Comprehending the development of reading difficulties in children with DLD

Children with developmental language disorder (DLD) have an increased risk of developing reading difficulties. However, the DLD group is a heterogeneous group and individual children with DLD may be present with different challenges depending on particular weaknesses. This dissertation explores the effect of comprehension difficulties on reading development in children with DLD. By using different approaches, the dissertation studies the language and reading difficulties from a behavioural perspective by testing reading and general language skills, as well as from a neurophysiological point of view, by using event-related potential recordings. Moreover, the dissertation explores the possibility to use serious video-gaming as an intervention, as well as an early diagnostic tool. The results suggest that rapid automatized naming is a suitable predictor of reading skills in second grade. Additionally, the data suggest that brain responses in kindergarten and first grade are indicators of reading skills in second grade. Finally, the results suggest that GraphoGame, a serious-videogame designed to train phonological awareness and letter-sound association, may be beneficial for training early reading skills. Also, in-game data and game progress correlate with reading fluency in second grade, which suggests that GraphoGame can be used to not only support but also diagnose, at an early stage, children who become struggling readers later on. The results add to the field of reading and special educational needs, as well as suggest possible approaches to investigate reading training and diagnosis in children, from a distance

Butterflies with New Wings Building a Future

This thesis presents sites of violence and despair as engines of opportunity and social transformation through the endeavors of the Butterflies with New Wings Building a Future, an organization that works to improve the lives of women victims of violence in Buenaventura, Colombia. This thesis places the Butterflies in the broader context of the Colombian armed conflict, in and beyond Buenaventura, and uses their own words and experiences to explain their perspectives, experiences, and strategies for change. This thesis explores the ways in which this organization is awakening hope in individuals and communities who have lost it, rebuilding bonds that the war broke, helping women not only to heal the wounds of their experiences with violence but also to transform themselves into agents of social change, and creating mechanisms for reconciliation in communities profoundly affected by armed conflict

IFN-γ versus IL-17: A Battle During Cardiac Autoimmunity Evolution

Cardiovascular diseases are the leading global cause of death. Cardiomyopathies are the most prevalent forms of heart failure diseases currently. They may have genetic or environmental etiology, and the development of an autoimmune process is essential for the progression of the disease. During an autoimmune response, there is the breakdown of self-tolerance and generation of a T-lymphocytes-mediated cellular autoimmune response and B-lymphocytes-mediated humoral autoimmune response. Lymphocytes perpetuate the autoimmune response throughout the release of cytokines, expansion of autoreactive clones, and attenuation of regulatory mechanisms. Increasing evidences indicate that interferon (IFN)-γ and interleukin (IL)-17 participate during autoimmune disorders development. The use of autoimmune cardiomyopathy models revealed antagonistic functions for both cytokines during the evolution of autoimmune cardiomyopathy: while enhanced IFN-γ levels are associated to a lower disease severity, the levels of IL-17 are inversely correlated to a favorable prognosis. More precisely, recent findings indicate that the IFN-γ/IL-17 ratio in combination with other cytokine levels dictates heart’s autoimmunity development and dilatation. In this chapter, we discuss the role played by the autoimmune response in the development of cardiomyopathy. We also discuss some immune mechanisms focused on IFN-γ and IL-17’s ability to induce and perpetuate cardiac autoimmunity

Plant phylogeography in Southern South America

This thesis is a phylogeographic investigation into plant species from Patagonia, and aims to infer their past distributions from the study of genealogical lineages. These species have gone through several events such as glacial periods, volcanism and topographical change which are expected to contribute to the divergence of genetic lineages by shaping distributions, isolating populations and therefore changing their genetic structure. So understanding how these processes have affected populations is important to get information on how the biodiversity in the region has been assembled, to identify hotspots of intra-specific diversity and therefore to establish potential conservation priorities. Several multi-species phylogeographic studies have been done in the northern hemisphere, but only few are published for South America and even less for the studied area. Patagonia is an area of a great interest because is the only area in the southern hemisphere apart from Antarctica that have been covered buy a thick layer of ice within the glacial periods. It has high levels of endemism, due to its natural boundaries and environmental processes, and is a biodiversity hotspot for conservation. Its varied topography (two big mountain ranges with a north-south distribution divided by a low flat area) also makes Patagonia interesting to study, due to the likelihood of this impacting on phylogeographic patterns. This study encompass seven different Patagonian species of which one is a range restricted conifer and the rest are all angiosperms and include trees, shrubs and herbs with a broad distributions. The reason why I have chosen so many different species is to look for general phylogeographic patterns in species in this region. The thesis was constructed in five chapters. The first is an introductory chapter that provides background to the study system and concepts. Chapters 2, 3, and 4 are empirical phylogeographic studies. These are written as self-contained chapters with the intention that each will be submitted as a separate paper. This leads to some repetition between chapters, but this is intentional as each will need to ‘stand alone’ when submitted for publication. Chapter 2 is a general investigation into five different Patagonian plant species: Discaria chacaye, Donatia fascicularis, Escallonia virgata, Tepualia stipularis and Weinmannia trichosperma. Chapter 3 describes the phylogeographic structure of Gentianella magellanica an annual, cold tolerant species with a wide distribution throughout Patagonia. This species was treated separately and in more detail than the previous five species due to its marked phylogeographic structure. Chapter 4 describes the phylogeographic structure of a Chilean endemic conifer Prumnopitys andina. This has a small distribution in the Andes and only one known population in the coastal cordillera. It was treated separately due to its restricted distribution and different mode of chloroplast inheritance (paternal). Chapter 5, is a general summary, bring all of the results together and giving a wider explanation of the phylogeographic patterns for all species and an outline of future research areas

Sulfentrazone herbicide biotransformation in Brazilian soils

Orientador: Lucia Regina DurrantDissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia de AlimentosMestradoMestre em Ciência de Alimento

Informe de Expediente Civil No. 183517-2008-0332-0-FC Divorcio por Causal de Separación de Hecho. Informe de Expediente Tributario No. 2054-2012 Sobre: Impuesto a la Renta

Materia: Divorcio por causal de separación de hecho Nº de Expediente: 183517-2008-0332-0-FC. La controversia presentada en el expediente materia de análisis es una demanda de divorcio por causal donde ambos cónyuges se encuentran en desacuerdo sobre las causales invocadas para determinar la configuración del divorcio; mas no sobre la disolución del matrimonio en sí. Asimismo, se discute si cabe una indemnización por daños y perjuicios a la demandada, quien la solicita alegando ser el cónyuge perjudicado. y la determinación del factor de atribución del actor. Materia: Impuesto a la Renta No de Expediente: 2054-2012. El expediente materia de análisis presenta una controversia relacionada con la fiscalización tributaria de los ejercicios fiscales 1998, 1999, 2000 y 2001 realizada por la Administración Tributaria a la empresa G.G. P.S.R.L. La Administración Tributaria repara el Impuesto a la Renta relativo a la deducción de intereses asociados a un préstamo obtenido para la adquisición de acciones, así como la diferencia en cambio; y la revaluación de activos previos a una fusión al amparo de la Norma VIII del Título Preliminar del Código Tributario, así como de la Ley 26283, norma por medio de la cual exoneran de todo tributo los actos, contratos y transferencias patrimoniales derivados de acuerdos de fusión o división de toda clase de personas jurídicas

Flora del cretácico superior de colombia, origen y dinámicas del bosque húmedo neotropical en el pasado

Camila Martínez-Aguillón (2012): Flora del Cretácico superior de Colombia, origen y dinámicas del Bosque Húmedo Neotropical en el pasado. GEOLOGÍA COLOMBIANA. Edición X Semana Técnica de Geología e Ingeniería Geológica. 37 (1), 11. Bogotá, Colombia. Manuscrito recibido: 13 agosto 2012; aceptado: 22 de agosto 2012.El origen y los procesos de divergencia que generaron la gran diversidad del Bosque Húmedo Neotropical son aún desconocidos, aunque la paleobotánica proporciona una gran cantidad de evidencia para documentar y entender el pasado de las plantas y los ecosistemas. Estudios recientes indican que hace aproximadamente 58Ma la composición florística del Bosque Húmedo Neotropical era similar a la del actual, aunque menos diversa. En este estudio se pretende entender la composición del bosque antes del límite Cretácico/Cenozoico (~65 Ma). Y para este fin se está llevando a cabo un trabajo intenso de colecta durante el Cretácico de Colombia con especial énfasis en el Cretácico Superior (Maastrichtiano). El material colectado se preparará y se curará, para posteriormente determinar la composición del bosque a través del tiempo y para estimar condiciones paleoclimática

The use of ecosystem-based adaptation practices by smallholder farmers in Central America

There is growing interest in promoting the use of Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) practices to help smallholder farmers adapt to climate change, however there is limited information on how commonly these practices are used by smallholder farmers and what factors influence their use. Using participatory mapping and field surveys, we examined the prevalence and characteristics of EbA practices on 300 smallholder coffee and maize farmers in six landscapes in Central America and explored the socioeconomic and biophysical factors associated with their use. The prevalence of individual EbA practices varied across smallholder farms. Common EbA practices included live fences, home gardens, shade trees in coffee plantations, and dispersed trees in maize fields. We found a mean of 3.8 EbA practices per farm. Factors that were correlated with the total number of EbA practices on farms included the mean area of coffee plantations, farmer age, farmer experience, the farm type and the landscape in which farms were located. Factors associated with the presence or characteristics of individual EbA practices included the size of coffee plantations, farmer experience, farmer education, land tenure, landscape and farm type. Our analysis suggests that many smallholder farmers in Central America are already using certain EbA practices, but there is still scope for greater implementation. Policy makers, donors and technicians can encourage the broader use of EbA by smallholder farmers by facilitating farmer-to-farmer exchanges to share knowledge on EbA implementation, assessing the effectiveness of EbA practices in delivering adaptation benefits, and tailoring EbA policies and programs for smallholder farmers in different socioeconomic and biophysical contexts. (Résumé d'auteur