Connectionist models of language learning: implications for writing pedagogy

Connectionism -an interdisciplinary approach that draws heaüly from hard science- promises to be the new paradigm shift for linguistics and psychology, and has important implications for both composition studies and the teaching of writing. The models are innovative primarily because -in a manner extendable to neurobiological reality- they process in a parallel rather than a serial manner and address subsymbolic rather tan symbolic representations. As neuroscientific knowledge expands, such models may be amended and developed to mirror learning of all types. Even at their current level of development, they proüde several important insights into the nature of cognition. This investigation uses connectionist assumptions as analytical tools to explain much about past theoretical frameworks in written composition, and -more significantly- to suggest some important Considerations for writing pedagogy

Selenium-Binding Protein 1 Indicates Myocardial Stress and Risk for Adverse Outcome in Cardiac Surgery

Selenium-binding protein 1 (SELENBP1) is an intracellular protein that has been detected in the circulation in response to myocardial infarction. Hypoxia and cardiac surgery affect selenoprotein expression and selenium (Se) status. For this reason, we decided to analyze circulating SELENBP1 concentrations in patients (n = 75) necessitating cardioplegia and a cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) during the course of the cardiac surgery. Serum samples were collected at seven time-points spanning the full surgical process. SELENBP1 was quantified by a highly sensitive newly developed immunological assay. Serum concentrations of SELENBP1 increased markedly during the intervention and showed a positive association with the duration of ischemia (ρ = 0.6, p < 0.0001). Elevated serum SELENBP1 concentrations at 1 h after arrival at the intensive care unit (post-surgery) were predictive to identify patients at risk of adverse outcome (death, bradycardia or cerebral ischemia, "endpoint 1"; OR 29.9, CI 3.3-268.8, p = 0.00027). Circulating SELENBP1 during intervention (2 min after reperfusion or 15 min after weaning from the CPB) correlated positively with an established marker of myocardial infarction (CK-MB) measured after the intervention (each with ρ = 0.5, p < 0.0001). We concluded that serum concentrations of SELENBP1 were strongly associated with cardiac arrest and the duration of myocardial ischemia already early during surgery, thereby constituting a novel and promising quantitative marker for myocardial hypoxia, with a high potential to improve diagnostics and prediction in combination with the established clinical parameters

Percepções dos alunos do Ensino Fundamental I da rede municipal de Criciúma/SC sobre o fenômeno bullying

A presente pesquisa teve como objetivo geral analisar as percepções dos alunos do ensino fundamental I da rede municipal de ensino de Criciúma/SC sobre o fenômeno bullying. Teve-se como objetivos específicos: identificar o entendimento das crianças sobre o fenômeno bullying; perceber como se sentiram ao sofrer e/ou praticar bullying; verificar se as crianças percebem o bullying como algo presente dentro e fora da escola; investigar quais intervenções ocorreram no ato de bullying relatado pelas crianças. Foi realizada uma pesquisa de campo, em que foram entrevistadas cinco crianças do 5º ano do ensino fundamental, em duas escolas de rede municipal de Criciúma/SC, totalizando dez crianças. A metodologia desenvolvida teve característica qualitativa e exploratória. O instrumento de coleta de dados utilizado foi a entrevista semiestruturada. Os autores utilizados foram: Beaudoin; Taylor (2006), Camargo (2013), Chalita (2008), Felizardo (2013), Gil (1991), Luiz Flávio Gomes (2013), Marcelo Magalhães Gomes (2013), Middelton-Moz; Zawadski (2007), Pinheiros (2010), Quintanilha (2011), Segundo; Speranza (2013), Vaz (2013), Zaine; Reis; Padovani (2010). Conclui-se que a maioria dos estudantes entrevistados sabe o que é bullying, porém apresentam um conceito restrito do tema investigado por limitar o fenômeno bullying às situações de agressão física e verbal, desconsiderando, por exemplo, as possibilidades do bullying virtual. Percebeu-se, também, que a maioria dos pesquisados situam a existência do bullying em relação aos fatos cometidos contra a sua pessoa, não se situando como possíveis agentes do fenômeno, o que demonstra uma percepção parcial do tema em foco.PALAVRAS CHAVE: Bullying. Violência. Escola

Percepções dos alunos do Ensino Fundamental I da rede municipal de Criciúma/SC sobre o fenômeno bullying

A presente pesquisa teve como objetivo geral analisar as percepções dos alunos do ensino fundamental I da rede municipal de ensino de Criciúma/SC sobre o fenômeno bullying. Teve-se como objetivos específicos: identificar o entendimento das crianças sobre o fenômeno bullying; perceber como se sentiram ao sofrer e/ou praticar bullying; verificar se as crianças percebem o bullying como algo presente dentro e fora da escola; investigar quais intervenções ocorreram no ato de bullying relatado pelas crianças. Foi realizada uma pesquisa de campo, em que foram entrevistadas cinco crianças do 5º ano do ensino fundamental, em duas escolas de rede municipal de Criciúma/SC, totalizando dez crianças. A metodologia desenvolvida teve característica qualitativa e exploratória. O instrumento de coleta de dados utilizado foi a entrevista semiestruturada. Os autores utilizados foram: Beaudoin; Taylor (2006), Camargo (2013), Chalita (2008), Felizardo (2013), Gil (1991), Luiz Flávio Gomes (2013), Marcelo Magalhães Gomes (2013), Middelton-Moz; Zawadski (2007), Pinheiros (2010), Quintanilha (2011), Segundo; Speranza (2013), Vaz (2013), Zaine; Reis; Padovani (2010). Conclui-se que a maioria dos estudantes entrevistados sabe o que é bullying, porém apresentam um conceito restrito do tema investigado por limitar o fenômeno bullying às situações de agressão física e verbal, desconsiderando, por exemplo, as possibilidades do bullying virtual. Percebeu-se, também, que a maioria dos pesquisados situam a existência do bullying em relação aos fatos cometidos contra a sua pessoa, não se situando como possíveis agentes do fenômeno, o que demonstra uma percepção parcial do tema em foco.PALAVRAS CHAVE: Bullying. Violência. Escola

Text-independent cross-language voice conversion

Abstract So far, cross-language voice conversion requires at least one bilingual speaker and parallel speech data to perform the training. This paper shows how these obstacles can be overcome by means of a recently presented text-independent training method based on unit selection. The new method is evaluated in the framework of the European speech-to-speech translation project TC-Star and achieves a performance similar to that of text-dependent intralingual voice conversion

Knowledge and attitudes of entry-level and final-level physical therapy students about evidence-based practice - A cross-sectional study

Evidence-based practice (EBP) has gained widespread acceptance in the health profession. Little is known about the attitudes, knowledge, and behavior about EBP of physical therapy students at different levels in Brazil. OBJECTIVES: To compare the EBP-related knowledge, practice, attitudes between the entry-level and final-level physical therapy students. METHODS: A cross-sectional study including 60 physical therapy students was conducted. The participants completed a questionnaire to determine their attitudes, knowledge, practice skills and barriers regarding EBP. The survey consisted of 38 items about EBP (relevance, terminology and practice skills) and 7 items related as barriers to adopt the EBP during physical therapy graduation. Total scores were calculated. For each of the three sections scores of a 5-point Likert scale were considered. RESULTS: The sample was composed of 40 students in the entry-level and 20 in the final-level. The mean age of the sample was 23.3 (SD=7.6). The mean score of the sample in the EBP survey was 83.5 (SD=20.8). We did not find difference between final-level group (mean=101.6; SD=17.8) and entry-level students (mean=74.5; SD= 15.8) (p=.45). Students of the final-level group presented higher scores in all EBP sections (relevance, terminology, practice skills). A higher mean difference was observed in terminology (-17.8) section. The most common barriers reported by the students of both groups were “lack of knowledge of statistics” (19.3%), “lack of time” (17.7%) and “language” (16%). CONCLUSION: The difference in all sections about evidence based knowledge and attitudes where not expressive between the final-level and the entry-level students. Regarding practice skills, students were not confident about their abilities in the EBP steps

Total area of spontaneous portosystemic shunts independently predicts hepatic encephalopathy and mortality in liver cirrhosis

Background & Aims: Spontaneous portosystemic shunts (SPSS) frequently develop in liver cirrhosis. Recent data suggested that the presence of a single large SPSS is associated with complications, especially overt hepatic encephalopathy (oHE). However, the presence of &gt;1 SPSS is common. This study evaluates the impact of total cross-sectional SPSS area (TSA) on outcomes in patients with liver cirrhosis. Methods: In this retrospective international multicentric study, CT scans of 908 cirrhotic patients with SPSS were evaluated for TSA. Clinical and laboratory data were recorded. Each detected SPSS radius was measured and TSA calculated. One-year survival was the primary endpoint and acute decompensation (oHE, variceal bleeding, ascites) was the secondary endpoint. Results: A total of 301 patients (169 male) were included in the training cohort. Thirty percent of all patients presented with &gt;1 SPSS. A TSA cut-off of 83 mm2 was used to classify patients with small or large TSA (S-/L-TSA). Patients with L-TSA presented with higher model for end-stage liver disease score (11 vs. 14) and more commonly had a history of oHE (12% vs. 21%, p &lt;0.05). During follow-up, patients with L-TSA experienced more oHE episodes (33% vs. 47%, p &lt;0.05) and had lower 1-year survival than those with S-TSA (84% vs. 69%, p &lt;0.001). Multivariate analysis identified L-TSA (hazard ratio 1.66; 95% CI 1.02–2.70, p &lt;0.05) as an independent predictor of mortality. An independent multicentric validation cohort of 607 patients confirmed that patients with L-TSA had lower 1-year survival (77% vs. 64%, p &lt;0.001) and more oHE development (35% vs. 49%, p &lt;0.001) than those with S-TSA. Conclusion: This study suggests that TSA &gt;83 mm2 increases the risk for oHE and mortality in patients with cirrhosis. Our results support the clinical use of TSA/SPSS for risk stratification and decision-making in the management of patients with cirrhosis. Lay summary: The prevalence of spontaneous portosystemic shunts (SPSS) is higher in patients with more advanced chronic liver disease. The presence of more than 1 SPSS is common in advanced chronic liver disease and is associated with the development of hepatic encephalopathy. This study shows that total cross-sectional SPSS area (rather than diameter of the single largest SPSS) predicts survival in patients with advanced chronic liver disease. Our results support the clinical use of total cross-sectional SPSS area for risk stratification and decision-making in the management of SPSS.Jonel Trebicka is supported by grants from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (SFB TRR57, CRC1382), Cellex Foundation and European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program GALAXY study (No. 668031), LIVERHOPE (No. 731875) and MICROB-PREDICT (No. 825694) and the Cellex Foundation. Joan Genescà is a recipient of a Research Intensification grant from Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Spain. The study was partially funded by grants PI15/00066, and PI18/00947 from Instituto de Salud Carlos III and co-funded by European Union (ERDF/ESF, “Investing in your future”). Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Hepáticas y Digestivasis supported by Instituto de Salud Carlos III. Macarena Simón-Talero is a recipient of the grant JR 17/00029 from Instituto de Salud Carlos II