Study of the cerebral alterations of schizophrenia through meta-analysis by neuroimaging

Treball Final de Grau en Psicologia. Codi: PS1048. Curs: 2018/2019.Schizophrenia is a chronic mental disorder, which can cause brain and functional abnormalities. This pathology affects 1% of the world population. Several studies have been interested in studying the changes that occur due to this pathology through voxel-based morphometry (VBM), where the brains of schizophrenic subjects are compared with controls. Some of the changes that have been observed are reductions in gray matter volume in subjects with schizophrenia in the thalamus, insula, left medial frontal rotation, superior temporal gyrus, superior left frontal rotation, rectilinear, anterior cingulate, left supplementary motor area , right opercular, amygdala, hippocampus and putamen. The aim of this study is to perform a meta-analysis to find reductions in the volume of gray matter in schizophrenic patients compared to controls. For the selection of the articles that are used the Ginger Detector, selecting 12 studies of the 70 that offered us the program, incorporating data of 371 patients with schizophrenia and 301 healthy subjects. As for the analysis, the ginger Ale was applied applying a value p <0.001 with a cluster threshold value p <0.05 FWE corrected equivalent to the minimum cluster volume of 584 mm³. It has been observed that subjects with schizophrenia have a reduction in the volume of gray matter in the left superior temporal gyrus, this area includes the auditory primaries and association and has been strongly involved in the experience of auditory hallucinations in schizophrenia.La esquizofrenia es un trastorno mental crónico, que se asocia a anomalías cerebrales estructurales y funcionales. Esta patología afecta al 1% de la población mundial. Varios estudios se han interesado en estudiar los cambios estructurales que se producen debido a esta patología a través de la morfometría basada en voxel (VBM), donde se comparan los cerebros de sujetos esquizofrénicos con sujetos controles. Algunos de los cambios que se han podido observar son reducciones de volumen de materia gris en sujetos con esquizofrenia en el tálamo, ínsula, giro frontal medial izquierda, giro temporal superior, giro frontal superior izquierdo, giro recto, cingulado anterior, área motora suplementaria izquierda, área opercular derecha, amígdala, hipocampo y putamen. El objetivo de este estudio es realizar un metanálisis para encontrar reducciones en el volumen de materia gris en pacientes esquizofrénicos en comparación con controles. Para la selección de los artículos se utilizó el Ginger Sleuth, seleccionándo 12 estudios de los 70 que nos ofrecía el programa, incorporándo datos de 371 pacientes con esquizofrenia y 301 sujetos sanos. En cuanto al metánalisis realizado se utilizó el Ginger Ale aplicando un valor p<0.001 con un valor de umbral de agrupación p<0,05 FWE corregido equivalente al volumen de agrupación mínimo de 584 mm³. Se observó que los sujetos con esquizofrenia presentaban una reducción del volumen de materia gris en el giro temporal superior izquierdo, esta área incluye las cortezas auditivas primarias y de asociación y ha sido implicada en la experiencia de alucinaciones auditivas en la esquizofrenia

English in a Multilingual Algeria

The presence of English in the former French colony of Algeria has been dramatically increasing. The impact of the language in Algeria has fluctuated due to sociopolitical instability in the late 1980s and 1990s. Prior to describing the impact of English, some general background about the country is provided, along with a brief historical overview of the linguistic diversity. Historical highlights of the spread of English in Algeria are also described. A profile of the users of English in the Maghreb nation is detailed as well, before discussing the various uses of English in various domains. The competition between English and French for linguistic territory is also discussed

Pourquoi nos Etudiants ne Parlent-ils pas Français ?

Why our students do not speak French? This paper focuses on the oral production of students enrolled in the License of French CUR Ahmed Zabana Relizane. Our goal is to identify the difficulties and apprehensions of these students for French as Foreign Language Affairs (FLE) and this in light of the research results of experts in this field. Our goal is to take stock of the situation of students enrolled in 1LTD License and to identify didactic processes to better understand discourse processes and oral language skills. French in these students

English for Peace in Algeria

English has the power to help bring socioeconomic prosperity and sociolinguistic peace to Algeria’s increasingly free market and complex multilingual situation. A hermeneutic approach toward the study of texts and part of a questionnaire are used to theorize about potential roles English could play in Algeria’s sociolinguistic context. It is found that an increasing number of social, cultural, and academic programs by the United States and the British Council could contribute to the spread of English in a peace-fostering manner. Algerians’ bottom-up initiatives, including those of teachers and social media users also have the potential to contribute to deethenicized worldly English that could be used to access more information and training opportunities. It is hoped that the spread of English, a language many Algerians seem to favor, could promote sociolinguistic peace and contribute to socioeconomic development

What to Expect When You Don’t Know What to Expect: Analysis of International Student Expectations at Writing Centers

This study focuses on international student expectations regarding Writing Centers, how participants develop these expectations and what Writing Centers can do to meet these expectations. Focus groups were held to gather data. The recorded interviews were then transcribed and analyzed using James Gee’s approach to critical discourse analysis. Findings include four categories of expectations that were developed by participants before they went to the Writing Center, during a session, or after a few experiences: workshops, tutors in different disciplines, “involved” tutors, and “fix” paper. The analysis reveals that expectations categories are developed when students connect and/or disconnect themselves from the Writing Center services. Power dynamics involved include: Standard English, tutoring strategies designed for Native English Speakers, and advisers’ powerful positions

English in a Multilingual Algeria

This exploratory study provides a sociolinguistic profile of English in Algeria. It begins with background of Algeria\u27s multilingual environment. It then describes the tools used to create the profile, including a survey, content analysis of online spaces, and personal anecdotal evidence. Next, it identifies groups of Algerian English users and presents their characteristics. Interpersonal, instrumental, and creative functions of English in Algeria are also explored. Moreover, I delineate the history of English education, and report attitudes Algerian students have toward English in the Algerian multilingual context. Findings include the growing interpersonal function of English as exemplified by its use in online spaces. Attitudes reveal immense support for English and its use in higher education for access to science and technology. An overall picture of the state of English in Algeria is provided and future research could build on this profile to closely examine lexical borrowing and English use for online communication

Rhetorical Agency in Digital Storytelling: New Americans' Voices in the Chthulucene

This study explores New American (refugees, immigrants, and asylum seekers) storytelling and agency through Donna Haraway’s concepts of the Chthulucene (pronounced thulusene), making kin, and staying with the trouble. Haraway’s framework positions this study in the Chthulucene era, where humans recognize that solving global issues requires making connections and taking collaborative action. This study demonstrates how New Americans can create counter-narratives through Digital Storytelling (DST) in the Chthulucene. An analysis of ten New American participants’ DST processes and story choices is provided. This research responds to three main questions: How do New Americans shape their digital stories through specific choices and how do these choices display agency? What do their storytelling processes reveal about agency through their rhetorical and linguistic choices? Finally, how do New Americans display their agency in multimodal storytelling? Participatory Action Research (PAR) is used to frame the research questions. Alongside the collaborative, flexible, and adaptable nature of PAR, the Story Center’s Digital Storytelling (DST) model was selected as the appropriate approach to facilitate DST workshops for New American participants. Three separate workshops included ten New American participants from different backgrounds. Approaches such as focus groups, story workshop reflections, and individual interviews were used to respond to the research questions. After transcribing focus groups and individual interviews, all data was coded using Grounded Theory. The findings suggest that participants make storytelling process, rhetorical, linguistic, and multimodal story choices by being intentional in using their original voice and agency as counter-narrators. Participants’ storytelling process choices indicate that past storytelling constricted their agency while DST provided an opportunity for their agency to be visible. Furthermore, participants’ rhetorical choices demonstrate their audience and situational awareness. In addition, linguistic choices illustrate that participants’ understanding and use of English demonstrates translingual practices. Moreover, multimodal story choices display their innovation and commitment to personal intentional storytelling. Additionally, participants' experiences in storytelling and how they implement their agency varies by individual. This study demonstrates what doing research and practicing pedagogy that operates in the Chthulucene might look like for Rhetoric and Writing Studies to remain relevant

A Corpus-assisted Discourse Study of Language Use in Online News

This study shows that language reveals a negative stance by its users an divisiveness over a conflict. A small corpus of English and French online news is designed to examine Algerian and Moroccan journalists\u27 stance towards their neighboring country, their potential use of divisive language, and how English and French might be used differently