Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
How do Spanish EFL learners perceive grammar instruction and corrective feedback?

Abstract This research study of an exploratory-interpretive nature mainly focuses on the role and effectiveness of grammar instruction and corrective feedback as controversial areas of language instruction of considerable debate in SLA research and L2 pedagogy. Since the question today is no longer whether or not to teach grammar but rather how grammar could be best taught in classrooms, the results revealed that although most learners acknowledged the importance and potential usefulness of grammar instruction and corrective feedback for L2 acquisition, the fact is that they prioritised communication over grammar. Emphasis was mainly placed on using the language communicatively rather than focusing on grammar accuracy. Learners expect and/ or wish to transfer their grammatical knowledge into communicative language use. The results suggest the need for further opportunities for practising communicative language use rather than practising formal grammar in a very controlled way in class. While negative attitudes to grammar instruction were found, evidence of positive attitudes to corrective feedback in contrast were also found because most learners expect and wish to be corrected regularly in classroom settings, moreover they may also feel upset when they neither receive nor understand the teachers’ corrective feedback.
Magnetic tunnel junctions with a 
B2
-ordered CoFeCrAl equiatomic Heusler alloy

The equiatomic quaternary Heusler alloy CoFeCrAl is a candidate material for spin-gapless semiconductors (SGSs). However, to date, there have been no experimental attempts at fabricating a junction device. This paper reports a fully epitaxial (001)-oriented MgO barrier magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) with CoFeCrAl electrodes grown on a Cr buffer. X-ray and electron diffraction measurements show that the (001) CoFeCrAl electrode films with atomically flat surfaces have a $B2$-ordered phase. The saturation magnetization is 380 emu/cm$^3$, almost the same as the value given by the Slater--Pauling--like rule, and the maximum tunnel magnetoresistance ratios at 300 K and 10 K are 87% and 165%, respectively. Cross-sectional electron diffraction analysis shows that the MTJs have MgO interfaces with fewer dislocations. The temperature- and bias-voltage-dependence of the transport measurements indicates magnon-induced inelastic electron tunneling overlapping with the coherent electron tunneling. X-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) measurements show a ferromagnetic arrangement of the Co and Fe magnetic moments of $B2$-ordered CoFeCrAl, in contrast to the ferrimagnetic arrangement predicted for the $Y$-ordered state possessing SGS characteristics. Ab-initio calculations taking account of the Cr-Fe swap disorder qualitatively explain the XMCD results. Finally, the effect of the Cr-Fe swap disorder on the ability for electronic states to allow coherent electron tunneling is discussed.
BOOK REVIEW: Generalized Latent Variable Modeling. Multilevel, Longitudinal, and Structural Equation Models by Anders Skrondal and Sophia Rabe-Hesketh

Modeling has come a long way. Terms such as structural equation models, hierarchical linear models, latent class models, linear factor models, dynamical models, logit models, log-linear models, survival analysis, and many more are common place in the empirical sciences. The statistical methods labeled by these terms are at the brink of replacing classical statistical testing. Despite their general and increasing acceptance, these models have been developed both separately from each other and in different disciplines. Camps of freaks have emerged, often with little or no cross-fertilization but considerable unobserved heterogeneity. In this situation, but even more so from the perspective of developing the field, the volume by Skrondal and Rabe-Hesketh is more than welcome. The volume was written with the goal to provide a unifying framework for the previously mentioned models and many other models, all seen from the perspective of the generalized linear model. Fittingly, this volume appeared in the Interdisciplinary Statistics series, published by Chapman & Hall. To present my general conclusion upfront, the authors did reach the goals under which this volume was written. The authors demonstrate that it is possible to formulate an umbrella framework. Seemingly discrepant models such as structural equations models and log-linear models can be cast in the terms of such an overarching model. As a consequence, models can be specified that include different types of response data, including, for instance, dichotomous, continuous, and ordinal data in one model. This demonstrates how massive the progress is that has been made.
Correction on ‘Population Genetics Models with Skewed Fertilities: A Forward and Backward Analysis’

The article ’Population genetics models with skewed fertilities: a forward and backward analysis’, Stochastic Models 27, 521–554 (2011) contains at the top of page 536 a formula for the joint factorial moments of the offspring numbers μ1,…, μ N , which is wrong in that generality. The only compound Poisson models for which this formula holds true are skewed generalized Wright–Fisher models and skewed generalized Dirichlet models. In this note we correct the erroneous results in Section 4 of the mentioned article from Proposition 4.2 on. The main conclusion that many symmetric compound Poisson population models are in the domain of attraction of the Kingman coalescent, remains valid. However, the proofs turn out to be more involved and the time-scaling differs from the erroneous time-scaling provided in the original article.
Grieving home

Drawing on the growing areas of research on emotional embodiment, this paper develops an understanding of the spatiality of grief as central to the discussion of young people's experiences of homelessness. In the context of my engagement with young homeless people in inner-city Sydney, I explore grief as central in shaping young people's everyday body–place relations. I argue that grief over often brutal past homes continues to haunt young people and impact on the ways in which they relate to place, including the place of their own body. I explore young people's displacement and grief-stricken forms of inhabitation as well and their discovery of ‘therapeutic’ places which allow the re-formation of more positive relations to place and self. I argue that while it is understood that grief and trauma are key causes of homelessness amongst young people, grief is rarely explored as an embodied practice, or as a key factor which continues to underpin trajectories of homelessness after initial exits from home.
A variant of forward-backward splitting method for the sum of two monotone operators with a new search strategy

In this paper, we propose variants of Forward-Backward splitting method for finding a zero of the sum of two operators. A classical modification of Forward-Backward method was proposed by Tseng, which is known to converge when the forward and the backward operators are monotone and with Lipschitz continuity of the forward operator. The conceptual algorithm proposed here improves Tseng’s method in some instances. The first and main part of our approach, contains an explicit Armijo-type search in the spirit of the extragradient-like methods for variational inequalities. During the iteration process, the search performs only one calculation of the forward-backward operator in each tentative of the step. This achieves a considerable computational saving when the forward-backward operator is computationally expensive. The second part of the scheme consists in special projection steps. The convergence analysis of the proposed scheme is given assuming monotonicity on both operators, without Lipschitz continuity assumption on the forward operator.
Book Reviews

Belfast: Segregation, Violence and the City provides a strong indictment of the discourse of ‘normalisation’ which claims that Belfast is moving away from sectarian division and violence towards an urban culture of coffee shops and conspicuous consumption. As the title implies, Shirlow and Murtagh identify segregation as a key determinant in the maintenance of sectarian violence, suggesting that the pernicious nature of segregation in Belfast ‘undermines the capacity to shift society onwards’ (p. 1). Empirical research at a number of sites skilfully illustrates the power of residential and workplace segregation in the organisation of social relations in contemporary Belfast. Guided by a commitment to the importance of space in the reproduction of violence and sectarian identities this engaging book succeeds in charting what segregation means in Belfast, its varied expressions in symbolic and material cultures and the policy problems inherent in moving beyond separation and segregation. Building on the critiques of the Belfast Agreement voiced by writers like Little (2004) and Tonge (2005), the material presented in this volume suggests that the deep divisions between Nationalist/Republican and Unionist/Loyalist groups in the city have remained, and even expanded, since the peace process. Drawing on literature from geography and social anthropology Shirlow and Murtagh begin their account of segregation in Belfast by asserting the relationship between segregation, space and identity formation. Boundaries, and segregation, between sectarian groups are maintained through the use of symbols and territorial markings such as flags, murals and interface walls (the curiously titled ‘peacelines’ which separate communities in Belfast). Chapters 3–7 represent the substantive part of the work in which Shirlow and Murtagh illustrate how segregation is central to the (re)production of violence and sectarian division in Belfast. Drawing on qualitative and quantitative material the authors demonstrate that mobility patterns are directly linked to fear, and also prejudice, of the sectarian ‘Other’. Segregation also undermines the possibility of pluralist politics since social space is coded through sectarian logic and discourses. While non-sectarians do exist there is little or no space for the articulation of alternative attitudes, particularly in segregated working-class areas. However, there has been no post-nationalist turn amongst the middle classes either. Their relative affluence and mixing makes them ‘different from but not a radical alternative to the spatial sectarianism of contemporary Belfast’ (p. 123). Levels of sectarian segregation in the workplace are shown to be much higher than official accounts suggest. Public policy, which ignored segregation for so long, has finally begun to engage with the issue, most notably in housing Social & Cultural Geography, Vol. 8, No. 5, October 2007
Inequality and Growth in European Regions: Towards a Place-based Approach

Abstract Does agglomeration matter for growth? This paper addresses this question by evaluating the impact that intra-regional income distribution has on regional growth in Europe. By using a spatially augmented Solow growth model, we investigate the convergence process among 188 EU regions between 1991 and 2004 and extend the traditional growth models to account for the impact of regional inequality on growth, as well as the effects of interaction among regions. Our assumption is that existing levels of inequality between sub-regional territorial units could positively contribute to regional economic growth in Europe, through the positive effects generated by the emergence of agglomeration economies. Our results show that while we cannot find any overall significant relationship in Europe between agglomeration and growth, once we distinguish between Objective 1 and Non-objective 1 regions we are able to find that agglomeration positively impacts subsequent growth, but only in the less developed regions.
Book reviews

David Forbes’s stated goal on p. 1 of Boyz 2 Buddhas is to be a resource on implementing meditation to help students, athletes in particular, reach the ‘zone’, a place within which the ‘athlete is so attuned to the moment there is no thought, no effort, no self-consciousness; the mind is at one with the body and moves toward a higher goal. ’ Though this is the author’s thesis, it becomes apparent on p. 45 that the text functions more appropriately as an educational resource for those interested in integral school counseling. The author states, ‘Integral counseling, for example, integrates interior self-development with the development of both objective, scientific knowledge of the natural world and of broader cultural communities and social organizations’. I feel Forbes’ book is a good resource in two respects. First, it breaks new ground in exploring how urban athletes use meditation for improving sporting performance, academic performance and spiritual and social awareness. Secondly, Forbes respects those who may have a layman’s understanding of integral counseling, yet still offers valuable information for those familiar with it. Barring a few concerns, I found Boyz 2 Buddhas to be an easily accessible and well-discussed book. There are three sections in the book. In the first section, Forbes frames and discusses masculinity. In the second section, ‘Doing nothing for something: working with high school male athletes’, he reports on a study conducted from 2001 to 2002 on his implementation of meditation to help urban boys playing football in Brooklyn, New York to critically analyse masculinity. In the final section, Forbes discusses his theoretical basis and argues for the implementation of higher-order contemplative methods informed by Buddhism and psychology. In Chapter 1, Forbes lays out his view of masculinity and its oppressive nature, informed by the work of authors and writers such as Connell (1995, 1996), Kupers (1993) and Real (1997, 2002). He continues by reviewing the literature on the arguments for nature versus nurture. Forbes presents a solid review of the major themes in the nature/nurture discussion, and clearly illustrates that both arguments fall short in his discussion of integral counseling. In the second chapter Forbes discusses how the integral approach problematizes masculinity by discussing conventional and post-conventional development. Forbes then discusses his views of spirituality and lays out how meditation can be used to help boys explore postconventional forms of masculinity. As one who is not well versed in Forbes’s area of
Autonomous Locomotion Mode Transition Simulation of a Track-legged Quadruped Robot Step Negotiation

Multi-modal locomotion (e.g. terrestrial, aerial, and aquatic) is gaining increasing interest in robotics research as it improves the robots environmental adaptability, locomotion versatility, and operational flexibility. Within the terrestrial multiple locomotion robots, the advantage of hybrid robots stems from their multiple (two or more) locomotion modes, among which robots can select from depending on the encountering terrain conditions. However, there are many challenges in improving the autonomy of the locomotion mode transition between their multiple locomotion modes. This work proposed a method to realize an autonomous locomotion mode transition of a track-legged quadruped robot steps negotiation. The autonomy of the decision-making process was realized by the proposed criterion to comparing energy performances of the rolling and walking locomotion modes. Two climbing gaits were proposed to achieve smooth steps negotiation behaviours for energy evaluation purposes. Simulations showed autonomous locomotion mode transitions were realized for negotiations of steps with different height. The proposed method is generic enough to be utilized to other hybrid robots after some pre-studies of their locomotion energy performances.
Gender and Party Duopoly in a Small State: Ballot Position Effects under the Single Transferable Vote in Malta, 1947–2008

Research on preference voting systems seems to indicate that where voters are allowed to choose among a party's candidates, the order in which candidates are listed on the ballot has an effect on the number of nominative votes they receive. This study of the 16 Maltese elections of 1947–2008 shows that being listed first on the ballot is a distinct electoral advantage. The analysis implies that complex voting systems are particularly vulnerable to position effects, even when there is a high degree of intra-party competition in small-size electoral districts. It also suggests that policy makers should pay more attention to ballot format design in order to mitigate order effects, even in a small country like Malta.
Image Construction of Islamic Defenders Front in the Jakarta Post Online News

This study aimed to observe image construction of the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) based on six articles of the Jakarta Post Online News about the FPI’s protest toward three issues: Ahmadiyah, the arrival of Lady Gaga in Indonesia, and Ahok as the substitute governor of Jakarta. The author qualitatively explored the FPI’s image using Halliday’s systemic functional linguistics (SFL), which defines the types of process in a clause. The author also analyzed the thematic structure of the clause to support the analysis of each type of process. The result was approximately 208 clauses from the six news articles. This study shows that the dominant process in the above-mentioned three issues is the material process. The material process represents 51% in the issue of Ahmadiyah, 41% in the issue of the arrival of Lady Gaga, and 70% in the issue of Ahok as Jakarta’s substitute governor. This material process shows that the Jakarta Post Online News constructed a negative image of the FPI’s by reporting this organization’s action during the protest. In the issue of Ahmadiyah, the FPI was framed as anarchist, while in the issue of Ahok and of Lady Gaga it was represented as protestor. The analysis of thematic structures shows the FPI as the dominant topical theme, which indicates the FPI was the main topic of the articles.
Field Oriented Control of the Axial Flux PMSM Based On Multi-Objective Particle Swarm Optimization

Abstract— Axial Flux Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor (AFPMSM) is chosen for use in electric vehicles because of its high features, good controlling is a demand to meet the desired performance target. This paper proposes a multi-objective approach to optimize the parameters of the proportional-integral (PI) controller b using Particle swarm optimization (PSO) in the Vector control (or FOC) of an (AFPMSM). The PSO method was chosen to optimizing the PI controller’s parameter by using a multi-objective cost function, which represents a comprehensive evaluating function considering the dynamic and steady-state response. This approach improves the performance of AFPMSM speed controller in tracking the desired reference. The mathematical model of AFPMSM was introduced and FOC was used as effective control. Results were obtained, by using MATLAB-SIMULINK, for multiple operational cases to investigate the performance of the AFPMSM. Simulation results show the superior performance of the proposed controller, for tracking different speed references, comparing with traditional methods. Which gives risetime=0.72s, overshoot=0.05%, and steady-state time=0.73s. Moreover, the proposed controller shows a high degree of robustness against stator parameters variations.
IRJCS-BLACKBOARD SYSTEMS CHILDREN

: New researches in Artificial intelligence have given wide powers for many areas, which based on the fact that the performance of machine is better than humans. Widely, one of the most significant areas in Artificial Intelligence is education and learning. Occasionally the traditional teaching methods do not achieve the required goals from learning. Some teaching progra comparing to traditional class room. appropriate learning procedures are children with learning disabilities. Parents always capability to understand new subjects and to develop expertise. Early interference is very important to help children in their early stages for enhance their learning capacity. on black board system to assists the children sufferer from learning disabilities during the early levels of school. The proposed system targets the child with typical intellectual quotient (IQ). During the implementation of the system the child will go through two types of tests and experiments, which will determine the level of (IQ) and evaluate the diagnosis purposes (developmental disabilities). The rules of the inference engine are generated based on the knowledge engineering resulted from the test.
Remote Collaboration using Mixed Reality: Exploring a shared model approach through different interaction methods

In many situations, performing maintenance procedures can be facilitated by providing on-site professionals with the possibility to request assistance from remote experts, thus performing the task collaboratively. Since remote experts don't have access to the local environment, they need additional mechanisms to provide instructions and guidance in such context. In this ongoing work, we present a Mixed Reality (MR) platform that explores the use of a shared model approach for collaboration scenarios. The platform uses predefined 3D models, which can be accessed by remote experts using Virtual Reality (VR) and by on-site users through Augmented Reality (AR). In addition, the remote expert can manipulate virtual models using different interaction methods and devices, as a mouse and a keyboard (computer), an interactive projector (touch) and controllers (Head Mounted Display). Our goal was to enrich his experience and improve collaborative awareness. We conducted a preliminary user study to evaluate collaboration, and different interaction methods, using as case study the assembly of Lego blocks.
A New Volumetric CNN for 3D Object Classification Based on Joint Multiscale Feature and Subvolume Supervised Learning Approaches

The advancement of low-cost RGB-D and LiDAR three-dimensional (3D) sensors has permitted the obtainment of the 3D model easier in real-time. However, making intricate 3D features is crucial for the advancement of 3D object classifications. The existing volumetric voxel-based CNN approaches have achieved remarkable progress, but they generate huge computational overhead that limits the extraction of global features at higher resolutions of 3D objects. In this paper, a low-cost 3D volumetric deep convolutional neural network is proposed for 3D object classification based on joint multiscale hierarchical and subvolume supervised learning strategies. Our proposed deep neural network inputs 3D data, which are preprocessed by implementing memory-efficient octree representation, and we propose to limit the full layer octree depth to a certain level based on the predefined input volume resolution for storing high-precision contour features. Multiscale features are concatenated from multilevel octree depths inside the network, aiming to adaptively generate high-level global features. The strategy of the subvolume supervision approach is to train the network on subparts of the 3D object in order to learn local features. Our framework has been evaluated with two publicly available 3D repositories. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed method where the classification accuracy is improved in comparison to existing volumetric approaches, and the memory consumption ratio and run-time are significantly reduced.