In the masked priming paradigm, responses to a target are faster if the prime and target are identical (repetition priming). Forster (submitted) provides evidence that repetition priming consists of a semantic component, due to the shared meaning of the prime and target, and an orthographic component, due to the shared letters. When an unmasked unrelated word intervenes between the prime and target, repetition priming was reduced, but orthographic priming was unaffected. When this intervener was masked, repetition priming was reduced whereas orthographic priming was eliminated. The unmasked intervener may block a semantic component of priming, and a masked intervener blocks the orthographic component. Experiment 1 replicated Forster’s results and confirmed the results were not due to an SOA confound. Experiment 2 included semantically-related primes in an attempt to examine the intervener’s effect on semantic priming, however, our materials did not yield semantic priming even when no intervener was present.

This study investigates how Persian compound verbs are processed in the mental lexicon, through which we can infer how they are stored, organized, and accessed. The study focuses on investigating Persian compound verbs in light of psycholinguistic theories on polymorphemic word processing as well as linguistic theories of complex predicates. The psycholinguistic section details three experiments addressing the following three research questions: (1) whether compound verb constituents show significant priming in the masked-priming paradigm; (2) whether priming effects are constrained by semantic transparency; and (3) whether priming effects are due to morphological relatedness. This study revealed several findings: (1) compound verbs in Persian are decomposed into their constituents at early stages of processing, (2) at early stages of processing, decomposition is based on purely orthographic similarity, (3) although both transparent and opaque compound constituents were facilitated while processing, transparency had an impact on processing in the early stages of processing. Finally, the findings seem to support a parallel input effect or competing alternative effect for the verbal constituent of the transparent compound verb, as reflected in the slower facilitation for the verbal constituent compared to the nominal constituent. In theoretical studies on Persian complex predicates, the compound verb formation can be either lexical or syntactic. The overall evidence reflected in the linguistic data for Persian complex predicates presented in this dissertation as well as the results of the experimental studies carried out in this research seem to point towards lexical compounding in Persian compound verb formation. The evidence comes from (1) the nominalization of the compound, i.e. the possibility of using the compound verb as a noun; (2) the atelicity feature, i.e. the possibility of using the compound verb after the progressive expression dar haale ‘in the process of’, which indicates an incomplete action; and (3) the nonreferentiality of the nominal constituent in the compound verb, i.e. the nominal constituent cannot be followed by a pronoun that refers to it. On the other hand, the results of the experimental studies reported in this dissertation seem to support a lexical approach to compound verbs in Persian. The technique used in these experimental studies was masked priming paradigm, which investigates the prelexical and lexical processing. The results reveal constituent priming effects under masked priming technique. This indicates that Persian compound verb constituents are accessed at the prelexical stage of processing. Syntactic calculations are said to be done at later stages of processing. Therefore, the early processing of compound verb constituents leads us to the argument for the lexicality of Persian compound verbs.

In the masked priming paradigm, responses to a target are faster if the prime and target are identical (repetition priming). Forster (submitted) provides evidence that repetition priming consists of a semantic component, due to the shared meaning of the prime and target, and an orthographic component, due to the shared letters. When an unmasked unrelated word intervenes between the prime and target, repetition priming was reduced, but orthographic priming was unaffected. When this intervener was masked, repetition priming was reduced whereas orthographic priming was eliminated. The unmasked intervener may block a semantic component of priming, and a masked intervener blocks the orthographic component. Experiment 1 replicated Forster’s results and confirmed the results were not due to an SOA confound. Experiment 2 included semantically-related primes in an attempt to examine the intervener’s effect on semantic priming, however, our materials did not yield semantic priming even when no intervener was present.

Trots den omfattande forskning som utförts om både priming och emotioner, och relationen dem emellan, finns det ännu idag anledning att fortsätta söka fördjupa förståelsen av hur emotionell priming processeras i hjärnan. Den aktuella studien har ämnat utgöra en liten men relevant del av neuropsykologins kontinuerliga arbete med att underbygga fortsatta framsteg och fördjupad förståelse om hur människans hjärna arbetar. Experiment med emotionell priming har genomförts, för att med EEG-mätningar undersöka hjärnans reaktioner. Studiens resultat uppvisar en neurologisk skillnad mellan hur hjärnan reagerar på leende ansikten jämfört med neutrala ansikten. Däremot kunde ingen primingeffekt påvisas vid upprepade tester, vilket skulle kunna tyda på att priming inte sker på neurologisk nivå utan kräver någon form av medveten eller omedveten kognitiv aktivering för att ha någon effekt. / Despite the extensive research conducted on both priming and emotions, and the relationship between them, there is still reason to further seek to deepen our understanding of how emotional priming is processed in the brain. The current study aimed to be a small but relevant part of neuropsychology's ongoing work in supporting continued progress and in-depth understanding of how the human brain works. Experiments with emotional priming have been carried out to examine the brain's reactions with EEG measurements. The results of the study show a neurological difference between how the brain reacts to smiling faces versus neutral faces. However, no priming effect could be detected in repeated tests, which could indicate that priming does not occur at the neurological level but requires some form of conscious or unconscious cognitive activation to have an effect.

The aim of this thesis was to assess the effect of root exudates on the biodegradability of dissolved organic matter. The experiment was done in laboratory conditions, using the dissolved organic matter sampled in a spruce swamp forest located in Šumava National Park and an artificial mixture of root exudates prepared according to known composition of root exudates released by peatland plants. Main hypothesis was that the input of root exudates into the peatland pore water will affect decomposition of less-degradable dissolved organic matter, with the resulting effect dependent on the quantity and quality (C:N ratio) of the input.

Le priming effect (PE) est la sur-minéralisation de la matière organique du sol (MOS) après un apport de matière organique fraiche. Ce phénomène serait généré par deux mécanismes distincts, la décomposition stœchiométrique et le « nutrient mining », ayant leur propre dynamique, leurs propres acteurs, leurs propres déterminants et leur propre stock de MO ciblés. Le premier serait plutôt lié à la séquestration de MO dans les sols et l’autre à sa déstabilisation. Comprendre comment piloter l’équilibre entre ces processus à travers les pratiques agricoles, permettrait d’améliorer durablement la fertilité des sols cultivés en milieu tropical dans un contexte de changement climatique. Pour identifier les déterminants, les acteurs et les effets du climat et des pratiques agricoles sur les différents processus générateurs de PE, nous avons combiné la caractérisation physicochimique des sols, la caractérisation des communautés microbiennes et le suivi de la minéralisation des MO par les techniques isotopiques. Ainsi, nous avons pu identifier différentes populations bactériennes et fongiques, associées à chacun des processus, que nous avons classées dans des guildes fonctionnelles. La taille de ces guildes déterminait l’équilibre entre les processus, et était corrélée à la qualité de la MO présente dans le sol. Plus précisément, nous avons montré que le PE stœchiométrique était favorisé dans les sols enrichis en matière organique peu évoluée et en nutriments N et P, entretenant donc une forte communauté de décomposeurs. Ces décomposeurs devaient ainsi limiter l’accès des mineurs à la nouvelle matière organique fraichement apportée et limiter le PE par « nutrient mining ». Sur parcelles agricoles, nos résultats suggéraient que le non labour, l’association légumineuses-céréales, et l’apport de compost favorisaient ces décomposeurs responsables du priming effect stœchiométrique et donc potentiellement la stabilisation durable de la matière organique dans les sols. / The priming effect (PE) is the supplementary mineralization of soil organic matter (MOS) after the addition of fresh organic matter. This phenomenon would be generated by two distinct mechanisms, stoichiometric decomposition and "nutrient mining", having their own dynamics, their own actors, their own determinants and their own MO stock targeted. The first would be related to the sequestration of MO in the soil and the other to its destabilization. Understanding how to manage the balance between these processes through agricultural practices, would allow to improve the fertility of soil cultivated in a tropical environment in a context of climate change.To identify the determinants, actors and effects of climate and agricultural practices on the various processes generating PE, we have combined soil physicochemical characterization, characterization of microbial communities and monitoring of mineralization of MO by isotopic techniques. Thus, we were able to identify different bacterial and fungal populations, associated with processes, which we classified in the functional guilds. The size of these guilds determined the balance between the processes, and was correlated with the quality of the MO present in the soil. Specifically, we showed that stoichiometric PE was favored in soils enriched with high quality organic matter and nutrients, N and P, thus maintaining a strong community of decomposers. These decomposers also limit the access of miners to the provided new organic matter hence limiting PE by "nutrient extraction". On agricultural plots, our results suggest that non-tillage, legume-cereal rotations and compost amendments favor these decomposers responsible for the stoichiometric priming effect and thus potentially the long-term stabilization of organic matter in soils.

abstract: As the desire for innovation increases, individuals and companies seek reliable ways to encourage their creative side. There are many office superstitions about how creativity works, but few are based on psychological science and even fewer have been tested empirically. One of the most prevalent superstitions is the use of objects to inspire creativity or even make a creative room. It is important to test this kind of notion so workplaces can find reliable ways to be innovative, but also because psychology lacks a breadth of literature on how environmental cues interact with people to shape their mental state. This experiment seeks to examine those gaps and fill in the next steps needed for examining at how multiple objects prime creativity. Participants completed two creativity tasks: one for idea generation and one that relies on insight problem solving, the Remote Association Task. There were four priming conditions that relied on objects: a zero object condition, a four neutral (office) objects condition, a single artistic object condition, and finally a four artistic objects condition. There were no differences found between groups for either type of task or in mood or artistic experience. The number of years a participant spent in the United States, however, did correlate with mood, idea generation scores, and insight problem scores. This potentially demonstrates that performance on idea generation and insight tasks rely on the tasks created and culture. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.S. Applied Psychology 2013

A Cardiomiopatia Chagásica Crônica (CCC) é o elemento mórbido mais importante da Doença de Chagas e sua elucidação se tornou fundamental. Estudos da imunologia da CCC demonstram que o sistema imune desempenha um papel duplo no curso da doença, agindo de forma a controlar as formas parasitárias e ainda promovendo lesão tissular. Porém, pouco se sabe do papel das células estruturais, tais como os cardiomiócitos, no curso da doença. Sabe-se que, em outras patologias cardíacas, o IFN-γ, citocina produzida em abundância no coração dos pacientes com CCC, determina o priming de diversas populações celulares, modulando positivamente a sua resposta. Cardiomiócitos HL-1 e animais C3H/HePas foram primados com IFN-γ e desafiados com LPS para a dosagem de citocinas, simulando quadro agudo e crônico de infecção. Neste trabalho, determinamos que o IFN-γ modula positivamente a produção de diversas citocinas in vitro por células HL-1 (IP-10, MCP-1, G-CSF, RANTES, MIG, IL-6, MIF) e também in vivo no coração (IP-10, KC, G-CSF, LIF e IL-6). Além disso, in vitro, o IFN-γ foi capaz de diminuir a produção de VEGF e GM-CSF em relação aos grupos tratados apenas com LPS. Os dados corroboram a literatura e permitem concluir que os cardiomiócitos são capazes de participar ativamente da resposta inflamatória no coração e que são sensíveis aos produtos da mesma. O trabalho serve ainda de base para novos estudos sobre o perfil de citocinas expressas no coração no curso da infecção por T. cruzi e como os cardiomiócitos participam da resposta inflamatória em questão. / Chronic Chagasic Cardiomyopathy (CCC) is the most morbid element of Chagas Disease, the elucidation of its physiopathology being fundamental. However, little is known about the role of structural cells, such as cardiomyocytes, in the course of the disease. In other cardiac pathologies, it has been shown that IFN-γ determines the priming of several resident populations, positively modulating their response. In this work, HL-1 cardiomyocytes and C3H/HePas mice were primed with IFN-γ (in brief or extended protocols) and challenged with LPS, the cytokines produced being measured in the supernatants. We observed that IFN-γ positively modulates the in vitro production of many cytokines by HL-1 cells (IP-10, MCP-1, G- CSF, RANTES, MIG, IL-6, MIF) and also their in vivo production at the heart (IP-10, KC, G-CSF, LIF and IL-6). Besides, IFN-γ was able to decrease the LPS-induced production of VEGF and GM-CSF by HL-1 cells. Our data allow us to conclude that cardiomyocytes actively participate in the inflammatory response of the heart, being sensitive to products released by professional immune cells. This work may serve as a basis for further studies on the profile of the cytokines secreted in the heart tissue along the course of cardiac inflammation.

Há consenso que a presença abundante de alimentos altamente calóricos contribui para o aumento do sobrepeso e obesidade nas populações. Considerada uma epidemia pela Organização Mundial da Saúde (OMS), este problema de saúde pública tem atraído a atenção de governos, gerando metas globais para combater o problema. O sobrepeso e obesidade não somente representam um problema social, como também afetam o bem-estar do próprio indivíduo. Pesquisas multidisciplinares nas áreas de psicologia, comportamento do consumidor, nutrição, medicina, e outros campos de interesse, desenvolveram teorias na tentativa de explicar as razões pelas quais os indivíduos - mesmo cientes dos malefícios - falham no controle de peso em certas ocasiões. Baseado na teoria do conflito de objetivos no comportamento alimentar e goal priming, estudos mostram relativo sucesso no uso de diet reminders como intervenção situacional, reativando os objetivos de redução de peso e suprimindo o prazer do consumo imediato para indivíduos em restrição calórica. Em outra iniciativa, seguindo nesta mesma linha, a britânica Royal Society for Public Health promoveu recentemente uma larga discussão na mídia sobre a inserção de activity equivalent labels nos rótulos de alimentos para mostrar aos consumidores o quanto devem se exercitar para compensar o ganho calórico. Entretanto, estas duas iniciativas recentes ainda apresentam pouco suporte empírico, e pesquisadores da área clamam por mais estudos. Um estudo experimental utilizando ambos os métodos e promovendo o avanço do conhecimento nesta área, foi aplicado em laboratório, simulando escolhas reais por meio do menu de uma conhecida rede de fast-food. Quatro tipos de estímulos (nenhuma informação, somente calorias, diet reminders e activity equivalent label) foram testadas em mais de quinhentos indivíduos. Utilizando-se primordialmente análises de covariâncias (ANCOVAs) para reduzir a interferência de outros efeitos, os resultados sugerem significativa redução de calorias devido ao efeito de goal priming. Adicionalmente, um achado inédito sugere que os efeitos do activity equivalent label podem potencializar a redução do consumo em indivíduos que praticam atividades físicas regulares. Este é o primeiro estudo experimental que une e compara estes dois tipos de intervenção - diet reminders e activity equivalent label-, contribuindo para o avanço teórico sobre o uso do goal priming como incentivo aos comportamentos alimentares saudáveis. Além disso, o estudo traz relevante contribuição gerencial, principalmente no auxílio da tomada de decisão envolvendo políticas públicas. / There is a common understanding that ample availability of high caloric food contributes to an increase in excessive weight and obesity among populations. Considered an epidemic by the World Health Organization (WHO), this health issue has caught the attention of governments and led to the creation of global aims to fight the problem. Excessive weight and obesity not only represent social issues, but also affect individual well-being. Multidisciplinary research in psychology, consumer behavior, nutrition, medicine, and other fields of interest have posited theories trying to explain why individuals-even those aware of the harm-fail to control their weight in certain instances. Based on the theories of goal conflict model of eating behavior and of goal priming, studies have suggested relative success using diet-reminders as a useful situational intervention in reactivating weight-loss goal, as well as suppressing thoughts associated with food pleasure right at the time of consumption for restrained eaters. In another initiative studying the same issue, the British Royal Society for Public Health promoted ample discussion on media regarding the adoption of activity-equivalent labels on food-packaging in order to show consumers how much exercise they needed to burn intaken calories. However, both initiatives have gathered little empirical evidence of their efficiency and researchers are now claiming for more studies on the issue. An experiment using both methods and further advancing knowledge in this field, has been conducted in a laboratory simulating the real set of menu choices available at a well-known fast-food chain. Four experimental types of stimulus (no information given, amount of calories, diet reminders, and activity equivalent labels) were defined and tested on more than five hundred individuals. Using analysis of covariances (ANCOVAs) to reduce the noise of other variables, results have suggested a significant reduction on the amount of calories ordered from the menu due to goal priming effects. Additionally, a new finding suggests activity equivalent labels may potentialize a reduction of calorie-intake in restrained eaters who also exercise regularly. This is the first experiment combining and comparing both types of intervention - diet reminders and activity equivalent labels -, and advancing knowledge regarding the use of goal priming to promote healthy eating behaviors. Furthermore, this study has managerial implications, especially in the form of an insight for public policies regarding decision-behavior.

This study investigates how Persian compound verbs are processed in the mental lexicon, through which we can infer how they are stored, organized, and accessed. The study focuses on investigating Persian compound verbs in light of psycholinguistic theories on polymorphemic word processing as well as linguistic theories of complex predicates. The psycholinguistic section details three experiments addressing the following three research questions: (1) whether compound verb constituents show significant priming in the masked-priming paradigm; (2) whether priming effects are constrained by semantic transparency; and (3) whether priming effects are due to morphological relatedness. This study revealed several findings: (1) compound verbs in Persian are decomposed into their constituents at early stages of processing, (2) at early stages of processing, decomposition is based on purely orthographic similarity, (3) although both transparent and opaque compound constituents were facilitated while processing, transparency had an impact on processing in the early stages of processing. Finally, the findings seem to support a parallel input effect or competing alternative effect for the verbal constituent of the transparent compound verb, as reflected in the slower facilitation for the verbal constituent compared to the nominal constituent. In theoretical studies on Persian complex predicates, the compound verb formation can be either lexical or syntactic. The overall evidence reflected in the linguistic data for Persian complex predicates presented in this dissertation as well as the results of the experimental studies carried out in this research seem to point towards lexical compounding in Persian compound verb formation. The evidence comes from (1) the nominalization of the compound, i.e. the possibility of using the compound verb as a noun; (2) the atelicity feature, i.e. the possibility of using the compound verb after the progressive expression dar haale ‘in the process of’, which indicates an incomplete action; and (3) the nonreferentiality of the nominal constituent in the compound verb, i.e. the nominal constituent cannot be followed by a pronoun that refers to it. On the other hand, the results of the experimental studies reported in this dissertation seem to support a lexical approach to compound verbs in Persian. The technique used in these experimental studies was masked priming paradigm, which investigates the prelexical and lexical processing. The results reveal constituent priming effects under masked priming technique. This indicates that Persian compound verb constituents are accessed at the prelexical stage of processing. Syntactic calculations are said to be done at later stages of processing. Therefore, the early processing of compound verb constituents leads us to the argument for the lexicality of Persian compound verbs.