Tag Archives: Deja

Google Faces Déjà Vu as Second Exclusive Exam Launches in the U.S.

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After successfully countering the US Department of Justice’s challenge regarding illegal monopoly in online searches, Google now faces another threat to its internet dominance in a trial centered around potentially abusive digital advertising practices.

This trial, which commenced on Monday in Alexandria, Virginia, focuses on the detrimental ruling by US District Judge Leonie Brinkema in April, who deemed certain aspects of Google’s digital advertising technology as an illegal monopoly. The judge concluded that Google’s actions were reducing competition and harming online publishers who depend on this system for revenue.

Over the next two weeks, Google and the Justice Department will present evidence in court and seek rulings on how to restore competitive market conditions, in what is being referred to as a “relief” trial according to Judge Brinkema.


As the Justice Department progresses, Brinkema has instructed Google to divest parts of its advertising technology. Google’s legal team argues that this could lead to “confusion and damage” to consumers and the overall internet ecosystem. However, the Justice Department contends that this is the most efficient and immediate approach to dismantling monopolies that have stifled competition and innovation for years.

“The goal of the relief is to take necessary steps to restore competition,” stated Julia Tarver Wood from the DOJ’s antitrust division during the opening remarks.

Wood accused Google of manipulating the market in a manner that conflicts with the principles of free competition.

“The means of fraud are hidden within computer code and algorithms,” Wood remarked.

In response, Google’s attorney Karen Dunn argued that the proposed government intervention was unreasonable and extreme, asserting that the DOJ aimed to eliminate Google from the competitive landscape entirely.

The Justice Department is “advocating for a solution that addresses a past overshadowed by technological advances and market shifts in digital advertising consumption,” Google’s attorneys contended during the trial.

Regardless of the judges’ verdict, Google plans to appeal any earlier decisions labeling its advertising networks as a monopoly, although an appeal can only proceed once a remedy is established.

This case was initiated under the Biden administration in 2023 and threatens the intricate network that Google has built over the last 17 years to bolster its dominant position in the digital advertising sector. Digital ad sales contribute significantly to the $350 billion revenue generated by Google’s services division for its parent company, Alphabet Inc.

Google asserts that it has made considerable adjustments to its “advertising manager” system, including more transparency and options for pricing, to address concerns highlighted in the judge’s ruling.

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From the Frying Pan into the Fire

Google’s legal struggle regarding its advertising technology signifies another confrontation, following a recent case in which a federal judge condemned the major search engine as an illegal monopoly, leading to Remedy Hearings earlier this year aimed at combatting fraud.

In that scenario, the Justice Department suggested a strict enforcement measure that would mandate Google to sell its widely-used Chrome browser. However, US District Judge Amit Mehta opted for a more measured approach in a recent ruling that reshaped the search market, which is undergoing changes driven by artificial intelligence technology.


Google opposed all aspects of Mehta’s ruling, yet the outcome was generally perceived as a mere slap on the wrist. This sentiment contributed to a surge in Alphabet’s stock price, yielding a 20% increase since Mehta’s decision, elevating the company’s market valuation to over $3 trillion, making it one of only four publicly traded companies to achieve such a milestone.

With indications that the results of the Search Monopoly case could significantly impact advertising technology practices, Judge Brinkema has instructed both Google and the Department of Justice to incorporate Mehta’s decision into their arguments in forthcoming trials.

As seen in previous search cases, Google’s legal representatives have already asserted in court documents that the AI technologies applied by competitors in ad networks, like those operated by Meta, have transformed market dynamics, making a “radical” approach proposed by the Justice Department unnecessary.

Source: www.theguardian.com

What Déjà Vu (or Its Absence) Reveals About Your Brain Health

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If you think we’ve already asked, do you know precisely what Déjà Vu is? If you’re among the wise, you’ll say it’s a peculiar sensation that you’ve experienced something before.

However, many neuroscientists argue that this definition lacks a touch of the enigmatic. Experts like Dr. Akira O’Connor, a Senior Psychology Lecturer at St Andrews University, indicates that Déjà Vu (French for ‘already seen’) is not just a friendly notion but also a metacognitive perception where these feelings can be misleading.

“Déjà Vu essentially represents a conflict between the perception of familiarity and the realization that something feels incorrectly familiar. This deception makes Déjà Vu unique compared to other memory occurrences,” he explains.

“Most healthy individuals recognize a sense of familiarity but do not tend to alter their behavior, even when they know something feels logically off.”

So, what occurs in the brain during Déjà Vu? And why do some individuals experience this phenomenon more frequently than others? Dive into the complete guide below for more insight.

What Does Neuroscience Say About Déjà Vu?

Sadly, as far as we understand, 60% of individuals report having experienced Déjà Vu at least once in their lifetime, so there’s more to it than mere glitches in the matrix.

However, neuroscientists have determined that this memory illusion does not signify an unhealthy brain. Far from a memory error, it is more about the brain’s functions. According to O’Connor, Déjà Vu surfaces when the frontal lobe attempts to rectify inaccurate memories.

“For most individuals, experiencing Déjà Vu is likely a positive sign that the brain regions responsible for factual checks are functioning effectively and preventing misremembering events.

“In healthy individuals, such false memories can emerge daily due to the complexity of memory involving millions and billions of neurons. It’s quite intricate,” he states.

Regrettably, there isn’t a universally accepted model that clarifies what transpires in the brain during Déjà Vu. Nevertheless, most leading theories converge on the idea that Déjà Vu arises when a brain area (like the temporal lobe) provides the frontal region with signals that past experiences are being replayed.

“Afterward, the decision-making region at the front checks if this signal aligns with reality. It’s essentially asking, ‘Have I been here before?'”

“If you have actually been in that location before, you might strive to recall more memories. Otherwise, the realization of Déjà Vu kicks in.”

Why Do Some Individuals Experience Déjà Vu More Frequently?

O’Connor estimates that the average healthy person feels Déjà Vu around once a month, but certain factors can heighten the chances of feeling this sensation.

First, your level of fatigue and stress plays a significant role. “When your brain is exhausted, it hasn’t had the chance to recover and regulate itself. Consequently, your neurons may be slightly misaligned, making you more prone to experiencing Déjà Vu,” he explains.

Research also highlights the connection between dopamine (a well-known mood-enhancing neurotransmitter) and Déjà Vu.

“Dopamine is what we label as an excitatory neurotransmitter. When discussing brain areas that signal familiarity, there’s a dopaminergic influence on those neurons, indicating dopamine’s involvement,” O’Connor adds.

“This might explain why recreational drugs, which affect dopaminergic activity, frequently lead to experiences of Déjà Vu.”

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There are additional factors as well. Have you ever wondered why your Déjà Vu experiences have diminished? According to rigorous scientific studies, it could be because you’re inadvertently a step ahead.

“Unfortunately, like many memory phenomena, it is a natural consequence of aging, and you might not be capable of noticing the discrepancies,” O’Connor clarifies.

“It’s intriguing to observe that younger individuals frequently experience more Déjà Vu. Older adults are generally expected to have more memory issues; however, this generally results from them having heightened excitatory activity in their brains.

“When I embarked on my research into Déjà Vu nearly 20 years ago, I experienced it regularly, but now it’s much less frequent!”

Is Déjà Vu Ever Unhealthy?

Now that we know Déjà Vu is a healthy cognitive mechanism—far from dangerous—what if you find yourself experiencing it constantly? What could it mean if all new encounters feel familiar?

Interestingly, this can happen to some individuals. “In Finland, there are intriguing cases of individuals who have taken a combination of flu medications known to overly stimulate certain dopamine neurons.

“They found it particularly fascinating and continued taking those medications for a while.

However, not everyone can afford to step back from this existential déjà vu. Those who suffer from ‘Déjà vécu’ (French for ‘already experienced’) have an ongoing sensation of having already undergone their current situation. Essentially, nothing feels novel to them.

“What’s particularly captivating about individuals with Déjà vécu is that they often lose their ability to fact-check these feelings. Many cease watching television because they feel they’ve already seen every episode,” O’Connor observes.

“It sounds fascinating and innovative, but it’s genuinely distressing because it can often occur in individuals with dementia and may signal worsening degeneration.”

Explore More About Memory Science:

Déjà Vu: Jamais Vu is another curious phenomenon of similarity. It refers to the inability to recognize familiar scenarios logically. Though often linked with amnesia, it goes beyond mere memory lapses.

“This isn’t a typical form of forgetfulness,” O’Connor elaborates. “When you recognize a task at hand but are puzzled because you can’t identify something familiar. The crucial aspect is the perception element. You recognize that feeling as being fundamentally incorrect.”

“It occurs more frequently than Déjà Vu, yet likewise tends to happen when individuals are fatigued and is more common among younger people than older adults.”

Some laboratory experiments appear to induce Jamais Vu in participants. For instance, one study from the University of Leeds instructed 93 participants to write down the word ‘door’ as many times as possible within two minutes.

At the end of the interval, more than 70% of subjects questioned whether the word “door” was spelled correctly, even though it was entirely accurate.—despite their logical comprehension of it.

What’s particularly intriguing about this study is that it can be replicated anywhere. So, if you have two minutes and a pen handy, we encourage you to repeat after us: door, door, door, door, door…

About Our Expert – Dr. Akira O’Connor

Akira O’Connor is a senior lecturer at the School of Psychology and Neuroscience at St. Andrews University. His primary focus is on how memories influence decision-making and how we perceive them.

Discover more about memory and the brain:

Source: www.sciencefocus.com

An Intriguing Puzzle: Deja Vu

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Déjà vu, the feeling of reliving an experience, is a subject that intrigues many people. Recent scientific research suggests that this phenomenon may be caused by spatial similarities between the new scene and the unrecalled memory. Various studies, including those using virtual reality, aim to learn more about the causes of déjà vu. Credit: SciTechDaily.com

What is déjà vu? Psychologists are investigating this eerie feeling that you may have already experienced before.

Have you ever felt that strange feeling? I went through the exact same situation before, even if it’s impossible? Sometimes it even seems like you are reliving something that has already happened. This phenomenon, known as déjà vuIt baffled philosophers, but neurologistand Writer for for a very long time.

Since the late 1800s, Many theories began to emerge About the cause of “déjà vu”, which means “already seen” in French. People thought maybe it was due to mental dysfunction, or maybe some kind of brain problem. Or maybe it was a temporary glitch in the normal workings of human memory. However, this topic has only recently reached the realm of science.

Transition from paranormal to science

At the beginning of this century, a scientist named Alan Brown All reviews written by researchers about Déjà Vu Until that point. Much of what he found had a paranormal flavour, relating to past lives, psychic powers, and other supernatural things. But he also found studies that surveyed ordinary people about their déjà vu experiences. From all these papers, Brown was able to glean some fundamental discoveries about the phenomenon of déjà vu.

For example, Brown determined that approximately two-thirds of people experience deja vu at some point in their lives. He determined that the most common trigger for déjà vu was a scene or location, and the second most common trigger was a conversation. He also reported hints across a century or so of medical literature about a possible link between déjà vu and certain types of seizure activity in the brain.

Brown’s book review brought the topic of déjà vu into the realm of more mainstream science. This is because these are the scientific journals that scientists who study cognition tend to read; in the book Intended for scientists. His research inspired scientists to design experiments to investigate déjà vu.

The layout of your new place may be very similar to places you’ve visited before, but you may not consciously remember it. Credit: SciTechDaily.com

Testing déjà vu in a psychology lab

Inspired by Brown’s work, my own research team began an experiment aimed at testing hypotheses about the mechanism of déjà vu.we investigated a nearly century-old hypothesis It suggests that déjà vu can occur when there is a spatial similarity between the current scene and a scene that cannot be recalled in memory. Psychologists called this the Gestalt affinity hypothesis.

For example, suppose you are on your way to visit a sick friend and pass a nursing station in a hospital ward. You had never been to this hospital before, but you had a certain feeling. The root cause of this feeling of déjà vu may be that the layout of the scene, including the placement of furniture and certain objects in the space, is the same layout as another scene experienced in the past.

Perhaps the way the nurse’s station is arranged – the way it is connected to the furniture, the items on the counter and the corners of the hallway – may be the same as the way a set of welcome tables are arranged in relation to the signs and furniture in a hospital corridor. not. Admission to a school event I attended a year ago. According to the Gestalt familiarity hypothesis, only a strong sense of familiarity may remain in a current situation if no previous situation with a similar layout to the current situation comes to mind.

To investigate this idea in the lab, my team used virtual reality to place people in a scene. This allows people to manipulate the environment in which they find themselves. Some scenes share the same spatial layout, while others are distinct. As I expected, There was a high possibility of déjà vu occurring. When people are in a scene that contains the same spatial arrangement of elements as a previous scene that they have seen but do not remember.

This study suggests that one factor that causes déjà vu may be the spatial similarity of a new scene to a scene in memory that is not consciously recalled at that moment. However, spatial similarity is not the only cause of deja vu. Many factors can contribute to making a scene or situation feel familiar. Further research is underway to investigate additional factors that may be involved in this mysterious phenomenon.

Written by Ann Cleary, Professor of Cognitive Psychology, Colorado State University.

This article was first published conversation.

Source: scitechdaily.com