Grammar in dictionaries revisited: the case of verbs with se

Este artículo es un estudio sobre el modo como nueve diccionarios monolingües de español, generales y didácticos, representan las construcciones con se en las entradas de 20 verbos del castellano. Estas construcciones son muy numerosas y resultan problemáticas tanto para el hablante nativo como para el no nativo. Los verbos analizados, de frecuencia media-alta y la mayoría muy polisémicos, permiten observar las interconexiones entre las distintas construcciones y entre los diversos significados del verbo. Los datos del análisis metalexicográfico se contrastan con un estudio de corpus de los mismos verbos. Como resultado, se observa que existe una gran variación en los datos que se ofrecen y en el modo de ofrecerlos, dentro de cada diccionario y entre diccionarios, por motivos que van desde la concepción teórica de la obra hasta la ejecución práctica. Ello lleva a concluir que es necesario avanzar en el modelo de diccionario que se está manejando, para que en estas obras de consulta puedan representarse de modo fiel, claro y exhaustivo fenómenos léxico-gramaticales como el de los verbos con se.This paper is a study about the way in which se structures are represented in 20 verb entries of nine dictionaries of Spanish language. There is a large number of these structures and they are problematic for native and non native speakers. Verbs of the analysis are middle-high frequency and, in the most part of the cases, very polysemous, and this allows to observe interconnections between the different se structures and the different meanings of each verb. Data of the lexicographic analysis are cross-checked with corpus analysis of the same units. As a result, it is observed that there is a large variety in the data which are offered in each dictionary and in the way they are offered, inter and intradictionary. The reasons range from the theoretical overall of each Project to practical performance. This leads to the conclusion that it is necessary to further progress in the dictionary model it is being handled, in order to offer lexico-grammatical phenomenon such as se verbs in an accurate, clear and exhaustive way

Linking Verb Pattern Dictionaries of English and Spanish

The paper presents the first step in the creation of a new multilingual and corpus-driven lexical resource by means of linking existing monolingual pattern dictionaries of English and Spanish verbs. The two dictionaries were compiled through Corpus Pattern Analysis (CPA) – an empirical procedure in corpus linguistics that associates word meaning with word use by means of analysis of phraseological patterns and collocations found in corpus data. This paper provides a first look into a number of practical issues arising from the task of linking corresponding patterns across languages via both manual and automatic procedures. In order to facilitate manual pattern linking, we implemented a heuristic-based algorithm to generate automatic suggestions for candidate verb pattern pairs, which obtained 80% precision. Our goal is to kick-start the development of a new resource for verbs that can be used by language learners, translators, editors and the research community alike

Corpus Pattern Analysis in determining specialised uses of verbal lexical units

Presentem una metodologia per a la detecció de verbs especialitzats que parteix del Corpus Pattern Analysis o CPA (Hanks 2004a, 2004b), un procediment d'anàlisi de corpus que proposa la combinació de la sintaxi i la semàntica per donar compte del significat del lèxic en context. La nostra hipòtesi és que aquesta metodologia es pot aplicar en terminologia per distingir els usos especialitzats de verbs dels no especialitzats.We present a methodology for the detection of specialised uses of verbs that starts from Corpus Pattern Analysis, CPA (Hanks 2004a, 2004b), a procedure for combining syntax and semantics in order to describe lexical meaning in context. Our hypothesis is that this methodology can be applied in terminology to distinguish specialised uses from the general ones

Spell-checking in Spanish: the case of diacritic accents

This article presents the problem of diacritic restoration (or diacritization) in the context of spell-checking, with the focus on an orthographically rich language such as Spanish. We argue that despite the large volume of work published on the topic of diacritization, currently available spell-checking tools have still not found a proper solution to the problem in those cases where both forms of a word are listed in the checker’s dictionary. This is the case, for instance, when a word form exists with and without diacritics, such as continuo ‘continuous’ and continuó ‘he/she/it continued’, or when different diacritics make other word distinctions, as in continúo ‘I continue’. We propose a very simple solution based on a word bigram model derived from correctly typed Spanish texts and evaluate the ability of this model to restore diacritics in artificial as well as real errors. The case of diacritics is only meant to be an example of the possible applications for this idea, yet we believe that the same method could be applied to other kinds of orthographic or even grammatical errors. Moreover, given that no explicit linguistic knowledge is required, the proposed model can be used with other languages provided that a large normative corpus is available.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author’s final draft

An examination of the association between risk of depression and academic performance according to weight status in adolescents: DADOS study

Background: The early identification of emotional and psychological problems during adolescence seems helpful to improve academic performance (AP). However, the association between risk of depression and AP, as well as the role of health-related factors in this association remain to be elucidated. Therefore, the aims of this study were to analyze the association between risk of depression and AP in adolescents; to examine this association according to weight status; and to test the mediating role of weight status in this association. Methods: A sample of 265 adolescents (125 girls) aged 13.9 ± 0.3 years old from the DADOS (Deporte, ADOlescencia y Salud) study was included in the analyses. Risk of depression was self-reported through the Behavior Assessment System for Children and Adolescents. AP was assessed through academic grades and the Spanish version of the Science Research Associates Test of Educational Ability. Weight status was assessed by body mass index (BMI) (kg/m2 ) and dichotomized according to the international age- and sex-specific BMI cut-offs (nonoverweight vs. overweight). Results: Linear regression analyses showed an inverse association between risk of depression and academic grades (all p<0.05). Further linear regressions analyzing risk of depression and AP (dependent variable) stratified by weight status showed stronger associations among overweight adolescents. Additionally, mediation analyses revealed that weight status acted as a mediator of this association. Limitations: The cross-sectional design prevents from interfering causal relationships. Conclusions: Educational institutions should promote the early identification of depression as well as the promotion of healthy weight status as strategies to enhance AP in adolescents.Funding for open access charge: CRUE-Universitat Jaume

Tarantula –> spider –> animal: second level hypernymy discovery based on distributional similarity methods

La asignación automática de hiperónimos sigue presentando problemas para el procesamiento del lenguaje natural. En particular, los sustantivos polisémicos se vinculan a distintos hiperónimos y por ello pueden causar problemas estructurales en una taxonomía léxica. Por ejemplo, el sustantivo tarántula puede ser registrado como hipónimo de araña y, como este es un sustantivo polisémico (puede denotar a un ser vivo o a un tipo de lámpara), es necesario determinar cuál es el hiperónimo siguiente en la cadena: animal o artefacto. En el presente artículo exploramos métodos para resolver este problema utilizando el cálculo de la similitud entre sustantivos utilizando como variable predictora los verbos con los que coocurren. Los mejores resultados (84% de acierto) se obtienen con un método simple que solo mide coocurrencia, sin tener en cuenta información sintáctica.Automatic hypernymy discovery continues to present challenges for natural language processing. Polysemous nouns are linked to more than one hypernym and can therefore cause structural damage on a lexical taxonomy. For instance, the Spanish noun tarántula (‘tarantula’) is a hyponym of araña (‘spider’), but this is also a polysemous noun, as it means ‘chandelier’ as well. It is thus necessary to determine the next hypernym in the chain, that is animal (‘animal') or artefacto (‘artifact’). In this paper we explore methods to solve this problem using a similarity measure that uses verb-noun co-occurrence as a predictor variable. Best results (84% success) are obtained with a simple method that only measures co-occurrence, irrespective of any syntactic information.Esta investigación ha sido posible gracias al financiamiento del Proyecto Fondecyt Regular 1191204 “Polisemia regular de los sustantivos del español: análisis semiautomático de corpus, caracterización y tipología”, dirigido por Irene Renau

The bidirectional longitudinal association between health-related quality of life and academic performance in adolescents: DADOS study

- Purpose: Although previous evidence has suggested a relationship between health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and academic performance, the directionality of this association is understudied and remains to be clarified. Thus, the primary objective of this study was to explore the bidirectional association between HRQoL and academic performance in adolescents between two timepoints with a 24-month interval. A secondary aim was to analyze whether this association varies between boys and girls. - Methods: This is a bidirectional longitudinal analysis with 257 adolescents (13.9 ± 0.3 years at baseline) from the DADOS study. HRQoL was measured using the KIDSCREEN-10 questionnaire. Academic performance was assessed through academic grades and the Spanish version of the Science Research Associates Test of Educational Ability. - Results: Cross-lagged analyses revealed that HRQoL at baseline was not associated with academic performance 24 months later, while all the academic grades and the overall score of academic abilities at baseline were positively associated with HRQoL at follow-up in adolescents. Results of the stratified analyses by sex were largely similar. Specifically, in girls, math, language, physical education, and grade point average at baseline were positively associated with HRQoL 24 months later, while in boys, all the academic grades indicators (except physical education), numeric ability, and the overall score of academic abilities at baseline were positively associated with HRQoL at follow-up. - Conclusion: These findings suggest that academic performance in early adolescence may predict HRQoL 24 months later. Health and education professionals could benefit from collaborating to achieve both improved academic performance and HRQoL in youth

The bidirectional longitudinal association between academic performance and cardiovascular disease risk factors in adolescents

Introduction. The limited prior research examining the association between academic performance and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in youth did not explore the reciprocal association between these constructs and analysed CVD risk factors individually. Thus, the aim of the present study was to explore the bidirectional longitudinal association between clustered CVD risk score and academic performance in adolescents over a 24 month interval. Methods. A total of 237 adolescents (45.6% girls), aged 13.9±0.3 years old at baseline, from DADOS (Deporte, ADOlescencia y Salud) study were included in this study. A clustered CVD risk score was created by calculating the mean age- and gender-standardized z-scores of waist circumference, systolic blood pressure, total cholesterol:high-density lipoprotein cholesterol-ratio, triglycerides, homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance, and cardiorespiratory fitness (inversed). Academic performance was assessed through the final academic grades and the Test of Educational Abilities. Results. Our results showed that the clustered CVD risk score at baseline was not associated with academic performance 24 months later (all p &gt; 0.05). Nevertheless, except for physical education, academic grades at baseline were inversely associated with clustered CVD risk score at follow-up in adolescents (β ranged from -0.140 to -0.102; all p &lt; 0.05). No associations were found between academic abilities at baseline and clustered CVD risk score at follow-up (all p &gt; 0.05).Conclusion. Academic grades could help predict CVD risk 24 months later during adolescence. Education professionals should foster adolescents’ academic performance not only to improve academic results but also to maximize future cardiovascular health benefits.<br/

The influence of adherence to the Mediterranean diet on academic performance is mediated by sleep quality in adolescents

This is the pre-peer reviewed version of the following article: The influence of adherence to the Mediterranean diet on academic performance is mediated by sleep quality in adolescents. Acta Paediatrica, 2019, vol. 108, no 2, which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1111/apa.14472. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived Versions.Aim: This study examined the association of adherence to the Mediterranean diet with academic performance and tested whether this association was mediated by sleep in Spanish adolescents. Methods: We recruited 269 adolescents (52% boys) aged 13.9 ± 0.3 years from the Deporte, ADOlescencia y Salud study of 38 secondary schools and sport clubs in Castellon, Spain, between February and May 2015. Adherence to the Mediterranean diet was assessed by the KIDMED questionnaire, sleep quality was evaluated with the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index test and sleep duration was objectively computed using a wrist‐worn accelerometer. Academic performance was assessed through final school grades and a validated test. Results: Greater adherence to the Mediterranean diet was associated with higher scores in language, core subjects, grade point average and verbal ability (p < 0.05). Sleep quality acted as a significant mediator of the association between adherence to the Mediterranean diet and final grades in maths, language, core subjects and the grade point average. Conclusion: Our data show that the influence of adherence to the Mediterranean diet on academic performance was mediated by sleep quality in adolescents. Education and public health professionals should work together to achieve both improved health status and academic performance in adolescents

Inflammatory biomarkers and brain health indicators in children with overweight and obesity: The ActiveBrains project

INTRODUCTION: Chronic inflammation plays an important role on the pathogenesis of several cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, as well as on brain function and behaviour. The aim of the present study was to examine the associations between inflammatory biomarkers and a wide range of brain health indicators (i.e., academic performance, executive function, behavioural and emotional functioning, and brain volume) in children with overweight/obesity. METHODS: A total of 107 children (10.0 ± 1.1 years, 41% girls) from the ActiveBrains project were included in the analysis. Five inflammatory biomarkers were analysed in plasma: white blood cell (WBC) count, interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-1beta, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), and C-reactive protein (CRP). Academic performance was assessed by Woodcock-Munoz Tests of Achievement. Executive function was assessed through the Design Fluency Test for cognitive flexibility, the Stroop test for cognitive inhibition, and the Delayed Non-Match-to-Sample task for working memory. Behavioural and emotional functioning was evaluated through the Behavior Assessment System for Children (BASC) questionnaire. Total and regional brain volume was assessed by magnetic resonance imaging. RESULTS: IL-6 was inversely associated with adaptive skills (beta = -0.228; p = 0.030), while TNF-alpha was related to mathematics (beta = -0.198; p = 0.034). In addition, CRP was positively associated with externalizing (beta = 0.246; p = 0.046) and internalizing problems (beta = 0.234; p = 0.039), as well as the behavioural symptoms index (beta = 0.236; p = 0.047). However, these significant associations disappeared after multiple comparisons correction. Inflammatory biomarkers were not associated with executive function and total brain volumes. Regarding regional brain analyses, WBC was positively associated with gray matter volume in the left middle temporal gyrus (beta = 0.387; p < 0.001, k = 44), and CRP was positively associated with gray matter volume in the right superior temporal gyrus (beta = 0.439; p < 0.001, k = 29). Additionally, when adjusting by total brain volume, CRP was positively associated with gray matter volume in the right supplementary motor cortex (beta = 0.453; p < 0.001, k = 51). Moreover, both, IL-6 (beta = 0.366; p < 0.001, k = 81) and TNF-alpha (beta = 0.368; p < 0.001, k = 62) were positively associated with white matter volume around the right inferior frontal gyrus pars opercularis, while CRP was inversely associated with white matter volume around the left superior frontal gyrus (beta = -0.482; p < 0.001, k = 82). After adjusting by total brain volume, CRP was also inversely associated with white matter volume in 3 additional clusters (beta ranging from -0.473 to -0.404; p < 0.001, k = 87). CONCLUSIONS: Inflammation was slightly associated with brain health (i.e., academic performance, behavioural and emotional functioning and regional brain volume) in children with overweight or obesity. Further larger longitudinal and interventional studies are warranted to elucidate the short-term and long-term effect of systemic low-grade inflammation on children's brain health