waveform Inversion community.While few methodologies have already been proposed in the literature, standard FWI workflows do not include any systematic uncertainty quantifications methods yet, but often try to assess the result's quality through cross-comparison with other results from seismic or comparison with other geophysical data. With the development of large seismic networks/surveys, the increase in computational power and the more and more systematic application of FWI, it is crucial to tackle this problem and to propose robust and affordable workflows, in order to address the uncertainty quantification problem faced for near surface targets, crustal exploration, as well as regional and global scales.In this work (Thurin et al., 2017a,b), we propose an approach which takes advantage of the Ensemble Transform Kalman Filter (ETKF) proposed by Bishop et al., (2001), in order to estimate a low-rank approximation of the posterior covariance matrix of the FWI problem, allowing us to evaluate some uncertainty information of the solution. Instead of solving the FWI problem through a Bayesian inversion with the ETKF, we chose to combine a conventional FWI, based on local optimization, and the ETKF strategies. This scheme allows combining the efficiency of local optimization for solving large scale inverse problems and make the sampling of the local solution space possible thanks to its embarrassingly parallel property. References:Bishop, C. H., Etherton, B. J. and Majumdar, S. J., 2001. Adaptive sampling with the ensemble transform Kalman filter. Part I: Theoretical aspects. Monthly weather review, 129(3), 420-436.Thurin, J., Brossier, R. and Métivier, L

  19. Collaborative Dialogue in Synchronous Computer-Mediated Communication and Face-to-Face Communication

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zeng, Gang

    2017-01-01

    Previous research has documented that collaborative dialogue promotes L2 learning in both face-to-face (F2F) and synchronous computer-mediated communication (SCMC) modalities. However, relatively little research has explored modality effects on collaborative dialogue. Thus, motivated by sociocultual theory, this study examines how F2F compares…

  20. Community College Student Success in Online versus Equivalent Face-to-Face Courses

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gregory, Cheri B.; Lampley, James H.

    2016-01-01

    As part of a nationwide effort to increase the postsecondary educational attainment levels of citizens, community colleges have expanded offerings of courses and programs to more effectively meet the needs of students. Online courses offer convenience and flexibility that traditional face-to-face classes do not. These features appeal to students…

  1. The effects of environmental variability and spatial sampling on the three-dimensional inversion problem.

    PubMed

    Bender, Christopher M; Ballard, Megan S; Wilson, Preston S

    2014-06-01

    The overall goal of this work is to quantify the effects of environmental variability and spatial sampling on the accuracy and uncertainty of estimates of the three-dimensional ocean sound-speed field. In this work, ocean sound speed estimates are obtained with acoustic data measured by a sparse autonomous observing system using a perturbative inversion scheme [Rajan, Lynch, and Frisk, J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 82, 998-1017 (1987)]. The vertical and horizontal resolution of the solution depends on the bandwidth of acoustic data and on the quantity of sources and receivers, respectively. Thus, for a simple, range-independent ocean sound speed profile, a single source-receiver pair is sufficient to estimate the water-column sound-speed field. On the other hand, an environment with significant variability may not be fully characterized by a large number of sources and receivers, resulting in uncertainty in the solution. This work explores the interrelated effects of environmental variability and spatial sampling on the accuracy and uncertainty of the inversion solution though a set of case studies. Synthetic data representative of the ocean variability on the New Jersey shelf are used.

  2. The Genetic Content of Chromosomal Inversions across a Wide Latitudinal Gradient

    PubMed Central

    Simões, Pedro; Calabria, Gemma; Picão-Osório, João; Balanyà, Joan; Pascual, Marta

    2012-01-01

    There is increasing evidence regarding the role of chromosomal inversions in relevant biological processes such as local adaptation and speciation. A classic example of the adaptive role of chromosomal polymorphisms is given by the clines of inversion frequencies in Drosophila subobscura, repeatable across continents. Nevertheless, not much is known about the molecular variation associated with these polymorphisms. We characterized the genetic content of ca. 600 individuals from nine European populations following a latitudinal gradient by analysing 19 microsatellite loci from two autosomes (J and U) and the sex chromosome (A), taking into account their chromosomal inversions. Our results clearly demonstrate the molecular genetic uniformity within a given chromosomal inversion across a large latitudinal gradient, particularly from Groningen (Netherlands) in the north to Málaga (Spain) in the south, experiencing highly diverse environmental conditions. This low genetic differentiation within the same gene arrangement across the nine European populations is consistent with the local adaptation hypothesis for th evolutionof chromosomal polymorphisms. We also show the effective role of chromosomal inversions in maintaining different genetic pools within these inverted genomic regions even in the presence of high gene flow. Inversions represent thus an important barrier to gene flux and can help maintain specific allelic combinations with positive effects on fitness. Consistent patterns of microsatellite allele-inversion linkage disequilibrium particularly in loci within inversions were also observed. Finally, we identified areas within inversions presenting clinal variation that might be under selection. PMID:23272126

  3. Construction of Joule Thomson inversion curves for mixtures using equation of state

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Patankar, A. S.; Atrey, M. D.

    2017-02-01

    The Joule-Thomson effect is at the heart of Joule-Thomson cryocoolers and gas liquefaction cycles. The effective harnessing of this phenomenon necessitates the knowledge of Joule-Thomson coefficient and the inversion curve. When the working fluid is a mixture, (in mix refrigerant Joule-Thomson cryocooler, MRJT) the phase diagrams, equations of state and inversion curves of multi-component systems become important. The lowest temperature attainable by such a cryocooler depends on the inversion characteristics of the mixture used. In this work the construction of differential Joule-Thomson inversion curves of mixtures using Redlich-Kwong, Soave-Redlich-Kwong and Peng-Robinson equations of state is investigated assuming single phase. It is demonstrated that inversion curves constructed for pure fluids can be improved by choosing an appropriate value of acentric factor. Inversion curves are used to predict maximum inversion temperatures of multicomponent systems. An application where this information is critical is a two-stage J-T cryocooler using a mixture as the working fluid, especially for the second stage. The pre-cooling temperature that the first stage is required to generate depends on the maximum inversion temperature of the second stage working fluid.

  4. Consecutive TMS-fMRI reveals remote effects of neural noise to the "occipital face area".

    PubMed

    Solomon-Harris, Lily M; Rafique, Sara A; Steeves, Jennifer K E

    2016-11-01

    The human cortical system for face perception comprises a network of connected regions including the middle fusiform gyrus ("fusiform face area" or FFA), the inferior occipital gyrus ("occipital face area" or OFA), and the posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTS). Here, we sought to investigate how transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to the OFA affects activity within the face processing network. We used offline repetitive TMS to temporarily introduce neural noise in the right OFA in healthy subjects. We then immediately performed functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to measure changes in blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) signal across the face network using an fMR-adaptation (fMR-A) paradigm. We hypothesized that TMS to the right OFA would induce abnormal face identity coding throughout the face processing network in regions to which it has direct or indirect connections. Indeed, BOLD signal for face identity, but not non-face (butterfly) identity, decreased in the right OFA and FFA following TMS to the right OFA compared to both sham TMS and TMS to a control site, the nearby object-related lateral occipital area (LO). Further, TMS to the right OFA decreased face-related activation in the left FFA, without any effect in the left OFA. Our findings indicate that TMS to the right OFA selectively disrupts face coding at both the stimulation site and bilateral FFA. TMS to the right OFA also decreased BOLD signal for different identity stimuli in the right pSTS. Together with mounting evidence from patient studies, we demonstrate connectivity of the OFA within the face network and that its activity modulates face processing in bilateral FFA as well as the right pSTS. Moreover, this study shows that deep regions within the face network can be remotely probed by stimulating structures closer to the cortical surface. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. Plasma inverse transition acceleration

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Xie, Ming

    It can be proved fundamentally from the reciprocity theorem with which the electromagnetism is endowed that corresponding to each spontaneous process of radiation by a charged particle there is an inverse process which defines a unique acceleration mechanism, from Cherenkov radiation to inverse Cherenkov acceleration (ICA) [1], from Smith-Purcell radiation to inverse Smith-Purcell acceleration (ISPA) [2], and from undulator radiation to inverse undulator acceleration (IUA) [3]. There is no exception. Yet, for nearly 30 years after each of the aforementioned inverse processes has been clarified for laser acceleration, inverse transition acceleration (ITA), despite speculation [4], has remained the least understood,more » and above all, no practical implementation of ITA has been found, until now. Unlike all its counterparts in which phase synchronism is established one way or the other such that a particle can continuously gain energy from an acceleration wave, the ITA to be discussed here, termed plasma inverse transition acceleration (PITA), operates under fundamentally different principle. As a result, the discovery of PITA has been delayed for decades, waiting for a conceptual breakthrough in accelerator physics: the principle of alternating gradient acceleration [5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]. In fact, PITA was invented [7, 8] as one of several realizations of the new principle.« less

  6. Quality labeled faces in the wild (QLFW): a database for studying face recognition in real-world environments

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Karam, Lina J.; Zhu, Tong

    2015-03-01

    The varying quality of face images is an important challenge that limits the effectiveness of face recognition technology when applied in real-world applications. Existing face image databases do not consider the effect of distortions that commonly occur in real-world environments. This database (QLFW) represents an initial attempt to provide a set of labeled face images spanning the wide range of quality, from no perceived impairment to strong perceived impairment for face detection and face recognition applications. Types of impairment include JPEG2000 compression, JPEG compression, additive white noise, Gaussian blur and contrast change. Subjective experiments are conducted to assess the perceived visual quality of faces under different levels and types of distortions and also to assess the human recognition performance under the considered distortions. One goal of this work is to enable automated performance evaluation of face recognition technologies in the presence of different types and levels of visual distortions. This will consequently enable the development of face recognition systems that can operate reliably on real-world visual content in the presence of real-world visual distortions. Another goal is to enable the development and assessment of visual quality metrics for face images and for face detection and recognition applications.

  7. On the Duality of Forward and Inverse Light Transport.

    PubMed

    Chandraker, Manmohan; Bai, Jiamin; Ng, Tian-Tsong; Ramamoorthi, Ravi

    2011-10-01

    Inverse light transport seeks to undo global illumination effects, such as interreflections, that pervade images of most scenes. This paper presents the theoretical and computational foundations for inverse light transport as a dual of forward rendering. Mathematically, this duality is established through the existence of underlying Neumann series expansions. Physically, it can be shown that each term of our inverse series cancels an interreflection bounce, just as the forward series adds them. While the convergence properties of the forward series are well known, we show that the oscillatory convergence of the inverse series leads to more interesting conditions on material reflectance. Conceptually, the inverse problem requires the inversion of a large light transport matrix, which is impractical for realistic resolutions using standard techniques. A natural consequence of our theoretical framework is a suite of fast computational algorithms for light transport inversion--analogous to finite element radiosity, Monte Carlo and wavelet-based methods in forward rendering--that rely at most on matrix-vector multiplications. We demonstrate two practical applications, namely, separation of individual bounces of the light transport and fast projector radiometric compensation, to display images free of global illumination artifacts in real-world environments.

  8. Detection of pure inverse spin-Hall effect induced by spin pumping at various excitation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Inoue, H. Y.; Harii, K.; Ando, K.; Sasage, K.; Saitoh, E.

    2007-10-01

    Electric-field generation due to the inverse spin-Hall effect (ISHE) driven by spin pumping was detected and separated experimentally from the extrinsic magnetogalvanic effects in a Ni81Fe19/Pt film. By applying a sample-cavity configuration in which the extrinsic effects are suppressed, the spin pumping using ferromagnetic resonance gives rise to a symmetric spectral shape in the electromotive force spectrum, indicating that the motive force is due entirely to ISHE. This method allows the quantitative analysis of the ISHE and the spin-pumping effect. The microwave-power dependence of the ISHE amplitude is consistent with the prediction of a direct current-spin-pumping scenario.

  9. Inverse effects of Polyacrylamide (PAM) usage in furrow irrigation on advance time and deep percolation.

    PubMed

    Meral, Ramazan; Cemek, Bilal; Apan, Mehmet; Merdun, Hasan

    2006-10-01

    The positive effects of Polyacrylamide (PAM), which is used as a soil conditioner in furrow irrigation, on sediment transport, erosion, and infiltration have been investigated intensively in recent years. However, the effects of PAM have not been considered enough in irrigation system planning and design. As a result of increased infiltration because of PAM, advance time may be inversely affected and deep percolation increases. However, advance time in furrow irrigation is a crucial parameter in order to get high application efficiency. In this study, inverse effects of PAM were discussed, and as an alternative solution, the applicability of surge flow was investigated. PAM application significantly increased the advance time at the rates of 41.3-56.3% in the first irrigation. The application of surge flow with PAM removed this negative effect on advance time, where there was no statistically significant difference according to normal continuous flow (without PAM). PAM applications significantly increased the deep percolation, 80.3-117.1%. Surge flow with PAM had significantly positive effect on the deep percolation compared to continuous flow with PAM but not compared to normal continuous flow. These results suggested that irrigation planning should me made based on the new soil and flow conditions because of PAM usage, and surge flow can be a solution to these problems.

  10. A face versus non-face context influences amygdala responses to masked fearful eye whites.

    PubMed

    Kim, M Justin; Solomon, Kimberly M; Neta, Maital; Davis, F Caroline; Oler, Jonathan A; Mazzulla, Emily C; Whalen, Paul J

    2016-12-01

    The structure of the mask stimulus is crucial in backward masking studies and we recently demonstrated such an effect when masking faces. Specifically, we showed that activity of the amygdala is increased to fearful facial expressions masked with neutral faces and decreased to fearful expressions masked with a pattern mask-but critically both masked conditions discriminated fearful expressions from happy expressions. Given this finding, we sought to test whether masked fearful eye whites would produce a similar profile of amygdala response in a face vs non-face context. During functional magnetic resonance imaging scanning sessions, 30 participants viewed fearful or happy eye whites masked with either neutral faces or pattern images. Results indicated amygdala activity was increased to fearful vs happy eye whites in the face mask condition, but decreased to fearful vs happy eye whites in the pattern mask condition-effectively replicating and expanding our previous report. Our data support the idea that the amygdala is responsive to fearful eye whites, but that the nature of this activity observed in a backward masking design depends on the mask stimulus. © The Author (2016). Published by Oxford University Press.

  11. Passive and Motivated Perception of Emotional Faces: Qualitative and Quantitative Changes in the Face Processing Network

    PubMed Central

    Skelly, Laurie R.; Decety, Jean

    2012-01-01

    Emotionally expressive faces are processed by a distributed network of interacting sub-cortical and cortical brain regions. The components of this network have been identified and described in large part by the stimulus properties to which they are sensitive, but as face processing research matures interest has broadened to also probe dynamic interactions between these regions and top-down influences such as task demand and context. While some research has tested the robustness of affective face processing by restricting available attentional resources, it is not known whether face network processing can be augmented by increased motivation to attend to affective face stimuli. Short videos of people expressing emotions were presented to healthy participants during functional magnetic resonance imaging. Motivation to attend to the videos was manipulated by providing an incentive for improved recall performance. During the motivated condition, there was greater coherence among nodes of the face processing network, more widespread correlation between signal intensity and performance, and selective signal increases in a task-relevant subset of face processing regions, including the posterior superior temporal sulcus and right amygdala. In addition, an unexpected task-related laterality effect was seen in the amygdala. These findings provide strong evidence that motivation augmentsco-activity among nodes of the face processing network and the impact of neural activity on performance. These within-subject effects highlight the necessity to consider motivation when interpreting neural function in special populations, and to further explore the effect of task demands on face processing in healthy brains. PMID:22768287

  12. Cumulative childhood interpersonal trauma is associated with reduced cortical differentiation between threat and non-threat faces in posttraumatic stress disorder adults.

    PubMed

    Chu, Denise A; Bryant, Richard A; Gatt, Justine M; Harris, Anthony Wf

    2018-03-01

    Posttraumatic stress disorder and childhood trauma frequently co-occur. Both are associated with abnormal neural responses to salient emotion stimuli. As childhood trauma is a risk factor for posttraumatic stress disorder, differentiating between their neurophysiological effects is necessary to elucidate the neural pathways by which childhood trauma exposure contributes to increased posttraumatic stress disorder risks. Face-specific N170 evoked response potentials for backward-masked (non-conscious) and conscious threat (fear, angry) and non-threat (happy) faces were measured in 77 adults (18-64 years old, 64% women, 78% right-handed) symptomatic for posttraumatic stress disorder. Differences in N170 peak amplitudes for fear-versus-happy and angry-versus-happy faces at bilateral temporo-occipital (T5, T6) sites were computed. The effect of cumulative exposure to childhood interpersonal trauma, other childhood trauma, adult trauma, depression and posttraumatic stress disorder symptom severity on the N170 response was assessed using hierarchical multiple regression analyses. T5 N170 peak amplitudes for non-conscious fear-versus-happy faces were inversely related to cumulative childhood interpersonal trauma after accounting for socio-demographic, clinical symptom and other trauma factors. Posttraumatic stress disorder Avoidance was positively associated with N170 peak amplitudes for non-conscious fear-versus-happy faces, primarily due to reduced N170 responsivity to happy faces. Childhood interpersonal trauma exposure is associated with reduced discrimination between fear and happy faces, while avoidance symptom severity is associated with dampened responsivity to automatically processed happy faces in posttraumatic stress disorder adults. Results are discussed in terms of the likely contributions of impaired threat discrimination and deficient reward processing during neural processing of salient emotion stimuli, to increased risks of posttraumatic stress disorder

  13. The Effect of Screen-to-Screen Versus Face-to-Face Consultation on Doctor-Patient Communication: An Experimental Study with Simulated Patients.

    PubMed

    Tates, Kiek; Antheunis, Marjolijn L; Kanters, Saskia; Nieboer, Theodoor E; Gerritse, Maria Be

    2017-12-20

    Despite the emergence of Web-based patient-provider contact, it is still unclear how the quality of Web-based doctor-patient interactions differs from face-to-face interactions. This study aimed to examine (1) the impact of a consultation medium on doctors' and patients' communicative behavior in terms of information exchange, interpersonal relationship building, and shared decision making and (2) the mediating role of doctors' and patients' communicative behavior on satisfaction with both types of consultation medium. Doctor-patient consultations on pelvic organ prolapse were simulated, both in a face-to-face and in a screen-to-screen (video) setting. Twelve medical interns and 6 simulated patients prepared 4 different written scenarios and were randomized to perform a total of 48 consultations. Effects of the consultations were measured by questionnaires that participants filled out directly after the consultation. With respect to patient-related outcomes, satisfaction, perceived information exchange, interpersonal relationship building, and perceived shared decision making showed no significant differences between face-to-face and screen-to-screen consultations. Patients' attitude toward Web-based communication (b=-.249, P=.02 and patients' perceived time and attention (b=.271, P=.03) significantly predicted patients' perceived interpersonal relationship building. Patients' perceived shared decision making was positively related to their satisfaction with the consultation (b=.254, P=.005). Overall, patients experienced significantly greater shared decision making with a female doctor (mean 4.21, SD 0.49) than with a male doctor (mean 3.66 [SD 0.73]; b=.401, P=.009). Doctor-related outcomes showed no significant differences in satisfaction, perceived information exchange, interpersonal relationship building, and perceived shared decision making between the conditions. There was a positive relationship between perceived information exchange and doctors

  14. Face recognition system and method using face pattern words and face pattern bytes

    DOEpatents

    Zheng, Yufeng

    2014-12-23

    The present invention provides a novel system and method for identifying individuals and for face recognition utilizing facial features for face identification. The system and method of the invention comprise creating facial features or face patterns called face pattern words and face pattern bytes for face identification. The invention also provides for pattern recognitions for identification other than face recognition. The invention further provides a means for identifying individuals based on visible and/or thermal images of those individuals by utilizing computer software implemented by instructions on a computer or computer system and a computer readable medium containing instructions on a computer system for face recognition and identification.

  15. Multivariate Formation Pressure Prediction with Seismic-derived Petrophysical Properties from Prestack AVO inversion and Poststack Seismic Motion Inversion

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yu, H.; Gu, H.

    2017-12-01

    A novel multivariate seismic formation pressure prediction methodology is presented, which incorporates high-resolution seismic velocity data from prestack AVO inversion, and petrophysical data (porosity and shale volume) derived from poststack seismic motion inversion. In contrast to traditional seismic formation prediction methods, the proposed methodology is based on a multivariate pressure prediction model and utilizes a trace-by-trace multivariate regression analysis on seismic-derived petrophysical properties to calibrate model parameters in order to make accurate predictions with higher resolution in both vertical and lateral directions. With prestack time migration velocity as initial velocity model, an AVO inversion was first applied to prestack dataset to obtain high-resolution seismic velocity with higher frequency that is to be used as the velocity input for seismic pressure prediction, and the density dataset to calculate accurate Overburden Pressure (OBP). Seismic Motion Inversion (SMI) is an inversion technique based on Markov Chain Monte Carlo simulation. Both structural variability and similarity of seismic waveform are used to incorporate well log data to characterize the variability of the property to be obtained. In this research, porosity and shale volume are first interpreted on well logs, and then combined with poststack seismic data using SMI to build porosity and shale volume datasets for seismic pressure prediction. A multivariate effective stress model is used to convert velocity, porosity and shale volume datasets to effective stress. After a thorough study of the regional stratigraphic and sedimentary characteristics, a regional normally compacted interval model is built, and then the coefficients in the multivariate prediction model are determined in a trace-by-trace multivariate regression analysis on the petrophysical data. The coefficients are used to convert velocity, porosity and shale volume datasets to effective stress and then

  16. Computational inverse methods of heat source in fatigue damage problems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chen, Aizhou; Li, Yuan; Yan, Bo

    2018-04-01

    Fatigue dissipation energy is the research focus in field of fatigue damage at present. It is a new idea to solve the problem of calculating fatigue dissipation energy by introducing inverse method of heat source into parameter identification of fatigue dissipation energy model. This paper introduces the research advances on computational inverse method of heat source and regularization technique to solve inverse problem, as well as the existing heat source solution method in fatigue process, prospects inverse method of heat source applying in fatigue damage field, lays the foundation for further improving the effectiveness of fatigue dissipation energy rapid prediction.

  17. Arginine Vasopressin Effects on Subjective Judgments and Neural Responses to Same and Other-Sex Faces in Men and Women.

    PubMed

    Rilling, James K; Li, Ting; Chen, Xiangchuan; Gautam, Pritam; Haroon, Ebrahim; Thompson, Richmond R

    2017-01-01

    Arginine vasopressin (AVP) influences social and emotional behaviors across a wide range of species. In humans, intranasal AVP has been previously shown to alter physiological responses to and subjective judgments of same-sex faces in both men and women. The present study attempted to elucidate the neural mechanism for these effects by randomizing 40 healthy men and 40 healthy women to treatment with either 40 IU intranasal AVP or a saline placebo approximately 30 min before imaging their brain function with fMRI as they viewed same and other-sex faces. All subjects were also scanned a second time several days later with no treatment to evaluate the persistence of AVP effects over time. AVP acutely increased positive ratings of same-sex faces in women, with some evidence that these effects persisted until the second scan. While AVP had no acute effects on same-sex ratings in men, AVP increased positive ratings of same-sex faces several days later. On the other hand, AVP had no effect on other-sex face judgments in either sex. AVP modulation of brain function was focused on the nucleus accumbens (NAc) and the lateral septum, two reward processing areas involved in the formation of social bonds. AVP provoked acute increases in right NAc and bilateral lateral septum responses to female faces among men, with left lateral septum responses persisting over time while right NAc responses reversed over time. Finally, AVP modulated hypothalamic activation to faces in both men and women. The present study therefore indicates that intranasal AVP affects subjective ratings and neural responses to same and other-sex faces in men and women, with some effects persisting and others emerging over time. Future studies should investigate whether AVP effects are modulated by individual variables such as genotype, personality, or attachment style as previously reported for other nonapeptides.

  18. Comprehensive surface geophysical investigation of karst caves ahead of the tunnel face: A case study in the Xiaoheyan section of the water supply project from Songhua River, Jilin, China

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bin, Liu; Zhengyu, Liu; Shucai, Li; Lichao, Nie; Maoxin, Su; Huaifeng, Sun; Kerui, Fan; Xinxin, Zhang; Yonghao, Pang

    2017-09-01

    This paper describes the application of a comprehensive surface geophysical investigation of underground karst systems ahead of the tunnel face in the Xiaoheyan section in the main line of the water supply project from Songhua River, located in Jilin, China. To make an accurate investigation, Surface Electrical Resistivity Tomography (S-ERT), Transient Electromagnetic Method (TEM), Geological Drilling (Geo-D) and Three-dimensional Cross-hole Electrical Resistivity Tomography (3D cross-hole ERT) were applied to gain a comprehensive interpretation. To begin with, S-ERT and TEM are adopted to detect and delineate the underground karst zone. Based on the detection results, surface and in-tunnel Geo-D are placed in major areas with more specific and accurate information gained. After that, survey lines of 3D cross-hole ERT are used to conduct detailed exploration towards underground karst system. In the comprehensive investigation, it is the major question to make the best of prior information so as to promote the quality of detection. The paper has put forward strategies to make the full use of effective information in data processing and the main ideas of those strategies include: (1) Take the resistivity distribution of the subsurface stratum gained by S-ERT inversion as the initial model of TEM inversion; (2) Arrange borehole positions with the results of S-ERT and TEM. After that, gain more accurate information about resistivity of subsurface stratum using those boreholes located; (3) Through the comprehensive analysis of the information about S-ERT, TEM and Geo-D, set the initial model of 3D cross-hole resistivity inversion and meanwhile, gain the variation range of stratum resistivity. At last, a 3D cross-hole resistivity inversion based on the incorporated initial model and inequality constraint is conducted. Constrained inversion and joint interpretation are realized by the effective use of prior information in comprehensive investigation, helping to suppress

  19. Development of Effective Connectivity during Own- and Other-Race Face Processing: A Granger Causality Analysis

    PubMed Central

    Zhou, Guifei; Liu, Jiangang; Ding, Xiao Pan; Fu, Genyue; Lee, Kang

    2016-01-01

    Numerous developmental studies have suggested that other-race effect (ORE) in face recognition emerges as early as in infancy and develops steadily throughout childhood. However, there is very limited research on the neural mechanisms underlying this developmental ORE. The present study used Granger causality analysis (GCA) to examine the development of children's cortical networks in processing own- and other-race faces. Children were between 3 and 13 years. An old-new paradigm was used to assess their own- and other-race face recognition with ETG-4000 (Hitachi Medical Co., Japan) acquiring functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) data. After preprocessing, for each participant and under each face condition, we obtained the causal map by calculating the weights of causal relations between the time courses of [oxy-Hb] of each pair of channels using GCA. To investigate further the differential causal connectivity for own-race faces and other-race faces at the group level, a repeated measure analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed on the GCA weights for each pair of channels with the face race task (own-race face vs. other-race face) as the within-subject variable and the age as a between-subject factor (continuous variable). We found an age-related increase in functional connectivity, paralleling a similar age-related improvement in behavioral face processing ability. More importantly, we found that the significant differences in neural functional connectivity between the recognition of own-race faces and that of other-race faces were modulated by age. Thus, like the behavioral ORE, the neural ORE emerges early and undergoes a protracted developmental course. PMID:27713696

  20. Expertise Effects in Face-Selective Areas are Robust to Clutter and Diverted Attention, but not to Competition.

    PubMed

    McGugin, Rankin Williams; Van Gulick, Ana E; Tamber-Rosenau, Benjamin J; Ross, David A; Gauthier, Isabel

    2015-09-01

    Expertise effects for nonface objects in face-selective brain areas may reflect stable aspects of neuronal selectivity that determine how observers perceive objects. However, bottom-up (e.g., clutter from irrelevant objects) and top-down manipulations (e.g., attentional selection) can influence activity, affecting the link between category selectivity and individual performance. We test the prediction that individual differences expressed as neural expertise effects for cars in face-selective areas are sufficiently stable to survive clutter and manipulations of attention. Additionally, behavioral work and work using event related potentials suggest that expertise effects may not survive competition; we investigate this using functional magnetic resonance imaging. Subjects varying in expertise with cars made 1-back decisions about cars, faces, and objects in displays containing one or 2 objects, with only one category attended. Univariate analyses suggest car expertise effects are robust to clutter, dampened by reducing attention to cars, but nonetheless more robust to manipulations of attention than competition. While univariate expertise effects are severely abolished by competition between cars and faces, multivariate analyses reveal new information related to car expertise. These results demonstrate that signals in face-selective areas predict expertise effects for nonface objects in a variety of conditions, although individual differences may be expressed in different dependent measures depending on task and instructions. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.