How does rapid automatized naming influence orthographic knowledge?

Rapid automatized naming (RAN) is a strong predictor of reading fluency across languages, and some researchers have attributed this to the contribution of RAN to the development of orthographic knowledge, which is predictive of reading fluency. However, to date, it remains unclear whether RAN (alphanumeric and nonalphanumeric) predicts orthographic knowledge (OK) and what skills may mediate their relation. To examine the RAN–OK relations, we assessed 114 Grade 3 Spanish-speaking Mexican children (58 girls; Mage = 7.9 years, SD = 0.3) on RAN (objects and digits), orthographic knowledge (lexical and sublexical; accuracy and response time), speed of processing, multi-element processing, phonemic awareness, and reading fluency. Path analyses showed first that, OK (both lexical and sublexical) partly mediated the effects of RAN on reading fluency. Second, multiple mediation analyses showed an indirect effect of both RAN tasks on lexical and sublexical OK through phonological awareness. In view of Ehri’s amalgamation hypothesis and Share’s self-teaching hypothesis, our findings suggest that RAN may reflect, in part, the speed with which the phonological representations of letters are accessed and retrieved, which subsequently influences how quickly orthographic representations can be formed and accessed

Behavior of Oxidative Stress Markers in Alcoholic Liver Cirrhosis Patients

Alcohol is the most socially accepted addictive substance worldwide, and its metabolism is related with oxidative stress generation. The aim of this work was to evaluate the role of oxidative stress in alcoholic liver cirrhosis (ALC). This study included 187 patients divided into two groups: ALC, classified according to Child-Pugh score, and a control group. We determined the levels of reduced and oxidized glutathione (GSH and GSSG) and the GSH/GSSG ratio by an enzymatic method in blood. Also, protein carbonyl and malondialdehyde (MDA) content were estimated in serum. MDA levels increased in proportion to the severity of damage, whereas the GSH and GSSG levels decreased and increased, respectively, at different stages of cirrhosis. There were no differences in the GSH/GSSG ratio and carbonylated protein content between groups. We also evaluated whether the active consumption of or abstinence from alcoholic beverages affected the behavior of these oxidative markers and only found differences in the MDA, GSH, and GSSG determination and the GSH/GSSG ratio. Our results suggest that alcoholic cirrhotic subjects have an increase in oxidative stress in the early stages of disease severity and that abstinence from alcohol consumption favors the major antioxidant endogen: GSH in patients with advanced disease severity

Cross-language contributions of rapid automatized naming to reading accuracy and fluency in young adults : Evidence from eight languages representing different writing systems

Rapid automatized naming (RAN) is a strong predictor of reading across languages. However, it remains unclear if the effects of RAN in first language (L1) transfer to reading in second language (L2) and if the results vary as a function of the orthographic proximity of L1–L2. To fill this gap in the literature, we examined the role of RAN in reading accuracy and fluency in eight languages representing different writing systems. Seven hundred and thirty-five university students (85 Chinese-, 84 Japanese-, 100 Kannada-, 40 Oriya-, 115 English-, 115 Arabic-, 105 Portuguese-, and 91 Spanish-speaking) participated in our study. They were assessed on RAN (Digits and Objects) and reading (accuracy and fluency) in both L1 and L2 (English). Results of hierarchical regression analyses showed significant effects of L1 RAN on L2 reading accuracy in the Chinese-, Portuguese-, and Spanish-speaking groups. In addition, L2 RAN was a significant predictor of reading fluency in L1 in the same language groups. No cross-language transfer was observed in the other languages. These findings suggest first that L1 and L2 RAN capture similar processes and controlling for one does not leave unique variance for the other to explain. Second, to the extent there is cross-language transfer of RAN skills, this appears to be independent of the orthographic proximity of the languages

Tiempos para pensar : investigación social y humanística hoy en Venezuela. Tomo I

En nuestros tiempos, hacer investigación en Ciencias Sociales y Humanidades e intentar aportar pensamiento crítico es un hacer personal y también una tarea colectiva que se gesta en el intercambio y en el encuentro, en el debate y en la puesta en común de visiones, análisis, puntos de partida y espacios que se recorren. Hay desafíos del nuevo tiempo que son desafíos de las sociedades, e interpelan a la producción de conocimiento social y humano, le proponen preguntas y encomiendas, exigen que responda a sus demandas éticas y epistémicas desde el Sur, piden que se construyan saberes alternativos, decoloniales, que expliquen, acompañen y prefiguren la emancipación. Este libro, que cuenta con dos tomos, encara este desafío con rigurosidad y espíritu crítico