
Samantha N. EmersonAptima-Human Centered Engineering · Training Learning & Readiness
Samantha N. Emerson
Ph.D.
About
21
Publications
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Introduction
Through a cross-disciplinary blend of psychology, cognitive science, linguistics, and neuroscience, my research examines the cognitive-neural mechanisms of pattern-learning that underlie language abilities and the downstream cognitive consequences of such learning, using both behavioral and neural methods. I focus on two main questions: What are the cognitive-neural mechanisms underlying pattern-learning? And how do individual differences in linguistic patterns of expression affect cognition?
Additional affiliations
February 2019 - November 2021
Education
May 2013 - December 2018
August 2010 - May 2013
August 2006 - May 2010
Publications
Publications (21)
Speakers of different languages follow a three-way split in how they express motion events in speech—with a greater emphasis on manner in satellite-framed languages (English), path in verb-framed languages (Turkish), and comparable expression of manner and path in equipollently-framed languages (Chinese). According to the thinking-for-speaking acco...
This paper examines the effect of automation on learning for two different types of pilots, rotary-wing and fixed-wing, on flight maneuvers including hovering, vertical takeoff, en route navigation, and approach and landing. Building on existing research, the performance of 11 rotary-wing pilots and 28 fixed-wing pilots was examined during the fina...
This study examines the influence of language on gesture patterns in advanced bilingual speakers of Spanish (L1) and English (L2) compared to monolingual English speakers. Preliminary findings suggest that while bilinguals show L2 patterns in speech, their gestures exhibit a mix of L1 and L2 patterns. This suggests that mastery of native-like gestu...
Most emerging electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft feature distributed electric propulsion systems with automation features that simplify operations for future pilots. Increasing automation levels should reduce pilot workload, decrease training time, and improve performance consistency. Air Education and Training Command Detachmen...
There are two main approaches to how statistical patterns are extracted from sequences: The transitional probability approach proposes that statistical learning occurs through the computation of probabilities between items in a sequence. The chunking approach, including models such as PARSER and TRACX, proposes that units are extracted as chunks. I...
Speakers of different languages (e.g., English vs. Turkish) show a binary split in how they package and order components of a motion event in speech and co-speech gesture but not in silent gesture (Özçalışkan et al., 2016a). In this study, we focused on Mandarin Chinese, a language that does not follow the binary split in its expression of motion i...
div class="section abstract"> Most emerging electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft feature distributed electric propulsion systems with automation features that simplify operations for future pilots. In theory, increasing automation levels should reduce pilot workload, decrease training time, and improve performance consistency. Air...
Simplified vehicle operations (SVO) in electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft are often claimed to reduce training times; however, no strong evidence currently exists to validate this claim. To test this theory, Air Education and Training Command Detachment 62 examined the learning trajectories of experienced pilots while learning t...
Currently, electric vertical takeoff and landing aircrafts (eVTOLs) are being built and tested with configurations varying from hover bikes to electric-ducted fans (Bacchini & Cestino, 2019). This new class of aircraft is drastically different from conventional aircraft and will require their own flight standards and curricula to train a new genera...
The US Air Force (USAF) today faces a changing landscape in modern warfare, where pilots are expected to operate in highly technological environments requiring an increased amount of information synthesis and other skills commonly known as "airmanship." They will also be expected to adapt to fast-paced changes in technology and the accompanying str...
The expression of motion events has been examined in standard dialects of typologically distinct languages, but the effect of dialect-based variation remains relatively unexamined. The present study focused on Chinese—a relatively understudied language—asking whether patterns of motion expression differed between its two dialects, Mandarin and Baba...
Languages differ in how they express motion: Languages like English prefer to
conflate manner and path into the same clause and express both elements frequently
while languages like Turkish prefer to express these elements separately, with a
greater preference for the expression of path of motion. While typological patterns are
well-established for...
The expression of motion shows strong crosslinguistic variability; however, less is known about speakers’ expectancies for lexicalizations of motion at the neural level. We examined event-related brain potentials (ERPs) in native English or Spanish speakers while they read grammatical sentences describing animations involving manner and path compon...
Do speakers who gesture more also show better comprehension of gesture?
We explored this question using an artificial word learning paradigm (i.e., gesture comprehension task), in which the words were presented either with gesture (gesture+speech) or without gesture (speech-only) and a gesture production task.
This volume offers a unique combination of interdisciplinary research and a comprehensive overview of motion and space studies from a semantic typological perspective. The chapters present cutting-edge research covering central topics such as the status of semantic components in motion event descriptions and their role in typological variation, the...
The Acquisition of Turkish in Childhood presents recent research on the nature of language acquisition by typically and atypically developing monolingual and bilingual Turkish-speaking children. The book summarises the most recent research findings on the acquisition of Turkish in childhood, with a focus on (i) the acquisition of phonology, morphol...
Languages show typological variation in the expression of manner versus path of motion. However, studies examining the effects of these differences on cognitive representations of motion have led to inconclusive results. To elucidate this prior work, the present study examines word-learning outcomes for adult English speakers who were exposed to ne...
A GROWING BODY OF RESEARCH SUGGESTS THAT jazz musicians concatenate stored auditory and motor patterns during improvisation. We hypothesized that this mechanism allows musicians to focus attention more flexibly during improvisation; for example, on interaction with other ensemble members. We tested this idea by analyzing the frequency of repeated m...
The existence of an advantage in sequential learning for musicians over nonmusicans is highly debated. The current study used an auditory sequential learning task to investigate the neurophysiological correlates of sequential learning in adults with either high or low music aptitudes. While behavioral results alone revealed no difference between th...