A further look at postview effects in reading: An eye-movements study of influences from the left of fixation

When reading from left to right, useful information acquired during each fixational pause is widely assumed to extend 14 to 15 characters to the right of fixation but just 3 to 4 characters to the left, and certainly no further than the beginning of the fixated word. However, this leftward extent is strikingly small and seems inconsistent with other aspects of reading performance and with the general horizontal symmetry of visual input. Accordingly, 2 experiments were conducted to examine the influence of text located to the left of fixation during each fixational pause using an eye-tracking paradigm in which invisible boundaries were created in sentence displays. Each boundary corresponded to the leftmost edge of each word so that, as each sentence was read, the normal letter content of text to the left of each fixated word was corrupted by letter replacements that were either visually similar or visually dissimilar to the originals. The proximity of corrupted text to the left of fixation was maintained at 1, 2, 3, or 4 words from the left boundary of each fixated word. In both experiments, relative to completely normal text, reading performance was impaired when each type of letter replacement was up to 2 words to the left of fixated words but letter replacements further from fixation produced no impairment. These findings suggest that key aspects of reading are influenced by information acquired during each fixational pause from much further leftward than is usually assumed. Some of the implications of these findings for reading are discussed

Effects of spatial frequencies on word identification by fast and slow readers: Evidence from eye movements

� 2016 Jordan, Dixon, McGowan, Kurtev and Paterson. Recent research has shown that differences in the effectiveness of spatial frequencies for fast and slow skilled adult readers may be an important component of differences in reading ability in the skilled adult reading population (Jordan et al., 2016a). But the precise nature of this influence on lexical processing during reading remains to be fully determined. Accordingly, to gain more insight into the use of spatial frequencies by skilled adult readers with fast and slow reading abilities, the present study looked at effects of spatial frequencies on the processing of specific target words in sentences. These target words were of either high or low lexical frequency and each sentence was displayed as normal or filtered to contain only very low, low, medium, high, or very high spatial frequencies. Eye movement behavior for target words was closest to normal for each reading ability when text was shown in medium or higher spatial frequency displays, although reading occurred for all spatial frequencies. Moreover, typical word frequency effects (the processing advantage for words with higher lexical frequencies) were observed for each reading ability across a broad range of spatial frequencies, indicating that many different spatial frequencies provide access to lexical representations during textual reading for both fast and slow skilled adult readers. Crucially, however, target word fixations were fewer and shorter for fast readers than for slow readers for all display types, and this advantage for fast readers appeared to be similar for normal, medium, high, and very high spatial frequencies but larger for low and very low spatial frequencies. Therefore, although fast and slow skilled adult readers can both use a broad range of spatial frequencies when reading, fast readers make more effective use of these spatial frequencies, and especially those that are lower, when processing the identities of words

Fast and slow readers and the effectiveness of the spatial frequency content of text: Evidence from reading times and eye movements

© 2016 American Psychological Association. Text contains a range of different spatial frequencies but the effectiveness of spatial frequencies for normal variations in skilled adult reading ability is unknown. Accordingly, young skilled adult readers showing fast or slow reading ability read sentences displayed as normal or filtered to contain only very low, low, medium, high, or very high spatial frequencies. Reading times and eye movement measures of fixations and saccades assessed the effectiveness of these displays for reading. Reading times showed that, for each reading ability, medium, high, and very high spatial frequencies were all more effective than lower spatial frequencies. Indeed, for each reading ability, reading times for normal text were maintained when text contained only medium, high, or very high spatial frequencies. However, reading times for normal text and for each spatial frequency were all substantially shorter for fast readers than for slow readers, and this advantage for fast readers was similar for normal, medium, high, and very high spatial frequencies but much larger for low and very low spatial frequencies. In addition, fast readers made fewer and shorter fixations, fewer and shorter regressions, and longer forward saccades, than slow readers, and these differences were generally similar in size for normal, medium, high, and very high spatial frequencies, but larger when spatial frequencies were lower. These findings suggest that fast and slow adult readers can each use a range of different spatial frequencies for reading but fast readers make more effective use of these spatial frequencies and especially those that are lower

Understanding variation in unplanned admissions of people aged 85 and over:a systems-based approach

AIM: To examine system characteristics associated with variations in unplanned admission rates in those aged 85+.DESIGN: Mixed methods.SETTING: Primary care trusts in England were ranked according to changes in admission rates for people aged 85+ between 2007 and 2009, and study sites selected from each end of the distribution: three 'improving' sites where rates had declined by more than 4% and three 'deteriorating' sites where rates had increased by more than 20%. Each site comprised an acute hospital trust, its linked primary care trust/clinical commissioning group, the provider of community health services and adult social care.PARTICIPANTS: A total of 142 representatives from these organisations were interviewed to understand how policies had been developed and implemented. McKinsey's 7S framework was used as a structure for investigation and analysis.RESULTS: In general, improving sites provided more evidence of comprehensive system focused strategies backed by strong leadership, enabling the development and implementation of policies and procedures to avoid unnecessary admissions of older people. In these sites, primary and intermediate care services appeared more comprehensive and better integrated with other parts of the system, and policies in emergency departments were more focused on providing alternatives to admission.CONCLUSIONS: Health and social care communities which have attenuated admissions of people aged 85+ prioritised developing a shared vision and strategy, with sustained implementation of a suite of interventions.</p

Establishing and implementing best practice to reduce unplanned admissions in those aged 85 years and over through system change [Establishing System Change for Admissions of People 85+ (ESCAPE 85+)]: a mixed-methods case study approach

Background: In England, between 2007/8 and 2009/10, the rate of unplanned hospital admissions of people aged 85 years and above rose from 48 to 52 per 100. There was substantial variation, with some areas showing a much faster rate of increase and others showing a decline. Objectives: To identify system characteristics associated with higher and lower increases in unplanned admission rates in those aged 85 years and over; to develop recommendations to inform providers and commissioners; and to investigate the challenges of starting to implement these recommendations. Design: Mixed-methods study using routinely collected data, in-depth interviews and focus groups. Data were analysed using the framework approach, with themes following McKinsey’s 7S model. Recommendations derived from our findings were refined and prioritised through respondent validation and consultation with the project steering group. The process of beginning to implement these recommendations was examined in one ‘implementation site’. Participants: Six study sites were selected based on admission data for patients aged 85 years and above from primary care trusts: three where rates of increase were among the most rapid and three where they had slowed down or declined. Each ‘improving’ or ‘deteriorating’ site comprised an acute hospital trust, its linked primary care trust/clinical commissioning group, the provider of community health services, and adult social care. At each site, representatives from these organisations at strategic and operational levels, as well as representatives of patient groups, were interviewed to understand how policies had been developed and implemented. A total of 142 respondents were interviewed. Results: Between 2007/8 and 2009/10, average admission rates for people aged 85 years and over rose by 5.5% annually in deteriorating sites and fell by 1% annually in improving sites. During the period under examination, the population aged 85 years and over in deteriorating sites increased by 3.4%, compared with 1.3% in improving sites. In deteriorating sites, there were problems with general practitioner access, pressures on emergency departments and a lack of community-based alternatives to admission. However, the most striking difference between improving and deteriorating sites was not the presence or absence of specific services, but the extent to which integration within and between types of service had been achieved. There were also overwhelming differences in leadership, culture and strategic development at the system level. The final list of recommendations emphasises the importance of issues such as maximising integration of services, strategic leadership and adopting a system-wide approach to reconfiguration. Conclusions: Rising admission rates for older people were seen in places where several parts of the system were under strain. Places which had stemmed the rising tide of admissions had done so through strong, stable leadership, a shared vision and strategy, and common values across the system. Future work: Research on individual components of care for older people needs to take account of their impact on the system as a whole. Areas where more evidence is needed include the impact of improving access and continuity in primary care, the optimal capacity for intermediate care and how the frail elderly can best be managed in emergency departments

Understanding variation in unplanned admissions of people aged 85 and over: a systems-based approach

Aim: To examine system characteristics associated with variations in unplanned admission rates in those aged 85+. Design: Mixed methods. Setting: Primary care trusts in England were ranked according to changes in admission rates for people aged 85+ between 2007 and 2009, and study sites selected from each end of the distribution: three ‘improving’ sites where rates had declined by more than 4% and three ‘deteriorating’ sites where rates had increased by more than 20%. Each site comprised an acute hospital trust, its linked primary care trust/clinical commissioning group, the provider of community health services and adult social care. Participants: A total of 142 representatives from these organisations were interviewed to understand how policies had been developed and implemented. McKinsey’s 7S framework was used as a structure for investigation and analysis. Results: In general, improving sites provided more evidence of comprehensive system focused strategies backed by strong leadership, enabling the development and implementation of policies and procedures to avoid unnecessary admissions of older people. In these sites, primary and intermediate care services appeared more comprehensive and better integrated with other parts of the system, and policies in emergency departments were more focused on providing alternatives to admission. Conclusions: Health and social care communities which have attenuated admissions of people aged 85+ prioritised developing a shared vision and strategy, with sustained implementation of a suite of interventions

An ERP Assessment of Hemispheric Projections in Foveal and Extrafoveal Word Recognition

The existence and function of unilateral hemispheric projections within foveal vision may substantially affect foveal word recognition. The purpose of this research was to reveal these projections and determine their functionality.Single words (and pseudowords) were presented to the left or right of fixation, entirely within either foveal or extrafoveal vision. To maximize the likelihood of unilateral projections for foveal displays, stimuli in foveal vision were presented away from the midline. The processing of stimuli in each location was assessed by combining behavioural measures (reaction times, accuracy) with on-line monitoring of hemispheric activity using event-related potentials recorded over each hemisphere, and carefully-controlled presentation procedures using an eye-tracker linked to a fixation-contingent display.Event-related potentials 100–150 ms and 150–200 ms after stimulus onset indicated that stimuli in extrafoveal and foveal locations were projected unilaterally to the hemisphere contralateral to the presentation hemifield with no concurrent projection to the ipsilateral hemisphere. These effects were similar for words and pseudowords, suggesting this early division occurred before word recognition. Indeed, event-related potentials revealed differences between words and pseudowords 300–350 ms after stimulus onset, for foveal and extrafoveal locations, indicating that word recognition had now occurred. However, these later event-related potentials also revealed that the hemispheric division observed previously was no longer present for foveal locations but remained for extrafoveal locations. These findings closely matched the behavioural finding that foveal locations produced similar performance each side of fixation but extrafoveal locations produced left-right asymmetries.These findings indicate that an initial division in unilateral hemispheric projections occurs in foveal vision away from the midline but is not apparent, or functional, when foveal word recognition actually occurs. In contrast, the division in unilateral hemispheric projections that occurs in extrafoveal locations is still apparent, and is functional, when extrafoveal word recognition takes place

Wave-like patterns in parameter space interpreted as evidence for macroscopic effects resulting from quantum or quantum-like processes in the brain

Data from eight numerosity estimation experiments reliably exhibit wave-like patterns in plots of the standard deviations of the response times along the abstract parameter of the magnitude of the error in the numerosity estimation. An explanation for this phenomenon is proposed in terms of an analogy between response times and error magnitude on one hand, and energy and position of quantum particles on the other, constructed using an argument for an overlap between the mathematical apparatus describing Hopfield-type neural networks and quantum systems, established by some researchers. Alternative explanations are presented within the traditional explanatory framework of oscillations due to neural firing, involving hypothetical mechanisms for converting oscillation patterns in time to oscillation patterns in the space of an abstract parameter, such as the magnitude of the error during numerosity estimation. The viability of the proposal of causal influences propagating from the microscale of quantum phenomena to the macroscale of human behavior, needed for the first type of explanation, is exemplified by the phenomenon of magnetoreception in some species of birds, which is allegedly quantum in nature

Subtyping and Inheritance in Object-Oriented Programming

Subtyping and inheritance belong to the major concepts in contemporary object-oriented programming languages, their presence having decisively inuenced the success of the objectoriented paradigm. Inheritance constitutes a technique for reusing code from previous endeavours, while subtyping establishes semantic relationships between object behaviors. Although these, in principle, independent and autonomous notions are rooted in dierent domains of programming, their distinction is poorly understood at large. The necessity is recognized to investigate the notions of types, implementations, subtyping, and inheritance in theory and practice. After presenting these concepts in a language-independent fashion, we contrast subtyping with inheritance, and elaborate the integration of these mechanisms in two dierent object-oriented programming languages. We conclude that the separation is essential both in strongly-typed and dynamically-typed programming languages, facilitating the design in terms of object behaviors to be distinguished from implementation