Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Systematic Creativity Methods in Engineering Education: A Learning Styles Perspective*

The traditional approach to creativity (using methods such as brainstorming, C-sketch, morpho-logical charts, scamper, etc.) calls upon the designer to look inward for inspiration. TRIZ, on otherhand, invites the designer to use a ready pool of knowledge for inspiration. TRIZ does not discountthe use of the traditional approaches. On the contrary, TRIZ ensures that design teams use thesetraditional methods in a systematically directed manner by carrying out intelligent idea generationin areas where other people have solved a similar general design problem. The main focus of thispaper is to look at systematic creativity methods, such as TRIZ, from a learning styles perspective.Three learning styles dominant in the engineering education literature are explored: MBTI, Kolband Felder-Silverman. For each it was found that the tasks required of each of the TRIZ stepsmatches a broader range of engineering student learning styles, than the sole use of brainstorming.Keywords: creative problem solving; TRIZ; learning styles.
Origins of saccharide-dependent hydration at aluminate, silicate, and aluminosilicate surfaces

Sugar molecules adsorbed at hydrated inorganic oxide surfaces occur ubiquitously in nature and in technologically important materials and processes, including marine biomineralization, cement hydration, corrosion inhibition, bioadhesion, and bone resorption. Among these examples, surprisingly diverse hydration behaviors are observed for oxides in the presence of saccharides with closely related compositions and structures. Glucose, sucrose, and maltodextrin, for example, exhibit significant differences in their adsorption selectivities and alkaline reaction properties on hydrating aluminate, silicate, and aluminosilicate surfaces that are shown to be due to the molecular architectures of the saccharides. Solid-state 1H, 13C, 29Si, and 27Al nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy measurements, including at very high magnetic fields (19 T), distinguish and quantify the different molecular species, their chemical transformations, and their site-specific adsorption on different aluminate and silicate moieties. Two-dimensional NMR results establish nonselective adsorption of glucose degradation products containing carboxylic acids on both hydrated silicates and aluminates. In contrast, sucrose adsorbs intact at hydrated silicate sites and selectively at anhydrous, but not hydrated, aluminate moieties. Quantitative surface force measurements establish that sucrose adsorbs strongly as multilayers on hydrated aluminosilicate surfaces. The molecular structures and physicochemical properties of the saccharides and their degradation species correlate well with their adsorption behaviors. The results explain the dramatically different effects that small amounts of different types of sugars have on the rates at which aluminate, silicate, and aluminosilicate species hydrate, with important implications for diverse materials and applications.
How relationships of U.S. men affect contraceptive use and efforts to prevent sexually transmitted diseases.

CONTEXT Comparatively little is known about how U.S. adult men's attitudes and characteristics influence their decision to use contraceptives to prevent pregnancy and to take actions to protect themselves from infection with sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). METHODS Attitudinal and background data on 1,595 men from the 1991 and 1993 waves of the National Survey of Men (NSM) were used, through logistic regression techniques, to predict the likelihood of current contraceptive use to prevent pregnancy and recent efforts to avoid STD infection among men in three types of sexual relationship--marriage, cohabitation and dating. RESULTS At the 1993 interview, 58% of men were using contraceptives to prevent pregnancy and 22% had recently taken actions to protect themselves from STDs. Men's concern about how easy a method was to use reduced the likelihood of STD protection, but had no influence on contraceptive use to prevent pregnancy; however, concerns about a method's risks to the female partner increased the likelihood of both outcomes. Couples in which the man expected his partner to take primary responsibility for contraception were 40% as likely to be protecting themselves against STDs as were couples in which the man believed he shared or had greater responsibility. Married men were the least likely to be protecting themselves against STDs, whereas men who were dating were the most likely to do so. CONCLUSIONS Men's attitudes and characteristics were important predictors of contraceptive use to prevent pregnancy and of efforts to protect against STDs, even after controls for the female partner's characteristics were entered in the analysis. The findings emphasize the need to include men in interventions aimed at reducing unintended pregnancy and STD transmission.
ON THE REFINED HEISENBERG-WEYL TYPE INEQUALITY

The well-known second moment Heisenberg-Weyl inequality (or uncertainty rela- tion) states: Assume that f : R ! C is a complex valued function of a random real vari- able x such that f 2 L 2 (R), where R = (1 ,1). Then the product of the second mo- ment of the random real x for |f| 2 and the second moment of the random real for b f 2 is
Amino-Acid Residues Involved in Glutamate Receptor 6 Kainate Receptor Gating and Desensitization

The glutamate receptor (GluR) agonist-binding site consists of amino acid residues in the extracellular S1 and S2 segments in the N-terminal and M3–M4 loop regions, respectively. Molecular and atomic level structural analyses have identified specific S1 and S2 residues that interact directly with ligands, interact with one another in a dimeric configuration, and influence channel gating and desensitization properties of AMPA receptors. Other studies suggest that KA receptor gating and desensitization may differ mechanistically. In particular, a leucine (L) to tyrosine (Y) mutation in the S1 segment of AMPA receptors is sufficient to block desensitization, whereas KA receptors naturally contain a tyrosine residue at the equivalent position (Y751 in GluR6) but retain the fast-desensitizing phenotype. We hypothesized that KA receptor desensitization is preserved by a compensatory substitution in the S2 segment. We generated a series of GluR6 mutants that converted individual S2 domain residues to their AMPA receptor equivalents. Various S2 mutations had effects on the kinetics of desensitization and recovery from desensitization, but no single amino acid substitution was found to block desensitization, as in the L/Y mutant AMPA receptors, or to prevent desensitization to KA. Other mutations designed to neutralize residues thought to interact across the dimer interface had dramatic effects on channel gating and desensitization. These results are consistent with a close but imperfect structural homology between AMPA and KA receptors and support the role of conserved S1S2 domain interactions at the dimer interface in GluR channel function.
Medical students’ academic emotions: the role of perceived learning environment

Introduction: Research shows that there is a relationship between students’ perceptions of classroom and learning environment and their cognitive, affective, emotional and behavioral outcomes, so, in this study the relationship between medical students’ perception of learning environment and academic emotions was examined. Method: The research method used was descriptive-correlative. The statistical population consisted of medical students of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences. Stratified sampling method was used to select 342 participants. They completed self-report questionnaires of Dundee Ready Educational Environment Measure (DREEM) and Achievement Emotions Questionnaire (AEQ). All descriptive statistics, Pearson’s correlations and simultaneous multiple regression were performed using SPSS 14 software. Results: Simultaneous multiple regression of the students’ perceived learning environment on their academic achievement emotions showed that the perceived learning environment predicts the students’ academic emotions. Conclusion:
A Multivariate Stochastic Levy Correlation Model with Integrated Wishart Time Change and Its Application in Option Pricing

Title of dissertation: A Multivariate Stochastic Lévy Correlation Model with Integrated Wishart Time Change and Its Application in Option Pricing Peng Gao, Doctor of Philosophy, 2012 Dissertation directed by: Professor Dilip B. Madan Department of Finance We develop a new multivariate Lévy correlation model which is formulated by evaluating Lévy processes subordinate to the integral of a Wishart process. This new model captures not only stochastic mean, stochastic volatility, and stochastic skewness, but also stochastic correlation of cross-sectional asset returns while still being analytical tractable. It is a multivariate extension of the time changed Lévy process introduced by Carr, Geman, Madan and Yor, which can capture the individual dynamics as well as the interdependencies among several assets. In this dissertation, two different methods are employed to simulate paths of the instantaneous rate of time change matrix A(t), followed by a Wishart process. The simulation paths successfully display desirable clustering and persistence features. In addition, we analyze the behavior of the joint log return distribution generated in this new model and show that the model provides a rich dependence structure. The option pricing problem involves computing the closed form of the characteristic functions, which are usually not easily obtained in the multivariate correlated case. In this thesis, we derive explicit forms of both marginal and joint conditional characteristic functions by applying the ‘Matrix Riccati Linearization’ technique creatively. Our work is distinguished from existing multivariate stochastic volatility models, with the advantage that it can deal with stochastic skewness effects introduced by Carr and Wu. Finally, we derive pricing methods for multi-asset options as well as single asset options by using both simulation and Fast Fourier transform methods. More important, this model can be well calibrated to the real market. We chose options on two major FX currencies to perform the calibration and remarkable consistency has been observed. A Multivariate Stochastic Lévy Correlation Model with Integrated Wishart Time Change and Its Application in Option Pricing
The Impact of Unfair Treatment on Depressive Mood: The Moderating Role of Self-Esteem Level and Self-Esteem Instability

This research examines the moderating roles of self-esteem level and self-esteem instability in the relationship between perceived unfair treatment and depressive mood. Based on the assumption that unfairness is a threat to one's social standing and self-esteem, the authors proposed that individuals with highly fragile self-esteem (i.e., the combination of unstable and high self-esteem) react more strongly when experiencing unfair treatment. This hypothesis was tested in a real-world setting using cross-sectional and diary data of 101 employees. As expected, unfair treatment was related to depressive mood among individuals with unstable high self-esteem but not among individuals with stable high self-esteem. This pattern of results held for both cross-sectional and diary data. In contrast, unfairness was not related to depressive mood among individuals with unstable low self-esteem.
Facial Diversity and InfantPreferences for Attractive Faces

Three studies examined infant preferences for attractive faces in four types of faces: White adult male and female faces, Black adult female faces, and infant faces. Infants viewed pairs of faces, previously rated for attractiveness by adults, in a visual preference paradigm. Significant preferences were found for attractive faces across all facial types. The results confirm earlier reports of this phenomenon and extend those results by showing that infant preferences for attractive faces generalize across faces differing in race, gender, and age. Two potential explanations for these observed infant preferences are discussed. We recently reported several studies showing that young infants visually discriminate among adult female faces based on the adult-judged attractiveness of the faces and that infants exhibit both visual and behavioral preferences for attractive compared with unattractive female faces (Langlois et al., 1987; Langlois, Roggman, & Rieser-Danner, 1990). These results were surprising to many people because infants were not expected to be able to make such subtle discriminations. In addition, most researchers interested in the effects of physical attractiveness have assumed that preferences for attractiveness are only gradually learned through a lengthy period of cultural transmission and through exposure to the standards of attractiveness extant in the contemporary media and society. However, these behaviors of young infants suggested that preferences for attractiveness in faces are present much earlier than has been assumed. Other researchers have also found that infants look longer at and seem to prefer attractive compared with unattractive female faces. Samuels and Ewy (1985) and Shapiro, Hazan, and Haith (1984) showed both adult male and adult female faces that were rated as high or low in attractiveness by adult judges to infants ranging from 3 to 6 months of age. The infants in these studies looked significantly longer at both the male and the female attractive faces compared with unattractive faces. Although some methodological limitations of these two studies prevent a clear-cut interpretation of their results, they at least suggest that infants can discriminate attractiveness in two different types of faces, male and female. Given the challenge that these findings from infants pose to the widely accepted assumptions about the origins of preferences for attractiveness (Langlois et al., 1987), it is important to investigate the generality of these preferences across different
The empirical CAPM: Estimation and Implications for the Regulatory Cost of Capital

In calculating the cost of capital for regulated businesses, the New Zealand Commerce Commission uses the Capital Asset Pricing Model to estimate the cost of the equity component of capital, a procedure that involves assuming particular values for unobservable key parameters. This thesis proposes, instead, to estimate these parameters from market data. The principal result is that estimates of these parameters differ significantly from the values assumed by the Commerce Commission. Applying these estimates to two recent cases involving the electricity line and gas pipeline businesses, the estimated costs of capital for the entities involved are 3.5% to 5.5% more than those obtained by the Commission, but the associated confidence intervals are wider. One implication of these findings is that the Commissions approach systematically understates the uncertainty surrounding cost of capital estimates.
HISTORIC CYCLES OF FRAGMENTATION AND EXPANSION IN PARNASSIUS SMINTHEUS (PAPILIONIDAE) INFERRED USING MITOCHONDRIAL DNA

Abstract Climate oscillations of the Quaternary drove the repeated expansion and contraction of ecosystems. Alpine organisms were probably isolated in sky island refugia during warm interglacials, such as now, and expanded their range by migrating down-slope during glacial periods. We used population genetic and phylogenetic approaches to infer how paleoclimatic events influenced the distribution of genetic variation in the predominantly alpine butterfly Parnassius smintheus. We sequenced a 789 bp region of cytochrome oxidase I for 385 individuals from 20 locations throughout the Rocky Mountains, ranging from southern Colorado to northern Montana. Analyses revealed at lease two centers of diversity in the northern and southern Rocky Mountains and strong population structure. Nested clade analysis suggested that the species experienced repeated cycles of population expansion and fragmentation. The estimated ages of these events, assuming a molecular clock, corresponded with paleoclimatic data on habitat expansion and contraction over the past 400,000 years. We propose that alpine butterflies persisted in an archipelago of isolated sky islands during interglacials and that populations expanded and became more connected during cold glacial periods. An archipelago model implies that the effects of genetic drift and selection varied among populations, depending on their latitude, area, and local environment. Alpine organisms are sensitive indicators of climate change and their history can be used to predict how high-elevation ecosystems might respond to further climate warming.
Time and Location Differentiated NOX Control in Competitive Electricity Markets Using Cap-and-Trade Mechanisms

Due to variations in weather and atmospheric chemistry, the timing and location of nitrogen oxide (NOX) reductions determine their effectiveness in reducing ground-level ozone, which adversely impacts human health. Electric generating plants are the primary stationary sources of NOX in most regions of the United States. In the Eastern U.S. they are subject to a summertime NOX cap and trade program that is not well matched to the time and locational impacts of NOX on ozone formation. We hypothesize that the integration of weather and atmospheric chemistry forecasting, a cap and trade system in which the “exchange rates” for permits can be varied by time and location based on these forecasts, and its application to a competitive wholesale electricity market, can achieve ozone standards more efficiently. To demonstrate the potential for reductions in NOX emissions in the short run, we simulate the magnitude of NOX reductions that can be achieved at various locations and times as a consequence of redispatch of generating units in the “classic” PJM region taking supply-demand balance constraints and network congestion into account. We report simulations using both a zonal model and an optimal power flow model. We also estimate the relationship between the level NOX emission prices, competitive market responses to different levels of NOX prices, and the associated reductions in NOx emissions. The estimated maximum potential reductions, which occur at NOX prices of about $125,000/ton, are about 8 tons (20%) hourly in peak electricity demand hours and about 10 tons (50%) in average demand hours. We find that network constraints have little effect on the magnitude of the reductions in NOX emissions.
Impact of the Pursuit of an Equal Gender Balance on High Performance Work Systems

Introduction: In the course of female underrepresentation and male dominance in the current organizational environment female talent stays underutilized. Therefore, equal gender balance issues experience growing attention and the achievement of an organizational equal gender balance is on the agenda of many organizations. Objective: The primary objective of this study is to provide an idea on how the future of HPWSs looks like related to the achievement of an equal gender balance. Method: A literature review and HR expert interviews were used to get into the topic. The literature review provided a theoretical view on the topic whereas the structured interviews added a practical view. The HR expert interviews were answered via email by six interviewees mainly working in the academic field. Results: Combining theory and practice similar ideas evolved of how a HPWS should be designed to support gender equality. Literature as well as the HR experts give concrete suggestions on the design of HR practices comprising a HPWS. Conclusion: There are two main categories of equal gender balance issues that need to be overcome by the organization to enable the achievement of gender quality. To actively work on an equal gender balance the organization needs to implement HR practices with the common goal of gender equality in the workforce. HR practices aiming at the same goal build a coherent system, a HPWS, that extensively contributes to the achievement of an equally gender mixed workforce in the organization’s future.
The Effects of in-Season Repeated Sprint Training Compared to Regular Soccer Training

The aim of this study was to compare the effects of repeated sprints (RSA) training and regular soccer training on Yo-Yo IR-1 and RSA performance (6 x 40 m shuttle sprints). Thirteen semi-professional female soccer players and nine amateur male soccer players were randomised into a repeated sprint group (RSG; n = 12) or a regular soccer training group (STG; n = 10). The RSG soccer players executed 3–4 sets of 4–6 repeated sprints (30 m with 180° directional changes) weekly during the last eight weeks of the in-season. In parallel, the STG soccer players performed low- to moderate intensity soccer training in form of technical or tactical skills. The RSG showed 15% improvement in Yo-Yo IR-1 (p = 0.04; ES = 1.83) and their mean RSA times were reduced by 1.5% (p = 0.02; ES = 0.89). No significant changes were found for the STG (Yo-Yo IR-1, p = 0.13; RSA, p = 0.49). Comparing the groups, greater improvements were observed in Yo-Yo IR-1 for the RSG (p = 0.02; ES = 1.15), but not for the RSA (p = 0.23; ES = −0.33). Similar training volumes and intensities (% of HFmax) were observed between the groups (p = 0.22 and p = 0.79). In conclusion, a weekly RSA session integrated into a regular soccer regime improved in-season RSA and Yo-Yo IR-1 performance compared to regular soccer training.
Smart Swarms of Bacteria-Inspired Agents with Performance Adaptable Interactions

Collective navigation and swarming have been studied in animal groups, such as fish schools, bird flocks, bacteria, and slime molds. Computer modeling has shown that collective behavior of simple agents can result from simple interactions between the agents, which include short range repulsion, intermediate range alignment, and long range attraction. Here we study collective navigation of bacteria-inspired smart agents in complex terrains, with adaptive interactions that depend on performance. More specifically, each agent adjusts its interactions with the other agents according to its local environment – by decreasing the peers' influence while navigating in a beneficial direction, and increasing it otherwise. We show that inclusion of such performance dependent adaptable interactions significantly improves the collective swarming performance, leading to highly efficient navigation, especially in complex terrains. Notably, to afford such adaptable interactions, each modeled agent requires only simple computational capabilities with short-term memory, which can easily be implemented in simple swarming robots.
Leadership in Evolving Democratic School Communities

Theorists have suggested that the practice of democracy is very hard work and current research on schools attempting more democratic practices such as site-based governance verify the complexity of the task. This article describes the values and associated behaviors of seven school administrators who foster and sustain democratic practices in schools engaged in restructuring. These school administrators reject the centrality of the principal's role and prominently display values that support equity, inclusion, mutual influence, and candor. Their values and associated behaviors lead to some provocative questions for professors of educational administration.
Impact of random composition fluctuations on electron and hole states in InAlN and InGaN alloys

We overview the impact of random alloy fluctuations on the electronic properties of InAlN and InGaN systems. Both density functional theory and empirical atomistic approaches have been applied. We describe our empirical atomistic approach to describe the electronic structure of III-N alloys and quantum wells (QWs). We show that random alloy fluctuations lead to wave function localization effects in the electronic structure of InAlN and InGaN alloys and QWs.