Is orthographic information from multiple parafoveal words processed in parallel: an eye- tracking study

In the current study we investigated whether orthographic information available from one upcoming parafoveal word influences the processing of another parafoveal word. Across two experiments we used the boundary paradigm (Rayner, 1975) to present participants with an identity preview of the two words after the boundary (e.g. hot pan), a preview in which two letters were transposed between these words (e.g. hop tan), or a preview in which the same two letters were substituted (e.g. hob fan). We hypothesized that if these two words were processed in parallel in the parafovea then we may observe significant preview benefits for the condition in which the letters were transposed between words relative to the condition in which the letters were substituted. However, no such effect was observed, with participants fixating the words for the same amount of time in both conditions. This was the case both when the transposition was made between the final and first letter of the two words (e.g. hop tan as a preview of hot pan; Experiment 1) and when the transposition maintained within word letter position (e.g. pit hop as a preview of hit pop; Experiment 2). The implications of these findings are considered in relation to serial and parallel lexical processing during reading.<br/

Kinerja Algoritma Paralel Untuk Pencarian Kata Dengan Metode Boyer-moore Menggunakan Pvm

Search process is one of important activity in data processing. Searching can take more time if conducted in the huge search space. Therefore, it is needed an efficient search technique. One technique that can be used is parallel computing. This article discusses the search process in parallel using the Boyer-Moore algorithm. Parallel scope is emulated with PVM (Parallel Virtual Machine) software. From the research results, it can be concluded that the performance of parallel computing will increase the word searching compared to the computing performance for its word sequencial search consisting of one letter, and will drop to the word search consisting of two letters or more

Naming of short words is (almost) the same as naming of alphanumeric symbols:Evidence from two orthographies

Throughout reading development, a gradual shift is seen in the processes underlying word identification from serial decoding toward parallel processing or sight word reading. It has been argued that this shift can be detected in the correlations between serial and discrete naming of alphanumeric symbols (digits and letters) and words. In the current study, we examined the relations between alphanumeric symbol naming and reading of monosyllabic and multisyllabic words and nonwords in two languages that differ in orthographic consistency: English and Dutch. A sample of 92 English-speaking Canadian children and 101 Dutch children, all in Grade 5, were assessed on discrete and serial naming of digits and letters and on serial and discrete naming of monosyllabic and multisyllabic words and nonwords. Results showed that discrete naming of alphanumeric symbols closely resembled discrete reading of monosyllabic words, suggesting that these words are processed in parallel in both languages. Both serial and parallel reading processes were found to underlie identification of multisyllabic words as well as monosyllabic nonwords. However, differences between the two languages emerged when processing multisyllabic nonwords. Whereas English-speaking children relied more on parallel reading processes to read multisyllabic nonwords, Dutch-speaking children processed these items serially. Theoretical implications of these findings are discusse

Does visual attention span relate to eye movements during reading and copying?

International audienceThis research investigated whether text reading and copying involve visual attention-processing skills. Children in grades 3 and 5 read and copied the same text. We measured eye movements while reading and the number of gaze lifts (GL) during copying. The children were also administered letter report tasks that constitute an estimation of the number of letters that are processed simultaneously. The tasks were designed to assess visual attention span abilities (VA). The results for both grades revealed that the children who reported more letters, i.e., processed more consonants in parallel, produced fewer rightward fixations during text reading suggesting they could process more letters at each fixation. They also copied more letters per gaze lift from the same text. Furthermore, a regression analysis showed that VA span predicted variations in copying independently of the influence of reading skills. The findings support a role of VA span abilities in the early extraction of orthographic information, for both reading and copying tasks

Does orthographic processing emerge rapidly after learning a new script?

Epub 2020 Aug 11Orthographic processing is characterized by location-invariant and location-specific processing (Grainger, 2018): (1) strings of letters are more vulnerable to transposition effects than the strings of symbols in same-different tasks (location-invariant processing); and (2) strings of letters, but not strings of symbols, show an initial position advantage in target-in-string identification tasks (location-specific processing). To examine the emergence of these two markers of orthographic processing, we conducted a same-different task and a target-in-string identification task with two unfamiliar scripts (pre-training experiments). Across six training sessions, participants learned to fluently read and write one of these scripts. The post-training experiments were parallel to the pre-training experiments. Results showed that the magnitude of the transposed-letter effect in the same-different task and the serial function in the target-in-string identification tasks were remarkably similar for the trained and untrained scripts. Thus, location-invariant and location-specific processing does not emerge rapidly after learning a new script; instead, they may require thorough experience with specific orthographic structures.This study was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation, and Universities (PRE2018-083922, PSI2017-86210-P) and by the Department of Innovation, Universities, Science and Digital Society of the Valencian Government (GV/2020/074

A best online algorithm for scheduling on two parallel batch machines

AbstractWe consider the online scheduling on two parallel batch machines with infinite batch size to minimize makespan, where jobs arrive over time. That is, all information of a job is not available until it is released. For this online scheduling problem, Nong et al. [Q.Q. Nong, T.C.E. Cheng, C.T. Ng, An improved online algorithm for scheduling on two unrestrictive parallel batch processing machines, Operations Research Letters, 36 (2008) 584–588] have provided an online algorithm with competitive ratio no greater than 2. We show that this bound is tight for the problem. Furthermore we give a new best possible online algorithm with a tighter structure

Effects of intraword and interword spacing on eye movements during reading: Exploring the optimal use of space in a line of text

Two eye movement experiments investigated intra-word spacing (the space between letters within words) and inter-word spacing (the space between words) to explore the influence these variables have on eye movement control during reading. Both variables are important factors in determining the optimal use of space in a line of text, and fonts differ widely in how they employ these spaces. Prior research suggests that the proximity of flanking letters influences the identification of a central letter via lateral inhibition or crowding. If so decrements in intra-word spacing may produce inhibition in word processing. Still other research suggests that increases in intra-word spacing can disrupt the integrity of word units. In English, inter-word spacing has a large influence on word segmentation and is important for saccade target selection. The results indicate interplay between intra and inter word spacing which influence a font’s readability. Additionally, these studies highlight the importance of word segmentation processes and have implications for the nature of lexical processing (serial vs. parallel)