How Soundtracks Shape What We See: Analyzing the Influence of Music on Visual Scenes Through Self-Assessment, Eye Tracking, and Pupillometry

This article presents two studies that deepen the theme of how soundtracks shape our interpretation of audiovisuals. Embracing a multivariate perspective, Study 1 (N = 118) demonstrated, through an online between-subjects experiment, that two different music scores (melancholic vs. anxious) deeply affected the interpretations of an unknown movie scene in terms of empathy felt toward the main character, impressions of his personality, plot anticipations, and perception of the environment of the scene. With the melancholic music, participants felt empathy toward the character, viewing him as more agreeable and introverted, more oriented to memories than to decisions, while perceiving the environment as cozier. An almost opposite pattern emerged with the anxious music. In Study 2 (N = 92), we replicated the experiment in our lab but with the addition of eye-tracking and pupillometric measurements. Results of Study 1 were largely replicated; moreover, we proved that the anxious score, by increasing the participants’ vigilance and state of alert (wider pupil dilation), favored greater attention to minor details, as in the case of another character who was very hard to be noticed (more time spent on his figure). Results highlight the pervasive nature of the influence of music within the process of interpretation of visual scenes

Remote light source for silicon photonic transceivers in mobile fronthaul applications

The design and experimental characterisation of a depolarised light source for feeding a remote transceiver based on silicon photonics are presented. Since the transceiver only works in TE mode, the source is designed to deliver, over up to 10 km standard single-mode fibre links, a continuous-wave light with almost constant power along this polarisation direction, whatever be the random polarisation rotation because of the fibre link. The depolarised light source is realised by combining the output of two independent distributed feedback lasers, having orthogonal polarisation and controlled frequency difference. The transmission performance and stability of the remote light source are successfully tested

Whose resilience matters?: like-for-like comparisons of objective and subjective measures of resilience

As resilience continues its rise to top of the international policy agenda, development funders and practitioners are under mounting pressure to ensure that investments in resilience-building are effective and targeted at those most in need. It is here that robust resilience measurement can make valuable contributions: identifying hotspots; understanding drivers; and inferring impact. To date, resilience measurement has been dominated by objectively-oriented approaches. These rely on external definitions of resilience (often informed by outside ‘experts’, literature reviews or resilience practitioners) and measured through observation or external verification. More recently, the potential for subjective approaches has been proposed. These take a contrasting approach, soliciting people’s judgements of what resilience means to them, and getting them to self-evaluate their own resilience. While both approaches have their strength and weaknesses, little is known about how objective and subjective modes of resilience measurement compare. To shed light on this relationship, we provide like-for-like comparisons of these two approaches using a regionally representative household survey of 2,308 households in Northern Uganda. In so doing, we introduce a new measurement approach named the Subjective self-Evaluated Resilience Score (SERS). Outcomes from SERS are directly compared with an objectively-evaluated approach, the Resilience Index Measurement Analysis (RIMA), widely used by resilience practitioners. Findings from the survey suggest a moderate correlation between objectively- and subjectively-evaluated resilience modules. More importantly, both approaches share similar associations with many key socioeconomic drivers of resilience. However, there are notable differences between the two. In some case, the approaches differ entirely regarding contributions of important traits, including coping strategies, levels of education and exposure to prior shocks. Our results highlight the need for resilience evaluators to consider a diversity of knowledge sources and seek greater use of evidence in indicator selection. We also investigate the properties of the SERS module itself. We find that characterisations of resilience that mimic various commonly-used frameworks produce similar resilience outcomes, suggesting that debates over the exact composition of resilience-characteristics may matter little. In addition, shorter SERS modules match the performance of the full set of SERS questions, allowing for quicker administration and reduced survey burden. Lastly, we call for evaluators to consider the strengths and weaknesses of subjective and objective measurement approaches, including options for combining both formats

Food security and violent conflict: Introduction to the special issue

We review briefly recent trends in food security and violent conflict and the quantitative literature discussing their interactions, as reflected by the papers in this special issue. We find a large diversity in experiences of food security and conflict, posing a challenge for causal identification which can be resolved by spatially disaggregated, high frequency micro-level data on both food security and conflict. We identify examples of strong individual and institutional capacities to cope with conflict, maintaining food security against the odds across very diverse settings, stressing the importance in accounting for the type of conflict at the micro-level. We also discuss how the concept of resilience is a useful lens for understanding household food security in conflict settings and we outline how food insecurity and conflict can lead to protracted crises. Finally, we identify future research topics in this field. Overall, the special issue contributes to the literature on food security and violent conflict by highlighting three insights: First, the need for adequate data to advance the analytical and policy agendas; second, the diversity of experiences of conflict and food security; and, third, the decisive role played by specific practices and policies in smoothing the negative effects of conflicts for food security

Gains from Variety: Refugee-Host Interactions in Uganda

Refugees are mainly hosted in low-income countries, where they often remain for a long time. Therefore, it is important to assess how they integrate with the local economy and to what extent their presence can contribute to the transition to a more dynamic economic environment. Proximity between refugees and hosts might improve the welfare of both groups by increasing opportunities for mutually beneficial economic exchanges. In particular, welfare gains might be generated through the availability of a greater variety of commodities. In this paper we propose a theoretical model that uses the love for variety to frame the possible benefits arising from the interaction between hosts and refugees facilitated by geographical proximity. We complement the conceptual framework with an empirical analysis that makes use of a unique dataset covering around 80% of the refugee population living in Ugandan settlements and the adjoining host households. The empirical results show that proximity between groups increases the food expenditure and the variety of food consumption of both groups. We also found that exposition to inter-group interactions rises the non-food expenditure, and the probability to run a farm and a non-farm enterprise by refugee households, while hosts are not crowding out from production

Feshbach resonances in ultracold K(39)

We discover several magnetic Feshbach resonances in collisions of ultracold K(39) atoms, by studying atom losses and molecule formation. Accurate determination of the magnetic-field resonance locations allows us to optimize a quantum collision model for potassium isotopes. We employ the model to predict the magnetic-field dependence of scattering lengths and of near-threshold molecular levels. Our findings will be useful to plan future experiments on ultracold potassium atoms and molecules.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figure

Numerical investigation on the use of Dimethyl Ether (DME) as an alternative fuel for compression-ignition engines

Dimethyl Ether (DME) is an oxygenated fuel that could favour the transition of the heavy-duty transportation sector to carbon neutrality thanks to its similarities in terms of thermophysical properties with diesel fuel, which will facilitate the retrofitting of existing architectures, and the possibility to achieve good trade-offs between NOx emissions, soot formation and overall combustion efficiency. The possibility of producing it from a multitude of carbon-neutral sources and the low hydrogen-to-carbon ratio would allow for an overall lower CO2 output, making an attractive option in limiting the global warming impact of the heavy-duty transportation sector. In the present work, a numerical analysis of the combustion process of DME is carried out. First, the numerical setup is validated against experimental data available for a constant volume vessel with an initial density of 14.8 kg/m3, discussing the capabilities of a chemistry-based combustion model using tabulated kinetics of homogeneous reactors: the Tabulated Well Mixed (TWM) model. Ignition delay times (IDT) are compared for a wide range of temperatures, from 750 K to 1100 K, and oxygen concentrations, from 15% to 21%. The same setup is then applied in the simulation of a heavy-duty internal combustion engine (ICE). A first validation was done to assess the performance of the numerical methodology in a traditional Mixing Controlled Compression Ignition (MCCI) scenario. Then, two other points were simulated: an MCCI condition with 35% of EGR and a Late-Premixed Charge Compression Ignition (L-PCCI) one, with 35% of EGR and an SOIe of 4 CAD aTDC. Local temperature distributions were compared, analyzing the effect of these technologies in NOx emission mitigation and their impact on gross indicated efficiency (& eta;g), showing the advantages that using DME can have on a real-world application