Scalp electric potentials (electroencephalograms) and extracranial magnetic fields (magnetoencephalograms) are due to the primary (impressed) current density distribution that arises from neuronal postsynaptic processes. A solution to the inverse problem--the computation of images of electric neuronal activity based on extracranial measurements--would provide important information on the time-course and localization of brain function. In general, there is no unique solution to this problem. In particular, an instantaneous, distributed, discrete, linear solution capable of exact localization of point sources is of great interest, since the principles of linearity and superposition would guarantee its trustworthiness as a functional imaging method, given that brain activity occurs in the form of a finite number of distributed hot spots. Despite all previous efforts, linear solutions, at best, produced images with systematic nonzero localization errors. A solution reported here yields images of standardized current density with zero localization error. The purpose of this paper is to present the technical details of the method, allowing researchers to test, check, reproduce and validate the new method.
In 4 experiments, students who read expository passages with seductive details (i.e., interesting but irrelevant adjuncts) recalled significantly fewer main ideas and generated significantly fewer problem-solving transfer solutions than those who read passages without seductive details. In Experiments 1, 2, and 3, revising the passage to include either highlighting of the main ideas, a statement of learning objectives, or signaling, respectively, did not reduce the seductive details effect. In Experiment 4, presenting the seductive details at the beginning of the passage exacerbated the seductive details effect, whereas presenting the seductive details at die end of the passage reduced the seductive details effect. The results suggest that seductive details interfere with learning by priming inappropriate schemas around which readers organize the material, rather than by distracting the reader or by disrupting the coherence of the passage. Textbooks are second only to lecture as the instructional medium of choice for presenting information to students (Garner, Gillingham, & White, 1989), but students often find the material boring (Harp & Mayer, 1997). One suggested
Twenty adults were asked to read a three-paragraph expository text on differences among insects. Information in the text had been rated for importance and interestingness. Half of the adults read the text with "seductive details" (propositions presenting interesting, but unimportant, information), half without. After reading, the adults recalled the important information (a macroprocessing task), rated the text for overall interestingness, reported the single most interesting piece of information read, and matched pictures of animals on the basis of differences mentioned in text (a microprocessing task). The adults presented with seductive details in text were significantly less adept than their peers at including three main ideas in their recall protocols. Microprocessing performance and interestingness ratings were unaffected by text condition. In a second study, with 36 seventh graders, macroprocessing performance in general was weak. Students presented with seductive details in text were significantly less adept at macroprocessing than students given no such irrelevant information and given redundant signaling of the main ideas. Microprocessing success of seventh graders was also affected by the presence of seductive details. Results are examined in the context of current theories of expository text processing.
Voyager 1 just powered down a nearly 50-year-old instrument to stay alive in deep space。 The spacecraft is running critically low on energy, forcing NASA to make careful sacrifices to keep its mission going。 Despite the shutdown, it continues to send back unique data from beyond our solar system
A new study suggests AI chatbots may do more than spread misinformation — they can actively strengthen a user’s false beliefs。 Because conversational AI often validates and builds on what users say, it can make distorted memories, conspiracy theories, or delusions feel more believable and emotionally real。 Researchers warn that AI companions may be
The type of bar matters when it comes to how it bends and recoils, but why is still a mystery
Astronomers using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope have created the clearest map yet of the universe’s “cosmic web” — the enormous hidden structure that connects galaxies across space。 By analyzing more than 164,000 galaxies through the massive COSMOS-Web survey, researchers were able to trace this vast network back to when the universe was just a
Dante’s Inferno may have been far more than a religious epic。 New research argues that the 14th-century poet essentially imagined a catastrophic asteroid impact centuries before modern science understood meteors。 In this interpretation, Satan crashes into Earth like a giant cosmic object, blasting through the Southern Hemisphere and reshaping the p
NASA’s Psyche spacecraft is about to pull off a dramatic close flyby of Mars, skimming just 2,800 miles above the planet to get a powerful gravitational boost on its journey to the mysterious metal-rich asteroid Psyche。 The maneuver will save propellant while giving mission scientists a rare chance to test and calibrate the spacecraft’s instruments
Physicists may have just cracked open a hidden side of the quantum world。 For decades, every known particle was thought to belong to one of two categories — bosons or fermions — but researchers have now shown that bizarre “in-between” particles called anyons could also exist in a one-dimensional system。 Even more exciting, these strange particles m
Cumberland, B。 is reimagining its coal mining past as a clean energy opportunity。 Water trapped in abandoned mine tunnels could be used in a geothermal system to heat and cool buildings efficiently and with minimal emissions
A bold step toward returning humans to the Moon is underway with Blue Origin’s uncrewed MK1 “Endurance” lander, designed to test the technologies that future astronauts will rely on。 Built in partnership with NASA, the mission will showcase precision landing, autonomous navigation, and advanced cryogenic propulsion—key capabilities for operating on
Hubble has revealed a giant planet-forming disk unlike anything astronomers have seen before。 Nicknamed “Dracula’s Chivito,” the enormous structure appears turbulent and oddly lopsided, with towering filaments visible on only one side。 The disk contains enough material to potentially create multiple giant planets, making it a fascinating new labora
Physicists are rethinking one of quantum mechanics’ biggest puzzles: how fuzzy possibilities become definite reality。 New research suggests that spontaneous “collapse” processes—possibly linked to gravity—could subtly blur time itself。 This wouldn’t affect clocks we use today, but it reveals a hidden limit to how precise time can ever be
A major obstacle may be standing in the way of the next generation of ultra-tiny computer chips。 Researchers discovered that many promising 2D materials lose their advantages because an invisible atomic-scale gap forms when they are combined with insulating layers。 That tiny gap weakens electronic performance and could prevent further miniaturizati
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For nearly 100 years, reinforced rubber has powered everything from car tires to airplanes, yet scientists never fully understood why adding tiny particles of carbon black made rubber so incredibly strong。 Now, researchers at the University of South Florida have finally cracked the mystery using massive computer simulations that took the equivalent