Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Comparison of Three Methods of Vocabulary Instruction during Read‐Alouds in Kindergarten

This article presents results from 2 studies comparing 3 approaches to teaching vocabulary during storybook reading: (a) contextual instruction, based on connecting words to their use in books and to children’s personal experience; (b) analytical instruction, which enhances contextual instruction with semantic analysis of words in contexts other than the books and children’s experience; and (c) anchored instruction, which augments analytical instruction with attention to the spoken and written forms of words. Each approach was implemented by classroom teachers in 2 of 6 kindergarten classrooms from 2 schools for 6 weeks. In the first study, I compared the effects of these approaches on 94 children’s learning of taught words at the end of the intervention. The second study investigated the effects of instruction with 50 children from the original study 6 months after the intervention, when the children were in first grade. Of the children in the study, about a third were English language learners, and about a third were from low socioeconomic status families. I assessed children’s knowledge of the words targeted in the intervention through a picture and oral vocabulary measure that I developed based on the format of the Test of Language Development P:3, which I administered and used as a control for children’s general vocabulary knowledge. Results suggested that both the analytical and anchored methods of instruction were significantly more effective than the contextual method at promoting children’s learning of words targeted in instruction.
Anterior cingulate dysfunction: implications for psychiatric disorders?

develop a more comprehensive theory of ACC function to explain the various patterns of symptoms, cognitive and emotional deficits, as well as neuroimaging findings, across a number of psychiatric disorders. We also make suggestions for the design and interpretation of future studies concerning the ACC in psychiatric disorders that may provide important new insights into the neurobiological basis of these disorders.
Of Witches, Welfare Queens, and the Disaster Named Poverty: The Search for a Counter-Narrative

ABSTRACT The goals of this paper are to explore the utility of a narrative policy analysis, to locate the origins of the dependency narrative in poverty policy, examine social work's contribution to the narrative, and to discuss the potential for advancing a strong counter-narrative, organized within a trauma paradigm. This paper incorporates a historical review of the development of the dependency narrative and the construction of the deviant “welfare queen. ” The conclusion offers an example of a compelling counter-narrative integrating economic/structural violence (poverty) and the trauma paradigm and offers a framework for reconceptualizing social welfare policy.
At least two types of control regions can be found among naturally occurring BK virus strains

The various strains of BK virus (BKV) exhibit a remarkable degree of heterogeneity in the transcriptional control region, which may affect the biological characteristics of a BKV strain. We describe the detection and sequencing of BKV control regions directly from urine samples and after propagation in cell culture. A BKV strain [BKV (TU)] with a control region anatomy not described earlier, as well as a BKV (WW)-like strain [BKV (WWT)], was detected in urine samples by direct sequencing of polymerase chain reaction products. Urine inocula containing BKV (WWT) yielded BKV (TU) upon one passage in cell culture, while BKV (TU) did not change its control region during propagation in cell culture. Analysis of the nucleotide sequence of the transcriptional control regions revealed a partial deletion and duplication in BKV (TU) compared with BKV (WWT). In addition, the control region of BKV (TU) contains two point mutations relative to BKV (WWT). This indicates that both virus strains were probably present in the BKV (WWT)-dominated urine inocula, rather than that BKV (WWT) genomes were rearranged into BKV (TU) genomes during cell propagation. The heterogeneity of the control region of BKV strains is discussed in relation to both confirmed and putative transcription factor-binding sites.
Bimodal biometrics for financial infrastructure security

This research examines whether the integration of facial and fingerprint biometrics can improve the performance in financial infrastructure security such as ATM protection. Fingerprint biometrics consider distorted and misaligned fingerprints caused by environmental noise such as oil, wrinkles, dry skin, dirt and displacement of the query fingerprint with the database fingerprint template during matching. The noisy, distorted and/or misaligned fingerprint produced as a 2-D on x-y image, is enhanced and optimized using a new hybrid Modified Gabor Filter-Hierarchal Structure Check (MGF-HSC) system model based on an MGF integrated with an HSC. However, in order to improve the accuracy of financial infrastructure, face biometrics are introduced using a fast principal component analysis algorithm, in which different face conditions such as lighting, blurriness, pose, head orientation and other conditions are addressed. The MGF-HSC approach minimizes false fingerprint matching and the dominant effect of distortion and misalignment of fingerprints to an acceptable level. The proposed bimodal biometrics increase the accuracy of the False Rejection Rate (FRR) to 98% when the False Acceptance Rate (FAR) is 0.1% in an experiment conducted with 1000 test cases. This result shows that facial biometrics can be used to support fingerprint biometrics for improving financial security based on with significant improvement in both FRR and FAR.
Teenage boys, spirituality and religion

This paper reports on a pilot study concerning adolescent boys and spirituality, and specifically on data gathered from interviews with 20 boys of 15-17 years. The data from these interviews will inform the development of a questionnaire to be used more widely in the next stage of the research. The paper also explains and justifies the analytical schema through which the interviews were conducted and analysed and a subsequent instrument for broader use developed. It describes the rationale and background of the study, presents the schema that was developed to analyse the interviews and explores some of the ideas that emerged from the interviews that, along with the analytical schema, have helped to structure the questionnaire.
The Psychophysiological Differentiation of Actual, Imagined, and Recollected Anger

Heart rate and skin resistance responses from thirty-six participants (5 men and 31 women) were recorded to determine if significant differences exist among three different types of inducing anger including the present state of anger (Actual Anger), anger elicited through imagination (Imagined Anger), and anger elicited through recollection (Recollected Anger). An analysis of variance indicated significant differences for heart rate among the three methods, F(2,35) = 8.75, p = . 0009, but not for skin resistance, F(2,35) = 1.298, p = . 287. However, contrary to the hypotheses forwarded, both Imagined and Recollected Anger generated significantly higher heart rate responses than Actual Anger. Implications of these findings and a theoretical framework for interpretation are both presented.
Grounds for Peace; Territoriality and Conflict Resolution

Changes toward the de-territorialising of sovereignty and the corresponding emergence of various global institutions, associated with globalisation, can offer new incentives and possibilities for the resolution of seemingly intractable ethno-national conflicts, by rethinking them in a transnational context. Peace processes in Northern Ireland and Israel shared a common vision, associating conflict resolution with global integration, but differed profoundly in their structures, dynamics and outcomes. The Good Friday Agreement in Northern Ireland was based on a complex power-sharing model between Protestants and Catholics, which would supposedly allow both to express their national identity. On the other hand, the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians, despite the vision of the globalised ‘New Middle East’, was based on partition that would lead to the making of two separate states. The dynamics and outcomes of the peace processes in Israel/Palestine and Northern Ireland provide for a comparative study of these approaches in the wider context of globalisation and their contribution to the transformation of the conflict and, consequently, its stability.
The Systems Psychodynamics of a Joint Venture: Anxiety Social Defenses, and the Management of Mutual Dependence

Joint ventures, mergers and other forms of organizational alliances are rapidly becoming a business necessity. However, on an almost daily basis, experience suggests that such alliances often pose critical dilemmas for those entering into them. Central among these are collaborating across differences in organizational cultures and forging a new organizational identity. At a deeper level, there are also often paranoid concerns and fantasies about the long-term lack of equity in the transfer of knowledge and capability. This paper, therefore, outlines a systems psychodynamic perspective on intergroup and interorganizational relationships for developing an in-depth understanding of some common irrational and emotional difficulties alliance relationships face. It then goes on to describe an illustrative case and concludes with an appraisal of the advantages of a systems psychodynamic conceptual perspective-taking both structure and process into account-which has been neglected or minimized in the literature on organizational alliances.
Bi-site Catalysis in F1-ATPase: Does It Exist?*

The mechanism of action of F1F0-ATP synthase is controversial. Some favor a tri-site mechanism, where substrate must fill all three catalytic sites for activity, others a bi-site mechanism, where one of the three sites is always unoccupied. New approaches were applied to examine this question. First, ITP was used as hydrolysis substrate; lower binding affinities of ITP versus ATP enable more accurate assessment of sites occupancy. Second, distributions of all eight possible enzyme species (with zero, one, two or three sites filled) as fraction of total enzyme population at each ITP concentration were calculated, and compared with measured ITPase activity. Confirming data were obtained with ATP as substrate. Third, we performed a theoretical analysis of possible bi-site mechanisms. The results argue convincingly that bi-site hydrolysis activity is negligible, and may not even exist. Effectively, tri-site hydrolysis is the only mechanism. We argue that only tri-site hydrolysis drives subunit rotation. Theoretical analyses of possible bi-site mechanisms reveal serious flaws, not previously recognized. One is that, in bi-site catalysis, the predicted direction of subunit rotation is the same for both ATP synthesis and hydrolysis; a second is that infrequently occurring enzyme species are required.
To Let Students Self-Select or Not

When students can self-select their group members, a common assumption is that students prefer to select friends from similar cultural backgrounds. However, when teachers randomize students in groups from different cultural backgrounds, students are “forced” to work together. The prime goal of this study is to understand the impact of two group selection methods on how students from diverse cultural backgrounds build learning and work relations, using an innovative quantitative method of Social Network Analysis in a pre–post test manner. In a quasi-experimental study of 2 × 69 students, in one condition the students were randomly allocated to groups by staff and in the other, students were allowed to self-select their group members. The results indicate that students in the self-selected condition primarily selected their friends from a similar cultural background. The learning networks after 14 weeks were primarily predicted by the group allocation and initial friendships. However, students in the random condition developed equally strong internal group relations but more “knowledge spillovers” outside their group, indicating that the random condition led to positive effects beyond the group.
Does the Running Economy Really Increase after Ultra-Marathons?

Over the years, ultra-endurance events have increasingly piqued the interest of the scientific community as they are considered an outstanding model to study the adaptive responses to both extreme loads and stresses on the human body (Millet andMillet, 2012). Notably, ultra-marathons, i.e., any event longer than the traditional marathon length of 42.195 km (Millet and Millet, 2012), have seen rising trends in participation (Hoffman et al., 2010; Cejka et al., 2014). It is well-established that endurance running speed depends on the interaction betweenmaximal oxygen uptake (V̇O2max), the ability to sustain a high percentage of V̇O2max (fractional utilization of V̇O2max), and a low economy of running (di Prampero et al., 1986). However, though the running economy (RE) is recognized to be a key determinant of running performance for “classic distances” (up to the marathon) (Saunders et al., 2004), whether or not it is also a primary determinant of ultra-marathon performances remains debated (Millet et al., 2011a, 2012b; Millet, 2012; Perrey et al., 2012). Indeed, although strategies to improve RE aremandatory in events shorter than or equal to the marathon distance, optimizing other factors associated with low-intensity endurance (e.g., minimizing damage to lower limb tissue andmuscle fatigue)may cause the runners to choose strategies that lead to a deteriorated RE in ultra-marathons (Millet et al., 2012a,b). However, although V̇O2max and its fractional utilization have been described as determinants of ultra-marathon performances (Davies and Thompson, 1986; Millet et al., 2011a), it has been argued that the greatest variance in performance (∼85%) was explained when the mean RE throughout was also added (Lazzer et al., 2012, 2014). Consequently, investigating the effects of fatigue on RE is still a crucial scientific question in ultra-marathon, both for performance optimization and a better understanding of the limits of the adaptive responses of the human body.
Effect of Passive Modified Atmosphere in Different Packaging Materials on Fresh-Cut Mixed Fruit Salad Quality during Storage

Experiments were carried out at the Latvia State Institute of Fruit-Growing in 2011. Fresh-cut minimally processed apple and pear mixed salad were packed by passive modified atmosphere (MAP) in PP containers, which were hermetically sealed by breathable conventional BOPP Propafresh P2GAF, and Amcor Agrifresh films. Biodegradable NatureFlex NVS INNOVIA Films and VC999 BioPack PLA films coated with a barrier of pure silicon oxide (SiOx) were used to compare the fresh-cut produce quality with this packed in conventional packaging films. Samples were cold stored at temperature +4.0±0.5 °C up to 10 days. The quality of salad was evaluated by physicochemical properties – weight losses, moisture, firmness, the effect of packaging modes on the colour, dynamics in headspace atmosphere concentration (CO2 and O2), titratable acidity values, as well as by microbiological contamination (yeasts, moulds and total bacteria count) of salads, analyzing before packaging and after 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 storage days. Keywords—Biodegradable packaging, conventional, fresh-cut
The Impact of Meditative Practices on Physiology and Neurology: A Review of the Literature

A general awareness of meditation has grown significantly in the western world within the last fifty years yet with little accurate understanding of the nature of the practice. In addition, the broad diversity of meditative practices and their variations of physiological results make a standardized study of effects difficult. Recent advances in technology have provided an opportunity for investigators to systematize their efforts so that the body of research may be more coherent. A more accurate understanding of the physiological and neurological effects of meditation will likely reveal means of therapeutic application for both individual and social benefit as well as further insight into attentional states. The preponderance of literature points to meditation as a practice facilitating a general return to neurological and physiological homeostasis.
What works in coaching and sport instructor certification programs? The participants' view

Coaching and sport instructor certification (CSIC) programs provide teachers with a substantial content and pedagogical knowledge base. Continual improvement of these programs helps ensure that those certified are effective and competent. The purpose of this study was to ascertain the strengths of a CSIC program based on the perceptions of the program participants. Specifically, two research questions guided the study: (a) what components of the CSIC curriculum do the certification candidates (CCs) perceive to be most beneficial to their development as teachers? And (b) what components of the CSIC program do the teacher educators (TEs) from the program perceive to be most beneficial to the preparation of certified teachers? Twenty-six CCs and five TEs (N=31) involved in the Ladies Professional Golf Association–National Education Program (LPGA–NEP) participated. Interviews, journals and observations served as data sources. The participants were interviewed in groups of 4–10 for approximately 15–60 minutes at the conclusion of each day for ten days. Each participant kept a journal throughout the program in order to chronicle their reflections about the CSIC program with regard to interactions with peers and TEs, instruction, content and presentation. A researcher was present for the entire program and kept field notes. Interview, journal and field note data were analyzed inductively to draw themes and commonalities. The themes that emerged from the participants' responses and journal entries revealed four major factors that they viewed as enhancing their training as sport instructors and coaches: (a) the structure of the program must have a logical, sequential and comfortable format; (b) pedagogical knowledge should be taught to the CCs and modeled by the TEs; (c) knowledgeable TEs providing relevant content knowledge are essential; and (d) an introduction to and integration of pertinent research in sport pedagogy and subject matter content must be apparent. These are the first findings to shed light on how these important programs should be designed.
Treatment of stable chronic demyelinating polyneuropathy with 3,4-diaminopyridine.

OBJECTIVE To determine whether 3,4-diaminopyridine (3,4-DAP) would improve clinical or electrophysiologic function in patients with stable chronic demyelinating polyneuropathy. DESIGN We conducted a prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled, blinded, crossover study of 3,4-DAP in 34 patients with demyelinating polyneuropathy. MATERIAL AND METHODS Of the 17 men and 17 women, who were 21 to 80 years of age, 27 had hereditary motor and sensory neuropathy type I and 7 had acquired demyelinating polyneuropathy. Treatment consisted of stepped doses of 3,4-DAP (increasing to 20 mg four times daily) or placebo for 4 days. Pretreatment and posttreatment determination of the Neurologic Disability Score (NDS); isometric muscle strength testing; median, ulnar, and peroneal nerve conduction studies; and measurement of serum 3,4-DAP were performed. Quantitative computer-assisted sensory examinations were done in five patients. RESULTS The results for the final day of treatment with 3,4-DAP or placebo and the differences between pretreatment and posttreatment findings for total NDS, sensory NDS, isometric muscle strength testing, compound muscle action potential amplitude, sensory nerve action potential amplitude, motor and sensory conduction velocities, and vibration and cold detection thresholds did not vary significantly. A small improvement of 4 points in the motor NDS (P < 0.05) was found. Five patients with electrophysiologic conduction block had no significant reduction in the degree of block. CONCLUSION Because no improvement was noted in most measurements of neurologic function, despite use of high doses of drug, 3,4-DAP is unlikely to be beneficial in the treatment of stable chronic demyelinating polyneuropathy.
Clinical and radiographic spectrum of pathologically confirmed tumefactive multiple sclerosis

Atypical imaging features of multiple sclerosis lesions include size >2 cm, mass effect, oedema and/or ring enhancement. This constellation is often referred to as ‘tumefactive multiple sclerosis’. Previous series emphasize their unifocal and clinically isolated nature, however, evolution of these lesions is not well defined. Biopsy may be required for diagnosis. We describe clinical and radiographic features in 168 patients with biopsy confirmed CNS inflammatory demyelinating disease (IDD). Lesions were analysed on pre- and post-biopsy magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for location, size, mass effect/oedema, enhancement, multifocality and fulfilment of Barkhof criteria. Clinical data were correlated to MRI. Female to male ratio was 1.2 : 1, median age at onset, 37 years, duration between symptom onset and biopsy, 7.1 weeks and total disease duration, 3.9 years. Clinical course prior to biopsy was a first neurological event in 61%, relapsing–remitting in 29% and progressive in 4%. Presentations were typically polysymptomatic, with motor, cognitive and sensory symptoms predominating. Aphasia, agnosia, seizures and visual field defects were observed. At follow-up, 70% developed definite multiple sclerosis, and 14% had an isolated demyelinating syndrome. Median time to second attack was 4.8 years, and median EDSS at follow-up was 3.0. Multiple lesions were present in 70% on pre-biopsy MRI, and in 83% by last MRI, with Barkhof criteria fulfilled in 46% prior to biopsy and 55% by follow-up. Only 17% of cases remained unifocal. Median largest lesion size on T2-weighted images was 4 cm (range 0.5–12), with a discernible size of 2.1 cm (range 0.5–7.5). Biopsied lesions demonstrated mass effect in 45% and oedema in 77%. A strong association was found between lesion size, and presence of mass effect and/or oedema (P < 0.001). Ring enhancement was frequent. Most tumefactive features did not correlate with gender, course or diagnosis. Although lesion size >5 cm was associated with a slightly higher EDSS at last follow-up, long-term prognosis in patients with disease duration >10 years was better (EDSS 1.5) compared with a population-based multiple sclerosis cohort matched for disease duration (EDSS 3.5; P < 0.001). Given the retrospective nature of the study, the precise reason for biopsy could not always be determined. This study underscores the diagnostically challenging nature of CNS IDDs that present with atypical clinical or radiographic features. Most have multifocal disease at onset, and develop RRMS by follow-up. Although increased awareness of this broad spectrum may obviate need for biopsy in many circumstances, an important role for diagnostic brain biopsy may be required in some cases.