Construction Of Spatial Model Research Articles

Is the construction of spatial models multimodal? New evidences towards sensory-motor information involvement from temporary blindness study.

Using new developments of interference paradigm, this paper addresses the raising question of the involvement of sensory-motor information in the construction of elaborate spatial models (Johnson-Laird in Mental models: towards a cognitive science of language, inference, and consciousness Cambridge University Press Cambridge, 1983). In two experiments, 112 participants had to explore and memorize the spatial arrangement of 12 objects, disposed on 3 tables. Participants were either sighted or blindfolded, leading to a visual or a more sensory-motor based exploration of the room. During exploration, participants were required to perform a classical verbal, a visuo-spatial dual task or none. In the second experiment, more exploratory, we draw on interference paradigm literature and its recent development in the embodied field to develop two original dual tasks meant to interfere directly with the acquisition of sensory-motor information (haptic and action). After this learning phase, five tasks addressing spatial memory and reasoning used in the construction of spatial models were performed. Results showed classical effects for both verbal and visuo-spatial tasks for sighted participants, but not for blindfolded sighted ones, suggesting that a temporary visual deprivation led participants to use other way to build their spatial models. Our second experiment confirmed this point by showing effect of both sensory-motor dual tasks, especially for blindfolded sighted participants. Taking together, our results support a multimodal view of spatial models, and that exploration modality will influence the information used to construct them. Moreover, this challenges the Baddeley's dualist view of working memory as a reference to theorize the construction of spatial models and provide new experimental evidences towards an embodied view of spatial models.

Analysis of the epidemic situation of tick-borne viral encephalitis in the Republic of Altai in 2000-2017

Introduction. The Republic of Altai is one of the regions of the Siberian Federal District endemic for tick-borne encephalitis with high altitude mountain belts with characteristic landscape and climatic conditions. The purpose of this study is to analyze the epidemiological situation of tick-borne encephalitis in the Republic of Altai from 2000 to 2017. Material and methods. In conducting a retrospective epidemiological study, data from sanitary-epidemiological and medical services for 2000-2017 were used. Statistical data processing was carried out with the software “Statistica 12.0”, the construction and analysis of cartograms - with the software ArcGIS. Results. The average long-term incidence rate of this infection in the period from 2000 to 2017 amounted to 21.7 ± 0.76 0/0000, which is 2.2 times higher than the similar indexby for the SFO (10.1 ± 0.23 0/0000). The number of persons affected by tick infestation in the period from 2000 to 2017 increased 3.5 times from 517.7 ± 15.95 0/0000 to 1810.5 ± 28.62 0/0000, respectively (p <0.001). Ranking on the level of the average long-term incidence allowed identifying three groups of the potential risk of infection of the population. Discussion. The factor analysis revealed the presence of an inverse correlation between the incidence of tick-borne encephalitis and the levels of seroprophylaxis (r = -0.93), acaricidal treatments (r = -0.95), vaccination (r = -0.10). The calculated levels of these factors were determined according to the results of the construction of spatial models of their mutual influences, capable of reducing the number of cases in the region to 6 per year. Conclusion. An analysis of the epidemic situation based on factor analysis and spatial modeling of the mutual influence of factors made it possible to determine the necessary volumes of preventive measures to reduce the incidence of the population to a given level. Such a calculation may be applicable in an endemic region to ensure the medical and economic effectiveness of preventive measures.

The Use of Geostatistics in the Study of Floral Phenology ofVulpia geniculata(L.) Link

Traditionally phenology studies have been focused on changes through time, but there exist many instances in ecological research where it is necessary to interpolate among spatially stratified samples. The combined use of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and Geostatistics can be an essential tool for spatial analysis in phenological studies. Geostatistics are a family of statistics that describe correlations through space/time and they can be used for both quantifying spatial correlation and interpolating unsampled points. In the present work, estimations based upon Geostatistics and GIS mapping have enabled the construction of spatial models that reflect phenological evolution of Vulpia geniculata (L.) Link throughout the study area during sampling season. Ten sampling points, scattered troughout the city and low mountains in the “Sierra de Córdoba” were chosen to carry out the weekly phenological monitoring during flowering season. The phenological data were interpolated by applying the traditional geostatitical method of Kriging, which was used to ellaborate weekly estimations of V. geniculata phenology in unsampled areas. Finally, the application of Geostatistics and GIS to create phenological maps could be an essential complement in pollen aerobiological studies, given the increased interest in obtaining automatic aerobiological forecasting maps.

The role of working memory in spatial text processing: What benefit of imagery strategy and visuospatial abilities?

This study investigated the construction of a spatial model in relation to working memory (WM) and visuospatial abilities. Participants were trained to use either imagery or verbal strategies to process route spatial texts. Results obtained on a free recall task, a verification test and a graphic representation task showed the beneficial effect of using a strategy based on mental images. When imagery strategies were used, a concurrent articulatory task produced interference effects on recall performance, and a spatial tapping task also impaired performance as compared to the control condition. These interference effects suggest that both visuospatial and verbal WM were involved in construction of the spatial model. When repetition strategies were used, however, only the articulatory task produced interference effects, highlighting the role of the verbal WM. To elucidate how the involvement of the visuospatial component may differ in relation to visuospatial abilities, participants with good or poor ability in generation of visual images and spatial manipulation of objects were compared. The benefit of the imagery strategy was found in both groups, but whereas low-visuospatial imagery participants were sensitive to spatial interference, their high ability counterparts were not. These results question the role of imagery processes in the construction of spatial models and their relation to the visuospatial WM.

Modeling of the spatial structure by means of wide-angle x-ray scattering and extended x-ray-absorption fine structure for the Cu8As26Se66 and Cu26As37Se37 semiconductor alloys.

Short-range orders of two amorphous alloys of the chalcogenide Cu-As-Se family have been studied by extended x-ray-absorption fine structure (EXAFS) and wide-angle x-ray scattering (WAXS). Up to now, the construction of spatial models by a modified metropolis Monte Carlo simulation technique carried out by us was solely based on the information gained in the WAXS experiments. In this work, we also take into account the information extracted from the spectroscopic EXAFS experiments to get more-realistic spatial models. In this way, the average coordination numbers of the three different atoms and their distances to the first coordination sphere have been determined in ${\mathrm{Cu}}_{8}$${\mathrm{As}}_{26}$${\mathrm{Se}}_{66}$ and ${\mathrm{Cu}}_{26}$${\mathrm{As}}_{37}$${\mathrm{Se}}_{37}$. The extraction of the inverse Fourier transforms to the generated atomic distribution function leads us to a simulated reduced interference function si(s), in good agreement with its experimental counterpart.