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Decomposing subject retrieval: Diverging interference profiles for agreement and thematic dependencies in English
No full textThe resolution of long-distance dependencies is mediated by both grammatical knowledge and domain-general working memory systems. Much previous work has investigated how and whether such memory operations are fine-tuned to the grammatical requirements of various linguistic dependencies. The present study recenters this issue in the context of two subject-verb dependencies with distinct grammatical functions: agreement, involving the checking of matching morphosyntactic features, and thematic binding, involving the fulfilment of argument-structure requirements. In one speeded acceptability judgment experiment and three self-paced reading experiments, we examine the online and offline profiles of dependency resolution for agreement and thematic binding in English. Experimental items in each experiment utilized ditransitive alternations to introduce several distractors intervening between the subject-verb dependency. Our results indicate that agreement is highly susceptible to interference from distractors which are syntactically dissimilar to the retrieval target but morphologically compatible with the retrieval probe. However, thematic binding is more restrictive, with interference only arising from distractors maximally similar to the retrieval target. Together, these results motivate a view of subject-verb dependency resolution in which the distinct grammatical functions of agreement and thematic binding yield distinct retrieval operations, despite targeting an identical constituent. We discuss the consequences of these interference profiles for models of cue-based retrieval and interference, whereby subject retrieval is decomposed into multiple retrievals relativized to the features most reliable for executing distinct grammatical functions
Competition, concurrence, and cooperation between external and internal attention
No full textAttention can be selectively directed to both external sensory inputs and internally generated representations. The relationship between these external and internal attentional states is not fixed but varies between competition, concurrence, and cooperation. However, the conditions that allow for each of these relationships to occur remain poorly understood. We distinguish between the level of brain states and behavior and synthesize evidence for each of these relationships at both levels. Our review shows that shared, capacity-limited mechanisms and opposing computational modes (e.g., encoding vs. retrieval) often produce competitive dynamics, particularly in the presence of simultaneous and incompatible demands. At the same time, several studies have revealed partially independent substrates that permit concurrent selection of internal and external information, especially when controlled, intentional processing is not required. More recently, researcher have started exploring conditions under which external and internal can support or facilitate each other, enabling cooperative integration in the service of a single goal. We argue that task demands, degree of control, representational overlap, and the considered timescale jointly determine whether external and internal attention compete, co-occur, or cooperate, and we outline key directions for future work aimed at a more nuanced understanding of how these states jointly shape cognition
Similarities (and differences) in the learning patterns of single word reading in monolingual and bilingual primary school children: A cross-sectional study
No full textBackground/Objectives: With the increasing flux of migration, children speaking a home language different from the language of school literacy is becoming a common phenomenon in education. In this context, monitoring reading development in the target language becomes crucial to inform both educational and clinical centres and ensure equitable service. We contribute by investigating learning patterns across school grades in single-word reading in monolingual and bilingual children learning to read in Italian.
Methods: The sample consisted of 565 typically developing monolingual and bilingual primary school children from grades 1-5 (bilinguals = 162). Participants were tested on a computerised Lexical Decision task (LDT) recording accuracy and response times, and on standardised tests of reading and cognition. A parental questionnaire collected socio-demographic and linguistic characteristics of the children.
Results: Response bias-corrected accuracy rates in LDT revealed an increase in sensitivity across school years, after correcting for potential confounds (vocabulary, cognition, bilingual variables). No significant effect of bilingualism was observed. A consistent decrease in response times for correct responses was also reported, after correcting for potential confounds. Here, no significant main effect of bilingualism was observed, but an interaction with grade revealed a greater decrease of response times for second-grade bilinguals compared to monolingual peers.
Conclusions: Monolingual and bilingual children show comparable sensitivity rates and reading times, suggesting similar achievements in the acquisition of decoding skills. An earlier decrease of response times for bilinguals points to a facilitatory effect in the early stages of bilinguals’ development, consistent with an advantage during skill learning
The neonatal brain at rest: a systematic review of task-free functional connectivity in the first 100 days
No full textOver the first 100 days post-partum human brain functions may undergo rapid changes, with plasticity peaking. Studies of task-free functional connectivity (FC) during this period provide a window into early brain organization. Despite growing interest, no systematic review has synthesized findings specifically from this period.
We address this gap by reviewing 103 studies examining FC in the neonate brain at rest. Summarised evidence indicates a remarkable degree of both specificity and individual variability in brain function. Neonatal networks exhibit small-world topology with strong local clustering and emerging long-range integration. Sensorimotor, visual, and auditory networks form robust interconnected hubs, supported by structure-function coupling via local myelination and subcortical scaffolding. Early development involves strengthening interhemispheric and long-range connections and increasing network modularity. Higher-order networks (default mode, frontoparietal, salience) are identifiable but less segregated, reflecting their reliance on pathways that are still developing structurally and functionally. Despite these group-level patterns, substantial interindividual variability exists, shaped by both infant- and context-related influences.
We discuss these findings within frameworks of Interactive Specialization and experience-dependent learning. We propose that early FC provides intrinsic pre-training for learning and that structure and function co-develop through reciprocal interactions shaped by coordinated activity across subcortical and cortical networks, and early experiences. Adopting a perspective in which intrinsic FC, structural changes, and environmental influences are deeply intertwined, we highlight the need for multimodal longitudinal studies to clarify how such coupled processes shape later developmental trajectories
Minimal Viable AI Governance (MV-AIG): Execution-Based AI Governance
No full textMinimal Viable AI Governance (MV-AIG) defines an execution-based architecture for trustworthy AI systems.
MV-AIG establishes governance as a structural system in which authority is validated at execution time, admissibility is deterministically resolved at execution boundaries, and evidence is produced as a property of execution.
The framework introduces execution-bound enforcement as a structural requirement for AI governance and defines the minimal components required for deterministic and verifiable control of AI agents and automated systems.
MV-AIG consists of four structural layers:
• Identity Layer – defines admissible actors and credentials
• Policy Layer – defines admissible behavior and constraints
• Enforcement Layer – validates admissibility at execution boundaries
• Evidence Layer – produces admissibility evidence as a property of execution
Structural AI governance exists only prior to irreversible state transitions; after commit, governance becomes evidentiary rather than controlling.
This project hosts MV-AIG whitepapers, architectural specifications, and supporting technical materials
Pulsed Thulium:YAG Laser Enucleation of the Prostate: a Systematic Review
No full textThe current systematic review investigates whether the novel pulsed Thulium:YAG lasers are safe and efficient for Endoscopic Enucleation of the Prostate (EEP)
Zero-Field: Extremism, Collapse, and the Structural Consequences of Semantic Null States
No full textThis registration documents Zero-Field as a phenomenal structural condition in which a system’s semantic field collapses toward minimal internal differentiation, producing extremism, rigidity, and paradoxical stability.
The framework treats Zero-Field not as an ideological, moral, or psychological state, but as an observable consequence of structural compression within meaning-bearing systems. It describes how prolonged coherence, boundary closure, and representational compression can eliminate intermediate semantic variation, resulting in polarized or absolute configurations without requiring intentional radicalization or normative commitment.
This work is theoretical and conceptual in nature. It does not propose empirical hypotheses, causal claims, diagnostic criteria, or intervention strategies. Zero-Field is articulated as a descriptive field state rather than a generative ontology or a comprehensive account of social, cultural, or political dynamics.
Although developed within the Meta-Writing Ecology, Zero-Field is presented here as an independent theoretical object. This registration serves as a stable, citable anchor for Version 0.1 of the framework, intended to support structural analysis of semantic collapse phenomena without constraining subsequent theoretical development or applied interpretation
Impact of baseline severity on effect sizes in digital interventions for eating disorders: meta-regression
No full textWe will examine whether baseline severity interacts to predict effect sizes in digital interventions for eating disorders. We will using existing data from a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials to see if markers of baseline severity of the sample are associated with the post-test effect size comparing digital interventions to control groups