Bidirectional syntactic priming across cognitive domains: from arithmetic to language and back

Scheepers et al. (2011) showed that the structure of a correctly solved mathematical equation affects how people subsequently complete sentences containing high vs. low relative-clause attachment ambiguities. Here we investigated whether such effects generalise to different structures and tasks, and importantly, whether they also hold in the reverse direction (i.e., from linguistic to mathematical processing). In a questionnaire-based experiment, participants had to solve structurally left- or right-branching equations (e.g., 5 × 2 + 7 versus 5 + 2 × 7) and to provide sensicality ratings for structurally left- or right-branching adjective-noun-noun compounds (e.g., alien monster movie versus lengthy monster movie). In the first version of the experiment, the equations were used as primes and the linguistic expressions as targets (investigating structural priming from maths to language). In the second version, the order was reversed (language-to-maths priming). Both versions of the experiment showed clear structural priming effects, conceptually replicating and extending the findings from Scheepers et al. (2011). Most crucially, the observed bi-directionality of cross-domain structural priming strongly supports the notion of shared syntactic representations (or recursive procedures to generate and parse them) between arithmetic and language

Wh-movement vs. scrambling: The brain makes a difference

(no abstract

Age differences in encoding-related alpha power reflect sentence comprehension difficulties

When sentence processing taxes verbal working memory, comprehension difficulties arise. This is specifically the case when processing resources decline with advancing adult age. Such decline likely affects the encoding of sentences into working memory, which constitutes the basis for successful comprehension. To assess age differences in encoding-related electrophysiological activity, we recorded the electroencephalogram from three age groups (24, 43, and 65 years). Using an auditory sentence comprehension task, age differences in encoding-related oscillatory power were examined with respect to the accuracy of the given response. That is, the difference in oscillatory power between correctly and incorrectly encoded sentences, yielding subsequent memory effects (SME), was compared across age groups. Across age groups, we observed an age-related SME inversion in the alpha band from a power decrease in younger adults to a power increase in older adults. We suggest that this SME inversion underlies age-related comprehension difficulties. With alpha being commonly linked to inhibitory processes, this shift may reflect a change in the cortical inhibition–disinhibition balance. A cortical disinhibition may imply enriched sentence encoding in younger adults. In contrast, resource limitations in older adults may necessitate an increase in cortical inhibition during sentence encoding to avoid an information overload. Overall, our findings tentatively suggest that age-related comprehension difficulties are associated with alterations to the electrophysiological dynamics subserving general higher cognitive functions

Working paper 02: Understory plant community restoration in the Uinkaret Mountains, Arizona

The herbaceous plant community, consisting of shrubs, grasses, sedges, and forbs is a vital part of ponderosa pine forest ecosystems. Restoration treatments have tended to focus directly on tree patterns and reintroduction of fire. Fore restoration to be successful, however, the natural diversity and productivity of the understory plant community must be regained, and invasive or exotic understory species must be removed or maintained at tolerable levels. This document offers preliminary recommendations for understory restoration based on monitoring and observation in the Uinkaret Mountains and other ponderosa pine restoration sites in northern Arizona

Fact sheet: Forest restoration treatments and fire behavior

Changing fire behavior is not the only reason to restore fire-adapted western forests: restoration treatments in these forests are intended to restore overall ecological health. Yet lowering the severity of wildfires is one of the most important of contemporary management goals in these forests. How do treatments affect fire behavior

Working paper 01: Restoring the Uinkaret Mountains: Operational lessons and adaptive management practices

Since 1995, the Ecological Restoration Institute (ERI) at Northern Arizona University (NAU) has been working with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Arizona Game and Fish Department (AGFD) to implement and monitor large-scale ponderosa pine forest ecosystem restoration in northwest Arizona. This work has already produced many valuable lessons that have been applied to restoration in the Uinkaret Mountains on the Arizona Strip, but many of those lessons may also be useful elsewhere. This document summarizes operational lessons learned during more than five years of intensive research, and suggests how it may be applied at other ponderosa pine restoration sites in the Southwest

Fact sheet: Restoring the ecological and social integrity of western forests

Unnatural wildfires and unprecedented insect and disease outbreaks threaten the ecological and social sustainability of many western wildlands. Among the most endangered of these wildlands are forests dominated by ponderosa pine. There are 3.4 million acres of these forests in Arizona alone

Fact Sheet: Understanding Fire and Fire Behavior

Fire always obeys the laws of physics, and is always made up of three elements: fuel, oxygen, and heat. How it behaves on the landscape can be unpredictable. Yet people can, to an extent, shape how fire moves through a landscape, even one as large as southwestern ponderosa pine forests

Challenges and opportunities in forest restoration outreach: The example of southwestern ponderosa pine forests

The majority of forest managers, informed policymakers, and educated members of the public agree that restoration of dry, fire-adapted forests of western North America is a critical ecological and social need. A large body of scientific research documents how forests that were once open and parklike have grown dense with small trees, resulting in significant increases in fire hazards and declines in ecological values. It has been difficult, though, to convert even detailed scientific understanding into effective results on the ground. Reasons include numerous economic and social hurdles, but also difficulties in translating research results into tactics applicable in the field. Ecologists often require many years before they are willing to identify causal relationships between specific restoration treatments and identifiable ecological results. Managers often demand immediate answers to ecological questions so that they can make pressing real-time decisions. Policymakers and the public are often unwilling to wait for peer-reviewed scientific results and want to know quickly whether economic, political, and social investments in restoration work are warranted. This paper uses the example of the Ecological Restoration Institutes (ERI) outreach program to assess the difficulties and opportunities inherent in translating science into action. The ERI maintains a broad effort aimed at publicizing timely yet scientifically rigorous information about the restoration of Southwestern ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa Dougl. ex Laws.) forests. Through an ever-evolving combination of print and electronic publications, public outreach activities, and land manager workshops, we attempt to keep varied audiences abreast of the latest developments in the science and application of restoration work. This paper outlines a broad restoration outreach strategy and discusses challenges encountered as those working to improve the health of public-lands forests continue to expand the audience for their work

Working paper 04: Fuels treatments and forest restoration: An analysis of benefits

In contemporary ponderosa pine forests throughout the Southwest the need to thin dense stands in order to reduce the risk of catastrophic fires has become evident. Numerous thinning prescriptions have been implemented. While many prescriptions focus solely on lowering fire risk by removing ladder fuels and reducing crown connectivity, others explicitly aim to alter both forest structure and functioning. This publication examines the benefits of restoration treatments that can lower fire dangerwhile also increasing the overall biological diversity and long-term health of treatment areas