In this paper, we argue that the metaphor form of a comparison (i.e., a topic-vehicle pair) is preferred over, and more comprehensible than, the simile form when the interpretive diversity for that comparison is high. Interpretive diversity refers to the richness of the figurative meaning of a comparison; it is high to the extent that more features or properties are related to the figurative me...

We present an exploration of familiarity as a meaningful dimension for the individualized adaptation of media-rich interfaces. In this paper, we investigate in particular the effect of digital images personalized for familiarity on users’ perceived interestingness. Two dimensions of familiarity, facial familiarity and familiarity with image context, are manipulated. Our investigation consisted ...

After intensive practice, unfamiliar letter strings become familiar words and reading speed increases strikingly from a slow processing to a fast and with more global recognition of words. While this effect has been well documented at the behavioral level, its neural underpinnings are still unclear. The question is how the brain modulates the activity of the reading network according to the nov...

Differences between norm ratings collected when participants are asked to consider more than one picture characteristic are contrasted with the traditional methodological approaches of collecting ratings separately for image constructs. We present data that suggest that reporting normative data, based on methodological procedures that ask participants to consider multiple image constructs simul...

In both a behavioural and neuroimaging study, we examined whether memory performance and the pattern of brain activation during a word recognition task differed depending on the type of visual context presented during encoding. Participants were presented with a list of words, paired with either a picture of famous face, a famous scene, or a scrambled image, to study for a later recognition tes...