Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Early Intervention Improves Behavioral Outcomes for Preterm Infants: Randomized Controlled Trial

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the effectiveness of an early intervention program on behavioral outcomes at corrected age of 5 years for children with birth weights (BWs) of <2000 g. Methods: A randomized controlled trial of a modified version of the Mother-Infant Transaction Program was performed. Outcomes were measured by the Child Behavior Check List report (parents) and Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire at 5 years (parents and preschool teachers). Results: A total of 146 infants were assigned randomly (intervention group: 72 infants; reference group: 74 infants). A term group was recruited (75 infants). The mean BWs were 1396 ± 429 g for the intervention group, 1381 ± 436 g for the control group, and 3619 ± 490 g for the term reference group. Parents in the intervention group reported significantly fewer behavioral problems measured by both instruments at 5 years. There were no differences in behavior problems reported by preschool teachers. Significantly more children in the preterm control group scored within the clinical area of both instruments. Conclusions: This modified version of the Mother-Infant Transaction Program led to fewer behavioral problems reported by parents at corrected age of 5 years for children with BWs of <2000 g.
Determinants of child abuse potential: Contribution of parent and child factors

Examined the contributions of child and parental factors to abuse potential in 132 mothers of young children with and without disabilities. In addition to the Child Abuse Potential Inventory (CAPI), mothers completed measures of psychopathology, social resources, and child characteristics (adaptability, hyperactivity, and maternal attitude toward the child). Results indicate a significant contribution of child characteristics over and above that explained by demographic and parent factors. Presence of a disability was not a significant predictor of abuse potential once other child and parent variables were taken into account. Mothers with low levels of social resources had elevated scores on the CAP1 when negative child characteristics were reported, in contrast to mothers with high levels of social resources.
Selection can be performed effectively without temporal binding, but could be even more effective with it

Experiments using spatial cues and spatial probes provide strong evidence for an attention mechanism that chooses a location and selects all information at that location. This selection process can work very quickly; so quickly that selection probably begins before segmentation and grouping. It can be implemented in a neural network simply and efficiently without temporal binding. In conjunction with this spatial attention, however, temporal binding can potentially enhance visual selection in complex scenes. First, it would allow a target object to be selected without also selecting a superimposed distractor. Second, it could maintain representations of objects after attention has moved to another object. Third, it could allow multiple parts of an object or scene to be selected, segmented, and analysed simultaneously. Thus, temporal synchrony should be more likely to appear during tasks with overlapping targets and distractors, and tasks that require that multiple objects or multipart objects be analysed and remembered simultaneously.
A Method for Assessing Racial Attitudes in Preschool Children

THE concept of racial attitude is closely identified with certain traditional measurement procedures; namely, questionnaire scales of the Thurstone, Likert, and Guttman varieties. Research with such scales has led to most of the existing knowledge concerning racial attitudes among older children and adults. Unfortunately, questionnaire scales are not appropriate to the test-taking capabilities of young children and, thus, are not applicable to the study of the development of racial attitudes in the preschool years. This limitation has led to the evolution of special research procedures for the assessment of racial attitudes and concepts among preschool children, and many imaginative approaches have been made (for example: Ammons (1950) doll-play technique; Morland’s (1962) picture-interview procedures; Stevenson and Stewarts’ (1958) figure discrimination, doll assembly, and incomplete stories; Goodman’s (1964) puzzle-interview, pictures and clay interview, etc.). While the use of such procedures has led to many interesting findings, it has been difficult to assess the degree to which these procedures tap the same psychological processes which are assessed among older persons by the traditional attitude scales. In other words, a need has existed for a procedure appropriate to the skills of the preschool child which would yield a measure of attitude which could be coordinated with the traditional concept of racial attitude.
Current trends in the understanding and treatment of schizophrenia in an Irish context

There have been considerable efforts to develop appropriate and effective interventions aimed to address the wide range of difficulties associated with schizophrenia, including the individual's psychological, social and occupational functioning. This paper summarises the current understanding of the clinical features, course and diagnosis of schizophrenia. A number of psychosocial theories reflect how symptoms and difficulties associated with schizophrenia manifest and develop. The major interventions for schizophrenia and psychotic experiences reflecting current trends in our understanding of this complex disorder are reviewed. Available evidence indicates that some advances are being made to improve service provision for individuals with schizophrenia in Ireland.
Infants' Perception of Auditory Space.

Infants between 26 and 32 weeks of age were presented with sounding objects in the dark at four locations, 30 o left and right, within reaching distance (15 cm) and out of reach (60 cm) at the same orientation. Infants' ability to localize the sound was assessed by measuring reaches of either hand into the space occupied by the objects when within reach.
Early career teachers' quit intentions: implications for teacher education

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify what job‐related, individual, and profession‐related variables cause the intention to quit teaching among the early career teachers, especially teachers of Ethiopia.Design/methodology/approach – Quit intentions were measured adapting the scale developed by Mueller and Lawler, and 11 profession‐related and person‐related job variables were measured by author‐developed and literature‐derived scale items on a five‐point Likert scale, along with five status variables. Data were analyzed from a sample of 308 early career teachers belonging to secondary and preparatory schools of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.Findings – An alarming 53 per cent sample expressed high quit intention whereas only 13 per cent teachers showed low quit intentions. Choice satisfaction (accounting 44 per cent variance), availability of other job opportunities (23 per cent variance), perceived status (15 per cent variance), and self‐accountability (13 per cent variance) emerged as predictor vari.
Psychosis and substance use problems: Using controlled drinking in interventions

Substance use is a significant problem for people with severe mental health problems such as schizophrenia. It has a high prevalence and is linked to poor clinical and social outcomes. Reasons for substance using in this population are wide-ranging and overlap with those found in non-psychotic populations. Services have traditionally not been well configured to deal with people with dual problems of psychosis and substance use leading to this group's needs not being well addressed. Current guidance from the Department of Health is attempting to address this. Treatment strategies have not, as yet, been well researched. However, some conclusions can be made about the types of treatment that are acceptable and show promise. There is an emphasis on providing treatment programmes that integrate treatment for both psychosis and substance use, incorporate motivational approaches, allow flexibility in treatment goals (such as controlled drinking rather than abstinence) and incorporate some form of individual therapy (usually cognitive-behavioural) intervention. Further research is needed to expand the evidence base around interventions for psychosis and substance use.
Effects of Glutathione and Ascorbic Acid on Streptomycin Sensitivity of Escherichia coli

ABSTRACT We examined the effects of antioxidants and the role of reactive oxygen species (ROS) on the antibacterial action of aminoglycosides in Escherichia coli. We concluded that reduced streptomycin sensitivity in the presence of glutathione and ascorbic acid is not due to the antioxidant-mediated scavenging of ROS.
Factors Influencing Women's Perceptions of a Sexually Hostile Workplace

Abstract Factors influencing women's perceptions of a sexually hostile work environment including job type, gender mix of work contacts, level of resourcefulness, and perception of male work contacts' attitudes toward women were investigated to determine their relationship with perceptions of a sexually hostile work environment. One hundred seventy-seven working women participated in this investigation. Results suggest that a woman's job type and the gender mix of those with whom she works do not significantly influence her perception of a sexually hostile work environment. Rather, the more that women perceive their male work contacts as having traditional attitudes toward women and the less personally resourceful the women are, the more likely they are to perceive a sexually hostile work environment.
Women in management: reflections and projections

Purpose – A major barrier to women's progress in management worldwide continues to be the gender stereotyping of the managerial position. The purpose of the paper is to examine how this “think manager – think male” attitude has changed over the three decades since the author's initial research and to consider the implications of the outcomes for women's advancement in management today.Design/methodology/approach – The paper reviews the author's research, first conducted in the 1970s and replicated in the USA and internationally, on gender stereotyping and requisite management characteristics.Findings – The overview reveals the strength and inflexibility of the “think manager – think male” attitude held by males across time and national borders. Over the last three decades corporate males in the USA continue to see women as less qualified than men for managerial positions. Internationally, the view of women as less likely than men to possess requisite management characteristics is also a commonly held beli.
Protective Effects of Labisia pumila var. alata on Biochemical and Histopathological Alterations of Cardiac Muscle Cells in Isoproterenol-Induced Myocardial Infarction Rats

The study was designed to evaluate the cardioprotective effects of the standardized aqueous and 80% ethanol extracts of Labisia pumila var. alata (LPva) in isoproterenol (ISO)-induced myocardial infarction (MI) in rats. The extracts were administered to Wistar rats orally for 28 days with three doses (100, 200 and 400 mg/kg of body weight) prior to ISO (85 mg/kg)-induced MI in two doses on day 29 and 30. The sera and hearts were collected for biochemical and histopathological analysis after the rats were sacrificed 48 h after the first induction. The main components of the extracts, gallic acid, alkylresorcinols and flavonoids were identified and quantitatively analyzed in the extracts by using a validated reversed phase HPLC method. The extracts showed significant protective effects as pretreated rats showed a significant dose-dependent decrease (p < 0.05) in cardiac enzyme activities, i.e., cardiac troponin I (cTnI), creatine kinase MB isoenzyme (CK-MB), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), alanine transaminase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST), when compared with ISO-control rats. There were significant rises (p < 0.05) in the activity of oxidase enzymes, i.e., glutathione peroxide (GPx), catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) of the pretreated rats, when compared with ISO-control group. Histopathological examination showed an improvement in membrane cell integrity in pre-treated rats compared to untreated rats. The major components of LPva extracts can be used as their biomarkers and contributed to the cardioprotective effects against ISO-induced MI rats.
Confirmation of Expectations and Satisfaction with an On-Line Service: The Role of Internet Self-Efficacy

Customers’ intentions of reusing e-commerce websites for shopping has a major consequence for the website’s profitability; therefore, understanding the factors that influence a Web customer’s repurchase intentions is of great importance to e-commerce. This research represents a careful and systemic effort to incorporate factors from various distinct theories (SCT, TAM, and ECT), which will be examined in an integrated model within the context of Internet shopping repurchase intentions, and tested in a field study. Empirical data for hypotheses testing were collected, yielding 342 valid samples. The results suggest that users’ repurchase intention is determined by satisfaction and perceived usefulness. Users’ satisfaction is influenced by confirmation of expectation and perceived usefulness. Perceived usefulness, in turn, is influenced by confirmation, while confirmation is affected by Internet self-efficacy. Internet self-efficacy has been shown to have not a significant impact on perceived usefulness and confirmation.
Student Attendance, Mobility, and Mathematics Achievement in an Urban School District

ABSTRACT The authors aim to describe student attendance–mobility within a large urban district in ways that are meaningful and useful to schools and the community. First, the prevalence of mobility and nonattendance in Grades 1–12 across all students and by gender, ethnicity, and socioeconomic subgroups is presented. Second, the impact on student mathematics achievement is examined. Results show that nonattendance–mobility negatively impact mathematics achievement as measured by the state's assessment, even after controlling for socioeconomic status and gender. Interestingly, there is not a differential impact across ethnicities. Black and White subgroups show similar patterns of achievement across attendance and mobility levels. Finally, the authors take a closer look at the 10 district high schools to determine where nonattendance–mobility is of particular concern. Implications for districts are discussed in terms of targeting the extent of the problem and where it is occurring, using that information to improve attendance and reduce mobility, and finally, instituting systematic approaches to deal with student movement in and out of schools.
Determinants of an intention to exercise of an electric power commission's employees

The aim of the present study was to identify the psychosocial factors explaining an employee population's intention to exercise. The subjects were 444 employees of an electric power commission. All subjects completed a questionnaire investigating psychosocial variables borrowed from the theories of Fishbein and Ajzen, Triandis, and Ajzen. Employee's intention to exercise during the next six months was explained by habit (β=0.444, p<0.0001), perceived barriers (β =−0.281, p<0.0001), and attitude (β =0.207, p<0.0001). The proportion of variance explained by these variables was 41.4% (p<0.0001). These results are similar to those reported in studies conducted among different sub-groups of the general population. This would seem to suggest that the promotion of regular exercise or habitual physical activity at the worksite should be guided by the same principles which are applied to the promotion of habitual exercise in the general population.
Theoretical analysis of an improved covariance matrix estimator in non-Gaussian noise [radar detection applications]

This paper presents a detailed theoretical analysis of a recently introduced covariance matrix estimator, called the fixed point estimate (FPE). It plays a significant role in radar detection applications. This estimate is provided by the maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) theory when the non-Gaussian noise is modelled as a spherically invariant random process (SIRP). We study in details its properties: existence, uniqueness, unbiasedness, consistency and asymptotic distribution. We propose also an algorithm for its computation and prove the convergence of this numerical procedure. These results allow us to study the performance analysis of the adaptive CFAR radar detectors (GLRT-LQ, BORD, .).
Effectiveness of a Culturally-Tailored Smoking Cessation Intervention for Arab-American Men

To date, no smoking cessation programs are available for Arab American (ARA) men, who are a vulnerable population with high rates of smoking. Thus, the primary aim of this one group pre-test/post-test study was to assess the effectiveness of Sehatack—a culturally and linguistically tailored smoking cessation program for ARA men. The study sample was 79 ARA men with a mean age of 43 years who smoked between 5 and 40 cigarettes (mean = 19.75, SD = 9.1) per day (98.7%). All of the participants reported more interest in smoking cessation post-intervention and many of the participants in the baseline (38.5%) and post-intervention phases (47.7%) wanted to quit smoking ”very much”. For daily smokers who completed the smoking cessation program, the median number of cigarettes smoked daily was significantly lower than those in the post-intervention phase (Z = −6.915, p < 0.001). Results of this preliminary study indicate that: (a) Sehatack may be a promising way for ARA men to quit smoking, and (b) culturally relevant smoking cessation counselors can be trained to recruit and retain ARA smokers in an intensive group smoking cessation program. Strengths of this study were community engagement and rapport between three faith organizations and the University of Florida College of Nursing. However, a larger trial is needed to address study limitations and to confirm benefits in this population.
Family factors predicting vocabulary in Turkish as a heritage language

ABSTRACT Most immigrant parents face the challenge of passing on their heritage language to their children. Family predictors of Turkish heritage language vocabulary are examined for 119 preschoolers and 121 fourth graders in Germany. Path analyses link children's Turkish vocabulary to the family background (parents’ education and generational status), the home literacy environment (HLE), and mothers’ language use. The main findings are (a) the HLE predicts children's Turkish vocabulary, (b) mothers’ use of Turkish with their children predicts children's Turkish vocabulary, and (c) family background is mainly connected to Turkish vocabulary by way of mothers’ use of Turkish. The HLE and being exposed to Turkish are both important for children's heritage vocabulary. Thus, parents can use everyday resources to actively promote their children's Turkish language skills.
Observed Aversion to Raising Hell in Pastoral Care: The Conflict Between Doctrine and Practice

This paper explores complexities in the relationship between beliefs about hell and the practice of Christian pastoral care by clergy. It tests the hypotheses that observed aversion to raising the topic will be greater the more inclusive the minister's doctrine; that sensitivities are a strong motivation for the carer to seek a doctrinal 'loophole' to avoid it; and that inability to reconcile one's beliefs about hell with aversion to raising the subject does not mean that a minister will necessarily follow through on the implications of his/her doctrine. The data is derived from a postal survey of clergy in Scotland, conducted across the Trinitarian denominations. It is concluded that a model of applied-theology is ameliorated even by its proponents in the context of hell and pastoral care.
A Molecular Epidemiological and Genetic Diversity Study of Tuberculosis in Ibadan, Nnewi and Abuja, Nigeria

Background Nigeria has the tenth highest burden of tuberculosis (TB) among the 22 TB high-burden countries in the world. This study describes the biodiversity and epidemiology of drug-susceptible and drug-resistant TB in Ibadan, Nnewi and Abuja, using 409 DNAs extracted from culture positive TB isolates. Methodology/Principal Findings DNAs extracted from clinical isolates of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex were studied by spoligotyping and 24 VNTR typing. The Cameroon clade (CAM) was predominant followed by the M. africanum (West African 1) and T (mainly T2) clades. By using a smooth definition of clusters, 32 likely epi-linked clusters related to the Cameroon genotype family and 15 likely epi-linked clusters related to other “modern” genotypes were detected. Eight clusters concerned M. africanum West African 1. The recent transmission rate of TB was 38%. This large study shows that the recent transmission of TB in Nigeria is high, without major regional differences, with MDR-TB clusters. Improvement in the TB control programme is imperative to address the TB control problem in Nigeria.
Five-Factor Personality Similarity and Marital Adjustment

No previous researcher has examined the relationship between marital adjustment and similarity of partner personality on a measure of the five-factor personality model. In the present study we examined this relationship in 99 married couples. Spousal similarity on the domains of conscientiousness, agreeableness, neuroticism, and several personality facets was related to marital adjustment. With the exception of conscientiousness, the traits on which similarity was related to adjustment differed for husbands and wives. Reasons for these sex differences are discussed.
Sto2Auc: A Stochastic Optimal Bidding Strategy for Microgrids

Microgrids (MGs) have attracted growing attention due to self-sufficiency and self-healing properties. Nonetheless, the intermittent nature and uncertainty of distributed energy resources and load demands remain challenging issues in balancing demands and managing energy resources in MGs. Existing research efforts mainly focus on developing techniques to enable interactions between local MGs and the utility grid, which leads to high line power losses and operation costs. In this paper, we present the Sto2Auc framework to address the issue of stochastic optimal bidding problem for a system with MGs. First, the optimal bidding problem is formulated as a two-stage stochastic programming process, which aims to minimize the system operation cost and obtain optimal energy capacity of MGs by the MG center controller (MGCC). Uncertainties arise from both energy supply and demand, which are considered in the stochastic model, and random parameters representing those uncertainties are captured by using the Monte Carlo method. Second, to enable optimal electricity trading between the insufficient and surplus MGs, we propose a distributed double auction (DDA)-based scheme, which is proven to converge to the optimal social welfare of the system with MGs, and achieves the economical properties of being strategy-proof, individually rational, and (weak) budget balanced. Extensive experiments on an MG system composed of IEEE-33 buses demonstrate the effectiveness of proposed scheme. The experimental results show that Sto2Auc framework is capable of reducing the operational cost of MG systems, while the implemented DDA scheme achieves good performance with respect to social welfare, demand insufficiency, and MGCC profit.