Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Counseling for Gifted students: Implication for a differentiated approach

Gifted students are not different from the non-gifted students when facing adversity in life, although they were said to have unique cognitive abilities. As such, effective psychological and counseling support is required to help them persevere in their conquest of developing creative and innovative ideas in knowledge. This paper reports an initial study that explores the counseling needs of Malaysia’s gifted students. One hundred and eighty students between the ages of 13 to 15 participated in this study. They attended the enrichment School Holiday Program organized by Universiti KebangsaanMalaysia in December 2009. Data were collected using a set of questionnaire and an unstructured interviewwith the students. The questionnaire examines the students’ preferences on counseling services offered by their school counselors, reasons for seeking counseling services and the preferred approach used by counselors. Eight students randomly selected from the group were interviewed to explore reasons for seeking counseling services from their school counselors. Findings from this study show that the students were not in favor of counseling services for a number of reasons, namely: (a) to save face, (b) others’ perception towards people who seek counseling services, (c) time constraint, (d) ineffective counseling services, and (e) counselor’s personality. The study also shows that when in need, more female students seek counseling services as compared to their male counterparts, while the older students seek counseling services more than their younger counterparts. The study also shows that these students prefer approaches that challenge their cognitive ability as compared to approaches that focuses on affective or behavioral change per se. Implication towards “differentiated counseling services” is also discussed in this paper.
How (un) ethical are you?

Answer true or false: "I am an ethical manager. " If you answered "true," here's an Uncomfortable fact: You're probably wrong. Most of us believe we can objectively size up a job candidate or a venture deal and reach a fair and rational conclusion that's in our, and our organization's, best interests. But more than two decades of psychological research indicates that most of us harbor unconscious biases that are often at odds with our consciously held beliefs. The flawed judgments arising from these biases are ethically problematic and undermine managers' fundamental work--to recruit and retain superior talent, boost individual and team performance, and collaborate effectively with partners. This article explores four related sources of unintentional unethical decision making. If you're surprised that a female colleague has poor people skills, you are displaying implicit bias--judging according to unconscious stereotypes rather than merit. Companies that give bonuses to employees who recommend their friends for open positions are encouraging ingroup bias--favoring people in their own circles. If you think you're better than the average worker in your company (and who doesn't? ), you may be displaying the common tendency to overclaim credit. And although many conflicts of interest are overt, many more are subtle. Who knows, for instance, whether the promise of quick and certain payment figures into an attorney's recommendation to settle a winnable case rather than go to trial? How can you counter these biases if they're unconscious? Traditional ethics training is not enough. But by gathering better data, ridding the work environment of stereotypical cues, and broadening your mind-set when you make decisions, you can go a long way toward bringing your unconscious biases to light and submitting them to your conscious will.
Optically imaged maps of orientation preference in primary visual cortex of cats and ferrets

Feature maps in the cerebral cortex constitute orderly representations of response features created within the cortex; an example is the mapping of orientation‐selective neurons in visual cortex. We have compared the properties of orientation maps in area 17 of cats and ferrets, obtained by optical imaging of intrinsic signals. Orientation maps in both species contain a quasi‐periodic distribution of iso‐orientation domains that are organized into a lattice of pinwheels. However, the spatial density of orientation domains and of pinwheels in ferret area 17 is nearly twice that in cat area 17. The ferret map also contains more discontinuities, or fractures, where orientation changes abruptly. The size of orientation domains scales with interdomain spacing, so that the ratio of the two is approximately the same in both species. Consistent with this finding, the orientation tuning width of individual pixels is similar in the two. The magnitude of orientation preference, however, is much lower in ferret compared to cat. The greater incidence of fractures in ferret appears to be due to proportionately greater overlap between domains of different orientations, particularly along fracture lines that link pinwheel centers. We hypothesize that a key determinant of orientation maps, the relationship between orientation domain size and spacing, expresses an anatomical link between sizes of thalamocortical arbors and horizontal intracortical connections in area 17. J. Comp. Neurol. 387:358–370, 1997. © 1997 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
DEFENDING THE FAITH : EASTER SERMON REACTION TO POP CULTURE DISCOURSES

In the weeks leading up to Easter 2006, several books on Canada's bestseller's list questioned traditional Christian beliefs surrounding the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Through a textual analysis of a random sample of Easter Sunday sermons, this study seeks to determine whether Canadian clergy chose to respond to the challenges raised by these contradicting pop culture voices. Secondarily, this study explores she presence of biblical content and generic pop culture content in the sermons in order to determine whether clergy in certain denominations are predisposed to privilege one of the two over the other. Our analysis found 38% of the sermons contained one or more references to popular culture. Works of pop culture that featured unorthodox accounts of Jesus'death and resurrection were cited most often. While liberal Protestant clergy and conservative clergy (i.e. evangelicals and Catholics) referenced and condemned these unorthodox works in almost equal measure, liberal clergy were twice as likely as conservative to cite pop culture in their sermons. Conversely, the sermons of conservative Protestant clergy (and to a lesser extent Catholic clergy) relied most heavily on quotation and exposition of sacred text for their content. Implications of these findings are discussed.
Early Childhood Pre-Service Teachers' Self-Images of Science Teaching in Constructivism Science Education Courses.

The purpose of this study is two-fold. First, it investigates the self-images of science teaching held by early childhood pre-service teachers who took constructivism early childhood science education courses. Second, it analyzes what aspects of those courses influenced these images. The participants were eight Asia-Pacific Forum on Science Learning and Teaching, Volume 16, Issue 2, Article 5, p.2 (Dec., 2015) Youngmi GO and Jinju KANG Early childhood pre-service teachers’ self-images of science teaching in constructivism science education courses Copyright (C) 2015 HKIEd APFSLT. Volume 16, Issue 2, Article 5 (Dec., 2015). All Rights Reserved. pre-service teachers who took these courses during the spring semester of 2013 at universities in Korea and the United States. A Draw a Science Teacher Test Checklist (DASTT-C), questionnaires, individual interviews, researchers’ field notes, and participants’ documents were collected. The results showed that four participants who displayed teacher-centered images before taking the courses changed to child-centered images after the courses. The factors that influenced those images were changed perspectives of a teacher’s role and experiences of constructivism-based science teaching for young children. The other four pre-service teachers who held child-centered images before the course solidified child-centered images after the course. The influences on those images were learner-centered learning experiences and experiences with constructivism-based science teaching for young children. This result implies that early childhood science education should provide opportunities for pre-service teachers to reconstruct their own views about science teaching in order to learn and teach based on constructivism.
Is All Classroom Conduct Equal? Teacher Contact with Parents of Racial/Ethnic Minority and Immigrant Adolescents

Background/Context Parental involvement is a key ingredient in the educational success of students and an integral component of involvement is teacher-parent communication. One body of research finds that minority immigrant parents face barriers in interacting with schools, and communicate less with schools than native-born White parents. However, we know little of how schools reach out to parents. Purpose In this study, I use a nationally representative sample of high schoolers to examine patterns of teachers communicating with parents. Population/Participants/Subjects I utilize a nationally representative sample of U.S. high school sophomores, the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS:2002). Research Design This study employs quantitative analyses of secondary data, including two-sample tests for proportions, logistic regression, and predicted percentages. Findings/Results Even after considering measures of student behavior and other factors, I find that mathematics teachers are more likely to contact parents of third-generation Black and Latino youth about disruptive behavior than parents of third-generation White youth. Mathematics and English teachers are less likely to contact immigrant Asian parents about academic and behavioral concerns, even when students are struggling. Teachers are also less likely to contact minority parents with news of accomplishments. Conclusions/Recommendations The findings of this study point to the important role that race and nativity play in shaping teacher communication with parents. Education policy should be cognizant that racial/ethnic and immigrant disparities exist in teacher-parent contact, and encourage more training in teacher preparation programs and professional development coursework for teachers and school administrators. Moreover, existing programs and interventions on multicultural / diversity training should be evaluated for their impact on teacher perceptions and behavior.
Resveratrol protects vascular smooth muscle cells against high glucose-induced oxidative stress and cell proliferation in vitro

Background Resveratrol exhibits beneficial effects against numerous degenerative diseases at different stages of pathogenesis. This study investigated potential mechanisms and resveratrol effects on high glucose (HG)-induced oxidative stress (30 mM d-glucose, 30 min) and cell proliferation (30 mM d-glucose, 24 h) in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). Material/Methods Intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation was detected by 2′,7′-dichlorofluorescein diacetate (DCFH-DA). Total antioxidant capacity (TAC), malonyldialdehyde (MDA), glutathione (GSH), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) were measured to evaluate oxidative stress. VSMC proliferation was measured by CCK-8 assays and through propidium iodide-based cell cycle analysis. Expression of NAD(P)H oxidase, proliferation proteins, and cell signalling were assessed by immunoblot analysis. Results Co-treatment of primary cultures of VSMCs with 1–100 μM resveratrol decreased HG-induced ROS overproduction (P<0.05). Resveratrol also abolished HG-induced phosphorylation of oxidase subunit p47 phox and reduced HG-induced cyclin D1, cyclin E, and PCNA expression in a concentration-dependent manner. Furthermore, resveratrol (10 μM) attenuated HG-induced phosphorylation of Akt, p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), ERK 1/2, and JNK1/2 without affecting total levels. HG stimulation enhanced downstream IκB-α phosphorylation and NF-κB activity, and resveratrol repressed these effects. Conclusions Resveratrol inhibits HG-induced oxidative stress and VSMC proliferation by suppressing ROS generation, NADPH oxidase, Akt phosphorylation, p38 MAPK/JNK/ERK phosphorylation, and IκB-α and NF-κB activities.
Transcription Factors GATA-4 and GATA-6: Molecular Characterization, Expression Patterns and Possible Functions During Goose (Anser cygnoides) Follicle Development

The transcription factors GATA-4 and GATA-6, members of the GATA family, play an important role in ovarian cell proliferation, differentiation and apoptosis. In this study, the full-length coding sequences of goose GATA-4 and GATA-6 were cloned and characterized. GATA-4 and GATA-6 consist of 1236 and 1104 nucleotides encoding proteins with 411 and 367 amino acids, respectively. The deduced amino acid sequences of both proteins include two adjacent zinc finger domains with the distinctive form (CVNC-X17-CNAC)-X29-(CANC-X17-CNAC) and share 84.76% identity within this domain. In silico prediction together with matching of the high affinity RRXS(T)Y motif revealed that the GATA-4 protein might be phosphorylated predominantly at S233, but no phosphorylation site was found in the GATA-6 protein. Real-time quantitative PCR analysis showed that GATA-4 and GATA-6 mRNAs were co-expressed in goose follicles, moderately expressed in granulosa cells and weakly expressed in theca cells. The expression level of GATA-4 mRNA in healthy follicles was significantly higher than in atretic follicles or postovulatory follicles (P<0.01), and the expression level of GATA-6 mRNA in healthy follicles was significantly lower than in atretic follicles or postovulatory follicles (P<0.01). The expression level of GATA-4 mRNA in granulosa cells was downregulated during follicle development; the peak of expression occurred in the 8-10 mm follicles, and the lowest expression was in the F1 follicles. GATA-6 was upregulated and reached its peak expression in the F1 follicles. These results indicate that the molecular structural differences in goose GATA-4 and GATA-6 may be related to their different roles during follicle development.
The impact of stereotype threat in two educational environments

ii DEDICATION. iii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND SYMBOLS . v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS . vi CONTENTS. vii LIST OF TABLES . xii LIST OF FIGURES . xiii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION . 1 Social Capital in HBCUs . 3 CHAPTER 2: THEORETICAL UNDERPINNINGS AND LITERATURE REVIEW . 4 Stereotypes and Stereotype Threat . 4 Critical Race Theory . 7 Social Cognitive Theory . 9 Social Identity Theory. 11 Racial Identity Theory . 12 Stigma Consciousness . 13 CHAPTER 3: METHODS . 15 Subjects . 16 Procedure . 16 Dependent Measures . 18 viii Manipulation Check . 19 Demographics . 20 Moderators . 20 Congruence: Student Perception of University Structure and Support Scale . 20 Self-Efficacy . 21 Self-Regulation . 21 Cross Racial Identity Scale . 21 Stigma Consciousness . 24 Timeline for Participants. 25 Test Assessment . 25 Low Stereotype Threat Manipulation . 25 High Stereotype Threat Manipulation . 25 Post-test Assessment . 25 CHAPTER 4: RESULTS . 27 Participants . 27 Research Questions 1 & 2: . 33 GPA. 34 Research Question 3: . 37 Racial Identity . 39 Pre-Encounter Identity . 42 Pre-Encounter Assimilation (PA) . 42 Pre-Encounter Mis-education (PM) . 43 Pre-Encounter Self-Hatred (PSH) . 44
Perceptions of school life among a sample of Chinese children in Hong Kong

ABSTRACT Many studies have focused on the negative aspects of transition from kindergarten to school, such as bullying and difficulties adjusting to school life. Fewer studies have asked children to talk about both positive and negative aspects of school life across time. This study explores children’s perception of positive and negative aspects of school during the last month at kindergarten, first three months and last month in Year 1. Gender differences in children’s perceptions of life in Year 1 are explored. Positive and negative aspects of school included peer interactions, learning, rules, environment, school activities and teacher–child interaction. Other positive aspects of school also included parents’ or siblings’ engagement in school activities, teachers’ praise and pupils’ roles. This paper provides robust information for educators and parents to use as a reference for developing effective strategies to help children adapt to school life.
Theoretical Biology and Medical Modelling Open Access Boundary Effects Influence Velocity of Transverse Propagation of Simulated Cardiac Action Potentials

Propagation of cardiac action potentialtransverse propagation velocityPSpice simulationsedge/boundary effectselectric field transmission of excitation. Abstract Background: We previously demonstrated that transverse propagation of excitation (cardiac action potentials simulated with PSpice) could occur in the absence of low-resistance connections (gap – junction channels) between parallel chains of myocardial cells. The transverse transmission of excitation between the chains was strongly dependent on the longitudinal resistance of the interstitial fluid space between the chains: the higher this resistance, the closer the packing of the parallel chains within the bundle. The earlier experiments were carried out with 2-dimensional sheets of cells: 2 × 3, 3 × 4, and 5 × 5 models (where the first number is the number of parallel chains and the second is the number of cells in each chain). The purpose of the present study was to enlarge the model size to 7 × 7, thus enabling the transverse velocities to be compared in models of different sizes (where all circuit parameters are identical in all models). This procedure should enable the significance of the role of edge (boundary) effects in transverse propagation to be determined.
The Immunomodulatory Activity of Jacaric Acid, a Conjugated Linolenic Acid Isomer, on Murine Peritoneal Macrophages

This study aims at demonstrating the immunomodulatory property of jacaric acid, a conjugated linolenic acid (CLNA) isomer that is present in jacaranda seed oil, on murine peritoneal macrophages. Our results showed that jacaric acid exhibited no significant cytotoxicity on the thioglycollate-elicited murine peritoneal macrophages as revealed by the neutral red uptake assay, but markedly increased their cytostatic activity on the T-cell lymphoma MBL-2 cells as measured by the fluorometric CyQuant® NF Cell Proliferation Assay Kit. Flow cytometric analysis indicated that jacaric acid could enhance the endocytic activity of macrophages and elevated their intracellular production of superoxide anion. Moreover, jacaric acid-treated macrophages showed an increase in the production of nitric oxide which was accompanied by an increase in the expression level of inducible nitric oxide synthase protein. In addition, the secretion of several pro-inflammatory cytokines, including interferon-γ, interleukin-1β and tumor necrosis factor-α, was up-regulated. Collectively, our results indicated that the naturally-occurring CLNA isomer, jacaric acid, could exhibit immunomodulating activity on the murine peritoneal macrophages in vitro, suggesting that this CLNA isomer may act as an immunopotentiator which can be exploited for the treatment of some immunological disorders with minimal toxicity and fewer side effects.
AUTHORING THE ORGANISATIONAL DECISION-MAKING GENRE: DECISION PROCESSES AS FICTIONAL TALES

Decision-making processes do not exist as formal structures or representations. They are literary creations that represent and interpret organisational life as configured within an organisational decision-making genre. This genre is an institution that functions as a horizon of expectations for readers and as a model of writing for authors. That is, authors write in accordance with the existing generic system; within the ‘model’ of writing proposed by Simon and cohorts. For instance, the traditional plot of a decision story goes like this. A social scientist set out to ‘discover’ and describe how decisions are made in organisations, because decisions are said to be significant. These stories expose the faults of traditional assumptions of how decisions are made, i.e., decisions are not as rational as it was previously thought or they do not conform to a preestablished theory or typology. The narration is always a third-person narration, i.e., an external voice always tells us what is happening in the organisation. The hero of these stories is in most cases the ‘concept’ and through it the author invoked some powerful ideological discourses such as managism and decisionism. I will be discussing these provocative thoughts in the rest of this paper, which I hope can contribute to enhance our understanding of how decision-making authors construct their decision tales and how organisations themselves can benefit from this approach.
A systematic review of the evidence supporting a causal link between dietary factors and coronary heart disease.

BACKGROUND Although a wealth of literature links dietary factors and coronary heart disease (CHD), the strength of the evidence supporting valid associations has not been evaluated systematically in a single investigation. METHODS We conducted a systematic search of MEDLINE for prospective cohort studies or randomized trials investigating dietary exposures in relation to CHD. We used the Bradford Hill guidelines to derive a causation score based on 4 criteria (strength, consistency, temporality, and coherence) for each dietary exposure in cohort studies and examined for consistency with the findings of randomized trials. RESULTS Strong evidence supports valid associations (4 criteria satisfied) of protective factors, including intake of vegetables, nuts, and "Mediterranean" and high-quality dietary patterns with CHD, and associations of harmful factors, including intake of trans-fatty acids and foods with a high glycemic index or load. Among studies of higher methodologic quality, there was also strong evidence for monounsaturated fatty acids and "prudent" and "western" dietary patterns. Moderate evidence (3 criteria) of associations exists for intake of fish, marine omega-3 fatty acids, folate, whole grains, dietary vitamins E and C, beta carotene, alcohol, fruit, and fiber. Insufficient evidence (< or =2 criteria) of association is present for intake of supplementary vitamin E and ascorbic acid (vitamin C); saturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids; total fat; alpha-linolenic acid; meat; eggs; and milk. Among the dietary exposures with strong evidence of causation from cohort studies, only a Mediterranean dietary pattern is related to CHD in randomized trials. CONCLUSIONS The evidence supports a valid association of a limited number of dietary factors and dietary patterns with CHD. Future evaluation of dietary patterns, including their nutrient and food components, in cohort studies and randomized trials is recommended.
REFLECTION-IMPULSIVITY IN PERCEPTUAL AND CONCEPTUAL MATCHING TASKS AMONG KINDERGARTEN CHILDREN

In order to examine the generality of reflection-impulsivity, 51 5-6-year-olds were given, in addition to Kagan's MFF, a tactual-visual matching task (TVM) of geometric shapes and two conceptual matching tasks: Referential communication with inadequate message where the child as receiver had to ask questions to make a correct choice, and a revised version of Olson's conceptual pattern matching. Latency and error measures of MFF and TVM were all significantly correlated to each other. Among the 24 correlations between these 4 measures from the perceptual tasks and 3 measures each from conceptual ones, i.e., amount of instrumental information-seeking, number of errors and number of guesses, 21 had the expected signs (-1-, —) and 9 were significant in the ex-