Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Efectos del videojuego Tradislexia en la conciencia fonológica y reconocimiento de palabras en niños disléxicos

El objetivo de esta investigacion ha consistido en analizar los efectos del videojuego Tradislexia en la conciencia fonologica y reconocimiento de palabras en ninos dislexicos. Para ello se utilizo un diseno de grupo control pretest- postest, y se selecciono una muestra de 62 ninos (26 ninas y 36 ninos) de segundo y tercer ciclo de Educacion Primaria con un rango de edad entre 9 y 12 anos (M= 126.7; DT= 11.7). Una vez seleccionados, se asignaron al azar a un grupo Experimental (N= 32) y a un grupo Control (N= 30). Se administraron distintas tareas de conciencia fonologica de la Bateria Multimedia Sicole-R que incluian diferentes tipos de estructura silabica. Se analizo si el entrenamiento multimedia contribuye a mejorar los procesos fonologicos teniendo en cuenta el rendimiento alcanzado en funcion del tipo de tarea y tipo de estructura silabica y si ello contribuye a mejorar el reconocimiento de palabras. Los resultados demuestran que cuando se controla la posicion del fonema, el entrenamiento en segmentacion y sintesis en palabras con estructura CV predice de forma significativa la mejora en los procesos de reconocimiento de palabras. Effects of Tradislexia videogame on phonological awareness and word recognition in dyslexic children. The purpose of this research was to analyze the effects of multimedia training on phonological awareness and word recognition in dyslexic children. We used a control pretest-posttest design, and a sample of 62 children (26 male, 36 female) was selected from Primary Education. Children were selected and classified into two different groups: (1) an experimental group (N= 32), and (2) a control group (N= 30). The average range age was 9 and 12 years (M= 126.7, SD= 11.7). We administered phonological awareness tasks, which include different types of syllabic structure from the Sicole-R Multimedia Battery for assessment of cognitive processes in reading. We analyzed whether the Tradislexia videogame affected phonological awareness, considering separately the complexity of syllable structure and type of phonological awareness task. We also analyzed whether the gains in phonological processes were related to training based on type of task or type of syllable structure. The results showed that when we controlled the position of phoneme, the multimedia treatment in segmentation and blending with words that include CV syllables is a better predictor to explain improvement of word decoding processes.
Real-time, in vivo confocal reflectance microscopy of basal cell carcinoma.

BACKGROUND Real-time, near-infrared confocal laser scanning microscopy may provide a way to diagnose basal cell carcinoma in vivo and might potentially eliminate the need for invasive diagnostic biopsies in the future. OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study is to define the in vivo histologic features of basal cell carcinoma by using a high-resolution imaging technique. METHODS Five fair-skinned white patients with 8 basal cell carcinoma lesions were recruited for this study. Near-infrared reflectance confocal microscopy imaging was used to characterize the histologic features of these lesions in vivo. Subsequently, the confocal histologic features were correlated with the corresponding routine hematoxylin-and-eosin-stained sections obtained from invasive biopsies. RESULTS A uniform population of basal cell carcinoma cells with characteristic elongated nuclei oriented along the same axis was always present. Abundant blood vessels demonstrating prominent tortuosity were seen, as well as prominent, predominantly mononuclear inflammatory infiltrate admixed or in close apposition with basal cell carcinoma cells. Trafficking of leukocytes was visualized in real time. CONCLUSION Our results demonstrate that near-infrared confocal microscopy may facilitate diagnosis of basal cell carcinoma with the use of in vivo high-resolution confocal features. Accuracy studies to evaluate these in vivo histologic criteria are warranted.
Therapeutic processes in virtual reality exposure therapy: The role of cognitions and the therapeutic alliance

Little is known about the processes involved in Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy (VRET), including the role of the therapeutic alliance and the patients' cognitions. This study was designed to investigate VRET processes in patients with specific phobias. We analyzed the influence of VRET on self-efficacy and negative self-statements without addressing these cognitions directly through treatment. In addition, we examined whether the quality of the therapeutic alliance as assessed with the Working Alliance Inventory (WAI) predicted successful outcome in VRET in terms of anxiety reduction. As expected, results showed that anxiety was reduced through treatment and an increase in self-efficacy, and a decrease in negative self-statements was observed. The quality of the therapeutic alliance was only positively related to outcome in fear of flying patients, but not in patients with acrophobia.
Humor As a Stress Moderator in the Prediction of Blood Pressure Obtained during Five Stressful Tasks

Abstract In five consecutive stressful tasks we examined the role of humor as a potential stress moderator using systolic and diastolic blood pressure as an indication of cardiovascular reactivity. In all five tasks, the Coping Humor Scale interacted with sex in the prediction of blood pressure. The same pattern was found in response to each of the five tasks: Females who were higher in coping humor exhibited lower systolic blood pressure than females scoring lower on coping humor, while the reverse characterized males; males who scored high on the coping humor scale exhibited higher systolic blood pressure than males scoring low on that scale. Similar though less robust results were found when the Situational Humor Response Questionnaire was used as the measure of humor. In the Cold Pressor Task, which involves pain and endurance, interactions were found between humor, sex, and trials indicating a stress-moderator effect. The absence of interactions indicating stress moderation in most of the analyses with the other four stress tasks suggests that humor may play more of a role in moderating the impact of uncontrollable and passively experienced stressors. Tasks requiring more active, problem-solving behavior may be less amenable to the beneficial effects of humor. The findings do not clearly resolve the questions about the role of humor in effecting responses to stress. However, they do suggest that the subjects' sex may be an important consideration when evaluating the impact of humor as a stress moderator.
Synthesis and Design of Microwave Filters with Direct Source-Load Coupling

This paper presents a method for synthesizing microwave filters with source-load coupling. The equivalent circuit of the low-pass prototype of a general lossless coupled resonator filter is proposed, and the corresponding transfer function t(s) is derived. Then, two microstrip filters with source-load coupling, one symmetric and the other asymmetric, are designed, and the simulations are completed. The evaluated and simulated data are in good agreement.
Verification of Durational Action Timed Automata using UPPAAL

The increasing complexity of software is incessant, this phenomenon is even more accentuated when temporal aspects are introduced, hence the need for rigorous verification methods. The main purpose of this paper is to propose a quantitative verification approach based on model checking. Their properties are expressed in TCTL (Timed Computation Tree Logic) on real-time systems. The system behavior is expressed by temporal labeled systems; namely Durational Action Timed Automata model (DATA* model). This model supports the expression of the parallel behavior, the temporal and structural non-atomicity of actions and urgency.
Optimal operation for energy storage with wind power generation using adaptive dynamic programming

Due to the increasing of intermittent power generation from renewable energy in the smart grid, such as wind power, the unbalance between generation and load demand becomes a critical problem for the power system optimal economic operation. Fortunately, the incorporation of large energy storage device (ESD) into power system operation management could address this problem. In this paper, the energy storage (ES) optimal operation/allocation for smart grid with stochastic wind power generation is investigated. By using adaptive dynamic programming (ADP), five types of real-world ES system, such as electrochemical-based, electrical-based and mechanical-based, with different capacity, charing/discharing rates and efficiency are compared under benchmark energy storage problems with simulation analysis. Moreover, we compare two important parameters (i.e., capacity and charging/dischanrging rates) on average over all storage benchmarks to further investigate the influence on the total profit. Based on the simulation results, we demonstrate that the investigated parameters of the storage device have large influence on the profit.
Use of multiple representations in technology rich environments

In this study we present part of a research project that aims to develop prospective mathematics teachers’ Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPCK) (Mishra and Koehler 2006). The project considers various TPCK components (see Ozmantar et al. 2010). This report focuses on a particular component, namely the knowledge of using multiple representations (MRs) with technology . A course was designed using the TPCK framework, and forty prospective mathematics teachers took part in the course. They were enrolled in a teacher preparation programme in a state university in Istanbul, Turkey. As part of this course, prospective teachers participated in workshops during which they were introduced to the TPCK framework, which was illustrated using function and derivative concepts. The workshops included examples of MRs, how to make links among them, and the way in which technology could contribute to achieving the intended linkages.
Factors Associated With Expressive and Receptive Language in French-Speaking Toddlers Clinically Diagnosed With Language Delay

The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine child and environmental factors known to be associated to language development and how they relate to results in expressive vocabulary, expressive language, and receptive language in language-delayed toddlers. The cross-sectional data on 96 French-speaking children aged 18–36 months were gathered at the point of entry into a longitudinal study of 2-year-old children displaying language delay. Measures of language, child development, and child and environmental factors were administered. When several factors individually associated with language development were considered concurrently, cognitive development was consistently associated with the outcomes. Other child factors, such as male gender and age, were also retained in the regression model explaining expressive vocabulary, whereas only age was added in the model explaining expressive language. Two environmental factors were involved in receptive language; that is, parental education and parental stress accounted for 8% of the variance. Factors linked to development varied across language modalities such that parental education and parental stress were related to comprehension but not to production. The findings suggest a strong biological trajectory for expressive language development and vocabulary production, which are not affected by environmental factors.
Activities information diffusion in Chinese largest recommendation social network: Patterns and generative model

Nowadays, networks play an indispensable role in social life, and social networks have become a new advertising medium for offline activities. Previous studies of information diffusion or behavior spread over social networks have mostly focused on diffusion models and analysis of virtual interaction between online users, and very few of them focus on the propagation of real world activities in these social networks. To address this problem, we use data obtained from the Chinese largest recommendation social network - Douban, and study how the offline activities spread from one user to another through Douban. By using cascading subgraphs and diffusion trees, we break a whole cascade into local subgraphs. After analyzing the activities of about 1.47 million users, we observe the statistical and topological characteristics of these local cascading subgraphs. Next, we find the size and degree distributions of these cascading subgraphs and several common patterns of topology of local cascades. Moreover, we also have some other interesting discoveries, like the relation between the number of initial adopters and the final cascade size, and the underlying influences driving user behaviors. Finally, we propose a diffusion model that can generate information cascades that follow the patterns we have observed, and validate it by empirical analysis.
Effects of nutrient content claims, sports celebrity endorsements and premium offers on pre‐adolescent children's food preferences: experimental research

Food marketing has come under scrutiny for its likely contribution to promoting unhealthy eating and obesity in children. There is limited published evidence regarding the effects of food packaging promotions on children. Nutrient content claims and sports celebrity endorsements on food packs influence adults to prefer energy‐dense and nutrient‐poor (EDNP) products bearing such promotions, especially among the majority who do not read the nutrition information panel.
A Weibull Approach for Improving Climate Model Projections of Tropical Cyclone Wind-Speed Distributions

AbstractReliable estimates of future changes in extreme weather phenomena, such as tropical cyclone maximum wind speeds, are critical for climate change impact assessments and the development of appropriate adaptation strategies. However, global and regional climate model outputs are often too coarse for direct use in these applications, with variables such as wind speed having truncated probability distributions compared to those of observations. This poses two problems: How can model-simulated variables best be adjusted to make them more realistic? And how can such adjustments be used to make more reliable predictions of future changes in their distribution? This study investigates North Atlantic tropical cyclone maximum wind speeds from observations (1950–2010) and regional climate model simulations (1995–2005 and 2045–55 at 12- and 36-km spatial resolutions). The wind speed distributions in these datasets are well represented by the Weibull distribution, albeit with different scale and shape parameters.
Playing and Making Games for Learning

This article presents an overview of what we know about two perspectives, coined instructionist and constructionist, to games for learning. The instructionists, accustomed to thinking in terms of making instructional educational materials, turn naturally to the concept of designing instructional games. Far fewer people have sought to turn the tables: by making games for learning instead of playing games for learning. Rather than embedding “lessons” directly in games, constructionists have focused their efforts on providing students with greater opportunities to construct their own games—and to construct new relationships with knowledge in the process. Research has only begun to build a body of experience that willmake us believe in the value of playing and making games for learning.
“Where Have You Brought us, Sir?”: Gender, Displacement, and the Challenges of “Homecoming” for Indian Jews in Dimona, 1950s-60s

Hundreds of Jews who migrated from India to Israel in the 1950s and 1960s were settled in Israeli development towns. Ironically, many Indian Jews had left bustling urban centers like Bombay, only to be dropped off in dry, dusty, underdeveloped towns in the Negev desert. This article explores the postmigration experience of first-generation Indian Jewish women migrants settled in the town of Dimona, Israel. Drawing upon extensive ethnographic research and personal narratives, this paper analyzes the ramifications of this migration on the social, economic, linguistic, and cultural identities of these women. Highlighting the challenges faced by them as wives, mothers, and members of a labor force, the article underscores the gendered nature of this experience and its impact on the postaliya lives of these Indian Jewish migrants. The article argues that while Indian Jewish communities have successfully created supportive and associational networks across many development towns, Israeli towns like Dimona, which remain largely frozen in time, have also adversely affected the prospects of the second generation born to these Indian Jewish women who made aliya in the 1960s.
Making Heads or Tails: Planarian Stem Cells in the Classroom†

Stem cells hold great promise in the treatment of diseases ranging from cancer to dementia. However, as rapidly as the field of stem cell biology has emerged, heated political debate has followed, scrutinizing the ethical implications of stem cell use. It is therefore imperative to promote scientific literacy by educating students about stem cell biology. Yet, there is a definite lack of material to engage students in this subject at the basic science level. Therefore, we have developed and implemented a hands-on introductory laboratory module that introduces students to stem cell biology and can be easily incorporated into existing curricula. Students learn about stem cell biology using an in vivo planarian model system in which they down-regulate two genes important in stem cell differentiation using RNA interference and then observe the regenerative phenotype. The module was piloted at the high school, community college, and university levels. Here, we report that introductory biology students enrolled at a community college were able to demonstrate gains in learning after completion of a one-hour lecture and four 45-minute laboratory sessions over the course of three weeks. These gains in learning outcomes were objectively evaluated both before and after its execution using a student quiz and experimental results. Furthermore, students’ self-assessments revealed increases in perceived knowledge as well as a general interest in stem cells. Therefore, these data suggest that this module is a simple, useful way to engage and to teach students about stem cell biology.
Identification of respiratory phases using seismocardiogram: A machine learning approach

This study was aimed at developing an algorithm that could identify the respiratory phases, i.e. inspiration (I) or expiration (E), by analysing seismocardiogram (SCG) cycles. In order to better assess SCG cycles, it is needed to discriminate the cycles based on their position in the respiratory phases. The total 2146 SCG cycles obtained from 45 subjects were studied, in which 1109 cycles were in phase I, and the rest in phase E. Support vector machine (SVM), a powerful machine learning algorithm, was employed to identify the respiratory phase of SCG cycles. The systolic interval of each SCG cycle was divided to 32 equal bins, and the averages of these bins obtained the feature vector associated with each cycle. The SVM model was trained using half the data, and then was tested on the other half. The developed model could correctly identify 88% of the testing data. The obtained results are promising and can establish a solid ground for further analysis.
Gas-Liquid Coexistence in the Primitive Model for Water

We evaluate the location of the gas-liquid coexistence line and of the associated critical point for the primitive model for water (PMW), introduced by Kolafa and Nezbeda [J. Kolafa and I. Nezbeda, Mol. Phys. 61, 161 (1987)]. Besides being a simple model for a molecular network forming liquid, the PMW is representative of patchy proteins and novel colloidal particles interacting with localized directional short-range attractions. We show that the gas-liquid phase separation is metastable, i.e. it takes place in the region of the phase diagram where the crystal phase is thermodynamically favored, as in the case of particles interacting via short-range attractive spherical potentials. Differently from spherical potentials, we do not observe crystallization close to the critical point. The region of gas-liquid instability of this patchy model is significantly reduced as compared to equivalent models of spherically interacting particles, confirming the possibility of observing kinetic arrest in an homogeneous sample driven by bonding as opposed to packing.
On Stereo Confidence Measures for Global Methods: Evaluation, New Model and Integration into Occupancy Grids

Stereo confidence measures are important functions for global reconstruction methods and some applications of stereo. In this article we evaluate and compare several models of confidence which are defined at the whole disparity range. We propose a new stereo confidence measure to which we call the Histogram Sensor Model (HSM), and show how it is one of the best performing functions overall. We also introduce, for parametric models, a systematic method for estimating their parameters which is shown to lead to better performance when compared to parameters as computed in previous literature. All models were evaluated when applied to two different cost functions at different window sizes and model parameters. Contrary to previous stereo confidence measure benchmark literature, we evaluate the models with criteria important not only to winner-take-all stereo, but also to global applications. To this end, we evaluate the models on a real-world application using a recent formulation of 3D reconstruction through occupancy grids which integrates stereo confidence at all disparities. We obtain and discuss our results on both indoors' and outdoors' publicly available datasets.
Refractometric Sensing Using High-Order Diffraction Spots From Ordered Vertical Silicon Nanowire Arrays

We propose to use high-order diffraction spots from 2-D silicon nanowire (NW) arrays for refractive index sensing based on spatial changes in the diffractive spots position. The NW arrays act both as a refractive index sensor and as dispersive elements, eliminating the need for external spectrometers for the measurement of refractive index changes. The setup uses a simple laser diode source and a low-cost camera and results in higher sensitivity to environmental refractive index changes, as compared with previously demonstrated colorimetric sensors. The sensitivity is greater for higher order diffraction spots, as compared with the lower order ones due to a larger dispersion angle change at higher orders. We also demonstrate that the observed diffraction angle and efficiency of the diffractive orders depend on a number of factors, such as excitation wavelength, NW diameters, pitch, and surrounding medium index. The simple solution of using diffraction spot displacements on a 2-D detector array would provide a novel means of sensing refractive index changes in the surrounding medium of NWs without the burden of complicated spectral analysis.