# s-lang: the compositional syntax of Tits

<< Here  we  report  the  first  experimental  evidence  for  compositional  syntax  in  a  wild  animal  species,  the Japanese  great  tit  (Parus  minor).  Tits  have  over  ten  different  notes  in  their  vocal  repertoire  and  use them  either  solely  or  in  combination  with  other  notes.  Experiments  reveal  that  receivers  extract different  meanings  from  ‘ABC’  (scan  for  danger)  and  ‘D’  notes  (approach  the  caller),  and  a compound  meaning  from  ‘ABC–D’  combinations.  However,  receivers  rarely  scan  and  approach when  note  ordering  is  artificially  reversed  (‘D–ABC’).  Thus,  compositional  syntax  is  not  unique  to human  language  but  may  have  evolved  independently  in  animals  as  one  of  the  basic  mechanisms of  information  transmission. >>

Toshitaka  N.  Suzuki,  David  Wheatcroft  &  Michael  Griesser. Experimental  evidence  for  compositional  syntax  in bird  calls. Nature Communications 7, Article number: 10986 doi:10.1038/ncomms10986. Published  08  March  2016

http://www.nature.com/ncomms/2016/160308/ncomms10986/full/ncomms10986.html

# s-epidemiol: climate change plus Zika, then a behavioral transition, hat burqa- like everywhere ...

<< “In  many ways  the  Zika  outbreak  is  worse  than the  Ebola  epidemic  of 2014-15,” said  Jeremy  Farrar, head of the Welcome  Trust.  “Most  virus  carriers  are  symptomless.  It  is  a  silent  infection  in  a  group  of highly  vulnerable  individuals  –  pregnant  women  –  that  is  associated  with  a  horrible  outcome  for  their babies.” There  is  no  prospect  of a  vaccine  for  Zika  at  present,  in  contrast  to  Ebola,  for  which  several are  now under  trial.  “The  real problem is  that  trying  to  develop  a  vaccine  that  would  have  to  be  tested  on pregnant  women is  a  practical and  ethical nightmare,”  added  Mike  Turner,  head  of infection  and immuno-biology at the Welcome  Trust >>

Robin  McKie. Saturday 30 Jan 2016  20.10  GMT. Zika  virus  could  be  bigger  global  health  threat  than Ebola,  say  health  experts.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jan/30/zika-virus-health-fears

<<
What we know

No vaccine exists to prevent Zika virus disease (Zika).

Prevent Zika by avoiding mosquito bites (see below).

Mosquitoes that spread Zika virus bite mostly during the daytime.

Mosquitoes that spread Zika virus also spread dengue and chikungunya viruses.
>>

Zika virus. Prevention. 13/03.2016

http://www.cdc.gov/zika/prevention/index.html

# s-brain: nanobot, lovers vs dangerous: "can you dance with me?"

<< He predicts that by the 2030s, humans will be using nanobots capable of tapping into our neocortex and connecting us directly to the world around us. However, he admitted that computers won't take over us until they learn to love and laugh. >> Ray Kurzweil

<< Artificial  intelligence  has  the  potential  to  be  as  dangerous  to  mankind  as  nuclear  weapons >> Stuart  Russell

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3483592/Nanobot-implants-God-like-intelligence-machines-won-t-overtake-learn-love-scientist-claims.html

2087 - il pseudomotore di Shostakovich
wednesday, november 15, 2006

http://inkpi.blogspot.it/2006/11/2087-il-pseudomotore-di-shostakovich.html

<< Can  I  dance  with  you >> The Troggs.  With A Girl Like You. (1967), live.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=W1v4LzIlw5M

# s-brain: what you know, how you see

<< “When  you  become  an  expert  in  reading  an  alphabet,  what  does  that  change?  Does  your  visual  system  see  the  same thing  as  a  beginner?  We  say  no,”  Wiley  said.  “If  you’re  an  expert,  things  that  look  complex  to  a  novice  look  simple  to you.” The  findings  should  apply  not  just  to  letters,  but  to  anything  we  see. “What  we  find  should  hold  true  for  any  sort  of  object  —  cars,  birds,  faces.  Expertise  matters.  It  changes  how  you perceive  things,”  Wiley  said.  “Part  of  being  an  expert  is  learning  what  matters  and  what  doesn’t  matter  —  including visual  features.  You  know  what  to  look  for.” >>

Johns Hopkins University. What You Know Can Affect How You See. Released: 1-Mar-2016 10:05 AM EST

http://www.newswise.com/articles/what-you-know-can-affect-how-you-see

Wiley Robert  W., Wilson Colin,  Rapp Brenda. The  Effects  of  Alphabet  and  Expertise  on  Letter  Perception.  Journal  of  Experimental  Psychology:  Human  Perception  and  Performance,  Feb 25 , 2016,  Database:  PsycARTICLES [  First  Posting  ] http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/xhp0000213

http://psycnet.apa.org/psycinfo/2016-09709-001/

# scenarios among entities of one-time-only dilemma (di ipotetico aciclico "sbricio-lamento") ...

<< As Richard Thaler, the behavioral economist at the University of Chicago, explained, the strategies can be applied to anything: health care, nuclear deterrence, the last piece of pizza >>

<< Game theory shows that in iterated dilemmas, played many hundreds or thousands of times, cooperation is a very stable strategy — one reason it is so common in nature.
But this is not an iterated dilemma. It’s a one-time-only dilemma with a tremendous payoff for the winner >>

<< As Daniel Diermeier, the dean of the public policy school at the University of Chicago, notes, “A very important lesson of game theory is that sometimes the world is a grim place >>

Kevin  Quealy. The 2016 Race. Lessons From Game Theory ... February 24, 2016

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/25/upshot/john-kasich-republican-nomination.html

# s-brain: no, they can't upload

<< According  to  a  spectacularly  misleading  article  in  the Telegraph:  Scientists  discover  how  to ‘upload  knowledge  to  your  brain’ >>

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2016/03/01/scientists-discover-how-to-download-knowledge-to-your-brain/

<< Except…  that’s  not  what  happened  at  all. >.

<<  The press  release  from  HRL  Laboratories about  the  study  seems  to  be  the  source  of  most  of  the errors,  including  the  Matrix  analogy >>

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/neuroskeptic/2016/03/06/we-cant-upload-to-your-brain/

more:

now you can #learn; the begin https://t.co/LFJ4XVqNCS

https://mobile.twitter.com/flashontrack/status/701345918457663488

# s-brain: how to manage big and small numbers ...

<< Previous  studies  have  highlighted  the  general  region  where  the  brain  handles numbers  -  in  an  area  called  the  fronto-parietal  cortex,  which  runs  approximately  from the  top  of  the  head  to  just  above  the  ear.  But  scientists  are  in  the  dark  about  how exactly  the  brain  unpicks  and  processes  numbers >>

<< Dr  Qadeer  Arshad (..) said:  "Following  early  insights  from  stroke  patients  we  wanted  to  find  out exactly  how  the  brain  processes  numbers.  In  our  new  study,  in  which  we  used  healthy volunteers,  we  found  the  left  side  processes  large  numbers,  and  the  right  processes small  numbers.  So  for  instance  if  you  were  looking  at  a  clock,  the  numbers  one  to  six would  be  processed  on  the  right  side  of  the  brain,  and  six  to  twelve  would  be processed  on  the  left." >>

Kate Wighton. Big  and  small  numbers  are  processed  in  different  sides of the brain. 04 March 2016.

http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/newsandeventspggrp/imperialcollege/newssummary/news_4-3-2016-9-47-53

<<  This allowed us to demonstrate the first systematic bidirectional modulation of numerical magnitude toward either higher or lower numbers, independently of either eye movements or spatial attention mediated biases >>

<< (..) numerical allocation is continually updated in a contextual manner based upon relative magnitude, with the right hemisphere responsible for smaller magnitudes and the left hemisphere for larger magnitudes >>

Qadeer Arshad, Yuliya Nigmatullina, et al. Bidirectional Modulation of Numerical Magnitude. Cereb. Cortex (2016) doi: 10.1093/cercor/bhv344 First published online: February 14, 2016

http://m.cercor.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2016/02/14/cercor.bhv344.abstract?sid=5874fc1d-ce40-475e-a509-77e48bfaee81