The non-linear development of the right hemispheric specialization for human face perception.

in Neuropsychologia (2017)

The developmental origins of human adults' right hemispheric specialization for face perception remain unclear. On the one hand, infant studies have shown a right hemispheric advantage for face perception ... [more ▼]

The developmental origins of human adults' right hemispheric specialization for face perception remain unclear. On the one hand, infant studies have shown a right hemispheric advantage for face perception. On the other hand, it has been proposed that the adult right hemispheric lateralization for face perception slowly emerges during childhood due to reading acquisition, which increases left lateralized posterior responses to competing written material (e.g., visual letters and words). Since methodological approaches used in infant and children typically differ when their face capabilities are explored, resolving this issue has been difficult. Here we tested 5-year-old preschoolers varying in their level of visual letter knowledge with the same fast periodic visual stimulation (FPVS) paradigm leading to strongly right lateralized electrophysiological occipito-temporal face-selective responses in 4- to 6-month-old infants (de Heering and Rossion, 2015). Children's face-selective response was quantitatively larger and differed in scalp topography from infants', but did not differ across hemispheres. There was a small positive correlation between preschoolers' letter knowledge and a non-normalized index of right hemispheric specialization for faces. These observations show that previous discrepant results in the literature reflect a genuine nonlinear development of the neural processes underlying face perception and are not merely due to methodological differences across age groups. We discuss several factors that could contribute to the adult right hemispheric lateralization for faces, such as myelination of the corpus callosum and reading acquisition. Our findings point to the value of FPVS coupled with electroencephalography to assess specialized face perception processes throughout development with the same methodology. [less ▲]

Facing the Greek Junta (1967-1974): The Council of Europe, the European Community, and the Rise of Human Rights Politics

in European Review of History (2017), 24(3), 358-376

In April 1967, a group of colonels seized power in Greece. Since Greece was a member-state of the Council of Europe and held an association agreement with the European Community, both organizations had to ... [more ▼]

In April 1967, a group of colonels seized power in Greece. Since Greece was a member-state of the Council of Europe and held an association agreement with the European Community, both organizations had to define their positions vis-à-vis the new military regime. Very soon, politicians in the parliamentary assemblies of both organizations started to cooperate with the aim of imposing sanctions on Greece. This article examines the inter-organizational dynamics between the European Community and the Council of Europe on Greece during the colonels’ regime. It argues that the European Community imported concrete policy positions and even normative ideas which had first emerged in the Council of Europe. In so doing, the Community prepared the ground for its future human-rights policies. [less ▲]

General Principles of EU Law and EU Administrative Law

in Peers, Steve; Barnard, Catherine (Eds.) European Union Law (2017)

Treaty provisions and Union legislation are only part of the story of how law can actually take effect in reality. A quite decisive factor is their implementation through administrative action. The basic ... [more ▼]

Treaty provisions and Union legislation are only part of the story of how law can actually take effect in reality. A quite decisive factor is their implementation through administrative action. The basic themes of this chapter are, first, the steps which take place after legislation has been passed: who does what and by which means to make sure that political decisions made in a legislative act do not only remain ‘law on the books’? The second theme is which rights exist in that context? How can they be protected? In other words, this chapter deals not only with the sub-legislative setting of rules and making of decisions, it also asks which principles and rules exist to ensure the legality and legitimacy of administrative action implementing EU law. [less ▲]

Learning to read and hemispheric specialization for faces

Scientific Conference (2017)

PCD 2.0? Normative Policy Coherence for Development across Generations

Scientific Conference (2017)

Policy coherence for development (PCD) has developed into an important approach towards development in the international arena. The recent commitment to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SGDs) have ... [more ▼]

Policy coherence for development (PCD) has developed into an important approach towards development in the international arena. The recent commitment to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SGDs) have simultaneously added a normative dimension to the global development debate. This paper assesses the EU’s commitment to norms by applying normative policy coherence for development (NPCD) to the EU’s policies towards Vietnam. The question of normative commitment across a post-Maastricht and a post-Lisbon time frame is assessed using content analysis of policy documents. The results indicate that the commitment to norms is varied. While the commitment to human rights, sustainable development and gender equality is quite evident, do the norms solidarity, liberty and peace receive show less prominence. Overall, the commitment seems to remain at the policy formulation level but is not represented in short-term implementing programs. [less ▲]

(Reguläre Zeitschriftennummer)

in Germanistische Mitteilungen. Zeitschrift für deutsche Sprache, Literatur und Kultur (2017), 43(1), 104

Multi-phase-field modeling of anisotropic crack propagation for polycrystalline materials

in Computational Mechanics (2017), 60

Requests for Help in a Multilingual Professional Environment Testimonies and Actantial Models

in Open Linguistics (2017), 3

Professional multilingual environments using English as a lingua franca are prone to imbalances in communication, linguistic insecurity and rising tension. Non-native English speakers develop avoidance ... [more ▼]

Professional multilingual environments using English as a lingua franca are prone to imbalances in communication, linguistic insecurity and rising tension. Non-native English speakers develop avoidance strategies in order to lessen their apprehension. To overcome these imbalances, this research aims to understand the relationships formed around languages focusing on the dynamics of integration and the requests for help. Guided by the actantial models of Greimas (1966), this qualitative study employs semiolinguistics and discourse analysis, including 19 narrative interviews with employees of Airbus and UNESCO in Hamburg, Germany in 2013. This methodology draws on actors connected through relationships of power and/or collaboration. The actantial models applied seek linguistic input through designational paradigms, shifters and modal occurrences. The actantial models illustrate how a good language competence provides a better understanding of one’s direct as well as passive environment. The learning process is shown to be a conduit to integration. The actantial model and discourse analysis shed light on the complex situation of multilingual communication settings by highlighting the influence of individuals’linguistic skills. As a matter of fact, depending on the role of each individual in a given situation, lending a helping hand sometimes equates to upsetting the balance. [less ▲]

Advanced Cooling Methods for High-Speed Electrical Machines

in IEEE Transactions on Industry Applications (2017)

Brexit et contentieux international des affaires

in Ho Dac, Marion (Ed.) Le Brexit (2017)