text
stringlengths 0
10.6k
|
|---|
In cognitive psychology, the word superiority effect (WSE) refers to the phenomenon that people have better recognition of letters presented within words as compared to isolated letters and to letters presented within nonword (orthographically illegal, unpronounceable letter array) strings. Studies have also found a WSE when letter identification within words is compared to letter identification within pseudowords (e.g. "WOSK") and pseudohomophones (e.g. "WERK"). |
The effect was first described by Cattell (1886), and important contributions came from Reicher (1969) and Wheeler (1970). Cattell first wrote, "I find it takes about twice as long to read...words which have no connexion as words which make sentences, and letters which have no connexions as letters which make words. When the words make sentences and the letters words, not only do the processes of seeing and naming overlap, but by one mental effort the subject can recognize a whole group of words or letters". |
G. Reicher and D. Wheeler developed the basic experimental paradigm to study the WSE, referred to as the Reicher-Wheeler paradigm. In this paradigm, an observer is presented with a word or nonword string that is followed by a mask (brief stimulus to measure effects on behavior) . The observer is then asked to name one of the letters from the cued position in that word or string making the test a two-alternative forced choice (2-AFC). For example, for the letter R in the word "card", an observer might be asked to choose between the letter R and T, and will usually be more efficient in doing so than if they are asked to make the same choice with the string of letters such as "cqrd". Each possible completion with the two possible letters in the word condition produce a word. |
The WSE has since been exhaustively studied in the context of cognitive processes involved during reading. Large amounts of research have also been done to try to model the effect using connectionist networks. |
The WSE has traditionally been tested using a tachistoscope, as the durations of the letter string presentations need to be carefully controlled. Recently, stimulus presentation software has allowed much simpler manipulation of presentation durations using computers. The WSE has also been described without a tachistoscope. |
A string of letters, usually four or five, is flashed for several milliseconds onto a screen. Readers are then asked to choose which of two letters had been in the flashed string. For example, if "WOSK" had been flashed, a reader might have to decide whether "K" or "H" had been in "WOSK". A WSE arises when subjects choose the correct letter more consistently when letter strings are real words rather than nonwords (e.g. "WKRG") or single letters. |
The existence of a WSE generally implies that there is some type of access or encoding advantage that words have in the mind that pseudowords or single letters do not have. Various studies have proposed that the distinction is a result of pronounceability differences (nonwords are not pronounceable and therefore are not as easily remembered), frequency (real words are more frequently encountered and used), meaningfulness (real words have semantic value and therefore are better retained in memory), orthographic regularity (real words follow familiar spelling conventions and are therefore better retained in memory), or neighborhood density (real words tend to share more letters with other words than nonwords and therefore have more activation in the mind). |
Other studies have proposed that the WSE is heavily affected or even induced by experimental factors, such as the type of masking used after the presentation of the word, or the duration of the masks. |
The two popular models claiming to explain the WSE are the interactive activation model (IAM) and the dual-route coding model (DRC) Neither of these models takes attention into account; This is a relationship looked into through research on the WSE. Evidence shows that the WSE persists without an observer’s conscious awareness of the word presented, which implies that attention is neither necessary for WSE nor involved in this phenomenon. However, attentional focus has been demonstrated to modulate the WSE which agrees with recent neurophysiological data explaining that attention, in fact, modulates early stages of word processing. |
The activation-verification model (AVM) is another model that was developed to account for reaction time data from lexical decision and naming tasks. The basic operations explored in the AVM that are involved in word and letter recognition are encoding, verification, and decision. Both the IAM and the AVM share many basic assumptions such as the fact that stimulus input activates spatially-specific letter units, that activated letter units, modulate the activity of word units, and that letter and word recognition are frequently affected by top-down processes (e.g. Reading the phrase "A cow says..." a person would guess "moo" and in checking that the word begins with 'm' ignores the rest of the letters). |
The WSE has proven to be an important finding for word recognition models, and specifically is supported by Rumelhart and McClelland's interactive-activation model of word recognition. According to this model, when a reader is presented with a word, each letter in parallel will either stimulate or inhibit different feature detectors (e.g. a curved shape for "C", horizontal and vertical bars for "H", etc.). Those feature detectors will then stimulate or inhibit different letter detectors, which will finally stimulate or inhibit different word detectors. Each activated connection would carry a different weight, and thus the word "WORK" in the example would be activated more than any other word (and therefore recognized by a reader). |
According to this interactive-activation model, the WSE is explained as such: When the target letter is presented within a word, the feature detectors, letter detectors and word detectors will all be activated, adding weight to the final recognition of the stimulus. However, when only the letter is presented, only the letter detector level will be activated. Therefore, we may remember the presented stimulus word more clearly, and thereby be more accurate in identifying its component letters, as observed in the WSE. |
The AVM deals with encoding, verification, and decision operations. Encoding is used to describe the early operations that lead to the unconscious activation of learned units in memory. After encoding, verification occurs. Verification often leads to the conscious recognition of a single lexical entry from the respondents. Verification is to be viewed as an independent, top-down analysis of stimulus that is guided by the stored, or previously learned, representation of a word. Real-time processing in verification can be mimicked by a computer simulation. Lastly, the factors affecting speed and accuracy of performance in a particular paradigm depend on whether decisions are based primarily on information from encoding or verification. |
One of the findings of the Johnston and McClelland reportwas that the WSE does not occur inevitably whenever we compare a word and a nonword. Rather, it depends somewhat upon the strategies that readers use during a task. If readers paid more attention to the letter in a particular "position", they would experience the adverse word superiority effect. This is because the reader would no longer have the benefit of having the word detector level activated with as much weight if they neglected to focus on the full word. |
= = = Nickels (game) = = = |
Nickels is a betting game played with any desired denomination of coins. It is played on a flat, hard surface next to a back wall, such as the side of a building or a street curb. The object is to place a coin closer to the wall than one's opponents. |
The play area consists of the following: |
Rules of the game, some necessary and others not, include: |
= = = Everything I Touch Falls to Pieces = = = |
Everything I Touch Falls To Pieces is the debut full-length album from influential Chicago-based metalcore band Dead to Fall. The band shows a style in the vein of Swedish-influenced melodic death metal. The album's general theme deals with personal struggle and conflict with a loved one, often due to betrayal. The album is said to resemble the music of "At The Gates, The Haunted, with a touch of Killswitch Engage and Shadows Fall being added to the mix". |
= = = Rex Hughes = = = |
Rex Hughes (September 24, 1938 – May 9, 2016) was an American college and professional basketball coach. He coached men's basketball at Long Beach City College, Kent State University, and later served as a National Basketball Association (NBA) assistant coach. He served as head coach for part of a season with the Sacramento Kings, and a single game as an interim coach with the San Antonio Spurs. Hughes also worked in NBA scouting and basketball operations with the Kings, Atlanta Hawks and Orlando Magic. |
In 1968-1969, Hughes was Head Coach at Long Beach City College, his first collegiate job after coaching in high school. His squad finished 23-5. When Hughes left to be an assistant at Nebraska, he was replaced by Lute Olson, in his first collegiate job. |
Replacing Frank Truitt at Kent State University in 1974, Hughes' teams went 6-20, 12-14 and 8-19 over the next three seasons. The team started 1-10 in 1977-1978 when he was replaced by Mike Boyd. |
In 1978-1979, Hughes was Head Coach and General Manager of the Montana Sky (Great Falls, Montana) in the short-lived Western Basketball Association. The Sky were co-owned by country singer Charlie Pride. Notably, Hughes had Cazzie Russell and Brad Davis on the roster. Hughes was hired by the Sky mid-season when Coach Bill Klukas was fired after a 3-17 start. The league folded after one season. |
In 1991-1992 Hughes served as an Assistant Coach under Dick Motta with the Sacramento Kings and went 22-35 in 57 games replacing Motta as Head Coach after Motta was fired. |
In 1992-1993, Hughes was hired to serve as an Assistant Coach to Jerry Tarkanian with the San Antonio Spurs. However, just 20 games into the season at 9-11, Tarkanian was fired. Hughes was 1-0 as interim Head Coach before John Lucas (39-22) was hired. |
On March 4, 2009, Hughes became the 15th person in "The Rex Streak", a streak by radio talk show host Jim Rome of consecutive days interviewing someone named Rex. |
Hughes died on May 9, 2016 at the age of 77. |
= = = FSV Salmrohr = = = |
FSV Salmrohr is a German association football club in the village of Salmrohr, Rhineland-Palatinate. Founded in 1921, the small club has limited resources and has relied largely on local talent, but still managed two decades of play in the tier III Amateur Oberliga Südwest and Regionalliga West/Südwest and earned a national amateur title in 1990. |
In 1925, they became part of the Deutschen Jugendkraft, a Catholic-sponsored national league, playing as "DJK Salmrohr/Dörbach". The modern-day side was formed following World War II in 1946 as "SV Salmrohr". It was renamed "Fussball Club Salmrohr 1946" the following year and took on the name "Fußballsportverein Salmrohr/Dörbach" in 1957. |
Through the 1980s and 1990s, "FSV" was as an upper table side in third division play and earned a single season promotion to the 2nd Bundesliga in the 1986–87 following their qualification round win over "SSV Ulm 1846". In 1990, they beat "Rheydter SV" 2:0 to claim the national amateur championship. The team again qualified for promotion play following their 1992 Oberliga title, but were beaten by "Wuppertaler SV". Between 1992–96, "Salmrohr" captured five consecutive regional cup titles, however, in the late-1990s the club's performances began to tail off and they slipped to lower level competition. |
An attempt to give "Eintracht Trier" a boost into the 2.Bundesliga in 1997 through a partial union that saw a number of "Salmrohr"'s footballers go to "Trier" failed. The next year the club only escaped relegation because a pair of teams that finished ahead of them were denied licenses due to their financial problems. By the turn of the millennium "Salmrohr" was playing in the Oberliga Südwest as a fourth division side. |
Most recently the team drifted between the Oberliga Südwest and the Rheinlandliga, winning another promotion in 2011 and finishing sixth in the Oberliga in 2012. From 2012–13 the Oberliga Südwest was renamed Oberliga Rheinland-Pfalz/Saar, with "Salmrohr" continuing in this league. It came second in the league in 2013 and 2014 and narrowly missed out on promotion when it lost to FC Nöttingen in the newly introduced promotion round of the Oberliga runners-up. |
The club's honours: |
The recent season-by-season performance of the club: |
= = = Defense Language Aptitude Battery = = = |
The Defense Language Aptitude Battery (DLAB) is a test used by the United States Department of Defense to test an individual's potential for learning a foreign language and thus determining who may pursue training as a military linguist. It consists of 126 multiple-choice questions and the test is scored out of a possible 164 points. The test is composed of five audio sections and one visual section. As of 2009, the test is completely web-based. The test does not attempt to gauge a person's fluency in a given language, but rather to determine their ability to learn a language. The test will give the service member examples of what a selection of words or what a portion of a word means, then asks the test taker to create a specific word from the samples given. |
Preparation for the DLAB includes multiple study guides and practice tests. These resources give one the appropriate means by which to prepare for the test and gauge a possible outcome. However, a study guide for the DLAB is not like traditional studying - you are not learning content that will be on the DLAB, but rather learning the style of the DLAB. Someone failing the test or getting a low score can always retake the DLAB but only after a wait of 6 months. For most service members, this is too long and will cause them to miss the deadline for submitting their scores. Adequate preparation is thus a near-necessity. |
The languages are broken into tiers based on their difficulty level for a native English speaker as determined by the Defense Language Institute. The category into which a language is placed also determines the length of its basic course as taught at DLI. |
To qualify to pursue training in a language, one needs a minimum score of 95. The Marines will waive it to 90 for Cat I and Cat II languages and the Navy will waive it to an 85 for Cat I languages, a 90 for Cat II languages, and a 95 for Cat III languages. The Air Force does not currently offer a waiver. The Army National Guard is able to waive a score of 90 into a Cat. IV language. |
The DLAB is typically administered to new and prospective recruits at the United States Military Entrance Processing Command sometime after the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery is taken but before a final job category (NEC, MOS, AFSC) is determined. An individual may usually take the DLAB if they score high enough on the ASVAB for linguist training and are interested in doing so. The DLAB is also administered to ROTC cadets while they are still attending college. The DLAB is also used for the Australian Defence Force. |
Furthermore, the DLAB is a required test for officers looking to either join the Foreign Area Officer program or the Olmsted Scholar Program. The required grade for these programs is a 105, but the recommended grade is at least a 130 or above. |
Military personnel interested in retraining into a linguist field typically also must pass the DLAB. In few select cases, the DLAB requirement may be waived if proficiency in a foreign language is already demonstrated via the DLPT. |
While these scores are required to enter a language program of that category, often placement is based upon need rather than score. For example, a service member that receives a score of 115 may be placed in Russian (category III). The maximum score on the DLAB was 176, but has recently been lowered to 164. |
http://dlabprep.com/how-is-the-dlab-test-organized/ Retrieved 24 April 2016. |
http://usmilitary.about.com/cs/joiningup/a/dlab.htm Retrieved 24 April 2016. |
= = = Greg Biekert = = = |
Gregory "Greg" Biekert (born March 14, 1969) is an American football coach and former linebacker. |
Biekert attended Longs Peak Middle School and Longmont High School in Longmont, Colorado, where he lettered in football. He was a standout linebacker for the Colorado Buffaloes. After college, he was drafted by the then L.A. Raiders in the seventh round of the 1993 NFL Draft and played in 144 games with 123 starts. He led the Raiders in tackles for six seasons, including four straight years (1998–2001). He recovered the Tom Brady fumble that was ruled an incomplete pass because of the Tuck rule in the 2001 AFC divisional playoff game against the New England Patriots. After two full seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, Biekert retired after the 2003 season. |
Biekert rejoined the Raiders as an assistant coach on defense on July 27, 2010. He was promoted to linebackers coach on February 8, 2011. He was not retained following the 2011 season. |
= = = Aribert (archbishop of Milan) = = = |
Aribert (or Heribert) (Italian: "Ariberto da Intimiano", Lombard: "Aribert de Intimian") (Intimiano, between 970 and 980 - Milan, 16 January 1045) was the archbishop of Milan from 1018, a quarrelsome warrior-bishop in an age in which such figures were not uncommon. |
Aribert went to Konstanz in June 1025, with other bishops of Northern Italy, to pay homage to Conrad II of Germany, the beleaguered founder of the Salian dynasty. There, in exchange for privileges, he agreed to crown Conrad with the Iron Crown of Lombardy, which the magnates had offered to Odo of Blois. |
This he did, on 26 March 1026, at Milan, for the traditional seat of Lombard coronations, Pavia, was still in revolt against imperial authority. He journeyed to Rome a year later for the imperial coronation of Conrad by Pope John XIX on 26 March 1027; at a synod at the Lateran he negotiated a decision of the precedence of the archdiocese of Milan over that of Ravenna. He subsequently joined an imperial military expedition into the Kingdom of Arles, which Conrad inherited upon the death in 1032 of Rudolph III of Burgundy, but which was contested by Odo. |
In the political arena of Italy, power was disputed between the great territorial magnates— the "capitanei"— with their vassal captains and the lesser nobility— the "valvassores"— allied with the burghers of the Italian communes. |
Aribert created enemies among the lower nobility, against whom he perpetrated the worst violences, and with the metropolitan of Ravenna, whose episcopal rights, along with those of the smaller sees, he ignored. A revolt soon engulfed northern Italy and, at Aribert's request, Conrad's son, the Emperor Henry III, travelled south of the Alps in the winter of 1036/37, to quell it. The Emperor, however, took the position of champion of the "valvassores" and demanded that Aribert should make a defence against charges brought against him, but Aribert refused, on the grounds that he was the emperor's equal. |
His consequent arrest provoked the rebellion of the anti-Imperial faction of the Milanese, seen by 19th-century historians as fiercely patriotic. Aribert had soon escaped his imprisonment and was leading the revolt from Milan. The Emperor found himself unable to take Milan by siege and proceeded to Rome, where his diplomatic skills succeeded in isolating Aribert from his erstwhile allies, notably through his famous decree of 28 May 1037, securing the tenancy of lesser vassals, both imperial and ecclesiastical. |
The Emperor took the step of deposing the fighting archbishop, and John's successor Pope Benedict IX excommunicated Aribert in March 1038. That year, he held up the Carroccio as the symbol of Milan and soon it was the symbol of all the Tuscan cities as far as Rome. Aribert ended his episcopacy in relative peace, having agreed to cease hostilities with Henry, at Ingelheim in 1040, reconciled with him and obtained the revocation of his excommunication. |
The tomb of Aribert is located in the first span of the right aisle of Milan Cathedral. The archbishop's sarcophagus is surmounted by a copy of the famous crucifix in gilded copper foil (the original is located in the museum of Milan Cathedral) originally donated by Aribert to the monastery of San Dionigi, a convent which was later demolished in 1783. |
A reproduction of the cross of Aribert is also one of the symbols of victory at the Palio di Legnano. The historical re-enactment takes place every year on the last Sunday of May and concludes with a horse race between the eight "contrade" Legnanesi: the contrada winner of the competition exposes the cross for a whole year in its own church of reference until the next edition of the prize. |
= = = Tomax and Xamot = = = |
Tomax and Xamot Paoli (also called the Crimson Twins or Crimson Guard Commanders) are fictional characters from the "" toyline, comic books and animated series. They are the co-leaders of Cobra's elite troops, the Crimson Guard, and debuted in 1985. Their preliminary names were Movat and Tovam respectively. |
The Paoli brothers speak in notable accents which show they are from Corsica. The brothers were at some point members of the Unione Corse (Corsican Brotherhood), served in the French Foreign Legion's 1REP in Algeria, then as mercenaries in Africa (Congo, southern Africa) and South America, before changing careers and becoming bankers in Zurich, Switzerland. Unhappy with the world of corporate finance, the brothers found the opportunities available in international terrorism far more suited to their abilities, and joined Cobra. Their specialties are in infiltration, espionage (military and industrial), sabotage, propaganda, and corporate law. |
Like the Crimson Guard that they lead, Xamot and Tomax also lead the "respectable" corporate face of Cobra as the founders, owners, and CEOs of Extensive Enterprises. When not engaged in terrorism, they efficiently manage Cobra's business affairs in shirt and tie. Their preferred mode of attack is through brains over brawn, using the law to serve the purposes of Cobra. They have covered their paper trail and connection to Cobra so well, that it is thought to be impossible to prove a connection between them and the terrorist organization. |
The twin brothers are mirror images of each other; Tomax's hair is parted on the right side of his head and Xamot's on the left;, the piping on their uniforms goes up the opposite side on each twin; the brothers' names are mirror images of one another. The only distinguishing mark between the two is a scar on Xamot's right cheek. Tomax and Xamot share an empathic connection commonly known as "The Corsican Syndrome" in which identical twins are believed to be psychically bonded, in a manner similar to The Corsican Brothers. While this is often useful, as it allows them to communicate wordlessly, finish each other's sentences, and speak in unison, it is also a liability as they feel each other's pain. |
Tomax and Xamot were first released as action figures in 1985. Included in their package were laser pistols and a zip-line with skyhook. |
The filecards for the 2008 version of the figures list their last name as Rogue. |
In the Marvel Comics "G.I. Joe" series, the twins first appeared in "" #37 (July 1985). They fight G.I. Joe forces throughout a busy amusement park, attempting to ambush Gung-Ho and Blowtorch. They are defeated when the Joes play "possum"; the Twins don't realize the amusement park's ride has stopped their machine gun fire. |
Their forces, the Crimson Guard, are shown as capable battlefield soldiers and respectable businessmen. As the latter, they are to gain as much economic influence as possible, solely for the benefit of Cobra. |
A Joe team, assisted by Sierra Gordo revolutionaries, assaults a Cobra fortress, one of many in a style called Terror Drome. During the confrontations, the twins man a helicopter gunship and badly injure Stalker. Other Joes destroy the helicopter but the twins (and Stalker) survive. Later, the Joes completely take the fortress. Having prepared, Tomax and Xamot purposely wait until the Joes are inside before attempting to activate several explosive devices. This fails, as the Joes had brought their own explosive expert, Tripwire. |
In issue #109, the Twins and their forces do capture a squad of Joe members. They misinterpret an order from Cobra Commander and incorrectly believe that they must now execute all the Joes. While they are unwilling to outright kill the subdued prisoners, a S.A.W. Viper willingly fires into the prisoners, killing Doc, Heavy Metal, Crankcase and Thunder. The survivors injure the Viper with a hidden knife and escape. In the ensuing pursuit, the prisoners commandeer a Cobra vehicle, which is fired upon by other Cobra forces. Breaker, Crazylegs and Quick Kick are killed while the survivors make it back to Joe territory. |
Years later, in the Devil's Due series, the Twins fall under the influence of Destro's son, who has infected them with multi-function nanites. Their businesses still continue, such as working with Ripper to promote his soda company. After the nanite threat is neutralized, the twins activate Crimson Guardsmen in order to provide support to the now-free Cobra Commander. |
They continue to broker most deals for Cobra. The twins lead the unsuccessful hunt for the Cobra Island Joe infiltrator, "Barrel Roll", and were in charge of the secret construction of Monolith Base in Badhikstan, but after G.I. Joe raided the base, they fled with Cobra Commander to a cave. There, Red Shadows agent Dela Eden arrived and unleashed gunfire on the group. |
In the "G.I. Joe Special Missions: Antarctica" one-shot, a Joe team broke up an illegal oil drilling operation that was run by Tomax, who was able to escape. During the story, Xamot was strangely absent. In one scene Tomax talked to his brother as if he were present, despite the scene showing an empty chair. The whereabouts of Xamot were revealed in another story in the same issue, when G.I. Joe raided a Cobra medical facility and found Xamot, in a coma and unresponsive (presumably from the Red Shadows attack). Xamot is then held in G.I. Joe custody, still in a coma. |
Some months later, Tomax leads a raid on "The Coffin", a G.I. Joe maximum-security prison located in Greenland, to rescue his brother and free other Cobra operatives. He successfully frees his brother and several other Cobra agents. Off panel, the invading Cobra forces cause the death of 'loose ends' held at the Coffin, including Cobra operatives Monkeywrench and Dr. Biggles-Jones. Tomax and Xamot are captured by the Joes in the final battle with Cobra. Both are sent to the Coffin. |
Tomax and Xamot also appeared in the second "G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers" mini-series by Devil's Due. In it, Tomax and Xamot had used Cybertronian technology to become human-looking cyborgs who, when touching each other, shoot a massive blast. In order to avoid them using that power, Shockwave kills Xamot. Tomax later appears, grieving. |
In this new IDW continuity, Tomax and Xamot are revealed to be French and originally part of the Unione Corse. They set up their security company Extensive Enterprises, which was co-opted by Cobra; while Tomax enjoys being part of Cobra, he is unaware Xamot has become disgruntled and no longer trusts his brother. Xamot is badly beaten by Chuckles, who then self-destructs a nuclear missile payload on board a Cobra submarine, sacrificing himself and Xamot in the process. Tomax survives. |
Tomax eventually cuts a deal with GI Joe, offering to use his resources through Extensive Enterprises, to help the group find members of Cobra for captured. As part of the deal, Tomax was allowed to operate a casino in Las Vegas to create a cover that he was still involved in criminal activities, under the watchful eyes of Flint. |
Tomax and Xamot are first introduced in the "" miniseries "Pyramid of Darkness". They appear as the commanders of the Crimson Guard, as well as the heads of Extensive Enterprises. Unlike the comics, the twins in the cartoon were often cagey, self-interested, and eager to seize power for themselves, although they garner little support from other Cobra members, and their attempts are usually quashed by Cobra Commander. They share a psychic link, and feel one another's pain, which the Joes use to their advantage several times in battle. When the two are together and speaking, they speak in tandem, often finishing each other's sentences. |
At the beginning of the second season, Tomax and Xamot join Doctor Mindbender and Destro in creating Serpentor, also having grown tired of Cobra Commander's failures. But as soon as Serpentor is brought to life and orders his attack and invasion of the United States, Tomax and Xamot are the first to point out the sheer impossibility of such an attack. Their objections are quickly silenced however when Serpentor begins to throttle them. |
In the un-produced third season of the original Sunbow/Marvel series, Tomax and Xamot were planned to be the season's main villains, with most of Cobra-La and the Cobra Organization being destroyed at the end of the film. Tomax and Xamot would then form a new criminal organization known as "the Coil" to fight against the Joes. This season never went into production due to the abrupt cancellation of the series by Hasbro. |
In the cartoon, Tomax was voiced by Corey Burton and Xamot by Michael Bell. |