Diachronic semantic change in language influences, and is constrained by, how people use and learn language

While it has long been understood that the human mind evolved to learn language, recent studies have begun to ask the inverted question: How has language evolved under the cognitive constraints of its users and become more learnable over time? In this paper, we explored how the semantic change of English words is shaped by the way humans acquire and process language. In Study 1, we quantified the extent of semantic change over the past 200 years and found that meaning change is more likely for words that are acquired later in life and are more difficult to process. We argue that it is human cognition that constrains the semantic evolution of words, rather than the other way around, because historical meanings of words were not easily accessible to people living today, and therefore could not have directly influenced how they learn and process language. In Study 2, we went further to show that semantic change, while bringing the benefit of meeting communicative needs, is cognitively costly for those who were born early enough to experience the change: Semantic change between 1970 and 2000 hindered processing speeds among middle-aged adults (ages 45-55) but not in younger adults (ages <25) in a semantic decision task. This hampering effect may have, in turn, curbed the rate of semantic change so that language does not change too fast for the human mind to catch up. Taken together, our research demonstrates that semantic change is shaped by processing and acquisition patterns across generations of language users

Correlation density matrix: an unbiased analysis of exact diagonalizations

Given the ground state wavefunction for an interacting lattice model, we define a "correlation density matrix"(CDM) for two disjoint, separated clusters $A$ and $B$, to be the density matrix of their union, minus the direct product of their respective density matrices. The CDM can be decomposed systematically by a numerical singular value decomposition, to provide a systematic and unbiased way to identify the operator(s) dominating the correlations, even unexpected ones.Comment: (4pp, 2 figures

Cognitive network science: A review of research on cognition through the lens of network representations, processes, and dynamics

10.1155/2019/2108423Complexity2019210842

Targeting Health Disparity in Breast Cancer: Insights into Women's Knowledge of their Cancer Profile in Malaysia

Malaysian women in this cohort study demonstrated very low levels of knowledge of their cancer profile. Clinical implications for countering treatment-decision difficulties include the need for a shift in the way information and services are delivered to allow women to take a more active role in their own care. Multi-modal efforts including basic information dissemination to increase women's knowledge can contribute to narrowing of the gap in health disparity

Nanoscale broadband transmission lines for spin qubit control

The intense interest in spin-based quantum information processing has caused an increasing overlap between two traditionally distinct disciplines, such as magnetic resonance and nanotechnology. In this work we discuss rigourous design guidelines to integrate microwave circuits with charge-sensitive nanostructures, and describe how to simulate such structures accurately and efficiently. We present a new design for an on-chip, broadband, nanoscale microwave line that optimizes the magnetic field driving a spin qubit, while minimizing the disturbance on a nearby charge sensor. This new structure was successfully employed in a single-spin qubit experiment, and shows that the simulations accurately predict the magnetic field values even at frequencies as high as 30 GHz.Comment: 18 pages, 8 figures, 1 table, pdflate

Antibacterial activity of Sargassum polycystum C. Agardh and Padina australis Hauck (Phaeophyceae)

Seaweeds are used in pharmaceutical and biochemical applications as they possess interesting biological activities that contribute to the discovery of natural therapeutic agents. In this study, the antibacterial activity of n-hexane, dichloromethane and methanolic extracts of brown seaweeds (Phaeophyceae), Sargassum polycystum C. Agardh and Padina australis Hauck, was examined using the disc diffusion and broth microdilution methods. The bioactivity of the seaweed extracts was expressed as minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC). The antibacterial activity against Gram-negative bacteria (beta-lactamase positive and negative Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and Gram-positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus) was discussed. Gram-positive bacteria especially B. cereus was more susceptible to the seaweed extracts (MIC = 0.130 to 0.065 mg/ml). Generally, S. polycystum extracts exhibited higher bacteriostatic activity (lower MICs) against all the tested bacterial strains when compared with P. australis. However, P. australis extracts showed a narrow spectrum of bactericidal activity against B. cereus. n-Hexane extracts of S. polycystum exhibited promising bacteriostatic agents against B. cereus (MIC = 0.065 mg/ml) with MIC value lower than the standard MIC of potential antimicrobial drug (0.100 mg/ml). Since only crude seaweed extracts were tested in this study, further purification and isolation of bioactive compounds from the extracts are essential in future studies in order to optimize their antibacterial activity.Key words: Phaeophyceae, disc diffusion test, minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC), minimum inhibition concentration (MIC)

Structural Studies of Steric Effects in Phosphine Complexes. Part XII1. Synthesis, Characterisation, and Crystal and Molecular Structure of Bis(trifluoroacetato)(trimesitylphosphine)mercury(II) Dimer, [Hg(CF3C02)2P(mesityl)3]2

The synthesis and crystal and molecular structure of the bis(trifluoroacetato)(trimesitylphospine)mercuryiII) dimer are reported. Crystals are triclinic, space group Pl with one centrosymmetric dimer in a unit cell of dimensions a = 12.854(3), b = = 12.877(4), c = 12.405(2) A, a = 107.34(2), (J = 118.55(2), y = 63.65 (2) 0 • The structure was solved by the heavy atom method and refined by full-matrix least-squares calculation, R = 0.051 for 1656 observed reflections measured by diffractometer. The mercury coord!nation is characterized by three strong nearly coplanar bonds (Hg-P 2.415(5), Hg-0(12) 2.29(2), Hg-0 2.18(2) A) and two weaker bonds (Hg-0(22) 2.95(2) and Hg-0(11)\u27 2.66(2) A). The Pmes3 ligand has a regular propeller conformation (Hg-P-C-C torsion angles 45-49 °), enlarged C-P-C angles (mean 112.6(9) 0 ), decreased Hg-P-C angles (mean 106.2(6) 0 ), and a maximum cone angle of 208 °. Bridging in the solid state utilizes both oxygens of the CFsC02 moiety; the complex becomes monomeric in dichloroethane solution. Infrared, 1H, and 31P NMR data are discussed

Enhancement of Power Output by using Alginate Immobilized Algae in Biophotovoltaic Devices.

We report for the first time a photosynthetically active algae immobilized in alginate gel within a fuel cell design for generation of bioelectricity. The algal-alginate biofilm was utilized within a biophotovoltaics (BPV) device developed for direct bioelectricity generation from photosynthesis. A peak power output of 0.289 mWm-2 with an increase of 18% in power output compared to conventional suspension culture BPV device was observed. The increase in maximum power density was correlated to the maximum relative electron transport rate (rETRm). The semi-dry type of photosynthetically active biofilm proposed in this work may offer significantly improved performances in terms of fuel cell design, bioelectricity generation, oxygen production and CO2 reduction

Synthesis of Ultrafine Β′-Alumina Powders via Flame Spray Pyrolysis of Polymeric Precursors

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/66387/1/j.1151-2916.1998.tb02506.x.pd