Frontiers in psychology
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Frontiers in psychology · Jan 2018
ReviewGoing Beyond the Data as the Patching (Sheaving) of Local Knowledge.
Consistently predicting outcomes in novel situations is colloquially called "going beyond the data," or "generalization." Going beyond the data features in spatial and non-spatial cognition, raising the question of whether such features have a common basis-a kind of systematicity of generalization. Here, we conceptualize this ability as the patching of local knowledge to obtain non-local (global) information. Tracking the passage from local to global properties is the purview of sheaf theory, a branch of mathematics at the nexus of algebra and geometry/topology. ⋯ In both cases, going beyond the data is obtained from a (universal) sheaf theory construction called "sheaving," i.e., the "patching" of local data attached to a topological space to obtain a representation considered as a globally coherent cognitive map. These results are discussed in the context of a previous (category theory) explanation for systematicity, vis-a-vis, categorical universal constructions, along with other cognitive domains where going beyond the data is apparent. Analogous to higher-order function (i.e., a function that takes/returns a function), going beyond the data as a higher-order systematicity property is explained by sheaving, a higher-order (categorical) universal construction.
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Frontiers in psychology · Jan 2017
ReviewMusic Audiences 3.0: Concert-Goers' Psychological Motivations at the Dawn of Virtual Reality.
Reviewing consumers' motivations to attend performances in a continuously evolving social and technological context is essential because live concerts generate an important and growing share of revenues for the music industry. Evolving fans' preferences and technological innovations constantly alter the way music is distributed and consumed. ⋯ These changes are not only blurring the lines between production and consumption (i.e., co-creation), but also distorting the concept of live attendance altogether. Although mediated performances typically lack presence and authenticity, recent advances in immersive technologies, such as spherical videos and virtual reality goggles, could represent a new form of experiencing live music.
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Frontiers in psychology · Jan 2017
ReviewTeaching Improvisation through Processes. Applications in Music Education and Implications for General Education.
Improvisation is an articulated multidimensional activity based on an extemporaneous creative performance. Practicing improvisation, participants expand sophisticated skills such as sensory and perceptual encoding, memory storage and recall, motor control, and performance monitoring. Improvisation abilities have been developed following several methodologies mainly with a product-oriented perspective. ⋯ The last section considers how these ideas should transcend music studies, presenting the benefits and the implications of improvisation activities for general learning. Moreover, the application of music education to the following cognitive processes are discussed: anticipation, use of repertoire, emotive communication, feedback and flow. These characteristics could be used to outline a pedagogical method for teaching music improvisation based on the development of reflection, reasoning, and meta-cognition.
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Frontiers in psychology · Jan 2017
ReviewRobots As Intentional Agents: Using Neuroscientific Methods to Make Robots Appear More Social.
Robots are increasingly envisaged as our future cohabitants. However, while considerable progress has been made in recent years in terms of their technological realization, the ability of robots to interact with humans in an intuitive and social way is still quite limited. An important challenge for social robotics is to determine how to design robots that can perceive the user's needs, feelings, and intentions, and adapt to users over a broad range of cognitive abilities. ⋯ We first review literature related to social-cognitive processes and mechanisms involved in human-human interactions, and highlight the importance of perceiving others as intentional agents to activate these social brain areas. We then discuss how attribution of intentionality can positively affect human-robot interaction by (a) fostering feelings of social connection, empathy and prosociality, and by (b) enhancing performance on joint human-robot tasks. Lastly, we describe circumstances under which attribution of intentionality to robot agents might be disadvantageous, and discuss challenges associated with designing social robots that are inspired by neuroscientific principles.
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Frontiers in psychology · Jan 2016
ReviewNeuroplasticity and Clinical Practice: Building Brain Power for Health.
The focus of this review is on driving neuroplasticity in a positive direction using evidence-based interventions that also have the potential to improve general health. One goal is to provide an overview of the many ways new neuroscience can inform treatment protocols to empower and motivate clients to make the lifestyle choices that could help build brain power and could increase adherence to healthy lifestyle changes that have also been associated with simultaneously enhancing vigorous longevity, health, happiness, and wellness. Another goal is to explore the use of a focus in clinical practice on helping clients appreciate this new evidence and use evolving neuroscience in establishing individualized goals, designing strategies for achieving them and increasing treatment compliance. The timing is urgent for such interventions with goals of enhancing brain health across the lifespan and improving statistics on dementia worldwide.