Dynamic expectations: Behavioral and electrophysiological evidence of sub-second updates in reward predictions.

Expectations are often dynamic: sports fans know that expectations are rapidly updated as games unfold. Yet expectations have traditionally been studied as static. Here we present behavioral and electrophysiological evidence of sub-second changes in expectations using slot machines as a case study.

Music can be reconstructed from human auditory cortex activity using nonlinear decoding models.

Music is core to human experience, yet the precise neural dynamics underlying music perception remain unknown. We analyzed a unique intracranial electroencephalography (iEEG) dataset of 29 patients who listened to a Pink Floyd song and applied a stimulus reconstruction approach previously used in the speech domain. We successfully reconstructed a recognizable song from direct neural recordings and quantified the impact of different factors on decoding accuracy.

Electrophysiological signatures of inequity-dependent reward encoding in the human OFC.

Social decision making requires the integration of reward valuation and social cognition systems, both dependent on the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC). How these two OFC functions interact is largely unknown. We recorded intracranial activity from the OFC of ten patients making choices in a social context where reward inequity with a social counterpart varied and could be either advantageous or disadvantageous.

Dynamic expectations: Behavioral and electrophysiological evidence of sub-second updates in reward predictions.

Expectations are often dynamic: any sports fan knows that expectations are rapidly updated as games unfold. Yet expectations have traditionally been studied as static. Here, using slot machines as a case study, we provide parallel behavioral and electrophysiological evidence of sub-second moment-to-moment changes in expectations.

Gender bias in academia: A lifetime problem that needs solutions.

Despite increased awareness of the lack of gender equity in academia and a growing number of initiatives to address issues of diversity, change is slow, and inequalities remain. A major source of inequity is gender bias, which has a substantial negative impact on the careers, work-life balance, and mental health of underrepresented groups in science. Here, we argue that gender bias is not a single problem but manifests as a collection of distinct issues that impact researchers' lives.

Alternative outcomes create biased expectations regarding the received outcome: Evidence from event-related potentials.

After choosing between uncertain options, one might get feedback on both the outcome of the chosen option and the outcome of the unchosen option (the alternative). Behavioral research has shown that in such cases people engage in outcome comparison, and that the alternative outcome influences the way one evaluates his own received outcome. Moreover, this influence differs whether one was responsible or not for the choice made.

LPS induces the interaction of a transcription factor, LPS-induced TNF-alpha factor, and STAT6(B) with effects on multiple cytokines.

TNF-alpha is a pivotal cytokine whose overproduction can be lethal. Previously, we identified a transcription factor, LPS-induced TNF-alpha factor (LITAF), that regulates TNF-alpha transcription. We now report the discovery and characterization of a regulatory cofactor that we call signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) 6(B) because of its considerable homology to STAT6 [here referred to as STAT6(A)].