Time course of target recognition in visual search

Visual search is a ubiquitous task of great importance: it allows us to quickly find the objects that we are looking for. During active search for an object (target), eye movements are made to different parts of the scene. Fixation locations are chosen based on a combination of information about the target and the visual input. At the end of a successful search, the eyes typically fixate on the target. But does this imply that target identification occurs while looking at it? The duration of a typical fixation (~170ms) and neuronal latencies of both the oculomotor system and the visual stream indicate that there might not be enough time to do so. Previous studies have suggested the following solution to this dilemma: the target is identified extrafoveally and this event will trigger a saccade towards the target location. However this has not been experimentally verified. Here we test the hypothesis that subjects recognize the target before they look at it using a search display of oriented colored bars. Using a gaze-contingent real-time technique, we prematurely stopped search shortly after subjects fixated the target. Afterwards, we asked subjects to identify the target location. We find that subjects can identify the target location even when fixating on the target for less than 10ms. Longer fixations on the target do not increase detection performance but increase confidence. In contrast, subjects cannot perform this task if they are not allowed to move their eyes. Thus, information about the target during conjunction search for colored oriented bars can, in some circumstances, be acquired at least one fixation ahead of reaching the target. The final fixation serves to increase confidence rather then performance, illustrating a distinct role of the final fixation for the subjective judgment of confidence rather than accuracy

Children, insanity and child psychiatry c.1800-1935

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Reading skills of D/deaf students – native signers

Reading skills of D/deaf students fall behind their hearing peers. The difference in reading skills between D/deaf and hearing children has not decreased for over past three decades. Low level of reading skills in D/deaf students has been associated with their language delay, which is mainly observed in D/deaf children using spoken language that is not fully accessible to “D/deaf individuals” instead of “ppl with hearing impairment”. D/deaf children immersed in sign language since their birth usually do not encounter language problems and they have a potential to become highly-skilled readers. In the present studies we have investigated reading skills of D/deaf students who are native signers of Polish Sign Language. The results have indicated that D/deaf students showed lower level of reading skills than their hearing peers. The present studies call in question Polish education system dedicated to D/deaf students who are native signers. The obtained results suggest that reading classes are probably not adapted to the needs and abilities of highly competent signers.Reading skills of D/deaf students fall behind their hearing peers. The difference in reading skills between D/deaf and hearing children has not decreased for over past three decades. Low level of reading skills in D/deaf students has been associated with their language delay, which is mainly observed in D/deaf children using spoken language that is not fully accessible to “D/deaf individuals” instead of “ppl with hearing impairment”. D/deaf children immersed in sign language since their birth usually do not encounter language problems and they have a potential to become highly-skilled readers. In the present studies we have investigated reading skills of D/deaf students who are native signers of Polish Sign Language. The results have indicated that D/deaf students showed lower level of reading skills than their hearing peers. The present studies call in question Polish education system dedicated to D/deaf students who are native signers. The obtained results suggest that reading classes are probably not adapted to the needs and abilities of highly competent signers

Bachelard, by Vincent Bontems, Paris, Belles Lettres, 2010

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Maasai Identity in the 21st Century

The Maasai people of East Africa have managed to retain much of their culture and traditions in the face of colonialism and increasing internal and external pressures. The Maasai have been viewed by many as the iconic, traditional representation of Africa. This representation affects perceptions and ideas about what it means to be Maasai. However, a person or group\u27s identity is not a static, singular phenomenon, but composed of multiple identities and layers which are constantly changing. In today\u27s world, the Maasai are faced with changes and challenges from processes such as globalization and modernity. As the world becomes more globalized and interconnected, the pastoralist lifestyle is becoming more difficult to maintain. In a culture like the Maasai where the cow and pastoralism plays a central role, what will happen to this culture when pastoralism is no longer a viable way of life? What happens when the continuity of the past lifestyle and culture is uncoupled? In the 21st century changes are occurring that are affecting the Maasai. These changes are multi-tiered occurring locally, nationally and globally. At each level there are stakeholders who participate in informing the scope of change with all of its challenges, consequences and transformation due in part to the influence globalization and modernity. This research seeks to understand the significance of identity in social change, especially in the face of globalization and modernity. How do these changes and transformations influence what it means to be Maasai from the etic and emic points of view, emphasizing the ways in which the Maasai are active participants in social change and the resulting transformations. This research makes use of three aspects of Maasai identity to illustrate the implications of social change on the: the culture of the cow , clothing, and rites of passage. Each of these aforementioned areas reflects the complex and dynamic processes at work when considering what it means to be Maasai in the 21st century. The research also addresses questions of change and its effect on the sectors within the Maasai population. They are faced with negotiating their identity and what it means to be Maasai in the 21st century. Keywords: Identity, Globalization, Modernity, Representation, Maasai, Tanzania, 21st Centur

Context and Keyword Extraction in Plain Text Using a Graph Representation

Document indexation is an essential task achieved by archivists or automatic indexing tools. To retrieve relevant documents to a query, keywords describing this document have to be carefully chosen. Archivists have to find out the right topic of a document before starting to extract the keywords. For an archivist indexing specialized documents, experience plays an important role. But indexing documents on different topics is much harder. This article proposes an innovative method for an indexing support system. This system takes as input an ontology and a plain text document and provides as output contextualized keywords of the document. The method has been evaluated by exploiting Wikipedia's category links as a termino-ontological resources

Osteopaenia - a marker of low bone mass and fracture risk

Areal bone mineral density is commonly categorised into normal bone mineral density, osteopaenia and osteoporosis on the basis of nominal thresholds recommended by the World Health Organization. However, bone mineral density is a continuous variable and there is a strong association between lower bone mineral density and greater risk for fracture. Fracture risk is not negligible in persons with moderate deficits in bone mineral density. Although absolute fracture risk is greatest for individuals with osteoporosis, more than half of the fractures arise from those with osteopaenia, and even normal bone mineral density, a probable consequence of greater numbers of individuals at risk in these categories. However, areal bone mineral density measurements used commonly in clinical practice do not detect differences in bone tissue properties, geometry and microarchitecture, which contribute to bone strength. Newer technologies such as high-resolution peripheral computed tomography have the advantage of assessing trabecular and cortical components of bone separately, in addition to geometric characteristics of the skeleton. Quantifying these parameters and considering clinical risk factors that affect fracture risk independent of bone quantity and quality, may better discriminate between high- and low-risk individuals. This would improve the decision-making for targeting appropriate interventions, either lifestyle or medication, to reduce thepublic health burden of fractures

The foreign policy of Poland and the Kaliningrad region in 1989-2012

This article sets out to analyse the role of the Kaliningrad region in the Polish foreign policy after 1989. The analysis focuses on the political and regional determinants, which had the greatest impact on the Poland-Kaliningrad region relations. The methodology used in the article is not unusual for political science and is based on analysing original (documents) and secondary (scholarly publications, press articles) sources. The authors also use the system and decision analysis methods. The analysis covers the period after 1989, when the geopolitical changes brought about by the collapse of the Yalta-Potsdam order resulted in Poland redefine the priorities of its foreign policy. One of the most important challenges for the Polish diplomacy after 1989 was the development of economic and political relations with the Russian Federation. Cross-border cooperation between Poland and the Kaliningrad Region is conducted, inter alia, through euroregional structures functioning in the border areas. The analysis of this issue is vital for further cooperation in the Polish-Russian borderland, especially after the conclusion of the local border traffic agreement in 2012. The authors come to a conclusion that the implementation of the local border traffic agreement can improve cross-border relations but it will not significantly change the role of the Kaliningrad region in the Polish foreign policy

Modeling of a supercritical power plant with an oxy type pulverized fuel boiler, a carbon dioxide capture unit and a ‘four-end’ type membrane air separator

The analysis of a 600 MW supercritical power plant with parameters of life steam at 30 MPa/ /650o C and of reheated steam 6 MPa/670o C was made. Power plant is equipped with the following units: oxy type pulverized fuel boiler, ‘four-end’ high temperature membrane air separator and carbon dioxide capture system which were modeled. With the assumption of a constant gross power of the analyzed power plant, the thermal efficiency of the boiler and the steam cycle efficiency were calculated. These parameters were designated as a function of the recovery rate of oxygen in the air separation unit. This allowed to determine gross and net efficiency of electricity generation

The characteristics of a modern oxy-fuel power plant

This paper presents the thermodynamic and economic analyses of four variants of a supercritical oxy-type plant. These variants differed in terms of air separation units (ASU, variants: V1—cryogenic; V2—hybrid; equipped with a three-end (V3a) or four-end (V3b) high-temperature membrane) and boilers (V1 and V3a—lignite-fired fluidized-bed; V2 and V3b—hard-coal-fired pulverized-fuel). The gross power of steam turbine unit (STU) was 600 MW. The live and reheated steam parameters were 650 °C/30 MPa and 670 °C/6.5 MPa, respectively. The influence of the ASUs’ operating parameters on the ASUs’ auxiliary power rate and boiler efficiency (V3a and V3b only) was studied. The ASUs’ operating parameters for maximum net efficiency were then determined. The decrease in the net efficiency compared to a reference plant (with a classic fluidized-bed or pulverized-fuel boiler) fluctuated in the range 7.2 (V3b)–11.2 (V1) p.p. An analysis of the waste heat utilization was performed (fuel drying—V1 and V3a; STU steam-water heat exchangers replacing). Thus, the efficiency decreases fluctuated in the range 4.3 (V3b)–10.2 (V1) p.p. The economic analysis showed that in order for the variants to be economically viable, the unit CO2 emission cost should be greater than 42.2 (V1) or 22.0 (V3b) EUR/MgCO2