Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Multi‐level Assessment of Scientific Content Knowledge Gains Associated with Socioscientific Issues‐based Instruction

This study explored the impact of using a socioscientific issue (SSI) based curriculum on developing science content knowledge. Using a multi‐level assessment design, student content knowledge gains were measured before and after implementation of a three‐week unit on global warming (a prominent SSI) that explored both the relevant science content and the controversy surrounding global warming. Measures of student content knowledge were made using a standards‐aligned content knowledge exam (distal assessment) and a curriculum‐aligned exam (proximal assessment). Data were collected from 108 students enrolled from two schools. Quantitative analysis of the distal assessment indicated that student post‐test scores were statistically significantly different than their pre‐test scores (F = 15.31, p<0.001). Qualitative analyses of student responses from the proximal assessment indicated that students, on average, expressed more accurate, more detailed, and more sophisticated understandings of global warming, the greenhouse effect, and the controversy and challenges associated with these issues following the three‐week unit. Combined results from the proximal and distal assessments explored in this study offer important evidence in supporting the efficacy of using SSI as contexts for science education. In addition to a discussion of the components of an SSI‐based curriculum, this study provides support for the use of SSI as a context for learning science content.
The Measurement of Dependence by Questionnaire

This paper is presented in three parts. Part I considers the construct of dependence, its composition, and its relationship to depression and to dependent personality disorder. The implications of its interpersonal nature and its social undesirability are discussed. Part II is a selective review of questionnaires that have been used to measure it. The lack of consistency in identified subscales is noted. In Part III, the need to distinguish between dependence as a life-style and as an emotional response to others, and between normal and pathological dependence is emphasized. Pathological dependence is considered to be an expression of insecurity and lack of trust. The measurement of dependence in relation to other interpersonal attributes is recommended.
EFL Learners' Use of ICT for Self-Regulated Learning

Problem Statement: The notions of autonomy and independence possess an increasingly important role in language pedagogy by raising issues such as learners’ responsibility for their own learning, and their right to determine the direction of their own learning, the skills which can be learned and applied in self-directed learning and capacity for independent learning and the extents to which this can be suppressed by institutional education. Purpose of Study: This study attempted to enrich our understanding of language learners’ self-initiated use of information and communication technologies (ICT) from the language learning perspective. Methods: The participants were 399 language learners who were attending the intensive English language preparatory program at the Eastern Mediterranean University, North Cyprus. The study was based on a survey which consisted of demographic and language learning backgrounds of the participants, and likert-scale questions on participants’ self-initiated use of ICT for language learning. The data collected were validated through factor analyses. Beside descriptive analyses, chi-square and t-test were also used to reveal the associations between demographic variables and different dimensions of ICT use in selfregulated language learning. Findings and Results: An obvious finding to emerge from this study is that there are no statistically significant differences regarding the male and female participants’ use of ICT for self-regulated learning, and between language levels of the learners. Considering the responses, the learners mostly use ICT to practice listening, vocabulary and writing skills. Conclusions and Recommendations: The overall outcome of the study points to the need for learner training, teacher support and guidance for an effective use of ICT for self regulation of language learning.
Integrating Language and Content Teaching through Collaborative Tasks

In French immersion programs, it is important to integrate the teaching of language and content. One way in which this can be accomplished is through the use of tasks which, using content-relevant material, encourage students to focus on language form. In this paper, tasks which engage students in collaborative writing and therefore in talking about content and the language needed to express that content, are presented. I present examples of collaborative dialogues between students to show how such tasks provide opportunities for second language learning because, among other things, students may externalize their (sometimes partial) knowledge, allowing them to reflect on it, revise it, and apply it.
Dissociations in numerical abilities revealed by progressive cognitive decline in a patient with semantic dementia

This study describes a 3-year follow-up investigation of the deterioration of number abilities in a semantic dementia patient (IH). A few studies have previously reported the decline of number knowledge in patients with degenerative disorders, although almost never in semantic dementia (Diesfeldt, 1993; Girelli, Luzzatti, Annoni, & Vecchi, 1999; Grafman, Kempen, Rosenberg, Salazar, & Boller, 1989). These studies described the change of the patients’ performance mainly in terms of increased errors in number tasks. On the other hand, dissociations between different types of number abilities, or different arithmetical operations, have been reported in patients with focal lesions. In the present investigation, the cognitive basis of number processing was revealed throughout the patient's cognitive decline. Two major results emerged from a longitudinal study: First, the patient's conceptual knowledge of arithmetic was well preserved despite severe impairment of nonarithmetic conceptual knowledge. Second, the patient's progressive decline revealed patterns of dissociations between different number abilities. These were between (1) multiplication and other arithmetical operations, which particularly emerged in the use of algorithms; (2) impaired knowledge of number facts and procedures on one hand, and conceptual knowledge of arithmetic on the other; and (3) different types of transcoding skills. The implications of these dissociations for the cognitive architecture of number processing are discussed.
The Largest Connected in a Random Mapping

A random mapping (T; q) of a finite set V = {1, 2,…,n} into itself assigns independently to each i ϵ V its unique image j = TT(i)E V with probability q for i = j and with probability for j ≠ i. The purpose of the article is to determine the asymptotic behaviour of the size of the largest connected component of the random digraph GT(q) representing thes mapping as n–x, regarding all possible values of the parameter q = q(n). © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Structural Stability of the Square Flux Line Lattice in YNI 2 B 2 C and LuNi 2 B 2 C Studied with Small Angle Neutron Scattering

We have studied the flux line lattice in ${\mathrm{YNi}}_{2}{\mathrm{B}}_{2}\mathrm{C}$ and ${\mathrm{LuNi}}_{2}{\mathrm{B}}_{2}\mathrm{C}$, the nonmagnetic end members of the borocarbide superconductors using small angle neutron scattering and transport. For fields, $\mathbf{H}\ensuremath{\parallel}\mathbf{c}$, we find a square symmetric lattice which disorders rapidly above $H/{H}_{c2}\ensuremath{\sim}0.2$, well below the ``peak effect'' at $H/{H}_{c2}\phantom{\rule{0ex}{0ex}}=\phantom{\rule{0ex}{0ex}}0.9$. The results for $H/{H}_{c2}l0.2$ can be understood within the collective pinning model, and are controlled by the tilt modulus ${c}_{44}$. For $H/{H}_{c2}g0.2$, the disordering appears to be associated with the field dependence of the shear modulus, ${c}_{66}$.
A novel method for incorporating respiratory-matched attenuation correction in the motion correction of cardiac PET–CT studies

Mismatches between PET and CT datasets due to respiratory effects can lead to artefactual perfusion defects. To overcome this, we have proposed a method of aligning a single CT with each frame of a gated PET study in a semi-automatic manner, incorporating a statistical shape model of the diaphragm and a rigid registration of the heart. This ensures that the structures that could influence the appearance of the reconstructed cardiac activity are correctly matched between emission and transmission datasets. When tested on two patient studies, it was found in both cases that attenuation correction using the proposed technique resulted in PET images that were closer to the gold standard of attenuation correction with a gated CT, compared with scenarios where only heart matching was considered (and not the diaphragm) or where no transformation was performed (i.e. where a single CT frame was used to attenuation-correct all PET frames). These preliminary results suggest that diaphragm matching between PET and CT improves the quantitative accuracy of reconstructed PET images and that the proposed method of using a statistical shape model to describe the diaphragm shape and motion, in combination with a rigid registration to determine respiratory-induced heart motion, is a feasible method of achieving this.
Quality of life in patients with stable disease after surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy for malignant brain tumour

OBJECTIVES to evaluate quality of life in patients with malignant brain tumour with stable disease after combined treatments in comparison to patients with other chronic neurological conditions, and to explore the relation of quality of life to clinical, pathological, affective and cognitive factors. METHODS fifty seven patients who were stable after surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy and 24 controls with spastic paraparesis, peripheral neuropathies, myasthenia, ataxia, Parkinson’s disease, or multiple sclerosis, were studied. Patients were evaluated by functional living index-cancer, Karnofsky performance status, activity of daily living, self-rating depression scale, state-trait anxiety inventory, and tests for cognitive abilities. RESULTS separate Mann-Whitney test comparisons did not show any difference in measures of health related quality of life (functional living index-cancer), autonomy in daily life (activity of daily living), or mood between tumour and control patients, although the first had slower mental speed and worse attention. Seventy three per cent of patients with brain tumour and 58% of the control patients continued or resumed previous work activity. Quality of life was significantly associated with depression, state anxiety, and performance status in the patients with brain tumour, whereas in control patients, state anxiety was the only factor related to quality of life. CONCLUSIONS after intensive multimodality treatments, selected patients with brain tumour with stable disease may have satisfactory quality of life that may be not worse than in patients with other chronic neurological illnesses. During the period of stable disease, depressed mood, possibly a reaction to impaired physical and cognitive performance, seems to play a major role in determining quality of life.
Thiazolidinediones Reduce Pathological Neovascularization in Ischemic Retina Via an Adiponectin-Dependent Mechanism

Background—The insulin-sensitizing agents referred to as thiazolidinediones (TZDs) possess antiatherogenic and anti-inflammatory actions that contribute to protection against diabetic macrovascular complications. However, little is known about the effects of TZDs on retinal microvessel disorders. Objective—To investigate whether TZDs modulate retinal vessel formation in a mouse model of oxygen-induced retinopathy. Methods and Results—Neonatal mice were subjected to ischemia-induced retinopathy to produce pathological neovascular tuft formation. Pioglitazone, 10 mg/kg per day, rosiglitazone, 10 mg/kg per day, or vehicle was given by gavage once a day from postnatal day 7 to postnatal day 17. Systemic treatment of wild-type (WT) mice with TZDs led to a significant decrease in pathological retinal neovascularization during ischemia compared with vehicle treatment, which was accompanied by increased plasma levels of the fat-derived hormone adiponectin (APN). In contrast to WT mice, TZDs had no effects on ischemia-induced pathological retinal vessel formation in APN-knockout (KO) mice. Pioglitazone reduced tumor necrosis factor (TNF) &agr; expression in ischemic retina in WT mice but not in APN-KO mice. Furthermore, pioglitazone increased plasma APN levels in TNF-&agr;–KO mice but did not affect ischemia-induced pathological retinal neovascularization in this strain. Conclusion—These data show that TZDs attenuate pathological retinal microvessel formation through APN-mediated modulation of TNF-&agr; production.
Reminders as Interactive and Embodied Tools for Socially Distributed and Situated Remembering

Current approaches to socially distributed remembering maintain that remembering is a fluid action coordinating minds, bodies, and the physical and the social world to accomplish particular goals. That is, the act of remembering is always an active reconstruction of the past in the present. How this act of remembering unfolds is highly dynamic and malleable and is contingent on the means by which the recollection is communicated and the social and material environments in which these processes unfold. These communicative acts of remembering are always embodied, multimodal, and interactive. However, so far, little attention has been paid to the influence that the interplay of multiple behavioral channels have in collaborative remembering in small groups. The aim of this exploratory study is to demonstrate the central role that questions have as embodied and interactive tools for collaborative remembering in two small group multimodal interactions in natural settings. This study suggests that questions acting as a reminder in multimodal activities of collaborative remembering foster the formation of specific types of interactional sequences with their own temporal dynamics.
Victimization, Substance Use, and Sexual Aggression in Male Adolescent Sexual Offenders

Relations among childhood victimization, substance use prior to the commission of a sexual offense, and force used during a sexual offense were examined in a sample of residentially based, male juvenile sex offenders (n = 406; Mage = 16.6). Marshall and Marshall’s (2000) theory of sex offending proposes that childhood victimization, among other factors, creates a vulnerability to offend, which when paired with disinhibition (e.g., from substance use) may lead to sexual offending. Guided by this theory, we examined whether substance use prior to the commission of a sexual offense mediated the relation between trauma and force used in sexual offending. Six mediation analyses were used to examine subtypes of childhood victimization and the effects of cumulative victimization. Results provided support for partial mediation of substance use prior to a sexual offense on the effects of cumulative victimization on force used during a sexual offense. Theoretical and clinical implications are discussed.
The Custodial Single Father

Through the use of data derived from a survey study, personal interviews, testing, and clinical interaction, an attempt is made to assess the self-perceptions of single fathers relative to a number of dimensions. Single fathers' perceptions about the health of their family structure, their marital status, their personal and parenting capacities, their role performance effectiveness, and their sexual concerns are explored.
Colloid solutions for fluid resuscitation.

BACKGROUND Colloids are widely used in the replacement of fluid volume, however doubts remain as to their benefits. Different colloids vary in their molecular weight and therefore in the length of time they remain in the circulatory system. Because of this and their other characteristics, they may differ in their safety and efficacy. OBJECTIVES To compare the effects of different colloid solutions in patients thought to need volume replacement. SEARCH STRATEGY The Cochrane Injuries Group specialised register, The Cochrane Controlled trials register (all years), MEDLINE (1994-2000), EMBASE (1974-2000) were searched. Bibliographies of trials retrieved were searched, and drug companies manufacturing colloids were contacted for information. SELECTION CRITERIA Randomised and quasi randomised trials comparing colloid solutions in critically ill and surgical patients thought to need volume replacement. The main outcomes measured were death, amount of whole blood transfused and incidence of adverse reactions. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS Two authors independently extracted the data and assessed the quality of the trials. MAIN RESULTS 52 trials met the inclusion criteria, with a total of 3311 participants. Quality of allocation concealment was judged to be adequate in 17 trials and poor or uncertain in 35. Deaths were obtained from 31 trials. For albumin or PPF versus hydroxyethyl starch (HES) 20 trials (n=1029) reported mortality. The pooled relative risk (RR) was 1.17 (95% CI 0.91, 1.50). For albumin or PPF versus gelatin four trials (n=542) reported mortality. The RR was 0.99 (0.69, 1.42). For gelatin vs HES six trials (n=597) reported mortality, RR was 0.96 (0.69, 1.33). RR was not estimable in the albumin vs dextran, gelatin vs dextran, and HES vs dextran groups. Thirty-one trials recorded the amount of blood transfused, however quantitative analysis was not possible due to skewness and variable reporting. Fifteen trials recorded adverse reactions, but none occurred. REVIEWER'S CONCLUSIONS From this review, there is no evidence that one colloid solution is more effective or safe than any other, although the confidence intervals are wide and do not exclude clinically significant differences between colloids. Larger trials of fluid therapy are needed if clinically significant differences in mortality are to be detected or excluded.
Power and threat in intergroup conflict

We propose that in intergroup conflict threat content is important in understanding the reactions of those who experience threats the most: the powerless. Studies 1 and 2 show that powerless groups experience more threat than powerful groups, resulting in the experience of both more anger and fear. Threat content determines which emotions elicit behavior that adequately deals with the situation. When confronted with a physically threatening outgroup, fear elicits an avoidance reaction in powerless groups (Study 1). When valuable resources are threatened, anger makes powerless group members want to confront the outgroup, at least when they strongly identify with their group (Study 2). Study 3 replicates the finding that threat content determines which emotions are functional in directing behavior.
A Meta-Analytic Review of the Theories of Reasoned Action and Planned Behavior in Physical Activity: Predictive Validity and the Contribution of Additional Variables

The aim of the present study was to examine relations between behavior, intentions, attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, self-efficacy, and past behavior across studies using the Theories of Reasoned Action (TRA) and Planned Behavior (TPB) in a physical activity context. Meta-analytic techniques were used to correct the correlations between the TRA/TPB constructs for statistical artifacts across 72 studies, and path analyses were conducted to examine the pattern of relationships among the variables. Results demonstrated that the TRA and TPB both exhibited good fit with the corrected correlation matrices, but the TPB accounted for more variance in physical activity intentions and behavior. In addition, self-efficacy explained unique variance in intention, and the inclusion of past behavior in the model resulted in the attenuation of the intention-behavior, attitude-intention, self-efficacy-intention, and self-efficacy-behavior relationships. There was some evidence that the study rela.
Ca2+-induced movement of tropomyosin on native cardiac thin filaments revealed by cryoelectron microscopy

Significance Muscle contraction is required for critical physiological functions. It relies on the interaction of myosin motors with the thin filament (TF), which is regulated through a translocation of tropomyosin on the surface of F-actin by the troponin complex in response to Ca2+. The lack of high-resolution structure of the TF under relaxing (low-Ca2+) and activating (high-Ca2+) conditions impairs our understanding of the mechanism of cardiac muscle regulation. Here we report high-resolution structures of the native cardiac TF under relaxing and activating conditions. Our data lead to a model for cardiac TF regulation by Ca2+ levels that is an important step in understanding how the components of cardiac muscle work in concert to maintain healthy heart functions. Muscle contraction relies on the interaction of myosin motors with F-actin, which is regulated through a translocation of tropomyosin by the troponin complex in response to Ca2+. The current model of muscle regulation holds that at relaxing (low-Ca2+) conditions tropomyosin blocks myosin binding sites on F-actin, whereas at activating (high-Ca2+) conditions tropomyosin translocation only partially exposes myosin binding sites on F-actin so that binding of rigor myosin is required to fully activate the thin filament (TF). Here we used a single-particle approach to helical reconstruction of frozen hydrated native cardiac TFs under relaxing and activating conditions to reveal the azimuthal movement of the tropomyosin on the surface of the native cardiac TF upon Ca2+ activation. We demonstrate that at either relaxing or activating conditions tropomyosin is not constrained in one structural state, but rather is distributed between three structural positions on the surface of the TF. We show that two of these tropomyosin positions restrain actomyosin interactions, whereas in the third position, which is significantly enhanced at high Ca2+, tropomyosin does not block myosin binding sites on F-actin. Our data provide a structural framework for the enhanced activation of the cardiac TF over the skeletal TF by Ca2+ and lead to a mechanistic model for the regulation of the cardiac TF.
1 Culture-dependent and-independent methods reveal diverse methylotrophic communities in terrestrial environments

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