Task modulation of single-neuron activity in the human amygdala and hippocampus

The human amygdala and hippocampus are critically involved in various processes in face perception. However, it remains unclear how task demands or evaluative contexts modulate processes underlying face perception. In this study, we employed two task instructions when participants viewed the same faces and recorded single-neuron activity from the human amygdala and hippocampus. We comprehensively analyzed task modulation for three key aspects of face processing and we found that neurons in the amygdala and hippocampus (1) encoded high-level social traits such as perceived facial trustworthiness and dominance and this response was modulated by task instructions; (2) encoded low-level facial features and demonstrated region-based feature coding, which was not modulated by task instructions; and (3) encoded fixations on salient face parts such as the eyes and mouth, which was not modulated by task instructions. Together, our results provide a comprehensive survey of task modulation of neural processes underlying face perception at the single-neuron level in the human amygdala and hippocampus

Data-driven approaches in the investigation of social perception

The complexity of social perception poses a challenge to traditional approaches to understand its psychological and neurobiological underpinnings. Data-driven methods are particularly well suited to tackling the often high-dimensional nature of stimulus spaces and of neural representations that characterize social perception. Such methods are more exploratory, capitalize on rich and large datasets, and attempt to discover patterns often without strict hypothesis testing. We present four case studies here: behavioural studies on face judgements, two neuroimaging studies of movies, and eyetracking studies in autism. We conclude with suggestions for particular topics that seem ripe for data-driven approaches, as well as caveats and limitations

Can we reduce facial biases?:Persistent effects of facial trustworthiness on sentencing decisions

Trait impressions from faces influence many consequential decisions even in situations in which decisions should not be based on a person's appearance. Here, we test (a) whether people rely on trait impressions when making legal sentencing decisions and (b) whether two types of interventions—educating decision-makers and changing the accessibility of facial information—reduce the influence of facial stereotypes. We first introduced a novel legal decision-making paradigm. Results of a pretest (n = 320) showed that defendants with an untrustworthy (vs. trustworthy) facial appearance were found guilty more often. We then tested the effectiveness of different interventions in reducing the influence of facial stereotypes. Educating participants about the biasing effects of facial stereotypes reduced explicit beliefs that personality is reflected in facial features, but did not reduce the influence of facial stereotypes on verdicts (Study 1, n = 979). In Study 2 (n = 975), we presented information sequentially to disrupt the intuitive accessibility of trait impressions. Participants indicated an initial verdict based on case-relevant information and a final verdict based on all information (including facial photographs). The majority of initial sentences were not revised and therefore unbiased. However, most revised sentences were in line with facial stereotypes (e.g., a guilty verdict for an untrustworthy-looking defendant). On average, this actually increased facial bias in verdicts. Together, our findings highlight the persistent influence of trait impressions from faces on legal sentencing decisions

Methods of Typing Allochthonous Bulgarian Ethnographic Systems of the Ukrainian Danube Region

The article substantiates the author's approach to the typification of alochthonous Bulgarian ethno-geographical formation of the Ukrainian Danube. The place of the ethnonational factor in the formations of regional policy is determined. The characteristics that determine the ethnic identity of the population of EGS of various taxonomic levels are determined. &nbsp

Automated Prediction of Preferences Using Facial Expressions

We introduce a computer vision problem from social cognition, namely, the automated detection of attitudes from a person's spontaneous facial expressions. To illustrate the challenges, we introduce two simple algorithms designed to predict observers’ preferences between images (e.g., of celebrities) based on covert videos of the observers’ faces. The two algorithms are almost as accurate as human judges performing the same task but nonetheless far from perfect. Our approach is to locate facial landmarks, then predict preference on the basis of their temporal dynamics. The database contains 768 videos involving four different kinds of preferences. We make it publically available

Bulgarian Ethnogeographic Systems of the Ukrainian Danube and Bulgaria: a Comparative Analysis

In the article features of autochthonous (Republic of Bulgaria) and allochthonous (Ukrainian Danube) ethnogeographic formation of the Bulgarian population are considered. Factors influencing the preservation of the ethnic identity of the Bulgarians living in both types of ethnogeographic systems are revealed. The key aspects of the effective development of autochthonous and allochthonous ethnogeographic systems of the Bulgarian population.&nbsp

The least likely act: Overweighting atypical past behavior in behavioral predictions.

Abstract When people predict the future behavior of a person, thinking of that target as an individual decreases the accuracy of their predictions. The present research examined one potential source of this bias, whether and why predictors overweight the atypical past behavior of individuals. The results suggest that predictors do indeed overweight the atypical past behavior of an individual. Atypical past behavior is more cognitively accessible than typical past behavior, which leads it to be overweighted in the impressions that serve as the basis for their predictions. Predictions for group members appear less susceptible to this bias, presumably because predictors are less likely to form a coherent impression of a group than an individual before making their predictions

Aerosol exposure of staff during dental treatments: a model study

Background: Due to exposure to potentially infectious aerosols during treatments, the dental personnel is considered being at high risk for aerosol transmitted diseases like COVID-19. The aim of this study was to evaluate aerosol exposure during different dental treatments as well as the efficacy of dental suction to reduce aerosol spreading. Methods: Dental powder-jet (PJ; Air-Flow (R)), a water-cooled dental handpiece with a diamond bur (HP) and water-cooled ultrasonic scaling (US) were used in a simulation head, mounted on a dental unit in various treatment settings. The influence of the use of a small saliva ejector (SE) and high-volume suction (HVS) was evaluated. As a proxy of aerosols, air-born particles (PM10) were detected using a Laser Spectrometer in 30 cm distance from the mouth. As control, background particle counts (BC) were measured before and after experiments. Results: With only SE, integrated aerosol levels [median (Q25/Q75) mu g/m(3) s] for PJ [91,246 (58,213/118,386) mu g/m(3) s, p 0.05] and US [6558 (6002/7066) mu g/m(3) s; p > 0.05] did not increase aerosol levels significantly. The use of HVS significantly decreased aerosol exposure for PJ [37,170 (29,634/51,719) mu g/m(3) s; p < 0.01] and HP [5476 (5066/5638) mu g/m(3) s; p < 0.001] compared to SE only, even reaching lower particle counts than BC levels for HP usage (p < 0.001). Conclusions: To reduce the exposure to potentially infectious aerosols, HVS should be used during aerosol-forming dental treatments

Laser spectroscopy with nanometric gas cells : distance dependence of atom-surface interaction and collisions under confinement

The high sensitivity of Laser Spectroscopy has made possible the exploration of atomic resonances in newly designed "nanometric" gas cells, whose local thickness varies from 20nm to more than 1000 nm. Following the initial observation of the optical analogous of the coherent Dicke microwave narrowing, the newest prospects include the exploration of long-range atom surface van der Waals interaction with spatial resolution in an unprecedented range of distances, modification of atom dielectric resonant coupling under the influence of the coupling between the two neighbouring dielectric media, and even the possible modification of interatomic collisions processes under the effect of confinement

The Profiling Potential of Computer Vision and the Challenge of Computational Empiricism

Computer vision and other biometrics data science applications have commenced a new project of profiling people. Rather than using 'transaction generated information', these systems measure the 'real world' and produce an assessment of the 'world state' - in this case an assessment of some individual trait. Instead of using proxies or scores to evaluate people, they increasingly deploy a logic of revealing the truth about reality and the people within it. While these profiling knowledge claims are sometimes tentative, they increasingly suggest that only through computation can these excesses of reality be captured and understood. This article explores the bases of those claims in the systems of measurement, representation, and classification deployed in computer vision. It asks if there is something new in this type of knowledge claim, sketches an account of a new form of computational empiricism being operationalised, and questions what kind of human subject is being constructed by these technological systems and practices. Finally, the article explores legal mechanisms for contesting the emergence of computational empiricism as the dominant knowledge platform for understanding the world and the people within it