Contextual modulation of amygdala responsivity to surprised faces

We recently demonstrated a functional relationship between fMRI responses within the amygdala and the medial prefrontal cortex based upon whether subjects interpreted surprised facial expressions positively or negatively. In the present fMRI study, we sought to assess amygdala-medial prefrontal cortex responsivity when the interpretations of surprised faces were determined by contextual experimental stimuli, rather than subjective judgment. Subjects passively viewed individual presentations of surprised faces preceded by either a negatively or positively valenced contextual sentence (e. g., She just found $500 vs. She just lost $500). Negative and positive sentences were carefully matched in terms of length, situations described, and arousal level. Negatively cued surprised faces produced greater ventral amygdala activation compared to positively cued surprised faces. Responses to negative versus positive sentences were greater within the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex, whereas responses to positive versus negative sentences were greater within the ventromedial prefrontal cortex. The present study demonstrates that amygdala response to surprised facial expressions can be modulated by negatively versus positively valenced verbal contextual information. Connectivity analyses identified candidate cortical-subcortical systems subserving this modulation.

Fidelity in interpretation: Lord Hoffmann and the adventure of the empty house

This paper explores Dworkin's 'law as a chain novel' analogy and considers the recent work of Dworkin and MacCormick through close scrutiny of two recent judgments of Lord Hoffmann, in Barlow Clowes v Eurotrust International [2005] UKPC 37 and Barker v Corus [2006] UKHL 20. The aim is to examine Dworkin's theory in the context of recent English private law decisions and determine whether Lord Hoffmann's approach to interpretation is consistent with that of Dworkin (as his Lordship has contended in the past). It is argued that Lord Hoffmann's treatment of recent decisions on which he himself sat raises significant questions regarding fidelity, coherence and the institutional structure of the House of Lords.

Missing the logic of the text: Lord Butler’s report on intelligence on Iraqi weapons of mass destruction

This article focuses on the final report of Lord Butler’s review of British intelligence on weapons of mass destruction (WMD), specifically on its treatment of the accuracy of the use of intelligence on Iraqi WMD in a government dossier published in September 2002 ahead of the 2003 Iraq war. In the report, the demonstration of the accuracy of the “September Dossier” hinges on the insertion of tables that compare side-by-side quotations from this document and from intelligence assessments. The analysis of the textual and visual methods by which the report is written reveals how the logic of the comparative tables is missed in the Butler report: the logic of these tables requires that the comparison between quotations from the two documents should be performed at the level of their details but the Butler report performs its comparison only at a broad and general level.