Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Preschool teachers’ self-efficacy, burnout, and stress in online professional development: a mixed methods approach to understand change

ABSTRACT This mixed methods study examines the impact of online professional development on preschool teachers’ self-efficacy, burnout, and stress. Participating teachers (n = 89) were randomly assigned into four groups: one of three treatment conditions (course-only, conference, reflective writing) or a control group. All treatment conditions received a 14-week online course on teacher-child interactions, which included regular homework assignments and community discussion boards. The conference and reflective writing conditions received additional supports. Regression analyses revealed that teachers who were in the course-only treatment condition had decreased self-efficacy and increased emotional exhaustion, a component of burnout, relative to the control group. However, teachers in the conference and reflective writing conditions did not experience such negative effects. Qualitative analyses suggest that all teachers tended to focus on personal challenges within the course, but teachers who had access to conference and reflective writing supports benefited from the availability of emotional outlets and/or opportunities for feedback
The Delta is Dead: Moral Ecologies of Infrastructure in Turkey

In a Turkish delta, fishers, scientists, and residents articulate contrasting moral ecologies of infrastructure. Contesting the infrastructural remaking of delta environments, fishermen connect ecological change to the concerns of working-class livelihoods; scientists assert a unique moral authority to create new habitats for selected species; and activists couch claims of ecological justice within existing legal spaces, all against the backdrop of increasing authoritarianism and economic crisis. This article extends insights from anthropological discussions of moral economy into political ecology to advance a new theoretical understanding of environmental infrastructure. I offer the notion of a moral ecology of infrastructure, theorizing infrastructure and ecology as inseparable, rather than set in opposition. In my use of the term, moral ecologies are assessments of justice and motivations for action that concern relations between humans and nonhumans. These assessments are not necessarily couched as resistance, but also encompass hegemonic and capitalist projects. This analytic proves helpful for understanding how, and why, people confront and respond to environmental transformations in an infrastructural world. At stake in these claims are moral notions of human and nonhuman livelihoods, notions that include those of water flows, birds, fish, sandbars, trees, and others. Özet Bir Türkiye deltasında balıkçılar, bilim insanları ve deltanın sakinleri, altyapının birbirine zıt ahlaki ekolojilerini ifade ederler. Her bir grubun delta ortamlarının yeniden altyapılandırılmasına karşı çıkış nedeni farklıdır: balıkçılar ekolojik değişimi işçi sınıfının geçim kaygılarıyla ilişkilendirir; bilim insanları seçili ender türlere yeni habitatlar oluşturmak için kendilerine özgü ahlaki bir otorite ortaya koyarlar; ve çevreciler artan otoriter rejim ve ekonomik krizler kıskacında, mevcut yasal alanlarda ekolojik adalet iddialarını dile getirirler. Bu makale, çevre altyapısına dair teorik yeni bir anlayış geliştirmek için ahlaki ekonomi ile ilgili antropolojik tartışmaları politik ekolojiyle ilişkilendirmektedir. Ahlaki altyapı ekolojisi kavramını önererek, altyapıyı ve ekolojiyi birbirine zıt olmaktan ziyade birbirinden ayrılmaz kavramlar olarak görüyorum. Ahlaki ekolojilerden kastım, insanlar ve insan olmayanlar arasındaki ilişkilere dair gelişen adalet anlayışı ve eylem motivasyonlarıdır. Ahlaki ekoloji mutlaka direnç demek değildir; aynı zamanda hegemonik ve kapitalist projeleri de kapsamaktadır. Bu yaklaşımla, insanların altyapı dünyasındaki çevresel dönüşümlerle nasıl ve niçin karşı karşıya kaldıklarını ve bu dönüşümlere nasıl tepki verdiklerini anlayacağımızı iddia ediyorum. Bu iddialarda dile gelen, insani ve insan dışı geçim kaynaklarına dair olan ahlak kavramlarıdır; suların akışını, kuşları, balıkları, kıyı kordonlarını, ağaçları ve diğerlerini içeren kavramlar.
Pengaruh Iklim Organisasi Terhadap Kepuasan Kerja Pada PT Telkom Akses Medan

Keberhasilan perusahaan/organisasi dalam mencapai tujuannya tidak terlepas dari berbagai hal, salah satudiantaranya adalah peran dari iklim organisasi. Iklim organisasi ini akan memberikan dampak yang cukupbesar terhadap kepuasan kerja berupa semangat dan kemauan kerja yang akan berujung kepada peningkatandisiplin kerja dan pencapaian tujuan perusahaan/organisasi. Tujuan penelitian ini untuk mengetahui danmenganalisis pengaruh iklim organisasi terhadap kepuasan kerja pada PT. Telkom Akses Medan. Penelitianini menggunakan metode penelitian kuantitatif dengan pengambilan sampel menggunakan simple randomsampling berjumlah 39 orang. Teknik pengumpulan data menggunakan kuesioner dengan penilaian memakaiSkala Likert. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa ada pengaruh yang positif serta signifikan antara iklimorganisasi dengan kepuasan kerja karyawan. Hasil penelitian ini juga menunjukkan bahwa hubungan antarakedua variabel berbanding lurus yang berarti bahwa semakin baik iklim organisasi yang diterapkan diperusahaan/organisasi, maka akan semakin baik pula tingkat kepuasan kerja karyawan. Diharapkan denganpenelitian ini maka perusahaan akan dapat terus menciptakan serta menjaga iklim organisasi yang baik sertamendukungnya sehingga akan dapat memberikan kepuasan kerja bagi karyawan yang akan berakibat kepadapencapaian tujuan dari perusahaan/organisasi.
Meshless Natural Neighbor Galerkin method for the analysis of composite plates using higher order shear deformation theories

In the present work a meshless natural neighbor Galerkin method for the bending and vibration analysis of plates and laminates is presented. The method has distinct advantages of geometric flexibility of meshless method. The compact support and the connectivity between the nodes forming the compact support are performed dynamically at the run time using the natural neighbor concept. By this method the nodal connectivity is imposed through nodal sets with reduced size, reducing significantly the computational effort in construction of the shape functions. Smooth non-polynomial type interpolation functions are used for the approximation of inplane and out of plane primary variables. The use of non-polynomial type interpolants has distinct advantage that the order of interpolation can be easily elevated through a degree elevation algorithm, thereby making them suitable also for higher order shear deformation theories. The evaluation of the integrals is made by use of Gaussian quadrature defined on background integration cells. The plate formulation is based on first order shear deformation plate theory. The application of natural neighbor Galerkin method formulation has been made for the bending and free vibration analysis of plates and laminates. Numerical examples are presented to demonstrate the efficacy of the present numerical method in calculating deflections, stresses and natural frequencies in comparison to the Finite element method, analytical methods and other meshless methods available in the literature.
The Effect of KyungOcGogamibang on the Growth of the Rats

Objectives The purpose of this study is to find out the effect of KyungOcGogamibang(KOGE) on the growth of rats. Methods First of all, we divided male Sprague-Dawley rats into 4 groups(KOGE1, KOGE2, KOGE3 and control group). Then KOGE1, KOGE2 and KOGE3 groups were administered with KOGE water extracts once a day at a dosage of 250, 500, 1,000mg/kg respectively for 3 weeks. The control group was administered with normal saline in the same manner. We measured the rat's body weight, amount of body weight increased, length of femur, serum GH, serum IGF-Ⅰ, serum TSH and serum testosterone after each week of administration. Results 1. There were significant changes of the rat's body weight, the length of the femur, the level of GH, IGF-Ⅰand TSH in KOGE1 groups. 2. There were significant changes of the rat's body weight, the length of the femur, the level of IGF-Ⅰand TSH in KOGE2 groups. 3. There were significant changes of the rat's body weight, the length of the femur, the level of IGF-Ⅰand TSH in KOGE3 groups. Conclusions According to the results above, rat in KOGE group have been increased their body weight, length of femur, serum GH, serum IGF-1 compared to the control group. This study shows that groups of KOGE have an effect on promoting the growth, thus it is expected to treat growth problems for children.
Remotely Sensed Variables of Ecosystem Functioning Support Robust Predictions of Abundance Patterns for Rare Species

Global environmental changes are affecting both the distribution and abundance of species at an unprecedented rate. To assess these effects, species distribution models (SDMs) have been greatly developed over the last decades, while species abundance models (SAMs) have generally received less attention even though these models provide essential information for conservation management. With population abundance defined as an essential biodiversity variable (EBV), SAMs could offer spatially explicit predictions of species abundance across space and time. Satellite-derived ecosystem functioning attributes (EFAs) are known to inform on processes controlling species distribution, but they have not been tested as predictors of species abundance. In this study, we assessed the usefulness of SAMs calibrated with EFAs (as process-related variables) to predict local abundance patterns for a rare and threatened species (the narrow Iberian endemic ‘Gerês lily’ Iris boissieri; protected under the European Union Habitats Directive), and to project inter-annual fluctuations of predicted abundance. We compared the predictive accuracy of SAMs calibrated with climate (CLI), topography (DEM), land cover (LCC), EFAs, and combinations of these. Models fitted only with EFAs explained the greatest variance in species abundance, compared to models based only on CLI, DEM, or LCC variables. The combination of EFAs and topography slightly increased model performance. Predictions of the inter-annual dynamics of species abundance were related to inter-annual fluctuations in climate, which holds important implications for tracking global change effects on species abundance. This study underlines the potential of EFAs as robust predictors of biodiversity change through population size trends. The combination of EFA-based SAMs and SDMs would provide an essential toolkit for species monitoring programs.
Load equivalency factors for off-road trucks

This article addresses an analysis of the Load Equivalency Factor (LEF) for offroad trucks. A new LEF curve for single axles with dual wheels covering trucks from 6.0 to 151.42 tons per axle is proposed, converting various magnitudes of damage from wheel loads to damage caused by the standard axle load of 8.2 tons. Then, this damage ratio was raised to the exponent proposed by Pereira (1992), and LEF for the considered loads was obtained. In the determination of LEF from the structural response of the subgrade, it was confirmed that LEF values did not suffer significant variations with the various parameters adopted, encompassing variations in the axle loads between 6 and 151.42 tons, tire pressures of 80.0, 100.0 and 120.0 psi, as well as five different pavement structures. In the study, LEF remained stable even in pavement structures with low and high axle capacities. In order to validate the results, the resulting factors were then compared with those proposed by DNIT (2006), displaying a coefficient of determination of 0.99. The conclusion is that pavements for off-roads trucks can be designed using the procedure recommended by DNIT (2006) for flexible pavement, without extrapolation of the respective LEF curve.
Assessing Visual Experience-Dependent Plasticity in Schizophrenia Using Visual Evoked Potentials: an EEG Study

Synaptic plasticity might be an important neurobiological component in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. Determining the presence of abnormal synaptic plasticity has nevertheless proven difficult mainly due to a lack of non-invasive assessment of synaptic plasticity. Recently however, advances in electrophysiological research have provided a method for assessing LTP-like plasticity non-invasively in the human brain. By using this method, researchers have demonstrated a lasting enhancement of the visual evoked potential (VEP) following a prolonged period of repetitive visual stimulation, entailing properties corresponding to canonical synaptic processes measured in animal models. This study builds on this experimental procedure and sought to assess whether synaptic plasticity is abnormal in a group of individuals with schizophrenia (n = 22) compared to healthy controls (n = 157). VEPs were evoked by means of repetitive pattern-reversing checkerboard stimulation and assessed in a pre-post design for upwards of one hour following a period of prolonged visual stimulation. The results showed that prolonged visual stimulation produced a lasting enhancement in VEPs for upwards of one hour in healthy controls attesting to validity of this experimental paradigm. There were however, no differences in VEP responses between groups providing evidence suggesting that individuals with schizophrenia do possess capacity for visual plasticity resembling that observed in healthy controls. These results have
The Long-Term Effect of Abortion Legalization on the Demand for Pets

This paper examines whether abortion legalization in the United States during the early 1970s influenced women’s demand for pets later in life. We compare women who were granted early access to legal abortion during their peak childbearing years to women who were not in order to estimate their likelihood of pet ownership and time spent on pets after the women’s childbearing years were over. We find that the probability of owning any pet is approximately nine percentage points higher for women affected by abortion legalization than for non-affected women, and that the affected women spend, on average, seven minutes more per day on their pets.
Identification of modal parameters of a 600‐m‐high skyscraper from field vibration tests

Accurate prediction of the dynamic responses of a high‐rise building subjected to dynamic loads such as earthquake and wind excitations requires the information of its structural dynamic properties such as modal parameters including natural frequencies and damping ratios. This paper presents the identification results of the modal parameters based on field vibration tests on a 600‐m high skyscraper. A set of tests, including ambient vibration test (AVT) and free vibration test (FVT), were conducted on the skyscraper to identify its modal parameters. Firstly, this paper presents and discusses the modal parameters of the skyscraper assessed by several identification methods applied to the AVT measurements. These methods include the wavelet transform (WT) method, the stochastic subspace identification (SSI) method, and the random decrement technique (RDT). Secondly, an active mass damper (AMD) system with total mass 1000 tons equipped into the skyscraper was used to excite the building for estimation of the modal parameters by FVT. Thirdly, this paper presents observations on the structural dynamic behavior of the skyscraper with the operation of the AMD system during a typhoon event. The field measurement results show that the AMD system functioned efficiently for suppression of the wind‐induced vibrations of the skyscraper during the typhoon. This paper aims to further understand the structural dynamic properties of super‐tall buildings and provide useful information for structural design and vibration control of future skyscrapers.
Hydrochemical Characteristics and Water Quality Assessment for the Upper Reaches of Syr Darya River in Aral Sea Basin, Central Asia

Based on water sampling of the upper reaches of the Syr River and its tributaries from the parts of Aral Sea Basin in Kyrgyzstan, the chemical compositions of river waters were systematically analyzed for revealing the hydrochemical characteristics and evaluating the water quality. Research indicates that there are some differences in ion concentration between the low-flow season (LFS) and high-flow season (HFS), but the hydrochemical classification reflected that all water samples fall in the calcium bicarbonate category, except that only three samples fall in the not dominant category during the LFS. The water quality classification shows that the water samples fall in the excellent to good categories for irrigation use. The analysis shows that the main ions of river waters come from the weathering of rocks, and the dissolution of carbonates is higher than that of silicates. Human activities have had an impact on the waterbody, especially inferred from the indicators of NH4-N and fecal coliform (FC). FC groups were detected in some rivers, in which the detection rate at the high-water level increased. The contents of potentially toxic elements are lower than international drinking water standards, but there are clustering differences between the LFS and HFS. There may be anthropogenic intrusions of Cu, Pb, and Zn during the LFS period and of Cu, Pb, Zn, and Cd during the HFS period. The results fill the gaps in the study of the hydrochemical composition and water quality assessment in the Aral Sea Basin and will also provide a basis for water resource management and for the study of water quality evolution in the future.
Semantics of the internet: a political history

Abstract The history of the Internet has been narrated many times. However, political histories of the Internet with a non-US-centric focus are still an uncharted research area. This paper contributes to closing that research gap. It reconstructs the Internet’s history in Germany through the lens of semantic changes in press coverage on politics. In our investigation, we sought to analyse semantic change as a political history by drawing on insights concerning the relationship between semantic change and political conflict from the perspective of discourse theory and theoretical reflections on politicisation. The study follows our intuition that semantic struggles of the past leave traces in word contexts. Conversely, it uncovers semantic change by following the traces of semantic struggles in these contexts. In line with this rationale, we conducted a ‘blended reading’ of word contexts that relied on a quantitatively assisted qualitative text analysis. The study finds that the Internet has long been understood predominantly as a tool for politics in the political public. In the late 2000s, its perception as a highly politicised object of governance also became dominant. While the Internet was always associated with a medium and a public sphere, its characterisation changed from ‘web 1.0’ to a ‘web of corporations’.
A Recipe for Finding Stellar Radii, Temperatures, Surface Gravities, Metallicities, and Masses Using Spectral Lines

A recipe based on physical principles employs the observed equivalent widths of 10 spectral lines to model the photosphere of a target star. Coupled with the visual magnitude and an absolute flux calibration, the recipe yields the angular radius, effective temperature, surface gravity, and metallicity. With the addition of a parallax, a linear radius and a mass estimate are added to the results. The method is applied to a sample of 26 G and K stars that span luminosity classes V to IIIa. The recipe-determined angular radii agree with the interferometer radii and have comparable errors. But unlike interferometers, the recipe is not limited to sizes ≳1 mas. The veracity of the other recipe-derived parameters is supported by numerous comparisons with previously published values.
What determines customers' continuance intention of FinTech? Evidence from YuEbao

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of trust in service and structural assurance on the continuance intention of FinTech services, and the roles of technical factors (i.e. situational normality and system quality) and social factors (i.e. herding and subjective norm) in developing trust in service and structural assurance. YuEbao is selected as the subject as it is a representative example of FinTech services in China. Design/methodology/approach A survey questionnaire was deployed and a ten-point sliding scale with two-decimal points was applied to improve the accuracy of the questionnaire. Partial least squares structural equation modeling was used to analyze the data. Findings Trust in service and structural assurance can encourage continuance intention of FinTech service. System quality, situational normality and subjective norm can boost the development of trust in service. Both herding and subjective norm can affect structural assurance significantly. Research limitations/implications The study highlights the important roles played by technical factors (i.e. situational normality and system quality) and social factors (i.e. herding and subjective norm) in developing the two levels of trust (i.e. trust in service and structural assurance). It also validates the influences of trust in service and structural assurance on encouraging customers’ continuance intention in the novel context of FinTech. Practical implications The findings of this study can be used by practitioners to encourage customers to continue using their FinTech services. To encourage continuance, service providers can improve the quality of their system, design the system to be aligned with customers’ using habits and show customers that their close friends are also using the service. Originality/value This study adds to the existing body of trust literature by investigating the direct effects of trust in service and structure assurance on continuance intention and how these two levels of trust are developed from technical and social aspects. It generates interesting insights into customers’ continuance behavior of FinTech services.
Improving Flows in Misaligned Culverts

This study investigated different approaches to optimize flows in misaligned culverts. Structures aligned with the natural stream are always preferred, as misalignments cause a change of direction at the culvert inlet associated with lower performance and sedimentation and erosion problems. This optimal positioning can cause high financial costs and a flow optimization minimizing the associated problems could be a viable alternative. In this study, we used computational fluid dynamics analysis to evaluate the flow in 44 different scenarios with misalignment angles ranging from 0 ∘ –90 ∘ . It was found that smooth transitions towards the narrowest point in the stream (culvert) were possible for any degree of misalignment resulting in improved, uniform velocity distributions and less turbulence. An experimental setup was able to confirm the possible flow improvements. The proposed approach of flow redirection can lower construction costs and gives planners and designers more flexibility as tailored reinforcement and redesign of the stream embankment can be used as an alternative to costly creek alignments.