Dissociating task difficulty from incongruence in face-voice emotion integration

In the everyday environment, affective information is conveyed by both the face and the voice. Studies have demonstrated that a concurrently presented voice can alter the way that an emotional face expression is perceived, and vice versa, leading to emotional conflict if the information in the two modalities is mismatched. Additionally, evidence suggests that incongruence of emotional valence activates cerebral networks involved in conflict monitoring and resolution. However, it is currently unclear whether this is due to task difficulty—that incongruent stimuli are harder to categorize—or simply to the detection of mismatching information in the two modalities. The aim of the present fMRI study was to examine the neurophysiological correlates of processing incongruent emotional information, independent of task difficulty. Subjects were scanned while judging the emotion of face-voice affective stimuli. Both the face and voice were parametrically morphed between anger and happiness and then paired in all audiovisual combinations, resulting in stimuli each defined by two separate values: the degree of incongruence between the face and voice, and the degree of clarity of the combined face-voice information. Due to the specific morphing procedure utilized, we hypothesized that the clarity value, rather than incongruence value, would better reflect task difficulty. Behavioral data revealed that participants integrated face and voice affective information, and that the clarity, as opposed to incongruence value correlated with categorization difficulty. Cerebrally, incongruence was more associated with activity in the superior temporal region, which emerged after task difficulty had been accounted for. Overall, our results suggest that activation in the superior temporal region in response to incongruent information cannot be explained simply by task difficulty, and may rather be due to detection of mismatching information between the two modalities

OPE statistics from higher-point crossing

We present new asymptotic formulas for the distribution of OPE coefficients in conformal field theories. These formulas involve products of four or more coefficients and include light-light-heavy as well as heavy-heavy-heavy contributions. They are derived from crossing symmetry of the six and higher point functions on the plane and should be interpreted as non-Gaussianities in the statistical distribution of the OPE coefficients. We begin with a formula for arbitrary operator exchanges (not necessarily primary) valid in any dimension. This is the first asymptotic formula constraining heavy-heavy-heavy OPE coefficients in d > 2. For two-dimensional CFTs, we present refined asymptotic formulas stemming from exchanges of quasi-primaries as well as Virasoro primaries.We present new asymptotic formulas for the distribution of OPE coefficients in conformal field theories. These formulas involve products of four or more coefficients and include light-light-heavy as well as heavy-heavy-heavy contributions. They are derived from crossing symmetry of the six and higher point functions on the plane and should be interpreted as non-Gaussianities in the statistical distribution of the OPE coefficients. We begin with a formula for arbitrary operator exchanges (not necessarily primary) valid in any dimension. This is the first asymptotic formula constraining heavy-heavy-heavy OPE coefficients in $d>2$. For two-dimensional CFTs, we present refined asymptotic formulas stemming from exchanges of quasi-primaries as well as Virasoro primaries

On the Stress Tensor Light-ray Operator Algebra

We study correlation functions involving generalized ANEC operators of the form $\int dx^- \left(x^-\right)^{n+2} T_{--}(\vec{x})$ in four dimensions. We compute two, three, and four-point functions involving external scalar states in both free and holographic Conformal Field Theories. From this information, we extract the algebra of these light-ray operators. We find a global subalgebra spanned by $n=\{-2, -1, 0, 1, 2\}$ which annihilate the conformally invariant vacuum and transform among themselves under the action of the collinear conformal group that preserves the light-ray. Operators outside this range give rise to an infinite central term, in agreement with previous suggestions in the literature. In free theories, even some of the operators inside the global subalgebra fail to commute when placed at spacelike separation on the same null-plane. This lack of commutativity is not integrable, presenting an obstruction to the construction of a well defined light-ray algebra at coincident $\vec{x}$ coordinates. For holographic CFTs the behavior worsens and operators with $n \neq -2$ fail to commute at spacelike separation. We reproduce this result in the bulk of AdS where we present new exact shockwave solutions dual to the insertions of these (exponentiated) operators on the boundary.Comment: 56 pages + appendices, 9 figures; references and minor clarifications adde

Parameter reduction for the Yld2004-18p yield criterion

The Yld2004-18p yield criterion uses 18 parameters to define anisotropy for a full 3D stress state. It is demonstrated in this paper that dependencies between the parameters exist and for a given set of experimental data the parameters are not uniquely defined. Analysis of the yield function shows that two specific combinations of parameters do not contribute to the value of the yield function. Therefore, the number of parameters can be reduced to 16, without any loss of flexibility. Similarly, the number of parameters for the plane stress version of this yield criterion reduces from 14 to 12.1111Ysciescopu

Chiral 1,4-Benzodiazepines. X. Further Investigations of Configurational Stability of the Chiral Centre C(3)

For various at C(3)-chiral 1,4-benzodiazepin-2-ones rate determinations of racemisation (ka.- for C(3)-0CH3 derivative ( + )-1), degenerate nucleophilic exchange (k0 - for rac. 1 and rac. 2), and solvolysis (k5 - for C(3)-hemisuccinyl derivative 4) have been performed. These investigations revealed; (a) retention of .configuration during methanolysis of ( + )-3, (b) slow racemisation of ( + )-1 during solvolytic degenerate nucleophilic substitution (kefko. - - 4), (c} no participation of SNl retentive reaction, possible via intramolecular transfer of the methoxy group within intermediary compounds 4-6, (d) thermodi:namic parameters for racemisation of ( + )-1 between 20-40 °c; liH"" = 18.0 ± 0.8 kcal/moll**, liS"" = = - 7.2 ± 2.5 e. u.*** Mechanistic scheme is offered which accounts for all experimental results. The effect of the electrocyclic equilibrium on the electronic structure of N(4) protonated benzodiazepines, and its possible consequences for their mechanisms of biological activity on the central nervous system (CNS), have briefly been discussed

Extended hopanoid loss reduces bacterial motility and surface attachment, and leads to heterogeneity in root nodule growth kinetics in a Bradyrhizobium-Aeschynomene symbiosis

Hopanoids are steroid-like bacterial lipids that enhance membrane rigidity and promote bacterial growth under diverse stresses. Roughly 10% of bacteria contain genes involved in hopanoid biosynthesis, and these genes are particularly conserved in plant-associated organisms. We previously found that the extended class of hopanoids (C35) in the nitrogen-fixing soil bacterium Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens promotes its root nodule symbiosis with the tropical legume Aeschynomene afraspera. By quantitatively modeling root nodule development, we identify independent consequences of extended hopanoid loss in the initiation of root nodule formation and in the rate of root nodule maturation. In vitro studies demonstrate that extended hopanoids support B. diazoefficiens motility and surface attachment, which may correlate with stable root colonization in planta. Confocal microscopy of maturing root nodules reveals that root nodules infected with extended hopanoid-deficient B. diazoefficiens contain unusually low densities of bacterial symbionts, indicating that extended hopanoids are necessary for persistent, high levels of host infection