The role of language policy documents in the internationalisation of multilingual higher education: an exploratory corpus-based study

Using corpus methods, this study explores the role of Language Policy (LP) documents in the internationalisation process of Spanish universities. It aims at understanding how non-Anglophone universities integrate English and local languages in the functions of education, research, and administration. Content analysis was used for the identification of key themes, and discourse analysis examined how those themes were textually expressed. Consistent with previous literature, this study shows that relevant strategic areas of LP deal with training, regulation, accreditation, and support measures. Results also highlight the role played by institutions in LP and the presence of language hierarchies between English and local languages. The discussion of these findings leads to further inquiry of mismatches between top-down institutional expectations and bottom-up realities regarding the design and implementation of institutional policies

The challenges and opportunities of multilingual academia: Spanish scholars' language choice in research and teaching practices

This paper examines the extent of linguistic diversity in modern academia, in opposition to the claims of the Englishisation of academia. A questionnaire was distributed to explore language choice in the research- and teaching-oriented practices of Spanish scholars. Results showed the existence of biliteracy practices for research activities, whereas in the case of teaching, Spanish was reported as the dominant language, followed tentatively by English. Findings are discussed in the light of the nature of the academic practices (production, circulation, and formation), the target audience, and individual traits. The results of the study reflect on the impact of internationalisation and how a feasible language policy can be implemented for the benefit of the university community

Nitrogen and phosphorus in Ulva sp. in the Galician Rias Bajas (northwest Spain): Seasonal fluctuations and influence on growth

Coastal eutrophication has given cause for increasing concern. The Galician rias are ecosystems very sensitive to this phenomenon. In the present paper, we evaluate the possible nutrient limitation in Ulva sp., a green-tide alga. Variations in tissue nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), as well as growth rate, were determined over a complete seasonal cycle for Ulva sp. collected in the Rias Bajas (northwest Spain). Minimum levels of both nutrients were reached in spring and summer and maximum in winter. The low tissue P concentrations were striking. There was a parallelism between the evolution of the growth rate and nutrient contents. The most significant correlation found between growth rate and tissue P, and the equations established by stepwise multiple regression procedures, suggest that P may play a more important role than N in the limitation of productivity of Ulva sp. in the Galician Rias Bajas.La eutrofización costera es un problema de creciente preocupación y las rías gallegas son ecosistemas sensibles a este fenómeno. En este trabajo se intenta evaluar la posible limitación nutritiva en Ulva sp., un alga que forma parte de las denominadas mareas verdes. Se realizaron análisis de nitrógeno (N) y fósforo (P), así como bioensayos de crecimiento en Ulva sp. recogida mensualmente en cuatro rías de la costa gallega durante un año. Los niveles mínimos de ambos nutrientes se registraron en primavera y verano y los máximos en invierno, destacando las bajas concentraciones de P encontradas. Se observó un paralelismo entre la evolución de las tasas de crecimiento de Ulva y las concentraciones de nutrientes en el talo a lo largo del ciclo anual estudiado. La mayor correlación encontrada entre tasa de crecimiento y concentración de P, y las ecuaciones establecidas por el procedimiento de regresión múltiple paso a paso, indican que el fósforo parece jugar un papel más importante que el nitrógeno en la producción de Ulva sp. en las rías bajas gallegas.Instituto Español de Oceanografí

NMR linewidth and Skyrmion localization in quantum Hall ferromagnets

The non-monotonic behavior of the NMR signal linewidth in the 2D quantum Hall system is explained in terms of the interplay between skyrmions localization, due to the influence of disorder, and the non-trivial temperature dependent skyrmion dynamics.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figure

Reported stigma and discrimination by people with a diagnosis of schizophrenia

Aims. This article examines the extent of stigma and discrimination as reported by people with a diagnosis of schizophrenia. The hypothesis is that when people express in their own words the discrimination they experience such discrimination will be found to be widespread. Methods. Seventy-five people with a diagnosis of schizophrenia from 15 different countries were interviewed with a mixed methods instrument to assess reported discrimination. The data were analysed for frequency counts and then a thematic analysis was performed. A conceptual map is provided. Results. The study was a cross-cultural one but, contrary to expectations, few transnational differences were found. The main hypothesis was supported. Conversely, we found that when participants reported ‘positive discrimination', this could as easily be conceptualised as being treated similarly to how others in society would expect to be treated. Conclusion. Negative discrimination is ubiquitous and sometimes connotatively very strong, with reports of humiliation and abuse. ‘Positive discrimination' conversely indicates that people with a mental illness diagnosis expect discrimination and are grateful when it does not occur. The literature on self-stigma is discussed and found wanting. Similarly, the theory that contact with mentally ill people reduces stigma and discrimination is not fully supported by our result

La cultura como estrategia de regeneración urbana en Monterrey, México

La cultura se ha utilizado como estrategia de regeneración urbana por su permeabilidad hacia otras áreas del desarrollo. Desde hace más de 30 años, el centro de Monterrey ha experimentado deterioro, pérdida de población y abandono, con lo que la estrategia del sector público ha sido realizar proyectos de regeneración urbana con fuerte implicación cultural. A pesar de la magnitud y la inversión de los proyectos, no se han logrado los objetivos esperados. En cambio, a partir del año 2013 surgen proyectos desde iniciativas bottom-up que están transformando positivamente el lugar. Se analizan los proyectos de regeneración urbana implementados en el centro mediante entrevistas a actores clave. Entre los principales resultados, destacan las iniciativas bottom-up como procesos de regeneración cultural capaces de transformar el territorio y el tejido social. La falta de diálogo entre actores es uno de los principales obstáculos para producir transformaciones más contundentes en el contexto sociourbano.La cultura s'ha utilitzat com a estratègia de regeneració urbana per la seva permeabilitat cap a altres àrees del desenvolupament. Des de fa més de 30 anys, el centre de Monterrey ha experimentat deteriorament, pèrdua de població i abandonament, de manera que l'estratègia del sector públic ha estat realitzar projectes de regeneració urbana amb forta implicació cultural. Tot i la magnitud i la inversió dels projectes, no s'han aconseguit els objectius esperats. En canvi, a partir de l'any 2013 sorgeixen projectes des d'iniciatives bottom-up que estan transformant positivament el lloc. S'analitzen els projectes de regeneració urbana mitjançant entrevistes a actors clau. Entre els principals resultats, destaquen les iniciatives bottom-up com a processos de regeneració cultural capaços de transformar el territori i el teixit social. La falta de diàleg entre actors és un dels principals obstacles per produir transformacions més contundents en el context sociourbà.La culture a été utilisée comme stratégie de régénération urbaine en raison de sa perméabilité à d'autres domaines de développement. Pendant plus de 30 ans, le centre de Monterrey a connu une détérioration, une perte de population et un abandon, alors que le secteur public avait pour stratégie de mener à bien des projets de revitalisation urbaine à forte implication culturelle. Malgré l'ampleur et l'investissement des projets, ceux-ci n'ont pas atteint les objectifs escomptés. D'autre part, depuis 2013, les projets sont issus d'initiatives ascendantes qui transforment positivement le lieu. Les projets de régénération sont analysés à travers des entretiens avec des acteurs clés. Parmi les principaux résultats, citons les initiatives ascendantes en tant que processus de régénération culturelle capables de transformer le territoire et le tissu social. L'absence de dialogue entre les acteurs est l'un des principaux obstacles à une transformation plus forte du contexte socio-urbain.Culture has been used as an urban regeneration strategy due to its permeability to other areas of development. For more than 30 years, the center of Monterrey, Mexico, has experienced deterioration, population loss and abandonment, where the strategy of the public sector has been to carry out urban regeneration projects with strong cultural involvement. Despite the magnitude and investment of these projects, they have not achieved the expected objectives. Since 2013, however, projects have emerged from bottom-up initiatives that are positively transforming the place. Through interviews with key actors, this paper analyzes urban regeneration projects implemented in the center of Monterrey. Among the main results, cultural regeneration processes based on bottom-up initiatives are revealed to be capable of transforming the territory and the social fabric. However, the lack of dialogue between actors is one of the main obstacles to produce more forceful transformations in the socio-urban context

Identification of a Human SOCS1 Polymorphism That Predicts Rheumatoid Arthritis Severity

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by an autoimmune response in the joints and an exacerbation of cytokine responses. A minority of patients with RA experience spontaneous remission, but most will show moderate/high disease activity, with aggressive joint damage and multiple systemic manifestations. There is thus is a great need to identify prognostic biomarkers for disease risk to improve diagnosis and prognosis, and to inform on the most appropriate therapy. Here we focused on suppressor of cytokine signaling 1 (SOCS1), a physiological negative regulator of cytokines that modulates cell activation. Using four independent cohorts of patients with arthritis, we characterized the correlation between SOCS1 mRNA levels and clinical outcome. We found a significant inverse correlation between SOCS1 mRNA expression and disease activity throughout the follow-up of patients with RA. Lower baseline SOCS1 levels were associated with poorer disease control in response to methotrexate and other conventional synthetic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs in early arthritis, and to rituximab in established (active) RA. Moreover, we identified several single nucleotide polymorphisms in the SOCS1 gene that correlated with SOCS1 mRNA expression, and that might identify those patients with early arthritis that fulfill RA classification criteria. One of them, rs4780355, is in linkage disequilibrium with a microsatellite (TTTTC)3−5, mapped 0.9 kb downstream of the SNP, and correlated with reduced SOCS1 expression in vitro. Overall, our data support the association between SOCS1 expression and disease progression, disease severity and response to treatment in RA. These observations underlie the relevance of SOCS1 mRNA levels for stratifying patients prognostically and guiding therapeutic decisions

Case report: A novel case of parental mosaicism in SMC1A gene causes inherited Cornelia de Lange syndrome

Ultimate advances in genetic technologies have permitted the detection of transmitted cases of congenital diseases due to parental gonadosomatic mosaicism. Regarding Cornelia de Lange syndrome (CdLS), up to date, only a few cases are known to follow this inheritance pattern. However, the high prevalence of somatic mosaicism recently reported in this syndrome (∼13%), together with the disparity observed in tissue distribution of the causal variant, suggests that its prevalence in this disorder could be underestimated. Here, we report a new case of parental gonadosomatic mosaicism in SMC1A gene that causes inherited CdLS, in which the mother of the patient carries the causative variant in very low allele frequencies in buccal swab and blood. While the affected child presents with typical CdLS phenotype, his mother does not show any clinical manifestations. As regards SMC1A, the difficulty of clinical identification of carrier females has been already recognized, as well as the gender differences observed in CdLS expressivity when the causal variant is found in this gene. Currently, the use of DNA deep-sequencing techniques is highly recommended when it comes to molecular diagnosis of patients, as well as in co-segregation studies. These enable us to uncover gonadosomatic mosaic events in asymptomatic or oligosymptomatic parents that had been overlooked so far, which might have great implications regarding genetic counseling for recurrence risk

Feasibility study for a spacecraft navigation system relying on pulsar timing information

Estudi de fiabilitat per un sistema de navegacio d'espai profund basat en referencies de radio-estrelles pulsants (pulsar).Preprin