Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A study to assess the role of educational intervention in improving the delivery of routine immunization services.

Background: Immunization has been regarded as the most cost-effective intervention for child health promotion. Even after improvements the developing countries are still struggling with low coverage rates immunization failure high rates of adverse events following immunization (AEFI) etc. The present study was conducted to assess the role of educational intervention in improving immunization delivery services. Methodology: It was a pre-post intervention observational study carried out in immunization clinics of two tertiary care hospitals. The data from pre and post educational intervention assessment was compared and analyzed using SPSS 10.0. Results: At both clinics there was 40% and 45% increase in cleaning of the spoon used for administration of vitamin A. Post-intervention there was 40% increase in use of hub cutter at both the centres. After intervention there was 30% and 35% increase in the delivery of four key messages by staff nurse. Conclusion: Unlike Doctors the health staff is not motivated for regular touch with the theory part of their work field and continued knowledge up-gradation. This strategy of periodic re-orientation of the topic in the form of educational intervention may help in improving service delivery to the beneficiaries. Further research is required in this aspect.
An indirect approach to types of speech acts

Consideration of the similarity between direct and indirect speech act understanding give rise to the notion that taxonomies of speech acts may not be helpful in modelling language understanding.A computer model which treats representations of direct and indirect speech acts similarly and succesfully has been implemented without any such taxonomy and without an explicit representation of the difference between direct and indirect speech acts.
Does Innovation Capability Really Matter for the Profitability of SMEs

The study examines the relationship between innovation capability and firm profitability. The study has been executed by conducting a web-based survey in Finnish small-sized and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Previous research has studied the effect of innovativeness on performance. This study went thus a one step further by providing a comprehensive description of the effects of the determinants of innovation capability on profitability of SMEs. According to the results, there is only a minor effect of the determinants of innovation capability on firm profitability. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Analysis, prediction and privacy-aware design of social media and online search

The evolution of the Web into a collaborative and social platform where identities, resources, and services are sewn together by networks of people have revolutionized the way to communicate and search through the Internet. Information and ideas are increasingly originated by the “long tail” of Web users and are capillary spread through the online connections of the new-generation social media. Understanding and modeling the dynamics of information flows and of interpersonal interactions in online social media has become increasingly necessary to retrieve the relevant data from such information-overloaded environments and to offer effective search and personalization services. On the other hand, in a scenario where the quality of services increases with the amount of data provided by the users, serious privacy issues arise about the management, the use, and the diffusion of personal user data on the Web. In this work we explore the orthogonal axes of services and privacy in social media and in search engines. Relying on data mining and complex systems analysis techniques we investigate the evolutionary dynamics of social and search systems with a focus on similarity patterns between users, correlations between activity indicators, homophily and social influence. Empirical findings from data-driven analysis allowed us to develop accurate prediction and recommendation techniques. In particular, we propose and discuss several flavors of link recommendation algorithms for social networks and we put the basis for the prediction of future user activity in conventional search engines. A new scheme of social search engine is also proposed to tackle the information overload in search from a collaborative perspective. Besides, we explore the dimension of privacy by surveying the hazards of personal data exploitation and leakage and proposing an architecture to support privacy-aware social networks and applications. We rely on a decentralized paradigm that effectively tackles privacy issues with strong network-level security devices and flexible access control mechanisms. Furthermore, we show that typical applications widely used in centralized social systems and search engines can be efficiently implemented and maintained on our decentralized platform.
Simulation-based econometric methods

This book introduces a new generation of statistical econometrics. After linear models leading to analytical expressions for estimators, and non-linear models using numerical optimization algorithms, the availability of high- speed computing has enabled econometricians to consider econometric models without simple analytical expressions. The previous difficulties presented by the presence of integrals of large dimensions in the probability density functions or in the moments can be circumvented by a simulation-based approach. After a brief survey of classical parametric and semi-parametric non-linear estimation methods and a description of problems in which criterion functions contain integrals, the authors present a general form of the model where it is possible to simulate the observations. They then move to calibration problems and the simulated analogue of the method of moments, before considering simulated versions of maximum likelihood, pseudo-maximum likelihood, or non-linear least squares. The general principle of indirect inference is presented and is then applied to limited dependent variable models and to financial series.
Performance analysis of interference between UWB and SS signals

Much attention has been paid to a new form of spread spectrum technique called ultra wideband (UWB) impulse radio system for future high speed wireless communication services. In this paper, we derive some expressions which quantify UWB interference to SS signal and vice-versa. This theoretical analysis is then compared with computer simulations.
Detection of human bocavirus in ill and healthy Spanish children. A 2-year study

Background: HBoV, a recently discovered parvovirus, is present in a substantial proportion of respiratory tract diseases of suspected infectious origin. The relative importance of HBoV in viral respiratory tract illnesses is still not well known. Objective: This study looked for HBoV in pediatric patients and asymptomatic children, to determine the prevalence of HBoV compared with common respiratory viruses and to describe the clinical course associated with HBoV infections in children. Methods: A prospective study was conducted on the clinical characteristics of children less than 14 years old admitted for respiratory infection between September 2004 and December 2006 at the Pediatrics Department of the Severo Ochoa Hospital in Madrid (Spain). The incidence of HBoV and other fifteen respiratory viruses was tested in nasopharyngeal aspirates of these patients and in asymptomatic children. Results: At least one respiratory virus was detected in 587 (64.4%) of the 908 studied patients. HBoV was found in 153 (16.8%) samples and was the most common virus after RSV. Infections with HBoV were found year-round, although most occurred in the winter months. 50% of patients with HBoV infection were aged „T 14.3 months. The more common diagnoses were recurrent wheezing (51%) and bronchiolitis (30.5%). Fifty-five percent of patients required oxygen therapy and 70% presented high fever. Other manifestations of HBoV-associated disease outside the respiratory tract could be observed such as petechial skin rash, thrombopenia, and clinical sepsis. In 99 (65%) of the HBoV positive children, coinfections with other respiratory viruses were present. No significant differences were found between single and dual or multiple infections. HBoV was detected in 5% of asymptomatic children. Conclusions: HBoV was the second most prevalent virus after RSV in children hospitalized for respiratory infection, and was associated with recurrent wheezing and bronchiolitis as well as extrapulmonary manifestations. Co-infections were frequent and clinically similar to single infections.
Multiple Scattering of Light by Particles

This volume provides a thorough and up-to-date treatment of multiple scattering of light and other electromagnetic radiation in media composed of randomly and sparsely positioned particles. For the first time in monographic literature, the radiative transfer theory (RTT) is systematically and consistently presented as a branch of classical macrosopic electromagnetics. The book traces the fundamental link between the RTT and the effect of coherent backscattering (CB) and explains their place in the context of a comprehensive hierarchy of electromagnetic scattering problems. Dedicated sections present a thorough discussion of the physical meaning and range of applicability of the radiative transfer equation (RTE) and compare the self-consistent microphysical and the traditional phenomenological approaches to radiative transfer. The work describes advanced techniques for solving the RTE and gives examples of physically based applications of the RTT and CB in noninvasive particle characterization and remote sensing. This thorough and self-contained book will be valuable for science professionals, engineers, and graduate students working in a wide range of disciplines including optics, electromagnetics, remote sensing, atmospheric radiation, astrophysics, and biomedicine.
Effectiveness of Sustained G Simulation in Loss of Control and Upset Recovery Training

This study is part of a larger body of research aimed at understanding man-machine interaction in aviation, and its influence on aviation safety. In part one of this study a group of pilots experienced flight upset profiles in the GYROLAB GL-2000 centrifuge-based simulator and evaluated the simulator to determine if sustained motion simulation is of sufficient fidelity to improve pilot-reaction to unplanned, simulated, aircraft upsets. In part two of this study pilots were monitored with a variety of physiological sensors to determine if there are identifiable psychological and physiological responses that occur in pilots when their exposure to an unplanned upset results in a mishap.
A money problem: A source of insight into problem solving action

This paper describes a study that investigated the metacognitive self-monitoring strategies used by senior secondary school students while working individually on a mathematics problem. After attempting the problem the students completed a questionnaire that asked them to report retrospectively on the metacognitive strategies they had used. Examination of the students’ written work and questionnaire responses revealed some instances of successful self-monitoring, but also occasions when monitoring was either inadequate or appeared to be lacking altogether. Identifying the characteristic types of metacognitive failures for each kind of solution strategy highlighted the distinction between two key elements of effective monitoring: being able to recognise errors and other obstacles to progress, and being able to correct or overcome them.
The BSS - A Valid Clinical Instrument to Measure the Severity of Acute Bronchitis

Introduction: Several validated clinical psychometric procedures have been developed for the severity measurement of chronic lung diseases such as COPD. In contrast, no validated tool for acute bronchitis was available. A valuable tool might be the "Bronchitis Severity Scale" BSS, a short standardized observer assessment-scale. But does it fulfil psychometric criteria of validity? Patients and methods: The relevance of the score items of BSS has been evaluated, and the data of 2,033 patients (1-92 years old; 39% males) with acute bronchitis out of eight longitudinal studies have been analysed. Results: A high content validity was found. Factor analyses indicate that the construct of one single factor of severity is justifiable. The construct validity increases about 68.5% when a second independent factor is adopted. The contents are centred on "cough" and "sputum", the main symptoms and complaints in acute bronchitis. Substantial correlations between BSS scores and patient's self-assessment as well as reduced everyday activities, emotions, and health support the concurrent validity. Evidences of predictive validity are given in 16 publications.
PAPER Special Issue on Multiple Access and Signal Transmission Techniques for Future Mobile Communications Soft Reservation Multiple Access with Priority Assignment (SRMA/PA): A Distributed MAC Protocol for QoS-Guaranteed Integrated Services in Mobile Ad-Hoc Networks

SUMMARY A new distributed medium access control (MAC) protocol—Soft Reservation Multiple Access with PriorityAssignment (SRMA/PA) protocol—is introduced for supporting the integrated services of real-time and non-real-time applications in mobile ad-hoc networks. The SRMA/PA protocol allows the distributed nodes to contend for and reserve time slots with RTS/CTS-like “collision-avoidance” handshake and “soft reservation” mechanism augmented with distributed and dynamic access priority control. The SRMA/PA protocol realizes distributed scheduling for guaranteeing QoS requirements of integrated services and maximizes statistical multiplexing gain. We have demonstrated bysimulation studies that the multiplexing gain can be improved significantlywithout undulycompromising on system complexity. Moreover, we have shown that the proposed back-off mechanism designed for delay-constrained services is useful for further improving utilization of the channel.
Medial Rectus Muscle Incarceration in Pediatric Medial Orbital Wall Trapdoor Fractures

Purpose We describe two cases of orbital trapdoor fractures with medial rectus muscle incarceration. Methods Small interventional case series. Results This is a retrospective university based report of two healthy males (11 and 14 years old) who developed diplopia following blunt orbital trauma. Both patients had decreased horizontal ocular motility of the involved eye with minimal additional evidence of trauma. Computed tomography (CT) demonstrated no significant bony displacement; however, the left medial rectus muscle was located within the ethmoid sinus in the first and had an abnormal size and shape in the second case. In both cases, during urgent surgical repair, the incarcerated medial rectus muscle was gently released from linear non-displaced medial wall fractures and ocular motility normalized postoperatively. Conclusions In pediatric patients sustaining blunt orbital trauma, medial rectus incarceration should be considered and managed accordingly.
Extending the Mental Number Line A Review of Multi-Digit Number Processing

Multi-digit number processing is ubiquitous in our everyday life - even in school, multi-digit numbers are computed from the first year onward. Yet, many problems children and adults have are about the relation of different digits (for instance with fractions, decimals, or carry effects in multi-digit addition). Cognitive research has mainly focused on single-digit processing, and there is no comprehensive review of the different multi-digit number processing types and effects. The current review aims to fill this gap. First, we argue that effects observed in single- digit tasks cannot simply be transferred to multi-digit processing. Next, we list 16 effect types and processes which are specific for multi-digit number processing. We then discuss the development of multi-digit number processing, its neurocognitive correlates, its cultural or language- related modulation, and finally some models for multi-digit number processing. We finish with conclusions and perspectives about where multi- digit number processing research may or should be heading in following years.
Acquiring vocabulary through reading: A replication of the Golden Fleece study

A number of studies on incidental vocabulary acquisition through reading have shown that learners can acquire vocabulary while reading for meaning. This paper presents the results of a replication study carried out with secondary school students in Macedonia, who read the authentic text The Golden Fleece. The study used a pretest-posttest design in order to find out how much vocabulary the participants can learn from reading the story. They were tested on 30 words which appeared with different frequency in the text. The pretest results showed that on average the participants knew the meaning of 18 of the 30 target words. The average number of learned words was 3.02 or 25.16%. The vocabulary size did not play any role in the rate of learning the meaning of the unknown words. There was a moderate correlation between the relative gain scores and the frequency of the words in the text.
Simulation of a Wing-Body Junction Experiment Using the Fluent Code

Abstract : Numerical simulations are performed using the Fluent Computational Fluid Dynamics code and the various turbulence models to simulate the horseshoe vortex formed in a typical wing-junction turbulent flow experiment. Simulations were conducted using the renormalizable k-epsilon model, the Reynolds Stress Model, the V2F model, the Spalart-Allmaras model and the k-omega model. The calculate results were compared with experimental results obtained from an extensive database available on the internet. The realizable k-epsilon model was noticeably less accurate than all other models in simulating the mean velocity components, while the remaining models all displayed similar levels of accuracy. None of the models were able to accurately simulate the correct behaviour of the mean kinetic energy as a function of position. The V2F model however came closest to predicting the correct behaviour, and offers the best combination of computational accuracy, computational efficiency, and ease of use.
Exploring the role that language plays in solving mathematical word problems for the Solomon Islands secondary school students

ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iii TABLE OF CONTENTS vi LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES xi CHAPTER 0NE: INTRODUCTION 1 1.0 Setting the scene 1 1.1 Rationale 1 1.2 Interest in language and mathematical word problems 2 1.3 The research questions 3 1.4 Significance of the study 4 1.5 The context of study 4 1.5. 1 The geographical and physical features 4 1.5. 2 The education system 5 1.5. 3 The secondary education system 6 1.6 The organisation of the thesis 7 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 8 2.0 Introduction 8 2.1 The language of Mathematics 9 2.2 The role of language in mathematics learning 10 2.3 Features of mathematical register 11 2.3. 1 Mathematics register 11 2.3. 2 Levels of technicality in mathematics vocabulary 12 2.3. 3 Mathematical symbols 14 2.3. 4 Mathematical syntax 15 2.4 Challenges in mathematical vocabulary 16
Quality of Trilateration: Confidence Based Iterative Localization

The proliferation of wireless and mobile devices has fostered the demand of context aware applications. Location is one of the most significant contexts. Multilateration, as a basic building block of localization, however, have not yet overcome the challenges of (1) poor ranging measurement; (2) dynamic and noisy environments; (3) fluctuations in wireless communications. Hence, they often suffer poor accuracy and can hardly be employed in practical applications. In this study, we propose quality of trilateration (QoT) that quantifies the geometric relationship of objects and the ranging noise. Based on QoT, we design a confidence based iterative localization scheme, in which nodes dynamically select trilaterations with the highest quality for localization. To validate this design, a wireless sensor network prototype is deployed and results show that QoT well represents trilateration accuracy, and the proposed scheme significantly improve localization performances.
Acoustics of Apulian-Romanesque Churches: Correlations between Architectural and Acoustic Parameters

This paper concludes the analysis of the results of an acoustic survey carried out on nine Romanesque churches in Apulia (Southern Italy), described in detail in a previous paper. The study was performed taking into account both room-average values and individual position values of monaural and binaural acoustic parameters, measured according to ISO 3382. First the effect of architectural parameters on reverberation time was investigated, showing that volume and materials play an important role. Then room-average values of the other acoustic parameters were investigated, showing that some are mostly correlated with reverberation time and others with total acoustic absorption. Analysis of individual location values showed that monaural parameters can be expressed as functions of the source-receiver distance, and one or two of the following parameters: room volume, total absorbing area, mean absorption coefficient, total length and reverberation time. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that individual position values of acoustic parameters describing clarity, are significantly correlated to each other.
Enhancing student learning using multimedia and web technologies: Students’ perceptions of an authentic learning experience in a Malaysian classroom

There is still a lack of confidence in the effectiveness of online education as education materials are being developed without proper consideration as to their design and content representation (Chung, 2008). Adding to that, we are now in a world where the ability to identify and solve real-world complex problems has become a career transcending skill (Levy & Murnane, 2005) hence creating the need for incorporating authentic learning principles into learning content as it creates an environment that allows students to gain crucial real-world skills (Lombardi, 2007). Therefore this paper reports a study conducted to assess the impact of incorporating authentic learning principles (Herrington & Kervin, 2007) into a web-based multimedia learning module, and embedding it within a student-centred learning environment, on the student learning process. Students were presented with a multimedia-mediated web-based learning module, developed within the curriculum of the class, and their feedback was solicited. Results showed that students were very positive towards the incorporation of interactive authentic activities and found the authentic learning environment to be very relevant to their learning and became more engaged and actively involved in their learning process. These results show strong and encouraging support for the development of multimedia web-based modules that are grounded in authentic learning and sound design principles, and an innovative teaching and learning strategy in a technology-backed class.