Spatial Information Processing Research Articles

Sequential processing facilitates Hebb repetition learning in visuospatial domains.

Exposure to the same information improves auditory/verbal short-term memory performance, but such improvement is not always observed in visual short-term memory. In this study, we demonstrate that sequential processing makes visuospatial repetition learning efficient in a paradigm that employs a similar design previously used for an auditory/verbal domain. When we presented sets of color patches simultaneously in Experiments 1-4, recall accuracy did not increase with repetition; however, once color patches were presented sequentially in Experiment 5, accuracy did increase rapidly with repetition, even when participants engaged in articulatory suppression. Moreover, these learning dynamics matched those in Experiment 6, which used verbal materials. These findings suggest that (a) sequential focus on each item facilitates a repetition learning effect, indicating a temporal bottleneck is involved early in this process and (b) repetition learning is mechanistically similar across sensory modalities even though these modalities differently specialize in processing spatial or temporal information. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Exploring the spatial gradient effect in narratives

ABSTRACT The current set of experiments was designed to explore the processing of spatial information during reading, specifically the spatial-shift effect and the spatial-gradient effect. Experiments 1 and 2 demonstrated that when participants were presented with text alone (i.e., without prior map memorization, virtual environments, task demands, or prior knowledge of the spatial information), the spatial-shift effect does emerge. Using the time to name a spatial location as a measure of spatial activation, participant naming times were faster for the original spatial location when the protagonist had moved a smaller distance relative to when the protagonist had moved a larger distance. Further, Experiment 3 provided evidence to support that a spatial gradient of activation is evident; this was done by adding an additional point of spatial distance in which the protagonist did not move from the initial location. The results are discussed within the context of the memory-based view of text comprehension.

Differential involvement of the anterior and posterior hippocampus, parahippocampus, and retrosplenial cortex in making precise judgments of spatial distance and object size for remotely acquired memories of environments and objects.

The hippocampus is known to support processing of precise spatial information in recently learned environments. It is less clear, but crucial for theories of systems consolidation, to know whether it also supports processing of precise spatial information in familiar environments learned long ago and whether such precision extends to objects and numbers. In this fMRI study, we asked participants to make progressively more refined spatial distance judgments among well-known Toronto landmarks (whether landmark A is closer to landmark B or C) to examine hippocampal involvement. We also tested whether the hippocampus was similarly engaged in estimating magnitude regarding sizes of familiar animals and numbers. We found that the hippocampus was only engaged in spatial judgment. Activation was greater and lasted longer in the posterior than anterior hippocampus, which instead showed greater modulation as discrimination between spatial distances became more fine grained. These findings suggest that the anterior and posterior hippocampus have different functions which are influenced differently by estimation of differential distance. Similarly, parahippocampal-place-area and retrosplenial cortex were involved only in the spatial condition. By contrast, activation of the intraparietal sulcus was modulated by precision in all conditions. Therefore, our study supports the idea that the hippocampus and related structures are implicated in retrieving and operating even on remote spatial memories whenever precision is required, as posted by some theories of systems consolidation.

Delayed formation of neural representations of space in aged mice.

Aging is associated with cognitive deficits, with spatial memory being very susceptible to decline. The hippocampal dentate gyrus (DG) is important for processing spatial information in the brain and is particularly vulnerable to aging, yet its sparse activity has led to difficulties in assessing changes in this area. Using in vivo two-photon calcium imaging, we compared DG neuronal activity and representations of space in young and aged mice walking on an unfamiliar treadmill. We found that calcium activity was significantly higher and less tuned to location in aged mice, resulting in decreased spatial information encoded in the DG. However, with repeated exposure to the same treadmill, both spatial tuning and information levels in aged mice became similar to young mice, while activity remained elevated. Our results show that spatial representations of novel environments are impaired in the aged hippocampus and gradually improve with increased familiarity. Moreover, while the aged DG is hyperexcitable, this does not disrupt neural representations of familiar environments.

Fully-integrated photonic tensor core for image convolutions

Convolutions are one of the most critical signal and image processing operations. From spectral analysis to computer vision, convolutional filtering is often related to spatial information processing involving neighbourhood operations. As convolution operations are based around the product of two functions, vectors or matrices, dot products play a key role in the performance of such operations; for example, advanced image processing techniques require fast, dense matrix multiplications that typically take more than 90% of the computational capacity dedicated to solving convolutional neural networks. Silicon photonics has been demonstrated to be an ideal candidate to accelerate information processing involving parallel matrix multiplications. In this work, we experimentally demonstrate a multiwavelength approach with fully integrated modulators, tunable filters as microring resonator weight banks, and a balanced detector to perform matrix multiplications for image convolution operations. We develop a scattering matrix model that matches the experiment to simulate large-scale versions of these photonic systems with which we predict performance and physical constraints, including inter-channel cross-talk and bit resolution.

UTILIZING GADGETS AND ONLINE GAMES AS MEANS OF SELF-DEVELOPMENT OF STUDENTS / I SMP NEGERI 3 BILAH HULU IN THE ERA OF THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION 4.0

Revolution is change that happens quickly. The revolution had a huge impact on society. Society quickly accepted the effects of the new revolution. The revolution has undergone four changes during its development. Online games themselves have positive and negative impacts. The effect of the meaning of obtaining positive benefits from online games, namely: being able to develop one's visuospatial abilities by practicing processing spatial information from the monitor screen. Therefore, the right way to overcome this problem is through community service in the form of outreach. The purpose of this study is to find out how the use of gadget technology and online games in learning in the era of the industrial revolution 4.0. This research is qualitative descriptive research. The research was conducted on students of SMP Negeri 3 Bilah Hulu, Labuhanbatu Regency.

The decomposition of the deep learning machine for specialized datasets for time minimizing of spatial information processing

For effective military management, the creation of complexes of automation tools, spatial information processing systems, primarily consolidated, is a priority task in the conditions of constant growth of data and requirements for their collection, transmission, storage, processing and use.
 The problem of consolidated processing of spatial information is related to the diversity of sources, the diversity of data formats, the diversity of acquisition and use, the diversity of processing etc. All that imply an extremely complex organizational and technical structure, a kind of ‘system of systems’.
 Deep Learning Machine (DLM) ensure the high accuracy of prediction. But such DLM should be matched for the military conditions of the usage where time restrictions and space lack are present.
 So, the effort to create a dataset for the maximum accuracy of the Deep Learning Machine rests on computing resources (in common research it is possible to overcome but in military sphere it isn’t). In military applied tasks, the criterion of time and overcoming uncertainties due to confrontation are critical. This allows us to put forward the hypothesis that it is impossible to achieve absolute accuracy in deep learning machine. Therefore, for variable tactical situations, it is advisable to create specialized datasets and achieve maximum efficiency from each iteration step (or their combination) using the decomposition method of the consolidated spatial information processing system. It is analysed the methods of scientific and technical solutions in the deep learning machine and the method of systematizing data types in existing tactical situations. In the end the detection and recognition system with a deep learning machine and a set of specialized datasets is proposed in the paper.
 The volume of each specialized dataset at the level of 103 enables ultra-high speed of information processing processes and allows a person to set up such a system of consolidated processing of spatial information without excessive organizational and time demands. The dataset itself is revealed.
 This principle of forming a dataset, or their sets, allows obtaining high-accurate and high -fast detection and recognition systems.

Neural correlates of value-driven spatial orienting.

Reward learning has been shown to habitually guide overt spatial attention to specific regions of a scene. However, the neural mechanisms that support this bias are unknown. In the present study, participants learned to orient themselves to a particular quadrant of a scene (a high-value quadrant) to maximize monetary gains. This learning was scene-specific, with the high-value quadrant varying across different scenes. During a subsequent test phase, participants were faster at identifying a target if it appeared in the high-value quadrant (valid), and initial saccades were more likely to be made to the high-value quadrant. fMRI analyses during the test phase revealed learning-dependent priority signals in the caudate tail, superior colliculus, frontal eye field, anterior cingulate cortex, and insula, paralleling findings concerning feature-based, value-driven attention. In addition, ventral regions typically associated with scene selection and spatial information processing, including the hippocampus, parahippocampal gyrus, and temporo-occipital cortex, were also implicated. Taken together, our findings offer new insights into the neural architecture subserving value-driven attention, both extending our understanding of nodes in the attention network previously implicated in feature-based, value-driven attention and identifying a ventral network of brain regions implicated in reward's influence on scene-dependent spatial orienting.

Multi-scale goal distance representations in human hippocampus during virtual spatial navigation

Goal-directed navigation relies on both coarse and fine-grained coding of spatial distance between the current position of a navigating subject and a goal destination. However, the neural signatures underlying goal distance coding remain poorly understood. Using intracranial EEG recordings from the hippocampus of drug-resistant epilepsy patients who performed a virtual spatial navigation task, we found that the right hippocampal theta power was significantly modulated by goal distance and decreased with goal proximity. This modulation varied along the hippocampal longitudinal axis such that theta power in the posterior hippocampus decreased more strongly with goal proximity. Similarly, neural timescale, reflecting the duration across which information can be maintained, increased gradually from the posterior to anterior hippocampus. Taken together, this study provides empirical evidence for multi-scale spatial representations of goal distance in thehuman hippocampus and links the hippocampal processing of spatial information to its intrinsic temporal dynamics.

EXPRESS: Influence of Different Spatial Representations on the SNARC Effect for Letters: Electrophysiological Evidence.

Studies have previously demonstrated that different spatial representations may affect the spatial-numerical association of response codes (SNARC) effect for numbers; however, limited studies have assessed the SNARC effect for letters. In this study, event-related potentials (ERPs) were used to measure the influence of two spatial representation modes (ruler and clock) on the SNARC effect. The ruler produced a SNARC-like effect; i.e., the left hand reacted faster than the right to the letters that appear before N in the alphabet; the right hand reacted faster than the left to the letters after N, whereas the clock produced a reverse SNARC effect. In addition, the ERP data showed that the SNARC-like effect for letters in both representations induced significant activation in the frontal and parietal regions, indicating that the same brain areas are involved in processing letters and numbers in terms of spatial dimensions. This study further identified the conditions for the SNARC effect and proved that the SNARC effect is attributed to the simultaneous participation of brain regions for sequence and spatial information processing.

Young children can use their subjective straight-ahead to remap visuo-motor alterations

Young children and adults process spatial information differently: the former use their bodies as primary reference, while adults seem capable of using abstract frames. The transition is estimated to occur between the 6th and the 12th year of age. The mechanisms underlying spatial encoding in children and adults are unclear, as well as those underlying the transition. Here, we investigated the role of the subjective straight-ahead (SSA), the body antero-posterior half-plane mental model, in spatial encoding before and after the expected transition. We tested 6–7-year-old and 10–11-year-old children, and adults on a spatial alignment task in virtual reality, searching for differences in performance when targets were placed frontally or sideways. The performance differences were assessed both in a naturalistic baseline condition and in a test condition that discouraged using body-centered coordinates through a head-related visuo-motor conflict. We found no differences in the baseline condition, while all groups showed differences between central and lateral targets (SSA effect) in the visuo-motor conflict condition, and 6–7-year-old children showed the largest effect. These results confirm the expected transition timing; moreover, they suggest that children can abstract from the body using their SSA and that the transition underlies the maturation of a world-centered reference frame.

Audience behavior in immersive theatre: an environment-behavior studies analysis of Punchdrunk’s Sleep No More

ABSTRACT Place can shape and influence audience behavior during a performance. This is especially noticeable in the site-specific immersive theatre model, where the performance occurs in a non-theatre setting and audiences have an active role. In this article, we argue that ‘place schema’ – a term from the interdisciplinary field of environment-behavior studies – provides a conceptual framework for better understanding audience behavior within immersive theatre environments. We know how to behave in a theatre building because we have codified experiences regarding the environment in our minds called place schemata. They help us process spatial information, predict what is likely to happen, and decide how to take action accordingly. However, if this spatial information does not match the ‘theatre schema’ we have in our minds, as is often the case in an immersive theatre setting, we would need to update our existing schema. In this article, we examine Punchdrunk’s Sleep No More (2011 New York production, which is still running) to evaluate how audiences carry the behavioral rules of traditional theatre schema into immersive theatres and consider how expectations, roles, and rules of place influence the relationship between the audience and setting.

Designing illuminated maps of the number of lecturers in the city of Mosul using geographic information systems

Increased urbanization has led to an unthought doubling of the number of schools in the city, resulting in the selection of school sites that lack most standards such as environmental and health conditions, or their distance from natural and human hazards, and given the great potential of GIS to help find the most appropriate solutions and make the best decisions, particularly with regard to the processing and analysis of large and diverse spatial information, the current research aims to use GIS to assess the current status of school sites. At all primary and middle levels And preparatory, according to a set of natural, human and social standards. Gis is also used to document the current locations of schools and distribute them to residential neighbourhoods in the city to produce digital illuminated maps of the sites and pattern of the distribution of schools that are up-to-date, and the research to achieve this has relied on the data available to the Nineveh Education Directorate, as well as the field survey to locate schools with good accuracy using GPS and updating available data. The research found that there was a concentration in the distribution of schools that were sovereign in a concentrated or clustered pattern, some random in some, and regular in others, in general that might not reflect a similar distribution situation among all neighbourhoods in the city

Effect of glare on contrast sensitivity at various external noise levels

BackgroundGlare can reduce a driver's visual performance, increasing the risk of traffic accidents. The ability of the visual system to process spatial information can be assessed with the contrast sensitivity function (CSF); the CSF is decreased by glare. ObjectiveThe current study had three key aims: to examine whether and how glare-induced contrast sensitivity (CS) loss is modulated by spatial frequency (between 0.5 and 16 cycles per degree) and external noise (zero, low, or high); to evaluate subjective feelings of discomfort under different glare conditions; and to investigate the underlying mechanisms with a perceptual template model (PTM). MethodsParticipants completed a contrast detection task with quick CSF algorithm and reported their subjective feelings under nonglare, steady-glare, and transient-glare conditions. ResultsSteady and transient glare both reduced CS to comparable degrees. When external noise was absent, the CS reduction was largely dependent on spatial frequency, with a larger amount of CS loss at lower spatial frequencies. When external noise was present, the CS reduction was independent of spatial frequency. In addition, the reduction in the area under the log CS function (AULCSF) under steady-glare condition was roughly the same as that under transient-glare condition, regardless of external noise. However, participants reported greater discomfort under transient-glare condition than under steady-glare condition. Moreover, the AULCSF was reduced more under the zero-noise condition than under noise conditions. The PTM suggested that an increase in internal noise and an impaired perceptual template explained the glare-induced CS loss. ConclusionThe glare-induced CS loss was modulated by spatial frequency and external noise. Steady glare and transient glare affect CS to a similar extent, but steady glare produces less discomfort. Glare attenuates signals and weakens noise exclusion ability. ApplicationThis study advances our knowledge on glare-induced CS loss and its underlying mechanisms. The qCSF procedure with external noise should be utilized in future studies to investigate the effect of various light sources on visual function.

Postsynaptic NMDA Receptor Expression Is Required for Visual Corticocollicular Projection Refinement in the Mouse Superior Colliculus.

Efficient sensory processing of spatial information is facilitated through the organization of neuronal connections into topographic maps of space. In integrative sensory centers, converging topographic maps must be aligned to merge spatially congruent information. The superior colliculus (SC) receives topographically ordered visual inputs from retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) in the eye and layer 5 neurons in the primary visual cortex (L5-V1). Previous studies suggest that RGCs instruct the alignment of later-arriving L5-V1 inputs in an activity-dependent manner. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying this remain unclear. Here, we explored the role of NMDA receptors in visual map alignment in the SC using a conditional genetic knockout approach. We leveraged a novel knock-in mouse line that expresses tamoxifen-inducible Cre recombinase under the control of the Tal1 gene (Tal1CreERT2 ), which we show allows for specific recombination in the superficial layers of the SC. We used Tal1CreERT2 mice of either sex to conditionally delete the obligate GluN1 subunit of the NMDA receptor (SC-cKO) during the period of visual map alignment. We observed a significant disruption of L5-V1 axon terminal organization in the SC of SC-cKO mice. Importantly, retinocollicular topography was unaffected in this context, suggesting that alignment is also disrupted. Time-course experiments suggest that NMDA receptors may play a critical role in the refinement of L5-V1 inputs in the SC. Together, these data implicate NMDA receptors as critical mediators of activity-dependent visual map alignment in the SC.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Alignment of topographic inputs is critical for integration of spatially congruent sensory information; however, little is known about the mechanisms underlying this complex process. Here, we took a conditional genetic approach to explore the role of NMDA receptors in the alignment of retinal and cortical visual inputs in the superior colliculus. We characterize a novel mouse line providing spatial and temporal control of recombination in the superior colliculus and reveal a critical role for NMDA expression in visual map alignment. These data support a role for neuronal activity in visual map alignment and provide mechanistic insight into this complex developmental process.

Screening cell–cell communication in spatial transcriptomics via collective optimal transport

Spatial transcriptomic technologies and spatially annotated single-cell RNA sequencing datasets provide unprecedented opportunities to dissect cell–cell communication (CCC). However, incorporation of the spatial information and complex biochemical processes required in the reconstruction of CCC remains a major challenge. Here, we present COMMOT (COMMunication analysis by Optimal Transport) to infer CCC in spatial transcriptomics, which accounts for the competition between different ligand and receptor species as well as spatial distances between cells. A collective optimal transport method is developed to handle complex molecular interactions and spatial constraints. Furthermore, we introduce downstream analysis tools to infer spatial signaling directionality and genes regulated by signaling using machine learning models. We apply COMMOT to simulation data and eight spatial datasets acquired with five different technologies to show its effectiveness and robustness in identifying spatial CCC in data with varying spatial resolutions and gene coverages. Finally, COMMOT identifies new CCCs during skin morphogenesis in a case study of human epidermal development.

The impact of traumatic brain injury on inhibitory control processes assessed using a delayed antisaccade task

It has been well established that traumatic brain injury (TBI) can affect cognitive function such as attention, working memory and executive functions. In the present study, we further investigated TBI-related changes in cognitive functions by investigating the ability to reorient visuospatial attention using a modified antisaccade task. Performing an antisaccade requires disengaging attention, inhibiting a reflexive saccade, and then engaging attention to execute a voluntary saccade in a direction opposite to a peripheral target. Particularly we quantified the time (latency), and accuracy (directional and disinhibition errors) of 26 TBI and 33 normal participants in making an antisaccade after a variable period of delay (0, 0.0625, 0.125, 0.250, 0.500 or 1.0 s). Changing the delay period allowed to systematically quantify the temporal and spatial characteristics of preparing and initiating an antisaccade and whether this process is affected by TBI. TBI participants took longer (approximately 33–66 ms for variable delays) to generate correct delayed antisaccades and showed increased directional errors (2–11 % for variable delays) and increased disinhibition prosaccade errors (2–6 % for variable delays) compared to controls. However, both groups made similar disinhibition antisaccade errors. These findings indicate that TBI participants required a longer time to process information, and a possible poorer response inhibition and poor spatial information processing due to head injury.

APPLICATION OF GIS BASED MODEL IN LANDFILL SITE SELECTION: A CASE STUDY OF LAHORE, PAKISTAN

Open dumping sites for solid wastes in Asian developing countries, including Pakistan, have recently received particular attention in terms of environmental pollution problems. In the Lahore District, Mehmood Booti is the only authorized open dumping site developed by city district government which is now unable to fulfill district’s requirement. Therefore the data was collected to propose a new landfill site in Lahore district, Pakistan. These data sets involved the processing of spatial information that was utilized in GIS environment using Boolean Operation as a tool for land suitability analysis. In order to achieve desired results, five input raster layers; including water bodies, roads, important places, existing dumping site and tube well were prepared. After omission of unsuitable areas, the suitability analysis of the residue areas was accomplished.

Visualization of the functional neural circuit breakdown process in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease and application to the development of new therapies

Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients cause cognitive impairment in time and space as early symptoms, in which the hippocampus plays an essential role. In the hippocampus, place cells play an important role in processing spatial information. The hippocampus recognizes space and guides creatures to their destinations using these place cells. In AD patients, the hippocampal neuronal network that place cells form could malfunction with age. However, it has remained unknown how the disruption of the neural circuits progresses at a single-cell resolution in AD. Conventional methods such as electrophysiology experiments could only record the same cells in the hippocampal neural circuit of awake mice for a few days. To clear the detail of neuronal circuit disruption in AD, it is necessary to observe brains of the same individuals over several months. Therefore, we performed chronic two-photon calcium imaging using AD model mice expressing the fluorescent calcium sensor protein G-CaMP7 to monitor spatiotemporal representation in a virtual reality environment. The activity of hundreds of hippocampal CA1 pyramidal neurons was detected over months from the same neuronal populations. In AD mice, amyloid (Aβ) plaque-like aggregates in the stratum oriens layer of hippocampal CA1 start to develop at 2.5 months of age, increase in both number and size with age, and neurons with hyperactivity increase near Aβ plaque-like aggregates. In addition, place cells observed during VR navigation showed abnormalities in the stability of activity within the place field at 4 months old, and then the stability was further deteriorated and the number of place cells decreased at 7 months old. Thus, we demonstrated that the activity patterns of various neurons, including place cells, in the neural circuitry of the hippocampal CA1 region in AD have different failure modes, and this finding is expected to be applied to the effective drug evaluation for AD.

Development of an Integrated System to Enhance Spatial Data Processing & Management for Planning Authorities

In a world where there is constant data generation and processing, the need for an integrated system cannot be overemphasized. The systems that enable storage of large amounts of spatial data and must be made available to multiple users in real time. Studies have shown that standalone desktop spatial systems are often rigid and inflexible to support multiple data processing or demands from multiple users. The integrated spatial management system was designed to address the above highlighted challenges by bringing enhanced possibilities of utilization of spatial data though improving accessibility, visualization, and processing spatial information. The present work employed a mixed approach of qualitative and quantitative techniques to obtain the desired result. Qualitative data collection tools were used to collect field data required to design the prototype. The research sought to establish whether the integrated systems are in use by the targeted institutions, the findings highlighted that 71.4% have no integrated spatial data systems while 28.6% have partial-integrated systems. An overview of the architecture of integrated spatial systems consists of a well distributed database linked to multiple tools and platforms to query both the spatial and non-spatial data. The WEB-GIS and Mobile GIS interfaces were developed to allow multiple users to access information through the web in real time and data collection, respectively.