Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
In-Service Teachers' Views towards an Environmental Science Education Course Designed around Inquiry Principles

This paper illustrates a 5-year case study (2007 - 2012) of a course in Environmental Science Education designed for the training of practicing Greek in-service elementary teachers. The aim of the study was to reveal teachers’ views towards the course they attended, which was designed on the basis of inquiry principles. This was achieved through an assessment of the course by the 82 participants. The responses of the teachers to 4 open-ended questions were analyzed using content analysis. Results revealed that in-service elementary teachers found the course well-organized and commented favorably for their active participation and group working, the field study, the hands-on experiments and the software used. They would prefer to have more time available for their activities, smaller range of topics and simpler equipment. In general, favorable comments indicate a positive attitude for the course and a successful implementation on behalf of the lecturers while critical comments and suggestions for improvement constitute essential guidelines for the development of similar teacher training courses in the future. Challenges in developing similar courses include the teachers’ lack of knowledge in Environmental Science and teachers’ need for practical work.
Genito-urinary fistula: a major morbidity in developing countries.

BACKGROUND Uro-genital fistulas, majority of which are vesico-vaginal fistulas (VVF), are a great challenge for women in developing countries. It is commonly caused by prolong obstructed labour and is one of the worst complications of child birth and poor obstetric care. The objective of this descriptive study was to review the cases of genitourinary fistulae so as to understand the magnitude of the problem and its aetiology and to share our experience of surgical repair with other specialists in this field. The study was conducted at Gynaecological Unit-II, Liaquat University Hospital Hyderabad, Pakistan from June 1996 to December 2007. METHODS The case records of all patients admitted and managed during study period were reviewed. The information regarding characteristics, risk factors and surgical management was collected. The data was analysed by SPSS and mean, range, standard deviation and percentage were calculated. RESULTS During the study period, 278 patients with genitourinary fistulae were admitted and managed. The mean age of patients with urinary fistulae was 31.5 +/- 7.5 years, parity was 4.2 +/- 2.8, and duration of labour was 38.4 +/- 6.5 hours. The duration of fistulae ranged from 1 day to 25 years. Obstructed labour 246 (88.4%) was the most common cause of urinary fistulae, followed by gynaecological surgeries mainly hysterectomies 26 (9.35%). The most common type of urinary fistula was vesico-vaginal fistula (VVF) 250 (89.9%). A total of 268 underwent surgery. Almost all 261 (97.3%) urinary fistulae were repaired transvaginally except patients with ureterovaginal and vesico-uterine fistulae. The most common surgical procedure used was layered closure. Martius graft was used in 3 (1.1%) patients, who required creation of new urethra. The success rate following first, second and third attempt was 85%, 91% and 96% respectively. CONCLUSION Urogenital fistulae are rarity in developed world, but are frequently encountered problem in developing countries like Pakistan, often resulting from prolonged obstructed labour due to poor obstetric care. Utilising basic principles of surgery, all types of urinary fistulae can be repaired.
Sexism and TESOL Materials

The paper explores the treatment of women in currently used ESL materials, starting with an analysis of the portrayal of the sexes in current textbooks. Some observations are that women are often less visible than men, are often the butt of many jokes and are often placed in stereotypical roles and assigned stereotypical emotional reactions. Illustrations in the books serve to reinforce the biased linguistic patterns previously noted. The paper then proceeds to discuss terms which have been labelled as prejudicial against women by writers who have been analyzing the question of sexism and the English language. Among the points discussed are the use of the word man as both an independent word and as a bound suffix, the generic he, the boy/girl distinction, and titles used to refer to men and women. All features were found to bias the portrayal of women in the texts. A general discussion follows of what the terms "prescriptive" and "descriptive" linguistics mean and whether or not professionals in TESOL should advocate linguistic change. The paper concludes with some suggested changes which can reduce the bias now present in the portrayal of women in ESL materials without sacrificing the overall educational goal of effective and realistic teaching of the English language to non-English speakers. Language learning is necessarily a culture-learning process. In fact, a traditional rationale for foreign language learning has been the expansion of the individual's cultural horizons, the development of tolerance for cultural diversity, and the acquisition of more data for deciding where one fits in the world. It is neither possible nor desirable to separate the linguistic aspects of a language from its surrounding culture; on the contrary, the presentation of culture in language classes is usually set forth as an explicit goal. For instance, the TESOL Guideline for the Certification and Preparation of Teachers
Distress, Coping, and Posttraumatic Growth in Refugees From Burma

Refugees flee their countries of origin due to supreme hardship and threat to life, frequently having witnessed mass atrocities. This research is embedded in a salutogenic paradigm that emphasizes strength and adjustment. Twenty-five refugees from Burma who were newly arrived in Australia were interviewed and transcripts were analyzed using an Interpretive Phenomenological Analytic (IPA) approach. In addition to themes of distress, data revealed an extraordinary adaptive capacity and highlighted strengths, both individual and collective. Specific adaptive strategies included religiousness and a sense of duty to family, community, and country. Findings have implications for policy and practice that aim to support refugees and asylum seekers.
Selenium in the Environment, Metabolism and Involvement in Body Functions

Selenium () is a metalloid which is close to sulfur (S) in terms of properties. The Se concentration in soil varies with type, texture and organic matter content of the soil and with rainfall. Its assimilation by plants is influenced by the physico-chemical properties of the soil (redox status, pH and microbial activity). The presence of Se in the atmosphere is linked to natural and anthropogenic activities. Selenoproteins, in which selenium is present as selenocysteine, present an important role in many body functions, such as antioxidant defense and the formation of thyroid hormones. Some selenoprotein metabolites play a role in cancer prevention. In the immune system, selenium stimulates antibody formation and activity of helper T cells, cytotoxic T cells and Natural Killer (NK) cells. The mechanisms of intestinal absorption of selenium differ depending on the chemical form of the element. Selenium is mainly absorbed in the duodenum and caecum by active transport through a sodium pump. The recommended daily intake of selenium varies from 60 μg/day for women, to 70 μg/day for men. In growing ruminants the requirements are estimated at 100 μg/kg dry matter and 200 μg/Kg for pregnant or lactating females. A deficiency can cause reproductive disorders in humans and animals.
The Evidence for Homeopathy

Skepticism regarding homeopathy is based on the belief that there is no evidence to support its efficacy and that any effect is just a placebo because it can’t work according to laws of physics and chemistry. However, when considering all of the facts, there is sufficient evidence to conclude that homeopathy does have biological effects in-vitro and in-vivo and can be a viable therapeutic modality. The question is not whether or not there is evidence, this would be an all-or-none scheme, and as such, a false proposition; the issue is what type of evidence there is and its quality; it is not about whether or not there is an ideal set of evidence, but whether there is any evidence at all; there is, as well shall review.
Phosphoproteomics-Based Modeling Defines the Regulatory Mechanism Underlying Aberrant EGFR Signaling

Background Mutation of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) results in a discordant cell signaling, leading to the development of various diseases. However, the mechanism underlying the alteration of downstream signaling due to such mutation has not yet been completely understood at the system level. Here, we report a phosphoproteomics-based methodology for characterizing the regulatory mechanism underlying aberrant EGFR signaling using computational network modeling. Methodology/Principal Findings Our phosphoproteomic analysis of the mutation at tyrosine 992 (Y992), one of the multifunctional docking sites of EGFR, revealed network-wide effects of the mutation on EGF signaling in a time-resolved manner. Computational modeling based on the temporal activation profiles enabled us to not only rediscover already-known protein interactions with Y992 and internalization property of mutated EGFR but also further gain model-driven insights into the effect of cellular content and the regulation of EGFR degradation. Our kinetic model also suggested critical reactions facilitating the reconstruction of the diverse effects of the mutation on phosphoproteome dynamics. Conclusions/Significance Our integrative approach provided a mechanistic description of the disorders of mutated EGFR signaling networks, which could facilitate the development of a systematic strategy toward controlling disease-related cell signaling.
To Your Heart's Content: A Model of Affective Diversity in Top Management Teams

In this study we develop a model of how diversity in positive affect (PA) among group members influences individual attitudes, group processes, and group performance. We test the model on a sample of 62 U.S. top management teams. Greater affective fit between a team member and his or her group is related to more positive attitudes about group relations and perceptions of greater influence within the group. Results also suggest there is a negative relationship between a team's diversity in trait positive affect and both the chief executive officers' use of participatory decision making and financial performance. Exploratory analyses reveal that affectively diverse, low mean trait PA groups experienced the greatest task and emotional conflict and the least cooperation. Analyses of diversity in trait negative affect produced no significant results. We discuss the implications of our study for the group emotion, team composition, group performance, and top management team literatures.
Human liver mitochondrial cytochrome P450 2D6 – individual variations and implications in drug metabolism

Constitutively expressed human cytochrome P450 2D6 (CYP2D6; EC 1.14.14.1) is responsible for the metabolism of approximately 25% of drugs in common clinical use. It is widely accepted that CYP2D6 is localized in the endoplasmic reticulum of cells; however, we have identified this enzyme in the mitochondria of human liver samples and found that extensive inter‐individual variability exists with respect to the level of the mitochondrial enzyme. Metabolic assays using 7‐methoxy‐4‐aminomethylcoumarin as a substrate show that the human liver mitochondrial enzyme is capable of oxidizing this substrate and that the catalytic activity is supported by mitochondrial electron transfer proteins. In the present study, we show that CYP2D6 contains an N‐terminal chimeric signal that mediates its bimodal targeting to the endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria. In vitro mitochondrial import studies using both N‐terminal deletions and point mutations suggest that the mitochondrial targeting signal is localized between residues 23–33 and that the positively‐charged residues at positions 24, 25, 26, 28 and 32 are required for mitochondrial targeting. The importance of the positively‐charged residues was confirmed by transient transfection of a CYP2D6 mitochondrial targeting signal mutant in COS‐7 cells. Both the mitochondria and the microsomes from a CYP2D6 stable expression cell line contain the enzyme and both fractions exhibit bufuralol 1′‐hydroxylation activity, which is completely inhibited by CYP2D6 inhibitory antibody. Overall, these results suggest that the targeting of CYP2D6 to mitochondria could be an important physiological process that has significance in xenobiotic metabolism.
EFL learners' beliefs about native and non-native English-speaking teachers: perceived strengths, weaknesses, and preferences

Although the number of native English-speaking teachers (NESTs) in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) contexts has increased in recent years with the emergence of English as an international language, only a few studies on NESTs and non-NESTs have extensively and directly examined students' beliefs about these two groups of teachers. To fill this gap, a questionnaire was administered to 125 Korean EFL university students. Findings indicated that Korean students perceived NESTs and Korean English teachers (KETs) as having both strengths and weaknesses and did not uniformly favour one teacher type over the other. Students held differentiated beliefs about the characteristics, specific areas of instructional competence, teaching effectiveness at different learning stages and classroom performance of NESTs and non-NESTs. NESTs were judged more effective in their linguistic competence and status as native speakers. KETs were judged more effective in helping students with psychological aspects of language learning and in having sensitivity to students' needs coming from their shared L1 and experience as language learners. The issue of NESTs' possessing basic knowledge of students' L1 and the possible recent growth in KETs' linguistic abilities and professional development complicate the situation. These findings suggest that students can benefit from being taught by both types of teachers.
Strategic Planning in Schools: An oxymoron?

This paper argues that traditional approaches to school planning no longer serve the needs of schools. In particular, it puts forward the view that strategy, as applied to school planning, is only of partial use. It argues that there should be a new way forward for schools seeking to meet the challenge of effective leadership and management in the new millennium. This would utilise the concept of 'strategic intent' encapsulated in a new model which replaces the limited 'school development planning' framework.
Design of Network Coding Schemes and RF Energy Transfer in Wireless Communication Networks

This thesis focuses on the design of network coding schemes and radio frequency (RF) energy transfer in wireless communication networks. Novel network coding designs are considered in the first part and then RF energy transfer/harvesting based schemes are investigated in the second part. During the past few years, network coding has attracted significant attention because of its capability to transmit maximum possible information in a network from multiple sources to multiple destinations via a relay. Normally, the destinations are only able to decode the information with sufficient prior knowledge. To enable the destinations to decode the information in the cases with less/no prior knowledge, a novel idea on multiple interpretations by using nested codes is adopted in this thesis. To begin with, I construct a pattern of nested codes with multiple interpretations using binary convolutional codes in a multi-source multi-destination wireless relay network. Additionally, an opportunistic scheduling technique is employed at the relay to maximise the system capacity. The detailed coding process of the proposed scheme is presented. The upper bounds on bit error probability of the schemes with and without opportunistic scheduling are derived. Good codes for the proposed system are then investigated and simulations are carried out to validate the theoretical analysis. To improve the spectrum efficiency of network coding schemes, the design of nested codes could be considered in a high-dimensional coding field. Lattice codes, which are defined in Euclidean space, have been widely adopted to enable simultaneous transmissions from multiple sources to multiple relays with multi-user interference. In this context, I reconstruct nested codes with convolutional codes and lattice codes in multi-way relay channels. In particular, a class of novel nested convolutional lattice codes (NCLC) is proposed over a finite field, which can achieve multiple interpretations for each source in two time slots. A theoretical upper bound on word error rate for the NCLC is derived and, on that basis, code design criteria are developed.
Corporal Punishment in Cross-Cultural Perspective: Directions for a Research Agenda

This article discusses major issues in corporal punishment research and identifies directions for improvement of current knowledge about this disciplinary practice. Conceptual and methodological problems in existing corporal punishment research are discussed. The authors also highlight research challenges that lie ahead. These include the need for (a) an explicit and consistently used definition of physical punishment, (b) the development of an assessment procedure that includes the full range of variables important in understanding corporal punishment and its effects, (c) the evaluation of children’s own perception of punishment, (d) the assessment of third variables, and (e) the evaluation of nonlinear relations between corporal punishment and child outcomes. The authors present parental acceptance-rejection theory’s (PARTheory’s) research agenda that attempts to address all these issues.
Centrality of Visual Product Aesthetics, Tactile and Uniqueness Needs of Fashion Consumers

The purposes of this study were to determine whether fashion consumer groups (fashion followers, fashion innovators, fashion opinion leaders and innovative communicators) differ in centrality of visual product aesthetics, consumers&apos' need for uniqueness and need for touch, and to examine possible correlations among these variables. Fashion design and merchandizing students completed the following scales: Need for Touch, Consumers&apos' Need for Uniqueness, Centrality of Visual Product Aesthetics, Measure of Fashion Innovativeness and Opinion Leadership plus demographic information. Innovative communicators had a greater need for uniqueness than followers and opinion leaders, but not than innovators. Fashion followers scored lower on Centrality of Visual Product Aesthetics than did innovative communicators, innovators and opinion leaders. There was no difference in Need for Touch among fashion consumer groups. Scores on Need for Touch were positively correlated with scores on Centrality of Visual Product Aesthetics and Consumers&apos' Need for Uniqueness. Scores on Centrality of Visual Product Aesthetics were positively correlated with scores on Consumers&apos' Need for Uniqueness. Scores on Fashion Innovativeness and Opinion Leadership were positively correlated with scores on Centrality of Visual Product Aesthetics and Consumers&apos' Need for Uniqueness. Scores on Fashion Innovativeness and Opinion Leadership were not significantly correlated with those on Need for Touch. Fashion consumer groups did differ in centrality of visual product aesthetics and need for uniqueness, but not in need for touch.
Polynomial phase signal processing via warped high-order ambiguity function

The high-order ambiguity function (HAF) was introduced for the estimation of polynomial-phase signals (PPS). Currently the HAF suffers from noise-masking effects and from the appearance of undesired cross terms in the presence of multi-components PPS. The multi-lag product HAF (PHAF) concept was then proposed as a way to improve the performances of the HAF. Nevertheless, the “optimal” choice of lag sets implies many tries, undesirable in an automatically signal processing context. On the other hand, multiplying many mlHAFs might lead to abnormal results. In this paper we propose a warped-based algorithm in order to accurately estimate the coefficients of the polynomial phase. We compute the HAF for different lag values. Knowing the variation law of the frequency with respect to these values, we can construct a warping function leading to a linear dependence between the HAF maxima coordinates and the lag set.
Cervical Vestibular-Evoked Myogenic Potentials: Norms and Protocols

Vestibular-evoked myogenic potential (VEMP) testing is a vestibular function test used for evaluating saccular and inferior vestibular nerve function. Parameters of VEMP testing include VEMP threshold, latencies of p1 and n1, and p1-n1 interamplitude. Less commonly used parameters were p1-n1 interlatency, interaural difference of p1 and n1 latency, and interaural amplitude difference (IAD) ratio. This paper recommends using air-conducted 500 Hz tone burst auditory stimulation presented monoaurally via an inserted ear phone while the subject is turning his head to the contralateral side in the sitting position and recording the responses from the ipsilateral sternocleidomastoid muscle. Normative values of VEMP responses in 50 normal audiovestibular volunteers were presented. VEMP testing protocols and normative values in other literature were reviewed and compared. The study is beneficial to clinicians as a reference guide to set up VEMP testing and interpretation of the VEMP responses.
Expressions of Gender: an Analysis of Pupils' Gendered Discourse Styles in Small Group Classroom Discussions

This article presents data collected from small discussion groups in English classrooms. The research contributes to debates about boys' relative under-achievement in comparison with that of girls, examining the processes of pupils' learning through talk-related activities. Using discourse analysis techniques, the ways in which pupils signal gender allegiances are explored. It is shown how the girls tended to use a linguistic style in which their engagement with the topic was congruent with their relationship with each other, thus enhancing a co-operative climate for learning. Boys' discourse styles tended to be more dislocated; the discourse of learning conflicted with expressions of heterosexual masculinity. Aspects of the boys' discussions constructed definitions of gender which were obstructive to learning, in a manner likely to impact upon examination results, but more importantly sustaining gendered inequity.
No Association Between Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and the 5-HT1Dβ Receptor Gene

OBJECTIVE: Serotonin abnormalities may be involved in the etiopathogenesis of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The silent G-to-C substitution at nucleotide 861 of the coding region of the 5-HT1Dβ receptor gene may be associated with liability to OCD. The aim of this study was to investigate this association in an Italian OCD study group. METHOD: Genotyping for 5-HT1Dβ was performed for 79 nuclear families of probands with OCD. The transmission/disequilibrium test was used to determine transmission of the alleles from parents to offspring. RESULTS: Of the 79 families, 48 were informative for the analysis, i.e., both parents were genotyped for 5-HT1Dβ, and at least one parent was heterozygous. No preferential transmission of either allele of the 5-HT1Dβ gene was observed. CONCLUSIONS: These data do not support a role for the 5-HT1Dβ receptor gene in conferring susceptibility to OCD.