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To discriminate and to recognize sound sources in a noisy, reverberant environment, listeners need to perceptually integrate the direct wave with the reflections of each sound source. It has been confirmed that perceptual fusion between direct and reflected waves of a speech sound helps listeners recognize this speech sound in a simulated reverberant environment with disrupting sound sources. When the delay between a direct sound wave and its reflected wave is sufficiently short, the two waves are perceptually fused into a single sound image as coming from the source location. Interestingly, compared with nonspeech sounds such as clicks and noise bursts, speech sounds have a much larger perceptual fusion tendency. This study investigated why the fusion tendency for speech sounds is so large. Here we show that when the temporal amplitude fluctuation of speech was artificially time reversed, a large perceptual fusion tendency of speech sounds disappeared, regardless of whether the speech acoustic carrier was in normal or reversed temporal order. Moreover, perceptual fusion of normal-order speech, but not that of time-reversed speech, was accompanied by increased coactivation of the attention-control-related, spatial-processing-related, and speech-processing-related cortical areas. Thus, speech-like acoustic carriers modulated by speech amplitude fluctuation selectively activate a cortical network for top–down modulations of speech processing, leading to an enhancement of perceptual fusion of speech sounds. This mechanism represents a perceptual-grouping strategy for unmasking speech under adverse conditions.

Promoted by triethylamine, α,β-unsaturated N-acylbenzotriazoles reacted with amino compounds in a variety of ways. Thus, N-cinnamoylbenzotriazoles reacting with aromatic amines afforded novel addition products β-benzotriazolyl amides 3, which might be normally formed from the alternative but unknown 1,4-addition of benzotriazole to N-cinnamoylamides. The type 3 compounds could also result from the reaction between N-crotonoylbenzotriazole and aliphatic amines. However, normal 1,4-addition could occur between α,β-unsaturated aliphatic N-acylbenzotriazoles and aromatic amines, leading to β-amino N-acylbenzotriazoles 4 in good yields. In addition, exclusive 1,2-addition of aliphatic amines to N-cinnamoylbenzotriazoles gave excellent yields of cinnamides 5. Accordingly, three possible routes were proposed to rationalize the formation of compounds 3–5. Finally, with o-phenylenediamine and o-aminothiophenol as the substrates, the 1,4- and 1,2-addition to α,β-unsaturated N-acylbenzotriazoles could take place concurrently and the corresponding heterocycles 1,5-benzodiazepine-2-one and 1,5-benzothiazepine-4-one were constructed, respectively.

Amines read with N-cinnamoylbenzotriazoles to afford either β-amino-N-acylbenzotriazoles or cinnamides depending on the structure of the amines. Aromatic amines react with N-cinnamoylbenzotriazoles via 1,4-addition to give β-amino-N-acyl-benzotriazoles in good yields. For o-phenylenediamine, the 1,4-addition products were further acylated to provide a facile route to substituted 1,3,4,5-tetrahydro-1,5-benzodiazepine-2-ones. Aliphatic amines, however, react exclusively through the 1,2-addition pathway to produce cinnamides in good yields.

Promoted by triethylamine, α,β-unsaturated N-acylbenzotriazoles reacted with amino compounds in a variety of ways. Thus, N-cinnamoylbenzotriazoles reacting with aromatic amines afforded novel addition products β-benzotriazolyl amides 3, which might be normally formed from the alternative but unknown 1,4-addition of benzotriazole to N-cinnamoylamides. The type 3 compounds could also result from the reaction between N-crotonoylbenzotriazole and aliphatic amines. However, normal 1,4-addition could occur between α,β-unsaturated aliphatic N-acylbenzotriazoles and aromatic amines, leading to β-amino N-acylbenzotriazoles 4 in good yields. In addition, exclusive 1,2-addition of aliphatic amines to N-cinnamoylbenzotriazoles gave excellent yields of cinnamides 5. Accordingly, three possible routes were proposed to rationalize the formation of compounds 3–5. Finally, with o-phenylenediamine and o-aminothiophenol as the substrates, the 1,4- and 1,2-addition to α,β-unsaturated N-acylbenzotriazoles could take place concurrently and the corresponding heterocycles 1,5-benzodiazepine-2-one and 1,5-benzothiazepine-4-one were constructed, respectively.

Catalyzed by samarium triiodide (SmI3), substitution of acyl with N‐acylbenzotriazoles for acetyl in acetoacetic esters and acetylacetone proceeds smoothly under neutral conditions in open air, affording the corresponding β‐keto esters and β‐diketones in good yields.

The Friedel–Crafts alkylation rather than acylation of indoles was realized with α,β-unsaturated acylbenzotriazoles catalyzed by samarium(III) iodide under reflux in anhydrous THF. The reaction was highly regioselective, and a series of new 3-substituted indole derivatives were obtained in moderate to good yields with the potential to be further transformed into various indole derivatives due to the presence of active acylbenzotriazole moiety.

Amines read with N-cinnamoylbenzotriazoles to afford either β-amino-N-acylbenzotriazoles or cinnamides depending on the structure of the amines. Aromatic amines react with N-cinnamoylbenzotriazoles via 1,4-addition to give β-amino-N-acyl-benzotriazoles in good yields. For o-phenylenediamine, the 1,4-addition products were further acylated to provide a facile route to substituted 1,3,4,5-tetrahydro-1,5-benzodiazepine-2-ones. Aliphatic amines, however, react exclusively through the 1,2-addition pathway to produce cinnamides in good yields.