Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The effect of integrating automated writing evaluation on EFL writing apprehension and grammatical knowledge

ABSTRACT Recent years have witnessed an increased interest in automated writing evaluation (hereafter AWE). However, few studies have examined the use of AWE with apprehensive writers. Hence, this study extends research in this area, investigating the effect of using AWE on reducing writing apprehension and enhancing grammatical knowledge. The participants were English majors at an Egyptian university, divided into experimental and control groups. The experimental group used Cambridge ‘Write & Improve’ to evaluate their writing; whereas, the control group had an instructor evaluate their essays. Data were collected using the English Writing Apprehension Scale (EWAS, Abdel Latif [2015. “Sources of L2 Writing Apprehension: A Study of Egyptian University Students.” Journal of Research in Reading 38 (2): 194–212. doi:10.1111/j.1467–9817.2012. 01549.x]) and a grammar knowledge test (hereafter GKT; adapted from TOEFL). The findings showed statistically significant differences in the post-administration in EWAS and GKT in favor of the experimental group. Additionally, the effect size of the intervention on apprehensive writers was large. The results indicated that AWE helped the apprehensive writers reduce their apprehension and slightly enhance the GKT of the non-apprehensive writers. Further, negative correlations were found between writing apprehension and grammatical knowledge. This study results suggest that AWE might be used as a remedial classroom treatment for struggling or apprehensive writers, purposefully integrating it as a formative tool, augmented with feedback practices.
Isoprene Emissions Response to Drought and the Impacts on Ozone and SOA in China

Among the various environmental factors that affect isoprene emissions, drought has only been given limited attention. Four different drought response (DR) schemes were implemented in the Model of Emissions of Gases and Aerosols from Nature (MEGAN, version 2.1), and the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) model was applied to investigate the drought impacts on air quality during both drought and normal years in China. Generally, all DR schemes decrease isoprene emissions except for mild drought conditions. The significant decrease and even termination of isoprene emissions are predicted in South China under severe drought conditions. During the drought period, the DR scheme considering both mild and severe drought (SMD) improves the model performance especially in severe drought‐hit regions when compared with the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) averaged formaldehyde vertical column density (HCHO VCD). The results show that most of the DR schemes decrease simulated ozone (O3) and secondary organic aerosols (SOA) levels. For both O3 and SOA, noticeable changes are predicted in the Sichuan Basin (5 ppb and 4 µg m−3 for O3 and SOA, respectively). This investigation is the first modeling study to investigate the impacts of isoprene drought response on air quality in China.
A Rasch Model Analysis of the Psychometric Properties of the Student-Teacher Relationship Scale among Middle School Students

The current study investigated Student-Teacher Relationship Measure (STRM) psychometric properties using Rasch analysis in a sample of middle school female students (N = 995). Rasch Principal Components Analysis revealed psychometric support of two subscales (i.e., Academic and Social Relations). Summary statistics showed good psychometric properties. The category structure and individual statistics (i.e., items and person infit and outfit) were not ideal. Category structure showed that the distances between adjacent thresholds were lower than optimal criteria. Even though findings indicated that items mean square statistics (MNSQ) were optimal, standardized fit statistics (i.e., ZSTD) reflected many misfit persons and items in each subscale. After eliminating the misfit persons and items, the two subscales met the Rasch optimal criteria. The updated short 22-item scale had good psychometric properties, high item and person separation, and good item and person reliability for the two subscales and can be used as a reliable and valid scale.
Teaching aspects of the interrelationship between science and technology: explicit or implicit approach?

ABSTRACT Background Developing upper secondary school students’ understanding of the nature of science and technology are important priorities in educational systems worldwide. More research is needed to better understand the conditions under which teaching and learning of epistemological insights become possible, as well as the tools that are necessary for this purpose. Purpose This study investigates the potential impact of Explicit Epistemological Discourse (EED) in improving student understanding of the interrelationship between Science and Technology (S&T) through a combined inquiry-oriented and design-oriented teaching and learning activity sequence on Electromagnetic Properties of Materials. Sample The participants were 16 year-old students from two intact classes (N = 37 and N = 26, respectively) in their last year of state schooling, in a European country, one year before selection of high school elective courses. Design and methods We implemented two conditions of the activity sequence; one included EED activities on the interrelationship between S&T, the other condition included identical inquiry and design activities, with additional practice exercises substituting the reflection activities on EED. Pre-post tests and interviews evaluated students’ understanding about the goals of S&T. Results Students in the EED condition surpassed students in the non-EED condition. The results support the claim that students’ awareness about the interrelationship between S&T is improved when integrating EED into classroom activities that are credibly authentic and relevant from the students’ perspective. Conclusion Discursive reflection activities have an important role to play in helping students appreciate aspects of the nature of science and the nature of technology as part of their science classes. The integration of epistemological insights in the objectives of science education and the findings of this study are particularly relevant for contemporary efforts to promote education for innovation and entrepreneurship.
Influence of Spores Concentration, Moisture, Ammonium Sulphate Concentration and Temperature on Polygalacturonase Production Using Cashew Apple in the Solid State Fermentation Process

The pectinases are one of the most used enzymes in food industry. The aim of this work was the polygalacturonases production using the cashew apple dry bagasse such as substrate and the microorganism Aspergillus niger CCT0916 in a solid state fermentation process, checking the influence of spores concentration, moisture, ammonium sulphate concentration and temperature, using a response surface methodology, observing the polygalacturonase activity response. The maximum polygalacturonase activity (33 U/g) was obtained with 50 %(w.b.), 10 spores per gram of humid medium, 1.5 %(w/w) of ammonium sulphate and 35oC at 29 hours of fermentation. The model for 29 hours of fermentation is statistically significant with 95% confidence. The moisture is the variable that most influences the process, having a positive effect on response, as the temperature of fermentation. The concentration of inoculums resulted in negative effect and the nitrogen concentration do not show any effect on polygalacturonase activity.
FACE THREATENING ACTS (FTAs) IN AIPAC POLITICAL ANNUAL SPEECHES BETWEEN 2006 AND 2012

Face Threatening Acts are politeness forms which have been struggled over in the past and now as they are pragmatically deemed relevant in identifying centripetal and centrifugal movements exerted by political actors on their interlocutors. The findings on approaching political discourse from politeness perspective have been controversial and ranged from being confined to the interactional level to negotiating implicit power relations.This present study offers a politeness theoretical framework to examine AIPAC political annual speeches between 2006 and 2012. The target of this research is to understand which politeness strategies political actors deploy when addressing the audience and how these political speakers please the other and fulfill political ends. The results display an over-reliance on Face Threatening Acts on record with redressive action at the expense of Face Threatening Acts on record without redressive action and Face Threatening Acts off record. Positive politeness, notably expressive speech acts, play an inclusive role, gain the audience sympathy and reshape public opinion. The study fills the gap in the study of the impact of positive politeness on political discourse and calls for the consideration of expressive speech acts as means of power negotiation rather than mere interaction.
Insight into Active Centers and Anti-Coke Behavior of Niobium-Containing SBA-15 for Glycerol Dehydration

Niobium containing SBA-15 was prepared by two methods: impregnation with different amounts of ammonium niobate(V) oxalate (Nb-15/SBA-15 and Nb-25/SBA-15 containing 15 wt.% and 25 wt.% of Nb, respectively) and mixing of mesoporous silica with Nb2O5 followed by heating at 500 °C (Nb2O5/SBA-15). The use of these two procedures allowed obtaining materials with different textural/surface properties determined by N2 adsorption/desorption isotherms, XRD, UV-Vis, pyridine, and NO adsorption combined with FTIR spectroscopy. Nb2O5/SBA-15 contained exclusively crystalline Nb2O5 on the SBA-15 surface, whereas the materials prepared by impregnation had both metal oxide and niobium incorporated into the silica matrix. The niobium species localized in silica framework generated Brønsted (BAS) and Lewis (LAS) acid sites. The inclusion of niobium into SBA-15 skeleton was crucial for the achievement of high catalytic performance. The strongest BAS were on Nb-25/SBA-15, whereas the highest concentration of BAS and LAS was on Nb-15/SBA-15 surface. Nb2O5/SBA-15 material possessed only weak LAS and BAS. The presence of the strongest BAS (Nb-25/SBA-15) resulted in the highest dehydration activity, whereas a high concentration of BAS was unfavorable. Silylation of niobium catalysts prepared by impregnation reduced the number of acidic sites and significantly increased acrolein yield and selectivity (from ca. 43% selectivity for Nb-25/SBA-15 to ca. 61% for silylated sample). This was accompanied by a considerable decrease in coke formation (from 47% selectivity for Nb-25/SBA-15 to 27% for silylated material).
Front dynamics of supercritical non‐Boussinesq gravity currents

In this paper, we seek similarity solutions to the shallow water (Saint‐Venant) equations for describing the motion of a non‐Boussinesq, gravity‐driven current in an inertial regime. The current is supplied in fluid by a source placed at the inlet of a horizontal plane. Gratton and Vigo (1994) found similarity solutions to the Saint‐Venant equations when a Benjamin‐like boundary condition was imposed at the front (i.e., nonzero flow depth); the Benjamin condition represents the resisting effect of the ambient fluid for a Boussinesq current (i.e., a small‐density mismatch between the current and the surrounding fluid). In contrast, for non‐Boussinesq currents the flow depth is expected to be zero at the front in absence of friction. In this paper, we show that the Saint‐Venant equations also admit similarity solutions in the case of non‐Boussinesq regimes provided that there is no shear in the vertical profile of the streamwise velocity field. In that case, the front takes the form of an acute wedge with a straight free boundary and is separated from the body by a bore.
The Effect of Agricultural Commercialization on Household Food Security among Smallholder Farmers in Zhombe North Rural District of Zimbabwe

ORIGINAL ARTICLE Background: Achievement of food security has become one of the major challenges of most developing countries, including Zimbabwe. This study was designed to investigate the effect of agricultural commercialization on household food security. Methods: This study used cross-sectional data for the 2017/18 farming season collected from 165 smallholder farmer households in Zhombe north rural district in Zimbabwe. Instrumental variable regression model was applied for data analysis over the effect of agricultural commercialization. Agricultural commercialization was measured using the crop output market participation share (COMPS). Results: The results revealed that COMPS, household head age, household head gender, and income per capita had a significant positive influence on household food security. Conclusions: The results indicate that agricultural commercialization and socio-economic characteristics have a role to play in defining the household’s food security. Therefore, the findings recommend policies that would promote agricultural commercialization, which improve household food security in turn. The study recommends policymakers to promote agricultural commercialization, since it positively contributed towards household food security. In addition, youngheaded, female-headed, and low-income earning households that were identified as the food insecure households.
Wide bandgap tunability of N-alloyed ZnGa2O4 thin films

ZnGa2O4 films with different nitrogen impurity concentrations were deposited using radio frequency magnetron sputtering in an ammonia (NH3)/Ar gas mixture and were post-annealed at different temperatures, ranging from 600 °C to 900 °C, in NH3 atmosphere. The influence of ammonia partial pressure ratio and nitridation temperature on the microstructure, surface morphology, nitrogen doping profile, and optical properties has been investigated. The optical band gap of ZnGa2O4, under in-situ nitrogen-doping, decreases from 4.6 to 4.1 eV but the primitive ZnGa2O4 crystalline structure does not change. On nitridation, the optical band gap gradually decreases from 4.6 to 2.1 eV and the ZnGa2O4 changes into a zinc gallium oxynitride quaternary alloy structure. Secondary ion mass spectrometry analysis revealed that nitrogen atoms were uniformly distributed in the film. The narrowing, by more than 40%, of the optical band gap is attributed to the hybridization of Zn3d and N2p orbits promote p-d repulsion in the top of the valence band, and the formation of hexagonal wurtzite phase.
The Nexus between Team Culture, Innovative Work Behaviour and Tacit Knowledge Sharing: Theory and Evidence

Tacit knowledge sharing is an essential intellectual capital for frontline employees in hotel enterprises. While the relationship of knowledge sharing with team culture (TC) and innovative work behavior (IWB) was investigated in the extant literature, little is known about the extent to which tacit knowledge sharing affects TC and IWB. In this regard, the purpose of this study is to investigate the role of tacit knowledge sharing in the relationship between TC and IWB. For this purpose, data were gathered from 360 department managers of Turkish 4–5 star hotels. The results were analyzed utilizing Smart PLS 3 using bootstrapping to determine the level of significance of the relationships between tacit knowledge sharing, TC and IWB. The results show statistically significant relationships between tacit knowledge sharing, TC and IWB. Moreover, tacit knowledge sharing has a mediating role in the relationship between team culture and innovative work behavior.
Observations of the γ-ray-emitting narrow-line Seyfert 1, SBS 0846+513, and its host galaxy

The γ-ray-emitting galaxy SBS 0846+513 has been classified as a narrow-line Seyfert 1 (NLS1) from its spectroscopy, and on that basis would be thought likely to have a small central black hole hosted in a spiral galaxy. However, very few of the γ-ray NLS1s have high-resolution imaging of their hosts, so it is unknown how the morphology expectation holds up for the γ-emitting class. We have observed this galaxy in the J band with the Large Binocular Telescope’s LUCI1 camera and the ARGOS adaptive optics system. We estimate its black hole mass to lie between $4.2\times 10^7 \le \frac{\rm{\it{ M}}}{\text{M}_\odot } \le 9.7\times 10^7$, using the correlation with bulge luminosity, or $1.9\times 10^7 \le \frac{\rm{\it{ M}}}{\text{M}_\odot } \le 2.4\times 10^7$ using the correlation with Sérsic index. Our favoured estimate is 4.2 × 107 M⊙, putting its mass at the high end of the NLS1 range in general but consistent with others that are γ-ray emitters. These estimates are independent of the broad-line region viewing geometry and avoid any underestimates due to looking down the jet axis. Its host shows evidence of a bulge + disc structure, from the isophote shape and residual structure in the nuclear-subtracted image. This supports the idea that γ-ray NLS1 may be spiral galaxies, like their non-jetted counterparts.
Misinformation about fake news: A systematic critical review of empirical studies on the phenomenon and its status as a ‘threat’

After the 2016 US presidential elections, the term ‘fake news’ became synonymous with disinformation and a catch-all term for the problems that social networks were bringing to communication. Four years later, there are dozens of empirical studies that have attempted to describe and analyse an issue that, despite still being in the process of definition, has been identified as one of the key COVID-19 cyberthreats by Interpol, is considered a threat to democracy by many states and supranational institutions and, as a consequence, is subject to regulation or even criminalization. These legislative and criminal policy interventions form part of the first stage in the construction of a moral panic that may lead to the restriction of freedom of expression and information. By analysing empirical research that attempts to measure the extent of the issue and its impact, the present article aims to provide critical reflection on the process of constructing fake news as a threat. Via a systematic review of the literature, we observe, firstly, that the concept of fake news used in empirical research is limited and should be refocused because it has not been constructed according to scientific criteria and can fail to include relevant elements and actors, such as governments and traditional media. Secondly, the article analyses what is known scientifically about the extent, consumption and impact of fake news and argues that it is problematic to establish causal relationships between the issue and the effects it has been said to produce. This conclusion requires us to conduct further research and to reconsider the position of fake news as a threat as well as the resulting regulation and criminalization.
The Effect of Salicylic Acid on the Performances of Salt Stressed Strawberry Plants, Enzymes Activity, and Salt Tolerance Index

The influence of salicylic acid (SA) on growth, yield, fruits’ quality and enzymes’ activities was monitored in strawberry plants cv. Camarosa grown under salinity stress via two pot experiments in two successive years of 2018 and 2019. The examined concentrations of SA were 30, 60, and 90 ppm, which foliary applied in addition to control (sprayed with water), while the used levels of salinity were 20, and 40 mM as NaCl as irrigation application in addition to control (without salinity). The results showed a significant effect of salinity at 40 mM where the mean values of shoot fresh and dry weights, chlorophyll, leaves’ NPK, yield plant−1, yield ha−1, and fruits’ ascorbic acid were significantly decreased. However, the 40 mM salinity resulted in a significant increase in leaves’ content of Na and proline as well as catalase (CAT) and peroxidase (POD) enzymes’ activity and the fruits’ TSS and acidity. The application with 90 ppm SA was found to be the most significant positive treatment for all of the studied characters except the Na leaves’ content. Regarding tolerance index percentages (STI%), the high values of CAT, POD, and proline referred to the ability to use them as indicators for strawberry salinity response in other physiological and plant breeding studies. The findings of this study suggest that the 90 ppm SA foliar application can ameliorate the negative effect of salinity on the growth of strawberry cv. Camarosa.
Brown Spot and Stalk Rot Diseases of Maize (Zea Mays) and Susceptibility of Two Varieties to Physoderma Maydis in Far North Cameroon

Corn (Zea mays L.) is one of the most widely grown cereals in the world. However, in Cameroon, particularly in the Far North Region, yields remain low because of diseases increasing due to farming practices and climate change. This work aimed to characterize Brown Spot and Stalk Rot of corn and evaluate the susceptibility of two maize varieties to Physoderma maydis in field conditions. Two maize varieties, CMS9015, and CMS8704 were evaluated in a randomized block design. Disease symptoms were observed and described using identification keys. Microscopic characteristics of pathogens were performed using a microscope. Incidence, severity, and areas under disease curve progress (AUIPC and AUSiPC) were calculated. Brown spot occurred 3 or 4 weeks after sowing (WAS) at the growing stage in CMS8704 variety first, and stalk rot 7 WAS. Brown spot appeared in leaves and is characterized by oval yellowish spots in the leaf blade and brownish spots in the midrid. Stalk rot infects stem nodes and is characterized by brownish spots, leading to the broken stem. The incidence of brown spot increased with time and environmental conditions (rainfall). The highest incidence of Physoderma Brown Spot was recorded with CMS8704 variety 53.06 % against 51.72 % with CMS9015. Severity was respectively 54.40 % and 47.12 % with CMS8704 and CMS9015. The incidence and severity of stalk rot were almost identical in both varieties. AUIPC of PBS and PSR was higher in CMS9015 than in CMS 8704, 63 DAS. PBS and PSR infect maize production, and both varieties are susceptible to P. maydis.
On the Difficulty of Hiding the Balance of Lightning Network Channels

The Lightning Network is a second layer technology running on top of Bitcoin and other Blockchains. It is composed of a peer-to-peer network, used to transfer raw information data. Some of the links in the peer-to-peer network are identified as payment channels, used to conduct payments between two Lightning Network clients (i.e., the two nodes of the channel). Payment channels are created with a fixed credit amount, the channel capacity. The channel capacity, together with the IP address of the nodes, is published to allow a routing algorithm to find an existing path between two nodes that do not have a direct payment channel. However, to preserve users' privacy, the precise balance of the pair of nodes of a given channel (i.e. the bandwidth of the channel in each direction), is kept secret. Since balances are not announced, second-layer nodes probe routes iteratively, until they find a successful route to the destination for the amount required, if any. This feature makes the routing discovery protocol less efficient but preserves the privacy of channel balances. In this paper, we present an attack to disclose the balance of a channel in the Lightning Network. Our attack is based on performing multiple payments ensuring that none of them is finalized, minimizing the economical cost of the attack. We present experimental results that validate our claims, and countermeasures to handle the attack.