Palabras que calan: la escritura de Julio Torri

Entre la diversidad de opiniones sobre la obra de Julio Torri destacan como características principales y muy relacionadas entre sí la brevedad, la mezcla de géneros, el humor, la ironía, lo fantástico, la calidad literaria y el esteticismo de su prosa, el estilo pulcro y perfecto de su escritura, su preferencia por la prosa (así se llame poética), su exigencia y rigor ante lo que escribe, la innegable relación de sus textos con otros de diferentes culturas y autores; pero, a nuestro juicio, lo sobresaliente es la apreciación que se tiene sobre la originalidad y actualidad de la obra de Julio Torri

Sharp wave-ripple complexes in a reduced model of the hippocampal CA3-CA1 network of the macaque monkey

Sharp wave-ripple complexes observed in the hippocampal CA1 local field potential (LFP) are thought to play a major role in memory reactivation, transfer and consolidation. SPW-Rs are known to result from a complex interplay between local and upstream hippocampal ensembles. However, the key mechanisms that underlie these events remain partly unknown. In this work, we introduce a reduced, but realistic multi-compartmental model of the macaque monkey´s hippocampal CA3-CA1 network. The model consists of two semi-linear layers, each consisting of two-compartmental pyramidal neurons and one-compartmental perisomatic-targeting basket cells. Connections in the network were modeled as AMPA synapses, based on physiological and anatomical data. Notably, while auto-association fibers were prevalent in CA3, CA1 connectivity -inspired by recent findings- implemented a "feedback and reciprocal inhibition", dominated by recurrent inhibition and pyramidal cells-interneurons synapses. SPW-R episodes emerge spontaneously in the CA1 subfield LFP (which is assumed proportional to transmembrane currents across all compartments and medium resistivity): Episodes of short-lived high-frequency oscillations (ripples, 80-180 Hz) on top of a massive dendritic depolarization (< 20 Hz) with visual and quantitative characteristics observed experimentally [1]. Concomitantly, the CA3 subfield LFP presents episodes of quasi-synchronous neuronal bursting in the form of gamma episodes (25-75 Hz). The model reveals a lower bound for the minimal network that may generate SPW-R activity, and predicts a large number of features of in vivo hippocampal recordings in macaque monkeys [1]. Spike-LFP coherence analysis in CA1 displays reliable synchrony of spiking activity in the ripple LFP frequency band, suggesting that modeled SPW-R episodes reflect a genuine network oscillatory regime. Interestingly, interneuronal firing shows coherence increases concomitant with the beginning and the end of the SPW-R event, together with increases over gamma frequencies. The model suggests that activity of both pyramidal neurons and interneurons is critical for the local genesis and dynamics of physiological SPW-R activity. Unlike other models, we found that it is interneuronal silence, not interneuronal firing that triggers these fast oscillatory events, in line with the fact that unbalanced excitability of selected pyramidal cells marks the beginning of single network episodes. Interneuronal silence quickly increases population firing of pyramidal cells. The interneuronal population activity increases with some latency due to the unbalanced excitatory drive, becoming pivotal to pyramidal cell activity, and further pacing pyramidal cells due to interneuronal fast kinetic properties. Our modeled data suggests that this effect is possibly mediated by a silencing-and-rebound-excitation mechanism, maintaining the frequency of the field oscillation bounded to the ripple range. The reduced model suggests a simple mechanism for the occurrence of SPW-Rs, in light of recent experimental evidence. We provide new insights into the dynamics of the hippocampal CA3-CA1 network during ripples, and the relation between neuronal circuits' activity at meso- and microscopic scales. Finally, our model exhibits characteristic cell type-specific activity that might be critical for the emergence of physiological SPW-R activity and therefore, for the formation of hippocampus-dependent memory representations

Information and communication technologies in the Chilean English as a foreign language classroom: A systematic review of the literature

Information and communication technologies (ICTs) permeated Chilean schools in the late 1990s with the implementation of Enlaces, a national program including training and technological equipment for supplying school education. Since then, the curricular relevance of ICTs has increased in Chile. Particularly, English as a foreign language (EFL) teaching has benefited from ICTs in adding interaction and using various resources in the classroom. Such importance motivated the researchers of this study to find out what has been researched about ICT in the English classroom in a Chilean context. To attain this, a systematic review of the literature from 2006 to 2022 was conducted. Data was drawn from the electronic databases SCOPUS, EBSCO, Scielo, ERIC, Dialnet, WoS, and complemented with Google Scholar. The selected studies, 13, were analyzed using a six-dimensional framework, focusing on research purpose and focus, outcomes, design and methods, publication frequency, and limitations. Our review has established that qualitative design and methods have been the most predominant approaches, focusing mainly on exploring the implementation and integration of ICTs in the English classroom, as well as examining the effectiveness of applications, websites, and ICTs tools on the linguistic attainment of Chilean school learners. This systematic review has also identified that after 2016 publications have been steady, yet the number of empirical studies exploring the topic is still limited, which constitutes a research gap that future studies could examine. It is also expected that researchers interested in the topic could try out this review in similar EFL contexts

Deciphering the brainstem, hippocampal and whole-brain dynamics by neuronal-ensemble event signatures

Intracortically-recorded brain signals display a rich variety of such transient activities: brief, recurring episodes of deflection or oscillatory activities that reflect cooperative neural circuit mechanisms. These network patterns of activity, also called neural events, span multiple spatio-temporal scales, and are believed to be basic computing elements during cognitive processes such as learning and off-line memory consolidation. However, both the large-scale and microscopic-scale cooperative mechanisms associated with these episodes remain poorly understood. This knowledge gap arises partly due to methodological limitations of existing experimental approaches, specifically in measuring simultaneous micro- and macroscopic aspects of neuronal activity in the brain. Therefore, this dissertation sought to study the relationship between ongoing spontaneous neural events in the hippocampus, brainstem and thalamic structures at micro-, meso- and macroscopic scales by combining data from intracortical recordings, multi-compartmental network models, and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)

Mortality: modelling, socio-economic differences and basis risk

During the last two centuries the developed world experienced a persistent increase in life expectancy. Although past trends suggests that life expectancy will continue to increase, there is considerable uncertainty surrounding the future evolution of mortality. In addition, past mortality improvements have not been shared equally across the population, resulting in a widening of socio-economic inequalities in mortality. The uncertainty and socio-economic variability of life expectancy pose a challenge for the design of pension systems and the management of longevity risk in pension funds and annuity portfolios. This thesis is devoted to the investigation of the trends and financial implications of socio-economic differences in mortality. It comprises three parts. The first part introduces new modelling techniques for the quantification of socio-economic mortality differentials in aggregate and cause-specific mortality, which are applied in the study of the relationship between mortality and deprivation in the English population. The second part evaluates the suitability of several multipopulation stochastic mortality models for assessing basis risk in longevity hedges and provides guidelines on how to use these models in practical situations. Finally, the third part introduces new modelling tools which aim to permit a more effective and widespread use of stochastic mortality models

A low-voltage low-power front-end for wearable EEG systems

A low-voltage and low-power front-end for miniaturized, wearable EEG systems is presented. The instrumentation amplifier, which removes the electrode drift and conditions the signal for a 10-bit A/D converter, combines a chopping strategy with quasi-FGMOS (QFG) transistors to minimize low frequency noise whilst enabling operation at 1 V supply. QFG devices are also key to the A/D converter operating at 1.2 V with 70dB of SNR and an oversampling ratio of 64. The whole system consumes less than 2uW at 1.2V.Published versio

The use of TV series as authentic materials to develop pragmatic competence in EFL contexts: a systematic review

La presente monografía es una revisión sistemática de la literatura (RSL) que tiene como objetivo revisar cualitativamente la literatura que utiliza series de televisión para desarrollar la competencia pragmática en contextos de inglés como lengua extranjera. Cuando se enseña en un contexto de inglés como lengua extranjera, el desarrollo de la competencia pragmática tiende a pasarse por alto en las aulas. Además, los estudiantes no tienen la necesidad real de usar el lenguaje fuera de clase ya que hay pocas oportunidades de enfrentar una situación comunicativa; por lo tanto, es necesario proponer una estrategia o herramienta que ayude a los educadores a desarrollar la competencia pragmática. En ese sentido, las series de televisión parecen ser un elemento de la realia que satisface estas necesidades debido a su vasta cantidad de comunicación auténtica. Por lo tanto, el presente documento propone una revisión sistemática de la literatura con el fin de revisar los estudios sobre el tema antes mencionado, de modo que sus resultados puedan ser recopilados, comparados y mostrados. Para seleccionar los archivos, se crearon algunos criterios de inclusión y exclusión. Posteriormente, los documentos fueron filtrados mediante una herramienta para valoración de la calidad de estudios y analizados en una matriz analítica. Una vez hecho el análisis, los trece documentos finales fueron divididos en dos capítulos de la monografía en los cuales fueron presentadas las implicaciones pedagógicas y pragmáticas.The present monographic document is a systematic literature review that aims to qualitatively revise the literature that uses TV series in order to develop pragmatic competence in EFL contexts. When teaching in an EFL context, the development of pragmatic competence tends to be overlooked in the classrooms. Additionally, students do not have the real need of using the language outside of class since there are few opportunities of facing a communicative situation; therefore, it is necessary to propose a strategy or tool that helps educators to develop pragmatic competence. In that sense, TV series appear to be an element of realia that fulfills these needs due to their vast amount of authentic communication. Hence, the present document proposes a systematic literature review (SLR) in order to revise studies on the aforementioned subject, so their outcomes can be compiled, compared, and displayed. In order to select the papers, some inclusion and exclusion criteria were created. Then, the documents were filtered through a tool for Study Quality Assessment and analyzed in an Analytical Matrix. Once the analysis was done, the 13 final documents were divided into two chapters of the monograph in which the pedagogical and pragmatic implications were presented.PregradoLicenciado(a) en Bilingüismo con Énfasis en InglésTable of Contents Justification 9 Research Question 12 Objectives 12 General objective 12 Specific objectives 12 Theoretical Framework 12 Literature Review 13 Conceptual Framework 17 Pragmatic Competence 18 TV series 24 Methodology 29 Context 30 Planning Stage 30 Review Protocol 30 Search strategy 31 Conducting the Review Stage 34 Study selection criteria 34 Study Quality Assessment 35 Reporting the Review Stage 36 Data Extraction Strategy 37 Data synthesis 37 TV Series to Develop Pragmatic Competence 40 TV SERIES TO DEVELOP PRAGMATIC COMPETENCE 8 Chapter 1: Teaching Proposals, Techniques, and Tools 43 Teaching Proposals 44 Interventional Treatment Techniques 50 Captioned/Subtitled Conditions 58 Chapter 2: Pragmatic Aspects 63 Speech acts 63 Other Pragmatic Aspects 72 Conclusions 78 References 83 Appendices 90 Appendix 1. Study Quality Assessment 90 Appendix 2. Analytical Matrix 9