Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Mathematics Curricula and Their Impact on Students' Mathematic Achievement.

MATHEMATIC CURRICULA AND THEIR IMPACT ON STUDENTS’ MATHEMATIC ACHIEVEMENT Rossana Nargi There is a broad consensus across the political spectrum on the need for K-12 education reform. The Obama administration focused on early childhood programs, common standards, charter schools, and more effective teachers. As school districts align curriculum and teaching practices with common core standards, standards-based mathematics programs are replacing traditional curriculum. The purpose of this study was to examine different types of curricula used to teach mathematics and its impact on student academic achievement. This research study analyzed the results of the 2013 Fourth Grade Mathematics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). Variables were developed from responses to school surveys that are part of this dataset. Variables used were the school reported use of curriculum in the classroom. The participants in this study consist of fourth grade mathematics students across the United States, including English Language Learners (Ells), both male and female, attending public and private schools. The research design of this study was a nonexperimental cross-sectional explanatory design (Johnson, 2001) that used a multiple regression analysis to measure the relationship of the predictive variables (commercially designed math curriculum, math curriculum structured by teacher discretion, math curriculum structured by state standards, math curriculum structured by district standards) and the dependent variable of student achievement on the 2013 NAEP mathematics assessment in 4th grade. A multiple regression analysis was conducted to explore the relationship between fourth grade, 2013 NAEP mathematics test scores and four different types of mathematics curricula. The selection of curriculum materials was an important undertaking. The significance of this study is to provide information concerning the effects of curricula on student mathematics achievement.
Liver Transplantation Due to Abdominal Trauma

An organ transplant is currently the treatment method of choice for a large number of patients with chronic or acute organ failure. However, the shortage of suitable donor organs poses a considerable problem for transplantation medicine not only in Germany (1, 2). The figure of 3,897 available postmortal donated organs in 2009 currently contrasts with the needs of approximately 12,000 patients waiting for a suitable donor organ (3). At the same time, the entries on transplant waiting lists have increased by about 45% in the last 17 years; this upward trend is expected to continue (4, 5). As a result, the shortage of suitable donor organs means that in Germany more than 1,000 patients on the transplant waiting list die every year. According to the German Organ transplant Foundation (DSO), three times as many people are waiting for a kidney transplant than the number of organs that can be procured (6-10). As a result, on average 3 people on the waiting list die every day because no suitable donor organ is available in time (11, 12).
Predicting Memory for Components of TV Commercials from EEG

Subjects watched television while EEG was being recorded and later completed a series of recognition tests based on component parts of the commercials they had seen. Memory correlated significantly with changes in the electrical patterns that occurred during viewing. The probability of correct recognition was enhanced when alpha blocking continued for a longer period of time and when hemispheric laterality shifted to the right during the onset of a commercial component and then to the left during the following seconds.
Real-Time Visual Servo Control of a Cartesian Robot

This paper focuses on the real-time target tracking for a Cartesian robot in 2 dimensions by using visual servo control. It is the process of controlling a system in servoloop by using visual image data as a referenced command to control the motion of a robot. The visual servo control can be divided into 2 loops. The first loop is image processing loop for tracking a target in video frame and the second loop is servo loop for feedback control of a Cartesian robot. A target tracking is based on color probability image using a Continuously Adaptive Mean Shift (CAMShift) algorithm that finds the most probable target position from color histogram in the current frame with a single stationary camera. The experimental results illustrate that a Cartesian robot is automatically follow a moving target and record it. The visual servo control can be adapted to more complex control applications.
Genetic diversity measures of 8 local sheep breeds in northwest of China for genetic resource conservation.

The aim of this study was to evaluate, through the use of microsatellite markers, the current genetic diversity and the relationships of 375 individuals from 8 local sheep breeds reared in typical breeding farms in the northwest of China, and moreover, to offer a contribution towards genetic conservation decisions for the studied breeds. The expected heterozygosities and allelic richness for the 8 breeds varied from 0.474 to 0.623 and from 3.8 to 5.4, respectively. All the populations showed a significant deficit in heterozygosity and a relatively low level of genetic diversity. Furthermore, the high positive F IS value (ranging from 0.255 to 0.556) indicated inbreeding to be one of the main causes for high genetic homogeneity and lack of heterozygosity in all breeds. The clustering analysis performed with the DISPAN package showed that Aletai, Kazak, Bashibai and Bayinbuluke were grouped together, and Hetian, Qira black and Duolang were grouped together, which indicated that the relationship among breeds displayed some degree of consistency with their geographical distribution, production and origin. These findings indicate that improved conservation measures must be undertaken to avoid further losses of genetic diversity and minimize inbreeding represented by these breeds.
Method development for extraction and purification of dermal RNA from FVB/N mice treated with environmental PAH mixtures

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are a class of environmentally persistent carcinogenic compounds present in the environment as complex mixtures. PAHs are formed either as incomplete combustion byproducts, in which carbon matter is only partially incinerated and the remaining carbon and hydrogen form fused aromatic rings, or during long term geological processes such as the formation of fossil fuels. Although PAHs are produced in part from natural sources, such as forest fires, anthropological processes, such as petroleum combustion, coal and biofuel burning, and oil spills, have led to dramatic increases in environmental PAH levels above naturally occurring concentrations (Zhang and Tao, 2009). PAHs are often divided into two different classifications based on their molecular weight: low molecular weight PAHs with two or three aromatic rings, such as naphthalene, and high
Regional balance of forest chip supply and demand in Finland in 2030

According to the National Energy and Climate Strategy of Finland in 2016, the demand for forest chips, that is, wood chips made of forest biomass directly for energy use, could even double by 2030 compared to the present situation. A spatially explicit impact analysis of regional supply and demand balances for forest chips was carried out. The balances were calculated as the difference between technical harvesting potentials and demand. First, the technical potentials were estimated based on the national forest inventory data. Secondly, three demand scenarios were defined for 2030 and subsequently deducted from the potentials. The results suggested that there would be increasing competition for feedstock in southern and western Finland, whereas in eastern and northern Finland there would still be surplus potential. Moreover, due to the remarkable deficit of small trees in southern Finland, there might be pressure towards using more pulpwood-sized and/or imported wood in energy production. The results also showed that, in particular, large new plants consuming substantial amounts of forest chips could have a significant effect on the regional availability of forest chips. Moreover, with increasing transport distances, new logistical solutions will be needed.
Unsupervised fusion of scattered data collected by a multi-sensor robot on concrete

At BAM a multi-sensor robot system BetoScan is used for the investigation of reinforced concrete floors affected by corrosion in parking garages . Potential maps, as well as the distribution of concrete cover and moisture can be assessed simultaneously and data can be collected contactlessly . In order to evaluate the extent of degradation adequately and to divide the investigated structure into zones with defined damage classes, large data sets have to be collected and interpreted manually. Thus, to promote an efficient data evaluation framework, which could speed up and simplify the evaluation of large data sets, an unsupervised data fusion is of major interest. However, taking into account that collected data do not certainly coincide in space, a scattered data interpolation method should be applied prior data fusion. In the paper, a case study involving a BetoScan data set acquired from a reinforced concrete floor of a parking garage in Germany is presented. The data set includes potential mapping, covermeter based on eddy current, as well as microwave moisture measurements. Among the examined methods for interpolation of scattered data, kriging shows to yield smooth interpolated data plots even in the case of very sparse data. In the post -processing step, the investigated structure is efficiently segmented into zones using clustering based data fusion methods, which prove to be robust enough also for handling noisy data. Based on the minimization of the XB validity index, an unsupervised selection of optimal segmentation into damage classes is derived.
Why EU Policy Harmonisation Undermines Refugee Burden-Sharing

Public policy making on asylum takes place in an environment of intense public scrutiny, strong institutional constraints and international collective action problems. By assessing the relative importance of key pull factors of international migration, this article explains why, even when controlling for their differences in size, some states receive a much larger number of asylum seekers than others. The analysis of 20 OECD countries for the period 1985-1999 further shows that some of the most high profile public policy measures—safe third country provisions, dispersal and voucher schemes—aimed, at least in part, at deterring unwanted migration and at addressing the highly unequal distribution of asylum burdens have often been ineffective. This is because the key determinants of an asylum seeker’s choice of host country are historical, economic and reputational factors that largely lie beyond the reach of asylum policy makers. Finally, the paper argues that the effectiveness of unilateral policy measures will be further undermined by multilateral attempts to harmonise restrictive policies and that current efforts such as those by the European Union will consolidate, rather than effectively address, existing disparities in the distribution of asylum burdens.
Determining Critical Thinking Dispositions of Nursing: A Comperative Study Views of Nursing Students About Ageing and Their Attitudes Toward Older People

Backgroud: Today's students are tomorrow's health care professionals. Geriatric age group, which is a permanent need for care for a population formed by the views of students and their attitudes towards old age, it is important to know. Objectives: This study was conducted to determine of nursing students' views about ageing and their attitudes toward older people. Methods: Nursing students in the first, second, third and fourth year (n = 308) of nursing programme at Ataturk University Faculty of Health Science in academic year 2010- 2011 and accepting take the research were the sample group of this descriptive study. Data were collected using the descriptive information form, the form of views about ageing and the Turkish version of Kogan's Attitudes towards Old People Scale. Data were evaluated by using frequency, percentage, t test, ANOVA and kruskal-wallis test. Results: It was found that after graduation, the small numbers of the students (4.2%) want to work with older age group and they were perceived ageing as "dependence, passiveness, poverty" and the students' attitudes toward older people point average is 99.49 ± 11.12. Conclusion: It was found that nursing students' opinions about ageing are mostly negative, their attitudes toward older people are positive. It would be useful to add the gerontology to undergraduate study curriculum in terms of fulfilling the lack of knowledge concerning this issue and quality of elder care.
Title Thyrotropin signaling confers more aggressive features with higher genomic instability on BRAFV 600 E-induced thyroid tumors in a mouse model

Title Thyrotropin signaling confers more aggressive features with higher genomic instability on BRAFV600E-induced thyroid tumors in a mouse model Author(s) Orim, Florence Citation Nagasaki University (長崎大学), 博士(医学) (2013-10-02) Issue Date 2013-10-02 URL http://hdl.handle. net/10069/35465 Right This is a copy of an article published in the Thyroid © 2014, Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.; Thyroid is available online at: http://online.liebertpub. com. NAOSITE: Nagasaki University's Academic Output SITE
Productivity and working costs of modern trench-cutters for the construction of concrete diaphragms in an urban environment

In the excavation of shallow underground works in an urban environment using the ‘cut and cover’ method, the choice is often made to use concrete diaphragms in order to support the side walls, before proceeding with the excavation of the ground. When these diaphragms exceed a depth of about 20 m, trench-cutters are generally used to excavate the panels, using a supply of bentonite mud. A remarkable development of trench-cutters has taken place over the last 30 years and these machines today allow panels to be excavated in any type of ground whatsoever, even when it is highly cemented. The experience that has been gained in Turin (Italy) in recent years can be considered interesting, because of the huge number of diaphragms that have been completed and the varying characteristics of the ground in the urban area, which ranges from loose sand and gravel to highly cemented ones. On the basis of detailed analysis of the in situ behaviour of trench-cutters in Turin and of laboratory investigations on the effects of wear on the tools, it has been possible to make a preliminary estimation of the construction costs and the productive times of the concrete diaphragms for the different types of geology.
Digital holography to light field

Holography uses wave (physical) optical principles of interference and diffraction to record and display images. Interference allows us to record the amplitude and phase of the optical wave emanating from an object on a film or recording medium and diffraction enables us to see this wave-field, i.e. the amplitude and phase of the object. Visually this corresponds to both perspective and depth information being reconstructed as in the original scene. Digital Holography has enabled quantification of phase which in some applications provides meaningful engineering parameters. There is growing interest in reconstructing this wavefield without interference. Thus the non-interferometric Transport of Intensity Equation (TIE) method is gaining increased research, which uses two or more defocused images to reconstruct the phase. Due to its non-interferometric nature, TIE relaxes the stringent beam-coherence requirements for interferometry, extending its applications to various optical fields with arbitrary spatial and temporal coherence. The alternate school of thought emerges from the computer science community primarily deals with ray optics. In a normal imaging system all rays emerging from an object point into are focused to a conjugate image point. Information of ray direction is lost and thus the perspective and depth information. A light field image is one that has information of both amplitude and direction of rays fanning from any object point and thus provides perspective (or what could be termed as phase) of the object wave as well. It would thus be possible to extract phase as we know it from this albeit for a coherent illumination case.
Evaluating the psychometric properties of the hypersensitive narcissism scale: Implications for the distinction of covert and overt narcissism

Recent research has suggested that the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR; American Psychiatric Association, 2000) may have mistakenly focused on the overt qualities of the narcissistic personality disorder (e.g. demand for admiration) while neglecting the disorder’s more covert features (Russ, Shedler, Bradley, & Westen, 2008). An investigation into the psychometric properties of a measure of this more covert form of narcissism, Hendin and Cheek’s (1997) Hypersensitive Narcissism Scale (HSNS), represents the focus of the present study. A total of 298 participants completed the measure, as well as measures assessing related constructs. The HSNS achieved high levels of reliability and demonstrated notable discriminant validity, producing a pattern of correlations highly congruent with theorized relationships. However, factor analyses revealed that the measure may not be assessing a unitary construct, and its relationship to the Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI; Raskin & Hall, 1979), a measure of overt narcissism, was somewhat unclear. It is concluded that the HSNS appears to assess covert narcissism, though its noted shortcomings suggests that a revision of the HSNS may be in order to improve its psychometric properties and clinical utility.
An Efficient Genetics Algorithm based Z-source Converter for Grid Connected System

This study deals with a simulation of robust and reliable three phase grid power interface system for photo voltaic modules using genetics algorithm based optimization technique. A control system is designed to harvest maximum solar energy under varied weather conditions with the use of a genetics algorithm based SVPWM controlled Z source fed multilevel inverter. Using Z-source networks, the system can work within a wider range of PV array output voltages than for a conventional boost converter. This study describes an modified genetics algorithm that reduces the computational burden and optimum switching angles are determined to eliminate lower order harmonics and reduces total harmonics distortion. The simulation is done using MATLAB and the simulation results are presented.
A system model and stack for the parallelization of time-critical applications on many-core architectures

Many embedded systems are subject to stringent timing requirementsthat compel them to "react" within prede_ned time bounds.The said "reaction" may be understood as simply outputting the resultsof a basic computation, but may also mean engaging in complex interactionswith the surrounding environment. Although these strict temporalrequirements advocate the use of simple and predictable hardwarearchitectures that allow for the computation of tight upper-bounds onthe software response time, meanwhile most of these embedded systemssteadily demand for more and more computational performance, whichweighs in favor of specialized, complex, and optimized multi-core andmany-core processors on which the execution of the application can beparallelized. However, it is not straightforward how event-based embeddedapplications can be structured in order to take advantage and fullyexploit the parallelization opportunities and achieve higher performanceand energy-e_fficient computing. The P-SOCRATES project envisions thenecessity to bring together next-generation many-core accelerators fromthe embedded computing domain with the programming models andtechniques from the high-performance computing domain, supportingthis with real-time methodologies to provide timing predictability. This paper gives an overview of the system model and software stackproposed in the P-SOCRATES project to facilitate the deployment andexecution of parallel applications on many-core infrastructures, whilepreserving the time-predictability of the execution required by real-timepractices to upper-bound the response time of the embedded application. © CISTER Research Center www.cister. isep.ipp. pt 1 A system model and stack for the parallelization of time-critical applications on many-core
N/P ratio of nutrient uptake in the Baltic Sea

Abstract. The N/P ratio of nutrient uptake, the change of dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) relative to the change of dissolved inorganic phosphorus (DIP), is a key parameter for many ecological models. In the Baltic Sea ecosystem, the N/P ratio of nutrient uptake varies among different basins and different seasons. The N/P ratio of nutrient alteration, i.e., the ratio of DIN to DIP altered before and after spring blooms, is not the same as the N/P ratio of nutrient uptake, but the former can be regarded as an indicator of the latter in the Baltic Sea. Based on the observed N/P ratio of nutrient alteration, we hypothesize a non-Redfield N/P ratio of nutrient uptake. The 3-D-ecosystem model ERGOM coupled with the circulation model DMI-BSHcmod was used to test this hypothesis. When the Redfield ratio was used in the model, the DIP surplus after spring blooms was too high and resulted in excessive growth of cyanobacteria and too much nitrogen fixation. When the non-Redfield ratio was used in the model, these problems tended to disappear. In summary, we show that: (1) the Redfield N/P ratio of nutrient uptake in the Baltic Sea tends to be too high; (2) a N/P ratio of 10:1 appears to work better than the Redfield value; and (3) the N/P ratio of nutrient uptake in the Baltic Proper during spring blooms is around 6:1. As the model limitation using one identical value for two N/P ratios for nutrient uptake and remineralization, the quantitative conclusions are only convincing as a model parameter even though it obviously improves model predictions. Whether this model parameter is consistent with the biological nutrient uptake is worth being further verified with some laboratory investigations or simulations using a more sophisticated model with independent N/P ratios for nutrient uptake and remineralization.
Bank of Canada Banque du Canada Working Paper 984 / Document de travail 984 A Discussion of the Reliability of Results Obtained with Long-Run Identifying Restrictions

In a recent article, Faust and Leeper (1997) discuss reasons why inference from structural VARs identified with long-run restrictions may not be reliable. In this paper, the authors argue that there are reasons to believe that Faust and Leeper’s arguments are not devastating in practice. First, simulation exercises suggest that this approach does well when used with data generated with standard macroeconomic models. Second, empirical applications suggest that it gives results that are much more robust than would be implied by Faust and Leeper’s main proposition. A reasonable approach would appear to be, therefore, to follow Sims’ (1971; 1972) and Dufour’s (1997) recommendation and to present robustness checks, allowing readers to judge for themselves what the effects of possible approximation errors might be.