Encoded and updated spatial working memories share a common representational format in alpha activity

Working memory (WM) flexibly updates information to adapt to the dynamic environment. Here, we used alpha-band activity in the EEG to reconstruct the content of dynamic WM updates and compared this representational format to static WM content. An inverted encoding model using alpha activity precisely tracked both the initially encoded position and the updated position following an auditory cue signaling mental updating. The timing of the update, as tracked in the EEG, correlated with reaction times and saccade latency. Finally, cross-training analyses revealed a robust generalization of alpha-band reconstruction of WM contents before and after updating. These findings demonstrate that alpha activity tracks the dynamic updates to spatial WM and that the format of this activity is preserved across the encoded and updated representations. Thus, our results highlight a new approach for measuring updates to WM and show common representational formats during dynamic mental updating and static storage

Search for dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks in √s = 13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for weakly interacting massive particle dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks is presented. Final states containing third-generation quarks and miss- ing transverse momentum are considered. The analysis uses 36.1 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at √s = 13 TeV in 2015 and 2016. No significant excess of events above the estimated backgrounds is observed. The results are in- terpreted in the framework of simplified models of spin-0 dark-matter mediators. For colour- neutral spin-0 mediators produced in association with top quarks and decaying into a pair of dark-matter particles, mediator masses below 50 GeV are excluded assuming a dark-matter candidate mass of 1 GeV and unitary couplings. For scalar and pseudoscalar mediators produced in association with bottom quarks, the search sets limits on the production cross- section of 300 times the predicted rate for mediators with masses between 10 and 50 GeV and assuming a dark-matter mass of 1 GeV and unitary coupling. Constraints on colour- charged scalar simplified models are also presented. Assuming a dark-matter particle mass of 35 GeV, mediator particles with mass below 1.1 TeV are excluded for couplings yielding a dark-matter relic density consistent with measurements

Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy (4th edition)1.

In 2008, we published the first set of guidelines for standardizing research in autophagy. Since then, this topic has received increasing attention, and many scientists have entered the field. Our knowledge base and relevant new technologies have also been expanding. Thus, it is important to formulate on a regular basis updated guidelines for monitoring autophagy in different organisms. Despite numerous reviews, there continues to be confusion regarding acceptable methods to evaluate autophagy, especially in multicellular eukaryotes. Here, we present a set of guidelines for investigators to select and interpret methods to examine autophagy and related processes, and for reviewers to provide realistic and reasonable critiques of reports that are focused on these processes. These guidelines are not meant to be a dogmatic set of rules, because the appropriateness of any assay largely depends on the question being asked and the system being used. Moreover, no individual assay is perfect for every situation, calling for the use of multiple techniques to properly monitor autophagy in each experimental setting. Finally, several core components of the autophagy machinery have been implicated in distinct autophagic processes (canonical and noncanonical autophagy), implying that genetic approaches to block autophagy should rely on targeting two or more autophagy-related genes that ideally participate in distinct steps of the pathway. Along similar lines, because multiple proteins involved in autophagy also regulate other cellular pathways including apoptosis, not all of them can be used as a specific marker for bona fide autophagic responses. Here, we critically discuss current methods of assessing autophagy and the information they can, or cannot, provide. Our ultimate goal is to encourage intellectual and technical innovation in the field

The driving factors of compressed semantic representations in visual working memory

Visual working memory (VWM) has a notably limited capacity of 3-4 items. Recent studies have suggested that this capacity can be larger for semantically meaningful information. However, whether the shared semantics across objects has additional benefits on VWM capacity remains controversial. While some studies find that same-category objects facilitate VWM performance, suggesting efficient coding, or compression in VWM, others cast doubt on the compression hypothesis. To contribute to resolving this controversy, we will test a series of factors that differ across studies that support compression and those that do not. These factors are the availability of WM resources and the difficulty of extracting semantic congruency, as determined by memory load of semantically congruent vs. incongruent items, respectively (Experiment 1), the expectations regarding the benefits of summary statistics, as determined by the probe type being single-probe or whole-display report (Experiment 2), the contribution of perceptual vs. conceptual similarity, as determined by shared semantics being at the basic-level vs. high-level (Experiment 3), and the duration of the encoding display (Experiment 4). We will present participants with a change detection task where participants will be given a probe and will be asked if the probe items match the memory items. Larger d’ for congruent objects as opposed to incongruent ones will be used as an index of semantic compression. By exploring the effects of conceptual knowledge on VWM storage, this study will develop a better understanding of VWM organization

Lexical-semantic and executive deficits revealed by computational modelling: a drift diffusion model perspective

A DDM study of word-picture interference in healthy individuals and patients with temporal and frontal lesion

Increased reliance on long-term memory when anticipating attentional guidance

Imagine attempting to locate your keys on a cluttered desk. This everyday scenario exemplifies how memories shape our attention. However, how long-term memories (LTMs) guide our attention remains a puzzle. Traditional models of memory and attention attribute an essential role to working memory (WM) to bias ongoing perception towards attentional goals. Accordingly, we hypothesized that long-term memories (LTMs) stored for guiding attention should be strongly represented in WM. To explore this, we used contralateral delay activity (CDA), an electrophysiological index of working memory storage, to assess WM recruitment to store LTMs when preparing for both a search task and a recognition task. Unexpectedly, the CDA was higher for the recognition task than for the search task, indicating that humans rely more on LTM than on WM in anticipation of attentional guidance. This finding suggests an exciting strategy: humans may delegate task goals to LTM to free up WM resources for more demanding tasks, such as visual search. Our results challenge prevailing models of memory and attention, revealing the unexpected preference for LTM in guiding attention

Encoded and updated spatial working memories share a common representational format in alpha activity

Working memory (WM) flexibly updates information to adapt to the dynamic environment. Here, we used alpha-band activity in the EEG to reconstruct the content of dynamic WM updates and compared this representational format to static WM content. An inverted encoding model using alpha activity precisely tracked both the initially encoded position and the updated position following an auditory cue signaling mental updating. The timing of the update, as tracked in the EEG, correlated with reaction times and saccade latency. Finally, cross-training analyses revealed a robust generalization of alpha-band reconstruction of WM contents before and after updating. These findings demonstrate that alpha activity tracks the dynamic updates to spatial WM and that the format of this activity is preserved across the encoded and updated representations. Thus, our results highlight a new approach for measuring updates to WM and show common representational formats during dynamic mental updating and static storage