Evidence For Parallel Processing Research Articles

Evidence of parallel processing during divided attention to faces

Evidence of parallel processing during divided attention to faces

Evidence for parallel processing of relational information in visual search

Evidence for parallel processing of relational information in visual search

Evidence of parallel processing of Chinese characters constituting a phrase

Evidence of parallel processing of Chinese characters constituting a phrase

Coping With Pain Severity, Distress, and Consequences in Women With Ovarian Cancer.

Self-regulation can be useful in understanding pain management efforts in women with ovarian cancer. Self-regulation is a parallel process of problem- and emotion-focused coping; problem-focused coping involves efforts aimed at solving/reducing the problem directly, whereas emotion-focused coping is aimed at managing negative emotions. The aims of this study were to describe the types of problem- and emotion-focused coping strategies used to manage pain severity, distress, and consequences and to evaluate whether there was evidence of parallel processing (ie, use of a combination of both problem- and emotion-focused strategies). Women (n = 162) from a cross-sectional study of cancer symptoms who reported pain as a most noticed symptom in the past week were included. Pearson correlations and t tests were used to evaluate relationships among the variables. Mean pain severity was 5.5 (SD, 2.7) on a 0- to 10-point scale. An average of 4.6 (SD, 2.1) coping strategies were reported. Actively manage and planning were the most frequent problem-focused strategies; relaxation was the most frequent emotion-focused strategy. Higher total number of coping strategies attempted, expressing emotions, and seeking emotional support were associated with higher pain distress and consequences scores, and actively managing pain was associated with higher pain severity. Women with a history of ovarian cancer continue to experience severe pain. Partial support for parallel processing was found. The relative benefits of the 2 types of coping strategies are unclear. Thorough assessment of pain and the effectiveness of coping strategies is needed to help women identify strategies that work best for them.

Evidence of Parallel Processing During Translation

Three eye tracking experiments test the hypothesis that translation involves parallel rather than sequential processing of the source and target texts. In Experiment 1, a group of professional translators translated texts from their native language Danish into English. The texts included both segments where the order of verb and subject was congruent between source and target text and segments that were non-congruent. Translators gazed significantly longer at the non-congruent segments of the source text, indicating that the structure of the target text is anticipated during source text reading. Two follow-up experiments on first and second language reading demonstrate that this congruence effect in translation is not the result of the non-congruent Danish segments being inherently more difficult than the congruent ones and that the effect is not a general effect in bilingual reading. We conclude that translation is a parallel process and that literal translation is likely to be a universal initial default strategy in translation. This conclusion is strengthened by the fact that all three experiments were relatively naturalistic, due to the combination of remote eye tracking and mixed-effects regression modeling.

Parallel mechanisms for visual search in zebrafish.

Parallel visual search mechanisms have been reported previously only in mammals and birds, and not animals lacking an expanded telencephalon such as bees. Here we report the first evidence for parallel visual search in fish using a choice task where the fish had to find a target amongst an increasing number of distractors. Following two-choice discrimination training, zebrafish were presented with the original stimulus within an increasing array of distractor stimuli. We found that zebrafish exhibit no significant change in accuracy and approach latency as the number of distractors increased, providing evidence of parallel processing. This evidence challenges theories of vertebrate neural architecture and the importance of an expanded telencephalon for the evolution of executive function.

Parallel processing in language production

Following the Sixth International Workshop on Language Production (Edinburgh, UK, Sept., 2010), this special issue presents a collection of contributions concerned with a wide range of representational and processing components. In the present article, we review the evidence for parallel processing at different levels within the production system with the aim of identifying any generalisation or common characteristics that might underpin a robust model of language production. Our review synergises with the other articles of the special issue. After reviewing the literature, we conclude that the evidence for parallelism is stronger at some levels than at others and it is premature to take a strong stand for a unified principle that applies equally to all components of the production system. Following our review, we introduce the other articles represented within this special issue.

Evidence for the Modulation of Sub-Lexical Processing in Go No-Go Naming: The Elimination of the Frequency × Regularity Interaction

The Frequency (high vs. low) × Regularity (regular vs. exception) interaction found on naming response times is often taken as evidence for parallel processing of sub-lexical and lexical systems. Using a Go/No-go naming task, we investigated the effect of nonword versus pseudohomophone foils on sub-lexical processing and the subsequent Frequency × Regularity interaction. We ran two experiments: (1) a Go/No-go naming task with nonword foils (e.g., bint) and (2) a Go/No-go naming task with pseudohomophone foils (e.g., pynt). Experiment 1 replicated the Frequency × Regularity interaction on naming response times supporting the notion of parallel sub-lexical and lexical processing. Experiment 2 eliminated the Frequency × Regularity interaction providing evidence for the modulation of sub-lexical information. These results indicate that using pseudohomophones in the Go/No-go naming task minimized information provided from sub-lexical processing and maximized information provided from the lexical system.

Perceiving Spatial Relations via Attentional Tracking and Shifting

Perceiving which of a scene's objects are adjacent may require selecting them with a limited-capacity attentional process. Previous results support this notion [1-3] but leave open whether the process operates simultaneously on several objects or proceeds one by one. With arrays of colored discs moving together, we first tested the effect of moving the discs faster than the speed limit for following them with attentional selection [4]. At these high speeds, participants could identify which colors were present and determine whether identical arrays were aligned or offset by one disc. They could not, however, apprehend which colors in the arrays were adjacent, indicating that attentional selection is required for this judgment. If selection operates serially to determine which colors are neighbors, then after the color of one disc is identified, attention must shift to the adjacent disc. As a result of the motion, attention might occasionally miss its target and land on the trailing disc. We cued attention to first select one or the other of a pair of discs and found the pattern of errors predicted. Perceiving these spatial relationships evidently requires selecting and processing objects one by one and is only possible at low object speeds.

Immune challenge and satiety-related activation of both distinct and overlapping neuronal populations in the brainstem indicate parallel pathways for viscerosensory signaling

Caudal brainstem viscerosensory nuclei convey information about the body's internal state to forebrain regions implicated in feeding behavior and responses to immune challenge, and may modulate ingestive behavior following immune activation. Illness-induced appetite loss might be attributed to accentuated “satiety” pathways, activation of a distinct “danger channel” separate from satiety pathways, or both. To evaluate neural substrates that could mediate the effects of illness on ingestive behavior, we analyzed the pattern and phenotypes of medullary neurons responsive to consumption of a preferred food, sweetened milk, and to intraperitoneal lipopolysaccharide challenge that reduced sweetened milk intake. Brainstem sections were stained for c-Fos, dopamine β-hydroxylase, phenylethanolamine- N-methyltransferase, and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) immunoreactivity. Sweetened milk intake activated many neurons throughout the nucleus of the solitary tract (NTS), including A2 noradrenergic neurons in the caudal half of the NTS. LPS challenge activated a similar population of neurons in the NTS, in addition to rostral C2 adrenergic and mid-level A2 noradrenergic neurons in the NTS, many C1 and A1 neurons in the ventrolateral medulla, and in GLP-1 neurons in the dorsal medullary reticular nucleus. Increased numbers of activated GLP-1 neurons in the NTS were only associated with sweetened milk ingestion. Evidence for parallel processing was reflected in the parabrachial nucleus, where sweetened milk intake resulted in activation of the inner external lateral, ventrolateral and central medial portions, whereas LPS challenge induced c-Fos expression in the outer external lateral portions. Thus, signals generated in response to potentially dangerous physiological conditions seem to be propagated via specific populations of catecholaminergic neurons in the NTS and VLM, and likely include a pathway through the external lateral PBN. The data indicate that immune challenge engages multiple ascending neural pathways including both a distinct catecholaminergic “danger” pathway, and a possibly multimodal pathway derived from the NTS.

On keeping word order straight

E-Z Reader is a highly successful model of eye-movement control, employing the notion of a serial-sequential attentional spotlight switched from word to word. Evidence of parallel processing of words in text calls this notion into question. Modifications to the model to accommodate this evidence are possible but will not address the fundamental objection that reading should not be seen as “surrogate listening.”

The temporal dynamics of visual search: Evidence for parallel processing in feature and conjunction searches.

The temporal dynamics of visual search: Evidence for parallel processing in feature and conjunction searches.

The temporal dynamics of visual search: evidence for parallel processing in feature and conjunction searches.

Feature and conjunction searches have been argued to delineate parallel and serial operations in visual processing. The authors evaluated this claim by examining the temporal dynamics of the detection of features and conjunctions. The 1st experiment used a reaction time (RT) task to replicate standard mean RT patterns and to examine the shapes of the RT distributions. The 2nd experiment used the response-signal speed-accuracy trade-off (SAT) procedure to measure discrimination (asymptotic detection accuracy) and detection speed (processing dynamics). Set size affected discrimination in both feature and conjunction searches but affected detection speed only in the latter. Fits of models to the SAT data that included a serial component overpredicted the magnitude of the observed dynamics differences. The authors concluded that both features and conjunctions are detected in parallel. Implications for the role of attention in visual processing are discussed.

Non-verbal auditory recognition in normal subjects and brain-damaged patients: Evidence for parallel processing

Three different aptitudes involved in sound object recognition were tested in 60 normal subjects and 20 brain-damaged patients: (i) capacity to segregate sound objects on different cues (intensity steps, coherent temporal modulations or signal onset synchrony); (ii) asemantic recognition of sounds of real objects by judging whether two different sound samples belonged to the same object; and (iii) semantic identification of sounds of real objects as judged by means of a multiple choice response test. In 12 patients, different aptitudes involved in auditory recognition were disrupted separately and in a way which speaks in favour of parallel rather than hierarchical processing. There was no strong association between deficits in non-verbal auditory recognition and aphasia or the side of lesion.

Evidence for parallel processing in the frog's auditory thalamus.

We have conducted anatomical and physiological experiments to investigate the functional organization of the dorsal thalamus in the northern leopard frog (Rana pipiens pipiens). Our studies provide evidence for parallel auditory processing at this level of the frog's brain. Acoustically evoked potentials were recorded from the posterior and central thalamic nuclei and several differences in sound-evoked activity were noted between them: the amplitude of acoustically evoked potentials (AEPs), in response to a standard search stimulus, was always greater in the central, as opposed to the posterior, nucleus; the posterior, but not central, nucleus exhibited the phenomenon of nonlinear summation when 350-Hz and 1,700-Hz tones were presented simultaneously rather than individually; and the central, but not posterior, nucleus showed selectivity for the repetition rate of pulsed sound signals. The posterior and central thalamic nuclei also possessed distinct innervation patterns as revealed by the HRP transport patterns arising from these structures. The central nucleus was reciprocally connected with the major auditory relay stations along the frog's central auditory pathway including the superior olive, nucleus of the lateral lemniscus, and the torus semicircularis. Major projections to the lateral thalamic nucleus, ventral hypothalamus, and the telencephalic striatal complex were also observed. The posterior nucleus, on the other hand, established reciprocal connections primarily with the medial reticular nucleus, ventral midbrain tegmentum, and structures constituting of the ventral thalamic nuclei, particularly the nucleus of Bellonci. Thus, time and frequency cues contained within the species mating call, and conveying information concerning species identity, appear to be processed independently within the frog's thalamus with separate neural channels for each.

Facilitatory transmitters and cAMP can modulate accommodation as well as transmitter release in Aplysia sensory neurons: Evidence for parallel processing in a single cell

Presynaptic facilitation of transmission from sensory to motor neurons contributes significantly to behavioral sensitization of defensive withdrawal reflexes in Aplysia. Presynaptic facilitation is associated with a decrease in the serotonin-sensitive K(+) conductance. This decrease broadens the presynaptic action potential. In addition, the procedures that cause facilitation-stimulation of the connective (the pathway from the tail and head), application of modulatory transmitters, or injection of cAMP-also increase the excitability of the sensory neurons as tested with intracellular depolarizing pulses injected into the cell body. The increased excitability is reflected in a decreased threshold for generating action potentials and a reduction in accommodation to prolonged constant current stimuli. By influencing the excitability of the peripheral processes of the sensory neurons, stimulation of the connectives or serotonin also produces a small enhancement of the response of the sensory neurons to a tactile stimulus applied to the siphon. The excitability changes appear to result, at least in part, from the same cellular mechanisms that lead to broadening of the action potential, a cAMP-mediated closure of K(+) channels. Therefore, these findings indicate that the same class of mechanisms can, in principle, have a dual action and provide further evidence for parallel processing in the modulation of transmitter release from a single neuron.

Evidence for parallel processing in motion perception

It is proposed that motion perception is mediated within two parallel channels in the visual system. These channels are distinguished by the following properties: rate of recovery from adaption; degree of fine tuning for contour orientation; inclusion of color sensitive units; and ocular dominance characteristics. Three experiments are reported which test the hypothesized systems.

Motion aftereffects: Evidence for parallel processing in motion perception

Interocularly transferred motion aftereffects occur immediatelv after exposure to moving stimuli but are no longer demonstrable 7 min later. By contrast, opposite dichoptic motion aftereffects occur both immediately after exposure and 7 min later, with no evidence of a decrease over time. The results imply that the processing of motion aftereffects and hence, by extension, motion perception occurs in parallel systems.

Color and spatial specificity of single units in Rhesus monkey foveal striate cortex.

Color and spatial specificity of single units in Rhesus monkey foveal striate cortex.B M Dow, and P GourasB M Dow, and P GourasPublished Online:01 Jan 1973https://doi.org/10.1152/jn.1973.36.1.79MoreSectionsPDF (3 MB)Download PDF ToolsExport citationAdd to favoritesGet permissionsTrack citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInWeChat Previous Back to Top Next Download PDF FiguresReferencesRelatedInformation Cited BySpatial receptive field structure of double-opponent cells in macaque V1Abhishek De and Gregory D. Horwitz16 March 2021 | Journal of Neurophysiology, Vol. 125, No. 3Processing of chromatic information in a deep convolutional neural network30 March 2018 | Journal of the Optical Society of America A, Vol. 35, No. 4C OLOR V ISIONAnnual Review of Neuroscience, Vol. 26, No. 1Color Processing in Macaque Striate Cortex: Electrophysiological PropertiesCarole E. Landisman, and Daniel Y. 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Visual receptive fields in the superior colliculus of the cat.

Visual receptive fields in the superior colliculus of the cat.