Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Comparing immersive Virtual Reality to mobile applications in foreign language learning in higher education: a quasi-experiment

ABSTRACT Virtual Reality applications are predicted to create a paradigm shift in education, but there is little empirical evidence of their educational value. Virtual Reality affordances to support language learning have not yet been realized. This quasi-experimental study investigated the effect of a Virtual Reality application on foreign language learning and compared engagement, engrossment, and immersion between two versions of the application (Virtual Reality and mobile). Twenty experimental group undergraduate students used a head-mounted Virtual Reality display and twenty control group students used a mobile application for learning Italian as a foreign language. Data sources included: (a) a 10 open-ended questions pre-test and post-test measuring vocabulary skills, and (b) a validated questionnaire with 21 seven-point Likert scale items measuring engagement, engrossment, and immersion. Findings revealed a statistically significant difference in the experimental group students’ vocabulary performance when students’ pre-test and post-test scores were compared. Engagement, engrossment, and immersion received relatively high scores by Virtual Reality participants. The study did not find a statistically significant difference between the two conditions. The study provides preliminary empirical data indicating that Virtual Reality applications can be both effective and engaging for language learning, even though they were not found to be superior to mobile applications.
The Effect of Physical Activity Level and Body Adiposity on Fatty Infiltration of the Lumbar Multifidus in Apparently Healthy Individuals From an Urban African Setting

Background: Spine stability or core stability exercises are among the most recommended interventions in low back pain management. It is important to clarify whether physical activity and body adiposity affect lumbar muscle multifidus (LMM) among apparently healthy adults. Objectives: The current study aimed at investigating the effect of physical activity level (PAL) and body adiposity on fatty infiltration of LMM in apparently healthy individuals from an urban African setting. Methods: Fatty infiltration of LMM was visually graded as normal, slight, and severe using diagnostic ultrasound. Validated Hausa and English versions of IPAQ were employed to analyze PAL, and the bioelectrical impedance analysis machine was used to measure some of the body adiposity parameters and weight. Results: A slight fatty infiltration of LMM was observed in 40.3% of 196 participants. Slight fatty infiltration of LMM had a higher prevalence in female subjects (39.2%) than males (34.2%). Only two variables of age (P = 0.032; r = 0.153) and visceral fat (P = 0.0001; r = 0.308) had a relationship with fatty infiltration of LMM. Conclusions: Fatty infiltration of LMM was positively associated with visceral fat and weakly with age among the participants. However, fatty infiltration of LMM had no relationship with the PAL.
COVID-19 and pregnancy: a narrative review on the use of convalescent plasma

The emergence of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic is a global concern, considering both the severity of the disease, with a high mortality rate compared to that of other influenza-like viral illnesses, and the lack of a specific, effective treatment. Pregnant women with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) represent a further challenge for clinicians. Indeed, although the majority of them are asymptomatic or their SARS-CoV-2 disease has a mild to moderate course, in some cases this viral infection is accompanied by severe respiratory symptoms. In such a critical clinical setting, the already limited therapeutic armamentarium available for COVID-19 patients is further restricted in pregnant women because of the risk of fetal toxicity especially during the first trimester of gestation. Among the treatment options, the use of convalescent plasma has gained increasing interest from investigators in pregnant women, given the initial positive reports on safety and efficacy aspects of this treatment in critically ill COVID-19 patients. However, the literature data are scanty and almost limited to single case reports, considering that pregnant women are usually excluded from trials on convalescent plasma. In this narrative review, we will critically discuss the current literature evidence on the use of hyperimmune plasma during pregnancies complicated by COVID-19.
Pressure‐Driven Poiseuille Flow Inherited From Mesozoic Mantle Circulation Led to the Eocene Separation of Australia and Antarctica

The separation between Australia and Antarctica occurred during the final stages of the break‐up of Pangea. Reconstructions of the rifting of the Australian plate away from Antarctica show fast spreading rates since Mid‐Eocene (45 Ma). These reconstructions can be used to understand and quantify the forces driving the Australia/Antarctica separation, and to test hypotheses on mechanisms that may be of shallow (i.e., lithosphere) or deep (i.e., mantle) origin. Analytical calculations indicate that plate‐boundary forces are highly unlikely to be a plausible candidate to explain such a separation. Thus, we use a recently developed global coupled models of mantle and lithosphere dynamics, here we show that this event, whose kinematics are reproduced in our models within the bounds of the reconstruction uncertainties, owes to a significant degree to the pressure‐driven asthenospheric Poiseuille flow associated with the mantle buoyancy field inherited from viscous circulation history throughout the Mesozoic. On the contrary, in simulations when such a buoyancy field is replaced by another one resulting from a random distribution of mantle temperature–thus not representative of Earth’s mantle circulation history–the rapid northward motion of Australia does not occur. Similarly, suppressing contemporaneous plate‐boundary processes (i.e., subduction of the Pacific ridge at the Aleutians and healing of the India‐Australia ridge) from our models does not have a noticeable effect on the Australia‐Antarctica kinematics. Thus, a pressure‐driven Poiseuille mantle flow must be considered, at least in this example and possible elsewhere, as a main driver of plate tectonics.
Treatment of Hypolimnion Water on Mineral Aggregates as the Second Step of the Hypolimnetic Withdrawal Method Used for Lake Restoration

The study aimed to assess the usefulness of mineral aggregates in orthophosphate (OP) removal from hypolimnetic water withdrawn from eutrophic lakes. Two low-cost and easily available reactive materials were tested: lightweight expanded clay aggregate (LECA) and crushed limestone (LS). Their performance regarding OP removal and the effect on the pH, Ca2+, Mg2+, N-NO3 and N-NH4 concentrations of treated water were investigated in a column experiment with four-filter beds made of LECA and amended with LS (additions of 0, 25, 50 and 75% of the bed volume). The highest OP removal (>50%) was achieved in LECA beds with high (75% by volume) amendments of LS. Neither LECA nor LS distinctly affected the pH (maximum pH increase, from 7.1 or 7.2 to 7.6, occurred in the case of the LECA bed). In real-life conditions, it is not feasible to install a full-scale bed made of these mineral aggregates on the outflow from a lake due to the large required size of such a bed. At the operation time set for 30 d, the size of a bed would need to reach between 6113.2 and 12,226.4 m3. The proposed bed should be just one of the elements of an integrated treatment system. Constructions consisting of sorption beds ought to be coupled with adequately designed zones of aquatic vegetation. Three conceptional solutions were proposed for in situ treatment of the withdrawn water, differing in arrangement and construction of the potential sorption bed. Application of such solutions should be regarded as a substantial improvement of Olszewski’s method, as it can mitigate the pollution of downstream ecosystems.
Nitrogen Fertilizer and Panicle Removal in Sweet Sorghum Production: Effect on Biomass, Juice Yield and Soluble Sugar Content

Alternative and renewable bio-based energy sources are gaining prominence worldwide. Sweet sorghum is currently being evaluated throughout the world because its stem juices are rich in sugars that can be directly fermented to ethanol. In this two-year study, sweet sorghum varieties; Dale, Theis, Topper 76-6, and M81E (Obtained from Mississippi State University Experiment Station, MS) and CHR-SW8 (Obtained from Chromatin Inc., IL) were used. Nitrogen (N) fertilizer rates of 0, 40, 80 or 120 kg·N·ha-1 were applied to experimental units. The experiment was a randomized complete block design with treatments in a split-split plot arrangement with three replications. Nitrogen rate was the main plot, cultivar as sub-plot, and panicle removal as sub-plot. Results showed that N application increased fresh stem yield, juice volume, but had minimal effect on juice soluble sugar concentration. Compared to controls, application of ≥40 kg·N·ha-1 increased fresh yield and juice by >60% and 10%, respectively. There were also variety differences in harvested fresh biomass, juice volume and oBrix, and soluble sugar content. Dale and Theis consistently showed lower sucrose compared to other varieties over the two years. Panicle removal during early reproductive phase increased oBrix, sucrose and total sugar content in all varieties. Across the two years of study, panicle removal increased oBrix by more than 10%, sucrose and total sugar increased by more than 20%. Selection of varieties that produce high juice volume with high sugar content and strategies to inhibit seed formation may result in improved juice quality.
FRACTION CIPHER: A WAY TO ENHANCE STUDENT ABILITY IN ADDITION AND SUBTRACTION FRACTION

Learning the concept of fractions can be one of the most difficult skills to master for primary school students. Fractions are also seen to affect other mathematical knowledge, such as algebra. Researchers have introduced an innovation called Fraction Cipher to help students learn fractions. Fraction Cipher is an innovation in the arena of education that involves learning the Malay language and Mathematics. Design research is used as the research method to solve this problem consisting of three phases: preliminary design, teaching experiment, and retrospective analysis. The instruments used are fraction cipher, fraction test, and observation checklist. The results of the pair's comparative study by controlling the type I error using the Bonferroni method show that the mean values of the mathematical achievement of the experimental group and the control group are significantly different. The results show that Fraction Cipher impacts students to understand and master the concept of fractional addition and fraction subtraction operations. This research also explains the "Sake-Beda" strategy to make it easier for students to solve fractional operation problems. Besides, this study also shows the change in students' attitudes from negative to more positive. Thus, students understand and are more motivated to learn the concept of fractions.
‘I don’t want to be distinguished by others’: language ideologies and identity construction among North Korean refugees in South Korea

Abstract This study explores how North Korean refugees in South Korea navigate different ideologies about language and construct their own language ideologies and identities while adjusting to and learning a new variety of Korean. Drawing on interviews with four North Korean refugees, the study finds that they have suffered from stigmatization because of their socially marked North Korean accents, leading them to internalize a hierarchical view of the two varieties of Korean and to strive to speak like South Koreans. The participants have at times strategically concealed their identities in order to pass as non-North Korean and protect themselves from discrimination. However, the participants have also positioned and repositioned themselves and their linguistic and cultural resources through imagining different possible futures. Challenging the inferior identities imposed on them by the mainstream society, they have constructed imagined identities as valuable assets for a future, reunified Korea. In doing so, they have used their bidialectal and bicultural skills to differentiate themselves from South Koreans and empower themselves. The findings of the study shed light on the complex interactions between language ideologies, language use, and identity construction, with implications for refugee language-support programs.
Catalytic Nitrate Removal in a Trickle Bed Reactor: Direct Drinking Water Treatment

Palladium (Pd)‐based catalysts hold promise as an alternative water treatment technology for nitrate (NO3), but practical application requires a flow‐through reactor that efficiently delivers hydrogen (H2) from gas to water. A trickle bed reactor (TBR) packed with a 0.1 percent by weight (wt%) Pd–0.01 wt% In/γ‐Al2O3 (indium and porous aluminum oxide) catalyst was evaluated to address this challenge. Catalytic activity generally increased with H2 superficial velocity (0.65–29.6 m/h) and liquid (deionized water) superficial velocities from 14.8 to 26.6 m/h before decreasing at 38.5 m/h. This decrease corresponded to a change in flow regime and suggests that optimal TBR performance occurs at the transition from pulse to bubble flow. An optimal TBR activity of 19.5 ± 1.3 mg NO3/min‐g Pd was obtained; this is only ~18% of the batch reactor activity as a result of H2 mass transfer limitations, but three to 15 times greater than activities obtained with previous flow‐through reactors. Catalyst deactivation occurred in the TBR after 41 days of operation, motivating the need for improved fouling mitigation strategies.
Interaction of oxygen and carbon monoxide with Pt(111) at intermediate pressure and temperature : revisiting the fruit fly of surface science

This thesis uses the surface science approach to address questions regarding the interaction of oxygen with platinum and its subsequent reaction with carbon monoxide. A Pt(111) single crystal surface is used as a model for the catalyst. Chapter 1 provides an overview of the literature on the subject. The description of employed experimental techniques and their backgrounds are presented in Chapter 2. Chapter 3 discusses the adsorption of oxygen on Pt(111) at various temperatures and its role in the oxidation of carbon monoxide. Chapter 4 gives an atomic scale insight into the reaction between adsorbed oxygen and carbon monoxide for different ratios of oxygen and carbon monoxide pressures. In Chapter 5, the reaction between CO and oxygen on Pt(111) was used to register noise in tunneling current due to diffusion and recombination of molecules on the catalytically active surface, to draw conclusions on the most likely rate-limiting step in the process
Remuneration Reforms and Welfare of Employees in Public Schools: Experience From Nigeria

The survey was undertaken to ascertain the impact of remuneration reforms on the workers’ welfare in public schools taking evidence from Nigeria. Facts were gotten by the use of a planned inquiry form and the data collected were then evaluated by means of the multiple regression techniques. Outcomes showed that there is a substantial impact of indicators of remuneration reforms on the welfare pointer (consumption) of employees in public schools. The negligible inclination to consume of employees with minimum remuneration, as well as employees with excessive remuneration, had revealed that these two categories put apart a huge percentage of their earnings for consumption to improve their welfare status and satisfaction level. Actions suggested to augment employees’ wellbeing and propensity comprise of periodic remuneration rising assessment, regulation of price increases ratio in addition to setting up of nutrition subsidizations for employees in public schools by the government.
Sargassum Polycystum C.Agardh Mediated Synthesis of Gold Nanoparticles Assessing its Characteristics and its Activity against Water Borne Pathogens

This paper reports on the eco-friendly synthesis of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) using the seaweed Sargassum polycystum C. Agardh extract. Biological synthesis for nanoparticle using plants is gaining considerable interest among researchers as an eco-friendly alternative to conventional physical and chemical methods, as this approach eliminates the use of toxic chemicals. Synthesized AuNPs was monitored by UV-Vis spectroscopy and was found to be complete within 30 min. Confirmation of elemental gold was carried out by elemental mapping using different physical techniques such as Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The bio reduced AuNPs exhibited remarkably good anti-bacterial activity against pathogens specifically Pseudomonas aeruginosa (20 mm) which is more susceptible. The elaborate experimental evidences support that the seaweed Sargassum polycystum C. Agardh extract can provide an environmentally benign rapid route for synthesis of AuNPs that can be applied for various purposes.
Extending a land-surface model with Sphagnum moss to simulate responses of a northern temperate bog to whole ecosystem warming and elevated CO2

Abstract. Mosses need to be incorporated into Earth system models to better simulate peatland functional dynamics under the changing environment. Sphagnum mosses are strong determinants of nutrient, carbon, and water cycling in peatland ecosystems. However, most land-surface models do not include Sphagnum or other mosses as represented plant functional types (PFTs), thereby limiting predictive assessment of peatland responses to environmental change. In this study, we introduce a moss PFT into the land model component (ELM) of the Energy Exascale Earth System Model (E3SM) by developing water content dynamics and nonvascular photosynthetic processes for moss. The model was parameterized and independently evaluated against observations from an ombrotrophic forested bog as part of the Spruce and Peatland Responses Under Changing Environments (SPRUCE) project. The inclusion of a Sphagnum PFT with some Sphagnum-specific processes in ELM allows it to capture the observed seasonal dynamics of Sphagnum gross primary production (GPP) albeit with an underestimate of peak GPP. The model simulated a reasonable annual net primary production (NPP) for moss but with less interannual variation than observed, and it reproduced aboveground biomass for tree PFTs and stem biomass for shrubs. Different species showed highly variable warming responses under both ambient and elevated atmospheric CO 2 concentrations, and elevated CO 2 altered the warming response direction for the peatland ecosystem. Microtopography is critical: Sphagnum mosses on hummocks and hollows were simulated to show opposite warming responses (NPP decreasing with warming on hummocks but increasing in hollows), and hummock Sphagnum was modeled to have a strong dependence on water table height. The inclusion of this new moss PFT in global ELM simulations may provide a useful foundation for the investigation of northern peatland carbon exchange, enhancing the predictive capacity of carbon dynamics across the regional and global scales.
Governance and Business-Society Relations in Areas of Limited Statehood: An Introduction

In this introductory article we explore the relationship between statehood and governance, examining in more detail how non-state actors like MNCs, international NGOs, and indigenous authorities, often under conditions of extreme economic scarcity, ethnic diversity, social inequality and violence, take part in the making of rules and the provision of collective goods. Conceptually, we focus on the literature on Areas of Limited Statehood and discuss its usefulness in exploring how business-society relations are governed in the global South, and beyond. Building on insights from this literature, among others, the four articles included in this special issue provide rich illustrations and critical reflections on the multiple, complex and often ambiguous roles of state and non-state actors operating in contemporary Syria, Nigeria, India and Palestine, with implications for conventional understandings of CSR, stakeholders, and related conceptualizations.
Correlation between BMI and Oral Cancer: A Hospital-Based Case-Control Study

Increased body mass index (BMI) is considered a significant factor in several malignancies of body. It also affects the prognosis of the management of malignancies. Its role in cancer of the oral cavity should also be evaluated as another risk factor other than tobacco, alcohol, virus etc. Therefore this study was conducted to evaluate the correlation between BMI and cancer of the oral cavity. A total of 160 patients (140 males, 20 females) with confirmed histopathologic diagnosis of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and 200 healthy controls were enrolled. Height and weight of each study subject were measured. BMI was calculated by dividing the weight of the subject in kilograms with the square of the height in the square of metres. Chi-square test was used for evaluation of the level of significance. The number of those subjects with OSCC belonging to the overweight and obese group was 136 while the number of those healthy controls belonging to the overweight and obese group was 24. The statistical analysis revealed a significant correlation between BMI and oral cancer. There is a significant correlation between oral cancer and increased BMI. Increased BMI can also be considered as another critical risk factor for oral cancer because it has been found associated with other cancers of the oral cavity.
Macrophyte species composition and structure along littoral region in relation to limnological variables of a tropical wetland ecosystem

ABSTRACT The composition and structure of macrophyte communities of the littoral region of Bhindawas wetland (India) was investigated. Two hypotheses were tested: (1) if limnological variables such as water chemistry and soil parameters are important determinants of species composition and abundance and (2) what is the variance in species richness and composition within the wetland. Twenty-eight macrophyte species belonging to 17 different families were identified with relatively low species diversity and richness (H′ = 2.09; Margalef index = 1.12). Eichhornia crassipes, attained the highest relative frequency (22.69%), followed by Salvinia natans, Paspalum paspaloides, Phragmites karka, Cynodon dactylon and Cyperus alopecuroides. The first and second axis of CCA ordination explained 38.4% and 28.5% of the total variance of species–limnological variables relationship, respectively. Water-related variables (dissolved oxygen, pH and nitrate concentration) and soil nutrient factors (soil carbon and phosphorus levels) were significantly correlated to macrophyte distribution. Sampling sites formed two distinct groups based on cluster analysis, indicating varying ecological conditions. Generally, composition and abundance of macrophytes evince highly productive nature of the lake, while dominance of invasive species like E. crassipes and S. natans indicates high influence of increased nutrient levels and anthropogenic activities in the catchment on lake macrophyte composition.