A theory of how readers monitor concerns of characters and make causal inferences during reading is presented. The focus is on the reader's understanding of what characters do when goals either succeed or fail. Knowledge of goal processes enable coherent understanding to be achieved when characters change goal plans and pursue new courses of…

The goal of this unified theory of human reasoning is to specify what constitutes reasoning and to characterize the psychological distinction between inductive and deductive reasoning. The theory views reasoning as the controlled and mediated application of three processes (encoding, comparison and selective combination) to inferential rules. (JAZ)

Research has demonstrated that memory is prone to distortion and is occasionally untrustworthy. Explores the reasons for false memories and explains that memories are vulnerable to postevent information, which can be integrated into memories. False memories can also come from leading questions, word associations, and unconscious editing by the…

Describes how a behavioral system in Aplysia (marine snail) can be used to examine mechanisms of several forms of learning at different levels of analysis: behavioral, cell-physiological, ultrastructural, and molecular. Focusing on short-term sensitization, suggests how molecular mechanisms can be extended to explain long-term memory and classical…

Various examples of communication in species ranging from bumble bees to dolphins are examined in this paper. Focus is directed to indications of the cognitive ability of each species. The signals of cognition include evidence of: adaptability to a new situation; long term memory; and the property of displacement. Most of the sources reviewed…

Although memory researchers differ in exactly how they view the divisions of memory, there are numerous distinct types. One critical dimension in which memories differ is how long they last. Outlines various types of memories including long-term, short-term (i.e., working), and procedural memory, and discusses brain research that has led to…

Fleeting electrochemical connections made between brain cells help people remember the thoughts, skills, experiences, and knowledge that make them unique. Presents the dissection of the brain of a sheep, an animal in which brain structure and function are similar to that in humans, to demonstrate where these processes take place. (PVD)