Using the spatial cueing technique, this study demonstrates that the center of mass (centroid) of a visual scene has a special ability to attract attention evenwhen there is no object presented at this location. Four boxes formed an imaginary square presented to the left or right hemifield. After the cueing in one box, a target appeared in one of the four boxes and, in addition, at centroid. Fastest reaction times were observed at centroid, irrespective of whether this centroid was also occupied by a box. Reaction times at the uncued locations varied according to their relative positions to centroid and fixation. No inhibition of return effect was observed when the cue was at centroid. NeuroReport 00:000-000

During communication, speakers and listeners need the mechanisms of executive control to organize thoughts and actions along internal goals. Speakers may use executive functions to select the right word over competing alternatives to refer to the concept in mind. Listeners may use executive functions to coordinate the outputs of multiple linguistic processes to reach a coherent interpretation of what others say. Bilinguals may use executive functions to control which language is in use or to switch from one language to another. The control mechanisms recruited in language processing may be similar to these recruited in perception and attention, supported by a network of frontal, parietal and sub-cortical brain structures. Here we review existing evidences regarding the involvement of domain-general executive control in language processing. We will explain how executive functions are employed to control interference in comprehension and production, within and across languages.

Congenitally blind adults’ performance in spatial and nonspatial peripheral auditory attention tasks was compared with that of sighted adults in a paradigm manipulating location-based and frequency-based inhibition of return concurrently. Blind study participants responded faster in spatial attention tasks (detection/localization) and slower in the nonspatial frequency discrimination task than sighted participants. Both groups, however, showed the same patterns of interaction between location-based and frequency-based inhibition of return. These results suggest that early vision deprivation enhances the function of the posterior-dorsal auditory ‘where’ pathway but impairs the function of the anterior-ventral ‘what’ pathway during peripheral auditory attention. The altered processing speed in the blind, however, is not accompanied by alteration in attentional orienting mechanisms that may be localized to higher cortices. NeuroReport 17: 1449-1452 © 2006 LippincottWilliams &Wilkins.

This study investigated whether individuals with a high trait anxiety (HTA) rating retain attentional bias towards threatening pictures when such pictures are repeatedly presented. Subjects rated high (n = 20) and low (n = 20) on an anxiety scale participated in a forced-choice reaction time version of a modified dotprobe task. Picture pairs were presented in four exposure blocks. On each exposure, the attentional bias to the threatening pictures was measured. HTA individuals showed more selective attention to the high threatening pictures than individuals with low trait anxiety (LTA). However, HTA individuals did not maintain attentional bias. On the fourth block, the attentional bias to threatening pictures disappeared. Theoretical and methodological implications of these findings are discussed.

It is well documented that the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) are intensively involved in conflict control. However, it remains unclear how these ‘‘executive’’ brain regions will act when the conflict control process interacts with spatial attentional orienting. In the classical spatial cueing paradigm [Posner, M. I., & Cohen, Y. (1984). Components of visual orienting. In H. Bouma & D. G. Bouwhuis (Eds.), Attention and performance X (pp. 531–556). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum], response to a target is delayed when it appears at the cued location compared with at the uncued location, if the time interval between the cue and the target is greater than 300 msec. This effect of inhibition of return (IOR) can alter the resolution of Stroop conflict such that the Stroop interference effect disappears at the cued (inhibited) location [Vivas, A. B., & Fuentes, L. J. Stroop interference is affected in inhibition of return. Psychonomic Bulletin and Review, 8, 315–323, 2001]. In this event-related functional magnetic resonance study, we investigate the differential neural mechanisms underlying interactions between preresponse interference, response interference, and spatial orienting. Two types of Stroop words [incongruent responseeligible words (IE), incongruent response-ineligible words (II)] and neutral words were presented either at the cued or uncued location. The significant pre-response interference at the uncued location activated the left rostral ACC as compared with at the cued location. Moreover, although the IE words which have conflicts at both pre-response and response levels did not cause significant behavioral interference at the cued location, they activated the left DLPFC as compared with at the uncued location. Furthermore, neutral words showed significant IOR effects behaviorally, and they activated the left frontal eye field (FEF) at the uncued location relative to the cued location. These results suggest that the left rostral ACC is involved in the interaction between pre-response conflict and IOR, whereas the left DLPFC is involved in the interaction between response conflict and IOR. Moreover, the FEF is involved in shifting attentional focus to novel locations during spatial search.