Unreliable homodiegesis and the trace of influence: the work of E. A. Poe

The present article elaborates on the question of infl uence from the perspective of Reader-Response Criticism to extend Umberto Eco’s distinction of three paths of literary influence (contemporary, linear, and Zeitgeist) into a fourth one that involves the aesthetic dimension of literary works as artistic manifestations. The literary and critical work of E. A. Poe is used to show the functioning of both direct and reverse influence between Poe and contemporary (Charles Dickens) or later authors (Paul Bowles, Vladimir Nabokov and Thomas Pynchon). Influence is traced through three main textual tools: specific images, unreliable homodiegesis, and the construction of a final effect. Analysis proceeds from first, ascertaining Poe’s influence on the above-mentioned authors; and second, exploring the nature of this relationship. The result of this analysis shows the addition of symbolism and plot development to Dickens’ work; and of international, contemporary recognition to Poe’s. It also shows the development of the postcolonial and the metafictional in the 20th-century understanding of Poe’s work, and the process by which Poe as an author is characterized to enter the world of fiction.El presente artículo desarrolla la cuestión de la influencia desde la perspectiva de la crítica de la recepción del lector para extender la distinción que Humberto Eco hace de los tres patrones de influencia literaria (contemporánea, lineal y Zeitgeist) hasta un cuarto modelo que implica a la dimensión estética de las obras literaria como manifestaciones artísticas. La obra literaria y crítica de E. A. Poe se utiliza para mostrar el funcionamiento de la influencia directa e inversa entre Poe y autores contemporáneos (Charles Dickens) y posteriores (Paul Bowles, Vladimir Nabokov y Thomas Pynchon). La influencia es analizada a través de tres instrumentos textuales: imágenes específicas, la homodiégesis no fiable y la construcción de un efecto final. El análisis comienza con la confirmación de la influencia de Poe en los autores anteriormente mencionados y prosigue con la exploración de la naturaleza de esta influencia. El resultado de dicho análisis muestra la contribución de Poe al simbolismo y desarrollo de la trama en el trabajo de Dickens, así como el reconocimiento contemporáneo de la obra de Poe a nivel internacional. También muestra el desarrollo de las visiones postcolonial y metaficcional del trabajo de Poe en el siglo veinte, y el proceso por el que Poe como autor se convierte en un personaje que puede ser asimilado por el mundo de ficción

Integration or Immersion? A Comparative Study at the Tertiary Level

The implementation of new degrees in the Spanish university system as a result of the process of adaptation to the European Space of Higher Education (ESHE) will bring significant changes in the learning of foreign languages at this level. Different methodological approaches such as foreign linguistic immersion in the content classroom or Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) might be used as a compensatory curricular strategy for the learning of foreign languages in the implementation of the new university degrees. The present article reports on research conducted at the School of Psychology of the University of Granada (Spain) where these two methodological approaches were contrasted for an assessment of their efficiency with regards to the specific learning purposes indicated above. The results obtained show the academic convenience of the implementation of CLIL methodology as a compensation strategy for the loss of courses on English for Specific Purposes at the tertiary level

Construction and Validation of a Scale for Assessing Best Intercultural Practices in Social Work

El objetivo principal de este artículo es mostrar el proceso de construcción y validación de un instrumento de medida que permite delimitar qué puede ser considerado «buena práctica» en relación a proyectos interculturales. Este trabajo se enmarca dentro de una investigación más amplia denominada «Mapa de buenas prácticas interculturales en Andalucía » y que fue financiada por la Dirección General de Coordinación de Políticas Migratorias de la Consejería de Gobernación de la Junta de Andalucía. La escala validada está formada por 32 ítems distribuidos en cuatro dimensiones: teórica (con tres subdimensiones: factor contextual, factor concepción de la diversidad y factor de elementos de diversidad), ético-ideológica, socio-política y una última de empatía intercultural. Se incluyen también otras cuestiones relacionadas con datos de identificación de los proyectos participantes. Esta escala ha sido pilotada en proyectos de intervención social de diferentes sectores de actuación que comparten la visión intercultural (empleo, educación, salud, etc.) y que se desarrollan en Andalucía (España). Con los datos obtenidos hemos alcanzado evidencias de validez de constructo y elevada fiabilidad del instrumento diseñado.This article reports on the construction and validation process of an instrument that enables the placement of intercultural projects on a scale of Best Practices. The validated scales includes 32 variables divided into four categories: theoretical (subdivided further into three categories: contextual, concept of diversity and elements of diversity); ethicalideological, sociopolitical and intercultural empathy. Questions related to project identification are also included. The scale was piloted in social intervention projects in different sectors sharing the intercultural vision (employment, education, health, etc.) and was developed in Andalusia (Spain). The data obtained show evidence of construct validity and high reliability of the instrument as designed

Construction and validation of a scale for assessing best intercultural practices in Social Work

El objetivo principal de este artículo es mostrar el proceso de construcción y validación de un instrumento de medida que permite delimitar qué puede ser considerado «buena práctica» en relación a proyectos interculturales. Este trabajo se enmarca dentro de una investigación más amplia denominada «Mapa de buenas prácticas interculturales en Andalucía » y que fue financiada por la Dirección General de Coordinación de Políticas Migratorias de la Consejería de Gobernación de la Junta de Andalucía. La escala validada está formada por 32 ítems distribuidos en cuatro dimensiones: teórica (con tres subdimensiones: factor contextual, factor concepción de la diversidad y factor de elementos de diversidad), ético-ideológica, socio-política y una última de empatía intercultural. Se incluyen también otras cuestiones relacionadas con datos de identificación de los proyectos participantes. Esta escala ha sido pilotada en proyectos de intervención social de diferentes sectores de actuación que comparten la visión intercultural (empleo, educación, salud, etc.) y que se desarrollan en Andalucía (España). Con los datos obtenidos hemos alcanzado evidencias de validez de constructo y elevada fiabilidad del instrumento diseñado.This article reports on the construction and validation process of an instrument that enables the placement of intercultural projects on a scale of Best Practices. The validated scales includes 32 variables divided into four categories: theoretical (subdivided further into three categories: contextual, concept of diversity and elements of diversity); ethicalideological, sociopolitical and intercultural empathy. Questions related to project identification are also included. The scale was piloted in social intervention projects in different sectors sharing the intercultural vision (employment, education, health, etc.) and was developed in Andalusia (Spain). The data obtained show evidence of construct validity and high reliability of the instrument as designed

Dielectric properties of colon polyps, cancer, and normal mucosa: Ex vivo measurements from 0.5 to 20 GHz

This is the accepted version of the following article: Guardiola, M. , Buitrago, S. , Fernández‐Esparrach, G. , O'Callaghan, J. M., Romeu, J. , Cuatrecasas, M. , Córdova, H. , González Ballester, M. Á. and Camara, O. (2018), Dielectric properties of colon polyps, cancer, and normal mucosa: Ex vivo measurements from 0.5 to 20 GHz. Med. Phys., 45: 3768-3782. doi:10.1002/mp.13016, which has been published in final form at https://aapm.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/mp.13016. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with the Wiley Self-Archiving Policy [http://olabout.wiley.com/WileyCDA/Section/id-820227.html].Colorectal cancer is highly preventable by detecting and removing polyps, which are the precursors. 20 Currently, the most accurate test is colonoscopy, but still misses 22% of polyps due to visualization limitations. In this paper we preliminary assess the potential of microwave imaging and dielectric properties (e.g. complex permittivity) as a complementary method for detecting polyps and cancer tissue in the colon. The dielectric properties of biological tissues have been used in a wide variety of applications, including safety assessment of wireless technologies and design of medical diagnostic or therapeutic techniques 25 (microwave imaging, hyperthermia and ablation). The main purpose of this work is to measure the complex permittivity of different types of colon polyps, cancer and normal mucosa in ex vivo human samples to study if the dielectric properties are appropriate for classification purposes.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

The young open cluster NGC 7067 using Stromgren photometry

© The Authors 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Royal Astronomical Society. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted reuse, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. M. Monguio et al, ' The young open cluster NGC 7067 using Stromgren photometry ', MNRAS Vol 466(3): 3636-3647 (2017), first published online 17 December 2016, the version of record is available online via doi: 10.1093/mnras/stw3302NGC 7067 is a young open cluster located in the direction between the first and the second Galactic quadrants and close to the Perseus spiral arm. This makes it useful for studies of the nature of the Milky Way spiral arms. Stromgren photometry taken with the Wide Field Camera at the Isaac Newton Telescope allowed us to compute individual physical parameters for the bserved stars and hence to derive cluster’s physical parameters. Spectra from the 1.93-m telescope at the Observatoire de Haute-Provence helped to check and improve the results. We obtained photometry for 1233 stars, individual physical parameters for 515 and spectra for 9 of them. The 139 selected cluster members lead to a cluster distance of 4.4±0.4 kpc, with an age below log10(t(yr))=7.3 and a present Mass of 1260±160M⊙. The morphology of the data reveals that the centre of the cluster is at (α,δ)=(21: 24: 13.69,+48: 00: 39.2) J2000, with a radius of 6.′1. Stromgren and spectroscopic data allowed us to improve the previous parameters available for the cluster in the literature.Peer reviewedFinal Published versio

Dielectric properties of colon polyps, cancer and normal mucosa: ex vivo measurements from 0.5 to 20 GHz

Purpose: Colorectal cancer is highly preventable by detecting and removing polyps, which are the precursors. Currently, the most accurate test is colonoscopy, but still misses 22% of polyps due to visualization limitations. In this paper, we preliminary assess the potential of microwave imaging and dielectric properties (e.g., complex permittivity) as a complementary method for detecting polyps and cancer tissue in the colon. The dielectric properties of biological tissues have been used in a wide variety of applications, including safety assessment of wireless technologies and design of medical diagnostic or therapeutic techniques (microwave imaging, hyperthermia, and ablation). The main purpose of this work is to measure the complex permittivity of different types of colon polyps, cancer, and normal mucosa in ex vivo human samples to study if the dielectric properties are appropriate for classification purposes. Methods: The complex permittivity of freshly excised healthy colon tissue, cancer, and histological samples of different types of polyps from 23 patients was characterized using an open-ended coaxial probe between 0.5 and 20 GHz. The obtained measurements were classified into five tissue groups before applying a data reduction step with a frequency dispersive single-pole Debye model. The classification was finally compared with pathological analysis of tissue samples, which is the gold standard. Results: The complex permittivity progressively increases as the tissue degenerates from normal to cancer. When comparing to the gold-standard histological tissue analysis, the sensitivity and specificity of the proposed method is the following: 100% and 95% for cancer diagnosis; 91% and 62% for adenomas with high-grade dysplasia; 100% and 61% for adenomas with low-grade dysplasia; and 100% and 74% for hyperplastic polyps, respectively. In addition, complex permittivity measurements were independent of the lesion shape and size, which is also an interesting property comparing to current colonoscopy techniques. Conclusions: The contrast in complex permittivities between normal and abnormal colon tissues presented here for the first time demonstrate the potential of these measurements for tissue classification. It also opens the door to the development of a microwave endoscopic device to complement the outcomes of colonoscopy with functional tissue informatio

Mutational Status of SMAD4 and FBXW7 Affects Clinical Outcome in TP53-Mutated Metastatic Colorectal Cancer

Next-generation sequencing (NGS) provides a molecular rationale to inform prognostic stratification and to guide personalized treatment in cancer patients. Here, we determined the prognostic and predictive value of actionable mutated genes in metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). Among a total of 294 mCRC tumors examined by targeted NGS, 200 of them derived from patients treated with first-line chemotherapy plus/minus monoclonal antibodies were included in prognostic analyses. Discriminative performance was assessed by time-dependent estimates of the area under the curve (AUC). The most recurrently mutated genes were TP53 (64%), KRAS or NRAS (49%), PIK3CA (15%), SMAD4 (14%), BRAF (13%), and FBXW7 (9.5%). Mutations in FBXW7 correlated with worse OS rates (p = 0.036; HR, 2.24) independently of clinical factors. Concurrent mutations in TP53 and FBXW7 were associated with increased risk of death (p = 0.02; HR, 3.31) as well as double-mutated TP53 and SMAD4 (p = 0.03; HR, 2.91). Analysis of the MSK-IMPACT mCRC cohort (N = 1095 patients) confirmed the same prognostic trend for the previously identified mutated genes. Addition of the mutational status of these genes upon clinical factors resulted in a time-dependent AUC of 87%. Gene set enrichment analysis revealed specific molecular pathways associated with SMAD4 and FBXW7 mutations in TP53-defficient tumors. Conclusively, SMAD4 and FBXW7 mutations in TP53-altered tumors were predictive of a negative prognostic outcome in mCRC patients treated with first-line regimens

Cytotoxicity and concentration of silver ions released from dressings in the treatment of infected wounds: a systematic review

IntroductionSilver-releasing dressings are used in the treatment of infected wounds. Despite their widespread use, neither the amount of silver released nor the potential in vivo toxicity is known. The aim of this study was to evaluate the cytotoxic effects and the amount of silver released from commercially available dressings with infected wounds.MethodsThe review was conducted according to the PRISMA statement. The Web of Science, PubMed, Embase, Scopus, and CINAHL databases were searched for studies from 2002 through December 2022. The criteria were as follows: population (human patients with infected wounds); intervention (commercial dressings with clinical silver authorized for use in humans); and outcomes (concentrations of silver ions released into tissues and plasma). Any study based on silver-free dressings, experimental dressings, or dressings not for clinical use in humans should be excluded. According to the type of study, systematic reviews, experimental, quasi-experimental, and observational studies in English, Spanish, or Portuguese were considered. The quality of the selected studies was assessed using the JBI critical appraisal tools. Studies that assessed at least 65% of the included items were included. Data were extracted independently by two reviewers.Results740 articles were found and five were finally selected (all of them quasi-experimental). Heterogeneity was found in terms of study design, application of silver dressings, and methods of assessment, which limited the comparability between studies.ConclusionIn vivo comparative studies of clinical dressings for control of infection lack a standardized methodology that allows observation of all the variables of silver performance at local and systemic levels, as well as evaluation of its cytotoxicity. It cannot be concluded whether the assessed concentrations of released silver in commercial dressings for the topical treatment of infected wounds are cytotoxic to skin cells.Systematic review registrationhttps://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?ID=CRD42022351041, PROSPERO [CRD42022351041]