Language interpretation is often assumed to be incremental. However, our studies of quantifier expressions in isolated sentences found N400 event-related brain potential (ERP) evidence for partial but not full immediate quantifier interpretation (Urbach & Kutas, 2010). Here we tested similar quantifier expressions in pragmatically supporting discourse contexts (//) while participants made plausibility judgments (Experiment 1) or read for comprehension (Experiment 2). Control Experiments 3A (plausibility) and 3B (comprehension) removed the discourse contexts. Quantifiers always modulated typical and/or atypical word N400 amplitudes. However, only the real-time N400 effects only in Experiment 2 mirrored offline quantifier and typicality crossover interaction effects for plausibility ratings and cloze probabilities. We conclude that quantifier expressions be interpreted fully and immediately, though pragmatic and task variables appear to impact the speed and/or depth of quantifier interpretation.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4438783 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jml.2015.03.010 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
IRescue: uncertainty-aware quantification of transposable elements expression at single cell level.
Nucleic Acids Res
October 2024
INGM, Istituto Nazionale di Genetica Molecolare 'Romeo ed Enrica Invernizzi', Milan, Italy.
Transposable elements (TEs) are mobile DNA repeats known to shape the evolution of eukaryotic genomes. In complex organisms, they exhibit tissue-specific transcription. However, understanding their role in cellular diversity across most tissues remains a challenge, when employing single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq), due to their widespread presence and genetic similarity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGesture size affects numerical estimates in quantifier comprehension.
J Exp Psychol Learn Mem Cogn
September 2024
Department of Linguistics and Communication, University of Birmingham.
People think and talk about numerical magnitude in terms of space, and co-speech gestures reflect this, with English speakers using expansive gestures when talking about greater quantities. Existing gestural research on the spatial conceptualization of number has largely looked at gesture production, but we do not know whether gestures can influence the interpretation of imprecise or underspecified numerical expressions such as quantifiers. Looking at the quantifier as a test case, this study investigates the influence of manual inwards-directed (i.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGeometric mapping from rectilinear material orthotropy to isotropy: Insights into plates and shells.
Phys Rev E
December 2023
Institute for Fundamental Science and Department of Physics, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon 97403, USA.
Orthotropic shell structures are ubiquitous in biology and engineering, from bacterial cell walls to reinforced domes. We present a rescaling transformation that maps an orthotropic shallow shell to an isotropic one with a different local geometry. The mapping is applicable to any shell section for which the material orthotropy directions match the principal curvature directions, assuming the commonly used Huber form for the orthotropic shear modulus.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTwo-beam states obtained by partial photon-number-resolving detection in one beam of a multi-mode twin beam are experimentally investigated using an intensified CCD camera. In these states, sub-Poissonian photon-number distributions in one beam are accompanied by sub-shot-noise fluctuations in the photon-number difference of both beams. Multi-mode character of the twin beam implying the beam nearly Poissonian statistics is critical for reaching sub-Poissonian photon-number distributions, which contrasts with the use of a two-mode squeezed vacuum state.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInvestigating the biosynthesis and metabolism of 11β-hydroxyandrostenedione.
Methods Enzymol
November 2023
Department of Biochemistry, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch, South Africa.
The "rediscovery" 11β-hydroxyandrostenedione (11OHA4) placed the spotlight on this unique adrenal-derived hormone with researchers and clinicians once again focusing on the steroid's presence in endocrine pathology. Little was known about the steroid other than its chemical characterisation and that a mitochondrial cytochrome P450 enzyme catalysed the 11β-hydroxylation of 11OHA4. The fact that neither the biosynthesis nor metabolism of 11OHA4 had been fully characterised presented an ideal opportunity to investigate the metabolic pathways.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWant AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!