Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Exploring strategies for online teaching and learning

This paper explores various strategies for creating engaging online learning environments. It describes a framework which identifies and distinguishes between the critical elements needed in the design of online learning: the content of the course, the learning activities and the learning supports. It demonstrates through practical examples how each of these elements can be manipulated in deliberate ways to influence learning processes and outcomes. The paper supports the notion that online courses are best when they arc engineered to take advantage of the learning opportunities afforded by the online technologies, rather than being used as supplements to conventional teaching programs.
An Exploratory Study of Metadata Creation in a Health Care Agency

SUMMARY Traditional paper documents, as containers of information, remain a primary source of organizational knowledge, and function as vehicles of communication. Despite the increasing use of electronic mail and other digital technologies, the entrenchment of paper documents in the fabric of work practices demands that attention be paid to how they are managed for organizational effectiveness. The workplace is likened to an information-ecology where the study of personal classification schemes can be firmly positioned within an epistemological framework. Temporal, spatial, and contextual factors influenced the creation of three levels of personal metadata along a continuum of abstraction. Loss of intellectual content may occur equally as a result of both high and low levels of abstraction. Personal metadata were also found to reflect the participant's situational and domain specific knowledge.
Bilingual Education and the Language of News

This paper presents evidence that shows for the first time that news media influence was a significant factor in the decision to dismantle the Northern Territory's bilingual education policy in 2008. It identifies and discusses five media-related overlays that have affected public discussion and policymaking during the life of the policy. They include the media's role in informing public understanding of the policy; media representation of Indigenous peoples and issues; the relationship between policymaking and journalism in general; neo-liberal discourses about education, especially literacy; and the reporting practices of journalists who have covered the issue. It draws on relevant literature, the history of the policy and interviews conducted for the Australian News Media and Indigenous Policymaking 1988–2008 ARC Discovery Project to interpret some of the connections and disconnections between these overlays and bilingual education policy. This analysis suggests that the news media exerted a complex and uneven range of influences on the 2008 decision to dismantle Australia's first and most enduring policy of Indigenous self-determination.
Nanocellulose-based polymer hybrids and their emerging applications in biomedical engineering and water purification

Nanocellulose, derived from cellulose hydrolysis, has unique optical and mechanical properties, high surface area, and good biocompatibility. It is frequently used as a reinforcing agent to improve the native properties of materials. The presence of functional groups in its surface enables the alteration of its behavior and its use under different conditions. Nanocellulose is typically used in the form of cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs), cellulose nanofibers (CNFs), or bacterial nanocellulose (BNC). CNCs and CNFs have a high aspect ratio with typical lengths of ∼100–250 nm and 0.1–2 μm, respectively; BNC is nanostructured cellulose produced by bacteria. Nanohybrid materials are a combination of organic or inorganic nanomaterials with macromolecules forming a single composite and typically exhibit superior optical, thermal, and mechanical properties to those of native polymers, owing to the greater interactions between the macromolecule matrix and the nanomaterials. Excellent biocompatibility and biodegradability make nanocellulose an ideal material for applications in biomedicine. Unlike native polymers, nanocellulose-based nanohybrids exhibit a sustained drug release ability, which can be further optimized by changing the content or chemical environment of the nanocellulose, as well as the external stimuli, such as the pH and electric fields. In this review, we describe the process of extraction of nanocellulose from different natural sources; its effects on the structural, morphological, and mechanical properties of polymers; and its various applications.
What is the Perception of Computer-Based Business Simulation Games as a Tool for Learning?

Computer-based business simulation games are rather commonly used tools for learning in business courses in Sweden. However, not always expectations of teachers are achieved with respect to the simulation game as a learning tool. There are number of aspects that students are not satisfied with when it comes down to the use of simulation game and as a result, a gap between these parties evolves. Thus, we have tried to identify the benefits and drawbacks seen by teachers and students and derived critical success factors for achieving higher learning outcome from the use of simulation games.In order to do that, we have carried out 6 interviews with teachers across Sweden who have been using simulation games in their courses. Furthermore, student opinions were gathered through questionnaire and class observation.It was concluded that teachers see the simulation game as a very good tool for learning. Still, students are not fully satisfied, since they are expecting more feedback and support from teachers when they are using the game. Further-more, although the game is supposed to give a good reflection of reality, not always it was seen so by students. Thus, it is important to communicate and introduce the game properly in the course as well as have an assignment that en-courage learning and helps students to apply their theoretical knowledge in practice that would be closely linked to reality.
Variable Schwa Deletion in English: A Corpus Study

This study investigates schwa deletion in American English using the Buckeye Corpus. To determine the contributions of grammatical (e.g., sonority of onset clusters) and non-grammatical (e.g., lexical frequency) factors to schwa deletion, the distribution of schwa-deleted word forms is examined in terms of phonological, morphological, and lexical environments. As expected, schwa deletion occurred more frequently in post-stressed environments than in pre-stressed environments. Of all the factors, the most significant factor affecting deletion rates in the post-stressed environment was the sonority profile of onset clusters that arise after deletion: deletion rates are higher when the prospective consonant cluster forms a sonority rise (large rise and small rise) than when it forms a sonority fall. The results show that the Sonority Sequencing Principle alone cannot explain the observed patterns of variable schwa deletion. This paper suggests that schwa deletion rates are modulated by English speakers’ knowledge of the universal sonority preferences. The nature of this knowledge regardine sonority preferences will be further discussed.
Phase Extension Contours of a theory of the role of head movement in phrasal extraction

Abstract 1. The Program Starting out from the central ingredients of the analysis of the locality restrictions on Predicate Inversion presented in Den Dikken (2006a), in this paper I will lay the foundations for a theory of syntactic locality and the relationship between phrasal extraction and head movement that is predicated on the premises below: (1) Phase Impenetrability syntactic relationships (Agree) and processes (Move) are constrained by the Phase Impenetrability Condition (PIC) of Chomsky (2000 et passim): in phase α with head H, the domain is not accessible to operations outside α, only H and its edge are accessible to such operations (2) Inherent Phase an inherent phase is a predication (subject–predicate structure) (3) Phase Extension syntactic movement of the head H of a phase α up to the head X of the node β dominating α extends the phase up from α to β; α loses its phasehood in the process, and any constituent on the edge of α ends up in the domain of the derived phase β as a result of Phase Extension
Characteristics of small-area signal fading on mobile circuits in the 150 MHz band

Transmission on mobile radio circuits is often affected by standlng-wave breakup" resulting from spatial variations in rf signal amplitude, which to the moving mobile unit appear as rapid fades. Measurements made in the 150 mHz band confirm previous reports that within any small area such signal variations tend to follow the Rayleigh distribution. Statistical distributions have also been determined for the depths and widths of fades, in several different environments where fading was severe; rural, suburban and urban situations were found to produce rather similar results in-these respects. Some information is also given on the relation between median signal and circuit quality for speech, under fading conditions.
A pattern language for pattern writing

As the patterns community has accumulated experience in writing and reviewing patterns and pattern languages, we have begun to develop insight into pattern-writing techniques and approaches that have been observed to be particularly effective at addressing certain recurring problems. This pattern language attempts to capture some of these “best practices” of pattern writing, both by describing them in pattern form, and by demonstrating them in action. As such, this pattern language is its own Running Example. 1.0 Introduction The use of patterns to communicate wisdom and insight in computer/software systems design is a relatively new idea. As such, techniques and approaches for writing patterns and pattern languages are continually being improved, as creative individuals try new ways to organize and communicate their thoughts. Although there is no single right way to write patterns, this pattern language describes and demonstrates a collection of writing practices that have been observed to be particularly effective. The language is targeted at both novice and experienced pattern writers: novices may choose to treat these patterns as suggestions to be tried and to be adopted where they help, experts can use these patterns as a form of checklist, helping them keep in mind some of the issues and forces in effective pattern writing. Unlike a prescriptive pattern language, which describes the steps or recipes for solving some problem, this pattern language describes the desired result. The pattern author is free to employ different techniques to achieve these results. This approach should allow this pattern language to be employed in whole or in part as the reader sees fit. History of This Pattern Language Most of the patterns in this language started out as observations about “things that worked well” in a particular pattern or language being reviewed in a PLoP-95 writers’ workshop. As PLoP-95 progressed, these observations led to hypotheses that certain of these techniques and approaches would be particularly effective at addressing recurring pattern-writing problems. These hypotheses were tested in subsequent pattern reviews; if the hypotheses were shown to be true more often than not, we started referring to them by evocative names. (In the beginning, the names were all we had to communicate them, so they had to be evocative to be effective.) Comparing notes based on our respective review groups’ experiences, we began to observe that the kinds of practices that were being applauded were very much the same despite the independence of our review groups. It was quickly recognized that these techniques and approaches could themselves be expressed in the
Survey of Channel Assignment Algorithms for Multi-radio Multi-channel Wireless Mesh Networks

ABSTRACT Over the past few years, the wireless mesh network (WMN) with a multi-radio multi-channel (MR-MC) has attracted increasingly high attention because of its wider coverage area. The use of multiple radios and the function of multi-hop forwarding allows WMN to achieve a greater capacity and coverage area. MR-MC can be used to utilize the radio spectrum efficiently. However, the performance of WMN is highly affected by several radios operating at frequencies close to each other. This problem can be solved using one of the key techniques called channel assignment (CA). In this paper, we first present the six main constraints of CA algorithms, i.e., interference, delay, routing, connectivity, congestion, and link scheduling. Then, various CA techniques proposed in the literature to improve the performance of WMN are discussed in detail.
Perception and use of social networking sites among university students

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to assess the perception and use of social networking sites among university students in the state of Kuwait and study their positive and negative impacts.Design/methodology/approach – The research method is descriptive in nature. A questionnaire with five major sections was designed, validated and distributed among the sample of students.Findings – The results showed a heavy use of Twitter and Facebook among university students who were viewing their sites more frequently than posting. The most positive impacts were better relation with family, relatives, and friends and more involvement in social, political and cultural activities. Neglecting study/work and the time consumed are the two major drawbacks.Research limitations/implications – The stratified sample of students was based on availability of students at the time of distributing the questionnaire.Originality/value – The paper aims to understand the practice, implication and importance of social networking in.
Observational constraints on tidal effects using orbital eccentricities

We have analysed radial velocity measurements for known transiting exoplanets to study the empirical signature of tidal orbital evolution for close-in planets. Compared to standard eccentricity determination, our approach is modified to focus on the rejection of the null hypothesis of a circular orbit. We are using a Markov Chain Monte Carlo analysis of radial velocity measurements and photometric constraints, including a component of correlated noise, as well as Bayesian model selection to check if the data justify the additional complexity of an eccentric orbit. We find that among planets with non-zero eccentricity values quoted in the literature, there is no evidence for an eccentricity detection for the seven planets CoRoT-5b, WASP-5b, WASP-6b, WASP-10b, WASP-12b, WASP-17b and WASP-18b. In contrast, we confirm the eccentricity of HAT-P-16b, e= 0.034 ± 0.003, the smallest eccentricity that is reliably measured so far for an exoplanet as well as that of WASP-14b, which is the planet at the shortest period (P= 2.24 d), with a confirmed eccentricity, e= 0.088 ± 0.003. As part of the study, we present new radial velocity data using the HARPS spectrograph for CoRoT-1, CoRoT-3, WASP-2, WASP-4, WASP-5 and WASP-7 as well as the SOPHIE spectrograph for HAT-P-4, HAT-P-7, TrES-2 and XO-2. We show that the dissipative effect of tides raised in the planet by the star and vice versa explain all the eccentricity and spin–orbit alignment measurements available for transiting planets. We revisit the mass–period relation and consider its relation to the stopping mechanism of orbital migration for hot Jupiters. In addition to CoRoT-2 and HD 189733, we find evidence for excess rotation of the star in the systems CoRoT-18, HAT-P-20, WASP-19 and WASP-43.
European research on Ka-band slant path propagation

Europe saw two major initiatives in the mid-1980's to verify the viability of 20-50 GHz frequency bands for high capacity radio transmission. The first was the experimental telecommunication satellite OLYMPUS commissioned by the European Space Agency; the second was the ITALSAT program planned by the Italian Space Agency. Both spacecraft were equipped with highly stable propagation beacon payloads for accurate measurement of propagation conditions. Two international groups of experimenters (OPEX for OLYMPUS and CEPIT for ITALSAT), who had agreed on a set of common procedures for the earth stations' design, experiment management, and comparison of results, carried out the propagation measurements in a collaborative manner. This paper gives a summary of these activities and their results.
Classification accuracy in Key Stage 2 National Curriculum tests in England

The accuracy of the results of the national tests in English, mathematics and science taken by 11-year olds in England has been a matter of much debate since their introduction in 1994, with estimates of the proportion of students incorrectly classified varying from 10 to 30%. Using live data from the 2009 and 2010 administration of the national tests, this paper uses a number of models, drawing on both classical and modern test theories, to explore the relationship between test reliability, and the extent of misclassification when a student’s test score is reported in terms of one of a small number of discrete levels of achievement. The results indicate that across the two cohorts (2009 and 2010) and six models, the averages of classification accuracy of the tests were about 85%, 90% and 87% in English, mathematics and science, respectively. Moreover, the different models yielded very similar results; the standard deviations of the values of classification accuracy generated were 1.9% for English, 1.0% for mathematics and 1.3% for science.
A psychophysical study of improvements in motion‐image quality by using high frame rates

Abstract— The ideal frame rate for the highest motion‐image quality with respect to blur and jerkiness is presented. In order to determine the requirements for avoiding these impairments, motion images from a high‐speed camera and computer graphics were combined with a high‐speed display to perform a psychophysical evaluation. The camera, operating at 1000 fps, and image processing were used to simulate various frame rates and shutter speeds, and a 480‐Hz CRT display was used to present motion images simulating various frame rates and time characteristics of the display. Subjects were asked to evaluate the difference in quality between motion images at various frame rates. A frame rate of 480 fps was chosen to be an appropriate reference frame rate that, as a first estimation, enables coverage up to the human‐dynamic‐resolution (HDR) limit based on another experiment using real moving charts. The results show that a frame rate of 120 fps provides good improvement compared to that of 60 fps, and that the maximum improvement beyond which evaluation is saturated is found at about 240 fps for representative standard‐resolution natural images.
Segmentation methods for character recognition: from segmentation to document structure analysis

A pattern-oriented segmentation method for optical character recognition that leads to document structure analysis is presented. As a first example, segmentation of handwritten numerals that touch are treated. Connected pattern components are extracted, and spatial interrelations between components are measured and grouped into meaningful character patterns. Stroke shapes are analyzed and a method of finding the touching positions that separates about 95% of connected numerals correctly is described. Ambiguities are handled by multiple hypotheses and verification by recognition. An extended form of pattern-oriented segmentation, tabular form recognition, is considered. Images of tabular forms are analyzed, and frames in the tabular structure are extracted. By identifying semantic relationships between label frames and data frames, information on the form can be properly recognized. >
Two-dimensional sequence compression using MPEG

This paper presents a technique to use the MPEG-2 compression scheme to compress a 2D array of images. The technique operates over two spatial dimensions, instead of the normal temporal dimension. This compression is crucial to interactive image-based rendering techniques, which allow virtual walk-throughs of texture-rich scenes. Since the MPEG schemes can achieve high compression with minimal image degradation, the large storage problems are reduced. This increase the applicability of image-based rendering on standard workstations or personal computers. Results are compared against previously presented compression schemes for image-based rendering.
Admittance of piezoelectric plates vibrating under the perpendicular field excitation

By introducing the vector and matrix notations in Tiersten's basic system of equations for the piezoelectric plates vibrating in thickness modes, admittance of the plates can be formulated for the assumed boundary conditions. Simple but general relations among resonant frequencies, antiresonant frequencies, and coupling factors are obtained.
Mixed-Mode Device Modeling of DGMOS RF Oscillators

A Colpitts oscillator, working around a 3 GHz frequency, contains a double gate Metal Oxide Semiconductor transistor (DGMOS). A mixed-mode analysis is involved, applying a quantum model to the device, whereas the rest of the considered circuit is governed by Kirchhoff’s laws. The Linear Time Variant (LTV) model of phase noise is based on the Impulse Sensitivity Function of the Colpitts Oscillator which describes carefully the sensitivity of an oscillator to any impulse current injection in any node of the circuit. Finally, we improve the phase noise modeling, confronting some analytical developments to mixed-mode simulations.
Development of and Relationship Between Phonological and Motivational Processes and Naming Speed in Predicting Word Recognition in Grade 1

In this 2-year longitudinal study the developmental relationships among letter knowledge, phonological awareness, rapid naming, and task orientation were examined, and linguistic-motivational pathways of word reading acquisition were traced from kindergarten to Grade 1 by means of structural equation modeling. The participants were 100 Finnish-speaking nonreaders. Results showed that kindergarten (5–6 years) letter knowledge predicted subsequent preschool (6–7 years) phonological awareness and task orientation. RAN was a unique longitudinal and concurrent predictor of word recognition, suggesting that rapid naming provides a reliable prediction of prospective word reading ability at least in a transparent language. Controlling for phonological awareness and rapid naming, task orientation contributed uniquely to the prediction of word reading competence, suggesting that motivational and linguistic factors are both at work as children face the gradually growing demands of learning to read and write in Grade 1.
Elaborating Who's What: A Study of Constructed Action and Clause Structure in Auslan (Australian Sign Language)

In spoken and signed language discourse, periods of gestural enactment, or constructed action, appear sequentially and simultaneously with linguistic signs. In the domain of signed language research, constructed action has been shown to be an important part of narrative discourse. However, there has yet to be much empirical investigation into its frequency or interaction with a signed language grammar. The current study addresses this gap with a corpus-based investigation of constructed action in Auslan (the native signed language of the Australian deaf community). We present evidence from 39 Auslan narratives that show constructed action may function as core elements of a clause—i.e. as the predicate or arguments. With these findings, we demonstrate how constructed action interacts with clause structure—to form tightly integrated composite utterances. The data show that any syntactic investigation of a signed language must acknowledge this type of gestural behaviour and consider its contribution to meaning construction. This work points toward the need for more investigation of constructed action in spoken language discourse.